Messiah in the context of Jewish History

Normally when we talk about the arrival of the messiah we’re talking about it in the context of Christmas season and we end with a very colored picture, seeing Jesus in the context of Christmas trees, bells, candy canes, and lights. But today, I’d like to shift our perspective, and we shall try to see the coming of the messiah, in the context of the Old Testament history of Israel.

That’s what we’ve been studying the past few months, all the way from Genesis to Malachi.

What have we learned from Genesis and the fall to Esther and Nehemiah, and everything we’ve seen of Israel’s failure to follow God: We’ve learned that humanity struggles to properly follow God. One generation follows God, the next generation begins to turn away. The next generation doesn’t even remember that God exists.

But God’s plan is proceeding forward. Israel was formed. It was to be a nation that would be holy, special, a nation of priests. And it seems like the original plan was for the messiah to come, and lead the holy nation of priests to win the entire world of Gentiles to Christ. Obviously, it didn’t go quite as planned, but never-the-less here we are today, gentiles worshipping Jesus. So either way, God makes sure his plan moves forward.

The entire history of the world itself, turns on this moment. The entire purpose of this temporary human journey on this fallen Earth planet is for humanity to be brought back into right relationship with God.

But our sin was the big problem none of us could solve: We lie, we cheat, we steal, we manipulate others, we are selfish, lazy, and mean to others. We gossip, we kill, we mistreat and we fail to help those in need. Our sin is the great problem.

Adam and Eve sinned against God. And it began there. Today 6000 years later, sin is the problem. But 2000 years ago, a certain individual came into the world, to deal with the sin problem once and for all.

The entire Old Testament foreshadows and predicts the coming of a mysterious messiah figure, who would make everything. A messiah, a savior, someone who could become our hero, our savior, our friend, and our God.

After the events of Nehemiah and Ezra, we see a period of 400 years of silence in the Bible, before God speaks again. This is similar to when Israel was enslaved in Egypt. 400 years of silence. 400 years. And during this time, Israel is conquered by the Roman empire. The Roman empire at this point in history controls much of present day Europe, all the way across northern Africa, and the middle east, including Israel. The romans impose heavy taxes. Augustus is emperor of Rome at this time. And he orders a census. Fairly common, it’s a good way to find out how to tax people even more. This requires everyone to return to their own home town to register with the census.

During this cultural backdrop, we see a very strange thing happen one night. There is a new star in the night. A woman named Mary was told 9 months earlier, that she would carry the son of God in her belly. She would give birth to the son of God. Mary and her husband Joseph however are caught in the journey to return to their home town, Bethlehem, for the census.

They live in Nazareth. But they’re caught on the road, in Bethlehem, when Mary goes into labor. How often do we find ourselves in similar circumstances?

I would probably feel pretty upset. God is requiring us to do this, yet the Romans are forcing us to travel to our home town. We’re stuck on the road, with a pregnant wife, the road is dangerous, thieves can come and attack. And so it’s late at night, probably, and they finally arrive at Bethlehem, but they can’t find anywhere to stay. The hotels are all full up, probably from people traveling to their home towns to register for the census. Lots of people traveling. So they’re going from house to house. No one is answering. They got no room. Finally one person says, hey, you can go in my barn. At least you’ll have some shelter there. And the son of God, the king of the Earth is born in a manger. Crazy, right?

Given that Jesus is the messiah, the son of God, shouldn’t he be in a giant palace, the richest, the wealthiest, the wisest, with all the great scholars and wise men and women of the world right? Nope. That’s not how God does things. This world tends to want to ignore God, reject God, and even laugh at God. Our society is quite similar. Do you see the most influential people of Owosso in this church today? Or the wealthiest? Nope. Maybe in the past in America the rich and wealthy went to church to keep up appearances. But not really anymore. They prefer to ignore God or pretend God doesn’t exist. They pursue wealth and power. That’s the way of the world.

God doesn’t work that way. When Jesus came, he didn’t gather together the most powerful romans, or philosophers from Greece, or holiest Jewish rabbis, no, God is very different than that. Jesus came to a fishermen, a tax collector, a prostitute, beggars, blind and deaf people, that who Jesus comes to.

So guess what? If you’re here today, and you really believe in Jesus and really follow Jesus and love Jesus, you’ve found something more valuable than all the money in the world.

Because guess what? When Jeff Bezos, owner of Amazon, or Elon Musk, owner of tesla, or Bill Gates, owner of Microsoft pass away, none of their money will go with them. And they will probably go to hell, because as far as I know, none of them claim to be Christians. That 212.4 billion dollars that belongs to Jeff Bezos, it will all be gone. None of it will matter.

