Illustration of our Tree

1.    It’s not very often that a personal life experience can be used as an illustration for a message, but several weeks ago, when we had that massive thunder storm, I was able to add two potential illustrations to my inventory, only one of which I’ll relay to you this morning. 

(ADVANCE SLIDE) – HOUSE WITH TREE

2.    If any of you have visited our house, you’d recognize this Tree that stood in our front yard. 

3.    When we first moved in, this huge willow tree was a picture of health, strength, and vibrancy. .

4.    The leaves were green, the trunk was massive, the branches were full

5.    But when the winds came from that storm, THREE of huge branches split off from the trunk and crashed to the ground, revealing the truth of what was going on under the surface.

(ADVANCE SLIDE) – TREE SPLIT IN TWO

6.    What appeared to be a picture of health, was just a façade for a bug infested, disease ridden, and rot dominated tree.

7.    And the extent of the decay was so pervasive that only a rim of life remained. 

(ADVANCE SLIDE) – TREE STUMP

B.   Startling reality – move to 1st application

1.    This picture is indicative of our culture . . .

2.    A recent survey, just put out this week by the Barna Group underscored this startling reality. 

3.     “American society has become more intrigued by moral issues in recent years

4.    But a nationwide survey indicates that Americans have also redefined what it means to be moral.

5.    Researchers asked adults which, if any, of eight behaviors they had engaged in during the past week. The behaviors included exposure to pornography, using profanity in public, gambling, gossiping, having sex with someone to whom they were not married, retaliating against someone, getting drunk, and lying. A majority of adults had KNOWINGLY engaged in at least one of those eight behaviors during the past week. 

6.    YET somehow they believed themselves to be moral.

7.    The statistics are staggering in adults, but truly alarming when compared to the morality of college age students ages 18-25.

a)    2/3 of them use profanity in a given week

b)   They were 9 times more likely to have sex outside of marriage

c)    They were 6 times more likely to LIE

d)   3 times more likely to get DRUNK

e)    AND 1 out of 3 views pornography in a given week.

8.    This is what I call a moral downgrade. 

9.    BUT I believe this TREE is not only a picture of our CULTURE, it is also a picture of our CHURCH today.  

10.     A DILEMA that exists because of the ABSENCE of a MORAL STANDARD in our lives

11.     Another survey conducted in 2000 indicates

a)    Only 44% (less than half) of born again adults and only 9% of teenagers are certain of the existence of absolute moral truth

b)   Only 1% of all born again adults firmly concurred with each of the 13 basic belief statements from the Bible.

12.     Is there any mystery why we face such a moral dilemma in our country today?

13.     Just like this tree, we are struggling for life but leading everyone to believe that everything is okay.

(ADVANCE SLIDE) – THE TEST FOR TRUTH

C.   Proposition

1.    SO what about us at GBC?  We’re committed to the TRUTH, RIGHT?   

2.    We are taught faithfully from the WORD

3.    We have regular Bible studies

4.    And we have discipleship for Men and Women

5.    Certainly, we don’t have a problem with TRUTH.

6.    This morning we’re going to see that there is a TEST for TRUTH.

7.    There is a way to know whether or not TRUTH DOMINATES a LIFE

8.    And it boils down to THREE fundamental elements.  If you have the TRUTH 

(ADVANCE SLIDE) – ALL TRHEE POINTS (1 CLICK)

a)    You will RECONGNIZE sin in your life

b)   You will REPENT before God and others

c)    You will RETURN to God in obedience

(ADVANCE SLIDE) – EZRA 8:35 - 9:5

Read Ezra 8:35 - 9:5

TRANSITION: Do you believe that you are committed to God’s TRUTH.  If you are, then you will FIRST . . .

