The Heaton File

Tuesday Morning Early Start – Important Doctrines

In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. (1 Corinthians 5:4-5)

The Purpose Of Church Discipline

God has always shown to man the tragedy of sin and the righteous judgment of the Lord upon sin. Destroying the world in the days of Noah was a demonstration of grace, mercy, salvation and condemnation. Noah and his family of seven found grace because they were seeking the Lord. Everyone in the world who refused to submit to God were wiped off the face of the earth. Judgment. Sin is serious. Remember the story of Achan and the cities of Jericho/Ai. Read the story of David and Bathsheba. The nation of Israel was almost destroyed because of sin spending seventy years in a captive land. Ananias and Sapphira were struck down in the early days of the church as proof of God’s disdain for sin. Herod the king died a horrible death for not giving glory to God. Sin? It is deadly serious.

The church at Corinth had a serious problem. Sexual immorality was accepted within the body of Christ. Paul was warning the church to make corrections. He first chided the brethren for not having a love for the people in sin. He then instructs them to exercise discipline against the couple to move them to repentance. The Lord wants the church to be pure and purging out the leaven of sin is a response to the serious nature of sexual immorality that was ignored within the church. Paul warns the brethren to take action against the couple withdrawing the fellowship of unity with them so they may be ashamed and repent. The church cannot tolerate sin and by the direction of the Holy Spirit must put away wicked people.

This is very hard to do and in many places very hard to accept. Discipline is never pleasant but the end result is why discipline is done. The Hebrew writer explains chastening is not joyful but grievous. God desires the peaceable fruit of righteousness to come from such action. To the church at Thessalonica Paul reminds the church that erring brethren are not enemies but still brethren. In all of this discipline must be exercise to impress upon the soul the serious nature of sin. The church of today is not unlike the church at Corinth. There can be situations within a local church that requires discipline to be exercised. Unrepentant brethren must be withdrawn from to follow the pattern of New Testament authority and love for the lost. Quibbling over matters of semantics does not address the problem of sin. Personalities are often at odds with the action of church discipline ignoring the reality that people are lost in their present condition. The purpose of church discipline is the salvation of the soul – THAT THE SPIRIT MAY BE SAVED IN THE DAY OF THE LORD JESUS. We must never lose sight of this goal. To do any less would be rejecting the command of God.

Sin is moral leprosy. To put up with leprosy is to die of leprosy. Sin is spiritual cancer. A man who tries only to live with cancer, dies with it. If we do not deal with spiritual malignancy, then indeed it deals with us. (Vance Havner, 1901-1986)

Monday Morning Coffee Break – Life With Jesus

Then He came to Capernaum. And when He was in the house He asked them, “What was it you disputed among yourselves on the road?” But they kept silent, for on the road they had disputed among themselves who would be the greatest. And He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.” Then He took a little child and set him in the midst of them. And when He had taken him in His arms, He said to them, “Whoever receives one of these little children in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me, receives not Me but Him who sent Me.” (Mark 9:33-37)

Road Rage

Politics brings out the worst in people. The disciples had eagerly listened to Jesus tell of the coming kingdom and those among them that would see the emergence of that kingdom come with power. Excited at the prospects of positional power they began to argue among themselves who would get the best seats. As the crowd of disciples walked along the road this became their argument. Matthew was a tax collector and could have thought of himself more qualified than the fishermen in the group. As a zealot Simon would plead national pride and his devotion to Israel. Judas might have suggested being in charge of the national treasury for hidden reasons revealed later. Peter, James and John could have revealed their special place in the ministry of Jesus as they were the ones with Jesus when He was transfigured on the mountain. Twelve men had twelve good reasons to be the greatest in the kingdom. Jesus had only one position to offer them.

Mark’s account lends a sense of mystery to the story. Jesus inquires what the disciples were arguing about and they remained silent – probably out of fear and embarrassment. The Lord was such a powerful teacher. He tells the twelve to gather to him and He calls a child to Him. Taking the young boy in His arms (what a great picture of Jesus taking a young boy in His arms) He forces twelve grown prideful men to look upon the face of an innocent child and learn a hard lesson. “If you want to be great, fellows: here is what you need to be like.” The argument on the road became a life lesson. This lesson would stay with them throughout their lives. Sadly Judas would fail this lesson quickly as he betrayed the Lord. The eleven would go on to serve Jesus as little children giving their lives for the establishment of the kingdom of God, the church of Jesus Christ.

