We are Unworthy of Your Blessings (Ezra 9:8-12)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/21/2011 9:00:30 AM

 

 

My Worship Time                                                  Focus:  “We are Unworthy of Your Blessings”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                          Reference: Ezra 9:8-12

 

             Message of the verses:  “8  "But now for a brief moment grace has been shown from the LORD our God, to leave us an escaped remnant and to give us a peg in His holy place, that our God may enlighten our eyes and grant us a little reviving in our bondage. 9  "For we are slaves; yet in our bondage our God has not forsaken us, but has extended lovingkindness to us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to give us reviving to raise up the house of our God, to restore its ruins and to give us a wall in Judah and Jerusalem. 10 “Now, our God, what shall we say after this? For we have forsaken Your commandments, 11  which You have commanded by Your servants the prophets, saying, ’The land which you are entering to possess is an unclean land with the uncleanness of the peoples of the lands, with their abominations which have filled it from end to end and with their impurity. 12  ’So now do not give your daughters to their sons nor take their daughters to your sons, and never seek their peace or their prosperity, that you may be strong and eat the good things of the land and leave it as an inheritance to your sons forever.’”

 

            In verses eight and nine I have highlighted five different images to picture what God’s grace had done for the people who had returned to the land.

1.     In His Grace God persevered a remnant.  As one looks at the Bible in general and in particular the nation of Israel, it can be seen that there were times when because of their sin that God would destroy part of them but would always keep a remnant.  One example of this is when Elijah thought he was the only one left in Israel who was serving the Lord; the Lord told him that He had 7000 who had not bowed their knee to Baal.  There are other examples that can be found, and the one that sticks out in my mind is when the Lord sent the world wide flood to cover the earth and the remnant that was left was Noah and his family.

2.     Next Ezra speaks about a peg in His holy place.  This speaks of the foothold that the Jews now had in the land, the land that was taken away from them.  The peg in the holy place speaks of the Temple and now that it was rebuilt because of the grace of God the Jews were more secure in the land.

3.     God enlightens their eyes.  This speaks of the Jews returning to their homeland.  The enlightened eye speaks of new life, new joy, and dawning of a new day.  Here are two verses from the book of Psalms that help explain this:  Psalm 13:3 “Consider and hear me, O LORD my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death; Psalm 34:5 “They looked unto him, and were lightened: and their faces were not ashamed.” 

4.     Grant us a little reviving in our bondage is the forth picture of God’s grace bestowed upon the returning Jews.  This actually pictures the resurrection from the dead for these returning exiles, for how could this have happened if not by the grace of God.

5.     To give us a wall in Judah and Jerusalem is the final picture of God grace to the returning exiles.  I spoke of it a bit in the last picture of Grace.  When one reads the history that is found in the OT they will see a lot of bloodshed.  The people during this time of history had very little value for human life and so when you come to look at four different kings from the empire of Persia and they just send their captives back to where they came from and not only that but they paid their way, gave back all of the articles for temple worship, which amounted to tons of gold and silver, there is only one answer to how this happened and that is the grace of God.  God foretold this in the 44^th and 45^th chapters of Isaiah and actually gave the name to Cyrus who was the first king to let the exiles go back.

 

            I think that when you look at all of these acts of grace that the Lord had bestowed upon these exiles and then to have them completely go against the Law of God by marrying pagans it is now wonder that Ezra was speechless before the Lord for a while and unreservedly ashamed.

           

            How did Ezra pray to the Lord about this situation?  John 15:7 will give the answer to this question:  “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.’”  The highlighted portions of John 15:7 are the key to the answer on how Ezra prayed, for we have already learned from Ezra 7:10 “For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the LORD and to practice it, and to teach His statutes and ordinances in Israel.”  The key to praying is to know the Scriptures and to abide in the Lord or remain in the Vine, and when this happens in a believer’s life then the last portion of John 15:7 will happen.  It is clear that Ezra knew the OT Scriptures and this was the reason that he was so upset because by knowing them he knew that the exiles were sinning against the Lord and His Law.