(ADVANCE SLIDE) – YOU WILL RECOGNIZE SIN

II.        You will RECOGNIZE sin in your life

A.   God’s standard proclaimed

1.    What must have been going through Ezra’s mind?

2.    Born into the second most prominent line in the OT. the line of Aaron 

3.    Meant to carry out a holy ministry.  Meant to devote his days in the temple before the Lord, offering sacrifices and worshipping God.

4.    A man who endowed with special giftedness; an ability to discern God’s Word and to effectively teach God’s people.

5.    But a man who grew up in Exile, unable to fulfill the full range of duties associated with his heritage.

6.    And now Ezra has finally come to Israel.  He has finally come to the land of Promise, a land marked out for God’s people. 

7.    And he has come to Jerusalem, the city of the temple; the place where God’s earthly presence was known.

8.    And the only place on earth that legitimate sacrifices could be made, and sanctified worship could be practiced. 

9.    Imagine his excitement in finally coming to this great city that he had dreamed about all his life. 

10.     And in his excitement, Ezra begins his ministry.  A ministry of priestly duties.  A ministry of careful study, and a ministry of faithful TEACHING. 

(ADVANCE SLIDE) – STANDARD PROCLAIMED

11.     EZRA was COMMITTED to PROCLAIMING GOD’s STANDARD

12.     He had been dreaming about this his whole life.

13.     And it is likely he began in his exposition in Deuteronomy

14.     It was this book that summarized God’s standard for ISRAEL most effectively.  And it was this book that underscored God’s blessing for obedience and His cursing for disobedience.

a)    Right out of the starting blocks in Chapter 5 we’re given the 10 commandments

b)   Deuteronomy 6:4-9 (NIV) 4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

c)    Deuteronomy 7:1-3 (NIV) 1 When the Lord your God brings you into the land you are entering to possess and drives out before you many nations—the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites, seven nations larger and stronger than you— 2 and when the Lord your God has delivered them over to you and you have defeated them, then you must destroy them totally. Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy. 3 Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons . . . 6 For you are a people holy to the LORD your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.  It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the LORD set his love on you and chose you . . . but because the LORD loves you and is keeping the oath that he swore to your fathers . . .”

TRANSITION: God’s standard was conveyed, BUT as a result A major problem was uncovered . . .

(ADVANCE SLIDE) – PROBLEM UNCOVERED

B.   A major problem uncovered (9:1-2)

1.    Only four months had gone by since Ezra first came to Jerusalem.  And it is not clear how long it was before Ezra began his teaching ministry or how often he met with the people.

2.    But one thing that is clear, it didn’t take long for CONVICTION to set in, for SIN to be RECOGNIZED. 

3.    All Ezra had to do was to PROCLAIM the STANDARD.  AND Exposure to the truth of God’s Word PROMPTED an evaluation among the people. 

4.    Verse 1 says that “the officials approached” Ezra with this report. 

5.    And perhaps Ezra had taken it upon himself to disciple them specifically because of the authority that had been vested in him and the interaction he had had with them due to the administration of delivering the king’s commission and setting up local government (8:36).

6.    And they were perhaps most sensitive to the issue because of how prevalent this sin was among them.  (Ezra 9:2b à “the hand of the officials and chief men has been foremost.”

7.    Can you visualize the scene?

a)    Men with whom you’ve worked for the last 4 months; who you’ve built relationships with, you’ve shared joy with, meals with, and stories with . . . now they come as a delegation with their heads down, eyes on the ground, perhaps kicking at the rocks at their feet.

b)   You know something is dreadfully wrong, but you dare not ask what it is and then they begin

c)    Ezra, you know how you were sharing the other day from Deuteronomy, Well, we’ve got some bad news . . .

d)   And the smile that was on Ezra’s face as he warmly greeted his new friends, fades into seriousness as he listen to their news . . .

e)    Ezra, there’s sin in our mist, and it’s infected the people, the priests, the Levites, and we are most to blame, Ezra, since the officials and chief men have failed the most . . .

f)     We are guilty . . . we have not separated ourselves from the people of the land as God commanded, we’ve married women from the Canannites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites . . .

g)   And what is worse is that these women have already led us astray because we are already participating with them in their abominations . . .

h)   And Ezra, I wish I could say that was it, but not only have taken wives for ourselves, but we’ve arranged marriages for our sons, too . . .

i)     Rather than lead them in the ways of the LORD like Deut 6 tells us to, we have led our kids into rebellion . . .

j)     Ezra, that “holy race” that you were talking about the other day; the PEOPLE that GOD DESIGNED us to be . . . WELL, we’ve blown it big TIME 

8.    And you can almost hear in their voice, “Ezra, what can we do?  Is it over for us . . .?

9.    God had brought them to a point where their SIN lost its luster, where the ugliness, and decay of their lives was exposed

10.     “The holy race has mixed itself with the peoples of the lands.”

11.     NOTICE that it was their self inspection that EXPOSED this obvious flaw in their ranks . 

12.     All Ezra did was PROCLAIM the TRUTH, and GOD brought CONVICTION on their lives.

13.     TRUTH was present again, and it was doing its work.

C.   APPLICATION

1.    I believe that most everyone in this room has a fairly good grasp on God’s Word.

2.    BUT, just because you know God’s WORD does not mean that TRUTH REIGNS in you LIFE. 

3.    ILLUSTRATION:

a)    Several years ago, when I was attending college at Cedarville, a man came to our Winter Enrichment Conference to speak. 

b)   And one of the areas he addressed was this one.  That those who CLAIM to FOLLOW GOD will IDENTIFY sin in their lives and deal with it, whatever the cost (whether it meant paying off debts, expulsion from the school because of immorality, going to jail because of theft, if it meant failing a class because of cheating . . . whatever the cost, we were challenged to ELIMINATE SIN)

c)    And in my own life, I was zealous for the TRUTH, and I prayed that God would REVEAL anything that I had done and covered up rather than confessing  

d)   And during that week, God reminded me of a car that I hit in a school parking lot while in high school.  And I felt the conviction to search out the matter and make it right, but I was afraid. 

e)    Unfortunately, I decided to rationalize away my confession because I honestly was not sure whose car I hit, although by that time I had a pretty good idea.

f)     And it wasn’t until years later that I finally got the courage to admit that mistake, and finally the WEIGHT of that sin fell off my shoulders, and I had a clean conscience again.

4.    That’s what we’re talking about.

5.    And I will challenge you, as I was challenged years ago, that for TRUTH to REIGN in your life, it MUST FIRST be RECOGNIZED . . .

6.    And sometimes that takes GOD’s help, working through God orchestrated circumstances, to EXPOSE the sin in our life (letter, maybe a chance meeting at the store, maybe a jogged memory, maybe a new perspective, maybe a blind eye opened) 

7.    Whatever it takes, we must pray that God will wake us up to our SIN, and penetrate our heart with His WORD . . . THIS IS a GIFT when God does this.

TRANSITION: Recognition of sin is imperative, and stands as a TEST that TRUTH is present, BUT TRUTH moves one beyond RECOGNITION, TRUTH always MOVES us to something DEEPER . . . It moves us to REPENTANCE (SECOND TEST for TRUTH . . .) 

(ADVANCE SLIDE) – YOU WILL REPENT

III.    You will REPENT before God and others

A.   A Holy sorrow

1.    Look with me at verse 3-4

2.    Read verse 3 and 4

(ADVANCE SLIDE) – A HOLY SORROW

3.    Ezra hears the news, it breaks his heart, and all he can do is respond in sorrow, disgust, and anger

a)    Ezra tore his inner and outer cloak – expression of immense sorrow and grief

b)   Ezra pulled the hair from his head and beard – inflicting great pain on his body, but at the same time demonstrating anguish and anger over sin

(1)   When Nehemiah was given similar news only 20 years from this account, here’s how he expresses his anger

