Don’t tell anyone, but Sebring Florida is known as a premier retirement destination. It’s listed on prominent lists such as Travel & Leisure’s "Destination: Retirement" and World Atlas’s Nine Best Florida Towns for Retirees.
Highlands County is ranked in Florida’s top five for
retirees.
Just this morning (9/6/26) front page news in the Highlands
News Sun reported: America’s No. 1 underrated vacation destination is Lake
Placid, right here in Highlands County.
(Shhhhh, don’t tell anyone or they’ll show up and mess
it up.)
In our little retirement village, most live
comfortably, securely. Nothing fancy, but none that we know of are going
hungry. Although a little hunger would probably do us all a little good.
It’s good to be able to enjoy the fruits of your
labor. It’s a great place, but also a dangerous place.
All too often, when life is easy, we become lukewarm
and lazy, physically and spiritually.
Especially in America where even the poorest are rich
compared to the rest of the world. And almost everyone thinks
they’re going to heaven, even though they never pray, read their Bible or go to
Church, they just walk about with head held high doing whatever is right in
their own eyes. Which is exactly how the Bible describes a culture in chaos,
corruption, moral and societal collapse. Judges 17:6, 21:25.
Jesus warns the Church in Revelation 3:16-17. Because you are lukewarm,
and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. Because
you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do
not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked
1 Corinthians 10:12. Therefore let
him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.
Which brings us to our text today.
Centuries ago, Tyre, was a towering island city in the
sea, a shining superpower that fell into that exact same high-headed, stiff
necked, selfish, strong delusion.
However, in Ezekiel 26, the Lord lets them (and US)
know, that no fortress, no walls, no security no gated community, can stand
against the Sovereignty of the Almighty.
1.
The Sin, Ezekiel 26:1–6
And it came to pass in the eleventh year, on the first day of
the month,
The year is 586 BC, the same year as the fall of
Jerusalem by Babylon.
The city was destroyed, the temple plundered, the
people killed or captured. It was 911 on steroids, the deepest grief in the
history of the nation.
that the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
The Lord is still speaking to those who are
listening.
2 “Son of
man, because Tyre has said...
Not only is He speaking, but He is listening. By
your words you will be justified and by your words you will be condemned.
Matthew 12:37.
So, Tyre said something. God was listening. Depending on
what they said they will be justified or condemned.
...against Jerusalem,
Ruh Roh, we don’t need to go any further to know they
are already in trouble.
For he who touches Jerusalem touches the
apple of God’s eye. Zechariah 2:8.
Behold, all who rage against you will be
ashamed and disgraced; those who contend with you will be reduced to nothing
and will perish. Isaiah 41:11.
Genesis 12:3. I
will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and
in you all the families of the earth shall
be blessed.”
That’s why the devil poisons so many against Israel. The
poison doesn’t hurt Israel nearly as much as the people or nation infected by it.
And that was the catalyst of Tyre’s demise.
‘Aha! She is broken who was the gateway of
the peoples; now she is turned over to me; I shall be filled; she is laid waste.’
Aha! means to gloat over another’s grief.
Notice Tyre’s selfishness. Jerusalem is broken,
she is laid waste, she is turned over to me, I shall be
filled.
They did not send aid. They
did not mourn. They did not show compassion over Jerusalem’s ashes.
Instead, they celebrated,
because Jerusalem was a major trading hub by land, whereas Tyre ruled trading
by sea.
With Jerusalem gone, that
opened a whole new market share for Tyre.
Proverbs 24:17-20.
“Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and do not let your heart be glad when
he stumbles; 18 Lest
the Lord see it, and it displease Him, and He turn
away His wrath from him.”
2. The Sentence, Ezekiel 26:3–6
3 “Therefore thus
says the Lord God: ‘Behold, I am against you, O
Tyre, and will cause many nations to come up against
you, as the sea causes its waves to come up. 4 And
they shall destroy the walls of Tyre and break down her towers; I
will also scrape her dust from her, and make her like the
top of a rock. 5 It shall be a place
for spreading nets in the midst of the sea, for I have
spoken,’ says the Lord God; ‘it shall become plunder for the
nations. 6 Also her daughter villages which are in
the fields shall be slain by the sword. Then they shall know that I am
the Lord.’