           

            In his prayer from verses 12-13 one can see why the Lord had destroyed the Canaanite people, but do not think that they did not have a chance to repent for the Lord gave them four hundred years to repent before Israel came in to conquer the land.  Genesis 15:16 has long been a verse that has been near to my heart because it shows the grace of God.  Here is how I picture this verse; God has a bottle in heaven and in this bottle is stored the sins of the nations, and in this case the Canaanite nations, and when that bottle is filled the wrath of God will be taken out on them.  The wrath or judgment of God is part of His attributes, just as the love of God is and all of God’s attributes bring glory to Him.  It is part of His character that He has justice and love and grace are also part of His character.  Genesis 15:16 “"Then in the fourth generation they will return here, for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet complete.’”  This verse is part of a conversation that God had with Abraham.  Chapter 15 is a large part of the covenant that the Lord had with Abraham and his descendants that has not been fully completed yet.

           

            Dr. Wiersbe writes the following about what these men who had sinned were doing:  “These men were sacrificing the future and paying a great price to do it.  It wasn’t worth it.  No wonder Ezra was speechless and asked, ‘What shall we say after this.’”

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Prayer is what is on my heart this morning.  My sister has a practice that she learned from a Beth Moore bible study of praying Scripture out loud to the Lord about different circumstances that she faces.  It is good to learn something from your sister.  This practice goes along with “abiding in the Vine,” and also can be seen in Ezra’s prayer in this section of Scripture.  I am concerned about the usefulness of my prayer life and it surely seems to me that the Lord has answered this prayer.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

 

1.     Continue to have a more useful prayer life that will bring glory to the Lord.

2.     Continue to learn contentment.

3.     Proverbs 3:5-6.

4.     Psalm 139:23-24.

 

7/21/2011 10:41:54 AM     

           

We Have Sinned (Ezra. 9:5-7)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/20/2011 9:17:49 AM

 

 

 

My Worship Time                                                                                  Focus:  “We have Sinned”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                           Reference:  Ezra 9:5-7

 

            Message of the verses:  “5 But at the evening offering I arose from my humiliation, even with my garment and my robe torn, and I fell on my knees and stretched out my hands to the LORD my God; 6 and I said, "O my God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift up my face to You, my God, for our iniquities have risen above our heads and our guilt has grown even to the heavens. 7  "Since the days of our fathers to this day we have been in great guilt, and on account of our iniquities we, our kings and our priests have been given into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity and to plunder and to open shame, as it is this day.”

 

            It was my intention to include these verses in yesterdays SD, but it did not work out that way.  This section “we have sinned” is the first sub-point under the second main point in Dr. Wiersbe’s outline for this last chapter in his commentary on Ezra “Be Heroic.”  He has entitled this second main point “Concern: a privileged people.”

           

            I have heard it said that the one thing that we have learned from the past is that we have not learned anything from the past and this is the case for these returning exiles who had been punished for their sins by giving them into the hands of the Babylonians and not they are repeating some of the same sins that they committed that put them in the position they are in now.

           

            If you look closely at how Ezra wrote this confession you will see that like Daniel and Nehemiah he included himself in his confession before the Lord, for he uses the words “our iniquities” and not their iniquities.  Like Daniel and Nehemiah, Ezra knew that he was a sinner thus the title to this sub-point “we have sinned.”  Another reason Ezra includes himself is because the nation of Israel was one covenant nation before the Lord, and the sins of one person affected all the people.  If you look back on the story of Achan when he sinned by taking articles from Jericho that were forbidden, that sin affected the entire nation of Israel for they not only lost their first battle with AI, but they lost thirty-six men in that battle.  Joshua acted nearly in the same way that Ezra is acting in this situation.  This same principle applies to the local church as can be seen in 1Cor. 5:6-8 “6 Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough? 7 Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened. For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed. 8 Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.”  Dr. Wiersbe writes “Unless sin is dealt with, the whole assembly becomes defiled.”

           

            In verse six it can be seen that Ezra is too ashamed to lift his face before the Lord.  “"But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ’God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ 14  "I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted,’”  (Luke 18:13-14).  Ezra and this tax collector were greatly embarrassed over their sin and you can see it in how they prayed, by not even looking into heaven.  Jeremiah writes the following about those who would soon be taken into captivity, “"Were they ashamed because of the abomination they had done? They certainly were not ashamed, And they did not know how to blush; Therefore they shall fall among those who fall; At the time of their punishment they shall be brought down," Says the LORD,” (Jeremiah 8:12).  One can look at life in 21^st century America and see many things on TV that are sinful and there are few if any blushing over this and other things that are going on.  Sin is a serious thing, and according to Hebrews, Moses refused “to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin.”  Sin has its pleasures, but it is only for a season.  Dr. Wiersbe writes the following: “When a nation turns sin into entertainment and laughs at what ought to make us weep, we are in serious need of revival.”

