FREEDOM COMES WITH RESPONSIBILITY

 

Ezra 3:1-7

 

V:1. "And when the seventh month was come, and the children of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered themselves together as one man to Jerusalem."

 A. The seventh month was the time of Atonement (Sept-Oct).

     1. The priest offered sacrifices to God for the forgiveness of the sins of the people.

         a. The It was a new start for the nation.  

 B. God had released Israel form 70 years of captivity in Babylon. Ezra 1:1-3

     1. Jerusalem had been destroyed including the temple that King Solomon had built.

     2. The Israelites had the task of rebuilding the temple. (536 BC)

     3. They started the new state of freedom with worship.

         a. They started the new month in the assemble of the saints.

         b. They started the new month in unity.

     4. They started the new month with a commitment to build the church.

         a. They set up an altar for the Lord.

         b. They committed their income to the building of the church.

 C. Every day for a Christian is the start of a new year.

    1. The altar of the Lord should be in our hearts.

    2. We should commit ourselves  to serve the Lord.

    3. We should commit our resources  in faith to the building of God's Kingdom.

 D. The Church should always be in a building program.

    1. The Church should always be reaching out to the lost.

    2. God has called us to the building of His Church.

 

V:2. "Then stood up Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brethren the priests, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and his brethren, and builded the altar of the God of Israel, to offer burnt offerings thereon, as it is written in the law of Moses the man of God."

 A. Someone should be willing to stand up for God.

     1. We should always have a heart for God.

     2. When you stand up, others will stand with you.

 B. God has called His preachers to lead the building program.

     1. We are under the leadership of God's preachers.

     2. The building has to start around the altar.

     3. We must put the worship of God first in our hearts.

 C. God has given us instructions on how to bring our offering to Him

     1. The burnt offering was an unblemished animal completely consumed by

          fire at the altar as a sacrifice to God. Lev 6:9-13

     2. God expects us to bring our very best as a sacrifice to Him.

         a. God gave us His best; His Son.

         b. We owe God our best.

V:3. "And they set the altar upon his bases; for fear was upon them because of the people of those countries: and they offered burnt offerings thereon unto the LORD, even burnt offerings morning and evening."

 A. All around us is danger.

     1. Therefore we ought to have a continuous offering of worship to the Lord.

     2. The Israelites did not have walls around city at this time.

          a. They were open to predators.

     3. They could only rely on the Lord for their protection.

 B. God is our protector.

     1. God is the wall around us.

     2. God is more than the whole world against us.

 C. Our worship should never cease.

     1. We should never forget that God is always with us.

     2. If we expect to be protected by God, we must honor Him with our offering.

 

V:4. "They kept also the feast of tabernacles, as it is written, and offered the daily burnt offerings by number, according to the custom, as the duty of every day required."

 A. In the wilderness the Israelites lived in tents.

     1. This was a reminder to them of how God had protected and provided for them

          before they came into the promise land.

     2. The tents were a temporary dwelling place until God placed them into their

          permanent home in the promise land.

     3. The feast of the tabernacles was celebrated by offering a number sacrifices for

         seven days. Lev 23: 34-43, 2 Chron 7:8

  B. We should always be mindful of how good God has been to us.

     1. Our offering to God is a token of our gratitude for His grace and mercy that falls

         fresh upon us daily.

     2. Our offering is a token of our gratitude for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.

     3. It is our duty to worship God with our substance.

 

V:5. "And afterward offered the continual burnt offering, both of the new moons, and of all the set feasts of the LORD that were consecrated, and of every one that willingly offered a freewill offering unto the LORD."

 A. Our offerings  to the Lord ought to be continuous.

     1. We should never cease make sacrifices to the Lord.

 B. According to the King James Commentary, "The priest offered morning and

     evening sacrifices and fulfilled their obligations at the beginning of each month as

     determined

      by the new moon." Ex 12:1-2

    1. The Jewish calendar was a lunar calendar.

        a. They knew the time of the year by the position of the moon.

     2. The Israelites understood that the moon, the great light in the sky at night was the

        glory of the Lord.

        a. The moon lights up the sky from evening to early morning.

        b. God commanded a burnt offering be made to Him at each new moon during the

            year. Num 28:14.

    2. Looking at the sky decorated with the moon and the stars ought to put us in awe of

        God's work and cause us to glorify and praise HIm.

 

V:6. "From the first day of the seventh month began they to offer burnt offerings unto the LORD. But the foundation of the temple of the LORD was not yet laid."

 A. Our foundation for success is in the  God's Word.

     1. The Israelites followed God's commands in making their offering.

     2. They began their worship on the first day of the new month with a complete

          burning  of the sacrificial lamb.

         a. Jesus offered Himself completely for our sin.

         b. We ought to offering ourselves completely to the Lord as a living sacrifice.

 B. By relying  completely on the Word of Truth, we are building on a solid foundation.

     1. A successful Christian life begins with worship and total dedication to the Lord.

     2. We don't have to wait until we are completely right to worship the Lord.

     3. God accepts our worship just as we are.

 

V:7. "They gave money also unto the masons, and to the carpenters; and meat, and drink, and oil, unto them of Zidon, and to them of Tyre, to bring cedar trees from Lebanon to the sea of Joppa, according to the grant that they had of Cyrus king of Persia."

 A. Building God's temple requires our personal financing.

      1. We should give sacrificially to build and maintain God's temple.

      2. We should finance God's house with the best that we have.

          a. Maintaining God's house should be our top priority.

          b. We expect God to give us top priority when we call on Him!!

          c. God gave us top priority when He sent His Son to die for our sins on the cross.

          d. What goes around, comes around.

 B. The Lord used King Cyrus to release the Israelites from captivity and to finance the

      building of the temple.

     1. We have been released from the captivity of sin.

     2. God released us with the blood of His Son. our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

C. God uses us to maintain His temple.

     1. It is a privilege to be in the land of the redeemed.

     1. It is a privilege to give in the offering.

     2. God selected us to be His offering.

     3. God should be our first love.  

 D. Our giving is an indication of our Love for God.

    1. Our giving is an indication of our devotion to God.

    2. Our giving is an indication of our obedience to God.

    3. Our giving is an indication of our trust in God.

       a. Can you trust Him with your finances?

       b. Can you trust Him with you family?

       c. Can you trust Him with your life?