Has the question ever crossed your mind: “If we cannot see God, how can we perceive and recognise His will?” Perhaps at some point of crisis in our faith, that question has arisen. However, answering it is no easy task. We can only rely on the conviction of faith that if God is the Creator of the universe, then He can use various things within this universe to speak to us and reveal His will. 

One of the ways God spoke to His people in the Old Testament era was through the prophets. Here, we see how the Lord commanded Ezekiel to carry out a series of symbolic acts to emphasise a profound message to the people so that they might remember it. These symbolic acts included instructing him to draw a map of Jerusalem on a brick, and then to re-enact the siege of Jerusalem. Ezekiel lay on his side for days on end, symbolically bearing the sins of his people. He ate only mixed bread and drank only a very small measure of water, illustrating the famine that would befall Jerusalem. His very body became a sign to the people of Israel (v. 3). 

It seems he was re-enacting the sins committed by Israel, which had brought judgement upon the nation. God invites His people to observe this carefully and learn from what they have done. This is where the transformative power of God’s word lies. At one point it may feel relieving and pleasant to heed His word, but at another we feel so struck and rebuked. Yet all of this is part of His providential care. We need to open ourselves to seeing God’s word in everything we encounter in this universe. 

Thus, the call for all of us is to cultivate a longing to continually hear and uphold His Word. Sometimes we tend to pick and choose from His Word. We listen to the words that bring us joy, whilst ignoring the rebukes conveyed through His Word.