Ezekiel 3:7 But the house of Israel will not hearken unto thee; for they will not hearken unto me; for all the house of Israel are impudent and hardhearted
I want you to imagine a successful pastor, a pastor whose church is a great success. What does he sound like? What does he look like? What kind of ministry does he have? It seems that at this time and this place, the United States of America, success is measure by how good we look, how good we sound, and how many people follow us. To be sure, it is fine to look fine, good to sound well, and great when we have a large following. But what if we do not? What if a preacher preaches the truth, but does not have a great following? Now to be sure, what is going to follow is not an alibi for being feckless or useless, but it is a reminder of what true success is.
You see, in Ezekiel 3 God sends Ezekiel to his own people, and He says about this, “Surely, had I sent thee to them [strangers], they would have hearkened unto thee. But the house of Israel will not hearken unto thee; for they will not hearken unto me: for all the house of Israel are impudent and hardhearted.” God was saying, “They are not going to listen to you, but that is because they are not listening to me,” which is to say that Ezekiel’s success was not tied to the people, but tied to God.
Successful ministry is not demonstrated merely by the fact that everyone listens to you. Successful ministry is demonstrated by the fact that you listen to God. That is the emphasis over and again from God to Ezekiel. God says, “Don’t be like this rebellious people. Listen to Me. They may not listen to you, but you listen to Me. The reason they will not listen to you is they have not listened to me.”
So, success is in that you listen to God. You can’t control other people, but you do have the decision to choose whether you will listen to God or not. So, listen to God how? Listen to God with your ears. He says, “Receive in thine heart, and hear with thine ears.” God is speaking to Ezekiel, “They may not listen to you, but you hear with your ears.” It is important what you allow into your mind that comes in through your ears and eyes, among other senses God has given you. So, listen with your ears.
Listen with your heart. Verse 10 says, “Receive in thine heart, and hear with thine ears.” That is success. Listen to God without fear. God goes on to say, “Son of man, all my words…” They were God’s words, not Ezekiel’s. It continues, “That I shall speak unto thee receive in thine heart, and hear with thine ears. Earlier it says, “Neither be dismayed at their looks.” God says, “Don’t be dismayed. Don’t fear. Fear Me more than you fear the crowd.”
And, sometimes we need to listen to God with a hard head for the truth. We ought to have a soft heart and a hard head. If something is true and worth saying, it is fine to be hard-headed for the truth. God says about Ezekiel, “As an adamant harder than flint have I made thy forehead: fear them not.” Adamant is a word we use to describe someone who is determined. It is also the name of a stone harder than flint. Sometimes we need to listen to God and be totally focused on what He says and hard-headed for the truth and against falsehood.
So, many times we judge success by how we sound, how we look, and who follows us. I would vote for looking well, speaking well, and having a great following, but that does not make success. God basically says to Ezekiel, “If you warn them and they don’t listen, it is on them, but it you do not warn them, it is on you.” Success today, whether you are a preacher or not, is not found in how popular you are, but in how well you listen to God.