Merry Christmas

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counnselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6

May all your days be made bright by the light of the love that was born at Christmas. We at Bible Study for Women would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a New Year ruled by Christ's peace.

Shalom.

How is Your Peace?

Taught by Arlene S.
Notes by Linda G.

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end.” (Isaiah 9:6-7a, emphasis added)

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests." (Luke 2:14, emphasis added)

The above two verses are probably familiar to all of us. We hear them often this time of year. Arlene reminded us that the first verse from Isaiah is a prophecy about the coming Messiah. The second verse is the New Testament fulfillment of this prophecy. Both of these verses speak of peace. Peace is something that the Lord wants us to have.

She broke ‘peace’ down into two types: spiritual peace and circumstantial peace. In John 14:27 Jesus says, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid”. The peace that Jesus is speaking of, that He wants us to have, is spiritual peace. Peace that transcends worldly circumstances.

Within the category of spiritual peace Arlene showed us that biblically there is something called ‘positional peace’ and something called ‘experiential peace’.

POSITIONAL PEACE

Arlene brought us through a series of scriptures that point to the fact that we do have peace with God. It is the peace that we have when we come to God.

“For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!” (Romans 5:10, emphasis added)

“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.” (Romans 5:6, emphasis added)

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8, emphasis added)

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God”. (Eph 2:8, emphasis added)

The emphasis on the above verses is on what God has done for us. We are not saved by the law. Even in the Old Testament this was true. “If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about-but not before God. What does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness."” (Romans 4:6-7). Abraham looked ahead to the fulfillment to God’s promises. We, as new Testament believers, look back to the cross. Arlene emphasized that God’s love for us is ‘furious’, despite the fact that we are sinners. Through Christ’s death we are restored to relationship with the father. “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Cor 5:21)

EXPERIENTIAL PEACE

Arlene explained that because we do have positional peace with God we should be able to have experiential peace in our lives. (I am sure that I am not alone in saying that peace is not always a reality in my life.) Arlene asked us “Why are we moved? Why are we anxious? Why no peace? What is blocking it?”. She went back to the verse from the beginning of the study “Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end” (Isaiah 9:7). Arlene emphasized the word ‘government’ in this verse. What we are governed by is what we are ruled by. The more peace we want in our lives, the more we must allow God to rule in our lives.

The following is a list of the things that we may be allowing to rule in our lives. Something that Arlene stressed is that Satan absolutely wants to keep us from allowing Christ to rule our lives. We need to be vigilant to overcome the ways in which he will keep us from walking in God’s peace.

Other people/our culture: Paul states this very clearly: “Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.”(Gal 1:10) Arlene also pointed to another scripture where Paul describes a situation where a fellow servant of Christ did not do as Paul wanted. “Now about our brother Apollos: I strongly urged him to go to you with the brothers. He was quite unwilling to go now, but he will go when he has the opportunity”. (1 Cor 16:12) It seems Paul could take ‘no’ for an answer. Arlene pointed out that it is ok for us to say ‘no’ as well. (Personally, I would follow this up with we should be able to accept ‘no’ as an answer. Amen?)

Circumstances: We may allow bad circumstances to rule us (i.e. our past, a troubled marriage, shaky finances, health issues)

Self-imposed rule: Arlene pointed out that unknowingly we can allow our own hidden faults to rule us. “Who can discern his errors? Forgive my hidden faults.”(Psalm 19:12) The following are unintentional sins that could be ruling us. Not only do they affect our own lives but also the lives of those around us.

Perfectionism: This could rule us as well. To read more about this, see Arlene’s devotional entitled “Perfect Pursuit”. mwcwbstudy.blogspot.com/2010/12/perfect-pursuit.html Arlene told us that we need to ‘accept acceptance’. In this world we will never be perfect but God rejoices as we try to please Him.

Insecurities: Our insecurities also can rule over us. As Arlene mentioned, not only do our insecurities hurt us but they also hurt others. Especially in our role as mothers this can happen. Our children are greatly influenced by us and as we respond to situations out of something like insecurity or having a victim mentality, this is what they will learn. We want to model Christ’s rule in our lives for the health of our families. Arlene showed us the nature of the Proverbs 31 Woman, “She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. “(Proverbs 31-25) Like the Proverbs 31 Woman, we too can be women of valor, one who is confident with the heart and spirit of a warrior.