You’ve found Jesus, you have more than all of those rich billionaires combined. Isn’t that amazing? And every good deed you do in life is material to build your mansion in heaven. So make sure you’re rich in good deeds in Christ, because you’ll have a beautiful ornate home in heaven.

A star in the night sky, Joseph and Mary hiding out in a barn, it’s a pretty humble moment isn’t it? But do you know about what happened when Mary first found out she was pregnant? Mary and Joseph were just dating at the time. It says from Matthew Chapter 2, 18-25 “This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about[d]: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 19 Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

24 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. 25 But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.”

Isn’t that pretty interesting? Joseph finds out she’s pregnant and say alright, I’m gonna divorce her. She obviously cheated on me. It’s not until he hears from God, that he changes his mind and decides he is still going to marry her. Sounds historical to me. Because it’s kind of embarrassing. It doesn’t sound legendary. It sounds like history.

So we bounce back to the moment of Jesus’ birth. Mary is giving birth, and there is a star hanging over the barn where shes doing so. And it says in Luke 2:8-20 “And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,

and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.”

So you’ve got shepherds, shepherds was like a job that people didn’t really think very highly of. Like, maybe garbage truck drivers, not to say that’s a bad profession, it’s a fine thing to do, it’s just not like, considered prestigious.

God works in mysterious ways that we can’t quite predict. He doesn’t get born in a palace, but a manger. But we know that in the next life Jesus will sit on a throne in a massive palace displaying the glory of God. But in this world, this sinful world controlled by the devil, God is born in a manger, as Jesus Christ, the son of God.

Jesus comes, God comes in human form, to become our new king, our new president, our new leader. He takes over where Adam left off. Adam messed things up. Adam and Eve fell into sin. They disobeyed God and tried to play god for themselves. They stole from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And humanity has been lost ever since. We try to play god. We try to run our own lives. And it just doesn’t work. We need God to run our lives.

Jesus comes to save us from our sins. He comes to deliver us from our sins. To wash away our sins. Jesus makes us new people. People fit for a new world. That’s the whole plan, leave this world, become part of a new world, the new universe, the new planet Earth, the new city of God. Paradise.

But we must be cautious to remember, what happened to Israel? In the Old Testament? Remember the repeating loop of sin? For a while they follow God, then they would fall away, begin following false gods, begin falling into sin, and they lost their way. The generation, that saw the escape from Egypt, saw the red sea parted, was the generation that fell away, and died in the wilderness, because they disobeyed God over and over.

We see that same cycle of sin repeating in our world today. It’s the same thing in the United States, in the past many followed Jesus, today most seem to reject Jesus, they don’t remember the miracles God has done in the past. They think they are wealthy because of their own ideas and because of their American hard work. But it isn’t true. God provided all this wealth and abundance around us in America. I was recently in Cancun, Mexico. We stayed in a beautiful part of Cancun, in the hotel district. This area is strictly protected, because it is very dangerous for visitors to come other parts of the area, where they could be stolen from, kidnapped, or swindled. We’re very lucky for the safety and abundance we have. Don’t take it for granted. Give God the glory.

Don’t fall back into sin. Continue to follow Jesus. Live a pure holy life, and we can escape the repeating cycle of sin that has destroyed so many in Israel’s past, and even in our own time.

Jesus changes everything. His coming changes everything for Israel, and for the world. We’ve finally made it to the new testament. And you’ll see just how everything is changed by the coming of this mysterious messiah.

How to Overcome the Matrix: What is the Matrix? How do we Escape the Matrix?

Do you want to know what it is? The matrix? It seems like you do. Something brought you here. Something within you that longs for something more. 

So what exactly is the matrix? The matrix is the grid of thoughts, ideas, beliefs, customs, philosophies, and unspoken codes that manipulate us into following a road that leads nowhere.

The goal of the system around us is to successfully lead us to our own enslavement.  

It functions from birth to condition us toward a certain secular modernist mindset. It functions in the entertainment realm. It functions in the public school system. It functions in the norms shared and developed by our friends and neighbors. It guides us k-12 toward a certain set of beliefs about the world around us. The process continues into college and/or the business world. It solidifies in the drive to attain wealth, status, power, possessions, and influence in society.  

Yet we can all sense that something fundamental is missing in our lives. There is a fundamental emptiness in each of us that can't quite be contained.  It can't quite be filled by any experience or substance. It can be temporarily drowned out. But it is never quite satisfied. It is a gaping maw within each of us that can't be filled. It is a bottomless pit that is never filled.

This bottomless pit urges many, many of us to ask the question: "What is the matrix?" 