(2)   Nehemiah 13:23-25 (NIV)
23 Moreover, in those days I saw men of Judah who had married women from Ashdod, Ammon and Moab. 24 Half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod or the language of one of the other peoples, and did not know how to speak the language of Judah. 25 I rebuked them and called curses down on them. I beat some of the men and pulled out their hair. I made them take an oath in God’s name and said: “You are not to give your daughters in marriage to their sons, nor are you to take their daughters in marriage for your sons or for yourselves.

c)    Nehemiah was livid.  And so was Ezra!  His heart was so grieved, and his anger so incensed that he has to sit down. 

d)   Ezra sat APPALLED – he was visibly shaken, agitated à “Devastated, destitute, laid waste, ravaged, ruined, destroyed”

e)    And he keeps sitting through the morning hours, through lunch time, on into the afternoon, up until the evening sacrifice, perhaps around 6:00

4.    Meanwhile, the officials who presented the news to Ezra have observed his response. 

5.    It is likely that God had prompted their hearts about this matter and they, like Ezra, sit in humility before God and before the temple. 

6.    They had become those who trembled at the words of God. 

7.    And as the news of Ezra’s response, and the example of the official’s humility spreads, other lives are impacted by this silent display of grief, sorrow, and guilt.  And they join the ranks of their leaders, MARKED OUT as those who TREMBLE at the words of God, and they take their place beside their brothers and sisters and HUMBLE themselves before their God.

8.    RECOGNITION led to SORROW

TRANSITION: But sorrow, no matter how sincere, is only the beginning of REPENTANCE. à Joel 2:13 – So rend your HEART, and not your garments; Return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness; and He relents from doing harm.

(ADVANCE SLIDE) – HUMBLE PRAYER

B.   Humble prayer – verse 5

1.    The hours have gone by and now it is time of the evening sacrifice.

2.    And then EZRA, perhaps prompted by the imagery of the sacrifice now taking place.  Reminded of its promise of God’s atonement and forgiveness, RISES up from his fasting and BEGINS to ASSUME leadership of this congregation that has gathered.

3.    And in fresh display of SORROW he tears his inner and outer garment again

4.    And in a fresh display of HUMILITY he falls to his knees before the temple

5.    And in a fresh display of DEPENDENCY, he spreads out his hands before the LORD and begins to pray. 

6.    PRAYER – we don’t have time to evaluate this prayer in detail, but let me draw your attention to a few key aspects.  What makes up a PRAYER of REPENTANCE

(ADVANCE SLIDE) – ALL POINTS on PRAYER

a)    (1) PUBLIC CONFESSION à (vs 4-5)

(1)   Ezra stood up before the assembled congregation to make his confession before the Lord

(2)   And because this was a widespread and public offense, Ezra made a widespread and public confession.

(3)   Our confession of sin should be as broad as the offense. 

(4)   James 5:16  - “Confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed.”

(5)   Our confession must target those directly impacted by our sin, in an effort to bring reconciliation and peace in relationships that have been violate.

b)   (2) PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY à I am ashamed and blush to lift my face (vs 6)

(1)   For Ezra there was no finger pointing.  He had only been in Jerusalem for 4 months, and note how personal this prayer has become

(2)   In the HEBREW text, the SHAME and EMBARASSMENT spoken of here is intensely personal.  And these VERBS include a suffix at the end identifying them specifically with Ezra. 

(3)   One commentator puts it this way . . . “In one sense each one is responsible for his own faults, but in another sense the whole community is guilty when one member fails. Both emphases are taught throughout the Bible.

(a) Deut 13:12-16 – If members of a city are found practicing idolatry, Every member is killed with the sword, along with the cattle, the entire city is burned

(b) 1 Cor 5:6 – “Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump?  Cleanse out the leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened.  For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.”  

c)    (3) PERSPECTIVE OF SIN’S MAGNITUDE and CONSEQUENCE (vs 6)

(1)   Our iniquities have risen higher than our heads (vs 6)

(2)   Our guilt has mounted up to the heavens (vs 6)

(3)   Is 59:2 (NIV) 2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.

