Ezekiel 17

(February 22, 2015)

                Trusting in the arm of flesh is a weakness that we all seem to fall into sooner or later.  The phrase is one that we traditionally look at as trusting in our own strength, rather than trusting in the Lord.  This is certainly valid, but there is a great deal more to the phrase than that.  Just as the ancient Jews trusted in Egypt instead of the Lord, we today look to the arms of others instead of the Lord.

                When we are unhappy, we choose to look to life coaches, psychology, or entertainment rather than repentance.  When we are sick, we may go to a dozen doctors before a single prayer is uttered.  When we need professional help we hire marketers or accountants or whoever we think that we need.  It is not that there isn’t a place for all of these, but they should never be our primary source for strength – God must remain the sole Person that we trust.  To the extend we put an ‘expert’ before the Lord, regardless of that expert’s qualifications, we are trusting in the arm of flesh.