Lessons From Ezra

"this Ezra came up from Babylon. He was a teacher well versed in the Law of Moses, which the LORD, the God of Israel, had given. The king had granted him everything he asked, for the hand of the LORD his God was on him. 7 Some of the Israelites, including priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers and temple servants, also came up to Jerusalem in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes.

8 Ezra arrived in Jerusalem in the fifth month of the seventh year of the king. 9 He had begun his journey from Babylon on the first day of the first month, and he arrived in Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month, for the gracious hand of his God was on him. 10 For Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the LORD, and to teaching its decrees and laws in Israel." Ezra 7:6-10

I was reading the book of Ezra tody, and I glanced over in my study Bible to see what it had to say about what I was reading. It really made a great point today- a basic point, but a good one nonetheless. The study page mentioned that using the Bible really comes down to three steps, and they really must be done in order, because they don't make sense if you don't follow their order. These steps are study, obey, and teach. Studying God's Word without obeying it just seems to me like a big waste of time and effort. Reading the Bible does you no good unless you obey the commands and directions within. It's like trying to assemble a bicycle. You need to follow the directions, or you could end up with a horrible mess!

Then there's the step of teaching. Have you ever tried to learn something from a teacher who didn't know what they were talking about? I have. In college one of my professors had been diagnosed with cancer, and while she was managing it and it was going away, she missed a lot of classes while going through treatments. Often times, the teacher who took over some of her classes was from a different course section, and therefore knew very little practical application of the course matter. Sure, they could read to us from a book, but it meant very little without the personal spin and the anecdotes our professor would spin in each and every day in class. The same holds true for the Bible. Sure, anyone can read it, and read it to others, but unless you've practiced what's inside, the person you're trying to teach is going to miss the crux of the message you're sharing.

As we practice what we read in the Bible, we teach most often by example. When people know that we are Christians, often times they examine our lives for proof of God. Do these Christians really believe what they say and read? Or are they putting on an act to try and get us to go to church.

Read, obey, and teach. As Christians, we can't do the last two without the first. We must read our Bible first in order to find out what it has to say to us. Only then can we begin to obey what's within, and only after we've experienced it can we teach what we've learned.