This brief overview of His judgement against them
opens letting them know: Because you were against Jerusalem, I AM against you.
HIStory proves this prophecy True.
Starting with Nebuchadnezzar, many nations as sea
waves came against Tyre, wave after wave after wave until finally 250 years
later, Alexander the Great, destroyed the 150’ high stone walls, brought down
her towers (multistory apartment complexes), and turned her from a tall,
towering Tyre, to a Flat Tyre.
Today, the once beautiful Island is a peninsula of flat
rocks where fishermen spread their nets to dry... just as God had said.
Her ruins can be seen lying flat under the surface of
the sea.
Speaking of towers, this week is the 25th
anniversary of 911. Twenty-five years ago this week we lost thousands of lives
in one day from and Islamic terrorist attack.
Today, we have Muslim Marxist Mayor Mamdani (and
others like him), being applauded for spewing and spreading the same
anti-American, anti-Christian, Islamic ideology. Which fits perfectly into the
message of this chapter.
3. The
Summary, Ezekiel 23:7-14
Now with amazing detail the Lord zooms and summarizes
what will happen.
7 “For thus
says the Lord God: ‘Behold, I will bring against Tyre from the
north Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, king of
kings, with horses, with chariots, and with horsemen, and an army with
many people. 8 He will slay with the sword
your daughter villages in the fields; he will heap up a
siege mound against you, build a wall against you, and raise a defense
against you. 9 He will direct his battering
rams against your walls, and with his axes he will break down your
towers. 10 Because of the abundance of his horses, their
dust will cover you; your walls will shake at the noise of the horsemen, the
wagons, and the chariots, when he enters your gates, as men
enter a city that has been breached. 11 With the hooves of
his horses he will trample all your streets; he will
slay your people by the sword, and your strong pillars will fall to the
ground.
HIStory records that shortly after the fall of
Jerusalem, Nebuchadnezzar marched to mainland Tyre (known as Old
Tyre or Palaetyrus).
The siege lasted 13 years (585–572 B.C.).
Just as it was written Nebuchadnezzar battered the
walls, tore down the towers, breached the city and slayed the people.
However, without a navy, Nebuchadnezzar was unable to
invade the shining island city of Tyre sitting safely about a half mile out in
the eastern Mediterranean Sea, off the coast of modern day Lebanon.
And thus, HIStory’s spotlight shifts from
Nebuchadnezzar to, they.
12 They will
plunder your riches and pillage your merchandise; they will break down your walls and destroy your pleasant houses; they will lay your stones, your timber, and your
soil in the midst of
the water. 13 I will put an end to the sound
of your songs, and the sound of your harps shall be heard no more. 14 I
will make you like the top of a rock; you shall be a place
for spreading nets, and you shall never be rebuilt, for I
the Lord have spoken,’ says the Lord God.
Remember verse 3: God will cause many nations as waves
of the sea to come against Tyre.
Wave after wave came and went.
For over two centuries, skeptics mocked this prophecy,
claiming God's Word failed because the island city of Tyre remained wealthy and
powerful.
However, history always, eventually,
catches up with HIStory.
Fast forward 240 years to 332 B.C. and meet the tidal
wave that takes out Tyre.
A young Greek warrior called Alexander the Great.
This is where the towering Tyre turns into a Flat
Tyre.
Alexander did not have a massive navy, but he had a massive
strategy. He ordered his army to take the rubble left behind by Nebuchadnezzar,
the stones, the timber, the soil and lay it in the
sea. (Verse 12).
Just as God had prophesied.
It took seven months of working and fighting but they
built a massive, 200-foot-wide land bridge (a causeway) stretching from
shore to island.
To get enough material the soldiers literally scraped the old site clean, right down to the bedrock.
Look again at Ezekiel 26:4-5 written centuries before
Alexander was even born:
I will also scrape her dust
from her and make her like the top of a rock. 5 It
shall be a place for spreading nets in the midst of
the sea...
We just read those words repeated in verse fourteen:
14 I will make you like the top of a rock; you
shall be a place for spreading nets, and you shall never be
rebuilt, for I the Lord have spoken,’ says the Lord God.
Today, if you visit the geographic location of ancient
Tyre, you will find those words literally fulfilled. God’s Word is always True.
