Pastoral Resources

William Phelps taught English literature at Yale for forty-one years until his retirement in 1933. Marking an examination paper shortly before Christmas one year, Phelps came across the note: “God only knows the answer to this question. Merry Christmas.” Phelps returned the paper with this note: “God gets an A. You get an F. Happy New Year.”

What ingredients go into creating the environment of a truly Christian home? Some would say it is teaching our children right from wrong, belief in God, and respect for their fellowman. But can one truly "teach" such fundamental truths as these? Rather we must live these truths each and every day so that our children are irresistibly drawn to the right and the good life by our continual example.

A Sunday school teacher was trying to demonstrate the difference between right and wrong.

“All right children, let’s take an example,” she said. “If I were to go into a man’s pocket and take his wallet with all his money, what would I be?”

A child in the back answered, “You’d be his wife.”

Children who see physical violence between their parents are six times more likely to abuse their own spouses after they marry. If those children were also hit by their parents as teenagers, they are 12 times more likely to abuse their spouses.

As chairman of TLC Beatrice International Holdings, Loida Lewis has made a habit of defying the odds. After the 1993 death of her husband, Reg Lewis, it was widely assumed that his widow would remain a silent partner. She didn’t. Holding more than 50 percent of the stock, Lewis announced that she was taking over the $2.1-billion snack-food and grocery business. Wall Street thought the inexperienced Lewis would surely flop.

She didn’t. Instead she recharged Beatrice, which was mired in debt, and returned the company to the black. As part of her management style, she writes down managers’ assigned tasks on a chalkboard, erasing each entry as the job is completed. “I know where I want this company to go,” she says,” and I know how I want to get there.” - Thomas McCarroll in Time

The society which scorns excellence in plumbing because plumbing is a humble activity and tolerates shoddiness in philosophy because it is an exalted activity will have neither good plumbing nor good philosophy. Neither its pipes nor its theories will hold water.

- John Gardner

Tom Peters is the co-author of two of the most widely read books on the subject of work in the twentieth century. His second book, A Passion for Excellence, sets forth the mandates for excellence in the work arena. He’s emphatic about the need for prioritizing the customer, backing up your product with thorough service, and working from the strength of integrity. He draws his discussion of excellence to a conclusion by talking about its cost.

An honest but alarming statement appears in the last page of the last chapter of the book.

We are frequently asked if it is possible to “have it all”—a full and satisfying personal life and a full and

satisfying, hard-working professional one. Our answer is: No. The price of excellence is time, energy, attention and focus, at the very same time that energy, attention and focus could have gone toward enjoying your daughter’s soccer game. Excellence is a high cost item.

Mark Twain was once asked to record a Christmas message on an early gramophone. This is what he said, “It is my heart-warm and world-embracing Christmas hope and aspiration that all of us, the high, the low, the rich, the poor, and admired, the despised, the loved, the hated, the civilized, the savage—every man and woman of us all throughout the whole earth—may eventually be gathered in a heaven of everlasting rest and peace and bliss, except the inventor of the telephone.

Exceptional winning streaks by teams at relatively obscure high schools or colleges are not uncommon, but even so we feel an obligation to report that the girls’ volleyball team at Dayville High School in Oregon ran off a string of 65 victories before losing. What makes this streak so appealing is that Dayville High has only 18 girl students: 16 are on the volleyball squad and the 17th keeps score.

Although Dayville is one of the smallest Class B high schools in the state, it won the Class A volleyball championship for three years running. Part of its success must be due to its unbridled optimism. The letter that brought word of the winning streak said that after the defeat, “The team rebounded and has a winning streak of one.”

It is a very solemn thought that God will excuse you if you want to be excused. He does not wish to do it, but He will do it. "As I live, saith the Lord, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel." Look at the Jewish nation. They wanted to be excused from the feast. They despised the grace of God and trampled it under foot, and look at them to-day! Yes, it is easy enough to say, "I pray Thee have me excused;" but by and by God may take you at your word, and say, "Yes, I will excuse you." And in that lost world, while others who have accepted the invitation sit down to the marriage supper of the Lamb, amid shouts and hallelujahs in heaven, you will be crying in the company of the lost, "The harvest is past; the summer is ended, and I am not saved."

