MEDITATION ON EZRA 3:8-13
For August 19, 2012
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“In the second year after their arrival at the house of God at Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua son of Jozadak made a beginning, together with the rest of their people, 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 have the oversight of the work on the house of the Lord.
And Jeshua with his sons and his kin, and Kadmiel and his sons, Binnui and Hodaviah along with the sons of Henadad, the Levites, their sons and kin, together took charge of the workers in the house of God. When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priests in their vestments were stationed to praise the Lord with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, according to the directions of King David 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 responded with a great shout when they praised the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid.
But many of the priests and Levites and heads of families, old people who had seen the first house on its foundations, wept with a loud voice when they saw this house, though many shouted aloud for joy, so that the people could not distinguish the sound of the joyful shout from the sound of the people’s weeping, for the people shouted so loudly that the sound was heard far away.” (Ezra 3:8-13)
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With the weather turning cooler this week, I felt motivated to go outside and spruce up my little garden.
Isn’t it funny how we are all excited about planning and planting in April and May? We happily weed, water and fertilize through early June, dreaming of lovely flowers.
And then sometime around 4th of July, we don’t like the garden so much.
It’s too much work!
It’s hot. It’s buggy. And the weeds! We pull them in the morning, and by afternoon, they’ve grown back!
You know what they say. Sometimes you get the weeds.
Sometimes the weeds get you.
Jim was teasing me about one intimidating weed outside our back door that was as tall as I am—and still growing. Its stalk was straight and sturdy. It was covered with leaves from ground to tippy top.
We called it the Jack-and-the-Beanstalk weed.
Finally, one day, James pulled it out with one great heave.
When Jim saw it was gone, he said, “Ahhh. Too bad. Now we won’t get to see the giant.”
I guess I am pretty pleased with this first year of gardening in Minnesota. We started with rocks and weeds but now have a nice variety of perennials and shrubs. The bed runs the full length of the front of the house—from north to south.
We have a foundation for what I hope will grow to be a lovely garden someday, a place where we can walk and pray and worship God in the beauty of His creation.
What was the hardest part of this project? Not the weeding, though that was unpleasant.
The most difficult part was the first push of the spade into the earth. The very beginning—when the garden was nothing but a hope and a dream.
***
And that is how it is in our Ezra reading today with the Israelites who have just begun to rebuild the temple. Fifty years or more have passed since the Chaldeans broke down the Jerusalem wall, looted, and burned the holy city, including its palaces and the house of the Lord God of Israel.
King Nebuchadnezzar showed no mercy on God’s people in 587 B.C.; his troops’ swords struck down children and youth, young men and women, and the old and feeble.
Those who escaped the sword were carried back to Babylonia and forced to be servants to the king and his sons. Until a new kingdom—Persia—was established.
And King Cyrus of Persia, as the prophet Jeremiah foretold, set the captives free. Their exile was over. The Lord stirred Cyrus to decree that the temple in Jerusalem be rebuilt and the city restored.
Only a remnant of Israel had survived. Fewer still returned to rebuild because they were afraid. Neighboring peoples opposed this building project and launched a letter-writing protest campaign to their kings.
And so much time had passed that only the elderly Israelites remembered the temple, the peace of the holy city, and the war that ended it all.
The most difficult part of this building project? The very beginning. When the rebuilding of the house of the Lord God of Israel, for those living in exile, was only a hope and a dream.
So when the foundation was finally laid, there was a great shout of joy. Cymbals clashed. Trumpets blew.
The people sang praises to the Lord whose steadfast love endures forever.
But the older ones wept—because they remembered. They were there for the first building project, when the foundation for the first house of the Lord was laid. And when their loved ones were killed before their very eyes and soldiers and flames reduced the temple and their beloved city to rubble and ruins.
Weeping mingled with shouts of joy—until they became one loud sound, heard far away.
***
The people would discover that their labor had only begun. The building project, as challenging as it was, was still easier than the spiritual rebuilding that had to be done.
With the destruction of the temple in 587 B.C. and the Israelites’ exile, worship of the Lord God ended, as did the sacrifices for the forgiveness of sins. The ancestors of Abraham would need the help of spiritual leaders, such as Ezra, to restore godly worship. They would need Ezra to help them forgive and move beyond the evil that had happened. Ezra would urge them to turn back to God and live in obedience to Him.
I bet some of you read the sermon title today and remembered some of Ebenezer’s building projects, such as the Sunday school wing when Reverend Ahrens was pastor, and more recently, the addition with the elevator and the spacious lobby.
Since I arrived a year ago, we haven’t made any big changes to the physical plant. But there have been some changes inside of us.
I am told that people smile more. They spend more time after worship fellowshipping with one another.
There is more love.
In this year, we have laid the foundation for our ministry together.
We started with only a hope and a dream. But now we have even more hopes and dreams. We have seen God’s faithfulness to us. We know He will use us, if we let Him.
So let us press on with His kingdom work.
We can be sure that there will be more spiritual growth and healing—if we continue to seek and obey Him, loving God and neighbor, and bringing the light of Christ to the dark places in our community, in our world.
You have called me to be your shepherd, like Ezra was for God’s people long ago. He knew that rebuilding the temple was only the Israelites’ first step toward God and the restoration of their faith.
The important thing was and still is not our house of worship. It is our lives of worship. We need each other for that—and we need the Lord.
Like Ezra, I want to draw you nearer to God and urge you to trust Him.
Give Him your anger and pain. He will help you put the hurtful things behind you.
In Christ, you will find strength to face any difficult tomorrows.
God will take care of you.
He will take care of us!
Like the Israelites, let our voices be one great shout to the Lord.
His steadfast love endures forever.
And may our joy in Him be heard far away.
Let us pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for bringing us together to worship you every Sunday and binding us together with love. Thank you for your forgiveness in Jesus Christ and helping us forgive those who have hurt us. Teach us what it means to be Christians. Help us to be good stewards of all you have given us, including our beautiful house of worship. Show us how to live godly lives of worship, where our devotion to You and Your service goes on and on, moment by moment, day after day. Give us more faith to do what You require of us. Empower us to be Christ’s lights to the world. Make us your building project! In Christ we pray. Amen.
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