0:00 Let's go to the book of Ezra now together. And we are at chapter nine this evening. And as you're turning there, I wanna let you know how encouraged I was to hear from so many of you who expressed how last week's study moved you as we explored very important and powerful insights from the last verses of chapter eight. And one of the main details that we spent time on from last week's study is that Ezra has proven to be more than just a man of the word. He's also a man of prayer.
0:34 And that aspect of Ezra's character is gonna be further confirmed in chapter nine because most of this chapter is essentially a recorded prayer of his, a very moving one, a sincere one. And essentially, chapter nine invites us to listen in on this man's heart cry to the Lord because it is documented in such rich detail. And so that's what we will seek to do this evening. We're going to try to complete this chapter in its entirety, but we're gonna do so carefully. And so this is one of those bible studies where you'll have some headings to keep you in the flow of these verses.
1:15 So I want us to look at three things in this bible study in this new chapter and they all begin with the letter I. Hopefully that makes it a little easier to remember. The first thing that we are going to examine is the iniquity. The iniquity. The reason why Ezra is going to pray so passionately here is because he's going to receive a report that is gonna be quite disappointing.
1:40 Shortly after arriving in Jerusalem, he's gonna learn about the true spiritual condition of the exiles who preceded him. And this report mainly deals with a sin issue that has been tolerated and justified and widely practiced. What is this iniquity? What can we learn from it? Well, we'll see in a moment.
1:59 From the iniquity, we are going to consider the indignation. Ezra's immediate response to this crushing news and how it's reflective of his piety and his relationship with the Lord. Finally, we will look at the intercession. And that is the main portion of this chapter, how Ezra is going to pray. And not just what he's going to pray, but how he prays and how that can help us know true fruit and results in our own praying.
2:31 So let's begin looking at the first two verses of this chapter then we'll pray and ask God to help us as we always do in these studies. Ezra Nain beginning in verse one. After these things had been done, the officials approached me and said, the people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands with their abominations. From the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites. For they have taken some of their daughters to be wives for themselves and for their sons, so that the holy race has mixed itself with the peoples of the lands.
3:13 And in this faithlessness, the hand of the officials and chief men has been foremost. Lord, we thank you that there is power in your word, and we thank you that this is what you have provided for us to know you, to hear your voice. Help us hear your voice. Lord, we pray that you would wash away all distraction, all agitation, anything that would obstruct the seed of your word being planted deeply in our hearts. We pray that even though this is a study, we would sense the power of the Holy Spirit, that we would see Christ and Christ alone, that he would be our ultimate treasure.
4:00 So Lord, help us tonight. We need your help. We do not rely on man's eloquence or intelligence. We need your help and we trust that you hear us as we come to you now together. In Jesus' name we pray.
4:15 Amen. Amen. Remember, three things we're looking at and the first thing is the iniquity. But for us to understand the first two verses of this chapter, we got to really understand the first six words of this chapter. After these things had been done.
4:36 This statement raises at least two questions. Number one, after what things had been done? Right? Chapter breaks sometimes do us a disservice. They almost divide the thought unintentionally in our reading.
4:51 So it's important when we see things like this transitional comments to pause and say, okay wait, what just happened for us to be led to this point? And it's no surprise. The things that have been done are the things that occur in the last verses of chapter eight, which include Ezra and the rest arriving safely to Jerusalem. It includes the temple treasuries being preserved and protected and accounted for. It includes the generous and exciting offerings that these new exiles made upon their arrival to the holy city.
5:25 But there is something else in the very last verse of chapter eight that we can't afford to miss. Let's look at it again in Ezra eight thirty six. They, that is the Jewish exiles who came with Ezra, they also delivered the king's commissions to the king's satraps, that is lieutenants or officials. The king's satraps and to the governors of the province beyond the river, and they aided the people and the house of God. Who are the they here?
5:57 The king's representatives who were closer to the Jews, who dealt directly with the Jews. So here's what this shows us, that upon Ezra's arrival and his time spent at Jerusalem, that brief time, we know that the surrounding environment was one of calm and civility. In other words, Ezra and the exiles in Jerusalem were not weathering persecution. They were not dealing with political obstacles. They were not dodging threats and trying to maintain courage in the face of danger.
6:34 There's peace. There's tranquility. More than that, you even have the approval of the king extended to his representatives who are dealing directly with his people to the point that they're supporting the people and their pursuit of worshiping at the temple. You can't get any better than this. And yet, as we just read in chapter nine, we reminded that spiritual warfare for the church includes much more than external problems.