Praise God that He has not withdrawn His offer of forgiveness for sin! This good news, however, is for sinners only. Many people, though, don’t see themselves as sinners in need of salvation. They make excuses like these:

My good deeds outweigh my bad.

I’m not as bad as some people.

Usually I’m a good person.

Their shortcomings, they feel, don’t jeopardize their standing before Almighty God.

Imagine a citizen being brought to trial for several charges of shoplifting. It would be useless for that person to appeal to the judge by saying: “Don’t forget, my good deeds outweigh my bad.” “I’m not as bad as many others.” “Most of the time I’m a law-abiding citizen.” The offender must be judged according to the offense, not according to previous good deeds. If justice is to be done, someone must pay, and that someone should be the offender—unless another is allowed to bear the penalty instead. That’s exactly what Christ in love did for sinners, which we all are, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23).

After discussing how students must at least be competent in reading, writing, listening, analyzing and computing before they will be graduated from high school in 1978, one administrator contacted provided the following list. The excuses it contains were actually turned in by parents to one school district (outside of Tillamook County).

1. Dear school: Please ackuse John for bring absent on Jan. 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33.

2. Chis has an acre in his side.

3. Mary could not come to school because she is bothered by very close veins.

4. John has been absent because he had two teeth taken off his face.

5. I kept Billie Home because he had to go Christmas shopping because I didn’t know what size she wear.

6. Please exuse Gloria. She has been sick and under the doctor.

7. My son is under the doctors care and should not take P.E. Please execute him.

8. Lillie was absent from school yesterday as she had a groing over.

9. Please exuse Ray Friday. He has lose vowels.

10. Please exuse Joyce from P.E. for a few days. Yesterday she fell out of a tree and misplaced her hip.

11. Please exuse Blanche from jim today. She is administrating.

12. Carlos was absent yesterday because he was playing football. He was hurt in his growing part.

13. My daughter was absent yesterday, because she was tired. She spent the weekend with the Marines.

14. Please exuse Dianne from Being absent yesterday. She was in bed with gramps.

15. Please exuse Jimmy for being. It was his father’s fault.

Colin Chapman, in The Case For Christianity, quotes Ugandan Bishop Festo Kivengere’s account of the 1973 execution by firing squad of three men from his diocese:

February 10 began as a sad day for us in Kabale. People were commanded to come to the stadium and witness the execution. Death permeated the atmosphere. A silent crowd of about three thousand was there to watch.

I had permission from the authorities to speak to the men before they died, and two of my fellow ministers were with me.

They brought the men in a truck and unloaded them. They were handcuffed and their feet were chained. The firing squad stood at attention. As we walked into the center of the stadium, I was wondering what to say. How do you give the gospel to doomed men who are probably seething with rage?

We approached them from behind, and as they turned to look at us, what a sight! Their faces were all alight with an unmistakable glow and radiance. Before we could say anything, one of them burst out:

“Bishop, thank you for coming! I wanted to tell you. The day I was arrested, in my prison cell, I asked the Lord Jesus to come into my heart. He came in and forgave me all my sins! Heaven is now open, and there is nothing between me and my God! Please tell my wife and children that I am going to be with Jesus. Ask them to accept him into their lives as I did.”

The other two men told similar stories, excitedly raising their hands, which rattled their handcuffs.

I felt that what I needed to do was to talk to the soldiers, not to the condemned. So I translated what the men had said into a language the soldiers understood. The military men were standing there with guns cocked and bewilderment on their faces. They were so dumbfounded that they forgot to put the hoods over the men’s faces!

The three faced the firing squad standing close together. They looked toward the people and began to wave, handcuffs and all. The people waved back. Then shots were fired, and the three were with Jesus.