Self-protection: Many of us keep our heart guarded because we have been greatly wounded in the past. The Lord wants us to be able to love generously, lavishly, and sincerely. As Proverbs 3:5 says “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.“ It is hard to trust the Lord with our heart, but it is the best place to be.

Negative emotions: Some of the negative emotions that can rule us are: jealousy, envy, malice, depression, bitterness, anger & criticalness. These emotions can cause us to avoid people because we know that they can bring these emotions out in a powerful way. Arlene encouraged us to pour out our hearts to the Father. He can bring healing.

Guilt: This is not the kind of guilt that makes us do something but the kind that keeps us from doing something. This is what Satan uses to keep us from walking in obedience to the Lord. Satan will tell us we are not worthy to serve God. We must choose to believe what the Lord says about us and listen to His voice.

Need for significance: Arlene mentioned how we can be motivated out of a need to show that we are significant to others. For example, we may decide to meet a need of another family while our own family is in need of that very thing. We need to hold on to the praises and criticisms of men lightly. What the Lord has to say to us, about us, is what really counts. (As a side note, this isn’t to say that a word of encouragement to another is not a blessing!)

Acceptance: The need for acceptance is also something that can rule us. We want to be part of the group.

Fear of failure: Arlene showed us that the fear of failure will keep us from God’s best. Sometimes we will not walk in obedience because we are ruled by the fear that we will not succeed.

Co-dependence: Again, as mothers this can keep us from walking in God’s peace. We allow other people’s happiness to rule our sound decisions. We feel that to guard our own happiness we need to keep those around us happy, especially our kids. Arlene stressed that we are not responsible to keep our kids happy. Our dependency needs to be on the Lord – not on the relationships that surround us.

Arlene showed us how all the above things will keep us from walking is Jesus’ experiential peace. This peace can be a reality in our lives. “You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.”(Isaiah 26:3) God’s rule is good and right and pure. We need to die (or surrender) to what we want instead we need to cling to the Lord if we want to experience this peace. We want to be attached to Him. The more we are able to do this the more peace we will have. Trusting God is the key.

Something else Arlene pointed out, it is easy to allow God to rule when we understand but when we don’t understand the circumstances of our lives, peace can flee. The story of Job is a good example of this. In the Old Testament adverse circumstances were often the direct result of sin. Job’s friends all admonished him to admit his sin in order to restore the favor of the Lord. Job did all that he knew to do yet his circumstances did not change. He said “Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him; I will surely defend my ways to his face.(Job 13:15)

In Job 38, God responds to Job’s plea for understanding. “Who is this that darkens my counsel with words without knowledge?” (Job 38:2) God then describes the wonders of the physical world He has created. His point is that if man cannot understand God’s power to create and sustain the things that we can see and we can accept it, why can’t we trust Him with the things that are going on in our lives that we don’t understand? In other words, we don’t know how God created the world but we accept that He did then why can’t we trust Him with the things going on in our lives that we don’t understand. Arlene illustrated that she doesn’t know how a plane flies in the air but she travels on them. How much more can we trust God?

In conclusion, Arlene asked us, “Do you have peace in my life? Who is ruling?”. Is it another person, your circumstances or some hidden fault? God desires for us to live in His peace. The more we allow Him to rule or govern our lives the more we will experience His peace. Although while we are on earth, we will never fully walk in complete peace we can have more than many of us are experiencing. Let the following verse be a prayer in this quest:

“Lord, you establish peace for us; all that we have accomplished you have done for us. Lord, our God, other lords besides you have ruled over us, but your name alone do we honor.” (Isaiah 26:12-13)

Perfect Pursuit

I have some strong tendencies; others might categorize them as mild compulsions while still others blatant obsessions. I guess that distinction would lie in the relative proximity of their relationship with me. Those that are up front and close fall victim to these tendencies most often and have graduated from the “that is so cute” to the “you are out of control sister” mindset. I am working on tempering these inclinations for that last group.

