Ezra, Part IV

Ezra is one of those books where the main character doesn’t come on scene until the story contained with its pages is half-way over.  For the longest time, I wondered why the book was even named after him because he doesn’t really show up much.  It’s only in Chapter 7 that the leader Ezra comes to Jerusalem.  

Ezra is a righteous man, one who has devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the Lord.  It is, oddly enough, Ezra’s decisions in this book that offended me at first.  Ezra was completely sold out to the will of God and was willing to do whatever it took to make right his life and repent before God so that he and his followers could experience the full blessing.  While his actions might not exactly be those to emulate today, his heart of repentance is most certainly one to use as an example.  

With Ezra’s life, we ask ourselves the question: What are we willing to give up to be right with God?

In Ezra Chapters 8 and 9, Ezra and others make the journey to Jerusalem.  Upon arrival, he learns from the leaders that “the people… including the priests and Levites, had not kept themselves separate from the neighboring peoples with their detestable practices” (Ezra 9:1).  The people who had planned to rebuild the temple— a presence of long-term worship in their lives— had ultimately lost sight of their goal.  In the lull of waiting for permission to go forward, they had prostituted their hearts with what had once been detestable to them.  Did they marry the very enemies who had threatened them in the first place?  Whatever the case may be, they had lost sight of the will of God and had settled for less than what was best.

It is so easy when pursuing God’s will to be like the people of Israel.  It is so easy to lose patience, to take your eyes off the prize— especially if your goal is temporarily deferred.  What will you do when you find yourself waiting?  Hopefully we can all learn from the lesson based off the seriousness with which Ezra handled the situation.

In Chapter 9, Ezra tears his clothes (verse 5) and falls on his face before God, crying out with repentance.  This was not the first time Israel had turned away from God, and it most certainly wasn’t the last.  Ezra’s repentance leads to the conviction of the hearts of the Israelites, as in Chapter 10:1, “ a large crowd of Israelites— men, women, and children— gathered around him.”  They too wept bitterly and declared their unfaithfulness (verse 2) and that they were willing to do what it took to be in relationship with God again.

I think the book of Ezra is often overlooked because of what Ezra decided should be done.  For our culture, it is extreme, and as can be seen by Jesus’ teachings, it would not be right to do today, under the New Covenant.  But, Ezra said in 10:10, “You have been unfaithful… Now honor the Lord… and do his will.  Separate yourselves from the peoples around you and your foreign wives.”  

Yes, by separation, he meant divorce.  He meant a complete end to the union that should have never been.  Is this an excuse for divorce today?  No— I believe this was one of those decisions unique to the Israelites who were rebuilding the temple.  But there is a spiritual lesson for us today— we should divorce that in our hearts which has been an illicit union taking the place of what God wants, and God wants what is ultimately the best for us.  Not only this, but I believe we should walk in such  way that we are separate from all those distractions, all those time-fillers, all those things that will not ultimately satisfy, and walk in such a way that we are single-minded about the Lord and pursing His will.  

We should be like Ezra himself— devoted to the study and observance of the ways of God (7:10).

Ezra, Part III

Through the first two parts of Ezra, we see God move kings and leaders and provide for those in His will, and we see how those who have come into the promise of God should respond upon arrival to that place— in both an initial posture of worship and the building of practices that will cultivate life-long worship.  In Part III of my insights on Ezra, we see how life inevitably brings opposition to those moving in God’s will, and how we should respond.

At the end of Ezra Chapter 3, we find the Israelites in a moving corporate demonstration of worship where (verse 13), “No one could distinguish the sounds of the shouts of joy from the sound of weeping, because the people made so much noise.”  This verse adds, “And the sound was heard far away.”

From my own personal experience, whenever I have achieved a great spiritual victory, there always seems to be some negative repercussions afterwards.  It’s as if a land mark event in your life makes a larger target in the enemy's sight, like the way the pyramids might better show up in a sniper scope, and that landmark becomes the next gathering point for the forces of darkness and destruction.  Ezra Chapter 4 seems to demonstrate this principle by showing the reaction of the people around the Israelites to the loud sound of corporate worship.

Ezra 4:1-4 (with a few parts left out for the sake of time) says:

When the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were building a temple for the Lord [Ace’s thoughts here: they must have literally heard them], the God of Israel, they came to Zerubbabel and to the heads of the families and said, “Let us help you build because, like you, we seek your God and have been sacrificing to him…”  

But Zerubbabel, Joshua, and the rest of the heads of the families of Israel answered, “You have no part with us in building a temple to our God.  We alone will build it…”  

Then the peoples around them set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building.  They bribed officials to work against them and frustrate their plans during the entire reign of Cyrus king of Persia and down to the reign of Darius king of Persia.

