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Good Monday to you my ‘Walking with Jesus’ friends,
In your life journey you have probably had some days of great celebration which built powerful memories, which when you think about them, bring you back to that moment and place, even if a long time ago. Today is one of those for my wife and me, our anniversary of the day we covenanted ourselves to God and each other, for the remainder of our lives, and oh my what a journey it has been for more than 50 years!
In our “WWJ” journey together we come to a special day that is perhaps in some ways similar to such days you and I have had in our lives. The story is found in Ezra 3:10 and you’ll recall we are watching the remarkable restoration project of these Israelites, who have returned from several years in captivity exile in Babylon. They have been feverishly working to remove the rubble of demolished Jerusalem and are seeking to rebuild their homes and their city. They have also engaged in doing the same with their beloved, but demolished Temple of the God of Israel.
Ezra 3:10 reports: “When the builders laid the foundation of the Temple of the LORD, the priests in their vestments and with trumpets, and the Levites with cymbals, took their places to praise the LORD as prescribed by David king of Israel. With praise and thanksgiving, they sang to the LORD: ‘He is good, his love toward Israel endures forever.’ And the people gave a great shout of praise to the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid.” (Ezra 3:10,11) Can you envision this my friends?
Recently many of us watched the funeral of Pope Francis and you saw many priests and even cardinals standing in their ranks in participation. That might give us a little image of what it may have been like with these priests standing on the Temple mount in their vestments, some with instruments and some singing praises to God, while workers laid the foundation stones of this rebuilt Temple. Have you ever been part of a similar experience where very practical and even dirty construction work is partnered with very sacred worship at the same time, in the same place?
We should presume that as many of these 50,000 returned exiles as were physically able were present and actively involved in this remarkable experience. Some were undoubtedly workmen fully engaged in rebuilding the Temple foundation. Some were supervising the reconstruction project. Some were musicians and spiritual leaders fully engaged in leading the people in worship. And many were observers celebrating this monumental moment in Israel’s history! I believe the worship that day was a joyful declaration of Psalm 118:1 “Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His love endures forever…”, and many other Psalms of praise.
This was a historic moment on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, occurring in the shadows of at least two similar great events in this very same place. The first was when King David brought the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem for the first time and placed it under a tent which had been erected and designated specifically for the Ark. The Ark remained there until finally, several years later, the Temple was completed. 1 Chronicles 16 gives us a detailed description of that history-making day and King David’s personal leadership of all Jerusalem in worship of the God of Israel on that day!
The second historic moment is recorded in 2 Chronicles 5-7 when David’s son King Solomon led the awe-inspiring worship ceremony of dedication of the great Temple for God which had been constructed under his watchful eye, and with great attention to every detail of the plan given by God to king David. In that celebration the Ark of the Covenant was brought into this great Temple and placed behind the curtain in the Holy of Holies.
Now, many years later, in Ezra 3, as the final few great stones of the foundation were laid for this second Temple, to be constructed on the very same site as the great first Temple, the emotions of the people simply could not be contained or restrained! The instruments, the choirs, the cheers and applause probably lasted a very long time and could have been heard many miles in all directions. Including being heard in heaven itself, in the very throne room of God!
But if you listen closely, can you hear other sounds in this great praise? The record says: “But many of the older priests and Levites and family heads, who had seen the former temple, wept aloud when they saw the foundation of this temple being laid, while many others shouted for joy. No one could distinguish the sound of the shouts of joy from the sound of weeping, because the people made so much noise. And the sound was heard far away.” (Ezra 3:12,13)
Weeping and Praise all blended together in a loud praise to God? But why weeping in such a joy filled, historic moment? The foundation of this new Temple would have been laid exactly upon the foundation of the former Temple for the dimensions of the Temple itself would not have been altered. Those dimensions were sacred, for God Himself had given them to King David. (1 Chronicles 28:11-19) The materials used in the foundation were also, likely, very similar to those used in the first temple. So why the tears?
Without doubt one of the saddest days in Israel’s history was the day King Nebuchadnezzar’s army demolished and set fire to that first great Temple of God constructed by King Solomon. That was a day of great judgment, for God poured out His wrath upon the place dedicated to Him and by Him for His glory! And yet generations of Jews had defiled it by their hypocrisy; their refusal to worship God in His holiness and even their closing the doors of that great Temple. (2 Chron. 28:24) Furthermore their open idolatry had defiled Jerusalem, even bringing evil idols INTO the sacred Temple of God. (2 Kings 21:7)
These older Jews, who had seen the former Temple with their own eyes and maybe even served as priests or Levites in that great Temple, were profoundly moved to tears by their experience of this second chance God was giving His people after their years in captivity.
Have you ever received a second chance and did the mercy and grace you received in that second chance move you to tears? I’m currently living a second chance at life since God protected me and enabled me to survive a great cancer scare 10 years ago. If you’ve been living in that second chance for sometime, does the preciousness of it overwhelm you even now? If that was a God given second chance, how have you thanked God and what have you done with your second chance time?
We need to pause right here friends and reflect, don’t we? What is the Holy Spirit stirring in your heart and mind right now and what do you need to express to Jesus in this reflection moment? Here’s a verse to embrace and a worship song to help us consider the power of second chances with God. 2 Corinthians 5:17,18… “Therefore, if anyone is IN Christ they are a new creation, the old is gone and the new has come and all this is from God…” (2 Corinthians 5:17,18)
Now, let’s worship my friends…
Today’s Scripture: Ezra 3:10-13.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
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Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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