Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the law of the Lord and to teaching its decrees and law. Ezra 710 Ezra was a priest who, along with many other jews, had lived in exile in the land of Babylon. After the fall of the nation of Judah in 586 BC, he returned to Jerusalem with a group of jewish exiles in 458 BC. The Old Testament Book of Ezra describes him as a teacher who was well versed in the law of Moses. Ezras Job was to teach the word of God to the jewish people who were returning to the land of their ancestors. Strangely, it was the leaders of Babylon who understood that knowing the law of God was every bit as important as mathematics, history, and other disciplines. Ezra was entrusted with the task of teaching the people the word of God because he himself knew the word of God, having meticulously studied and observed the law himself. In America in the 1850s, there lived a man by the name of Alexander Campbell. Campbell was a leading figure in restoration history whose teaching, teaching, and preaching helped in the establishment of many christian churches in America. Like Ezra, he was able to preach and teach the word of God effectively because he himself knew the word of God so well. Campbell rose early each morning to take care of personal chores. When finished, he began his Bible study. His study included 3 hours of language, an hour each of Greek, Latin, and Hebrew, and memorizing ten verses of scripture every day. The rest of the day was spent studying church history and other related subjects. Campbell wrote reams of essays and other compositions, preached thousands of sermons, and taught innumerable lessons from the Bible. Both Ezra and Alexander Campbell, along with many other men and women throughout history, have been dedicated to knowing and teaching God's word. As a result, many churches have been established throughout the world, and many people have come to know Jesus as savior and lord. Would you like to know more about the Bible than you do? Would you too, like to be instrumental in leading others to faith in Christ? If so, you should do what men like Ezra and Alexander Campbell did. Become yourself a true student of the word, someone who knows the word of God. Because you study and live the word of God, there are many good things you can do with your time, of course, but there is no substitute for studying the Bible and no good thing that is better than doing so.

This has been your thought for the day with Steve Burkham, pastor of Community Christian Church in Stockton, California. If you have questions or comments for Pastor Steve, please send them to daily thoughts podcastmail.com. Have a great day and we hope you'll join us tomorrow as Pastor Steve opens God's word to bring us another thought for the day.