We've been looking these Sunday mornings, exploring Ezra, and we're at chapter 3, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job, Proverbs, right in the middle of the Old Testament. And we're looking at chapter 3, and I want to talk to you this morning about starting again. Ezra chapter 3 in verse 1, please. when the seventh month was come. And if you know the Jewish calendar, the seventh month held three feasts for Israel. The Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and the Feast of Tabernacles. 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. Notice the recurrence this word together in the chapter. Incidentally, as we go through the book of Ezra these Sunday mornings, read the book yourself. Familiarize yourself with the book, and then you'll have much more profit when you come out on the Lord's Day morning. Then stood up Jeshua the son of Josedec 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. 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 to the Lord, even burnt offerings morning and evening. 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, 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. From the first day of the seventh month began they to offer burnt offerings unto the Lord, but the foundation of the temple the Lord was not yet led. 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. Now in the second year of their coming unto the house of God at Jerusalem, In the second month began Zerubbabel, the son of Zealtiel, and Jeshua, the son of Josedek, and the remnant of their brethren, the priests, and all that were come out of the captivity unto Jerusalem, and appointed the Levites from twenty years old and upward to set forward the work of the house of the Lord." Incidentally, in verses one through seven, keep one word in your mind. It's the word worship. Worship. then in verses 8, let's read 9. Then stood Jeshua with his sons and his brethren, Cadmeel and his sons, the sons of Judah, together to set forward the workmen in the house of God, the sons of Hennadad with their sons, and their brethren the Levites. And in verses 8 and 9, keep another word in your mind. It's the word work. That's a word that a whole lot of Christians don't like. They don't mind bearing the name. They don't mind bearing the title. But they don't like work. Worship, and then work. And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, they set the priests in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise the Lord after the ordinance of David, king of Israel. And they sang together by course and praising and giving thanks unto the Lord, because He is good. For His mercy endureth 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. But many of the priests and Levites and chief of the fathers who were ancient men old men that had seen the first house when the foundation of this house was led before their eyes wept with a loud voice and many shouted aloud for joy so that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people for the people shouted with a loud shout and the noise was heard afar off here's our third word witness Just three words, worship and work and witness. An abductor, abducted or a kidnapper abducted an eight-year-old little girl one morning. He drove around the town and countryside and eventually he rang her family demanding a ransom. Without trying to collect the ransom money, he inexplicably released the unharmed girl to her home And when the offender was finally caught, his fellow citizens in that area were amused because this man who had taken that little girl for some unknown reason was a model citizen. Subsequent investigation into his case revealed that the criminals, that this criminal, his fall into delinquency hadn't been sudden. There had been the history of a slow build-up of adverse circumstances which led to his crime. Someone has said this, collapse in the Christian life is rarely a blowout, it is usually a slow leak. Collapse in the Christian life is rarely a blowout, it is usually a slow leak. I wonder, is that how it has been with you? Here you are, you profess the name of Jesus Christ, but you have slowly drifted away from your Christian moorings. You have slowly drifted away from your Christian foundations. That's how it was with the Jews in Babylon. For 490 years, the land of Judah had no rest. Think of it. 490 years. no sabbatic year had been observed. And so 70 sabbatic years had been ignored. And so what did God do? He chastened His people, He disciplined His people, and He put them into the land of Babylon for 70 years. Now in the providence of God, they had traveled a distance of a great many miles, a thousand miles, nine hundred miles. They had taken a journey of four months. They are now back in the land of promise again. It's interesting that Ezra wrote nothing about this trip. He wrote nothing about the experiences that they had during those four difficult months. Reminds me a bit of Moses description of Abraham and Sarah's journey into Canaan He says and they went forth into the land of Canaan and into the land of Canaan they came Alexander McLaren says it's a strange narrative of a journey which omits the journey altogether But it's beginning and it's end. He says are these not the main points in life its direction and its attainment Surely the two most important aspects of your life are the beginning of your life and the ending of your life. That's why it's important for us to begin well. That's why I would encourage you to come to Christ when you are young. When God worked in my life, I was only nine years of age when I knelt at my father's knee and trusted Jesus Christ as my Savior. My dear friend, don't come to the