We stood in front of them, our own hearts throbbing with joy, mingled with tears. It was a day never to be forgotten. Though dead, the men spoke loudly to all of Kigezi District and beyond, so that there was an upsurge of life in Christ, which challenges death and defeats it.

The next Sunday, I was preaching to a huge crowd in the home town of one of the executed men. Again, the feel of death was over the congregation. But when I gave them the testimony of their man, and how he died, there erupted a great song of praise to Jesus! Many turned to the Lord there.

The builders and decorators of a great cathedral made the mistake of admitting visitors while the work was in progress. They heard nothing but criticism. Finally they had to close the doors and admit no one but workmen. When it was all finished, the exquisiteness of the structure was universally acclaimed. The previous judgments had been premature. When we are tempted to judge people, let's recognize that just as in our own case success comes gradually as a rule, so it does to others. Let us not dishonor God by attributing ugliness to Him in any of His works in nature or humanity. He is not through yet. God is in the process of perfecting much that we see now as unfinished and imperfect. Don't judge Him prematurely for permitting the sickness, accident, deformity, and seeming injustice of this world. Wait. Exercise patience. He is still at work.

What various hindrances we meet

In coming to a mercy seat!

Yet who that knows the worth of prayer,

But wishes to be often there?

Prayer makes the darken’d cloud withdraw,

Prayer climbs the ladder Jacob saw,

Gives exercise to faith and love,

Brings every blessing from above.

Restraining prayer, we cease to fight;

Prayer makes the Christian’s armor bright;

And Satan trembles when he sees

The weakest saint upon his knees.

While Moses stood with arms spread wide,

Success was found on Israel’s side;

But when through weariness they fail’d

That moment Amalek prevail’d.

Have you no words? Ah! think again,

Words flow apace when you complain,

And fill your fellow-creature’s ear

With the sad tale of all your care.

Were half the breath thus vainly spent

To heaven in supplication sent,

Your cheerful song would oftener be

“Hear what the Lord has done for me.”

The Scriptures often exhort us to be filled with various godly virtues—which means what? How do we know if we are “full of goodness” (Rom. 15:14), for example?

Think a moment about a water-saturated sponge. If we push down with our finger even slightly, water runs out onto the table. We immediately know what fills the interior pockets of the sponge. The same is true of ourselves. We can tell what fills us on the inside by what comes out under pressure.

The lesson of Munich was: When it is necessary to confront an expansionist dictator, sooner is better than later. As Douglas MacArthur said, in war all tragedy can be summarized in two words, “too late.” Too late perceiving, too late preparing for danger.

You can have a brighter child, it all depends on your expectations. Before you’re tempted to say, “Not true,” let me tell you about Harvard social psychologist Robert Rosenthal’s classic study.

All the children in one San Francisco grade school were given a standard I.Q. test at the beginning of the school year. The teachers were told the test could predict which students could be expected to have a spurt of academic and intellectual functioning. The researchers then drew names out of a hat and told the teachers that these were the children who had displayed a high potential for improvement. Naturally, the teachers thought they had been selected because of their test performance and began treating these children as special children.

And the most amazing thing happened—the spurters, spurted! Overall, the “late blooming” kids averaged four more I.Q. points on the second test that the other group of students. However, the gains were most dramatic in the lowest grades. First graders whose teachers expected them to advance intellectually jumped 27.4 points, and the second grade spurters increased on the average 16.5 points more than their peers.

One little Latin-American child who had been classified as mentally retarded with an I.Q. of 61, scored 106 after his selection as a late bloomer.

Isn’t this impressive! It reminds me of what Eliza Doolittle says in My Fair Lady, “The difference between a lady and a flower girl is not how she behaves, but how she is treated.”

You see, how a child is treated has a lot to do with how that child sees herself and ultimately behaves. If a child is treated as a slow learner and you don’t expect much, the child shrugs her shoulders and says, “Why should I try, nobody thinks I can do it anyway!” And she gives up.

