“Complete and Dedicated”

Scripture: Ezra 6:13-22

For hundreds of years, Israel had struggled in their relationship with the Almighty. Was he as mean spirited and overly demanding as he appeared to be, or was he truly working for their betterment? Was he aloof or present, was he loving or cold, was he jealous and solitary or was he accepting and embracing?
The people, instead of trying to understand their Lord’s ways, decided to head off in another direction – one of their own making – which turned out to be disastrous for the nation. And then they began to wonder if God really and truly loved them. If he had chosen them to be his own people, why was all this bad stuff happening? Who is our Jehovah really?
But instead of turning toward God for the answer, they turned away.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer once wrote:
Are you worried because you find it so hard to believe? No one should be surprised at the difficulty of faith, if there is some part of your life where you are consciously resisting or disobeying the commandments of Jesus. Is there some part of your life which you are refusing to surrender at his behest? Some sinful passion, maybe, or some animosity, some hope, perhaps your ambition or your reason? If so, you must not be surprised that you have not received the Holy Spirit, that prayer is difficult, or that your request for faith remains unanswered.
If you dismiss the word of God's command, you will not receive his word of grace. How can you hope to enter into communion with him when at some point in your life you are running away from him? The one who disobeys cannot believe, for only those who obey can believe.

—Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1963), 72-73.

After their return from captivity, Israel had begun to obey. They were rebuilding the temple, they were rebuilding their faith, they were beginning to worship in the true way again, and even though there was tremendous opposition to this new start, they remained faithful and focused on what their God wanted from them.

Read Ezra 6:13-15

With some starts and stops, with both opposition and commitment, with uncertainty as well as dedication, the temple was finally completed after many years of labor and strife. But notice the thought contained in the latter half of verse 14 – the temple was constructed according to both God’s command and the commands of the Persian kings. The important command, of course, was God’s, but we have also seen that the Persians’ command was inspired by the Lord. So in this case, the two authorities come from the same Divine Will.
Bonhoeffer’s implication that God’s grace comes to us whenever we obey his command seems to be proven in this instance. Israel obeyed the Lord in the rebuilding effort, and by doing so, the obstacles that cropped up were swept aside and the people were blessed.
I believe that the struggles that come to the Church of today are because “we” (that’s an all inclusive “we”, and is not intended to be restricted to one segment of faith) don’t take the time to consider what God’s will might be. Different groups claim that they have the inside tract to Jesus’ call on our lives, and yet many of the ideas seem to be in opposition with both the other calls and with Scripture! Remember this - Divine Will can never create conflicting agendas with itself! The Holy Spirit will never lead us to a place that is in direct conflict with Jesus’ teaching, and neither the Spirit nor the Christ can ever call us to a walk that is in conflict with the Father’s voice. And if anyone ever tells you that they can, ask them how our Triune God could ever oppose himself, and why they think that internal dissension can ever be good for the integrated Body of Christ! And the answer, of course, is that it can’t!

Read Ezra 6:16-18

In this passage, please note who is listed as the worshippers – the priests, and Levites, and the rest of the exiles! There’s no mention of those who had stayed behind during the exile. Could it be that these others were still intent on pleasing the Persians and chose not to participate in the opposition to the Persian authorities? Could it be that they were intentionally excluded by the exiles, because they were unclean and defiled by their intermarriage to the people from other nations? The question will also be addressed in later verses, but it would seem that the dedication of the temple and the priestly installations were exclusive ceremonies, limited to those who were following the commands of Almighty God.
Regardless, we see that Israel is striving to return to its roots and relationship with the Great Jehovah. And Bonhoeffer’s statement that obedience is the only path to true faith is shown to be correct. But isn’t obedience always required if honor and trust are to be shown to authority? Whether it is God’s authority or secular authority, disobedience can never be equated to respect for the one who gave the disputed command!

Israel was once again walking in trust of God Almighty, and they were doing everything that they possibly could to be obedient. And I have to believe that the former exiles were beginning to be a good influence on the rest of the nation. It had to be obvious that, in their obedience, God was blessing their efforts to rebuild the temple, and that the faith that had suffered so greatly in the past was also returning. Israel was on their way toward becoming a Godly nation once again.