It urges us after the busy day of work and play to ponder and walk into empty places trying to understand what the emptiness within us means. 

This is the beginning of the journey in which we escape the matrix. I call it the process of the night train. We begin to walk into empty places, leaving behind the busy world, at least mentally, and we begin to sonder into another world.  We walk into emptiness. Why? I'm not exactly sure. Maybe because emptiness is quiet. And beautiful. 

We can spend weeks, months, and even years in the emptiness, pondering, yearning, and dreaming.  But eventually something magnificent happens.  In the night, a train appears, and we board the train, and it takes us away.

Of course I don't mean a literal train appears, and takes us away. Instead, it is a metaphorical train. This is the moment when in the emptiness, the truth finds us. And the truth will find us.  Of course there are other ways to come to know the truth and escape the matrix.  Many, many routes lead out of the matrix.  But for me, I went by way of the night train.  I'm sure some of you have done so as well.

The night train is what some might call prevenient grace. It's the guiding force that leads us toward the truth.  And in a very real way it "takes us." We would otherwise wander in emptiness forever and never come to any knowledge of the truth. Without the train we would be lost.  And we don't really deserve the train either.

And boarding the train I don't think we even know what it is. But we can feel what it is.  It's something very sacred.  So we board the train and we realize we have a ticket in our pocket with great surprise. We've been invited. The darkness and emptiness was the train station. But if you never wander, you'll never find the train.  But as I said, there are other routes out of the matrix. This is just the one I experienced.

The train takes us away into the night, chugging along through dark valleys, and mysterious meadows, through mountains and across rivers, through the night. Eventually the train brings us to our destination. An underground cavern.  And we climb into the underground cavern and in the cavern we find the truth.

The truth is in some ways like a pair of glasses we put on. Like that movie "They Live" we begin to understand what the matrix is. We see that entertainment conditions us. We see the propaganda of the public school system. We see the extremism of the university system. We see the corruption of the political and business realms. We begin to see the spiritual battle that is being waged all around us. 

You've been thoroughly indoctrinated to believe that the material universe is all that exists. This is false. There is a spiritual realm that exists all around us, and in this spiritual realm is where the battle for our souls is fought. 

That is the real, fundamental truth of reality: You have a choice to make.  The choice is hidden from you by the system, as much as possible. The goal of the system is to build a false reality around you that is so complete and seamless that you make the wrong choice without even realizing there is another option.

You have a choice to make. That is the key function of this universe. Your choice, and what preceeds from your choice. And it's repeated each day, until you die. Choice, choice, choice... free will. And how you will use it as a free agent.

You are being graded based on your decisions. Which means the fundamental reality of the universe is moral and ethical in nature.

The choice is wide-ranging, expressing itself in infinite ways. But each choice can be broken down to two choices. There are two basic choices we can make. Choice 1, rebellion. This is the state the system around you guides you toward. Through ignorance, through deception, an argument, philosophy, through ideology, through the appeal of pleasure, whatever the scheme is, it's all designed to deceive or manipulate you into embracing rebellion. Rebellion against God. Rebellion against the moral nature of the universe. Rebellion to that which is actual. Rebellion through redefining reality to suite our own desires.

The second choice, the more difficult choice is loving the truth. Faithful trust in the moral imperative of the universe. Embracing reality as it truly is. Obedience to the truth. Faith in the truth. Allowing the intelligent designer of the universe to reshape you into a new being, declared morally perfect, guided toward moral perfection, remade to be what humanity was originally meant to be, perfect, beautiful, creative agents in a flawless, sublime universe.

We have our lives to make the choice. And the default mode of each human is toward rebellion. That is the natural reaction of our minds, our emotions, and all that we are. We prefer rebellion, in various forms. It even seems heroic to us. It seems right to us. 

But we only have our lives to make the choice. Eventually time runs out. And the choice we make in this life, whether it's rebellion or the truth, is stamped for eternity, beyond the veil of this life. 

If rebellion is chosen, hell is the result. Destruction is the result. Quarantine, away from paradise, for eternity. Why? I don't know. That's above my pay grade. It's real though. 100% real. 

If the truth is chosen, paradise is the result. Rapture is the result. Joy is the result. Perfection is the result.  And this paradise seems to be without end, just as much as the other option is without end. Apparently each human soul is fundamentally eternal in nature, it can't simply be discarded or destroyed at the completion of life on this present Earth. 

That is the choice before every human right now at this moment in history. And we all make the choice every day. We either choose truth or we choose lies. We either slide closer to God, or slide further from God.  Each day it repeats. And we make our choices. 

Even as a Christian myself, I must admit that many days, more than I'd like, I don't live out what I believe to the fullest extent that I could. Given how much is at stake, why would I do that?