7:06 It also means that there is the potential danger of issues from within. And that's what transpires here because problems from within the community of faith tend to become most prevalent when there is calm outside. See how Satan works. If he can't agitate us with attacks, he will seek to slowly destroy us through internal defilement. Another way of putting it is, if you don't hear Satan roaring like a lion, that's how Peter describes Satan's threats and his persecution, if you don't hear his roars echoing in the atmosphere, he's very likely slithering like a snake in our midst quietly sowing corruption and discord.
8:00 Which means in times of peace and prosperity, my dear brother and my dear sister, if you if you really take the local church seriously, this is important for us. We always have to be on guard. Always. It's easy to be on alert when you are being threatened and oppressed from external forces. But as we learn here, we often miss the stealth of Satan's attacks where he seeks to pollute us without us even realizing it.
8:36 And that's what precisely happens here. The people of Judah failed to discern and to walk in the spirit until they eventually became assimilated with their ungodly culture that surrounded them. And that is something for you and I to consider. After these things had been done means even after all the great blessing that they were enjoying, uninterrupted blessing really, they still fell for a trap. The second question that this initial statement raises is after how long Ezra came to Jerusalem did this news come to him?
9:17 We answered after what things. Right? But now we have to ask, what was the exact timeline? Because the impression that we get here is that it almost happened immediately. Ezra comes to Jerusalem, we learn in chapter eight, he spends three days of rest with the rest of them.
9:32 And then on the fourth day, they sacrifice. So you almost think, all it took was four days before the people came to Ezra and said, oh by the way, this is what the exiles have been up to while you were away. Is that the case? No. And the only way you would know that is if you go to chapter 10.
9:51 Chapter 10 is a seamless continuation of what we find in this chapter and notice the time stamp in verse nine of chapter 10. Then all the men of Judah and Benjamin assembled at Jerusalem within three days. It was the ninth month on the twentieth day of the month. And all the people sat in the open square before the house of God, trembling because of this matter and because of the heavy rain. Highlight that.
10:17 It was the ninth month and the twentieth day of the month. Do you remember when Ezra came to Jerusalem? Well, you have to go to chapter seven if you forgot. Look at chapter seven verse nine. Ezra narrates and he says, for on the first day of the first month, he, that is Ezra, began to go up from Babylonia and on the first day of the fifth month, he came to Jerusalem for the good hand of his God was on him.
10:46 So when we put this together, we get a more precise understanding of how long it took before these officials broke the news to Ezra, four and a half months. He got there on the fifth month and according to chapter 10, it was in the ninth month on the twentieth day that he learned about the spiritual compromise in Jerusalem. You know what my first question is when I learned that? Why didn't Ezra learn about it sooner? If it was four days, I get it.
11:16 That's pretty that's pretty quick. Four and a half months. Here's the answer. We're not explicitly told. Could it be that Ezra is seeing the fruit of what he came to Jerusalem for?
11:32 To teach, to preach, to explain the law. And throughout those months, consciousness were awakened. Conviction settled. And eventually what was hidden in the private lives of so many came to the surface. Or could it be that these officials who reported it to Ezra tried to deal with this problem themselves to no avail and so they came to Ezra as a final resort?
12:00 Perhaps. Or could it be that what we find here is that these officials came to Ezra after realizing that they themselves were unaware of this intermarriage taking place and so they came to him as soon as they learned of it. That could be true also, but we can't say it with absolute certainty. So what do we learn about this? I think one thing you could take from it is that the protection of the purity of the community of believers is not dependent on one man, even if that man is a godly leader.
12:36 I see these leaders working with Ezra to preserve the holiness of the people of God. In other words, sanctification and accountability is a collective effort. You know, this might sound silly to say, but I was reminded that as spiritual as Ezra was, he was not omniscient or omnipresent. You know why I say that? Because you have some people in the church who think that overseers in the church possess such powers.
13:10 They know everything that's going on in everybody's lives and they should be responsible because they have such abilities to keep everybody in check. No. That's not true. That's not even true for some of these prophets who are given insight into things that nobody else knows about. And so this is a very strong illustration that shows us that even overseers and leaders in the church require the support and the collaboration of others in order to see the church remain healthy.
13:45 There's a New Testament example of what we just read in these first two verses. Did the Corinthian church have a lot of problems? A lot. How did they become known to the Apostle Paul? How did Paul learn about their problems?
