Psalm 24 | Wednesday Bible Study

Welcome back to Bible Study Wednesday! This year God has pressed upon my heart to study the book of Psalms. Each Wednesday we take a closer look at a new chapter. Today we are going to chapter 24. If you have not done so, please take the time to read through these 10 verses. I will be sharing some thoughts about today's passage and break down this chapter below. Please pray and ask Holy Spirit to open your spiritual eyes and ears to receive everything He has to teach you in today's passage. Let's begin!

First of all, I want to mention that I realize this post is going up late. I have been unwell and had to start antibiotics but I want to do this week's Bible study. I apologize for those who may have looked for a Bible study post on Wednesday. I appreciate the prayers of those who have been keeping me in their prayers. Thank you so much!

Verses 1-3

David opens up this psalm with declaring who God is. He owns the earth and everything in it. The whole world belongs to God. He created it and established it and it all belongs to Him. We see similar statements in other Psalms as well as in 1 Corinthians and Genesis.

1 Corinthians 10:26 For the earth is the Lord's and the fulness thereof.

Psalm 89:11 The heavens are Thine, the earth also is Thine: as for the world and the fulness thereof, Thou hast founded them.

Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

Psalm 8:3-4 When I consider Thy heavens, the work of Thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which Thou hast ordained; What is man, that Thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that Thou visitest him?

David declares the Sovereignty of God and then asks who is able to stand in God's Holy place? Remember when we studied Psalm 15 in April? We see in the verses following what it takes to see God.

Verses 4-6

Psalm 73:1 Truly God is good to Israel, even to such as are of a clean (pure) heart.

Matthew 5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.

To receive the blessing from God, and righteousness from the God of our salvation, we must have a pure heart, humbleness, and honesty. Anything else will separate us from God. In verse six, David says this is the generation that is seeking God's face. Often in prayer we seek God's hands. We want Him to do something for us, or give us something, or work something out for us. David says the key here is to seek God's face. Seek relationship.

Psalm 27:4, 8 One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in His temple. When Thou saidst, Seek ye My face; my heart said unto Thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek.

Jeremiah 29:12-13 Then shall ye call upon Me, and ye shall go and pray unto Me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me with all your heart.

The key to finding God when we look for Him, is having the right motives. Are we looking for Him because He is our Heavenly Father? Are we desiring to get to know Him better? Are we just desiring to be in His presence? Yes, He wants to answer our prayers, and He wants to bless us, but He also wants fellowship with His children.

Verses 7-10

Verses seven and nine are mirror verses of each other, as are verses eight and ten. Let's look at the first pair. These fraternal twin verses are referring to the ushering in of God's glory. It is a descriptive picture of gates and doors opening and welcoming the King of Glory.

Haggai 2:7 And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts.

The last fraternal twin verses ask who is this King of glory? David says, The LORD, strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle, the LORD of hosts, He is the King of glory. Amen! He is!!

Revelation 19:13-16 And He was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed Him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of His mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it He should smite the nations: and He shall rule them with a rod of iron: and He treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And He hath on His vesture and on His thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.

Friends the day is coming when we will see Jesus. We may see Him as Righteous Judge and hear the scariest sentence in the world, "Depart from Me, I do not know you." We may see Him as Righteous Judge and Savior as He declares, "Enter in, well done, good and faithful servant." We will see Jesus one way or another. For God's people, this Bible study is exciting and we are ready to hail our King Jesus! We are ready to cast our crowns at His feet in gratitude for all that He has done for us and all the things He brought us through.

If you are not a part of God's family, and do not allow Him to direct your steps, and plan your future, you can change that! Ask Jesus to be your Lord and Savior. He will forgive you of your sins and He will seal you to be His child forever! Trust in Him and accept the gift of salvation that cannot be purchased or earned. Jesus paid the penalty for our sins on the cross, so we can go free today. Have you trusted in Jesus? I hope you will!

Thank you all for understanding about the delay in the blog posts. I am trying to get things worked out so the delays will be less frequent. I am thankful for all of you who read my blog and study with me each week. It is a blessing and I appreciate you all so much. God bless you!