This passage demonstrates how the enemies of Judah and Benjamin first tried to sneak in the back door and “offer to help” but probably secretly sabotage the Israelites’ efforts.  It might have been tempting to accept the additional help, since many hands make for lighter work, but the leaders said to them that comforting though the offer many be, they would have no part in something that would ultimately lead to their destruction.

It is harder to find a present-day analogy for this part of the story, but I would ask how many times we compromise in trying to do God’s will in a short-cut way— our own easy way— when ultimately that will lead to disobedience?  How many times do we reach for instant-gratification when patience or wisdom should mark our steps?

When the people of Judah said no to compromise and yes to doing things the Lord's way, their enemies attacked, “setting out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building.”  I feel often times this is why a spiritual victory seems to always follow with a feeling of attack— when we are doing  what we’re supposed to do, the enemy tries to discourage us by making it feel daunting.  

Sometimes, we won't just be discouraged or afraid, though.  The opposition will be so hard that we will feel defeated.  The enemies of Judah actually managed to get the whole temple-rebuilding-operation shut down for quite some time.  Ezra 4:24 says "the work on the house of God… came to a stand still.”  How about that for a feeling of utter defeat!  But, did people of Judah give up?  No, eventually, Zerubbabel and Joshua started rebuilding the house (Ezra 5:2), continuing to be obedient to the will of God.  5:5 says that “the eye of their God was watching over the elders of the Jews”, making me wonder if it was because of their obedience despite opposition.  Whatever the case may be, the government officials who had shut down the building because of the trouble-makers eventually investigated the whole situation, and ultimately (unknowingly), upheld the sovereign will of God.  God willed it, so it would take place, and the government officials then decreed in Ezra 6:7 “Do not interfere with the work on this temple of God.”

What we can take away from this passage of scripture is: If we are obedient to the will of God despite our circumstances, and press into the things of God despite opposition, God’s eye will watch over us— He will make a way, and we will succeed.

Ezra, Part II

The beginning of Ezra is full of promise— the promise of the Lord— and the steps He takes in His sovereignty to fulfill His will.  God basically moved the government, moved on the hearts of the leaders, and gave provision for that which He called His people to do.  Ezra Chapter 3 transitions as the people are resettling into their lands, demonstrating how a person should respond when their heart has been moved by God and they settle in to claim the fulfillment of His promise.

Ezra Chapter 3 starts out with the Israelites settling into their towns.  When they had done so, verse 1 says in the seventh month, “the people assembled together as one in Jerusalem.”  At the very beginning, they were unified, and not just for their own purpose.  Verse 2 says the first thing they did was begin “to build the altar to the God of Israel to sacrifice burnt offerings on it.”  So they, who were in God’s will, were unified in purpose, and the first thing they did was worship God!  Verse 3 says they did this despite their fears of the circumstances— the peoples around them who were their enemies.

Being in the will of God can be a scary place because you’re not in your comfort zone, and you might feel like you’re in enemy territory.  But regardless of this, our first response, as seen in Ezra, should be to worship God in all the many ways that one can— festivals, sacrifices, and free-will offerings, and the modern equivalent of these today.

While the altars were small acts of worship, the people set into motion the rebuilding of the temple— a more permanent place of worship— a place where the spirit of the Lord could dwell.  This took much more effort than the small altars the people initially built— planning, giving, and time.  They did this, accompanied by musical worship.  Verse 10 speaks about trumpets and cymbals, and verse 11 says they sang to the Lord with praise and thanksgiving.

My favorite verse is the worshipful response of those who waited such a long time for the promise to be fulfilled.  Verse 12 says these people wept aloud, while others shouted for joy.  Verse 13 says, “No one could distinguish the sound of weeping, because the people made so much noise.  And the sound was heard far away.”  It makes me wonder what those people, whom the Israelites were so afraid of, were thinking.  If I were them [the enemies], I would be afraid.

While the situation of the Israelites and their culture is so different from ours, I feel there is an applicable spiritual lesson that we can carry away from this and use today.  For those walking in the will of God, our first response to the reception of His promise should be worship, praise and thanksgiving.  There, of course, should be the initial altar in our hearts, but it shouldn’t stop there.  When we have moved into the will of God, we need to take the steps necessary to establish a more permanent “house of worship”.  Whether this is joining in unity with the local church or putting into practice spiritual disciplines in your own life so that your own life can be a temple for God to dwell in, it is clear the correct process is intentionally putting the stones in place for a foundation of a lifestyle of worship.

