Nehemiah 8:9 “Then Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, ‘This day is holy to the LORD your God; do not mourn or weep.’ For all the people were weeping when they heard the words of the law.”

Listening to a man give his testimony one time, I was shocked at what he spoke of. His entire life, he had been trying to run from God. His life was based on debauchery, sin, and drugs. While staying in a hotel one night, the was so depressed and so lonely that he started looking for something to do. He saw a Bible around and began reading it. He did not know much about the Bible, but he started “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” He read through Genesis and through Exodus, He read about God’s miracles and protection of the Israelites. He read about the chosen people defying God, forgetting God, and sinning. He read and read and read. He saw himself in the Bible. He saw his sins spoken about and he saw the eternal consequence of sin. He realized he was a sinner, and he realized that from what he had read, there was no way to atone for that. There was nothing that he could do to escape his own damnation.

He became more and more depressed the further he read. There was no escape. He wondered how he could escape hell. He thought about suicide, but realized that would only take him to judgement faster. He was sad. He was in tears. He was weeping and sorrowful, depressed and forlorn.

Reading through Ezra and Nehemiah, I was struck by how similar his situation was to these people who returned from exile. They only knew what they had been taught, but they did not have the Word. When they were read to from the Law of God, they realized their own sin. They realized their own failings, and they realized that they did not have much hope, yet Ezra, the priest, told them that there was no reason to mourn. Why? They were despicable! They were hopelessly condemned by sin. Why should they not mourn? Ezra said that the day was Holy, not because of what they had done, but it was Holy because they had read scripture. They had fellowshipped and come to learn before the throne God almighty. Even then God wanted them to continue on. Even then God wanted them to go forward and continue reading.

The people went and celebrated, not because they had done anything to celebrate, but because that day was Holy.

They started sharing what they had, the gave portions of their banquets to those who had nothing, and they began to obey God’s call to service, to take care of the poor and the alien, to treat all as equals and beloved in the sight of God Almighty.

The people came to remember what the Lord had done for them, and what they owed God. And then the people confessed their sins, as a congregation. Not just one person for his own, but all the people for everyone’s sins. The nation confessed before God.

By this time of the exile, the writings of Isaiah and Micah were freely available. I am certain that they too, just like this man I listened to had read the prophecies of the one who would come to take all sin away.

The Word of God brings everything to light, all our sins, all our temptations, all our faults. The Word of God shows us everything, and if you continue far enough, it shows the answer to our condemnation.

One writer has this to say about hope:

“One of George Custer's young officers was sure he saw a party of Indians a mile away. As the soldier charged, the Indians looked plainer each moment. But arriving at the point, there were no Indians at all-only some buffalo carcasses. Other travelers saw ships skimming across the desert sand in full sail, railroad tracks elevated on pilings, or water birds with brilliant plumage. All of these illusions occur when light rays pass through the atmosphere bent and distorted.

But no optical illusions in nature exceed the illusions that can be left by our own hearts. By diagnosis, the human spiritual heart is "beyond cure." Unaided by God, the response of each of us toward knowing his or her heart must be despair: "Who can know it?" (Jer_17:9). No one can fathom the secrets or pierce the darkness of his or her own heart. This is especially true at the point of the question about whom we trust-here again, our hearts can fool.
But there is hope. It rests in this: God knows your heart (Jer_17:10). He sifts, searches, explores, and probes the human heart. He tests and examines human emotions. This is our hope. When we get to know God, we get to know our own heart. You do not know your heart by looking into it yourself. You know your heart by getting to know God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Let us not forget our own natural condemnation Let us thank the Lord for the hope that He gives us. Let us thank God for His precious gift. Let us remember that everyday that we read from God’s word is Holy. Every time we share in His Scripture, we are dedicating that day to Him. Each moment we seek Christ, we are further blessed by Him.

I stand amazed in the presence
of Jesus the Nazarene,
and wonder how he could love me,
a sinner, condemned, unclean.