But if you look at that child as someone who has more potential than she will ever be able to develop, you will challenge that child, work with her through discouragement, and find ways to explain concepts so the child can understand. You won’t mind investing time in the child because you know your investment is going to pay off! And the result? It does!

So, what’s the message for parents? Just this: Every child benefits from someone who believes in him, and the younger the child, the more important it is to have high expectations. You may not have an Einstein, but your child has possibilities!

Expect the best and chances are, that’s exactly what you’ll get.

A group of expectant fathers were in a waiting room, while their wives were in the process of delivering babies. A nurse came in and announced to one man that his wife had just given birth to twins. “That’s quite a coincidence” he responded, “I play for the Minnesota Twins!” A few minutes later another nurse came in and announced to another man that he was the father of triplets. “That’s amazing,” he exclaimed, “I work for the 3M company.” At that point, a third man slipped off his chair and laid down on the floor. Somebody asked him if he was feeling ill. “No,” he responded, “I happen to work for the 7-Up Company.”

Most of us do not accomplish much because we do not expect to accomplish very much.

A. B. Simpson indicated the majority of us when he said, “Our God has boundless resources. The only limit is in us. Our asking, our thinking, our praying are too small. Our expectations are too limited.”

J. Hudson Taylor observed, “Many Christians estimate difficulties in the light of their own resources, and thus attempt little and often fail in the little they attempt.”

Temporary success may often crown the efforts of the godless, but even their greatest achievements cannot bring complete satisfaction. That was Solomon’s theme when he said, “...the expectation of the wicked shall perish.” If unrepentant sinners should view their most brilliant accomplishments in the light of eternity, they would find them to be as lasting and as valuable as bursting bubbles.

The 119th-century Bible scholar G. S. Bowes pointed out the ultimate futility of ambition that isn’t accompanied by dedication to God. Citing four powerful world rulers of the past, he wrote:

“Alexander the Great was not satisfied, even when he had completely subdued the nations. He wept because there were no more worlds to conquer, and he died at an early age in a state of debauchery. Hannibal, who filled three bushels with the gold rings taken from the knights he had slaughtered, committed suicide by swallowing poison. Few noted his passing, and he left this earth completely unmourned. Julius Caesar, ‘staining his garments in the blood of one million of his foes,’ conquered 800 cities, only to be stabbed by his best friends at the scene of his greatest triumph. Napoleon, the feared conqueror, after being the scourge of Europe, spent his last years, in banishment.”

No wonder Solomon warned of the poor prospects for anyone who strives to succeed without relying on God. - H.G.B.

Don't be like the woman who one day felt unusually well. "How are you, lady?" someone asked. "Today I am quite well, but tomorrow I am sure I am going to suffer again," she sighed. It is a terrible thing to expect evil that may never come your way. The expectation of evil kills many more than the evil itself.

Charles Steinmetz retired from General Electric after a lifelong career. Later, a system breakdown had GE engineers stumped, so they called on Steinmetz as a consultant. After inspecting the machinery at length, he marked an “X” on a defective part and billed GE for $10,000. The company protested, asking for an itemization. Steinmetz’s reply read simply:

Making one chalk mark

$1

Knowing where to place it

$9,999

A man, after 25 years with one company, was still doing the same old job and drawing the same salary. Finally he went to his boss and told him he felt he had been neglected. “After all,” he said, “I’ve had a quarter of a century of experience.”

“My dear fellow,” sighed the boss, “you haven’t had a quarter of a century of experience, you’ve had one experience for a quarter of a century.”

There is an old story of a man in West Virginia who had a reputation for being wise and for giving sound advice. A young person went to him one day and asked, "Uncle Jed, how come you have such good judgment?" "Well, I have good judgment because I have had a lot of experience," he replied. And the boy said, "Yes, but how did you get all that experience?" "Well," the man mused, "I got it by making a lot of bad judgments."

If people have traveled the road before us and can tell us what that road looks like, then we are wise to listen to what they have to say.

