Ever heard this?
“When Jesus was nailed to the cross, God laid on him all the sins of the world. Past, present, and future. When He had done this, the Father, who cannot look on sin, turned His face away from His Beloved Son. When Jesus felt his Father’s gaze leave him, he cried out in anguish, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’”
Sound familiar? I didn’t get it verbatim from any particular pastor, but it’s an idea that’s been passed down from generation to generation. But why, exactly? What’s the Biblical support for it?
My thought is, there isn’t really any support for it.
(more…)
Is there a better prayer than the one in Nehemiah 9? Check out this excerpt:
Nehemiah 9:5c-6 (NKJV):
Blessed be Your glorious name,
Which is exalted above all blessing and praise!
6 You alone are the LORD;
You have made heaven,
The heaven of heavens, with all their host,
The earth and everything on it,
The seas and all that is in them,
And You preserve them all.
The host of heaven worships You.
Note to self: memorize and repeat frequently.
Ezra/Nehemiah is not the most exciting reading in the Bible (the two books were one in the ancient Hebrew manuscripts). Still, one must keep in mind that, next to Moses, Ezra is probably the most important character in the Old Testament. Perhaps even more important…
Why? Well, think about it. Moses was the instrument through which God gave the Law to Israel. Cool. Great. And how did that go? Well…not so good. Israel did *not* obey. Result? Exile and extinction for the Northern Tribes (Israel), and exile and shame for the Southern Tribes (Judah).
But what about Ezra? He came back with the exiles and reestablished Judaism. The standard traditions of the Jews is that Ezra formed the Great Assembly, which was the body who eventually produced the Talmud.
Ezra reintroduced the Jews to the Law of the Lord, and they kept it. Gone was the syncretism that so long assailed the Israelites in the time of the Kings. Ezra set the religious stage for the coming of Christ.
How did he do it? To me, here’s the key verse:
Ezra 7:10 (NKJV):
10 For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the Law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach statutes and ordinances in Israel.
I’m not bashing Moses here…he’s still a hero to me. But Ezra is more of a role model for my life.
My goal? To seek the Law of God, and to do it. And to teach it to my son. And to anybody else who will listen.