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Good weekend to you my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
Have you ever found yourself in a difficult situation and most of the people involved in the situation are all pointing at YOU, expecting you to find resolution to the problem? That’s exactly where Ezra found himself in 458bc, as we saw yesterday. Let’s join Ezra this weekend to see what God led him to do in what appeared to be a ‘no-win’ situation. Have you ever been in one of those?
You’ll recall Ezra had come to Jerusalem as an emissary of King Artaxerxes, the emperor of the Persian kingdom. Ezra’s mission was to draw the Jewish leadership in Jerusalem into alignment with the laws of God, which many of them had forsaken.
The first major challenge Ezra faced was that many Jewish leaders had ignored God’s clear and consistent warning to NOT be drawn into relationships with the women of neighboring, idol worshiping nations. (Deut. 7:4,5) Instead Ezra found several had actually married these idol worshiping women and brought them to live in Jerusalem.
Ezra was overwhelmed by such failure of the leaders in Jerusalem and Ezra 9 tells us he sat down on the ground in sackcloth and ashes, in front of the Temple, and prayed in profound, public repentance. Ezra was joined by many other people who were also convicted of their sinfulness. (Ezra 10:1)
Yesterday we watched as Shekaniah offered Ezra a solution to the problem: “Now let us make a covenant before our God to send away all these women and their children, in accordance with the counsel of my Lord and of those who fear the commands of our God. Let it be done according to the Law. Rise up: this matter is in your hands. We support you, so take courage and do it.” (Ezra 10:3,4)
The solution Shekaniah offered was radical! Sending these women back to their homelands and their families of origin, along with the children they had borne, would be harsh, for everyone involved. It would be heartbreaking. Perhaps we could even say it would be cruel! But these Israelite leaders were living in daily violation of one of the most basic laws God had given His people.
Ezra knew the Biblical history of Israel showed this issue had been dealt with harshly by God in times past, (Numbers 25) and still the men of Israel could not restrain themselves and they refused to obey God in their marriages. Ezra took bold action. His record says: “So Ezra rose up and put the leading priests and Levites and all Israel under oath to do what Shekaniah had suggested. And they took the oath.” (Ezra 10:5)
This was very significant. Priests, Levites and Jewish leaders knew it was a very significant and serious thing to enter into an oath with God for action. It wasn’t just words. This promise would require these men to follow through and thoroughly, with conviction. How? Well, the record says it began with a proclamation sent throughout the land: “A proclamation was then issued throughout Judah and Jerusalem for ALL the exiles to assemble in Jerusalem. Anyone who failed to appear within three days would forfeit all their property…and would be expelled from the assembly of the exiles.” (Ezra 10:7,8) What is referred to here as “the exiles” are, of course, those Jews who had returned from exile in Babylon.
The first wave of these had come 80 years before with the edict of King Cyrus, (Ezra 1) but many more had come in the years since. The clarity of this declaration was undeniable and the consequences for NOT gathering would be severe. Ezra and those with him were very serious about dealing with this gross violation of God’s laws regarding marriage. Why? Because the sacred covenant of Marriage has always been very serious to God! It’s unique among all human relationships and is to be entered into carefully and then protected at all costs.
Ezra’s record indicates a large group of Jewish men did gather three days later before the Temple in Jerusalem. Why there? Because they had violated God’s law and they were called to account at the place of worship. They were ‘greatly distressed by the occasion and because of the rain.” (Ezra 10:9) I wonder if God sent rain that day as a clear sign of His disappointment with these men but also a symbol of His readiness to wash away their guilt and re-establish a fresh start to their covenant relationship with God? Have you given much thought to how ready God is to extend forgiveness to you and me, especially when we have intentionally sinned, violating God’s clear commands?
Ezra rose up before the great crowd and chastised them with these powerful words: “You have been unfaithful; you have married foreign women, adding to Israel’s guilt. Now honor the LORD, the God of your ancestors and do His will. Separate yourselves from the peoples around you and from your foreign wives.’ The whole assembly responded with a loud voice ‘You are right! We must do as you say…” (Ezra 10:10-12)
Clearly the Spirit of God was convicting these men and I’m grateful to see that they did not argue or make excuses. One of the evidences of the conviction work of the Holy Spirit is the dual emotions of being repulsed by our sin and deeply desiring a restored relationship with God! Perhaps you remember we saw that with the prophet Ezekiel’s message to these exiles some years before. (Ezekiel 36:24-32) Maybe Ezra reminded these men sitting in the rain that day, of Ezekiel’s powerful message.
Let’s pause right here in the rain with these men and consider how important the convicting work of God in our lives is to our emotional, spiritual and relational health. When we build callouses of resistance to God and we either ignore or refuse the conviction of the Holy Spirit our hearts harden, our pride rises up and we distance ourselves from God and other people, have you noticed that?
On the other hand, when we embrace God’s conviction, our hearts soften, and our pride is replaced by humility, and we sense God’s great love and His readiness to extend to us forgiveness! Oh, my dear friends, it is so important we understand this and live in the power of it!
So, here’s a vibrant song to help us celebrate the truth of God’s forgiveness available to you and me because of Jesus, and tomorrow we’ll see how Ezra concludes this serious matter in Jerusalem.
Today’s Scripture: Ezra 10:5-12.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
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Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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