Some early studies concerned with prejudice show that we’re quite capable of reordering our perceptions of the world around us in order to maintain our conviction that we’re right. A group of white, middle-class New York City residents were presented with a picture of people on a subway. Two men were in the foreground. One was white, one was black. One wore a business suit, one was clothed in workman’s overalls. One was giving his money to the other who was threatening him with a knife. Now as a matter of fact it was the black man who wore the suit, and it was he who was being robbed by the white laborer. But such a picture didn’t square with the prejudices of the viewers. To them, white men were executives, black men were blue collar workers. Blacks were the robbers, whites the victims. And so they reported what their mind told them they saw—that a black laborer was assaulting a white businessman. As human beings who desperately desire our lives to be consistent and untroubled, we’ll go to great lengths to reject a message that implies we’re wrong.

Henry Augustus Rowland, professor of physics at Johns Hopkins University, was once called as an expert witness at a trial. During cross-examination a lawyer demanded, “What are your qualifications as an expert witness in this case?”

The normally modest and retiring professor replied quietly, “I am the greatest living expert on the subject under discussion.” Later a friend well acquainted with Rowland’s disposition expressed surprise at the professor’s uncharacteristic answer. Rowland answered, “Well, what did you expect me to do? I was under oath.”

The word expiation begins with the prefix ex, which means “out of” or “from.” Expiation means to remove something. In biblical theology it has to do with taking away or removing guilt by means of paying a ransom or offering an atonement. It means to pay the penalty for something. Thus, the act of expiation removes the problem by paying for it in some way, in order to satisfy some demand. Christ’s expiation of our sin means that He paid the penalty for it and removed it from consideration against us. On the other hand, propitiation has to do with the object of the expiation. The prefix in this case is pro, which means “for.” Propitiation has to do with what brings about a change in God’s attitude toward us, so that we are restored to the fellowship and favor of God. In a sense, propitiation points to God’s being appeased. If I am angry because you have offended me, but you then appease me, the problem will be removed. Thus propitiation brings in the personal element and stresses that God is no longer angry with us. Propitiation is the result of expiation. The expiation is the act that results in God’s changing His attitude toward us. Expiation is what Christ did on the cross. The result of Christ’s act of expiation is that God is propitiated. It is the difference between the ransom that is paid and the attitude of the One receiving the ransom.

When Sgt. Ray Baarz of the Midvale, Utah, police department opened his wallet the other day, he noticed his driver’s license had expired. Embarrassed at having caught himself red-handed, he had no alternative. He calmly and deliberately pulled out his ticket book and wrote himself a citation. Then Baarz took the ticket to the city judge who fined him five dollars. “How could I give a ticket to anyone else for an expired license in the future if I didn’t cite myself?” Baarz asked.

Specific instances:

Mk 1:21-28; Lk 4:31-37. Demoniac in the synagogue at Capernaum.

Mt 9:32-34. Dumb demoniac.

Mt 15:21-28; Mk 7:24-30. Daughter of the Syrophoenician woman.

Mt 8:28-34; Mk 5:1-20; Lk 8:26-39. Gadarene demoniacs.

Mt 12:22; Lk 11:14. Blind and mute demoniac.

Mt 17:14-21; Mk 9:14-29; Lk 9:37-43. Epileptic child.

“President Nixon once told me that while talking to Winston Churchill’s son, he told him how much he admired the prime minister’s great ability at giving “extemporaneous” speeches. Churchill’s son replied, “Oh, yes. I’ve watched my father work for hours preparing those extemporaneous speeches.”

Dr. Tom McGuiness, a counseling psychologist in New Jersey, gives this explanation of why many affairs take place:

“Married people seek out or succumb to affairs when they feel devalued or less than fully alive. They are bored. Overburdened. People who have affairs have a child’s deep longing to be touched, caressed, held, hugged and kissed, whether they admit it or not. They want happy surprises. That might mean a sentimental unexpected gift every once in a while. More important, it is the dependable gift of time and caring. The present of shared ideas, experiences, stories, nonsense and games, including sexual games. They want the world to butt out. They want a loving friend, a pal who isn’t judgmental. They want someone to convince them they’re still loved, lovable and very special. For a little while, now and then, they want out from under the grown-up responsibilities that have become predictable, dreary and difficult.”

