Observation: As soon as the exiles return to Jerusalem, Ezra learns they have already re-engaged in the sin of intermarrying non-Jews. This is one of the acts for which the Lord held them accountable 70 years prior, especially because it leads to adopting the faith and practices of the pagan religions of the other people, which is the heart of the sins of Israel and Judah.
Upon hearing of this, Ezra is "baffled". The people know the punishment of failing to obey God. They just ended 70 years of forced exile. It is only just now that God himself has intervened and allowed this remnant of Jews to return to the land. If any people have motivation to seek obedience, it is these people who have even shown enough faith to return, and who have recognized the punishment they have been living under their entire lives. Yet here they go, immediately sinning again, just like the generations before them.
Application: My sins - my thoughts and actions that I absolutely know are opposed to God's ways - are made so much worse because ... I know they are wrong, I know the pain that comes when one is far from God, and I know there is active spiritual activity in this time of history. This is a time when obedience is critical, and I am the kind of person who absolutely knows it. Yet here I go, sinning every day.
In this today, I see how weak I am. I declare my strength, but that declaration must always and only be in the context of how strong God is, and the fact he is with me. If I rely on his strength, I will be strong. If I rely on my strength, my willpower, my intelligence, my logic ... I will absolutely fail.
Ezra was baffled by the Jews' actions. I am baffled by my actions. Actually, I am baffled by my thoughts, which fail to follow the mind and will of God. This is because my spirit pulls away from the Lord. I need so desperately to improve in this area, as my failures are painful to me, and will be all the more painful as the day of the Lord approaches.
Prayer: Lord, I ask you this day to forgive me for my sins. They run deep. I do desire the joy that comes with drawing near to you. May I keep that in my heard, and love you and only you with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength. Please allow your Holy Spirit to be in me and near me this day and every day, providing me with your strength, for I am weak and lowly, wholly reliant on you. Amen.
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