We have been studying the book of Ezekiel in the Sunday morning auditorium class.  Early in the book, Ezekiel explained a symbolic act he had performed by shaving his hair and his beard.  God’s explanation started this way:
Thus says the Lord God: This is Jerusalem. I have set her in the center of the nations, with countries all around her.
- Ezekiel 5:5 (ESV)
Ezekiel then proceeded to explain the disaster that God would bring upon the city because of its actions.  The Israelites hadn’t even held up to the moral standards of the surrounding nations (Ezekiel 5:7).
“The center of the nations” is a significant phrase.  Not only had God surrounded Israel with other nations, he had placed them in a very strategic location.  Trade from the south, primarily from Egypt, had to come through Palestine to reach nations in Europe or Asia Minor to the west and nations such as Assyria, Babylon and Persia in the east.  Trade between the West and the East frequently came through Palestine as well.  Solomon took advantage of this geographic placement to increase his wealth greatly.  But this central position not only provides for material benefits, it also set up the Israelites as spokespeople to propagate God’s name to those other nations as well.  However, the Israelites had failed to communicate God’s glory and furthermore, they had actually made God look unappealing to those nations because of their immoral actions.  God had blessed Israel bountifully, and now they were to be punished accordingly because they did not seize the opportunity to glorify God.
There are at least three applications of this lesson for us today.  First, the United States is a country that was founded with reliance upon God, despite recent attempts to rewrite history.  And while, as a nation, we relied upon God, God blessed us and we grew to a position of note among the world.  By the mid to late part of the last century, the world had grown to look to the U.S. for direction.
But that has changed.  As a nation, the world still hears a message from us.  They hear it in the form of corrupt elected officials, laws allowing or encouraging immorality, and a supreme court that seems intent on striking any morality from our constitution.  They hear it in the form of entertainment – movies, videos, songs, and TV shows – that portrays a people whose life is based on self indulgence and who unashamedly push depraved agendas.  People still associate the United States with Christianity, but when they hear this type of message from us, they walk away from Christianity in disgust.  If God held Judah accountable for her actions, will he not also hold us accountable?
A second application focuses on our local congregation.  Our physical facilities are located in a very prominent position on the main north-south route through the city.  And the town of Smyrna has been experiencing phenomenal growth for a couple of decades.  Our location makes us a likely place for people new to the city to visit and the growth of the area provides lots of new people unaffiliated with a particular church home.  God has truly blessed us with a wonderful opportunity.  Perhaps you can say the same thing about your congregation.  What are you doing with the opportunity?  Are you making the most of the situation with which God has blessed you in order to attract people to Christ?
Third, we can apply this verse individually.  Christians are to be the light of the world (Matthew 5:14).  No matter who you are, someone is looking to you as an example – even if you don’t know it.  In a sense, you are the center of the world to them because you serve as a role model.  Do people see your good works and glorify God?  May God bless you as you seek his will and tell of his glory!

—Mark Mayes