If these are the reasons extra-marital affairs occur, couldn’t we guard against them by seeking to meet our mates’ deepest needs for affection, security, friendship, and sexual fulfillment? Maybe the best prevention for an affair outside marriage is to plan one with the man or woman we’re married to!

Dear Ann Landers: You have printed many letters about extramarital affairs. Here are some things your readers should be aware of:

About half the men and a third of the women who are cheating say they are perfectly content and there is nothing wrong with their marriages.

Being religious does not prevent infidelity.

Women are as willing as men to have an affair.

Fewer than 10 percent of those having an affair will divorce their spouses to marry their lovers. A large percentage of those who do often have another divorce.

People who have affairs are more likely to be divorced, distressed and disappointed.

The chemistry that drives an affair lasts anywhere from a few weeks to three years before it cools down.

In general we must hold that whenever any religious controversy arises, which either a council or ecclesiastical tribunal behooves to decide; whenever a minister is to be chosen; whenever, in short any matter of difficulty and great importance is under consideration: on the other hand, when manifestations of the divine anger appear, as pestilence, war, and famine, the sacred and salutary custom of all ages has been for pastors to exhort the people to public fasting and extraordinary prayer.

In 1971, the Persian Empire celebrated its 2500th birthday as Shah Reza Pahlavi of Iran gave a four-day celebration costing $100 million. The focal point of the event was a huge banquet, the banquet hall being a gigantic silk tent lighted with $840,000 worth of colored lights! The guest list matched the occasion: the Shah invited more than 600 dignitaries from 69 nations.

Many times we are caught in the trap of running to extremes. God's will has been revealed and needs to be understood the way God intended it to be.

The Pharisees had this problem. They even had everyday life defined to the point where it was hard for a person to live. On the Sabbath day, they had problems with different concepts such as "work." On the Sabbath you were to cease from work, and the Pharisees decided to define what God intended by this. Here are a few examples:

You could not turn over in bed more than seven times or that was considered work.

If you wanted to borrow something from your neighbor, you could not put your hand through the threshold of the door to receive it, nor could the neighbor do that. This would be considered work. If you both met halfway, it was not considered work.

Jesus said in Mat 15:6, speaking to the Pharisees, "...And thus you invalidated the Word of God for the sake of your tradition." For the sake of their definitions which they had made law, their extremes, they made void the Word of God. We laugh at the Pharisees and wonder how they could have been so ignorant. But if Jesus were here physically today, what would He say of us? Let us not run to extremes; let us seek what God intended and do it. Either extreme of a truth is no longer truth.

One time when Michigan State was playing UCLA in football, the score was tied at 14 with only seconds to play. Duffy Daugherty, Michigan State’s coach, sent in place kicker Dave Kaiser who booted a field goal that won the game.

When the kicker returned to the bench, Daugherty said, “nice going, but you didn’t watch the ball after you kicked it.”

“That’s right, Coach,” Kaiser replied. “I was watching the referee instead to see how he’d signal it. I forgot my contact lenses, and I couldn’t see the goal posts.”

A friend of mine went into a drugstore the other day and pointed to some toothbrushes on a rack. "Let me have a pink one," she requested. To her surprise, the clerk took down an orange one. "No, pink," she reminded him. This time he selected a lavender one. My friend began to sense the difficulty. "No, I said pink," she repeated pleasantly; the clerk's finger hovered uncertainly over the rack and neared the desired color, "That one," she declared emphatically. "I see you're color-blind," she remarked as he wrapped her purchase. With a sheepish smile he confessed, "I always call blue 'green.' " But this same friend had a color-blind relative who doggedly insisted that certain colors were a figment of other people's imaginations because he could not distinguish them. Do not be surprised when those who do not know God cannot accept as real the spiritual truths He has revealed through His Word. The "eyes of their understanding" have never been opened.