Leaders learn the first lesson of leadership is about those they lead. Positional leadership is about power. Effective leadership is leading others with a spirit of humility and servitude. The real lesson in Jesus’ rebuke of His disciples is the relationship we share with one another. If we follow the example of Jesus and walk in His steps we learn how to serve others. We do not argue about greatness but about service. The heart of a child is not lifted up against others. Humility is the trademark of disciples of Christ to give lives of service to others for the glory of God. Ultimately it shows our love for the Father through our love for Jesus Christ.

The dispute on the road turned into a lesson on the journey of their faith. Keep children around to remind you of the lesson Jesus taught. Whenever disputes come ask for a child to be brought in. Serving others is why we serve. Jesus died for all men.

Humility is nothing else but a right judgment  of ourselves. (William Law, Christian Perfection, 1726)

Sunday Morning Starters – Worship

On that day David first delivered this psalm into the hand of Asaph and his brethren, to thank the Lord: “Oh, give thanks to the Lord! Call upon His name; make known His deeds among the peoples! Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him; talk of all His wondrous works! Glory in His holy name; let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the Lord! Seek the Lord and His strength; seek His face evermore! Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth” (1 Chronicles 16:7-12).

Thanksgiving

There was great rejoicing in the land. David the king had brought the ark to Jerusalem and set it in the midst of the tabernacle. He gave to every man and woman a loaf of bread, a piece of meat and a cake of raisins. Levites were appointed to commemorate, to thank, and to praise the Lord God of Israel. On that day David delivered a psalm into the hand of Asaph and his brethren to thank the Lord. David’s psalm recorded in 1 Chronicles 16 is mirrored in Psalm 105. It is a wonderful message of thanksgiving for all that God has done.

Thanksgiving is a time to worship the Lord. While we remember as a country the early days of the American creation, thanksgiving has always been a part of worship to the Creator. When David brought the ark to Jerusalem there was a remembrance off all that God had done. Not just in the physical blessings or wars won but the overshadowing presence of the Almighty. Thanksgiving was a time to worship God. Giving the people a loaf of bread, meat and raisins was showing how dependent the people were on God to deliver their daily bread. Placing the ark in the midst of the Tabernacle exalted the power of the Lord upon the hearts of the people to serve Him in obedience and faith.

David’s psalm expresses praise to the wondrous works of God. Glory should be given to the name of the Lord. Hearts should turn to the will of the Father. There is only one God – the true God who made all things and in whom all things exist. During our time of thanksgiving we should enjoy family, friends and the beneficent hand of our blessings. The center of our thanksgiving should be God. Prayers should be offered. Reading the Bible in praise to His name should be given. There is nothing that we have done of ourselves. By God’s grace we are thankful. By His mercy we endure. Thank you God for all You have done. Everything.

Gratitude is the memory of the heart. (Anonymous)

Saturday Morning Promises – Great Stories

Then he said, “I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.” Abraham said to him, “They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.” And he said, “No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.” But he said to him, “If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead” (Luke 16:27-31).

The Other Lazarus Did Rise

Lazarus was a destitute man who lived a miserable life as a beggar. He suffered from sores that covered his body. Hunger was his constant companion. Dogs were his only friends. Death finally took his misery away as angels carried him to the bosom of Abraham. Around the same time of Lazarus’ pitiful death another man died. He remains unnamed with only the significance of a rich man. In life he lived at the pinnacle of society with all the finery and good health man could know. Friends were always close by and the rich man’s five brothers enjoyed the material life of splendor. Like Lazarus he died too. Now the story takes a profound change.

Before death the rich man was happy and Lazarus miserable. After death Lazarus was comforted and the rich man? The rich man would have begged to have the misery of Lazarus. What he experienced was beyond the imagination of suffering. In his pleas to Abraham he realized how his five brothers were living begging Abraham to send Lazarus to tell them of the awful place he found himself. God does not permit it. The rich man believed too late that if someone came from the grave his brothers would believe. Abraham explains that belief comes from hearing the word of God; not dead men.