14:03 Go to chapter one of first Corinthians. It's through an obscure individual that appears only once. And look here, first Corinthians chapter one verse 11. Paul writes in the opening words of this letter, for it has been reported to me by who? Chloe's people.
14:28 Chloe's people that there is quarreling among you my brothers. So even in Paul's day, the way he learned about the the factions and the divisions in the Corinthian church was through somebody who clearly was a reputable individual, somebody trustworthy who who sent an email to Paul. Their version of an email at least, said, Paul, there's things happening here at the church. So I bring up these verses to you not to encourage gossip veiled as concern. Instead, this reminds us that each of us play a role in preserving the purity of the church.
15:09 So here's what that means for you and I. When you see a fellow brother or sister in blatant sin, don't turn a blind eye. When you hear murmurings and backbiting and divisions brewing. Don't plug your ears. Do something.
15:32 Do something about it. See, I look at these verses and I'm reminded one of the main responsibilities of the church, One of the main purposes of the local church. Matthew 18, Jesus tells us that if a brother sins, you go to them. They don't listen, take two or three others. They don't listen, you bring it to the church.
15:54 Do you realize that one of the purposes of the church is to keep each other accountable? Jesus rarely used the word church in the gospel accounts and one of the only times that he does bring it up is to describe the call of calling each other to repentance when necessary. And that's why membership is so important. The the... One of the main reasons for membership is just that.
16:20 I want to be held accountable and I'm willing to hold my brothers and sisters accountable. And that's what we find here. Ezra is being told about the iniquities of this people. And let's talk about this briefly. What it was exactly, the sin that was so concerning.
16:38 There's a key word in the first two verses that we read. Look at it again here in verse one. The people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not separated. Underline that word. Separated.
16:53 That word separated doesn't appear frequently in the book of Ezra. It should then cause us to say, okay, where else have I seen this word? And it appears in chapter six for the first time. And it's given to us in a positive sense. Now in chapter six, you have Zerubbabel with the first exiles coming into Jerusalem.
17:13 Many many years before Ezra arrives on the scene. But go to chapter six and notice what it says there about the separation of the people in verse 21. Well, actually look at verse 19 down to verse 21. In Ezra six nineteen, this is the the first time the word separated comes up. On the fourteenth day of the first month, the returned exile kept the Passover.
17:37 For the priests and the Levites had purified themselves together, all of them were clean. So they slaughtered the Passover lamb for all the returned exiles, for their fellow priests and for themselves. It was eaten by the people of Israel who returned from exile and also by everyone who had joined them and separated himself from the uncleanness of the peoples of the land to worship the Lord, the God of Israel. Okay. What's happening here?
18:02 We're rewinding the tape. This is describing what Zerubbabel and the first exiles experience with their holy enthusiasm when they came back to Jerusalem. They wanted to honor the Passover. But in verse 21, we learned that a group joined them. See, when Babylon initially came and removed the people of Judah from their land, there was a remnant that stayed back.
18:29 There were Jews who remained in the Holy Land and over time, they began to conform to the world. They began to adopt their practices and it stayed that way for decades. But then according to what we just read, Zerubbabel comes back and the exiles return with him and they wanna honor God and they wanna truly worship him. And they push away, especially the neighbors of the North who say, hey, we serve the same God. Let's help you build.
18:58 And they said, no, no, no, no, no. This isn't for you. This is for the holy people. And those Jews who had conformed to the world according to verse 21 had separated themselves from the uncleanness of the peoples of the land to worship the Lord. Here's what's interesting.
19:18 After many years, Ezra arrives and discovers that those who had once influenced others to separation have now been influenced by the world themselves. It is very rare for a professing Christian to become worldly overnight. It is always gradual. It takes time. It begins with small small compromises adapting to and accepting their customs and their convictions until you blend in to the point where you begin to do things that you never thought you would do.
19:58 So from chapter six to chapter nine, you went from the people influencing their world to the world influencing the people of God to the point where according to verse two of chapter nine, they were intermarrying. And this is a serious crime. I'm not gonna spend much time here explaining why this is such a grievance according to the law of God because we've discussed this in previous studies. But I wanna offer some clarification in case this is new to you. The prohibition here is not about interracial marriage.
20:34 This is about different religions, not different races. This is about ethics, not ethnicity. This is not about interracial again, it's about interfaith. And God warned early on in the people's history of not doing exactly what we find them doing here because it had the potential of corrupting the holy seed. Now partly why that's so important is because there is a messianic plan in this whole old testament narrative that Christ was to come through this holy seed and the danger the danger of marrying into the worlds around them is that eventually what was supposed to be pure and holy would disappear because cultures and other faiths would then take over.