end of your life and blow the smoke of a wasted life into the face of Jesus Christ. Come to Christ at the beginning of your life. But is it not important to end well? Vance Havner, the old American preacher, used to talk about getting home before dark. I wonder, do you want to end well this morning? You see, it's so possible to end with a saved soul and a ruined testimony. Do you know what our constant prayer should be? Lord, help me to end well. Help me never to bring the shame or dishonor or disgrace upon the lovely name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Here they are. They are back in the land again. They are back in the city of Jerusalem. No doubt, as they sat by the Tigris and the Euphrates, they wept. When they considered the privileges that they had scorned, And now they've taken the opportunity to return undesirable. They had contributed to the cost of rebuilding. They are in Jerusalem, the spiritual capital of their homeland. Can you imagine the depth of feeling that they must have had as they stood in the midst of a ruined temple? Can you enter into the thoughts that must have coursed their minds? Here they are. They are standing in a ruined city. They are standing in a desecrated temple in the very place where God had chosen to reveal His glory. But now there's a new beginning. There's a glorious opportunity to start over again. I wonder, is that what you need to do this morning as a Christian? Maybe as a believer you have lived carelessly. You have failed miserably. You have disobeyed continually. Thank God this morning you can start again. For look at this passage and notice first of all that worship was restored. Worship was restored. Look at verse 2. Verse 2b. They built 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. Verse 3, the end phrase. They offered burnt offerings thereon to the Lord, even burnt offerings morning and evening. The altar was the place of worship. Of Abraham we read, And Abraham went out of Egypt unto the place of the altar which he had made there at the beginning. And there Abraham called on the name of the Lord. What was the first thing that Elijah did when he got to Mount Carmel? And after the prophets of Baal had cried in vain to their sun god, Elijah repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down. You see, the people had to get back to a right relationship with God through worship and prayer. Of course, revival always starts in worship. When there is a stirring of the people of God, chapter 1, the result will be there will always be a return to the place of worship. One of the sad things in Ulster is that so many people whose names are on church rolls seldom ever darken the door of those churches. I think of so-called members of this fellowship, so-called, who are rarely here to worship with us. But here were a people who were determined to set their worship and their lives on a right footing from the beginning and worship was restored. Now let me break that down further for you. Notice there was a propriety about this worship. Verse 3, this passage tells me they offered burnt offerings thereon unto the Lord. These were the most common offerings for sin. This was an offering that depicted The Lord Jesus, as the one who was obedient unto death, even the death of the cross, the burnt offering speaks of the devotion of the Lord Jesus. It speaks of the consecration of the Lord Jesus, who offered himself without spot to God. He died in the sinner's place. And our worship, my friends, this morning, our fellowship is based, our fellowship is based on the sacrifice of the cross. Indeed, the altar and the burnt offering answer to the deep cry of man. Wherewith shall I come before the Lord and by myself before the high God? The basis of our worship this morning is Calvary. There is no other altar. Christ has been sacrificed once and for all. And our worship this morning is built on the basis of the cross. This morning, ours is a table of remembrance rather than an altar. We look back with gratitude at what was accomplished by the sharing of the precious blood of the Savior on the cross. We look inward, lest there should be any harboring of sin. We look upward, where Christ is seated for us on the right hand of the Majesty on high. We look forward, as we have heard this morning, for this table is only until He comes. My dear friends, this morning, the only altar we build is a biblical understanding of the cross, which is the fundamental theology of our worship. There was a propriety about this worship. Look again at this chapter, and you'll notice there was not only a propriety about this worship, but there was an authority about this worship. You see, while our worship this morning is grounded on the work of the cross, our worship is to be guided by the Word of God. Did you notice in chapter 3, the place these returning captives gave to the Word of God? For example, verse 2, in offering burnt offerings, they did so as it is written in the law of Moses, the man of God. in observing the Feast of Tabernacles. It was as it was written. Then, when they laid the foundation of the Second Temple at the dedication, the accompanying ceremonial was after the ordinance of David, King of Israel. In other words, everything they did was in accordance with the Word of God. Whatever they may have practiced in Babylon, whatever the rights and customs down there in the land of captivity, all had been set aside, all had been left behind, and now nothing could satisfy them short of the Word of God. I submit to you this morning that our worship must be based on the Word of God. It must adhere to the principles that are laid down before us in Holy Scripture. You remember