Ironically Lazarus did rise from the dead. Not the Lazarus from our story but the Lazarus who was the brother of Martha and Mary, friends of Jesus. When Jesus came to Lazarus he had been dead four days and the tomb sealed. Calling him forth Lazarus came out bound hand and foot with graveclothes. The Lord tells the people to loose him and let him go. Martha and Mary were elated to have their brother back. Friends and family marveled greatly at such a great miracle. They knew that Lazarus was dead and yet he lived. What a testimony he could give about coming back from the dead. It would seem logical that everyone would believe in Jesus now. But there were many Jews who went away plotting to kill Jesus. Abraham was right. A Lazarus did rise from the dead but many did not believe.

After the resurrection of Jesus many dead arose from their graves going into Jerusalem appearing to many. Dorcas was raised from the dead by Peter in Joppa. The Hebrew writer speaks of those who received their dead raised to life again. Countless examples of exactly what the rich man pled with Abraham to do and yet more did not believe than believed. Dead people raised do not save – the word of God saves. Sadly if it were the will of God to allow the dead to be raised today the majority of people would not believe. Why? Because the resurrected Word – Jesus Christ – is proclaimed through the pages of the Bible and men do not believe. If men will not believe what the Bible teaches they would not believe if Abraham Lincoln rose from the dead. The other Abraham was right. Truth is in the Word. Now that is a great story.

Friday Morning Reflections – Wisdom Literature

Behold, God is exalted by His power; who teaches like Him? Who has assigned Him His way, or who has said, ‘You have done wrong’? Remember to magnify His work, of which men have sung. Everyone has seen it; man looks on it from afar. Behold, God is great, and we do not know Him; nor can the number of His years be discovered. For He draws up drops of water, which distill as rain from the mist, which the clouds drop down and pour abundantly on man. Indeed, can anyone understand the spreading of clouds, the thunder from His canopy? Look, He scatters His light upon it, and covers the depths of the sea. For by these He judges the peoples; He gives food in abundance. He covers His hands with lightning, and commands it to strike. His thunder declares it, the cattle also, concerning the rising storm. (Job 36:22-33)

How Old Is God?

Science has been able to explain the process of evaporation and formation of rain clouds. It may come as a surprise to many this knowledge was understood by early man. The book of Job was a story that took place during the patriarchal days (like Abraham). Near the end of the story when the young man Elihu is chiding his elders for their lack of understanding of the holy God he illustrates the majesty of God’s power in creation. He knew where rain came from. This was evidence of the beauty of the creation. This knowledge exalts God in the perfectness of His design. Man can understand it and explain it but only the Creator has put this into place. Wisdom comes from God not man.

Elihu puts an interesting twist to his story. Men have sung of the greatness of God since the beginning but no one really understands how great the Lord is. Like some today who ask questions to challenge faith in God Elihu explains there are no answers. “Where did God come from?” There is no answer. The ‘number of years’ cannot be discovered because the Creator is so great man cannot know. This bothers man. He can plunge to the depths of the sea, put a man on the moon and send machines to faraway places in the universe but he cannot touch the toe of God (in fact never come close). Every time man takes a picture of the edge of deep space the Lord smiles and opens up another room in His great expanse. Paul declared to the philosophers of Athens that man lives within the boundaries of a habitation. Man is limited.

Nature extols the virtues of God’s hand when we look at forces such as rain and lightning. We can explain it but we cannot explain it. The only thing we can do is describe what happens but we were not there when the world was void and without form. There was a time no light shone upon this rock. Evaporation was created in the process of God’s design. This we can know because God has shown Himself to man. But that knowledge is limited and we cannot know the years of God. It is not so much trying to count the age of God but to realize how great He is. O Lord how great your ocean and how small my boat. He is big. He is really, really big. And I am glad.

We cannot know God in His greatness, for the Father cannot be measured. (Irenaeus, Adversus Haereses, c. 175)

Thursday Morning Thankfulness – Epistles of Paul

Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?–unless indeed you are disqualified. (2 Corinthians 13:5)

Putting Yourself To The Test

It is easy to find the faults and failings in others. They are so apparent. The challenge comes when we have to examine our own lives and find fault. Let’s face it: looking for things lacking in another person is more easily revealed than facing an honest truth about our own hearts. We are entitled the do what we do and act like we do because that is who we are. Other people need to conform. The litmus test of Christ changes all of that. Paul’s frank statement to the Corinthian Christians was to stop and examine themselves. Look closely whether they could really say they were in the faith. Tough questions. Tougher answers.