21:23 If you don't believe me, listen to these words in Deuteronomy seven. In Deuteronomy seven verse three, before the people even entered into the land, the Lord says this through Moses, you shall not intermarry with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons for they would turn away your sons from following me to serve other gods. You see that's the main problem. Not that they have different skin tones or different foods, it's because they serve different gods. And you yoke yourselves to them and they will surely introduce their gods to you.
22:00 And that has way bigger problems than just their testimony as a nation set apart unto God. It has the potential of actually interfering with the seed that was promised to save the whole world. And so this was extremely dangerous and that is why we can now see why Ezra reacts the way he he reacts. We look at the iniquity. Now let's consider the indignation in verse three of chapter nine.
22:28 Ezra writes, as soon as I heard this, I tore my garment and my cloak and pulled hair from my head and beard and sat appalled. Then all who trembled at the words of God... The God of Israel because of the faithlessness of the returned exiles gathered around me while I sat appalled until the evening sacrifice. We've seen reactions like this before in our study of the Old Testament. We've seen prophets do this, men of God doing this, other notable figures.
23:04 But there is something in Ezra's actions that are quite unique. Tearing of the garment, have we seen this before? What stands out? The pulling of his hair. And not just his hair, the pulling of the hairs from his beard.
23:20 Men, you know how painful that is. Even one hair. So this is so egregious, this is so appalling, this is so shocking to this man that he actually begins to pull out his hair from his head and his face. And as unique as this is, there is one other instance of another person doing this. Does anybody know who?
23:49 Anybody wanna take a guess? He's a friend of Ezra's. Nehemiah. You don't believe me, do you? You're staring at me like I don't think I believe you so I have to show it to you.
24:03 Go to Nehemiah chapter 13. Nehemiah joins Ezra a few years after this. They work together to see revival in the land, but even after wonderful movings of the Holy Spirit in this community, at the end of Nehemiah's book, he records a similar account to what we just read in chapter nine of Ezra. Look at chapter 13 of Nehemiah verse 23. In those days also, I saw the Jews who had married women of Ashdod, Amon and Moab.
24:39 And half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod, and they could not speak the language of Judah, but only the language of each people. Pause. Do you see how this is so problematic? They're losing their identity. They're losing their distinctiveness.
24:54 And this this is more about spirituality than it is anything else. But let's move on in verse 25. What... How does Nehemiah respond? And I confronted them and cursed them and beat some of them and pulled out their hair.
25:08 That's the difference. When Ezra learns about it, he pulls out his hair. When Nehemiah learns about it, he chases them and pulls their hair. And I made them take an oath in the name of God saying, you shall not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons or for yourselves. Would you believe me tonight if I told you that there's a lesson here about pulling hair?
25:31 Here's how most interpret this passage when they compare Ezra and Nehemiah. They try to make a case that Ezra, because both are leaders, is much more gentle and self controlled and humble than Nehemiah was. Nehemiah was a great leader but he he had an anger problem, clearly. That's not the point at all. I think there are two things that we can learn from this, at least two things that can help us clarify what's happening here.
26:00 Number one, who came first, Ezra or Nehemiah? Ezra. So when Ezra learns about the inner marriage, he deals with it appropriately. He is going to make demands of them. He is going to confront them, but this is something that takes place initially.
26:22 But then you go to Nehemiah and you realize that the same sin that Ezra confronts is still tolerated. It's still practiced. Therefore, we can make the case that the situation demanded even justified disciplinary action. That this was something that needed to be resolved a different way because the gracious approach didn't work. Now, that might make you a little nervous, so consider the second point.
26:51 Don't interpret the actions of Ezra and Nehemiah independent of their unique offices. What was Nehemiah's role in this whole story? He was appointed what? Does anybody know? He was appointed a governor.
27:07 Now you have to remember, there was no king recorded after the Babylonian exile. There was representatives of the royal line but no official monarch. The next time you find a king appearing in this story is when Jesus comes, which is amazing. But with whatever is left in this old testament narrative, there is no king. The closest thing to a judicial power, a political figure is a governor And Nehemiah operates as such.
27:37 And because of his office, he has the authority to enforce punishment even if it's physical. He has the right to actually discipline those in this way for their crimes. Was Ezra a governor? What was he? Good.
27:57 He was a priest. So his function is a little different, isn't it? Now it makes a little bit more sense. Ezra is a priest and so he's really a mediator. And as a mediator, when he learns of the sins of the people, he stands in the place of those who have disobeyed by pulling out his own hair.