As I sit here writing this post, I need only glance above the screen of my laptop to realize I am about to have a serious encounter with this particular disposition. I can’t help but notice that our television, which my husband had been working on the other night, was blatantly off center on its stand. Now mind you, I recognized this serious breech of decorative malfeasance the other morning and since I am working on my “tendencies”, I decided to exercise restraint and wait until someone else became aware of the obvious faux pas and rectify it. Well that was five and a half days ago; I can’t help wondering if there is a grave problem with the members in this house. I mean, seriously, am I the only one who sees how wrong this is? Can’t they see how important it is for the television to be sitting right in the middle of the table?!

Perhaps you have already been able to pin point my struggle. Hello, my name is Arlene and I am a perfectionist. I don’t mean to be that way and I can’t even isolate where this penchant for the perfect was birthed. But it seems to have escalated over the years to a full blown affinity to order. Doesn’t everyone live the credo “there is a place for every thing and everything belongs in its place”? No? Really?

Aside from the current pending issue I am well on the way to perfectionism temperance though admittedly I do encounter lapses now and again. Ok more now then again. I confess my motivation to moderation wasn’t due to the fact that I was driving those dear to me over the edge but I discovered that this proclivity for excellence doesn’t entirely line up with the Word of God.

Early on in my walk, I stumbled on the verse “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). You probably have figured out that that verse and my obsession was a disaster waiting to happen, the nucleic proportion kind, and it did. I self destructed. At that time, I didn’t understand the elementary basics of applying scripture with scripture. I hadn’t understood that while this verse describes the standard of righteousness, this standard can never be perfectly met by man himself, a person who by faith trusts in God enjoys God’s righteousness being reproduced in his life.

The Psalmist understood this when he wrote “To all perfection I see a limit; but your commands are boundless” (Psalm 119:96). I wonder if he had tendencies also. It would seem that he realized that all his ability to be perfect could never match up to the mighty righteousness of God. I think we might have had something in common.

In my desire to be free from this bondage of perfection I learned something stunning. God is not moved by my imperfections after all. In fact, if scripture holds true, and I believe that it does, He already sees me as perfect. The Song of Solomon reads “but my dove, my perfect one, is unique.” (6:9) I love that verse because my whole life I have been described as different, somehow it never felt like a compliment, but I rather like God’s terminology instead…unique. A girl could get use to that especially when it sits next to “perfect”.

But there is more. Not only does God see me as perfect, but He makes my way perfect. “It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect.” (Psalm 18:31). “The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me.” (Psalm 138:8 KJV) To my understanding it would seem that God has decided to take up my pursuit of perfection and carry it out on my behalf. Don’t you find that utterly amazing?

However, there is something that I do need to do and that is “aim for perfection” (2 Corinthians 13:11). You see I stand in the righteousness of God because of what Christ did on the cross but that doesn’t negate my responsibility to work out that righteousness in my life. While I am in perfect standing before God that perfection is being worked out tangibly as I walk by faith with Him. Righteous perfection will never be attained but I am commanded to pursue it.

I think I can do that. To aim for something doesn’t mean that you necessarily have to hit the mark, it just means your trying to. I think that makes God happy. I think He likes it when want to please Him. I think our faith attempts are what count and not whether we actually hit the bull’s eye. I am content to live with that and even as I finish this post I am going to purpose to make it my pursuit to aim for better and not get crazed over the failed attempts. Yeah I think that will be my new focus. That is definitely what I will do!

As soon as I straighten the T.V..

“Faith is the courage to accept acceptance, to accept that God loves me as I am and not as I should be, because I’m never going to be as I should be.”
Paul Tillich

Class Notes for 12/7

The notes for today's lesson will not be posted on the blog. Toby will be sending out a copy of her notes to the Women's Bible Study email list. If you would like a copy, please contact Toby directly. Next week's lesson will be up as usual. Have a great week!

Lessons from Lexi: A study in joy

My daughter recently turned 20 months. While this age has its toddler moments of insanity, I am finding it a delightful age to parent. I also find that often times I learn more from her than she from me!

Sure, I’ve walked this earth by God’s grace for 39 years (don’t even mention my 40^th birthday coming up, ugh!) and Lexi’s walked it for…a little over one and a half years but she still has blessed me with some wonderful lessons of how to live in God’s grace every day.

