Beginnings – Worship – 1/27/08
Date: 1/27/08
Sermon Series: Beginnings
Sermon Title: Worship
Text: Ezra 3:8, 10-11
” Now in the second year after their coming to the house of God at Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak made a beginning, together with the rest of their kinsmen, the priests and the Levites and all who had come to Jerusalem from the captivity. They appointed the Levites, from twenty years old and upward, to supervise the work of the house of the Lord.”
“And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priests in their vestments came forward with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise the Lord, according to the directions of David king of Israel. And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the Lord, “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever toward Israel.” And all the people shouted with a great shout when they praised the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid.”
Theme: Although this is the one passage where people are initiating the “beginning” rather than God it is clear that God is excited about His people being zealous about worshipping Him. After these people began the work on the temple they got sidetracked and God sent them prophets to jump start the procedure again. God expects our worship to be whole hearted and passionate toward Him.
Introduction: It was June of 1940, the British and French and their European allies had answered the call for help from the Belgium government. After the Germans broke through the lines at Sedan and Meuse the European forces were overwhelmed and sustained heavy losses, over 30,000 men had been killed and fully a third of the English armies equipment was lost. It was in the background of these ruins that Winston Churchhill delivered one of the best speeches that has ever been given to the house of Parliament.
“Even though large tracts of Europe and many old and famous States have fallen or may fall into the grip of the Gestapo and all the odious apparatus of Nazi rule, we shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end, we shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our Island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender, and even if, which I do not for a moment believe, this Island or a large part of it were subjugated and starving, then our Empire beyond the seas, armed and guarded by the British Fleet, would carry on the struggle, until, in God’s good time, the New World, with all its power and might, steps forth to the rescue and the liberation of the old.” Winston Churchhill June 4, 1940 – House of Commons
Transition: Background of the returning exiles from Babylon.
God’s providential care – Jeremiah 29:10-11
Coming home, standing in the ruins and worshipping!!!
1. Worship is Community
a. It is a community that has a single focus
i. Ezra 3:1 – they gathered as one man to Jerusalem.
ii. The most important thing we have to keep in front of us is that we are who we are only because we are connected in Christ. It is not because we are alike that we are made into a community, it is because we are all focused on the same thing. It is only because we are all facing the same way looking at the same thing that we can all be so interconnected.
iii. Paul calls this being connected “in the body” – Eph. 4:15-16. (On screen)
b. It is a community that has a connectedness with one another
i. Worship connected to community is not only an Old Testament principle it is also a NT principle. –
ii. “A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders. And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity—” (Acts 2:43-46, NLT) (On Screen)
2. Worship is Celebration
a. These folks were celebrating God’s providential care. Although they were in the midst of a lot of brokenness.
i. They had returned home to he promised land and found it full of torn down ruins and enemies. – vs. 3 shows us that they laid the altar stone because they were full of the fear of the people around them.
ii. Psalm 137 captures the heart of the captives who had spent the last 70 years under the boot of their Babylonian captors.
b. They were celebrating God’s work going forward
i. The foundation stones were laid- God’s house was beginning to be built.
ii. This is the same kind of joy we feel when someone comes forward and gives themselves to the Lord and is baptized. – A sheer unadulterated joy that God’s kingdom is moving forward and we get to be involved in it.
c. They were celebrating with open hearts and spirits.
i. They used cymbals, trumpets, sang with, and to one another.
ii. “All the people shouted with a great shout” – v. 11
1. The Hebrew word that is used here is yadah – it carries with it the idea of a public confession of all of the wonderful things that God has done for us. I sometimes wonder what the people around us would say if we were as vocal as we should be about the blessings that God has provided for us.
iii. They praised God – v. 11
1. The Hebrew word that is used here is hallel as in hallelujah. It is the most jubilant of the words that are used to express adulation towards God.
iv. Wept loudly – v. 12
1. Some of the people who had seen the magnificence of Solomon’s Temple are emotionally overwrought that the foundation of this one seems so modest. The point here is these people opened up their hearts in emotional outpouring toward the Lord. Some shouted in joy, others openly wept. But they were not afraid to open themselves up in public.
d. The picture that we get from this text is a people that are so sold out for God and His program that they have placed their lives on the line, and God has shown Himself so faithful and providential in His dealing with them that they are ready to shout it from the mountain tops.
e. Sometimes I wonder if the reason that my own worship can be flat at times is because I am not putting myself out there enough to experience the joy of God’s providential care when I am risking something for Him. I sometimes think that we are made to operate on the very edge of what we are able to do. If we spend all of our time without risk, without the knowledge that the kingdom building activity that I am involved in is going to stretch me, than we will never know the blessing of depending on God for strength and power to accomplish His will beyond our own ability. One of the things that I notice about a lot of the people who are doing great things for God is that they usually begin before they think that they are ready to accomplish anything.
i. Jeremiah – said he was too young.
ii. Gideon – said he was a nobody
iii. Moses – said he couldn’t speak well enough
3. Worship is Sacrifice
a. Almost from the beginning of the Biblical record we see that sacrifice was a part of the program that God put into place in order for His people to worship and come before Him. Even before He prescribed it as a part of His law.
i. Cain and Abel
ii. Noah
iii. Abraham
b. A different kind of sacrifice is required of New Covenant believers. – The NT makes it clear that the sacrificial system, the killing of animals to offer to God, has been done away with. Hebrews 10:1-2
i. But sacrifice is still seen as a significant part of the way that we are supposed to worship God.
1. In Romans 12:1 , Paul encourages us to present our bodies a living sacrifice to God.
2. Philippians 2:17 – Talks about the sacrificial offering of the Philippians faith.
3. Hebrews 13:15 – We are adjured to continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God
4. Hebrews 13:16 – We are told to do good and share what we have and these actions are considered pleasing sacrifices to God.
c. Our worship should be characterized not only by an interconnectedness of community and incredible celebration it should also have a sense of sacrificial offering to it. That means a couple of things for us.
i. Worship does not stop at the door of this building. When we offer God all that we have to share with others, when we praise Him for the day or stop and say grace over our noon meal we are living a life of sacrificial worship to our Lord.
ii. We need to cultivate the attitude that the things that we have stewardship over really belong to God. When we are selfish with our things, our relationships or our time and energy then we are keeping back what should be sacrificed to God.
Conclusion: Teresa, LB and I finding ourselves in Missouri.
