August 10
Ezra 10:1-44; 1 Corinthians 6:1-20; Psalm 31:9-18; Proverbs 21:3
“But” may be one of the most amazing, wonderful words in the Bible because it indicates the complete reversal of our situation through Jesus Christ. After listing several regrettable sinful states in I Corinthians 6, Paul says, “And that is what some of you were. BUT you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (v. 11, italics and capitalization added). All of us, no matter the moment of our salvation, were sinful. We were without hope. We were careening towards a Godless, desolate eternity. But. That “but” expresses that everything changed because God mercifully and graciously intervened. We were, but God changed it all. Amen. Thank You, Lord.
So what does this mean for how we live now? As Paul immediately points out, our salvation is not a free pass to live however we want. “…Not everything is beneficial” (v12). We are no longer our own—our “bodies are members of Christ Himself” (15). They’ve been bought and paid for…and so we live differently than the world.
And yet, do we? Paul is talking to a Corinthian church that has let worldly practices (public lawsuits) creep into their everyday lives. Ezra is amongst a people who’ve lived so unfaithfully, marrying foreign women--against God’s Law. Like the people of the Bible, we easily become ensnared in worldly ways. How does this happen?
As yesterday’s reading of Ezra made clear, it’s when we “mingle” with the world. It’s so seemingly harmless and gradual, that like the frog in that proverbial pot of water, we don’t even realize what’s happening. We MUST dwell in the Word and “hide [it] in our heart” to keep us from sin. Otherwise we’ll find our armor not on, our mind not ready, and our first love abandoned.
What if, like those in Ezra, we realize that there is sin in our lives? Our response must be like theirs. Hard and absolute removal. Sin is sin. Because of what that marvelous “but” in I Corinthians 6:11 points out, we are called to something more wonderful and pure. And, as the Proverb declares, “to do what is right and just is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.”
Heavenly Father, thank You for intervening. Thank You for saving me out of sin and justifying me in the name of Jesus. Please show me if there is any sin lurking in my life because of my affinity for the world. Help me to dwell in Your Word, to hide it in my heart, that I might not sin against You.
Question: Is there sin in my life that is making me more like the Corinthians or Ezra’s exiles? What do I need to confess before the Lord?
“But” may be one of the most amazing, wonderful words in the Bible because it indicates the complete reversal of our situation through Jesus Christ. After listing several regrettable sinful states in I Corinthians 6, Paul says, “And that is what some of you were. BUT you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (v. 11, italics and capitalization added). All of us, no matter the moment of our salvation, were sinful. We were without hope. We were careening towards a Godless, desolate eternity. But. That “but” expresses that everything changed because God mercifully and graciously intervened. We were, but God changed it all. Amen. Thank You, Lord.
So what does this mean for how we live now? As Paul immediately points out, our salvation is not a free pass to live however we want. “…Not everything is beneficial” (v12). We are no longer our own—our “bodies are members of Christ Himself” (15). They’ve been bought and paid for…and so we live differently than the world.
And yet, do we? Paul is talking to a Corinthian church that has let worldly practices (public lawsuits) creep into their everyday lives. Ezra is amongst a people who’ve lived so unfaithfully, marrying foreign women--against God’s Law. Like the people of the Bible, we easily become ensnared in worldly ways. How does this happen?
As yesterday’s reading of Ezra made clear, it’s when we “mingle” with the world. It’s so seemingly harmless and gradual, that like the frog in that proverbial pot of water, we don’t even realize what’s happening. We MUST dwell in the Word and “hide [it] in our heart” to keep us from sin. Otherwise we’ll find our armor not on, our mind not ready, and our first love abandoned.
What if, like those in Ezra, we realize that there is sin in our lives? Our response must be like theirs. Hard and absolute removal. Sin is sin. Because of what that marvelous “but” in I Corinthians 6:11 points out, we are called to something more wonderful and pure. And, as the Proverb declares, “to do what is right and just is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.”
Heavenly Father, thank You for intervening. Thank You for saving me out of sin and justifying me in the name of Jesus. Please show me if there is any sin lurking in my life because of my affinity for the world. Help me to dwell in Your Word, to hide it in my heart, that I might not sin against You.
Question: Is there sin in my life that is making me more like the Corinthians or Ezra’s exiles? What do I need to confess before the Lord?
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