"He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy" (Prov. 29:1).

The following incident is vouched for by a Church of England clergyman who knew all the circumstances.

A young woman, who had been brought up in a Christian home and who had often had very serious convictions in regard to the importance of coming to Christ, chose instead to take the way of the world. Much against the wishes of her godly mother, she insisted on keeping company with a wild, hilarious crowd, who lived only for the passing moment and tried to forget the things of eternity. Again and again she was pleaded with to turn to Christ, but she persistently refused to heed the admonitions addressed to her.

Finally, she was taken with a very serious illness. All that medical science could do for her was done in order to bring about her recovery, but it soon became evident that the case was hopeless and death was staring her in the face. Still she was hard and obdurate when urged to turn to God in repentance and take the lost sinner's place and trust the lost sinner's Saviour.

One night she awoke suddenly out of a sound sleep, a frightened look in her eyes, and asked excitedly, "Mother, what is Ezekiel 7:8 and 9?"

Her mother said, "What do you mean, my dear?"

She replied that she had had a most vivid dream. She thought there was a Presence in the room, who very solemnly said to her, "Read Ezekiel 7:8-9."

Not recalling the verses in question, the mother reached for a Bible. As she opened it, her heart sank as she saw the words, but she read them aloud to the dying girl:

"Now I will shortly pour out my fury upon thee, and accomplish mine anger upon thee: and I will judge thee according to thy ways, and will recompense thee for all thine abominations. And mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: I will recompense thee according to thy ways and thine abominations that are in the midst of thee; and ye shall know that I am the Lord that smiteth."

The poor sufferer, with a look of horror on her face, sank back on the pillow, utterly exhausted, and in a few moments she was in eternity. Once more it had been demonstrated that grace rejected brings judgment at last.

"For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments" (Ezr_7:10).

Ezra sought the law of the Lord. Newer versions translate "study" instead of "seek," and study is, of course, the way we seek it. We do not go to the priest, or seer, or to the witch of Endor; nor do we inquire of the Urim and Thummin. God's will is not found by contemplating our navels or getting in touch with our inner impulses. "When they say to you, 'Seek them that have familiar spirits, and seek wizards that peep and mutter'; should not a people seek their God? Should they consult the dead on behalf of the living? To the law and to the testimony! If they speak not according to this word, it is because there is not light in them! (Isa_8:19-20). The preacher must study. Study takes time. Euclid told Ptolemy, King of Egypt, "There is no royal road to geometry"; so there is no mystic shortcut to a knowledge of the will of God.

When we really know what God has revealed to man, we know something helpful and worthwhile to teach. When we teach what is helpful and valuable, people will come to hear and learn. They will not come again and again for empty platitudes or recycled outlines. Not even hogs will keep coming back to an empty trough. Study. Seek the Word of the Lord.

Ezra did the law of the Lord. Unlike the scribes of Jesus' day, who said but did not (Mat_23:2), Ezra practiced what he studied. Studying the Bible is not just an academic exercise. We must not be forgetful hearers, but doers, in order to be blessed (Jam_1:23-25). We may pride ourselves on knowing the truth, but Jesus did not say "This know and thou shalt live." He said, "This do and thou shalt live" (Luk_10:28).

Ezra taught the Lord's statutes and judgment in Israel. So must we. "It is written in the prophets, 'And they shall all be taught of God.'Every man therefore that has heard, and has learned of the Father, comes to me" (Joh_6:45). What we have learned we are to teach to others, so that they can teach others also (2Ti_2:2). We are to teach to convert and then we are to teach the converted (Mat_28:19-20). A preacher is a teacher who pleads with his students to do what they have been taught.

Ezra set his heart to seek, to do, and to teach the law of the Lord. No one accidentally becomes a faithful servant of God. We will only be good students, faithful workers, and effective teachers to the extent we decide to be, and deliberately lay aside things that hinder us.

Let Ezra be our model. Let us be models like Ezra.