The towering island city is no more, her ruins can be seen under the surface of
the sea. The land bridge has turned to a rocky peninsula where fishermen spread
their nets to dry in the sun.
4. The
Tsunami, Ezekiel 26:15–21
15 “Thus says the Lord God to Tyre: ‘Will the coastlands not
shake at the sound of your fall, when the wounded cry, when slaughter
is made in the midst of you? 16 Then all the princes of the sea will come down
from their thrones, lay aside their robes, and take off their
embroidered garments; they will clothe themselves with trembling; they
will sit on the ground, tremble every moment, and be astonished
at you. 17 And they will take up a lamentation for you, and say to you:
“How you have perished,
O one inhabited by seafaring men,
O renowned city,
Who was strong at sea,
She and her inhabitants,
Who caused their terror to be on all her inhabitants!
18 Now the coastlands tremble on the day of your fall;
Yes, the coastlands by the sea are troubled at your departure.”
’
19 “For thus says the Lord God: ‘When I make you a desolate
city, like cities that are not inhabited, when I bring the deep upon you,
and great waters cover you, 20 then I will bring you down with
those who descend into the Pit, to the people of old, and I will make
you dwell in the lowest part of the earth, in places desolate from
antiquity, with those who go down to the Pit, so that you may never be
inhabited; and I shall establish glory in the land of the living. 21 I will
make you a terror, and you shall be no more; though you are sought
for, you will never be found again,’ says the Lord God.”
The fall of Tyre was an emotional and economic tsunami for the region. They mourned the loss of enormous trade revenue.
However, there’s a much larger, more deadly, tsunami
that swept the region, and is sweeping our nation, our world.
No fortress, no walls, no gated community, no security
system, can stand against the Sovereignty of the Almighty.
Speaking of God’s Sovereignty consider, JerUSAlem
versus Tyre.
From Ezekiel 4-24 we listened to the Lord warn Jerusalem
of impending judgement for her sins.
Yet...
In God’s Sovereignty He repeatedly calls Jerusalem, His chosen city, the city of God, where He chose to put His name, His habitation, His resting place forever. 2 Chronicles 6:6, Psalm 132:13–14, 2 Chronicles 7:16, Psalm 48:1–2, 1 Kings 11:36.
Zechariah 3:2: "And the Lord said to Satan,
'The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke
you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?'"
God’s Eternal covenant stands. Period.
Whereas, the Lord says of Tyre: I will bring
you down to the Pit, I will make you a terror, you will never be inhabited, you
will be sough but never found again.
Now, notice the irrational response of the world
regarding what God has blessed versus what He has cursed.
At the disciplining destruction of Jerusalem, the
world rejoiced. (Ammonites, Moabites, Edomites, Philistines, Tyre, Ezekiel
25-26).
At the destruction of Tyre, the world mourned.
In the not-so-distant future the world will mourn the
destruction of Babylon (Revelation 18).
Something is wrong with this picture. It's backwards. It’s
an enormous tsunami of deception.
Isaiah
5:20
Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;
Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness;
Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
Recently, a cat and a couple doves revealed the same backward
delusion is on the rise today.
A few days ago, I shared this on our village Facebook page:
Last night I heard a
loud ruckus. I looked out our dining room window, and an orange cat was on top
of our car, about four feet from the dove nest on the east side of our carport.
He stared at me and froze. I quickly went to the living room window, which was
closer to him, when I opened the blinds he bolted away. Both mama doves in our
two nests were gone.
Thank the Lord, this
morning the mamas are back sitting on their eggs.
If you see a cat that
looks like this picture. Shoot it. Or catch it. Or take it home and keep it. Or
anything to try to keep it from eating these beautiful doves and their soon to
be here babies.
The comments looked something like this:
Shoot it????????
Nooooo, don't shoot it!!! All creatures belong to God and He gives us the
right to kill for food only. Circle of life my friend. #advocate
Some tried to defend
me:
I’m sure it was meant shoo it not shoot…
To which I responded, thank you, that was nice... but I’m not that nice.
My wife went into damage
control:
He didn’t mean it “literally” shoot it, for heaven’s sake!