(4)   (vs 13)

(5)   You’ve just rescued us from captivity

(6)   We’ve just experienced the consequences of our previous rebellion

(7)   And here we are again.

(8)   What will you do this time

(9)   Lord, we deserve to be consumed.

d)   (4) PLEA FOR MERCY – (vs 8, 15) consent 

(1)   Woven into this prayer is Ezra’s recognition of God’s mercy and kindness. 

(2)   vs 8 - “for a brief moment favor has been shown by the LORD our God . . .that our God may brighten our eyes and grant us a little reviving in our slavery.”

(3)   vs 15 - GOD, you are just

(4)   vs 15 - We are guilty

(5)   vs 15 - DO as you PLEASE

C.   APPLICATION

1.    We serve a God of MERCY, a God who FORGIVES.

2.    And maybe there are those this morning who think, I’ve blown it BIG time.  If I were honest with myself, there is no WAY that God could FORGIVE me. 

3.    ILLUSTRATION:

a)    One of the most amazing stories in the Bible concerning forgiveness is found in 2 Chronicles 33. 

b)   This story is about King Manasseh, the most EVIL, IN-YOUR-FACE, DEFIANT< BLASPHEMOUS king in Judah’s history, and perhaps in all of Israel’s history

(1)   He rebuilt the idolatrous worship centers that his father Hezekiah had torn down (vs 3)

(2)   He made Baals, and Asherahs and worshipped them

(3)   He showed his DEFIANCE against God by building altars to his gods in the TEMPLE courtyard

(4)   He burned his sons alive in the Valley of Hinnom

(5)   He used fortune-telling, omens and sorcery, and dealt with mediums and wizards (vs 6)

(6)   An he erected images of his gods in the inner sanctuary of the TEMPLE

(7)   “Manasseh led Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem astray, to do more evil than the nations whom the LORD destroyed before the people of Israel.” (vs 9)

(8)   BUT THEN GOD JUDGED Manasseh

(9)   THUS, Manasseh was taken into captivity with hooks and chains as he deserved

(10)         Vs 12 – “And when he was in DISTRESS, he entreated the favor of the LORD his God and HUMBLED himself greatly before the God of his fathers.  He prayed to him, and GOD was MOVED by his entreaty and HEARD his plea and BROUGHT him again to JERUSALEM into his kingdom.  THEN Manasseh KNEW that the LORD was GOD.”

c)    God is in the BUSINESS of MANIFESTING His GREATNESS.  And he FORGIVES MUCH so that He might PROVE much. 

d)   “I came, not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” Matt 9:13

TRANSITION: And having been forgiven of such an enormous debt of guilt; a debt that reached to the heavens, those who are committed to the TRUTH will THIRDLY and FINALLY

(ADVANCE SLIDE) – YOU WILL RETURN

IV.     You will RETURN to God in obedience

A.   Hope grows (10:1-2)

1.    Something unexpected takes place in Chapter 10:1-2. 

2.    One might think that a prayer acknowledging sin, rebellion, and consistent rejection of TRUTH might discourage the people OR cause them to give up. 

3.    You might expect them to say, “What’s the point of trying?  God’s going to judge us again anyway . . .

4.    But GROWING out of this prayer of HUMILITY and CONFESSION is the REALIZATION that God can JUDGE his people, GOD can EXTINGUISH them from the face of the earth, BUT that God has not chosen to do that YET. 