Becoming complacent in our relationship with God is a relationship of complacency. It is a form of self-righteousness that masks a spirit of hypocrisy. Jesus tells of the man who went up to prayer and could do nothing but brag about what a great disciple he was of the Father. It was only from the self-examined heart of the publican the spirit of humility was found in begging for mercy. Looking deep within our own hearts takes more courage. It is a deeper well we enter when we open up our hearts to the truth.

The importance of self-examination is to make certain we are following the will of the Father and not the will of men. Why do we believe what we believe? What is the pattern of authority for what we do as disciples? Paul’s plea was to invite the brethren to make assurances they are abiding by the will of God. Make proof of your faith as the Bereans did examining the scriptures daily to determine what truth is. Everything in our lives must be in harmony with Jesus Christ who is the only way, the only truth and the only life.

We are victims of tradition. We fix a Thanksgiving meal the way our grandparents and parents did because that is what we were taught. Cutting the end of a ham was only because grandmother did not have a pot big enough to cook the ham. We still cut the end of the ham off through tradition and nothing more. It is just as easy to have a faith based on a tradition rather than a truth. Every generation must examine itself and ascertain where faith resides. We must believe and practice the truth today because of what God says in His word; not because our parents believed and practiced certain things. Truth is based upon only one truth. Self-examination and proving of self will always bring the same answer when it is placed under the microscope of God’s word. Examine. Prove.

Where religion goes wrong it is because, in one form or another, men have made the mistake of trying to turn to God without turning away from self. (Aelred Graham, Christian Thought and Action, 1951)

Wednesday Morning Meditation – Psalms

Lord, my heart is not haughty, nor my eyes lofty. Neither do I concern myself with great matters, nor with things too profound for me. Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with his mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the Lord from this time forth and forever. (Psalm 131) A Song of Ascents. Of David.

Leaven is a small but powerful element. Sometimes the most influential statements come in small packages and Psalm 131 is full of leaven. David’s psalm is only sixty one words but it packs a lot of simple truths. Trust and contentment is the hallmark of this wonderful message. There seems to be an abiding calm in the life of David as he trusts in the Lord with no concerns for the uncertain problems of life. Humility brings about a calm assurance that God is in control.

We live in a world of turmoil. The news is filled with hatred, despair and uncertainty. Technology has allowed events unfolding around the globe to fill our smart phones, televisions and computers. Hearts become anxious with the terrible acts of cruelty spreading throughout the world. David did not have access to what was happening in other parts of the world but his own life was filled with worry and concerns. Even facing the troubles of his own life he still found the comfort of the Shepherd Lord to give him peace and contentment. He trusted in God. Why should we do any less?

There is a great blessing in being a child of God. Our hearts are calm and quieted. Since man rebelled against the Creator and filled the world with hatred there has always been a struggle with wickedness. The storms of strife, unrest, uncertainty move across the face of the earth with unyielding intensity. Walking in the midst of the fiery furnace of despair are the children of God. The fire rages but they are not hurt because they walk with the Lord. Like weaned children we live in the abundant hope of Jesus Christ.

It may be time for the children of God to spend more time in the Book than watching the news. Keeping up with the affairs of men is a good thing but without the affairs of God filling the hearts there will be fear. David reminds us to let the leaven of godliness fill our hearts trusting in the Lord who gives us the milk of contentment. God is so great. What can man do to us?

Here is the wisdom of the contented man: to let God choose for him; for when we have given up our wills to Him … our spirits must needs rest while our conditions have for their security the power, the wisdom and the charity of God. (Jeremy Taylor, Holy Living, 1650)

Tuesday Morning Early Start – Important Doctrines

For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death. For observe this very thing, that you sorrowed in a godly manner: What diligence it produced in you, what clearing of yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what vehement desire, what zeal, what vindication! In all things you proved yourselves to be clear in this matter. (2 Corinthians 7:10-11)

Godly Sorrow, Repentance And Unlawful Marriage

John the Baptist was a preacher of repentance. His message to the unyielding Jewish leadership was to repent and bear fruits worthy of repentance. They could not claim their heritage with Abraham as a conceited token of salvation because God could raise up a new nation from Palestinian rocks if He desired. John’s message was one of clarity and power. He challenged Herod the tetrarch for his unlawful marriage to Herodias and was killed because of it. Repentance was at the core of the message of God to the people for without a change of heart and recognition of sin there could be no salvation. What John pled with Herod was to recognize the sinful relationship he had with his brother’s wife and repent. A change of heart was needed to see his marriage was sinful. There was a need for godly sorrow on the part of Herod. This would have lead him to divorce Herodias for righteousness and seek the counsel of the Lord.