Ezra, Part I

Ezra is a small book in the Old Testament that’s often overlooked.  I’ve never heard a sermon preached on Ezra, and personally, the first time I read through the book, I hated it because I thought it promoted divorce.  I could not see through the surface to understand the lessons that can be learned from this priest’s writings, lessons that are applicable today.

Ezra, Part I

The first thing that strikes me about the book of Ezra is the fact that a non-Hebraic king, Cyrus, is the instrument of God’s will— for His temple to be built, Jerusalem to be repopulated, for His promises to His people to be fulfilled and His presence to be given to both the Jews and eventually through them, the Gentiles.  Cyrus, a non-Hebraic king declares that God has “appointed me to build a temple for him” (Ezra 1:2).

How crazy is that?!  A heathen king is used by God— “the Lord moved his heart,” 2 Chronicles 36:22 says, and Cyrus was no small player in the kingdom arena— he felt as if he had been given “all the kingdoms of the earth” (Ezra 1:2).

I am further impressed in the first part of Ezra by God’s sovereignty in selecting leaders— family heads and priests and Levites (1:5)— to help accomplish His plan.  Someone had to direct and oversee the repopulating and rebuilding, and this would take a move away from the known life in captivity into the unknown, unfamiliar Promised Land.  The verse says God moved their hearts as well, setting into motion a grand scheme that eventually made salvation possible.

Not only had God prepared the powerful king Cyrus & the leaders to accomplish His plan, but He also made provision for the leaders to move in His calling.  Ezra 1:6 says their neighbors were moved with generosity and assisted them with extravagant and practical gifts— making it possible for those leaders to move and accomplish God’s will.  They didn’t have to worry about how they were going to resettle Jerusalem because God provided them with gold and cattle in advance.

The over-arching lesson that can be carried away from this grand-scale maneuvering, then is:

If God has willed for something to happen, He will make sure all the details are in place so that it will happen.  God is sovereign, all-powerful, and reliable.

For a person following Christ, this is amazing because if you know God’s will, and you are acting within it, then you can expect to see everything work out— permission from the King, the right leaders, and provisions, and all the metaphorical things these might stand for.  You don’t have to fear when you are walking in God’s will because if God wants it to happen, it will happen.  You just need to be wiling to have your heart moved by God like all those involved in the first part of Ezra, and then step out.

God has not given us a spirit of fear... regarding what?

Reading through the books of 1 and 2 Timothy in one sitting, I ran across a very familiar verse:

2 Timothy 1:7 (NIV)For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love, and of self-discipline.

I remember hearing this verse often as a child, quoting it to myself when I was afraid.  I tell it to myself as an adult when I am having anxiety driving through heavy traffic, or any other situation that makes me feel the grip of fear seizing me.  But something I have realized lately is that a lot of people memorize verses, which is great, but they do not go back and look at how those verses come in context.  Today I was struck by the context of this verse.  Take a look at the verse that comes before it:

2 Timothy 1:6 (NIV)For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands.  

 Then comes 2 Timothy 1:7 (NIV):

2 Timothy 1:7 (NIV)For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love, and of self-discipline.

When looking at these verses in context, it appears that Paul was writing to Timothy and telling him not only to be unafraid, but to be unafraid to use the "gift" he received through the "laying on of hands".  Since I had read 1 Timothy just moments before, I realized Paul mentions this gift in his first letter as well:

1 Timothy 4:14 (NIV)Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you.  

Using Strong's Concordance, I looked up the word for gift in Greek, since the translation from the original Greek into English can lead to a word that's vague.  I also looked up the word for gift in English to compare the two.

The New Oxford American Dictionary defines the English word "gift" as a noun, a thing given willingly to someone without payment; a present; or a natural ability or talent.

Strong's says the word used in both 1 and 2 Timothy is the Greek word "charisma", perhaps where the "charistmatic" label comes from in our language.

The NAS New Testament Greek Lexicon defines "charisma as":

• "a favour with which one receives without any merit of his own

• the gift of divine grace

• the gift of faith, knowledge, holiness, virtue

• the economy of divine grace, by which the pardon of sin and eternal salvation is appointed to sinners in consideration of the merits of Christ laid hold of by faith

• grace or gifts denoting extraordinary powers, distinguishing certain Christians and enabling them to serve the church of Christ, the reception of which is due to the power of divine grace operating on their souls by the Holy Spirit"

This word "charisma" per Strong's is also used in Romans 1:11, Romans 5:15-16, Romans 6:23, Romans 11:29, Romans 12:6, 1 Corinithians 1:7, 1 Corinthians 7:7, 1 Corinthians 12:4, 1 Corinthians 12:9, 1 Corinthians 12:28, and 1 Corinthians 12:30-31, 2 Corinthians 1:11, and 1 Peter 4:10.  A majority of these verses are listed below for ease of looking them up (I've listed the ones I feel are pertinent):

Romans 1:11 (NIV)I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong-- 

Romans 11:29 (NIV)for God's gifts and his call are irrevocable.