           

            One of the reasons that these exiles could not see their actions were sinful was because they had grown up in Babylon where sin was the normal thing to do, and now when they move to Jerusalem they still had those sinful habits, similar the generation that was taken out of Egypt in the Exodus.  When Paul was in Athens that is recorded in Acts 17 it can be seen that he grieved over the sinfulness that he saw.

           

            I will conclude this section with a quote from Dr. Wiersbe that is a fitting ending:  “The spiritual history of Israel, summarized in Ezra 9:7, is living proof that privileges bring responsibilities, and that much is required from those to whom much is given (Luke 12:48).

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  As a NT believer in Jesus Christ I have been given much, and I am not speaking of material blessings, but spiritual blessings.  Right before Jesus died on the cross He said “It is finished” and the Greek word that is translated here means “paid in full” and was stamped on the paper of someone who had just finished a prison term, meaning his dept had been fully paid.  This opened up the privileges for NT believers as the things in the OT were only shadows of what was real.  Like Jesus said in Luke 12:48b “From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.”  Privilege brings about responsibilities.

           

            Another thing that I must think about is how I deal with sinfulness, not only in my life, but what I see around me.  Will I be like Ezra and Paul or will I go with the flow and not be too embarrassed lift my face to the Lord in repentance because of sin?  This is a good question for me to ponder this day.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

 

1.     Psalm 139:23-24 are the verses for my step of faith today:  “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:  And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”

2.     Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation And sustain me with a willing spirit.”

 

7/20/2011 10:15:27 AM   

             

PT-1 "A Privileged People" (Ezra 9:3-7)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/19/2011 8:39:52 AM

 

 

My Worship Time                                                      Focus: Concern: PT-1 A Privileged People

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Ezra 9:3-7

 

            Message of the verses:  “3 When I heard about this matter, I tore my garment and my robe, and pulled some of the hair from my head and my beard, and sat down appalled. 4 Then everyone who trembled at the words of the God of Israel on account of the unfaithfulness of the exiles gathered to me, and I sat appalled until the evening offering. “5 But at the evening offering I arose from my humiliation, even with my garment and my robe torn, and I fell on my knees and stretched out my hands to the LORD my God; 6 and I said, "O my God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift up my face to You, my God, for our iniquities have risen above our heads and our guilt has grown even to the heavens. 7  "Since the days of our fathers to this day we have been in great guilt, and on account of our iniquities we, our kings and our priests have been given into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity and to plunder and to open shame, as it is this day.”

 

            This section of Ezra is a very convicting passage of Scripture.  Ezra nine, along with Nehemiah 1:4-11 and Daniel nine are all about prayer, intercessory prayer.  Seeing the sins of the people that they have committed and then not act like these great men were above those who had sinned, but identifying themselves with the people knowing in their heart that they too were sinners.  These are three of the greatest chapter in the entire Bible to read when it comes to prayer, intercessory prayer.  One can see as they read this section the greatness of the leadership that Ezra had.  The first thing that he did after hearing about these sins was to tear his clothes and pull out hair from his beard and head and sit down for the Bible says that he was appalled.  I wish to give a little more of a definition of this word that is translated as “appalled” in the NASB-95 version.  This definition comes from the Strongs Hebrew “08074. םמשׁ shamem shaw-mame’; a primitive root; to stun (or intransitively, grow numb), i.e. devastate or (figuratively) stupefy (both usually in a passive sense):— make amazed, be astonied, (be an) astonish(-ment), (be, bring into, unto, lay, lie, make) desolate(-ion, places), be destitute, destroy (self), (lay, lie, make) waste, wonder.”    