Jesus declared the cause for divorce was singular and in accordance with the original plan of His Father in the garden marriage was for life. The disciples were so overwhelmed by Jesus teaching about divorce they concluded it would be better to remain unmarried. The Lord agreed to the point of some men may have to be celibate to be saved. What is lost in our modern struggle with this issue is the reality of godly sorrow that will lead to repentance.

Marriage is a highly emotional relationship. When a couple is faced with the reality of their marriage being unlawful (according to God’s word) godly sorrow is seldom recognized as a factor in the decisions required to be made. The focus is generally on the family, love, relationships and how to get by without one another. Godly sorrow that leads to repentance is when a couple is struck in their hearts for the sinful relationship they have found themselves in. There is no need to justify their marriage but a need to justify themselves before God. Sorrow for sin is what is at stake. Adultery is not a minor sin that can be justified because of love or family. The unlawful marriage is a marriage tainted with adultery. Godly sorrow is the remorse of what has been done and an urgent desire to change the heart.

Repentance motivated by godly sorrow will answer the questions of what to do. In Matthew’s discourse of Jesus teaching on marriage and divorce he includes the story of the rich man who came to Jesus seeking eternal life. When he learned the cost of serving the Lord he went away sorrowful. This was the wrong kind of sorrow. His sorrow was selfish. The sorrow he needed was the recognition of the greed that captured his heart and his lost condition. Even the disciples did not understand. Jesus reminds them that with God everything is possible. Such is the case of an unlawful marriage. The wrong kind of sorrow is given when couples find themselves in marriages that are not lawful before God. They sorrow but not a sorrow that leads to repentance. Without repentance there can be no salvation. Repentance comes from godly sorrow

Repentance is not self-regarding, but God-regarding. It is not self-loathing, but God-loving. (Fulton J. Sheen, Peace of Soul, 1949)

Monday Morning Coffee Break – Life With Jesus

This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me.” Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You?” Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man?” Jesus said to him, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me.” Then this saying went out among the brethren that this disciple would not die. Yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you?” (John 21:19-23)

None Of Your Business

The disciples had a lot of growing to do. Jesus had shocked them by his sudden death. He stunned them even more when He appeared to them as the resurrected Christ three days later. Now at His third appearance to them He spoke with Peter about how he would die. The Lord exhorted Simon to have faith to follow Him knowing the challenges that lay ahead for all the apostles. Taking advantage of the discussion Peter enquires of the Lord what will happen to John. In a striking soft rebuke Jesus dismisses Peter’s question as trivial telling him it should be of no concern to him. John ends the story there.

Peter is always the one asking either the right question or the wrong question. This was the wrong question. Being told of his manner of death he decided to find out about the other inner circle member’s fate. Not so Peter. If Jesus wanted John to be alive until He returns that is the Lord’s business not yours Peter. It was within the power of the Lord to make that happen but it really was nothing Peter needed to be concerned about. Case closed.

Reading the Bible raises many questions there are no answers for; at least for man. The Bible was written to give man the message of salvation and nothing more. It is not a book to answer all the science, history, mathematical and biological questions man has an inquiry about. Where did God come from? Where did Satan come from? Why this and why that? Peter wanted to know what was going to happen to John and Jesus frankly told him it was none of his business. And Peter left it at that.

When you study the Bible look for the message contained within its pages and you will be filled with the wisdom of the ages. Everything we need to know is there. All of the love of God is revealed on every page. Every page is important in the plan of God. Nothing is wasted in the telling of the story. And when we read the Bible we must take the whole message because that does concern us. Genesis starts where we all began and the Revelation ends where we all need to be. Everything contained between those great bookends is the mind of God revealed to man. If you cannot find an answer for a question you may have then it is not pertinent to salvation. Jesus would remind us if God wanted to reveal that He would. Thank you God for such a marvelous book.

