Notes from my Bible Study for March 15, 2010

Today's Reading: Psalm 74, Exodus 20:1‐17, Ezra 10, Romans 9:30‐10:21

Psalm 74 - The temple was the greatest symbol of national pride in the nation of Israel. And now it lay in ruins. Psalm 74 is a psalm of lament, meant to be sung by the people to remember what had happened to God's temple. It is a psalm of Asaph, and it reveals the depth of despair that the people must have felt as they reflected upon that which was now lost. The psalm asks God to work on behalf of His people. In our toughest days, there is nowhere to turn but God. That is what Asaph does, and calls the people to do as well.

Exodus 20:1-17 - Ten Commandments, given from God to Moses for the Children of Israel. These commands make up the moral fabric of society. Thousands of others laws would come, but there would be no need for these laws if the Ten Commandments were lived out.

When Jesus was asked in the New Testament what the Greatest Commandment was, He answered to love the Lord your God with all of you heart, soul, mind and strength, and the second is like it; to love your neighbor as yourself. if we love God first, and love others second, we will never be guilty of breaking any of these commands. Our sin is a result of choosing to believe that our way is better than God's. Choose wisely.

Ezra 10 - Ezra ten picks up where the last chapter left off. The people recognize their sin in marrying foreign women. The vast majority make amends before God. They put away their foreign wives and covenant themselves once again to God. It seems harsh in our western mindsets to see such behavior, but God was calling these men to live a holy life, set apart to Him. They were his people, and were not to intermarry with those who were not.

Romans 9:30-10:21 - Paul reasserts that salvation is for everyone, Jew and Gentile, but that we have a responsibility in the matter. In Romans 9, we read about a God who calls people to Himself. In Romans 10:9-10, we read about our responsibility in the matter:

9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.

How many people there are who miss heaven because of the distance between their head and their heart. We must humble ourselves and accept God's free gift of salvation. We must allow Jesus Christ to rule as Lord of our lives. We must recognize that Jesus is who He said that He was. He is the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Jesus. We must recognize that because of Jesus' resurrection power, all of us have the gift of salvation available to us. The question is, "Will we accept Christ's free gift?"