December 16: Ezra

[Read Ezra 7]

As we remember the Gift of Christ to the world this Holiday Season, let us learn a lesson of sharing found in the life of Ezra.

Ezra was born of the sons of Aaron and had been given a priestly training. But it appears that he was not satisfied with his spiritual condition. He wanted to be in full harmony with God and to carry out God’s will. And so he “prepared his heart to seek the law of the Lord, and to do it.” Ezra 7:10

He sought God earnestly, and as he learned more concerning God's dealings with His children, and comprehended the sacredness of the law given at Sinai, Ezra's heart was stirred. He experienced a conversion and determined to use this knowledge to bring blessing and light to his people.

God chose Ezra to be an instrument of good to Israel, a wise teacher. Ezra developed into a man of extraordinary learning and became “a ready scribe in the law of Moses.” Ezra 7:6

Ezra became a mouthpiece for God, educating those about him in the principles that govern God’s people. Ezra's faith that God would do a mighty work for His people led him to tell Artaxerxes of his desire to return to Jerusalem to revive an interest in the study of God's word and to assist his brethren in restoring the Holy City.

Elder Paul Kenyon
Sturgeon Bay Seventh Day Adventist



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