Saying you are sorry is not Enough

Read Ezra 10.

This is an amazing picture of national repentance.  It began with one man, Ezra, who became so broken over the sins of his people that he publicly fasted, prayed and mourned.  God moved on the hearts of national leaders.  Shecaniah believed "even now there is hope for Israel in spite of this."  They called every person in the land to a solemn assembly and threatened anyone who did not attend.

The people sat in the public Temple square shivering in the cold rain, trembling before God as Ezra spoke.

1. He named the sin.  They had broken faith with the God of heaven.

2. He called for them to agree with God about what they had done.

3. He challenged them to do God's will and separate themselves from the source of their sin.

Separating oneself from sin is often a very painful decision, requiring a courageous commitment to do what is right.  For some it may mean ending a sinful relationship.  For some it may involve stopping a sinful habit of action, thought and/or speech.  All of these bring us down to the essence of real life: do I live to please me or do I live to please the LORD?

One may result in a temporal pleasure.  The other will result in an eternal honor.

Even now there is hope.