[The Heavens Were Opened]

Ezekiel 1:1~3

1 In my thirtieth year, in the fourth month on the fifth day, while I was among the exiles by the Kebar River, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God.

2 On the fifth of the monthampmdashit was the fifth year of the exile of King Jehoiachinampmdash 3 the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, by the Kebar River in the land of the Babylonians. [a] There the hand of the Lord was on him.

One of the shares in Jacobs Redeemers new book by Pastor Kim Yang Jae, 'Lord, You Must Feel Good in Your Stomach,' a deacon who graduated from a top undergraduate business program said, 'One of the miracles I saw was Pastor Kims change from her own thoughts to Gods thoughts. I am most afraid of the fact that I do not have the honor of being a child of God while believing in God.' The reason we know the concept of blessing but do not enjoy it is because the heavens have not opened. Today, lets meditate together on what it takes for the heavens to be opened.

First, we need to be captured.

Ezekiel is supposed to be a priest, but hes in Babylonian captivity, unable to do his job. The river Kebar, where hes held captive, is a place so rich or so hard that it seems like God will never show up. Its the land of the Chaldeans, the land of Babylon, the greatest power in the world, and its a very sad place to be in captivity, but God keeps warning me and leading me gradually, and I cant hear the warnings, so Im distraught. He takes my king, Jehoiachin, into captivity, and the captivity shouldnt be one or two years, it should be five years, and I need to go down to the ends of the earth, and then the heavens open.

Ezekiel was thirty years, I was thirty years old, and I was in slavery to the greatest power, Babylon, and my piano, my lifelong ability, was taken captive, and the heavens were opened after five years of captivity, and when I think about it, God let me go into captivity at different times, and the heavens were opened as long as I was captive, and I have been giving my testimony of captivity ever since. I was a poor high school student who was addicted to time and recognition, so I entered Seoul National University as a piano major, and with that education, I met a doctor husband of an entrepreneur, Elder Kwon, and moved into an in-laws house like the Kebar River in Babylon. I thought it would be end of my suffering, beginning of happiness from now on, but I was captivated by mopping, unable to go out of the door. Moreover, without discussing it with me, my husband announced that he was going to live with his parents for the rest of his life, and I didnt say a word because I was afraid that all my patience would be for naught. But when the heavens opened a little and I saw the face of God, I realized that the reason I didnt say anything was not because I was nice, but because I was afraid of my in-laws, and I was afraid of my husband. My mother and the two helpers were bullying me and treating me badly, and I didnt know what to say, and I was scared, so I just kept quiet, and I felt like such a hypocrite, and I just put up with it, and it was stressful, and there wasnt a place where I didnt get sick with stomach ailments, migraines. Theres that one person in your blind spot that you cant talk to, even if you go to church, and I think its the same with mens work life. My in-laws were the temple that protected me from being wiped out by the Jesus seed. Being alone is practicing solitude in the crowd and walking with God, and being captive to my in-laws culture and relationships was the discipline I needed.

Second, it leads to obedience in all times.

When I was taken captive and brought to the ends of the earth, I finally began to see the bottom of myself. The Lord leaves us alone to get out of trouble and face ourselves, and many people reject the times of trouble, but God makes every time beautiful. The opening of the heavens and seeing the face of God is also seen as gradual, because there is salvation that has already been accomplished, but there is salvation that is yet to be accomplished. In Genesis 32, Jacob wrestles with God all night by the river Jabbok. Jacobs deception of his brother Esau is the essence of the problem, but it becomes something he will take with him to the grave, leaving him alone. Without repentance, Jacob gained the things he was most proud of: money, health, a wife, and children. He sends them all across the river, and in his lonely moment, when his brother is trembling with fear, God comes to him. God loves Jacob so much that he strikes him in the back of the head, the thing he is most proud of, and when he asks for his name, he finally faces himself and cries out, 'I am Jacob, the deceiver.' God then changes his name to 'Israel,' which means 'I have wrestled with God and won.

When I reached the bottom, the heavens opened and I saw my sin. I realized that I had studied with a frightening zeal because I loved money, and I realized that my fear of my mother-in-law was greed disguised as goodness. It was the same time and space, but when I looked at my sins, I was transformed from prison to heaven, where nothing was unbeautiful.

Third, the power of the Word comes.

The opening of the heavens is hearing the voice of the One who speaks. When the Word is specially spoken and realized, the power of the LORD comes, and I realize the reason for my present condition.

When the heavens opened up, the first thing I remembered was my mothers shameful avoidance of cleaning toilets in her pants. I realized that my in-laws, like the Pharisees who scoffed at Jesus words because they loved money, were the 'bottom line of my life.' Then the Word came, and power came as I saw my sinfulness day by day. My mother-in-laws spirit of fearful obedience changed to one of pity and rejoicing because of her salvation, and I worshiped with her as a mighty man. We read 1 Corinthians 13, and I shared, 'I hate my mother because she scolds me, and I have no love.' Then she confessed, 'I hate my father because he comes and goes.' And she said, 'God, Abba, I hate Abba, he comes and goes. I just walk in the churchyard and go back and forth without knowing the words of God. I dont even know how to pray, just have pity on me. And one day my mother prayed, 'Heavenly Father, we thank You for sending such a good, precious servant of Yours into our house.' She said thanks to the Lord having me to share the Words and to pray together.

We need to do the QT, we need to go into the community and share who we are. We need to hear the gospel accurately so we can interpret the hardships that suddenly come our way. For those of you who are going through divorce and separation in your homes right now, why dont you apply to join us? For those of you who are going through all kinds of hardships, may the power of the heavens be opened. I wish for you to know the reason for every season of your life and the reason for your current situation, so that we, like the tree that was cut down at the base, may live a life of mission.