An Attitude of Obedience - Ezra 9-10 and Acts 1
These last two chapters in the book of Ezra tell about a serious problem among the remnant that returned to rebuild the Temple and Jerusalem. They did not have an attitude of obedience toward God's commands, and they were knowingly breaking His commands. In fact, they were engaging in intermarriage with the pagans of the land, which was strictly forbidden by God. The first command of God about going into the Promised Land was to kill all of the people of the land, because He knew they would not change their beliefs, and He knew they would influence the people to practice paganism. Therefore, it should have been unthinkable to marry one of these people. Why did they intermarry? They did not have an attitude of obedience. They had not made it a priority to obey all of God's commands. They were simply doing what they felt was right in their own eyes. Does that sound familiar? That is common today, and it has always been the downfall of God's people. We must cultivate an attitude of obedience. To show the remnant how important this was Ezra earnestly sought God's will, and then he called for everyone who had taken a pagan wife and had children to put them all away. This was a drastic move, because God hates divorce. However, I believe Ezra knew that they would not survive without understanding the importance of keeping God's commands. The same is true for us today.
In Acts 1 we read about the disciples as they watched Jesus ascend back to heaven. We are told that He gave them commands before He left. We see them obeying each of those commands. They stayed in Jerusalem. They were praying and waiting for the Holy Spirit before they did anything else. They even took it upon themselves to replace Judas, because they found a Scripture which said another should take his place. Now, that was an attitude of obedience. Some scholars say that they went to far in replacing Judas. I do not know if they did or not, but I know God loved that attitude of obedience, and He blessed them abundantly as they continued in it. Think about that as we read the rest of the book of Acts. It will be a prime factor in God's blessing. It is a prime factor in God's blessing in our lives, too. God is quick to bless those who He knows He can trust to faithfully keep His commands. After all, why does He give a command in the first place? It is because it is something that is vital for our lives. It is not an option. We must not see commands as optional.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Nehemiah 1-3 and Acts 2:1-21.
In Acts 1 we read about the disciples as they watched Jesus ascend back to heaven. We are told that He gave them commands before He left. We see them obeying each of those commands. They stayed in Jerusalem. They were praying and waiting for the Holy Spirit before they did anything else. They even took it upon themselves to replace Judas, because they found a Scripture which said another should take his place. Now, that was an attitude of obedience. Some scholars say that they went to far in replacing Judas. I do not know if they did or not, but I know God loved that attitude of obedience, and He blessed them abundantly as they continued in it. Think about that as we read the rest of the book of Acts. It will be a prime factor in God's blessing. It is a prime factor in God's blessing in our lives, too. God is quick to bless those who He knows He can trust to faithfully keep His commands. After all, why does He give a command in the first place? It is because it is something that is vital for our lives. It is not an option. We must not see commands as optional.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Nehemiah 1-3 and Acts 2:1-21.