David? David discovered that God is not only concerned about our motive in worship, God is concerned about our method in worship. He's concerned about how we worship Him. You know, my dear friends, we live in a day and age when so many innovations are being brought into the worship of God. And sometimes people will say to us, well, why don't you try this? And why don't you try that? And why don't you try the other? Because we want our worship to be based on the authority of the Word of God. And if we have no thus saith the Lord for it, we don't want it. There was an authority about their worship. Incidentally, is that why you've come this morning to worship the Lord? To give unto Him glory and strength and power and honor? You see, my dear friends, there is a certain attitude in today's church that worship is something for us. Worship is something for us! Oh, it's wonderful to sense the presence of God in our times of worship. And it's wonderful to know the nearness of the Lord Jesus. But when it comes to worship, we shouldn't be coming to worship for, what will I get out of it? we should be coming to the house of God more in terms of not getting, but more in terms of giving. Worship is giving unto the Lord the praise and the devotion and the adoration of our hearts. And there was a propriety about this worship, and there was an authority about this worship. And then if you look at verse three, there was a regularity about this worship. They offered burnt offerings morning and evening. Verse four, daily burnt offerings. In the Old Testament, there were five offerings that were made, and there were seven feasts that were recorded. The Feast of Tabernacles, well, that brought joy to the heart of the people, but my dear friends, the burnt offering, it was all for God. Maybe some brother will take that up at the table this morning. The burnt offering was all for God. The Feast of Tabernacles brought joy to the heart of the people, but the burnt offering brought joy to the heart of God. For here were these people, and they were just out of Babylon, and oh, they saw it as a tremendous privilege to engage in corporate worship at the beginning of the day and at the end of the day. Isn't it tragic that some of churches have decided on the Lord's Day to close their evening service. Isn't it tragic that many professing Christians have replaced the Lord's Day with the Lord's Half Day? And so they come out on Sunday morning as if they're Roman Catholics going to chapel, and then they spend the rest of the day as they please. Is it not our sad reflection on the level of our commitment that we give so little of our time to the Lord? I was thinking about the persecuted church through the week, those believers in Muslim countries. They're always shouting about what they want to get in the United Kingdom. I'll tell you this, they don't give so much in their own land. They're persecuting our brothers and sisters this morning and hounding them and harrying them to death. But I was thinking about the persecuted church and their meeting together at the risk of their liberty. Ah, and their meeting together at the risk of their lives. They'd never miss an opportunity for worship. Worship restored. There was a propriety about their worship. There was an authority about their worship. There was a regularity about their worship. Did you notice there was a unity about their worship? Did you notice the emphasis on unity? Look at it. In chapter 3, verse 1, they gathered together. In chapter 3, verse 9, they stood together. In chapter 3, verse 11, they worshipped together. That's how it was. They were one. They gathered together. They stood together. They worshipped together. Reminds me of the early church in Acts 2 1 and when the day of Pentecost was come They were all with one accord in one place Indeed the key term in the book of Acts is one accord You see my friends this morning. We're not just a collection of individuals We are members together in the body of Jesus Christ Paul says so we being many are one body in Christ and everyone members one of another Do you know how the body of Jesus Christ was created? Paul tells us. He says in 1 Corinthians 12, For by one Spirit were we all baptized into one body, whether we be born or free, and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. The unifying baptism of the Holy Spirit took place on the day of Pentecost and every believer partakes of that baptism at the point of conversion. And so the people of God are one body in the Lord. We are all one in Jesus Christ. We're not running around trying to create a false unity like the ecumenical movement. God forbid. That unity already exists. But those of us who are thus united are asked to work toward its maintenance, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. That's something we're not very good at, is it? I heard about two sisters, and they were always fighting and quarreling. You know how it is with kids. And after one bout of squabbling, the mother broke them up one day and said, Your sisters, you ought to love one another. And one of the sisters looked at her mommy after a period of unusual silence, and she said, I know she's my sister, but do I really have to love her? Can't I just like her? I wonder, do you feel exactly the same way this morning? I wonder, how have you come to the house of God? Have we come as one man, unitedly, harmoniously? Maybe you've come with that unforgiving spirit. Maybe you've come with that bitter attitude. I don't know, but God knows. Maybe you've come with that long-standing grievance in your heart. When will we ever learn that it's in the place of unity that the Lord commands the blessing, even life