One comment shared a
cute Christmas tale about a tabby cat that kept baby Jesus warm and how Mary stroked
his forehead up and down in the shape of an “M” and that’s why, to this day,
tabby cats have an “M” on their forehead. 😊
However, I’m sadly amazed that no one said, “Oh thank God the cat didn’t eat the mama,” or “Poor doves must’ve been petrified,” or “So glad they had enough courage and commitment to return to the nest.”
Sidenote: They're still there. I just checked.
It appears they hired some sparrows as watchmen:
No one defended the doves, only the perpetrator. The one who came on my property uninvited to kill, steal and destroy. And the people defended that. I know it’s just a cat, but it’s an eerie reflection of the attitude of the age...
Then, for an experiment, I made a separate post on the
same Facebook page:
67,607,955
ABORTIONS
IN THE UNITED STATES SINCE ROE V. WADE
So many were upset about simply mentioning the killing
of a cat, surely EVERYBODY will be alarmed about 67 million babies
slaughtered (and rising at 3,085 per day, 129 per hour, 1 innocent child painfully
pulled limb from limb every 28 seconds).
How many comments filled the feed? What did they say?
Hold that thought, we’ll come back to it in a moment.
Millions upon millions have come on our property uninvited, many, kill, steal and destroy. And the people
defend them, ignoring justice for the innocent victims.
In broad daylight,
amidst thousands of people, before millions online, a boy shot dead an American
hero. He turned himself in. He is guilty beyond the shadow of a reasonable
doubt. Yet, it took nearly a year before a decision was made to go to trial. People
laugh as they imitate the murder, they mock the grieving widow and her two
small children.
A mother strangled
her three small children to death. Masses gather to protest, in favor of the
murderer. Eleven jurors voted, not guilty. One dared to stand alone. One
holdout prevented justice for the innocent from being completely ignored.
Ezekiel
22:30
So I sought for a man among them who would make a
wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should
not destroy it; but I found no one.
At least for the moment, one man stood against the
crowd and provided a stay of execution, of the vile celebration that would’ve
followed, the applause that would’ve erupted, for a woman’s right to murder her
children—at any age.
This cheering for evil, the dark, the bitter,
is fueled by the same demons, that applaud every 28 seconds, over a million
times a year, for the butchering bloodshed of babies still in the womb, the
egg, the nest.
Romans
1:28
And even as they did not like to
retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased
mind, to do those things which are not fitting
2
Thessalonians 2:11
And for this reason God will send
them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie.
The deluded corruption of Romans 1:28, 2 Thessalonians 2:11, is being fulfilled in full measure, right before our very eyes.
Okay now, what about the abortion clock post?
Well, perhaps, if the stats were deaths of cats we would
have gotten more action.
How many comments did we get showing compassion for babies?
Crickets all...
But one.
One dared to stand alone. One voice against the silent
crowd:
God forgive us.
Murdering the helpless IS
the atrocity that has led to our demise…and from what we see on social media,
we will go down cheering and gloating for murders, criminals and animals, but
NOT stand up for the victims.
It is THE sign of our
end. We are just blind to it.
Friends, there is a great tsunami of deception sweeping the world,
the nation, our neighborhood.
The Good News is, God never gives us a warning without
giving us a Way out.
He has given you today.
Today is the day to wake up oh sleeper!
Ephesians
5:14
Awake, O sleeper, and rise up from the dead; and Christ shall
give you light.
Today, you have a choice.
Deuteronomy
30:19
I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I
have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore, choose
life, that both you and your descendants may live.
Let’s pray.
Lord Jesus, please keep us from being
deceived, give us wisdom to discern between good and evil, dark and light,
bitter and sweet, lest we find ourselves cheering the wrong and cursing the
right. Lord, we choose You, today, tomorrow, forever. Don’t let us ever forget.
Now, please use us to help all those You’ve given us, to choose You, too.
Thank You.
We love You, forever.
Amen.
Prayer Requests:
Call or text: 612-554-2522
Email: pray4measap@aol.com
Facebook: Church at WPV
Books: amazon.com/author/dougspurling
Watch online:
Facebook: Flat Tyre, Ezekiel 26
You Tube: Flat Tyre, Ezekiel 26
This was feed for you to read. Now it’s
Seed for you to sow.
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