Lesson 1: Beauty is not where you expect

My daughter loves flowers; loves to stop and see them, smell them, touch them. A walk into our church can take quite a while as she stops to admire each and every flower along the way. As winter approaches, most flowers have died and dried up. The pots and fields of flowers we do encounter in our travels are usually of the brown, withered, dried up, and, well, dead variety! Yet, Lexi stops with grace and awe at each one. She bends down to smell them, she looks up at me and says, “pwetty” and she takes such joy in God’s creation. At first, I wanted to pull her along and even started to say, “those are all gone, let’s go, nothing to see here.” I even chuckled at her toddler sense of aesthetics: dead flowers pretty?

Then the Spirit stopped me. Isn’t that how God sees us fallen humans? Are we always bright, blooming, healthy spring flowers? I can’t speak for you, but, no, I’m not! I sin. I fall into despair. I forget to talk to God. My soul , at times, feels like a brown, withered, dried up flower-but God sees me and all of you as “pwetty”. Beauty personified! What if we took this approach to the world as well? What if we learned to see beauty in people and things usually overlooked or dismissed by most people? What if we saw the beauty in the down trodden, sad new person in church-instead of ignoring them? What if we saw the “pwetty” in the harried cashier on our next trip to Shop-Rite? As the busyness of Christmas approaches, let’s all remember to “see the pwetty” and I think we will find life filled with more joy than we thought.

Lesson 2: Sometimes you just fall down.

Lexi has been walking since her first birthday, but, as a toddler, she sometimes overestimates what she can do. She’ll try to run or skip, jump or hop, climb something way too big for her or just perform something physical that she’s not capable of yet. Quite a few times throughout the day she trips or tumbles (gently!) off her chair. When this happens she says, “Go boom” very matter of factly, gets up, brushes off her hands and continues on with what she was doing. Falling down was just that: falling down. No shame or moral lessons attached to it. She fell. She got up. Life moves on. I challenge all of us to live like this! How often do we “fall”, whether that “fall” be a job loss, a bad hair day, a broken friendship, a bad presentation at work, a lost opportunity, an argument with a spouse/friend, or an actual, physical tumble? Probably more times than we want to admit. And how often, in these falls, do we feel embarrassment, we mutter “sorry” under our breath, we feel shame at our ineptness, we feel we are not enough. Falling becomes a reflection, and a bad one at that, on our very character. Let’s give that up, ladies! Let’s remember when we fall down to just realize, matter of factly, that we went “boom” and just get up and move on. Our mistakes are NOT who we are. We are washed clean by the blood of Jesus. When we “go boom” it is nothing more than a brief interruption in whatever we were doing. How much more joyful would our lives be if we could let go of our “my bad” moments!

Lesson 3: Sometimes a cup of water is truly a miracle

Since everything is so new to someone Lexi’s age, she tends to slow down and really see and appreciate life’s little moments. A new toy!! Really! If she were a dog, she’d be wagging her tail. Sometimes in the morning when I announce we are having oatmeal, one of her favorites, she runs to the kitchen, pumping her little arms in the air, chanting, “o-meal, o-meal!”

The other day after a snack and some time running around at a playdate, Lexi was thirsty. I didn’t have her sippy cup and so offered her something new: a drink of cold water out of a “grown up” cup with no straw and no lid. Her eyes got wide, her mouth opened in joy and she carefully and reverently drank all the water. Then she looked at me and said, “tank oo” and then gave a big, happy, “mmmmmmmm!” sound. Over water. That water was truly something to rejoice about!

I smile at these moments. My family and friends and I laugh at the great joy she takes in, of all things, oatmeal and water. How cute, we think, and then, “if only we could still be amazed at everything.”

Well, why can’t we? We have the joy of the Lord in our hearts and he graces each day with little moments of joy, we just have to start seeing them. Someone brought snacks in to work? Yay! When you get home after a long day, your slippers feel so soft and comfy? Rejoice! Let’s take the time to start taking joy in all that God gives us and stop waiting for something big and miraculous to bring us joy. Everyday life can be an “o-meal” moment!

“Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”

1^st Peter 1:8-9

For the Love of Ezra

Taught by Arlene S.
Notes by Linda G.

Throughout our study of the book of Ezra, the focus has been primarily on the spiritual and physical journey of the Israelites as they returned from their time of exile in Babylon. In today’s lesson Arlene gave us a different perspective – we looked at Ezra the man. From what we have studied to date, we see that he was a man of influence. Arlene mentioned that he is often referred to as ‘the second Moses’. Today we explored why this is so and why we can see Ezra, also, as a man who truly loved.

“Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man” (Proverbs 3:3-4).

Arlene used this verse to point to the character of Ezra. She focused first on Ezra’s ‘faithfulness’. The Hebrew word for faithfulness is met. It means that something can be relied on, as in adhering to the truth. The Hebrew word for love in this verse is hesed. It refers to a loyal, covenant love often translated in the NIV as "unfailing love". Arlene pointed out that Ezra walked in this love .
Arlene brought us through seven facets of how Ezra displayed this love. She focused on how he related to God, and how that relationship shaped his relationship to the Israelites.

1)Ezra devoted his life to studying and observing God’s Word. The teachings of God’s Word became a part of Ezra’s very nature; he was devoted. Based on the above verse we see that because of his faithfulness to the Truth that he did find favor with God.

2)Ezra spoke the truth in love resulting in conviction. Arlene reviewed chapter 9 to give us perspective. This chapter begins with ‘After these things had been done’ (Ez 9:1). The things that had been done were: the return of two waves of exiles, the temple and alter were rebuilt, and they faced opposition. Many commentators place chapter 8 of Nehemiah on the historical calendar of events between chapters 9 and 10 of Ezra. In this chapter of Nehemiah, Ezra is reading from the law (Deut 5:29-33, 6, 7:6-16, and 10:12-13). The people were mourning and weeping as he read. These verses spoke of God's covenant love for them and how He gave them the commandments so that they might have a long life and live in prosperity.

Sometime we use the Word like a sword on each other, perhaps in truth but possibly lacking the love which needs to balance the truth. Arlene brought up the following from 1 Cor 13:1-3, “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing”. If Ezra had not spoken with the love of God, his word would not have been received yet we clearly see it touched their hearts.

3) Ezra pointed them to joy in God’s hesed love for them. “Then Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who were instructing the people said to them all, 'This day is sacred to the Lord your God. Do not mourn or weep.' For all the people had been weeping as they listened to the words of the Law” (Neh. 8:9). Ezra tells the people to rejoice because “the joy of the Lord is your strength" (see Neh 8:10) and that they then celebrated “with great joy, because they now understood the words that had been made known to them” (Neh. 8:12). In this passage we see that “love rejoices in the truth” (1 Cor 13:6b).

Arlene shared with us some thoughts from a book entitled You Gotta Keep Dancin’ by Tim Hansel (Life Journey Books, 1985, pp. 53-54). In this book, Mr. Hansel explains that the word for ‘happiness’ and ‘happening’ come from the same root, the point being that happiness is linked to circumstances. Joy is something that overshadows present circumstances. He writes “Joy is that deep settled confidence that God is in control of every area of my life”. He goes on to say “It is not a feeling; it is a choice”. We may not be able to avoid painful circumstances in our lives but we do have the freedom to choose joy in these times. Ezra pointed the people not to sorrow on this sacred day but to be joyful in the Lord.

4)Ezra identified with them (the Israelites) which resulted in genuine sorrow. In Ezra 9 we saw that some things were going on that grieved Ezra. Not only on behalf of his people but himself as well. Not only was Ezra a teacher put he was also a priest. As 1 Cor 13:4 says “Love does not boast”, or in the NKJV, “parade itself”. Ezra did not exalt himself against his fellow Jews but identified with them. In Hebrews 4:14-5:3 we see that Jesus, as our high priest, had compassion on our suffering and weaknesses because he was tempted as we are. Even more so, the earthly priests could have compassion and understanding of the peoples’ weaknesses because they were sinners as well. Ezra truly fellowshiped in their sorrow.