I am certain that the Bible is the Word of God. Either it is or it isn’t, and either all of it is the Word of God or we never can be sure of any of it. It is either absolute or obsolete. If we have to start changing this verse, toning down that, apologizing for this and making allowances for that, we might as well give up, so we must take it as it is or leave it alone. (Vance Havner 1901-1986)

Sunday Morning Starters – Worship

Now all the people gathered together as one man in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate; and they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses, which the Lord had commanded Israel. So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly of men and women and all who could hear with understanding on the first day of the seventh month. Then he read from it in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate from morning until midday, before the men and women and those who could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law. So Ezra the scribe stood on a platform of wood which they had made for the purpose; and beside him, at his right hand, stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Urijah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah; and at his left hand Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbadana, Zechariah, and Meshullam. And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was standing above all the people; and when he opened it, all the people stood up. (Nehemiah 8:1-5)

Learning How To Worship In Six Easy Steps

This was a new generation. Unlike the generations before them that worshipped idols and took the nation of Israel into seventy years of captivity, the crowd that stood before the preacher was different. They had a changed attitude from the days the book of the Law was lost to be discovered in the days of Josiah. Gathered before the scribe Ezra assembled a host of people who wanted something more in their worship.

THEY CAME TOGETHER AS ONE PEOPLE TO WORSHIP. There was a remarkable spirit of unity among the people. They witnessed the incredible work of Nehemiah who rallied the people to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem in fifty-two days. The Temple had been completed and the city took on the appearance of the city of God once again. United together by a common cause they gathered together as one man. Worship is about unity.

THEY ASKED FOR THE BOOK. These were truth seekers. The message of God was precious to them and they wanted to have the Law read to them. Their lives were not driven by the needs of the world and personal pursuits. Worship for them came from the Book and they wanted Ezra to bring the book. The hearts of the people longed to hear what was in the Law and how it could change their lives. They knew hope was found in the Book. How many times will God’s people come together to worship and not bring their own Book much less open the Book. The people in Ezra’s day asked for the Book.

THEY WANTED TO UNDERSTAND THE BOOK. The reading of the Book was not just to hear words read but to hear words change their lives. They brought their ears with them when they came to hear the message of the Book. Funny how often people leave their ears at home today. This new generation had itching ears for the words of God. Their hearts yearned to understand what the will of the Lord was and how their lives could be changed by the reading of the Book. This was the Berean spirit of knowledge.

THEY TOOK THE TIME TO HEAR THE MESSAGE. No padded pews. No air conditioning. No power-point. No shelter from the sun. No clocks to keep an eye on. Ezra read from morning until midday. No hurry to get back home to cook a roast. No plans to go shopping, work in the yard, play a round of golf or take a nap. They just stood there and listened. No one complained about how long the preacher read. They enjoyed the message of the Book. The stories from the Book thrilled their hearts.

THEY WERE ATTENTIVE TO THE BOOK. They knew why they were gathered. Their hearts wanted to learn about God. When Ezra read from morning until midday they paid attention to the reading. They thought about the story of creation and how God made His glory shine in the world. The stories of Noah and Abraham thrilled their hearts as they learned about grace, mercy, faith and obedience. When their own history of rebellion in the wilderness was read it saddened their hearts. They were especially keen to hear why their parents, grandparents and great-grandparents had been sent to a captive land. They learned some hard lessons that day. They paid attention.

THEY SHOWED RESPECT TO THE BOOK. In a remarkable sign of respect when Ezra opened the book they stood up. What the preacher had in his hand was the story of God’s love for man. Standing upon the opening of the book showed to God their loyalty and respect for what worship meant to them. It was not a time of frivolous activities bidding the time until the preacher stopped preaching. Worship was a time to show respect. They announced the word of the Lord with “Amen” and bowed their faces.

Worship in six easy steps. We have much to learn about worship from these good people. Today is our day of worship. Let us gather as one man in the place of assembly and ask for the reading of the Book. Open the Book to understand what it says. Stop watching the clock and have burning hearts to hear the message of Jesus Christ. Show respect for worship for what it means. Praise God. Open the Book.