The Diamond Nib

UV 1298/10,000 The Diamond Nib

This Ezra went up from Babylon; and he was a ready scribe in the law of Moses, which the LORD God of Israel had given: and the king granted him all his request, according to the hand of the LORD his God upon him.
Ezra 7 v 6
Ezra was commissioned by king Artaxerxes to teach the people of Israel the statutes of the God of Israel. Artaxerxes is referred to by Ezra as king of kings but today we know that the title King of Kings belongs to Jesus and Jesus alone. Ezra was tasked by God to teach the law of Moses and so enable the people to understand the statutes of God that they must follow. Today, like me many are called to be a ready scribe for the Lord. The Syrian word for “ready scribe” is” sophro chochmo ” or wise scribe or one who is eminently skillful in expounding the law of God. We need to analyse the Word of God and unearth or mine the hidden meaning, the deeper meaning, the wonderful truths that will enable people to align their lives with the will of God and so please Him who made us in His image and once we sinned, further redeemed us by paying the price of His son. It is God who choses us and anoints us to be skillful communicators for Him. Our communication should be wise, wholesome and beneficial to our listeners, readers or audience. We ourselves should spend time listening to the Holy Spirit in order to interpret the Word accurately and without error.

The hand of the Lord was upon Ezra and so he won the favour of the powers that be of that age. When the hand of the Lord is likewise upon us, the contemporaneous powers that be will look with favour upon all our request and grant it. The Lord will send a favourable wind to drive the sails of our ship to the port where He wants us to reach. We are a pen in the hands of the Lord. Even the words we speak are like the Word of God. Our tongues too are an iron pen with a diamond end in the hands of the Lord. What we speak and write will remain deeply etched in the memories and spirits of the people we minister or lead or mentor. It will motivate them, cause them to grow in knowledge and wisdom, encourage them when they are down and steady them when they are “high”, enable them to know the Lord and the length, breadth and depth of His love.

Jesus told His disciples to be ready scribes, “ teaching them to observe all that I have taught and lo, I will be with you till the end of the world.” Jesus promises us that as we are faithful in learning and teaching all that He commands, He would personally be with us till the end of the age. The word “ observe” implies teaching people how to practice all that Jesus taught. We need to write and teach not only the meaning of scripture but we need to teach people to relate each portion of scripture to the practical aspects of life. Then only can we be described as “sophro chochmo” . God does not expect us to be great theologians or deep thinkers but practitioners of the Word in everyday life. When we do so, He will pour His grace upon us to increase or multiply our influence and grant all that we request Him. To be a ready scribe, one needs a pattern of regular daily discipline and an unswerving commitment whatever happens, whether people give feedback or not, to keep writing, speaking and teaching . For nearly 1300 days now, I have been studying scripture day after day, morning after morning, allowing the Holy Spirit to interpret the deeper meanings to me, then allowing my mind to go down in the shafts of the gold mine of scripture and come up with the refined treasure, ingots of pure truth, concepts and precepts to build the faith and love of people.

Prateep V Philip