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Laying a Foundation of Praise and Worship

Ezra 3

Vs.1 Unified and Focused

• The return of the Israelites in the 7^th month, probably meant that they had left Babylon in the spring.

• We see from Ezra’s journey in chapter 7 that it took about four months to travel from Babylon to Jerusalem.

Ezra 7:9

On the first day of the first month he began his journey from Babylon, and on the first day of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, according to the good hand of his God upon him.

• They came as “one man”, meaning that there was great unity of plan and purpose.

• I would imagine that during that 4 months, they would get together and talk and discuss their plans every night.

• Ex.  They are unified and focused!  Are you unified and focused as a family? An an individual? 

Vs. 2-3 The First Thing

• During the 70 years in which the Jews had been deported, the Babylonians and Assyrians had imported settlers from other countries.

• They saw the Jews as a threat to their religions and culture, and wanted to completed wipe out the memory of Yahweh Elohim.

• These settlers were all idolaters who had made this their home for the past 70 years.

• In chapter 4 we will observe the opposition of the settlers in Canaan.

• By setting the “altar on its bases”, they were setting the altar on the remaining foundations from the first Temple, Solomon’s Temple, a sacred site.

• This is probably what will happen just before the rise of the                Anti-Christ right before the Tribulation Period.

• All that was needed to establish temple worship was the altar.

• This was the first thing they did upon returning to Jerusalem!  They had there hands full with starting businesses, erecting homes.  Yet they made it their first priority to worship the Lord.

• This took great courage and vision of purpose!

• Burnt offerings were the most common offering for sin…imagine the joy of the people…it has been 70 years since they have been able to freely worship with burnt offerings!

• Ex.  It would be like all the churches in America shut down and all Christian books and music banned; all the churches burned down and destroyed, and 70 years later, we come back here and can worship again.

Vs. 4-6 No Fire from Heaven

• The primary feast was the “Feast of Tabernacles” which was so appropriate, because as they settled into their new homes, it was a reminder that their ancestors had dwelled in tents in the wilderness.

• There was no fire from heaven this time:  Moses and Solomon had fire from heaven…but no fire this time.

• They had to light their own fire for the burnt offerings.

• Ex.  That is most often my situation when I approach the Lord each day…I have to light my own fire.  I don’t feel the fire of God!  Yet I obey and just do it.

• To get up each morning and spend some time in praise and worship is not going to be accompanied with fire from heaven.

• We “make a choice to rejoice”!

Vs. 7 Giving is Worship

• A part of their worship involved giving of the meager funds they had in order to see the Temple rebuilt.

• Ex.  We make our giving just after the praise and worship because, at MSC, we see financial giving as an integral part of our praise and worship.

2 Corinthians 9:7

So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.

• Note in Vs. 5 it was a “free will offering”…people gave freely and generously!

• Learn to give joyfully and generously…it is all His anyway!

1 Timothy 6:17-19

Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy. 18 Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, 19 storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.

• Your foundation is good when you have learned the joy of tithing and giving to the Lord’s work.

• When you tithe to the Lord and give of your material blessings you are laying a solid foundation in heaven!

• How many of you believe that robbery is OK?  How many of you would want to have a thief in your home?

• Have you discovered the Malachi Miracle?

Malachi 3:8-10

"Will a man rob God?

Yet you have robbed Me!

But you say,

'In what way have we robbed You?'

In tithes and offerings.

9 You are cursed with a curse,

For you have robbed Me,

Even this whole nation.

10 Bring all the tithes into the storehouse,

That there may be food in My house,

And try Me now in this,"

Says the LORD of hosts,

"If I will not open for you the windows of heaven

And pour out for you such blessing

That there will not be room enough to receive it.”

The Malachi Miracle Principles:

1. (Vs. 10a) When you trust and worship God through giving 10% of your income, the church and your home will have everything you need. God will meet all your needs supernaturally

2. (Vs. 10b)  You can test God on this!  I can tell you from 25 years of tithing, God will be so faithful to you. It doesn’t make sense, but that’s the point!  If it made sense, it wouldn’t be God and it wouldn’t be supernatural! 

3. (Vs. 10c) When you start tithing 10% of your income to the Lord, He will pour out incredible blessing upon you!

4. (Vs. 11) When you start tithing and trusting God with your finances, God will protect what is His!  Your stuff isn’t under God’s protection until you freely give it to Him!

• Ex.  In the same way, look at what God is doing here!!  God has commanded us to build Him a Temple and we are doing so…                          as “one man”.

Vs. 8-9 Plan the Work, Work the Plan

• This officially marks the end of their captivity that began in 605 BC.

• It is interesting that God does not mark the end of the captivity until they begin to build the temple!

• It says, “those who had come out of the captivity”.

• All of us have come out of captivity in our lives!

• Ex.  If you haven’t come out of your captivity, entered freedom with Christ and begun to build a new Temple in your heart, begin today…

• This is 6 months later….probably taking them 6 months to prepare the work.

• Any work of God takes preparation and planning…this building has been in preparation and planning for two years.

• Plan the work and work the Plan

Proverbs 15:22

Without counsel, plans go awry,

But in the multitude of counselors they are established.

Proverbs 16:9

A man's heart plans his way,

But the LORD directs his steps.

Proverbs 21:5

The plans of the diligent lead surely to plenty,

But those of everyone who is hasty, surely to poverty.

• Don’t be hasty!  Wait on God, get wise counsel and “plan the work and work the plan”.

• Ex.  For this work, we have consultants for sound, lighting, architecture, building, soils, concrete work, pavement…any great work takes great planning!

Vs. 10  Zerubbabel’s Praise Band

• This is Zerubbabel’s praise band.  The trumpets were from Moses; the cymbals from David.

• What a praise band!

• God must love loud, joyful praise and worship!

Vs. 11  Begin with Thanksgiving

• Ex.  From time to time, I have heard people complain about the new choruses that tend to repeat lines…let’s look together at Ps. 136…

• Read Ps. 136:1-6

• Ex.  This is the beginning point of all praise and worship, giving thanks to the Lord!  Let me encourage you to start each day with thanksgiving.

• When you feel depressed, thank the Lord.
• When you are in pain, thank the Lord.
• When you are confused, thank the Lord.

• And the people shouted!!  That’s OK too!

• Ex.  Lay a foundation of praise and worship in your home!  Liz leads our kids in praise and worship daily.

• Ex.  At our opening of the new sanctuary we will begin with praise and worship!

Vs. 12-13 Different Responses, Different Emotions

• If we date this with the fourth of Jehoikim, it was between 52-56 years since the burning of the Temple of Solomon.

• Many of the old men and women over 60 remembered the Temple of Solomon and they wept because this temple seemed so much smaller.

• Many of these older people remembered the mighty Shekina glory of God and they looked at how small and weak the nation of Israel was now…they remembered the glory…

• But for the younger, this was the first time for them to see any Temple!  They were excited to have a temple again.

• For the younger, they were just so excited and passionate that they shouted for joy!

• Ex.  Today, many of us approach Christ in different ways with different emotions because we have life experience:

• For some of us who have walked with Christ for many years, we have different emotions and different ways we approach God.

• Some are more constrained and quiet; Others of us are just so pumped up and passionate with our faith being fresh and new.

• Note Vs. 13

Ezra 3:13

so that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people, for the people shouted with a loud shout, and the sound was heard afar off.

• Your worship will be heard from “afar off”.

• Your spouse hears it…your roommate hears it…your family hears it…and God hears it.

• Don’t give up!  Build the Temple of Praise in your heart! 

• Lay a foundation of praise and worship in song…and in giving!