28:23 He goes to the temple as we're about to read and he invokes pain upon himself as one who stands in the gap between the people and God. Nehemiah doesn't have that office. Nehemiah is a judge. Nehemiah is in a sense the chief police. And so he he rightly targets those who are doing wrong and disciplines them for it.
28:55 Now I don't know if you see it but I I smell a gospel fragrance on this. Because our Lord Jesus possesses both offices, does he not? He is a ruler and he is a priest. And we understand that as Nehemiah and Ezra demonstrate, those who trample on the selflessness and the sacrifice and the gracious priestly work of Christ will face judicial punishment. In the same way that Nehemiah comes after Ezra.
29:30 Ezra takes the punishment upon himself and many people did not allow that to change them. And so Nehemiah comes and what does he do? He deals with them directly. Christ takes our sin upon himself and for those who swamped that away and reject that, well, you're gonna have to face Christ as judge. You don't accept his sacrifice, then you will receive his scepter.
30:00 That is the gospel message. That is the good news and the bad news at the same time. And we find it even here. Isn't the bible amazing? We can learn something about even how people pull their hair.
30:12 But there's more to learn about the indignation demonstrated here by Ezra. We should understand that one of the main reasons this godly priest reacts so strongly is because he is so filled with God's word. That's hinted at by the description of those who join Ezra as he is crying out in this way. Look at verse four again. Then all who trembled at the words of the God of Israel because of the faithlessness of the returned exiles gathered around me while I sat appalled until the evening sacrifice.
30:47 Did you see the description? Those who were magnetized toward Ezra were those who trembled at God's word and and certainly, Ezra was somebody who trembled at God's word. So now there is a remnant, there's a remnant among the remnant who feel with Ezra. They agree with Ezra. They're drawn to Ezra.
31:13 Why? Because they have the same word in their hearts as Ezra did. They revered and they believed the same word. Can I tell you something very important? That one of the wonderful outcomes of loving God's word and digesting God's word and investing God's word in your life is that over time, you will begin to see as God sees.
31:35 What did the psalmist say in Psalm 19? That the commitments of the Lord are pure enlightening the eyes. But more than that, you will even begin to feel as God feels. The reason for this outrage is because this man is in tune with God. If you don't believe what I'm saying to you, can we turn to one verse in Psalm one nineteen?
32:02 What's Psalm one nineteen all about? The Word. And the psalmist's love and adoration for the Word, his compliance to the Word, his desire to understand the Word. It's about the Word, the Word, the Word, the Word. And you'll find from time to time in that lengthy chapter, the effect of the word and the one who pursues it with such zeal and commitment.
32:22 Here's one example. Look at verse 53 of Psalm one nineteen. After many verses describing the wonders of the word and the glories of the word and the value of the word, notice what he says. Hot indignation seizes me because of the wicked who forsake your law. That's strong language.
32:47 I'm boiling on the inside. There's a volcano in my soul. Why? Well, up to this point, he's been talking about how the word is everything to him and I think that what we find here is one of the fruit of the word, living in somebody. That when they look out and see people breaking God's law, they feel something.
33:08 Something burns inside of them. You remember Moses on the top of the mountain? He's getting commands from God and what are the people doing down there? So impatiently, they think, okay, let's just move on here and let's make our own God. And so they build a golden calf and they dance around it.
33:26 And the Lord tells Moses as he is fellowshipping with him, look what your people are doing. Moses eventually says, look, they're not my people. They're your people. But it says that the the Lord burned with anger. And what do you find?
33:40 Moses coming down that hill and he burned with anger. Why did he burn with anger? He was in the presence of God. When you fellowship with God in his word, in his presence, miracles begin to take place in your outlook. You will see and feel differently about sin.
34:00 Not in a self righteous way. Not in a proud way. You're gonna see here that Ezra is not proud. He's broken. He's shattered.
34:10 He's consumed because he's consumed with God's word. And those who tremble at God's word are also sensing this. But listen, God doesn't just want our emotions to be in line with his. He wants us to come before him with our pain and frustration and speak to him about it and that's why we come now to the final portion of this study and that is the intercession of Ezra. Look at verse five with me.
34:38 And at the evening sacrifice, I rose from my fasting with my garment and my cloak torn and fell upon my knees and spread out my hands to the Lord my God. Can you look at the last part of verse four again? It says, gathered around me while I sat appalled until the evening sacrifice. So before we even look at the details of the prayer here, consider the timing of it. Ezra sat silently.