(ADVANCE SLIDE) – HOPE GROWS

5.    Which meant that there was still HOPE

6.    And Shecaniah, son of Jehiel, son of Elam, speaks up and makes a PROPOSAL

a)    His PROPOSAL begins with HOPE. 

b)   “Even in spite of what we’ve done, God has demonstrated to us that HE is a MERCIFUL God.” 

c)    We must act immediately. 

d)   And in case you think that Shecaniah is about to suggest a course of action that he will not personally feel the effects of, a quick glance at verse 26 will correct our thinking. 

e)    Shecaniah’s proposal would impact his Dad (which had direct implications on his mother and maybe even himself), It would also impact his uncles and aunts and cousins.  His immediate family could potentially disintegrate before his eyes, BUT he cared more for OBEDIENCE than for COMFORT. 

TRANSITION: BUT the HOPE that Shecaniah CLUNG to was CONTINGENT on OBEDIENCE. 

(ADVANCE SLIDE)

B.   Obedience pursued (vs 3-5)

1.    This was a drastic plan

2.    THE PROPOSAL:

a)    Send the women and children away

b)   Break off the sinful marriages and distance themselves from their pagan practices.

c)    This poses some difficulties for us since we know that divorce is forbidden by God. 

3.    What we know from the text

a)    No suggestion that these men ever married again, just that they put away their wives along with their idolatry

b)   Was in a unique time of Israel’s history when the nation HUNG in the BALANCE à with only a remnant of Jews in the land, and the real possibility of erasing their distinction as God’s HOLY PEOPLE – this was a time of URGENCY  

c)    Occurred under the direct oversight of a PROPHET and PRIEST who was DIVINELY ENABLED by God.  Who immediately withdrew into the temple to consult the LORD (vs 6)

d)   And it is the only EXAMPLE in Scripture of this kind of MASS DIVORCE.  à 20 years later, when Ezra and Nehemiah face a similar situation, the men are dismissed from responsibility in the temple, but there is no indication that they are also required to divorce their wives.

4.    What can we learn from this?

a)     SIN is MESSY – It not only disrupts God’s plan for our lives, but it often requires RADICAL STEPS for OBEDIENCE .

b)   GOD’s WORD is the STANDARD – Ezra went before the Lord to confirm this course of action.  As believers we have the completed STANDARD in our hands, and God’s children are REQUIRED to PRAYERFULLY follow that standard implicitly / completely

c)    CONFRONTATION requires CARE and GRACE (vs 16-17)

(1)   As straightforward as this seemed, EACH family was interviewed personally AND the process took 3 months to complete

(2)   Such an extensive process was sure to INCLUDE the element of how to CARE for the WIFE, and any children who were involved. 

(3)   What steps needed to be taken to sell property or provide a supply of income so these women would not be without support

(4)   Divorce did not ELIMINATE responsibility

(5)   And CARE and GRACE DOMINATED the process.

C.   APPLICATION

1.    The fundamental question of the day is “DOES TRUTH REIGN in you LIFE?” 

2.    The question is not simply, do you know what the TRUTH requires, but rather, is it

a)    STIMULATING a RECOGNITION of SIN in your life

b)   PROMPTING REPENTENCE before God and others

c)    LEADING to a RETURN to OBEDIENCE

3.    If not, the TRUTH is really not that IMPORTANT to you

4.    Do you REALIZE that OBEDIENCE is an eschatological CONCERN à Meaning, it MOTIVATES and DRIVES us when we consider that the end is near.    

a)    2 Timothy 4:1-2 – “I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.”

b)   1 Peter 1:13 – (NIV) 13 Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.

c)    1 John 2:28 (NIV) 28 And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming. 29 If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him.

d)   1 Peter 4:7 – “But the end of all things is at hand, therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers.”

e)    Hebrews 10:24-27 (NIV) 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. 26 If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, 27 but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.

D.  What kind of TREE are you? 

1.    Are you the kind of TREE in my front yard?  The kind of TREE that appears so healthy and vibrant, BUT underneath is rotten, decayed, and diseased?

2.    OR are you the kind of TREE spoken about in Psalm 1.  The kind of TREE that is blessed with health, nourishment, and fruit because its life is FOUNDED on the TRUTH of Scripture? 

3.    May God help us to be that Kind of TREE.