The Christian lives in a tension. A tension between the new nature in Christ and the old fallen nature that still clings to the soul until death do us part. If we choose God, the old nature will eventually be removed completely and the new self can get on with a whole new adventure in the next life.  What that adventure looks like exactly is once again beyond my pay grade, though I wouldn't even hazard the slightest guess, I can only imagine it will be an incredible adventure beyond what we could comprehend now. If we choose death, then the fallen nature becomes our permanent reality. The new man fades away, and we embrace the fallenness for all time in a place called "hell" "hades" "outer darkness" and so on.  Some Christians will no doubt through continual sin or apostasy (recanting trust in Christ) will attend to hell for all time.  All non-believers will attend to hell. Those of other religions will also attend to hell. It's quite shocking when we fully realize the stakes that exist right now.  I'm shocked by it.  But there it is.  

The tension is why we often don't fully live out who we are in Christ.  That's one side of it.  Our fallen nature. The other side of it is the matrix.  Even as Christians, we can be continue to be deceived by the matrix. Particularly in our present day babylon, the United States, we are constantly bombarded with propaganda straight from the pit of hell. 

It is increasingly complete, from birth to death, it is everywhere, more so than ever in history I imagine.  Television, internet, news media slant, social media censorship, commercials, billboards, Hollywood, celebrity culture, public education, universities, late night talk shows, government agencies, businesses, consumerism, luxury, entertainment, pleasure, on and on the list goes.  It's a stifling all encompassing Vanity fair that calls us day and night to compromise what we believe in Christ.  It's a political agenda that urges us toward darkness. It's a constant cry to live for self-pleasure instead of for God. It's a constant drum beat of lies, half-truths, deceptions, social pressures, agendas, and scientisms that all attempt to drive away from faith in Christ.  We all know so many Christians that live compromised lives, and seem to have more in common with popular culture and talk show rhetoric than they do with the Bible and Jesus Christ. 

The matrix has always existed to a certain extent in every culture and society in the world. It has existed since the moment of the fall when the kingdom of darkness gained control of the world we live on. It's always been here to some extent.  Abram faced it outside of Sodom and Gomorrah. Moses faced it when he led the people out of slavery in Egypt. Joshua faced it in his battles to take the promised land. Solomon faced it in his marriage to many foreign wives.  Daniel faced it in exile in Babylon. The Jews faced it under the oppression of the Romans. Perpetua faced it when her father insisted she give up the faith and evade the arena. The early church faced it time and again in the persecutions. Martin Luther faced it in his battle against the sale of indulgences. John Wesley faced it as he fought to rally the dead churches of his day to revival. William Booth faced it in his campaigns against the evils of darkest England.  Mother Teresa faced it in Calcutta, gathering the abandoned children to safety. Richard Wurmbrand faced it in Romania when the communists took over the church and imprisoned him. Today Christianity is the number one most persecuted religion in the world.  But no one seems to care too much.  It doesn't fit the news media's narrative of colonial imperialist oppression by Christians.  

It’s important to remember that we reside in enemy territory. There is a great tension between us and the world.

The battle we face in the west is not yet at the stage of dying for Christ. It is a battle of social pressure. It's a battle of political ideologies. It's a battle of Christians being lost to deception and worldliness. The battle is within ourselves though.  Someday soon it will be against forces outside ourselves that want us dead. Today it's a battle within.  The battle between rebellion and truth. I fight it everyday. We're all our own worst enemy. He who can conquer himself is greater than he who can conquer a city. Remember that. 

How do we escape the matrix? The escape is found in Jesus Christ of Nazareth. No one wants to hear that, but it's the truth.  It was the last option I wanted. But here we are. And I've accepted the truth.  We are our own worst enemy.  I needed Jesus to come within and change me from the inside. Because the truth is I can't do much of anything at all without Christ inside me guiding me on the right path.  That is where the night train leads. It leads to Jesus. No one said we would like where the train takes us. But I've found it's quite more beautiful than I had thought. 

I realized I had propagandized not only about everything else in the world, but about Jesus and Christianity as well. I had been plastered with false ideas about these things, no doubt to keep me away from exploring them. Such a clever enemy we face. The lies of the matrix try to paper over Christianity with lies, darkness, evil, and sin. It tries to drag Jesus down into the muck, at least from our perspective, so we see it as just another dead end. But when we toss out the old false ideas projected by the matrix, what we realize, what I came to realize was, Jesus is really the truth.  When everything else fades away, Jesus is really real. 