35:08 He refused to put food in his mouth. He was broken and contrite until the evening sacrifice. And once he learned it's time for the evening sacrifice, he prays. It's an interesting observation, isn't it? A lot of...
35:25 Remember from the bible study seminar, ask the text questions if you wanted to speak to you. Here is my question at this point. What's so special about the evening sacrifice? Now we can explore different options. One of them is that maybe there's something meaningful about the evening sacrifice and there's examples of this like in Daniel chapter nine where he's praying during the evening sacrifice and certain revelation comes to him.
35:51 But we won't explore that for the sake of time. I think there is a clue within the book of Ezra that tells us exactly why Ezra waited for the evening sacrifice. Chapter 10, look at verse one. While Ezra prayed and made confession weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, a very great assembly of men, women, and children gathered to him out of Israel for the people wept bitterly. Do you see it?
36:25 It seems that Ezra waited for the evening sacrifice primarily because he knew that this is when more people would come to worship, to be at or around the temple. Now they're just going through the rituals, a lot of them. They're just going through the routine, but Ezra understood, I'm going to wait to make my prayer known, to say it out loud once the crowd comes in. And by doing so, he hoped to invoke reflection. By doing so, he would want them to feel conviction and to realize the seriousness of their error.
37:03 He wants to use this opportunity for the wider community to understand just how grave their rebellion has been. And so he waits for the evening sacrifice. And one thing that we can learn from this is that prayer, as we just read in verse one of chapter 10, prayer moves people. Ezra, when he learns the news, he sits silently. He doesn't even...
37:28 He doesn't talk to anybody, including God. He's mourning. He's shattered. But listen, there's a time to grieve and there's a time to be alone and to lay in bed and to contemplate something traumatic or heartbreaking. And then there's a time to pray.
37:48 There's a time to pray. Ezra realized there's a time to pray. There's a time to pray about this now. Not just to internalize it and muse over it, but to actually say something to God about it and he does that. And what I love about Ezra is that in this situation, before he speaks to the people about the will of God, he brings the people before God in prayer.
38:10 And there are gonna be some situations in life where the best thing that you can do for somebody else is pray for them before you do anything else. And that's what Ezra does. He takes this crowd. He waits for them, yes. But he stands as a priest and representative seeks God on their behalf.
38:30 And prayer can touch people whether they hear you pray or not. In this case, they hear but that doesn't mean whoever you're praying for needs to know that you're praying for them. So he seeks the Lord. And now here's what we wanna do. The rest of the chapter is Ezra's prayer.
38:47 And I think we would do a disservice to this section if we just break it up in verses and look at it separately. I wanna read it in one reading. To get the feel of it. To almost put ourselves there with the wider community that's sitting there and standing there listening to this man. So let's read with great attention from verse six down to verse 15.
39:13 Oh my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift my face to you, my God. For our iniquities have risen higher than our heads, and our guilt has mounted up to the heavens. From the days of our fathers to this day, we have been in great guilt. And for our iniquities, we, our kings and our priests, have been given into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, to plundering, and to utter shame as it is today. But now for a brief moment, favor has been shown by the Lord our God to leave us a remnant and to give us a secure hold within this holy place.
39:53 That our God may brighten our eyes and grant us a little reviving in our slavery. For we are slaves, yet our God has not forsaken us in our slavery, but has extended to us his steadfast love before the kings of Persia to grant us some reviving to set up the house of our God, to repair its ruins and to give us protection in Judea and Jerusalem. And now, oh our God, what shall we say after this? For we have forsaken your commandments, which you commanded by your servants the prophets saying, the land that you are entering to take possession of it is a land impure with the impurity of the peoples of the lands, with their abominations that have filled it from the... From end to end with their uncleanness.
40:35 Therefore, do not give your daughters to their sons, neither take their daughters for your sons and never seek peace or prosperity that you may be strong and eat the good of the land and leave it for an inheritance to your children forever. And after all that has come upon us for our evil deeds and for our great guilt, seeing that you, our God, have punished us less than our iniquities deserved and have given us such a remnant as this, shall we break your commitments again and intermarry with the peoples who practice these abominations? Would you not be angry with us until you consumed us so that there should be no remnant nor any to escape? Oh, Lord, the God of Israel, you are just for we are left the remnant that has escaped as it is today. Behold, we are before you in our guilt, for none can stand before you because of this.
