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Ezra 7:10 Set His Heart
Ezra 7:10 Set His Heart
Israel had been chosen, blessed with God's covenant law and destroyed for lack of knowledge. Now they are restored by grace and the purpose of God. YET they struggle: they are impoverished and God’s blessings are withheld because people YET again were not faithful to the covenant. The Man of the HOUR: EZRA. He is a Levite, of the family of Aaron, a Priest, and a scribe. (Ezra 7:1-6)
Ezra 7:9-10 9 For on the first day of the first month he began to go up from Babylonia, and on the first day of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, for the good hand of his God was on him. 10 For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the Lord, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel.
The Good Hand of the LORD Was With HIM
Ezra 7:6, 9, 28; 8:18, 22, 31; and Neh. 2:8
FOR – we are informed of the reason that the hand of God was with him and caused him to prosper in his work.
Ezra had SET HIS HEART
1. NOT 'just' the mind - but the whole of our being --
2. Heart the center of thinking, emotion, being…
3. The heart can't be divided - Matt. 6:
4. Hence the greatest commandment --
5. STILL part of God's covenant with His people - Col. 3:1-2
Ezra had SET HIS HEART to STUDY the Law OF God
1. Recognition that it was GOD's law - hence in that aspect different and other studies…
The law of Moses that the LORD, the God of Israel, had given… 7:6
2. SUCH involved the study of WRITING -
3. Such is not different than other studies in process…
Give Diligence - rightly dividing… 2 Tim. 2:15
a. Genre -
THE story, narratives, poetry, proverbs, allegory, vision, statutes and rules!
b. NORMAL questions to be asked - who, what, when, where -
It INVOLVES historical correctness…
1. REAL events -
2. Pertain FIRST to those who were addressed ..
3. Making application is different than 'meaning' --
4. Words have meaning!
4. Read (give familiarity with ALL of story), analyze, memorize, and meditate
Ezra set his heart TO DO
1. Be CAREFUL to DO ---
2. Faithfulness to covenant NOT just 'believing' -
3. Faithfulness set a goal of perfection, but was fulfilled in forgiveness - 1John 2:1-2
Ezra set his heart to TEACH GOD's states and rules …
1. Malachi 2:1-9, this a function of priests…
2. Problem of sticking with GOD's word…
3. How THEY accomplished -- Neh. 8:8 Read the word distinctly and gave the sense..
4. NOTE Neh. 8:9-12 taught to REJOICE in the understanding of the WORD of God!
Philippians 4:9 9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you. Or as Jesus said: “go and do thou likewise” (Luke 10:37).
Hugh DeLong