That is the only escape from the matrix. That's how we board the hovership and begin our battle against the darkness, and begin winning minds to Christ.  But there is a second escape to be made. We can be brainwashed as Christians, turned into cancer cells to the body of Christ, I see this all the time, progressive Christians, Christians living in sin, lukewarm Christians, they turn and attack the body, instead of fighting to win souls and defeat the darkness, they turn and attack their own, they are brainwashed cancer cell Christians, who actually fight against their own brethren in Christ, because they've been successfully propagandized by the world. The second escape is effected by the Holy Spirit. Christ has delivered us from the matrix's total control of our internal world.  The Holy Spirit delivers us from the external stimuli that would threaten to shipwreck our walk with Christ. The Holy Spirit reveals the truth about the world to us, and helps us to have our final victory over the matrix. The final victory over the matrix is when we overcome the world, when we overcome the darkness, and when we overcome ourselves.  It is the victory talked about in Revelation, the final victory over ourselves, evil, and the world.  That is the final victory over the matrix, when we look like Neo did, and we see the code, instead of the lies. We see the code itself, how people are propagandized, how people are deceived, the schemes of the forces of Satan as they manipulate the masses to do their bidding. That is the moment when we become deadly, dangerous Christians who pose a serious threat to the kingdom of darkness. That is what you must become. You must become a follower of Jesus yes, but you must overcome the world, the darkness, and yourself. Only then will you have victory over the matrix and escape the matrix forever. 

To go more in depth along these lines consider taking a look at the book: Escaping the Matrix by Larson & Boyd 

Rebuilding the Temple: Ezra's Journey

Last week we talked about how Israel was taken into captivity in Babylon. And during that time God continued to be with his people, even after they had failed him so completely. He worked through people like Daniel and Shadrach, Meshach and Abendigo. Daniel saw many dreams and visions, and even saw the coming of the messiah, and the end times.

So now we talk about the return home. And we see two predictions made, by Jeremiah and Isaiah, old testament prophets being fulfilled here. First of all God proclaimed through Jeremiah these words from Jeremiah 29:10, “This is what the Lord says: “You will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised, and I will bring you home again.”

So God made it clear, Israel would be in Babylon in captivity for 70 years, but then would return home.

God also spoke through the prophet Isaiah, who wrote these words from Isaiah 44:28, “When I say of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd,’ he will certainly do as I say.

He will command, ‘Rebuild Jerusalem’; he will say, ‘Restore the Temple.’”

And that’s exactly what happens as we’ll see. You can open your Bibles to Ezra chapter 1. And it says, “1 In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia, the Lord fulfilled the prophecy he had given through Jeremiah. He stirred the heart of Cyrus to put this proclamation in writing and to send it throughout his kingdom:

2 “This is what King Cyrus of Persia says: “The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth. He has appointed me to build him a Temple at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. 3 Any of you who are his people may go to Jerusalem in Judah to rebuild this Temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, who lives in Jerusalem. And may your God be with you! 4 Wherever this Jewish remnant is found, let their neighbors contribute toward their expenses by giving them silver and gold, supplies for the journey, and livestock, as well as a voluntary offering for the Temple of God in Jerusalem.”

So they gather up their supplies, and it says God stirred in the hearts of the levites, the priestly class of the Jews, to lead this effort. They gather up everything they need, and Cyrus even provides for them the original artifacts from the original temple that was pillaged by Babylon, to take with them to rebuild the temple.

In total 42,360 men returned to Israel. In chapter 2 of ezra it’s actually documented how many men came from each tribe and their various lineages. 42,360 men, so if we add in women and children, it’s probably around 100,000 people who returned to Judah from Babylon.

We see two main leaders emerge from this group returning, their names are Jeshua, he is the prophet/priest figure, and Zerubbabel, the political leader. As we’ve seen in previous books of the Old Testament, in Israel there would always be a prophet and a king.

So they gather supplies and take donations from people and they begin work on rebuilding the foundation of the temple, just where the original sat. So imagine this, you’ve come back to Judah, to Jerusalem, the capital. And it’s in ruins. I mean it’s burned out. And you’ve gotta somehow try to rebuild. And not only that, the city and the lands of Judah are now occupied by foreigners who have claimed the land and begin to live there while you were away in exile. It’s an enormous task before them.

Have you ever had to come back from exile in your life? Can you relate to finding burned out ruins around you? For me I can relate in some ways. For about 10 years in my life I went into a sort of exile. I rebelled against God and my upbringing and turned toward self-destructive ways. And during that time, my whole life burnt up. It was in ruins. So returning home, when I became a born again Christian, I found endless ruins of what had once been my life. And I had to set to work to rebuild and become who I was always meant to be.

