“And He said unto me, Son of man, stand upon thy feet, and I will speak unto thee. And the Spirit entered into me when He spake unto me, and set me upon my feet, that I heard Him that spake unto Me.” Ezekiel 2:1-2
It must have been a very pleasant day when Jesus entered into Simon Peter’s fishing boat, asking him to put out a little distance from the shore, so as to be able to teach the multitude of people. After Jesus had finished teaching, the disciples certainly listening to every word, he spoke to Peter to “…launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught,” (a catch). Though the disciples had fished all night and caught nothing, the obeyed the Lord’s words and put out from shore, and again put down their nets. This time they enclosed a multitude of fish, so many that other boats had to come and help. When the boats were on the verge of sinking, being filled with fish, Peter was became overwhelmed by what he saw. He fell at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me; for I am a sinful man.” (Luke 5:8) For most in the Bible, when God revealed His glory in a very manifest way, there was a falling down before Him. Why? The magnitude and greatness of God, His power, wisdom, and goodness, were too much for men to take in. It was overwhelming. Another thing was overwhelming too. It was a conciousness of one’s own need compared to the beauty, holiness, and righteousness of God in Christ. Peter’s reaction resembled that of Isaiah who, when he saw in a vision the Lord high and lifted up, said: “Woe is me! for I am undone (or destroyed); because I am a man of unclean lips…” (Is.6:5) Both men were overwhelmed by their sinful state, when compared with the holiness, and greatness of God. Why then do we consider the matter of standing, specifically, “…standing on thy feet?” The answer lies in the purpose of it when confronted by God, and what He commands.
There came a day in the time of Nehamiah and Ezra, when the wall of Jerusalem had been built, that a revival came to the people. After Ezra the priest read the Law, then designating men to teach its meaning to the people, that the people greatly mourned and wept for their sin. The people could not hear anything further, because they had been brought so low concerning their sinfulness. So, what did Nehemiah and Ezra instruct the people? They were told to eat and drink, share their food with others, and celebrate the day as “holy unto the Lord.” Nehemiah understood that the people needed to be strengthened, not overwhelmed, for, “…the joy of the Lord was their strength.” (Neh. 8:10) The need for Isaiah, Peter, and the people of Israel, for a time was that they should be overwhelmed. But the time had come, as we see in Ezekiel’s experience with God, to stand up, hear, and go forward in victorious faith, being strengthened by the Spirit. There is a time for kneeling before God, as we see in the life of Daniel, who did so three times a day. This was necessary in order to maintain a right and true perspective of this servant of God in a foreign, idolatrous land. His communion with God, in great part was dependent upon the maintaining of an attitude of worshipful submission to God as his King and Lord, even in Babylon. There came a moment in the life of Ezekiel when God called him to rise from a position of being overwhelmed, to that of being committed to go forward, obeying the Lord, proving the sufficient grace of God.
There comes a day in the life of every Christian, even many moments, when the Lord instructs us to stand upon our feet. It means believing God, taking a stand of faith, hearing the voice of God, and responding in loving, wholehearted commitment, to see His kingdom come and His will accomplished.
Dear Father, Strengthen us to stand. In Jesus’ name, Amen.