41:24 This is one of the most notable prayers of confession in all of the bible. And although it is a prayer of confession, seeing the result of it in chapter 10, I think that there are things that we can learn about how and what Ezra prayed that can give us greater confidence to see results in our own praying. So this is just me. I'm sure there are so many things that we can draw from these verses, but I wanna leave you with just four insights about Ezra's praying that can help us pray well. If we are to pray with the hope to see results, number one, we have to pray with humility.
42:06 Did you notice Ezra's language in verse six? Oh my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift my face to you, my God, for... Did he say their iniquities? Our iniquities have risen higher than our heads and their guilt, our guilt has mounted up to the heavens. Wait, is Ezra guilty of the same sin here?
42:31 No. But what Ezra shows us is that when we approach the Lord, we must always remember that there is a way of praying in self righteousness. There is a way of praying and patting ourselves on the back while we're praying. This is how sick we are, by the way. I've been praying for a week straight for this long.
42:55 I think I'm the only person that knows how to pray like this. We think things like that. And even if we are praying about the failures of others, Ezra shows us that we need to be very mindful of our own sinful tendencies, of our own potential to commit even the same things that we are broken about. Jesus warns us that there is a way of praying where we borrow ourselves from having an audience with God. But humility is what brings us into his courts.
43:32 And Ezra here doesn't have a false humility, he's just being very honest before the Lord and he's very aware of his own ability to commit grievous things. And so he says our. He also understands that one person's sin doesn't just affect them whether it's his or someone else's, it has an impact on the community. The community of faith feels it when a genuine member does something wrong. And so he comes before the Lord acknowledging that he also is a sinner.
44:06 Pray with humility and you'll have God's ear. But secondly, pray with the acknowledgment of God's grace. And as much as you can recognize God's grace, bring it to mind. You know, some people have a lot of struggle knowing how to worship in prayer. Worship and prayer is important because people think that prayer is just about petitions.
44:31 God, I need this. God, this person need that. Amen. Okay. That's important.
44:35 But one of the ways where you enjoy God is when you know how to worship him alone. And though this is a prayer of confession, Ezra highlights many of the gifts that God has given him in his own life that he's experienced firsthand. Look for look for it in verse eight. Notice what he says, but now for a brief moment, favor. D S V renders it favor, other translations render it grace.
45:01 For a brief moment grace or favor has been shown by the Lord our God to leave us a remnant. He goes, we could have been totally annihilated as a people and you've preserved us. He speaks about God's steadfast love while they were slaves. Can you reflect on the fact that you were a slave at one point and God set you free? Do you ever think about how...
45:21 Do you ever think about where you would have been today if you didn't get saved? What would you look like? What would you be doing on a Friday night like tonight? I could tell you what I would be doing on a Friday night if I didn't get saved at the age of 20. You need a reason to worship?
45:40 Just think about what you... The mess you could have been. The disaster that you could have caused for yourself and for others if God didn't get a hold of your life. Ezra comes before the Lord and he reflects on how they were slaves, in some sense they're still slaves oppressed by a foreign government but that God in his steadfast love didn't leave them in their slavery. He talks about how they receive some kind of revival.
46:05 He says it's a small measure, a little revival. But he doesn't ignore it, he doesn't dismiss it. He makes it a matter of thanksgiving to the Lord. We've experienced some kind of refreshment from you, oh God. You want a reason to come before the Lord and give him thanks and to worship him?
46:23 Think about the times that he's encouraged you through friends, through a sermon, through a community of believers like what we have here and use that as a reason to come before him and say thank you. I don't think there's one Wednesday night here when we pray where we fail to actually give thanks to God for Maranatha Bible Church. And that's not because Maranatha Bible Church is anything special in their own right. It's because of God's grace through this church and the blessing it is to each of our lives. Ezra says, I even recognize the...
46:51 We need a big revival but I'm gonna just acknowledge the little revivals that we've known. Surely you can admit that even in a very dangerous and hostile world, God has protected you. Oftentimes we thank God for the things that he has done. And I wanna challenge you to thank God for the things that could have happened and they didn't. You see what he says there at the last part of verse nine?
47:14 And to give us protection in Judea and Jerusalem, the Hebrew word there is wall but it's symbolic. Ezra even recognizes the protection that they've experienced. And so we see here that if you wanna pray, if you wanna pray well, if you wanna pray richly, learn to be mindful of the grace of God in as many areas of your life as possible. Thirdly, pray with an understanding of the word of God. I won't read it but look at verse 10 down to verse 12.