Maybe you’re in that process right now, in some ways. Keep rebuilding. Don’t give up. And I guarantee you that you will face opposition just as the Israelites did. But keep rebuilding. Don’t let anyone stop you.

So the Israelites led by the Levites, the priestly class begin working and they complete the entire foundation of the temple. It says this in Ezra 3:10-13, “10 When the builders completed the foundation of the Lord’s Temple, the priests put on their robes and took their places to blow their trumpets. And the Levites, descendants of Asaph, clashed their cymbals to praise the Lord, just as King David had prescribed. 11 With praise and thanks, they sang this song to the Lord:

“He is so good!

His faithful love for Israel endures forever!”

Then all the people gave a great shout, praising the Lord because the foundation of the Lord’s Temple had been laid.

12 But many of the older priests, Levites, and other leaders who had seen the first Temple wept aloud when they saw the new Temple’s foundation. The others, however, were shouting for joy. 13 The joyful shouting and weeping mingled together in a loud noise that could be heard far in the distance.”

So you’ve got this very powerful moment where they are celebrating the new foundation, but also this sadness and weeping in the crowd from the older people there who saw the original temple that Solomon built and they’re overwhelmed with sadness because the new one is nothing compared to the old.

Then it says in Ezra chapter 4:1-5, “The enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were rebuilding a Temple to the Lord, the God of Israel. 2 So they approached Zerubbabel and the other leaders and said, “Let us build with you, for we worship your God just as you do. We have sacrificed to him ever since King Esarhaddon of Assyria brought us here.”

3 But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the other leaders of Israel replied, “You may have no part in this work. We alone will build the Temple for the Lord, the God of Israel, just as King Cyrus of Persia commanded us.”

4 Then the local residents tried to discourage and frighten the people of Judah to keep them from their work. 5 They bribed agents to work against them and to frustrate their plans.”

So we see a serious problem arise here. The foreigners living among them want to help rebuild the temple, but Zerubbabel says no. And it’s right that he did because they were obviously up to no good. Once he refused they did everything could to stop the process.

So these forces trying to stop them actually send a letter to the king of Persia saying that the Jews are planning to rebel, and he listens to them, and basically orders the construction of the temple to stop. So these rebels take the letter they received go to the temple construction site and force the Israelites to stop building. And construction is halted for 14 years!

During this time two prophets were at work in Israel, Haggai and Zechariah. And they prophesy about the rebuilding of the temple repeatedly during this hard time. Jeshua and Zerubbabel are afraid of the enemies surrounding them, but with the support of Haggai and Zechariah they gather their courage and finally begin to rebuild the temple once again.

Once again the rebels and foreigners try to stop the building of the temple, but the new leader of Persia, Darius, actually finds the original decree of Cyrus indicating the Jews should rebuild the temple, and actually encourages them to rebuild it, instead of stopping them, like what happened in the past.

For me all of this, the back and forth, rebuilding the foundation, then being forced to stop, then the prophets rising up, then continuing to rebuild, and then support from Darius, is all an indication of spiritual warfare.

You’ve got the will of God, the rebuilding of the temple, up against the will of Satan and evil, which is to stop the rebuilding. And it goes back and forth. This is often, very often replicated in our own lives.

We see a family member or friend we’ve been praying for, for years, and they are struggling and then they come a bit closer to God, you see some encouraging signs, and then they fall away again. Then they come closer, then something happens that drives them away.

Or in our own lives. I’ve seen this happen so often, like in some project I’m working on, or with dinner church, trying to start that up and get it going. Or even with resurfacing the parking lot. We’d get everything on track, and then something would happen to really set us back. We’d have help in the kitchen, then those people would leave, we’d have a musician, then they’d disappear. We’d gather a new family, then they’d vanish again. With the parking lot project, delay after delay, problems with the company, problems with the weather, it seems like it’s always a battle.

This happens in our lives, not just around us, but inside of us. We start doing well. We overcome a sin, maybe we quit smoking. Then Satan does something to tempt us, we overcome the temptation, then a family member dies, then we have back problems, then we face discouragement and depression, and it’s always a battle isn’t it? Always a battle.

The word of God tells us that Christians will have many troubles, but that God delivers them from them all.

So after 14 years, they get back on track, and their enemies try to stop them, but they fail. And the temple is at last completely rebuilt.

Everyone gathers together, and they celebrate the Passover, the classic Jewish festival where they celebrate God delivering them from slavery in Egypt, and reminds them of the blood of Passover lambs that was placed on their doors, so the angel of death would “Passover” them. And of course this blood sacrifice points us forward to the coming of Jesus, when his blood would be poured out on the cross, so that Jesus would become our Passover. That our sins would be wiped out and removed, if we put our faith in Christ.

