You're a Sign

Ezekiel will be a sign to you; you will do just as he has done. When this happens, you will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.

Ezekiel 24:24

Here am I, and the children the Lord has given me. We are signs and symbols in Israel from the Lord Almighty…

Isaiah 8:18

The prophets we read of in Scripture were God’s mouthpieces. They received messages from God and then delivered those messages word-for-word to God’s people. Sometimes the prophets spoke these messages to God’s people. At other times they wrote them down in the books we have in the Bible. Often they did both. But occasionally, the prophets went to greater lengths to deliver their messages. Sometimes merely speaking the truth wasn’t enough. God’s people needed to see it lived out in front of them. So, occasionally, God commanded His prophets to put His word into action, to act out God’s prophecy, to be a living metaphor or parable for God’s people.

Ezekiel served as a sign to God's people in this way when God commanded him not to mourn the death of his wife (Ezekiel 24:15-24). Isaiah also served as a living sign. God told him to walk around naked (possibly in a loincloth) for three years (Isaiah 20:3)! Even his children were given names that carried prophetic meanings (Isaiah 8). The prophet Hosea was commanded to marry an adulterous woman so he could picture God's grace for His people's idolatrous worship (Hosea 1:2-3 & 3:1-3).  

I believe that in a way all believers are called to the same. You are a sign. In the same way that the prophets served as a picture of God’s dealing with His people, so too your life tells the people around you about God. Your life may be the only Bible they ever read. You may be the closest thing to a preacher they're ever willing to talk to. So, think seriously about this. What does your life point people to? What does your life say about Jesus? About the gospel? You are called to be an ambassador for Christ, so be careful how you live (2 Corinthians 5:20). Make sure your life paints an attractive picture of your Savior and points people to Jesus accurately.