Arlene shared with us a quote by Henri Noeween that speaks of this compassion that we want to have for others, “ Let us not underestimate how hard it is to be compassionate. Compassion is hard because it requires the inner disposition to go with others to a place where they are weak, vulnerable, lonely, and broken. But this is not our spontaneous response to suffering.
What we desire most is to do away with suffering by fleeing from it or finding a quick sure for it”.

We examined the question of why do we find so much emotion in this chapter? Going back to Solomon, we learned, he had disobeyed the Lord by taking wives that influenced him by drawing him away from the Lord (to put it mildly!). The consequences of his actions on the nation of Israel were painfully severe, touching generations to follow. The Isrealites of Ezra’s time were repeating the mistakes of their past leaders and Ezra grieved for what might follow. Arlene pointed out that we, as women, are leaders of some kind with a sphere of influence. We need to choose the type of leader we want to be.

5)Ezra gave Godly counsel and waited for God to work on their hearts. From Ezra 10:1-4, Arlene taught how Ezra had given godly counsel to the people then took a step back and gave the Lord room to work. As it says in 1 Cor 13:7, love always trusts (God). Arlene gave us a helpful acrostic that she had learned in a parenting seminar many years ago. It is I.C.E. I – instruction , C-consequence, E – exercise your options. She related how it is often hard for us to remain silent because it makes us feel helpless. Trusting God and believing he is in control is the best path to take.

6)Ezra used his authority and led them in obedience. We see in 1 Cor 13 that "love bears all things". As Arlene taught, Ezra did not just talk about what they should do, he did what he said should be done and became a part of it. We already saw that he had the legal and spiritual authority to rule. He didn’t use his authority from a place of supreme power, he ruled with love and humility.

Sometimes in the Word there appears to be inconsistencies between the Old Testament and the New Testament. In Deuteronomy 7:1-4, God is telling his people not to intermarry with the people of the lands they had conquered. This was due to the transfer of uncleanness. In Ezra 8 and 9 we see that the Israelites had intermarried with these people. In the New Testament we have already been made clean. We are under a new covenant. In the New Testament, in an unequally yoked marriage, the unbelieving spouse and the children are sanctified (not saved) by the believing spouse. They are made clean. “Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, fading though it was, will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? If the ministry that condemns men is glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness!” (2 Cor 3:7-9).

7)Ezra supervised repentance for as long as it took. In 1 Cor 13, God tells us "love is patient". Arlene showed us how Ezra loved the people with patience. Ezra 10:9-19 details the process that took place. A thorough investigation was carried out – the judgment was not carried out haphazardly and it took time.

Arlene differentiated the kinds of sin we see in the Bible (see Psalm 51). Here they are: 1) sin – missing the mark, basically regular, daily sin that we all commit as part of our human nature, 2)transgressions– this is premeditated sin, 3) iniquity – perversity or evil, and 4) hidden faults and unintentional sins. “Who can discern his errors? Forgive my hidden faults. Keep your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then will I be blameless, innocent of great transgression” (Psalm 19:12-13).

“If a person sins and does wht is forbidden in any of the LORD's commands, even thought he does not know it, he is guilty and will be held responsible. He is to bring to the priest as a guilt offering a ram from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value . In this way the priest will make atonement for him for the wrong he has committed unintentionally, and he will be forgiven.“(Lev 5:17-18).

“They all gave their hands in pledge to put away their wives, and for their guilt they each presented a ram from the flock as a guilt offering.” (Ezra 10:19).

Arlene pointed out what was so wonderful in these passages is how determined God is to love His people. He had made a way for them to be reconciled to himself, even for the sins that they did not know they were committing. This is hesed, covenant love. God absolutely loves us in the same way. Jesus died on the cross to cover all our sins – from those that are premeditated to those we don’t even know we have done. Even as I write this I am filled with joy and gratitude. What a wonderful Savior we have!!

In conclusion, Arlene showed us how Ezra loved:
• he had a whole hearted devotion to God and His word
• he was passionate about others loving God too
• he brought encouragement and hope to the repentant
• he identified with their sin and then helped
• he gave godly counsel and trusted God with people
• he didn’t use his authority to control but to help
• he stuck with them to the end


“Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man” (Proverbs 3:3-4).