6 November 2011

Psalm 93, 96; Ezra 10:1-17; Acts 24:10-21; Luke 14:12-24

Ezra’s grief over the sin of the people, particularly the leaders, marrying foreign wives is public. The people eventually share in his weeping over sin. In our worship we confess, “We do earnestly repent, and are heartily sorry for these our misdoings; the remembrance of them is grievous unto us, the burden of them is intolerable.” That is indeed the proper reaction to sin if we are to share the heart of God in the matter. The people not only confess, however, they also repent in that they are willing to change and also to undo what they have done by putting away their wives. We are summoned to confess our sins with the words, “Ye who do truly and earnestly repent you of your sins, and are in love and charity with your neighbors, and intend tolead a new life, following the commandments of God, and walking from henceforth in his holy ways…” Our attitude is to be one of broken-hearted sorrow over what we have done but also the desire and plan to change and live a new life. Ezra required that step of the people, no matter how painful it must have been for them to send away their wives.

Are we too busy for the kingdom of God? Too often our priorities are the same as those who do not know Christ. We are as busy as the rest of the world and we have to make space somewhere in our lives for an encounter with the living God rather than the other way round. Should Christians live differently and order their lives differently than others? Richard Foster began his book “Celebration of Discipline” by saying, “Superficiality is the curse of our age.... The desperate need today is not for a greater number of intelligent people, or gifted people, but for deep people.” Do we have time for depth in our lives or do we settle for something a good bit less than God is offering? We are called to intimate relationship and we have many reasons why we can’t accept that invitation but at what price? Some of the things we won’t give up seem more dear to us than the wives of the people of Ezra’s day.

Paul’s defense is that in truth he has not broken with Judaism nor is he advocating a new religion, his argument is simply that Messiah has come, God has fulfilled His promise to His people. Paul is inviting them to the wedding feast and they will not have it on those terms. Jesus is the dividing line and He is the only way to the Father. We must put away religion as our hope, self-righteousness as our hope or any other way as our hope and come to Him as our only hope.