           

            In his commentary on this section of Scripture (verses 3&4) Dr. Wiersbe points out that people in our culture are not appalled when they see people sin, people such as politicians for example, and for that matter “religious leaders.”  There comes a time when it seems like people take for granted the “grace of God.”  As I visit different churches from different parts of the US it seems like the emphasis of their services is upon the love and the grace of God, and there is nothing wrong with the love and the grace of God, but God is also One who executes judgment and we as believers are to have reverent fear of God for the Scripture says that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.  Sadly this seems to be missing in many churches today.  One needs to be so thankful for the attribute of judgment that our God has for without judgment of our sins on Calvary no one could be saved, and without God’s judgment upon people and nations sin would run more rampant than it is now.  When Jesus Christ died on the cross He said that “it is finished,” He had paid the price for those He came to save and that involved Judgment.  There will come a time when God’s wrath will be finished:  “Re 15:1 Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous, seven angels who had seven plagues, which are the last, because in them the wrath of God is finished.”

           

            Ezra was appalled over the sin of the exiles and this was a good thing for him to be appalled at.  John MacArthur writes from the “MacArthur Study Bible” these words from verse four explaining the phrase “trembled at the words.”  In contrast to those who participated in the intermarriage, there were those who saw it as an abomination.  They greatly feared the Lord’s judgment on them again (cf. Is. 66:2,5) and sat with Ezra until the gathering of the people for the evening sacrifice, when there was surely public prayer and confession as Ezra fasted, lamented, and prayed (v. 5) in an effort to lead the leaders and people to repent.”

           

            I believe that I will insert one more quote and this time from Dr. Wiersbe and with that will end this portion this morning as I have much to think about.  “Too many Christians today are willing to read the Bible, study it, outline it, and even defend it; but they don’t fear God and seek to obey what the Bible says. ‘But on this one will I look: on him who is poor and of contrite spirit, and who trembles at My Word.’ (Isa. 66:2, NKJV).  Until God’s people show respect for God and His Word, the Spirit of God can’t work in mighty power as He longs to do.” 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I would suppose that conviction is the word for today, especially from the two different quotes that I used above.  I suppose that there are far too many times when I take for granted the grace of God and do not allow the Word of God bring about the kind of fear of God that the Scriptures speak of.  I desire to be used of God, but I realize that it must be in His way and in His timing, and in the mean time I would pray that the Word of God will do its work in me.  “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

 

1.     Remember the truth of Hebrews 4:12 and pray that the Lord will use His Word to bring about in my heart and life what He desires to accomplish with me.

 

7/19/2011 10:03:30 AM

Contamination: A Sinful People (Ezra 9:1-2)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/18/2011 8:31:01 AM

 

 

My Worship Time                                                         Focus: “Contamination: A Sinful People”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                          Reference:  Ezra 9:1-2

 

            Message of the verses:  “1 Now when these things had been completed, the princes approached me, saying, "The people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands, according to their abominations, those of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians and the Amorites. 2 “For they have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and for their sons, so that the holy race has intermingled with the peoples of the lands; indeed, the hands of the princes and the rulers have been foremost in this unfaithfulness.’”

 

            Today’s SD begins the last chapter in Dr. Warren Wiersbe’s commentary and the last two chapters of the book of Ezra.  As mentioned in earlier SD’s I follow the commentary of Dr. Wiersbe as an outline in doing my Spiritual Diaries and read commentary from his “Be” series books to aid me in understanding the Scriptures.  I also look, from time to time at other scholars such as John MacArthur and others who have commentaries on the Online Bible program.  www.onlinebible.org

           

            This forth chapter in “Be Heroic,” Wiersbe entitles “The Grace of God,” and it covers the ninth and tenth chapters of Ezra.  There are four main points in the outline with several sub-points under the main points.  The key to understanding what is going on in these chapters of Ezra is as follows.  After arriving in Jerusalem some lay people came up to Ezra and told him about some sin that some of the civil and religious leaders were committing.  How Ezra deals with this problem is an example of how believers are to deal with sin today.  Peter quotes Lev. 11:44 in his letter which says “Be holy; for I am holy.”

           

            There was nothing wrong with these lay people coming to Ezra and reporting that some of the civil and religious leaders were breaking the Law of God for their disobedience to this Law could ruin the holy race that God has chosen, and this could stop the coming of the Messiah if this continued.  God had told the children of Israel not to marry people outside of their race for they were holy and set apart to the Lord.