Read Ezra 6:19-22

Adar is the last month of the Jewish year, and the very next month, Nissan, held the celebration of Passover. The temple was dedicated and the priests were installed, just in time to celebrate the first of the 3 great Jewish holidays. Once again, God’s grace shone through the fog of uncertainty, and the people are blessed.
And now, some of the non-exiles were able to join them. We are told that these had “separated” themselves from the unclean practices of the Gentiles, and had, presumably, been ritually cleansed and brought back into the fold. Israel had so much to be thankful for – life was beginning to make sense again, the temple, even though it wasn’t quite as glorious as the first, had been reestablished, they were at a relative peace with their neighbors and Persia, and they could once again sacrifice to their Almighty God.
Was it because of the generous nature of Cyrus and Darius? The obedience of Governor Tattenai? The faithfulness of the nation? Or was it simply the benevolence of God? The Lord’s plan was back in play for Israel, and his grace was once again theirs to either claim or reject.

The church of today must discover the same truth that Israel came to know – that same truth that Dietrich Bonhoeffer shared with the world – “No one should be surprised at the difficulty of faith, if there is some part of his life where he is consciously resisting or disobeying the commandments of Jesus.” We need to come back to the place where we can hear the one voice and one word of God, with our one ear of faith. We need to begin to pull in the same direction, with one vision and one goal in mind, instead of in opposite directions that can only tear us apart. Israel discovered that the Father had been with them all the time, even when they had turned away, even when they were taken away, and that until they opened their eyes to his glorious way, it was they who had been lost, and not God.

A first-grade teacher seated her students in a circle one day, and asked them what they wanted to be when they grew up. One by one, each child got up and announced, “I'd like to be a nurse like my mother”, or “I want to be an engineer like my father”, or “I want to be a teacher like you, Miss Smith”.
The last child to speak was the most shy and timid little boy in the class. He [announced], “When I get big, I'm going to be a lion tamer in the circus. I'm going to face those animals with my whip and chair and make them leap through hoops of fire and obey all of my commands.”
Seeing the disbelieving looks on the faces of his classmates, wondering if he could ever act so boldly or bravely, he was quick to reassure them, “Well, of course, I'll have my mother with me.”
--Source unknown.

And we need to know that our Heavenly Father is with us, and that his way is the perfect way. By faith, we obey, and in obedience, we grow in faith. That is the example that must be set for the “lost” of this world - that when they leave the practices and ways of earth behind, they, too, will grow in faith and obedience to the One and Living Lord, Savior and Redeemer, God Incarnate, Jesus the Christ.
And each one of us must be that example if the Church is to become one again.

“Opposed and Defended”

Scripture: Ezra 5:1-6:12

This is the 3rd week of our look at the opposition that faced Israel when they began to rebuild the temple, their nation, and their lives. Captivity had been a struggle for them, and they had great hopes when they began their journey home. But life back in the land would be no “rose garden”, either! You’ve heard the old saying “You can never go home again.”, and in the case of the returning exiles, this was absolutely true. Home had changed, and they were now seen as the outsiders and trouble makers, instead of the beloved sons and daughters who had finally returned.

When my family and I moved back to the Southern Tier after living in Western New York for 8 years, I was eager to become active with the Apalachin Fire Department again. I fully expected to pick up right where I had left off, but fully half of the members were new since I left, and my very abrupt reentry into the life of the department was not received all that well by some. One of the members, who would become a very close friend after a year or two, once described me as an ”arrogant, conceited s__ __ _ _____”.
But after realizing my error in judgment and attitude, I calmed down and slowly began working my way into the new life of the department. And so would the exiles.

Read Ezra 5:1-5

Tattenai was governor of the western half of the Persian Empire which included Israel, and he was asking the people “Just who do you think you are to be doing this work? Who left you in charge??” Maybe Darius forgot to tell his governor that he had told the Jews that they could return and rebuild, but regardless, Tattenai wasn’t all that pleased that something was going on and he hadn’t approved it!

