Daily EncouragementSample

Ezra epitomizes the able teacher of “the law of the Lord.” The secret of his strength and success is the same as that of every teacher or preacher of God’s word. Part of that secret is having a mind which is given to study. He was a student before he was a teacher: “Ezra had devoted himself to the study . . . of the Law of the Lord.” Faithful study always lies behind fruitful teaching. Doctor Campbell Morgan, when asked the reason for his success, answered in one word: “Work!” The secret also includes living a lifestyle which exemplifies the teaching: “Ezra had devoted himself to the . . . observance of the law of the Lord,” He practiced what he preached. When it comes to God’s word, there can be no divorce between the private life of the teacher and the content of his teaching. Finally, the secret includes having a heart which is devoted to the Lord and his word: “Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the Law of the Lord” (Ezra 7:10, AV). An old maxim says, “It is the heart which makes the theologian.” That is true of the teacher too: “for out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34).