Romans 12:6 (NIV)We have different gifts, according to the grace given us.  If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. 

1 Corinthians 1:7 (NIV)Therefore, you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. 

1 Corinthians 7:7 (NIV)I wish that all men were as I am.  But each man has his own gift from God; one has this gift; another has that. 

1 Corinthians 12:4 (NIV)There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. 

1 Corinthians 12:9 (NIV)to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 

1 Corinthians 12:28 (NIV)And int he church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues. 

1 Corinthians 12: 30 -31Do all have gifts of healing?  Do all speak in tongues?  Do all interpret?  But eagerly desire the greater gifts.  And now I will show you the most excellent way. 

 1 Peter 4:10 (NIV)
Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms.

As can be seen, it seems as if in context, Paul is telling Timothy to not have a spirit of fear regarding the use of "grace or gifts denoting extraordinary powers, distinguishing certain Christians and enabling them to serve the church of Christ, the reception of which is due to the power of divine grace operating in their souls by the Holy Spirit", which Timothy received through prayer from elders in the church.

It makes me wonder which gift Timothy received.  The verses above indicate that spiritual gifts can be prophecy, faith, healing, working miracles, healing, the ability to help others, administration, tongues, interpretation of tongues.  There may be more listed not mentioned here, since this is not a study on gifts but on not being afraid to use them.  The context of the familiar verse 2 Timothy 1:7 really strikes home, however, as in our modern post-Christian day and age, where people eat food prepared in factories and live in big cities, I really feel as if some parts of the church have come to neglect the spiritual gifts that are Biblical.  Like Timothy, we have become afraid of them, so afraid, in fact, that we use the verse about fear and do not talk about what comes before it.

I wonder if that is why the church has seemingly lost its power.  I hear many young people speaking about how they wish we could go back to the days of Acts when the early church experienced power when the holy spirit came upon them, why we cannot see miracles such as in the days of Jesus or even in Old Testament times.  I believe we have forgotten that God has not give us a spirit of fear in regards to these things, but of power to use our gifts, of love to motivate our use, and of self-discipline to learn how to use them.

I believe that 2 Timothy 1:7 is ok to use out of context when it comes to any fear, for all fear except the fear of the Lord (which is essentially reverence or respect) is not from God.  The verses that come to mind are the many times in the Old Testament, such as in Deuteronomy, where God tells his people to be strong and courageous.  We also walk by faith, not by sight, as said in 2 Corinthians 5:7, which indicates we act on what we know God to be and how we know him to operate, not by the dangers we know that are out there.  This is pleasing to God (Hebrews 11:6). 

The New Oxford American dictionary defines fear as a noun, an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat.

So actually fear is a normal human response based off of what we perceive with our senses, such as our sight.  But since we are to walk by our faith-- our beliefs-- and not our sight or senses, I believe the Word of God teaches that God does not want us to be ruled by our fears.  So I think it is a correct use of scripture to remind oneself that God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and self-discipline.  But I believe we are missing so much of our spiritual walk if we neglect the gifts of the spirit.  We won't truly be as Jesus was without this empowerment.

Paul writes that each man has his own spiritual gift in 1 Corinthians 7:7, and it is implied in the letters to Timothy that we can receive gifts through prayer.  I encourage you, as a Christian, to seek God as to what your spiritual giftings are and to use them with power, for love, and to discipline yourself in the use of them.  If you do not know your gifts, or wish to receive one, I encourage you to ask for prayer.  For God has not given us a spirit of timidity in regards to them, but of power, of love, and of self-discipline.

God Had An Opinion On My Outfit

Isaiah 30:21 (NIV)Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, "This is the way; walk in it."

