Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK … Please take the time to take in a video of Clay Crosse, Bebe Winans, and Bob Carlisle singing… I Will Follow Christ, … declaring what should be the pursuit of all Christians … to follow Christ … to seek His will and His way … from His instruction Book, … His living word!!
Highlight Passage: Ezra 3: 2 [NKJV] …
2 Then Jeshua the son of Jozadak[a] and his brethren the priests, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and his brethren, arose and built the altar of the God of Israel, to offer burnt offerings on it, as it is written in the Law of Moses the man of God.
… Rebuilding the Temple, upon return from Babylonian captivity, God’s people followed God’s instructions from His word.
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Highlight Context – Ezra 3: 1-6 [NKJV] … USE THIS LINK …
… God’s people, following God’s word - AS IT IS WRITTEN!!
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Reference Passage #1 - Psalm 119: 105 [NKJV] …
105 Your word is a lamp to my feed and a light to my path.
… Best to use His word to light our way, … don’tcha think?
Reference Passage #2 - Nehemiah 8: 1-3 [NKJV] … USE THIS LINK …
… After the walls had been rebuilt in Jerusalem, God’s remnant were read God’s instructions in His Book of the Law by Ezra and their priesthood.
Reference Passage #3 - Luke 9: 23 [NKJV] …
23 Then He (Jesus) said to them all (His followers). “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me. … “
… Jesus’ directions to His followers … to follow HIM
Reference Passage #4 - John 14:21 [NKJV] …
21 He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”
… Jesus’ directions to His disciples … to show their love for Him by following His commandments … HIS DIRECTIONS for life.
My Journal for Today: Today’s Our Daily Bread author, Dave Branon, used a personal illustration. He writes … When it comes to putting things together—electronics, furniture, and the like—my son and I have differing approaches. Steve is more mechanically inclined, so he tends to toss the instructions aside and just start in. Meanwhile, I’m poring over the “Read This Before Starting” warning while he has already put the thing halfway together. … Sometimes we can get by without the instructions. But when it comes to putting together a life that reflects the goodness and wisdom of God, we can’t afford to ignore the directions He’s given to us in the Bible.
Notice how God’s leaders, Ezra and God’s Priests [in the passages from Ezra 3 and Nehemiah 8), in the highlight ODB passages today, helped God’s people get back on track when they had returned to Jerusalem from Babylon and were rebuilding the Temple. Ezra helped them see that the best way to rebuild the Temple, and their lives, was to hear, understand, and follow God’s word.
What about you, my fellow disciple of Christ? When you purchase something which states, “Some assembly required,” do you go to the instructions; … or do you launch ahead, trying to figure out how to put all the bolts into place on your own? Personally, I’m a FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS kind of Christian, … primarily because I don’t trust myself, having tried many times to go through life, following my own way, rather than trying to do it as Christ instructed His followers (see Luke 9: 23 copied above).
These days when my wife and I are planning to drive somewhere we’ve never been before, we’ve learned (well, I’ve learned) … that if old Bill is driving [me], we better use the GPS on my smart phone and not rely on me to try and nose my way to our destination. What about you? Are you the control-oriented type who wants to go it alone; or do you know it’s best to use the GPS?
In today’s complex and confusing world, don’t you think, as today’s ODB lesson teaches, that it’s best to follow God’s GPS {i.e., “God’s Plan of Sanctification”), which, of course, is found in God’s instruction manual, the Bible, … rather than trying to launch out and go it on our own?
I do! … That’s why you find me here, EVERY DAY, getting my day started by tuning my way to God’s GPS, … digging into GOD’S instructions for life, given to me in His word. Feel free to come along here with me daily and go over God’s instruction book; and let’s see if it doesn’t help us get through the minefields we call LIFE.
My Prayer Today: Yes, Lord Jesus, … Show me the way, Your way; and I will seek Your directions from Your word. … Amen
Blogger Note: Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled Our Daily Bread, distributed online via email by RBC Ministries. If you GO TO THIS LINK on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.
1 comment:
Great lesson. And those dudes can sing!
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