Opposition from others had settled down to a great extent, but now the authorities were questioning their right to not only be there, but to be rebuilding. Just when you think that life is beginning to go well again, something or someone will always come into the picture to prove that you are wrong! And these are the times when it will be decided where our strength truly lies.
For Israel, we read that “the eye of their God was watching over the elders of the Jews”, and it would become very evident that their confidence and trust and strength was focused completely in their great Jehovah. And that trust would not be misplaced. The Lord would see them through this trying time, and, in faith, they would succeed in restoring the temple, their city, and their nation.

And how about our faith? Do we ever fear that our resources are insufficient for the tasks that we are lead to begin? For many Christians, they fail in their walk with Christ for this very reason. They look to their own abilities, their own knowledge, their own skills, their own strength to see them through, and soon discover that they are never sufficient. We need to look to Almighty God for our leadership, our vision, our courage.
Israel had learned this lesson, but it had taken years of isolation and captivity before it began to sink in, and even at that, it would eventually fade away. But for now, the lesson was fresh in their minds and hearts, and it would be sufficient for the day.

Tattenai, though, wouldn’t be satisfied until he heard first hand that Cyrus had personally approved this work, so he sent a letter requesting confirmation. But the problem was that Cyrus had died in battle, and while it isn’t totally clear to me as to who actually succeeded him, Darius had married a couple of Cyrus’ daughters, and it is presumed that he had, at the very least, substantial authority in the region.

Read Ezra 5:7-17

As we read the letter, we see that the focus of the governor’s comments are the justifications that Israel had presented to him for the rebuilding program. He didn’t believe these accounts, and obviously wasn’t very happy that they would be so disrespectful as to continue working in spite of his opposition.

Have you ever taken a stand against an authority figure? It might have been a manager in your workplace, a leader in an organization that you belonged to, a person with authority, or at least a strong backing, in the church? How did you feel? Confident or unsure? Secure in your position, or thinking that you may be on shaky ground? Committed to go all the way, or ready to cave in at the first sign of disagreement?
Have you ever thought about who and what gives true authority to our lives and the message that we carry? All too often, people depend on their position and office, or to their prestige in society, or the wealth that we use to buy authority, or through the coercion that we employ to diminish the authority of others. Zerubbabel was the Jewish governor, Jeshua was high priest, Tattenai was the Persian governor, Darius was king, but in the end, all of their power, taken collectively, became unimportant in the light of the Almighty’s plan and supremacy.

It’s hard to stand against any earthly authority, unless you have complete confidence in your position, and are ready to defend it to the very end. And that level of confidence can never come from us alone. With Israel, they knew that they were serving God in his way, and that his purpose and power could not be defeated. And in that knowledge, they could take that risky stand against Tattenai’s desires.

Do we have that kind of faith? The faith that allows us to stand against the desires and agendas of the world? To do the things that we know the Lord would have us do, and to resist the fears and temptations that would send us in the opposite direction? To depend completely upon his power and glory, and to surrender our limited abilities so they can be used by him?
Israel knew for certain that Cyrus had given them his permission to rebuild the temple, but would the current king be able to find the written order? And if he didn’t, what would their fate be?

Read Ezra 6:1-2, 6-12

Not only was the original edict found, and not only was it enthusiastically endorsed by Darius, but he also supplemented the decree. He ordered Tattenai to pay for all of the expenses incurred by the building project, and to provide offerings to be sacrificed on the altar of God, and that if anyone spoke against this order – not if they stopped the work, or refused to provide the offerings – but if they only challenged the order, they were to be put to death.

So what did faith do for Israel? It not only secured the people in their God-directed project, but it brought many other benefits that they hadn’t even dreamed of. Does God always work this way? Not always, but many times, he does. I believe that the Lord wants his disciples to live faithfully, and to know that he is a generous and loving God who will go to great lengths to prove it.
What can it do for us? What can come to this church if we will only reject the ill-advised authority of those around us and take a step toward Christ in faith and trust? Here’s an example:

African-American slaves were not allowed to have their own worship and were rarely allowed access to the Bible, so they held clandestine religious gatherings at night, a practice that continued after emancipation. The slaves saw in Nicodemus' night visit proof that it was possible to come to Jesus even when those in power forbade it. Nicodemus was a model, someone who was willing to act on his own against the will of the authorities.
The slaves' faith surpassed that of Nicodemus. Nicodemus' night visit was only exploratory, and in this story in John 3:1-21, he does not understand the invitation Jesus extends to him. The slaves, by contrast, understood and embraced what Jesus had to offer. They were willing to risk their safety and their very lives to come to Jesus. The slaves are a powerful example of those who come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God (3:21).