           

            As far as these lay people exposing this sin to Ezra there was not a problem with that for they were not gossiping, but telling Ezra the truth about a problem that was very serious.  Their concern over this sin was sincere. In the NT letter to the Corinthians Paul speaks of something that a woman name Chloe had told him concerning the sins that these Corinthian believers were committing and he does not rebuke her for telling exposing their sins.

 

            The first sub-point is entitled “Disobedience” and it covers the first verse of Ezra nine.  The law that these men broke is mentioned above and it can be seen in Exodus 34:15-16 and Deuteronomy 7:1-6.  The law was any Israelite men marrying people of the land of Canaan and these peoples are mentioned in verse one.  If Israel would have been obedient in ridding the land of these people as God had instructed them before they entered the land this problem would not have taken place.  One can look at the genealogy of the Lord Jesus Christ and Ruth will appear in it as one of four women, but Ruth was a foreigner along with Rahab.  There is a difference here for the men of Israel could marry women outside of the woman of Israel if they were not from the land of Canaan and if they came to believe in the God of Israel, something that can be seen in the lives of both Rahab and also Ruth.

 

            The last sub-point in this section is entitled “Defilement” and it covers verse two of Ezra nine. 

           

            It would be a good time to explain some things about the children of Israel and why God called them a “holy nation,” and what was the reason for God to call them and to keep them separated from the other nations of the world.  They were not called a holy nation because they were better than anybody else, but because God had called them.  There is a large difference here for this reflects on God and that is the point here.  Genesis 12:3 reads as follows:  “And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.’”  “Your descendants will also be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south; and in you and in your descendants shall all the families of the earth be blessed.’”  This is Genesis 28:14 which repeats what God had said in Genesis 12:3.  God would use the nation of Israel to bless all the families of the earth.  How would that happen?  I can mention three reasons why the nation of Israel has blessed all the families of the earth.  The first reason is that they have given to the families of the earth the knowledge of God.  The second is that they have given to the families of the earth the Word of God, and the third way they have blessed the families of the earth is giving them the Messiah, Jesus Christ, to become a sacrifice for their sins.  These were three good reasons to keep the Jewish race pure.

           

            According to Malachi there were actually Jewish men divorcing their Jewish wives in order to marry women from Canaan.  This was breaking two of God’s laws.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  “Be holy for the Lord God Almighty is Holy,” is the name of a wonderful hymn that I have heard and also sung.  That is what the Lord has called all believers to be and that is surely a difficult thing to do, and impossible without the aid of the Holy Spirit.  Dr. Wiersbe quotes an old Pastor from Scotland in many of his books and it seems like that quote will fit in here.  “The Christian life is a series of new beginnings.”   The Christian life is impossible without the grace of God, but when I have a choice of keeping the laws of God that I am suppose to keep, and I am not talking about the ceremonial laws, I am to keep them, and when I fail I am to confess (agree with God) my sins before the Lord who will forgive me according to 1John 1:9.

           

            Just as the nation of Israel was to remain pure the Church today is to do the same and there are some passages in the Scriptures that speak to what a believer is to do to confront sin.  Matthew 18 is spoken by the Lord Jesus Christ on confronting sin in the Church.  1Timothy 5 speaks of what to do when a leader (Pastor Elder) sins.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

 

1.     Psalm 139:23-24

2.     1John 1:9

3.     Ephesians 6:10-18

4.     Philippians 4:11-13

5.     Romans 12:1-2

6.     Proverbs 3:5-6

 

7/18/2011 9:25:06 AM      

He (God) Gave Them a Safe Journey (Ezra. 8:31-36)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/17/2011 7:02:57 AM

 

 

My Worship Time                                                      Focus:  He (God) Gave Them A Safe Journey

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Ezra 8:31-36

 

            Message of the verses:  “31 Then we journeyed from the river Ahava on the twelfth of the first month to go to Jerusalem; and the hand of our God was over us, and He delivered us from the hand of the enemy and the ambushes by the way. 32 Thus we came to Jerusalem and remained there three days. 33 On the fourth day the silver and the gold and the utensils were weighed out in the house of our God into the hand of Meremoth the son of Uriah the priest, and with him was Eleazar the son of Phinehas; and with them were the Levites, Jozabad the son of Jeshua and Noadiah the son of Binnui. 34 Everything was numbered and weighed, and all the weight was recorded at that time. 35 The exiles who had come from the captivity offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel: 12 bulls for all Israel, 96 rams, 77 lambs, 12 male goats for a sin offering, all as a burnt offering to the LORD. 36 Then they delivered the king’s edicts to the king’s satraps and to the governors in the provinces beyond the River, and they supported the people and the house of God.”

