Scripture - Ezra 9:1-2 When these things were done, the leaders came to me, saying, "The people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands, with respect to the abominations of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites. 2 For they have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and their sons, so that the holy seed is mixed with the peoples of those lands.
Observation - God had some pretty strict rules about intermarriage and defiling the seed of the holy people of God. The pagan cultures were not to be integrated into the Jewish culture. God's people were to be separate. Mixing seed with pagan culture causes distraction and eventually pulls away the believer. God did not want the philosophies and the rituals of these cultures to affect the worship of His people. The design was to keep the people of God squarely focused on the purest of worship following prescribed methods and with the right heart. Pagan beliefs begin to gain influence when mixed with holy seed.
Application - I was thinking about some time ago when I needed to plant a new yard at my house. I was so excited about getting the lawn level and preparing the soil to receive the seed and making sure the right fertilizer and nutrients were in the soil. After all the preparations were made I had a company come and spray seed on the top of my painstakingly prepared soil. Unfortunately the batch of seed the man used contained some wild, dominant seed mixed in with the rye, fescue and blue grass that I wanted. This crabgrass content mixed in with the great seed caused me much problem. It took me nearly 2 years to finally get the crab grass all killed and the right grass to be full and lush and green. As Christians - we need to be careful what kind of seed we mix with the pure holy seed God has given us.
Prayer - Father kill the crab grass that can infiltrate the good grass in my life.
Observation - God had some pretty strict rules about intermarriage and defiling the seed of the holy people of God. The pagan cultures were not to be integrated into the Jewish culture. God's people were to be separate. Mixing seed with pagan culture causes distraction and eventually pulls away the believer. God did not want the philosophies and the rituals of these cultures to affect the worship of His people. The design was to keep the people of God squarely focused on the purest of worship following prescribed methods and with the right heart. Pagan beliefs begin to gain influence when mixed with holy seed.
Application - I was thinking about some time ago when I needed to plant a new yard at my house. I was so excited about getting the lawn level and preparing the soil to receive the seed and making sure the right fertilizer and nutrients were in the soil. After all the preparations were made I had a company come and spray seed on the top of my painstakingly prepared soil. Unfortunately the batch of seed the man used contained some wild, dominant seed mixed in with the rye, fescue and blue grass that I wanted. This crabgrass content mixed in with the great seed caused me much problem. It took me nearly 2 years to finally get the crab grass all killed and the right grass to be full and lush and green. As Christians - we need to be careful what kind of seed we mix with the pure holy seed God has given us.
Prayer - Father kill the crab grass that can infiltrate the good grass in my life.
