Truths from the OT: Never stop reading God's Word.

Never stop reading God's Word. After Cyrus the King of Persia decreed that the Jews could return to Jerusalem, they began to journey home, including the priest and scholar Ezra. (Ezra 1&7). Once the material city was rebuilt, Ezra saw the necessity to rebuild the city spiritually by reading the Law to the people (Nehemiah 8:1). Ezra then publicly read the holy scriptures while priests explained it from daybreak until noon, and the people listened intently (8:3-8). The people were convicted and had Ezra read God's Word “day after day,” leading to a revival in the land. Too often we either neglect God's Word or take it for granted. Pastors and priests should not be relied upon as the sole source for spiritual nourishment. Christ followers need to commit to reading God's Word regularly, if not daily, to nourish themselves with God's word. We need to recognize that truth and morality only become relative when people forget or ignore the absolutes revealed in God's Word. We need to respond to the world's cry of “where is God?,” with God's self-revelation through scripture, by being immersed in it ourselves.