 

            This is the last main section in this the third chapter of Warren Wiersbe’s commentary on the book of Ezra that he entitles “Be Heroic.”   This last main point has five short sup-points in it that cover the six verses above.  It was a long journey from Babylon to Jerusalem and I have often thought of the first Gulf War against Iraq and those “scud” missiles that Iraq sent against Israel.  It took only minutes for them to arrive while it took these exiles four months to cover the nine hundred miles.  Those missiles also cause me to think of some verses at the end of the book of Daniel where Daniel was an old man living at this same time period in Babylon, an early exile from Israel captured by the king of Babylon.  He had gone through a lot in his 80+ years and near the end of his life after seeing visions and writing one of the most important prophetic books of the Bible, he was wandering what it was all about and so an angel came and spoke these words to him:  “But as for you, Daniel, conceal these words and seal up the book until the end of time; many will go back and forth, and knowledge will increase.’”  I first read these words in 1974 and as I look back from that time I have seen knowledge increase in many areas of life, especially in technology and travel, but if one looks back to the time of Daniel and Ezra knowledge has increased many times, and so there are many believers today that think that this world is very close to the events that have been foretold in the pages of prophecy that tells of the “end of time.”

 

            The first sub-point covers verse 31 and Dr. Wiersbe entitles it “Arriving.”  In this short verse it tells of the time that it took these exiles to cover the 900 miles of travel, and the important thing to remember from this verse is the phrase that has been repeated many times in this section of Ezra “and the hand of our God was over us.”  Yes God who began a good work in these people’s hearts to cause them to go on this journey that was dangerous has brought them through safely.  What the Lord starts He will complete.

 

            The second sub-point covers verse 32 and Dr. Wiersbe entitles it “Resting.”  This is the shortest verse in this section and it tells of the rest that these exiles took after this long journey.  Jesus spoke of resting to his disciples after they had been out doing the work of the Lord, “Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while,” (Mark 6:31).  Rest is important after a long journey to clear your mind and to give your body the rest that it needs.

 

            The third sup-point covers verses 33-34 and Dr. Wiersbe entitles this “Reckoning.”  This section tells about the accountability of these leaders of the exiles who were in charge of the treasures that they brought to Jerusalem.  This is a reminder of 1Cor. 14:40 where it says, “But all things must be done properly and in an orderly manner.”  There is a NT Scripture that goes along with this and it speaks of how the Apostle Paul and his friends took care of an offering that was collected by the churches to help out the suffering believers in Jerusalem:  “21  For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord but also in the eyes of men.”

           

            The forth sub-point covers verse 35 and is entitled “Worshiping.”  This verse tells of the offerings and sacrifices that they offered to the Lord, giving thanks for the safe journey and remembering all of the twelve tribes of Israel in their worship of the Lord.  This was unlike the first offerings that were offered on the altar some 75 years ago when there was some grumbling going on by the older members of that party causing division in the worship.

 

            The fifth and last sub-section covers the last verse in Ezra eight and is entitled “Clearance.”  When I first saw this title I had to wonder about its name, but after looking at this verse again it became clear.  Ezra was now doing what the king had instructed him to do upon his arrival at Jerusalem, and that is taking care of the “paperwork,” as he gave the letter to those Persian officials who were in charge and after seeing the letter they obeyed what the king had written.  It must be remembered that this was only a copy of the letter that was sent as the original was kept in Babylon.