~Bridgett Owens

Ezra Chapter Five | Wednesday Bible Study

Hello friends. Welcome back to another Wednesday Bible study. We are continuing our study in the book of Ezra. Let's turn our attention to the 17 verses in chapter five. If you have not read through this chapter yet, please take a few moments to do so. I will be breaking the chapter up into three sections and giving a brief synopsis of each. I highly encourage you to take your time when reading through the Bible and as you read my blog post, pray and ask Holy Spirit to minister and teach you what you need to know. I will be doing the same. I pray that this Bible study will be a blessing to you!

Verses 1 & 2: Work on the Temple Resumed

Haggai 1:9 "Ye looked for much, and, lo, it came to little; and when ye brought it home, I did blow upon it. Why? saith the LORD of hosts. Because of Mine house that is waste, and ye run every man unto his own house." Haggai and Zechariah were prophets sent to the Jews in Judah from God. Zerubbabel and Jeshua began working on the house of God in Jerusalem and the prophets Haggai and Zechariah joined them. After the work had been ordered by force to stop, the Jews lost interest in God's house and instead turned their attention to building and improving their own dwellings. This was not God's plan and He was not pleased. Look at Haggai at what the LORD said. God allowed a drought to come to the land. The corn, wine, and oil did not do well. The land, mountains, and cattle suffered. There was nothing good coming from the work of their hands because they were busy doing something other than what God assigned them to do.

Friends, we must be so careful to keep our mission in front of us. What has God called us to do? Are we doing it? Are we distracted with other things that are keeping us busy? We must be about our Father's business. We have to get Kingdom minded and think of eternity, not just the here and now.

Verses 3-5 Attempt Made To Stop Work

Again we see the enemy is upset with the children of Israel for obeying God. So trouble is stirred up but we will see a different outcome this time. The governor of Tatnai questioned, "Who hath commanded you to build this house, and to make up this wall?" Verse five says, "But the eye of their God was upon the elders of the Jews, that they could not cause them to cease, till the matter came to Darius." God was fighting for them and even the governor was powerless to stop the rebuilding of the temple.

Sometimes people stand in our way. They see the good we are doing. They see the hard work and the faithfulness to God, but they want to halt our efforts. When God gives us an assignment to do, He will stand with us and for us and no enemy will stop us from completing the task God gives us.

Verses 5:6-17 A Letter To Darius

The governor of Tatnai was over the area west of the Euphrates River to the Mediterranean Sea, which included Judah and Samaria. During the reign of Darius I, it became a province of its own. This governor sent a letter to king Darius and started off peaceably. He stated that all were hard at work, making rapid progress. He goes on to say that he investigated who authorized to build the temple again and he took names of the men involved. In verse 11 it reads, "And thus they returned us answer, saying, We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and build the house that was builded these many years ago, which a great king of Israel builded and set up." It goes on to talk about how the children of Israel rebelled against God and in His wrath, they were carried away into bondage to Babylon. The letter continues with reiterating how the Babylonian king Cyrus decreed to build the temple, and all the vessels of gold and silver Nebuchadnezzar took from the house of God was to be returned. The governor explained about the foundation being laid by Sheshbazzar and that the work continued since that time but was not finished. He requested king Darius search the treasure house at Babylon for a decree made by king Cyrus to build God's house in Jerusalem. Then they wait for the king's reply.

It may seem like the governor was just doing his due diligence to ensure everything was in order. To a degree, I suppose he was. We know the enemy comes to steal, kill, and destroy according to John 10:10. He does not want the house of God rebuilt. He does not want people to worship God. He does not want holiness to be a way of life for the children of Israel. He is causing delays and hardships every time he can, but God is in ultimate control. He will reign and be victorious. His plans will succeed. His Word will not return void according to Isaiah 55:11. If God has told you something: given you a promise, be very sure it will happen. It may not be when we think it will happen, but it will come to pass. We will see it with our own eyes just as He promised. Stay encouraged!

That's all of chapter five. Ezra is a quick study chapter-by-chapter. I enjoy reading through it and it certainly has given me encouragement today. We have been waiting on a promise from God since Thanksgiving 2020. It is hard to wait. It is hard to see the days turn to weeks.. then months and it's frustrating but we know God has a plan for us. I know He has a plan for your life as well. Stay strong. Stay encouraged. Keep going! God is in control and He will never fail!

I hope something I have shared in this study today has given you strength for your journey and light for your way. God bless you!

~Bridgett Owens