So they celebrate the Passover. And it’s a mighty celebration. They celebrate the festival of unleaven bread, reminding them of how they trekked into the wilderness, out of Egypt, with bread and bitter spices, for a long long journey. So much of what we do as Christians, just like the Jews did, is to remind ourselves of what God has done for us. We so easily forget and get led astray into secular nonsense and sin. That’s why we remind ourselves, every Sunday about what Jesus has done for us. It keeps us on the right track. That’s why we celebrate thanksgiving, reminding ourselves that God provides for our needs. That’s why we celebrate Christmas, it reminds us of the birth of Jesus and all that it brought. And that’s why we celebrate Resurrection Sunday, to remind us that Jesus died and rose again for us. Just like the Jews celebrated the Passover, the festival of booths, and others, it was all designed, to remind the Jews continuously of the God who they so often would lose track of, and fall away from.

Ok so, now, fast forward 35 years after the celebration of the rebuilding of the temple, and we see Ezra. The man named for the book of Ezra. He finally enters the story. And he is actually still back in Persia, but he leads another group back to Jerusalem. He is supported by the then King Artaxerxes and encouraged to go and enforce the law of Moses in Israel.

It’s interesting to note that during the 35 years in between the temple rebuilding and Ezra’s trip to Israel, is most likely when the events of the book of esther take place. And probably explains why there is such a shift in support for the Jews by then King Artaxerxes.

But you’re probably wondering, why was it necessary for Ezra to return to Israel at this time? I’m sure everything is going great in Israel now right? They’d learned their lesson, they rebuilt the temple, obviously they must be serving the Lord completely now right? Unfortunately no.

During the gap between the temple rebuilding and Ezra’s return, the Israelites had once again fallen away from God, and began to inter-marry with the foreigners around them, and to practice iniquity. So when Ezra arrives, he expects to see a holy nation that is living for God. But instead he finds trouble once again.

So when Ezra arrives, his mission is really to once again call the people back to God. They’d lost touch yet again, and begun to practice evil.

It says in Ezra 9:1-4, “…the Jewish leaders came to me and said, “Many of the people of Israel, and even some of the priests and Levites, have not kept themselves separate from the other peoples living in the land. They have taken up the detestable practices of the Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Jebusites, Ammonites, Moabites, Egyptians, and Amorites. 2 For the men of Israel have married women from these people and have taken them as wives for their sons. So the holy race has become polluted by these mixed marriages. Worse yet, the leaders and officials have led the way in this outrage.”

3 When I heard this, I tore my cloak and my shirt, pulled hair from my head and beard, and sat down utterly shocked. 4 Then all who trembled at the words of the God of Israel came and sat with me because of this outrage committed by the returned exiles. And I sat there utterly appalled until the time of the evening sacrifice.”

And Ezra prayed, ““O my God, I am utterly ashamed; I blush to lift up my face to you. For our sins are piled higher than our heads, and our guilt has reached to the heavens.”

So when Ezra arrives he calls everyone to prayer and a holy fast. This is a great thing to do if you’re struggling in your walk with God or your friends are struggling, then it’s time to pray, fast, and consecrate ourselves anew before God.

So Ezra is actually laying face down in front of the rebuilt temple, utterly horrified, and more and more people are gathering around him, as he does this. Kind of a beautiful moment. He is alone in weeping, praying and fasting, and slowly others join him. Then more join him. And more. And pretty soon there is a giant crowd around the temple weeping and praying with Ezra. I love that. Eventually they beg Ezra to stand up and tell them what to do. And he calls them to repentance. The leaders send out letters calling all Israelites to return from exile to Jerusalem. And they do.

The people repent, they divorce the pagan wives they had taken, and turn away from the false religions of the peoples around them, and they return to God. The last chapter of Ezra, lists all those who had taken foreign wives and then repented. Praise God. The people once again returned to God. The entire nation of Israel was once again filled with the Jews who had returned from Exile.

In conclusion today, what a crazy ride it has been for Israel, don’t you think? We can think all the way back to Abraham, and how God promised to make a great nation out of him, then, we saw Israel in captivity in Egypt, the wandering in the wilderness, Joshua leading them in to take the promised land. The judges, the kings, the division of the kingdom into north and south, the destruction of the north at the hands of Assyria, and the captivity of the south in Babylon, now they return home, and once again attempt to be all they are called to be as God’s chosen people.

Next week we’ll examine the events of the book of Esther, and how one brave woman did great things for God.