           

            As I look back on these two chapters in Ezra I conclude that “the hand of our God was over them,” and He is still over my life today some 2500 years later.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Philippians 1:6 is what I am reminded of after reading this section of Ezra.  “For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.”  This journey that Ezra and the exiles took, as stated in an earlier SD, is a reminder of my journey as a believer in Jesus Christ on this earth, for there are parts that are uncomfortable, and difficult, but there are also many parts of my life that are wonderful and this is only the beginning, for heaven is ahead and that is the hope of all believers.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

 

1.     Give myself to the Lord for worship and for service.

2.     Be prepared to worship the Lord at church this morning.

Continue to learn contentment.   7/17/2011 8:00:12 AM

 

He (God) Gathered a Willing Remnant (Ezra 8:1-30)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/16/2011 7:19:13 AM

 

 

My Worship Time                                              Focus:  “He (God) Gathered a Willing Remnant”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                         Reference:  Ezra 8:1-30

 

            Message of the verses:  “1 Now these are the heads of their fathers’ households and the genealogical enrollment of those who went up with me from Babylon in the reign of King Artaxerxes: 2  of the sons of Phinehas, Gershom; of the sons of Ithamar, Daniel; of the sons of David, Hattush; 3  of the sons of Shecaniah who was of the sons of Parosh, Zechariah and with him 150 males who were in the genealogical list; 4  of the sons of Pahath-moab, Eliehoenai the son of Zerahiah and 200 males with him; 5  of the sons of Zattu, Shecaniah, the son of Jahaziel and 300 males with him; 6  and of the sons of Adin, Ebed the son of Jonathan and 50 males with him; 7  and of the sons of Elam, Jeshaiah the son of Athaliah and 70 males with him; 8  and of the sons of Shephatiah, Zebadiah the son of Michael and 80 males with him; 9  of the sons of Joab, Obadiah the son of Jehiel and 218 males with him; 10  and of the sons of Bani, Shelomith, the son of Josiphiah and 160 males with him; 11  and of the sons of Bebai, Zechariah the son of Bebai and 28 males with him; 12  and of the sons of Azgad, Johanan the son of Hakkatan and 110 males with him; 13  and of the sons of Adonikam, the last ones, these being their names, Eliphelet, Jeuel and Shemaiah, and 60 males with them; 14  and of the sons of Bigvai, Uthai and Zabbud, and 70 males with them. 15 Now I assembled them at the river that runs to Ahava, where we camped for three days; and when I observed the people and the priests, I did not find any Levites there. 16 So I sent for Eliezer, Ariel, Shemaiah, Elnathan, Jarib, Elnathan, Nathan, Zechariah and Meshullam, leading men, and for Joiarib and Elnathan, teachers. 17 I sent them to Iddo the leading man at the place Casiphia; and I told them what to say to Iddo and his brothers, the temple servants at the place Casiphia, that is, to bring ministers to us for the house of our God. 18  According to the good hand of our God upon us they brought us a man of insight of the sons of Mahli, the son of Levi, the son of Israel, namely Sherebiah, and his sons and brothers, 18 men; 19 and Hashabiah and Jeshaiah of the sons of Merari, with his brothers and their sons, 20 men; 20  and 220 of the temple servants, whom David and the princes had given for the service of the Levites, all of them designated by name. “21 Then I proclaimed a fast there at the river of Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God to seek from Him a safe journey for us, our little ones, and all our possessions. 22  For I was ashamed to request from the king troops and horsemen to protect us from the enemy on the way, because we had said to the king, "The hand of our God is favorably disposed to all those who seek Him, but His power and His anger are against all those who forsake Him." 23 So we fasted and sought our God concerning this matter, and He listened to our entreaty.

    “24 Then I set apart twelve of the leading priests, Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and with them ten of their brothers; 25  and I weighed out to them the silver, the gold and the utensils, the offering for the house of our God which the king and his counselors and his princes and all Israel present there had offered. 26 Thus I weighed into their hands 650 talents of silver, and silver utensils worth 100 talents, and 100 gold talents, 27 and 20 gold bowls worth 1,000 darics, and two utensils of fine shiny bronze, precious as gold. 28 Then I said to them, "You are holy to the LORD, and the utensils are holy; and the silver and the gold are a freewill offering to the LORD God of your fathers. 29 “Watch and keep them until you weigh them before the leading priests, the Levites and the heads of the fathers’ households of Israel at Jerusalem, in the chambers of the house of the LORD." 30 So the priests and the Levites accepted the weighed out silver and gold and the utensils, to bring them to Jerusalem to the house of our God.”