—Gail R. O'Day, The Gospel of John, The New Interpreter's Bible (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1995), 555.

Do we have the courage and faith that Nicodemus had? Do we have the faith that oppressed people have had? Do we have the faith that the church of today so desperately needs?

Israel was opposed by many, and the opposition against their very existence would never end. And yet, they continue to be. Why? Because of the promise that Moses was told to take back to Egypt for the people – “I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God, who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians.” (Exodus 6:7) The Lord God Almighty claimed Israel for his own, and would never back down from that promise.
The church will also continue to be opposed by the world and its standards, and that opposition will never end, either. At least, not until Jesus returns! Until that day arrives though, we live, not by power and self will, but by faith and grace – both of which come from our Lord as a blessing for those who will believe in him. Jesus gave us this promise - “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” (John 3:16-17)

Israel would continue to have God on their side throughout the ages, but life has never gotten any easier for them. Christians have Jesus on their side, and life in this place will never get any easier for us, either. But even though we will continue to be opposed throughout this age, the Lord will always be our defender and shield, and that is a promise that will never fade away.

“Built and Re-Built”

Scripture: Ezra 3: 1-13

Judah had been in exile for 70 years, and for many, exile had become their new home. Weddings were conducted, families were raised, careers were created, and lives were lived. For most of the people of Judah, Babylon and Medo-Persia were all they had ever known. But the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had other plans. He had declared to Abraham many years before, that the Promised Land would be home for his descendents, and when God declares something, it is.
And so, he moved the heart of Cyrus, King of Persia, to allow the people to return to Judah, to rebuild the temple, to rebuild their lives. Two weeks ago, we saw that about 50,000 returned in the first wave and they took with them gifts of gold and silver from their neighbors, as well as most of the treasures that had been looted from the temple by Nebuchadnezzar.

Today, we rejoin the people after they had been back in Judah for 7 months.

Read Ezra 3:1-6

What was the first thing the people did? They resettled in their towns. They got their lives back on track, and that was no mean feat. The people who had been left behind on the land during the exile were, in all likelihood, not all that happy to see the returning masses. They had continued to work the land, and many had assumed ownership of abandoned land. But those who came back from Persia wanted their homes back!
If your family had been forcibly removed from their home 70 years before, wouldn’t you want to take possession of what would have been rightfully yours? Well, so did they! And if the internal strife wasn’t bad enough, other conquered people had been relocated to Judah and Israel by Babylon and Assyria, and they didn’t want to give up their land either. These other nationalities had made a new home for themselves, and had intermarried with the Jews, and had no intention of leaving. And as a side note, these folks would be known as Samaritans, and would be seen as half breed sinners by those who had now returned. And we haven’t even mentioned the nations that surrounded this land, who never did trust Israel and Judah, and who weren’t very happy that the nation was about to regain a sense of renewed purpose and presence.

But they would get settled in, and life would return to some semblance of normalcy. And now the time had come to begin to rebuild their center and focus for worship. Verse 3 tells us that the people were afraid. Resettling the land was bad enough, but now they would be creating a permanent presence by reestablishing the temple. And their first task was to rebuild the altar on its original foundation.

Now we have to understand that the city’s walls were still a shambles. There was no defensive fortress, no protective walls, no means to shield themselves from attack. But in faith, they knew that they had to return to their religious routines as quickly as possible, and trust that the great Jehovah would be pleased and that he would see that they were all safe and secure.
Think about this for a moment. They were putting faith ahead of self. First, they began the work “as one” (v.1), in unity. There was no power struggle, no extensive discussion as to where and how they should start, no building committee meetings, no delays until they could finish their fund raising - nothing would divide them or interrupt their commitment to the rebuilding of God’s House. They were making a statement that even though they were vulnerable by worldly standards, they knew that their God would honor them, and see them through to completion, and that he would never leave them.