You probably think by the title of my post that I am writing about modesty.  While I am a firm advocate of modesty, the opinion that God voiced one cold wintery morning had nothing to do with a shirt that was too low cut or anything of the sort.  In fact, because it was so cold out, I put on a long sleeve shirt with a high neckline.
It was always hard at the office to decide whether it would be warm or cold that day.  The day prior to the particular morning God had an opinion, it was extremely warm in the office.  So I decided to not wear long johns under my pants because I would roast and subsequently be tempted to nod off after lunch, all warm and toasty.  I fixed my hair and make up and turned on my heel to go to work.
God said: You'll want warmer clothes today.
My response was to go extreme.  You want warm clothes, God?  I pulled out the largest, most heaviest sweater ever made and layered that over long johns.  I also selected my warmest coat and boots.  I hate wearing headwear during the winter, but I made sure I had that as well, and also gloves.  I was certain I would roast in the office that day and that I would show God a thing or two about having an opinion about my outfit!
Needless to say, as I was driving to work that morning, I thought that the music on the radio had a very annoying beat.  I turned the music up to hear it because it did not match the rhythm of the words at all!  Oddly enough, the rhythm of the beat did not correspondingly increase in volume.
I noticed then that the car was driving strangely, but it being a snowy morning, I had to wait to pull over.  Finally I cleared the intersection, pulled over in the snow, and found that I had a flat tire and the "odd beat" that I thought I heard on the radio was me driving and crunching the rim of the tire into scrap metal!  Yikes!
Needless to say I had to pull all my summer tires out of the back of the car to try and find a jack, which took a while.  The car did not have a jack so I stood out in the snow like a very lost person for some time before someone pulled over to see if I needed help.  He did not have a jack that would fit my car, but returned home to get one from his other car that would fit.  I waited outside in perhaps thirty or forty below-zero weather.
Finally, once my flat was swapped out with a winter tire, I drove to work and found that I had been outside so long that I was cold the entire day.  Had I not listened to God, heard his still small voice, that morning, I would have lost my toes and ear tips to frostbite and perhaps frozen my thighs and other parts susceptible to cold damage.
I don't believe that a follower of Jesus must pray over whether or not they should wear warm clothes or lighter clothes in the morning in any season, or whether or not they should put ketchup or mustard on their hotdog, however I do believe that in the day-to-day, we need to be open to hear God's voice whisper in our ears his opinions, requests, and commands.  He may utter something vital, such as, "This is the one you are going to marry," or he might tell you to not eat that ketchup because it's spoiled.  Or, he might tell you that you'll want to change your outfit for the day.
I encourage you to cultivate your relationship with God so that you can recognize his voice.  Also, don't be so busy or occupied or blasted with media that you do not have the opportunity to even hear his voice if he spoke.  Often times we miss the quiet voice telling us to go to the right or the left because it's drowned out by distractions.
I know I must strive to be open to hearing.  I know it's worth it-- I still have my ears and toes to prove it.

Attempted Kidnapping

Psalm 91:11 (NASB)
For He will give His angels charge concerning you, to guard you in all your ways.


When I was 14, I went on a few-week mission trip to the Philippines with the organization Reap International.  I was really young, naive, and thought good of most people at that point in my life.  I went wherever without a thought of what was going on and was completely unaware of any potential danger.
Apparently while we were there, there was a communist group called the New People's Army or NPA which was watching our team the duration of our time on one of the islands.  The Filipinos would not let us sleep in certain villages because of kidnapping danger and I think the NPA lit off a bomb near the Bible School that Reap helps with to intimidate the American presence or something of the sort.  I was completely oblivious.
I went from one place to the next smiling at everyone, leading worship at the churches, engaging in any activities that the other youth on our team were doing. One thing that I tried was riding on the outside of one of their local modes of transportation-- the tricee which is like a golf cart attached to a small motorbike.  All the passengers ride in the "golf cart" side.  It was really fun because my parents would never let me do anything risky like that (they did not come on the trip)... all until a Filipino man reached out and hooked his arm around my waist and tried to pull me off the tricee.
It didn't occur to me that I was in danger, I just didn't think it was very polite to rip people off tricees.  I didn't struggle, I was too small then to have fought him and he was too large that I am not exactly sure how he had not succeeded.  All I know was that one minute I was riding on the outside and he hooked his arm around my waist and pulled and the next minute I was flying/scrambling into the very full golf cart onto the laps of many people on our team.  They asked me what the meaning of it was, thinking I was perhaps acting up, but I told them what had happened, so they let me ride on the inside.
I didn't fully realize the significance of this until I became older, for now I know of all the things that can happen to a 14 year old girl that gets kidnapped.  I thought the worst that could have happened was that they might ransom me if it was the NPA that tried, but it could have been one of those people that steal children to sell them.  Whichever was the case, I realize that God's divine hand was protecting me, because surely the man should have succeeded in kidnapping me to whatever end.  But God's angels watched over me and kept me safe. 
I know most people don't have stories like that, so I have really seen the incredible work of God in my life.  I am sharing it here so that others can see that God truly is at work in the world, alive and active.  My life has been evidence of it numerous times.