Ezra 7:10 • My life verse

Ezra 7:10 → 10For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the LORD and to practice it, and to teach His statutes and ordinances in Israel.

• I've been a follower of Jesus since March 12, 1973 (that's a LONG time). I was a senior in high school, and having been raised in a loving, while not religious, family, I never really struggled much with thinking about sin, or my need for a Savior. In between 11th and 12th grades I began questioning "Why am I here?". You know, the "If there's no purpose for our existence, then what am I supposed to do?" kind of thoughts. While my behavior kept moving toward the profligate, I also started feeling guilty for that same behavior. I became connected to a group of "Jesus freaks" during my senior year and through a set of circumstances that I won't elaborate on today, I came to a point where I acknowledged Jesus as my Savior. As I grew in my understanding, I also realized that He was my Lord as well. The Creator God, the God/Man who entered history in human form, died on the cross to pay the penalty for my sins.

• Several times during my walk with Jesus, I've heard people talk about their "life verse". At first, I wasn't sure what that meant. Then when I did understand, I wasn't sure how and/or when I would know what mine was. I'd think I had found it, but then another came along that seemed more appropriate. So then I was in a quandary. "Can I have more than one life verse?" "Does that make me a better person, a better Christian, if I have multiples?"

• So then I stopped worrying about it entirely. "Who really gives a rip what my life verse is? Who really cares if I even have one?" So even today, I don't know that I've found "the one", but for now, this one kind of fits for me.

• When you evaluate the time period of the Old Testament, you will find a repeating theme. God directs us how we should live, and we tell God to take a hike. He deals with us (usually with pain). Then we repent (sometimes). Then the cycle starts over. And over. And over again. Look at a few examples...

→ God places Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. "Don't eat of that ONE tree." They eat. They are expelled. OBTW, they also receive the punishment of death. Not the instancy of it, but the inevitability of it.

→ God gives man an order, "Be fruitful and multiply." Mankind does that, but also becomes bizarre enough in their behavior that God brings the flood. God only spares Noah and his family. Noah was the only righteous person on the earth at that time.

→ God, after taking the Israelites out of Egypt, tells them to enter the promised land. They balk ("there are giants in the land"). God keeps them in the desert for 40 years, until all of the adults (with the exception of righteous Joshua and Caleb) are dead. Then they cross over the Jordan River to start the next adventure.

→ After the time of the Judges, which also was messed up by the humans, comes the time of the Kings. Boy, was it messed up. First king (Saul) was a real loser. Next king (David) was also a loser, but at least was repentant about the adultery and murder he committed. His son Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, apparently wasn't wise enough, as his heart was not fully committed to the Lord who had provided all of his blessings. And eventually his kingdom is split into two - Israel in the north and Judah in the south.

→ All 19 kings of Israel were BAD - total losers. Of the 20 kings of Judah, 12 were BAD, and amazingly, 8 were GOOD. But the efforts of the good ones would come to naught. In 721BC, the entire northern kingdom would be taken into exile by the Assyrians, never to be heard from again. In 586BC, the southern tribes would be taken into exile to Babylon for 70 years.

→ In time, both the Temple and the wall around Jerusalem would be rebuilt. But I think what is most significant, would be the priority to rebuild the people. To get them back to the priority of giving ALL of their lives to God. Not ALL of the people collectively, while that was also important, but ALL of them individually. That each and every person would seek to live a righteous life before God.

• All of this to bring us to our verse today. Ezra's priority was to rebuild the people. In hopes that by now, the people might be ready to live out their potential, in being God's representatives on earth. And Ezra, in this short verse, gives us a path to do that. 3 steps, not easy, but simple, in order to be ready to be used by God. What are the steps?

1 → "For Ezra had set his heart to STUDY (emphasis mine) the law of the Lord...".

Simple principle here (in fact they all are) - if you want to please God, you need to know God, and the only place you can go to learn about God is the Bible. You need to be in the Book. Regularly examining the Scriptures. In the book of Acts, when Paul was in Berea, he was impressed with their diligence because the local believers where digging into the Word to verify if Paul was speaking the truth... Acts 17:11 → "...for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so."

2 → "and to PRACTICE it,"

It's one thing to study; it's another thing to live it out. Knowledge is worthless if you don't do something with it. And in this case, it's specific to our relationship with God. This is not a legalistic obedience, but rather a change in our thinking that redirects our behavior. This is repentance, which from the Greek word in the New Testament - Metanoia - literally means to have a "change of mind". It's not just about changing the way we act - it's about changing the way we think. If we have right thinking, the right behaving will follow.

3 → "and to TEACH His statutes and ordinances in Israel."

Israel was Ezra's focus at the time, but our focus today should be everyone we come in contact with. In today's society, what race we are is an important issue. But from a Christian perspective (at least in my opinion) the only race we need to be concerned with is the HUMAN race. In 1st Peter 3:15, we are told to "...sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;... Whether it is in a formal setting, like teaching in church or in Sunday School, or just visiting with friends or relatives, or even situations where we find ourselves in conversations with total strangers, we need to be prepared to elucidate on why we believe, in the hopes that what we say might have a positive impact on our listeners. And of course, any value our words might have is only as good as the credibility of how we live.

• Anyway, that is why this verse is, at least in the current moment, my life verse. And I kind of work the "magic" backwards. I want to be prepared to accurately explain the Scriptures to others, BUT, in order for my words to be credible I need to be following the Scriptures myself in my behavior, BUT I can't do that unless I'm studying the Scriptures so that I know God and understand how to live in a way that is pleasing to Him.

• I'm not anywhere close to being perfect in all of this, as I know that many of you already understand. But it is my deepest wish, that in whatever years I have left in this life, that the rest of my life will be marked with at least attempting to live this out. I keep thinking, that each of us who believe, might be in a way, a bridge between each person we meet and Jesus Christ.

Photo • 7/10/2025 - Sunset at the Astoria-Megler Bridge, Astoria, OR

“Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995

by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org”