showers of blessing

Ezekiel is a hard book to read.  There is the wheel within the wheel, there is the object lesson of laying on his side for a year and making a clay model of Jerusalem and prophesying against it.  Like many of the prophetic books, one must understand where they were in the timeline of Israel to appreciate what was going on in their lives.

Ezekiel was before and during the exile.

The time period in which he lived was full of frustration and social upheaval.  The Northern Kingdom of Israel fell in 722, The Southern Kingdom of Judah fell in 586 and the Babylonian Kingdom led by Nebucahadnezzar deported the people of God to Babylon.

Ezekiel was among the deportees.  The Expositor's Bible Commentary puts it this way:
It was in this period of international turmoil and unrest, combined with the immorality and apostasy of Judah, that Ezekiel ministered. Having grown up during the reform of Josiah, and having been taken captive in the deportation of Jehoiachin in 597 b.c., Ezekiel, both a priest and a prophet, proclaimed to the exiled Jews in Babylonia the Lord’s judgment and ultimate blessing.[1] Frank E. Gaebelein, Geoffrey W. Grogan, Charles L. Feinberg et al., The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Volume 6: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1986), 739.

In chapter 34, Ezekiel is on a roll talking about the future of Israel, when God's promises will finally be fulfilled.

That's what caught my attention.  Here's the passage:
Ezekiel 34:25–31 (ESV)

25 “I will make with them a covenant of peace and banish wild beasts from the land, so that they may dwell securely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods. 26 And I will make them and the places all around my hill a blessing, and I will send down the showers in their season; they shall be showers of blessing... 

This reminds me of some great truths within our Christian life:

1. God sent His Son in Christ to redeem us from all sin.
2. Jesus rose from the dead, conquering death, hell and the grave
3. The disciples, following Jesus command, waited for the promise of the Holy Spirit.
4. Jesus instructed His disciples on the necessity of Spirit baptism in John 7:37-39
5. The Angel told the disciples on the Mt. of Olives that Jesus would return in the same manner that He wen into heaven.  Acts 1:9-11
6. Jesus declared to John 60 years later from the throne of God that He would return (Revelation 22:6-7)

Showers of Blessings!

129 Years ago, Major Daniel Whittle, and  James McGranahan collaborated on this song that has landed in almost every hymnal since.  It echoes the cry of the Church and the believer for blessings from God.  This hymn first appeared in Gospel Hymns No. 4, 1883.

“There shall be showers of blessing”—this is the promise of love; there shall be seasons refreshing, sent from the Savior above.
“There shall be showers of blessing”—precious reviving again; over the hills and the valleys sound of abundance of rain.
“There shall be showers of blessing”—send them upon us, O Lord; grant to us now a refreshing; come and now honor Thy Word.
“There shall be showers of blessing”—O that today they might fall, now as to God we’re confessing, now as on Jesus we call!
Chorus: Showers of blessing, showers of blessing we need; mercy drops round us are falling, but for the showers we plead.[1] Kenneth W. Osbeck, Amazing Grace : 366 Inspiring Hymn Stories for Daily Devotions (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Kregel Publications, 1990), 94.

 Thankfully, He not only fulfilled His promise in Christ and the Power of the Spirit, but we have today the joy of His presence and the hope of eternal life.  It's time to look up and thank God for His mercy on all who believe, now and forevermore.  Showers of Blessing! Praise God!