As we transition into our time of response, let’s focus in our walks with God. Do we need to repent of false ways? Do we need to re-consecrate ourselves to God? Come forward to the altars, talk to God right now, respond to this message God has given us.

A Letter to Commander Jesus Christ, Requesting Reinforcements for The Salvation Army

Dear Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior, King, Lord, and Supreme Commander of The Salvation Army,

I write you from the front lines of the great salvation war on this day of our Lord in 2021. Though I am quite aware that you are here with me, and within me while I write, I do write you Commander, as you are seated in glory at the right hand of the Father.

Commander, thank you first of all for your continued presence with myself and each of our soldiers and troops as they fight day and night in this great battle. 

The battle has been terribly difficult sir, and I find myself and my troops increasingly disillusioned and troubled. I myself have been on the edge of burnout though I've only been fighting from my current command for a mere 2 years. 

Sir, I am requesting immediate reinforcements, on behalf of my area of service, though I'm certain my honorable leaders are petitioning you day and night for just such reinforcements, I add my voice to the chorus, as sir I do not believe we can continue to hold our positions indefinitely.

At the current rate of attrition sir, we may lose significant ground in the next ten to twenty years, if not sooner. I humbly request immediate reinforcements, please Commander, send us additional troops to help wage the war on all immediate fronts. Reinforce the smaller commands with fresh troops, and strengthen the larger commands with additional troops and capable non-coms to lead said soldiers. 

We are also in need commander of additional officers to command our corps and citadels. Please sir, send additional officers in great numbers to our various commands, to prevent further retreats and redeployments. 

We find ourselves increasingly overwhelmed by the enemy sir. Our communities are increasingly rotten with sin, and torn apart by every sin, darkness, illness, and deception known to our enemy. The enemy seems to move with mechanical precision, enveloping entire neighborhoods, schools, colleges, government facilities, businesses, and blocks, while we move in inches, or we find ourselves barely holding our current positions, or more often than not, we find ourselves losing ground. 

Sir, our fortifications are in serious need of repair. Our fortifications are also thoroughly undermanned. Most of our positions are operating on skeleton crews, of old men and old women and young boys and girls, with few strong men and women of middle ages. In fact, many walls, battlements, battery positions, towers, and bastions are entirely unmanned. The battlements gather cobwebs. We need troops sir, fresh troops to fill those empty positions and reinforce the undermanned positions.

Additionally, our enemy is increasingly brazen, and the tone of the society around us quickly turns more and more against us. Our enemy seems to control more and more territory across the airwaves, the trenches, and everything in between. It is a bleak situation sir. 

And I would add commander, that our troops are more and more divided on tactics and deployment than ever before. Some of our troops even seem to join the enemy on certain issues and on certain fronts.  It's terribly disconcerting and moral is in some places quite low.

The last year in particular has been difficult on the troops and myself, as we've faced pestilence and isolation to go along with the endless salvation war. 

But what seems most puzzling sir, is that so few seem to desire salvation any longer.  Most seem truthfully uninterested, and unwilling to come to you Lord, for salvation and victory.  This also explains why our numbers are so diminished. People in the west no longer see their need for you commander. They are comfortable in bountiful food, safety, security, abundant shelter and transportation, with work, and excessive entertainment.  

Though on other fronts of the salvation war, such as the Africa theatre and the India theatre, as well as the Asia theatre, corps and commands are taking massive ground, and growing by the hundreds and the thousands by the year. New nations are invaded constantly!  This is greatly encouraging to us soldiers in the western theatres of Europe and the United States who see so few converts joining our ranks.

Never-the-less Commander we continue the good fight of the faith. We'll never give up.  Maybe it will take some great fall, some great new difficulty for the huddled comfortable masses of the west to remember their need for you Jesus our Commander, King, Lord, and Savior.  Perhaps that is what it will take sir.  Then again, maybe it will take more on our part, as leaders and soldiers, to pray more, study more, love more, work harder, and fight harder to win these fronts for you sir.

Help us to do that Commander. I often find myself so distracted by devices and pleasures of this world.  Help me to be bold as a lion and innocent as a dove, wise as a serpent, and defiant as a revolutionary against this present darkness. 

So I repeat my request commander for reinforcements to all our positions, in the form of soldiers and officers to continue to fight and win the great salvation war, in the Mid-west and across the United States, and throughout Europe.  

Help us Commander, to be who you call us to be.  Help us to be true heroes on these front lines of the great salvation war. Don't let us fail, Commander.

In the name of Jesus Christ, 

Sincerely,

Lt. Justin Steckbauer

Corps Officer, Owosso Citadel

Eastern Michigan Division

USA Central Territory

Americas and Caribbean Zone

The Salvation Army International

6/13/21