Read Ezra 3:7-13

Seven months later, the altar was complete and they were ready to begin rebuilding the temple itself. And as soon as the foundation was set, they began worshipping and praising their God. But some didn’t shout their songs of praise – they cried! Were they tears of joy? Were they tears of fear? Tears of sorrow? What brought this unexpected response from their eyes and lips? It’s very possible that the elders who had witnessed the splendor of the first temple were disappointed that this one would be far less glorious. But the praises continued none the less, and the crying seemed to merge and blend with the expressions of joy.

And we may very well have that same experience in a few minutes when we celebrate the dedication of our new church sign. We will rejoice over our new addition, but there may also be a few tears shed as loved ones are remembered. But as with Israel, the two sounds will blend, and will become one praise to Almighty God.

But isn’t this experience of Israel’s exactly what the church should be about? They were in the middle of a real strange situation. Cyrus had given them permission to return and rebuild the temple, but he never promised them a peaceful and pleasant time. There would be opposition from the outside, and they were never quite sure that an attack would never develop. Their resources were far more limited than those in the hand of Solomon, and the building wouldn’t even come close to replicating the former. There would have to be compromises on the construction, but would they compromise in faith, too?
The answer is no – no backing down from celebrating the Lord in ways that they always used before - in those times when they were strong and respected, in those times when they had wealth and victories, in those times when they believed that God was with them all the way. But now, they were weak and hated, they had little wealth and no victories to speak of, and they were just coming off of 70 years of separation and servitude. The nation had once been a powerhouse in the region, but after falling away from the way of God, and after encountering defeat upon defeat, and after having their best and brightest stripped from the tribes, they were beginning to rebuild their faith and their worship.

The church in the United States has also been in decline for a number of years. Not exactly in exile, but not exactly prospering, either. Some churches have grown, but for the most part, the once large and successful mainline churches seem to be falling short. Why has this happened? There seems to be very little agreement on causes, but it may very well be the same reason that Israel failed – too much dependence on our own abilities and gifts and understanding, and no where enough confidence and trust in where the Lord might be leading us. Some will throw up a great protest against this thought, but personally, I will always believe that any decline in the church must always be attributed to our failures and never to God’s.

Think about it. If the church is always walking and serving in Christ’s way, how could we possibly fail? If our faith if focused in praise of our Living Lord, regardless of what is going on around us, how could we possibly fail? If our lives are always about Jesus, if we constantly prepare ourselves to receive and respond to the Holy Spirit, if it is never about gaining glory for ourselves and always about winning it for the Father, how can we ever fail?

The church of the 21st century AD has a lesson to learn from Israel of the 5th century BC. Galatians 5:19-21 has quite a list of attitudes and actions that need to be rejected in our lives, and right in the middle of the list are 4 that were predominate in Israel & Judah’s downfall – idolatry, hatred, discord, and jealousy. And when the people began to return, they started to pull together and turn back to the Almighty. Those 4 were gone – at least for a while.
And the church of today might do well to consider where our focus is. Is it on ourselves, our agenda, our personal desires, is it on doing the minimum that we think we can get away with, the most that will bring us praise? Or are we looking to give as much of ourselves as we can? Do we put the glory and the victory on Jesus, do we speak and serve with one voice and one heart, do we praise his holy name in all circumstances and not just when things are going our way?

The following is attributed to an anonymous Zimbabwean pastor.

I am a disciple of Christ. I will not let up, look back or slow down.
My past is redeemed, my future is secure. I am done with low living, small planning, smooth knees, mundane talking, chintzy giving and dwarfed goals. I no longer need pre-eminence, prosperity, position, promotion or popularity. I don’t have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised or rewarded.
My face is set; my goal is sure. My road is narrow; my way is rough, my companions few. My God is reliable; my mission is clear.
I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, delayed or deluded. I will not flinch in the face of adversity, or negotiate at the table of the enemy, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.
I am a disciple of Christ. I must go until he comes, speak of all I know of him and work until he stops me. And when he comes for his own, by the grace of God, he will have no problem recognizing me, because my colors are clear.

If Israel had known these words - they would never have had to suffer so at the hands of Assyria and Babylon; they would never have had to spend 70 years away from home; they would never have had to rebuild the altar and the temple and their city and their nation. The one original building project, the one that God had planned and guided for their lives, would have been enough.

Should the Church of today desire any less?