 

            In this section of the book of Ezra you will find many more names, and this was a pattern of Ezra for in the first part of his book he gave many names of those who eighty years before went with Zerubbable and there were 50,000 who left on that journey.  Now eighty years later Ezra takes a smaller group of exiles back to the land of Israel, to the city of Jerusalem, and later on Nehemiah will go up to Jerusalem with others. 

           

            The sub-titles in this section that covers the first thirty verses of chapter eight are as follows:  “Recruiting” verses 1-20; “Trusting” verses 21-23; and “Committing” verses 24-30.  In this section of Ezra there are some great principles for believers today to follow and it could be said that this whole journey could picture the believer’s life, for all of God’s people are on a dangerous journey to the heavenly Jerusalem (Hebrews 12:22), and the Lord has committed some of His treasure with His children.  We as believers are to protect the treasures that He has entrusted us with and unlike those exiles we are to invest those treasures in order to multiply them for the cause of Christ.  This principle can be seen in different places in the NT, such as Matthew 25:14-30 and 1Timothy 1:11, 18-19, ss6:20; 2Timothy 1:13-14; 2:2. 

 

            “Recruiting” In this section there is given the majority of names that were given in this chapter that went on this journey.  Ezra had contacted eighteen leaders of the tribes of Israel in order to get support in recruiting people for this important journey and they came up with 1,515 men, plus women and children as seen in verse twenty-one.  Dr. Wiersbe points out an interesting fact that many of the names of those who left 80 years earlier and those who went with Ezra are of the same tribal families and this speaks of the pioneer spirit these families had.

           

            It was difficult in recruiting those who went as it always seems to be when trying to do a work for the Lord.  Jeremiah had instructed those who were about to go into captivity to settle down in the land and make lives for themselves in their new surroundings and this is what they did and so many did not want to disrupt their lives in order to go back to a place that was in rubble in order to serve the Lord in this challenging area.  Jesus told the disciples that the harvest was ripe but the laborers were few.

           

            This problem of few laborers was especially true of the tribe of Levi as after Ezra and the others got started they realized that there were no Levites and so Ezra sent some men back to recruit some Levites.  This committee came back with only 38 Levites, but they also recruited 220 temple servants.  The numbers should have been reversed, but the laborers are few. During the first journey to Jerusalem the total of Levites was only 2% of those who went on the journey.

 

            “Trusting” In this section one can see the great faith of this wonderful man of God, for Ezra did have great faith and again I can see Ezra 7:10 in this trusting aspect of his life for faith comes by hearing the Word of God, and Ezra was surely one who stayed in the Word and practiced what he was learning.

           

            Ezra could have asked the king for an armed escort for they were carrying many tons of gold and silver back to Jerusalem and the journey was surely a dangerous one, but he believed that the Lord would protect them on this journey that the Lord had directed them to go on and so he was ashamed to ask for any escort.  Instead Ezra took the next step and that step was stopping for three days to fast and to pray.  They stopped by a river that was probably a cannel and fasted and prayed for a safe journey and so their Escort would be the Lord who would protect them.  Dr. Wiersbe writes that there is a fine line between faith and presumption, and I would suppose that some people presume that the Lord will bless their work with a false assumption, however this was not the case with Ezra, for the Lord would bless this journey and it does show that Ezra was a great man of faith.

 

            The last sup-point is “Committing” and in this short section it can be seen that Ezra commits the treasures to a group of men to make sure that all would be on the up and up he had the treasure weighed and would again weigh it when they got to Jerusalem.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I think of how this journey parallels my journey with the Lord and how I am to be faithful with the “treasures” that He has entrusted me with.  Paul writes that all believers have “spiritual gifts” and he wrote to Timothy that he was in danger of losing his gifts if he did not begin to use those gifts that he was given.  To invest in the Kingdom of God is the best investment one can make and I desire to use the gifts He has given me to make that investment.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

 

1.     Continue to invest in the Kingdom of God by using the gifts He has entrusted me with.

2.     Continue to learn contentment.

3.     Trust the Lord to work out the arrangements for our journey back to Ohio as to when it will be and to get done the things needed to be done.

7/16/2011 8:31:15 AM