47:48 You know what Ezra is doing there? He's quoting scripture. He's quoting the law about intermarriage. And I like to think that Ezra is doing this by heart. That's how you know this man loved to study because he's quoting Deuteronomy and Leviticus.
48:08 There's a preacher who is in heaven now, when he was asked, and I was there when somebody asked it, how do you pray? That's a good question. You know why? Because the disciples asked Jesus that question. Teach us how to pray, not how to preach, not how to cast out devils, not to do miracles.
48:24 Jesus, teach us to pray. You know what that tells me? That when the disciples spent time with Jesus, one of the things that made them so odd was when they heard Jesus pray. So Lord, teach us to pray. And so this man of God was asked, how how do I pray?
48:42 And one of the advices you give that still stuck with me is when you feel like you don't have words to tell God, take his own words and pray them back to him. Besides that, how do you know what to say to God? The only way you know who he is is through his word. What promises are you gonna claim? What strategies are you gonna come up with?
49:09 So many people are so uninformed in their bibles and that makes them uninformed in virtually everything else including how to pray. And that's why so many people give up on prayer because they don't know how God answers prayer. They don't know how how God can make himself known through prayer. And the only way you can understand the depths of prayer is by understanding the depths of the word. Ezra knew the bible and because he knew the bible, he knew how to talk to God.
49:34 Know the word. Let it inform your prayer life. Let it enrich your prayer life. You know how powerful it is when you take a promise in God's word and by yourself, you lay it at his feet and said, lord, you said this. This.
49:49 I wanna see it come to life. Lastly, pray. Pray believing God can deal with your pain in the best way. I get that from the last few verses of the prayer from verse 13 down to verse 15. You know what I find so interesting in how Ezra lands his prayer?
50:12 He brings the matter before the Lord. Right? He brings his pain to God but he doesn't ask God to do anything about it necessarily. He doesn't request specific action or intervention. He just makes it known to the Lord.
50:28 Now that is not to encourage us to not be precise in our petitions. That's not the case. But what we can take from this is that when we don't know how to pray about something, just the simple act of faith of bringing it before the Lord is enough for God to do something about it even if you don't know the best way to go about it. Notice what he says here in verse 15, oh Lord, the God of Israel, you are just. Why is he highlighting God's justice?
50:59 Because God's justice is required for the situation. You are just for we are left a remnant that has escaped as it is today. Behold, we are before you in our guilt for none can stand before you because of this. In other words, k. We're here.
51:11 We've committed the sin. You're just. Amen. The Bible tells us that there are moments when we don't know what to pray for and the spirit helps us. Romans eight tells us that he takes your groans and he takes your wordless sighs and he translates them perfectly before the throne of grace.
51:35 And in this situation, what we'll discover in the coming chapter is that God will deal exactly with this request in the most righteous and redemptive way possible. Pray believing that God knows what to do with it, but he won't do anything about it unless you come to him in faith. I love to know that. That I don't have to come up with a game plan to bring before the Lord like it's a presentation. That was my background where you had to almost convince a client why they should believe in your product or your game plan or your marketing campaign.
52:15 You have to almost persuade them. God is not asking to be persuaded necessarily. He wants you to come with childlike faith and be broken in his presence. Some of the greatest men of God that I've heard preach when they preached on prayer have openly said that they found themselves in certain circumstances simply saying before God, help me. Help me.
52:40 I have no other words, just help me and God helps them. And what we're going to see as we read earlier is that Ezra's prayers were heard and it's gonna bring fruit. Let's pray and ask God for that favor in our lives. We come to you in humility, Lord, thankful for all the graces that we've experienced as a church and even the recent gift of you opening a door for a brand new home. Thank you that we got here safely.
53:34 Thank you that in your perfect mercy, you will bring us home safely. Lord willing. Lord, we have no reason to not approach you in worship on a daily basis. Help us do that. And, Lord, as we learn with Ezra, one of the fruit of having the word in our lives is that it will make us men and women of prayer so may that be true of our lives.
54:05 And yes, Lord, we want to learn how to worship you without a screen, without a talented team before us leading us into song. Help us worship you with our words because our minds and our hearts have been informed by your word. Help us. And Lord, when there is pressing needs, when there is overwhelming news, help us pray believing that you have the best solution and that you will honor our approach. You will honor us simply coming before you saying, oh Lord, here it is.
54:37 You are just. Do as you please. Lord, we love you and we thank you for this study. Thank you for bringing us near the end of the book of Ezra. May it bear fruit in our lives.
54:53 In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Let's stand and worship the Lord together.