forevermore? Worship was restored. Look very quickly. Work was resumed. You see, Worship should always lead us to work. Some people think there's a dichotomy between worship and work. Some Christians put all their emphasis on worship and they have no time for work. And some Christians put all their emphasis on work and they have no time for worship. It's the Mary Martha syndrome all over again. You remember that day when the Lord Jesus came to that little home in Bethany on the east side? of the city of Jerusalem, and before long those two sisters were preparing a tasty meal. And things were well underway when Mary decides to sit at Jesus' feet and hear His Word. And poor Martha, her mind is on the kitchen just like we men. She's distracted. She's thinking about the accumulation of dirty dishes and dirty pots and pans. She's thinking about the potatoes that she has on the ring and the steaks that are in the oven. And can't you imagine her running around the kitchen and she's trying to do several things at the same time. And then she comes to the Lord Jesus in a huff. She says, Lord, do you not care that my sister hath left me alone? left me to serve alone. Bitter therefore that she helped me. I just wondered, did the Lord smile then? He certainly said, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things, but one thing is needful, and Mary has chosen that good part which shall not be taken away from her. See what he was saying. He was saying that worship must come before work. Indeed, I'm here to tell you this morning that your work for Jesus Christ will never be effective unless your worship of Jesus Christ is effective. You see, when you worship the Lord, when you fall at His feet in adoration and devotion, when there's an outpouring like that woman with the alabaster box of ointment, and there's an outpouring of your love for the Savior, you'll want to do something for the Lord. You'll notice that Ezra 3 here, you'll notice the commencement of the work. What work were they going to do? They were going to lay the foundation of the temple. It says in verse 6, look at it, but the foundation of the temple of the Lord was not yet laid. And then look at verse 10, and when the builders laid the foundation of the temple, and so between verse 6 and verse 10, there's some work going on. It's laying the foundation of the temple. That's the work. Now, I don't really know much about building. In fact, to tell you the truth, I don't know very much about anything in terms of electricity or building or anything like that. Catherine says if she marries for the second time, it'll never be a preacher. I'm absolutely hopeless. That's why one of the first things I do when I go to a new church is look out for those who are handy, and I can see them all dotted around the place this morning. I'm often on the phone with them. I don't know much about the foundation of a building. But I know this, the foundation of a building determines the size of the building, doesn't it? And the foundation of the building determines The strength of the building and the foundation of the building determines the shape of the building. And I know this, I'm stupid about those things, but I know this. If you want to go up and up and up, you have to go down and down and down. And that's why the psalmist said, if the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do? There's only one answer, lay the foundations again. And is that not what spiritual revival is all about? It's getting back to the foundations of the Christian life and making sure they're solid. The Word of God, the Lord Jesus, prayer, obedience, holiness of foundations are extremely important. We need to ensure, those of us who are in leadership, that we have a solid foundation for this church. We need to ensure that it's founded on the incarnate Word, the Lord Jesus. It's not built on no pope or priest or prelate or pastor. Other foundation can no man lay than that which is led, which is Jesus Christ. It must be built on Christ, His person, His work, His precious blood, but it must be founded on the Word of God, not only on the incarnate Word, but on the written Word. You remember the promise of the Savior, I will build my church. The gates of hell shall not prevail against it. The house of God in Ezra's day was material. The house of God in our day is spiritual. But isn't it comforting to know this morning that the future of the church, it doesn't depend on important people, it doesn't depend on fancy gimmicks, it doesn't depend on slick programs. What Christ has commenced, he'll continue, he'll consummate. but he's chosen to use people. That's why we read in this chapter not only about the commencement of the work, but the commitment of the workmen. You see, they had a work to do, and so the priests and the Levites and all the people were involved. You see, there was a division of labor as the foundation of this temple was being led, and there was a commitment to get the job done. facing a task unfinished. Is that not where we are today? You know, you would fancy coming into a church building this morning this size. You would fancy with this congregation. We would never have any vacancies in every department of the work. I'm here to tell you this morning that I'm often ashamed at the lack of commitment that we have for people who will put their shoulder to the wheel in terms of the creche, in terms of the Sunday school, in terms of the children's work, in terms of the youth work, in terms of the outreach work, in terms of the Tate ministry. I'm often ashamed. We've got plenty of people who'll come here this morning and they'll warm a seat and they'll put a few bob in the box. But that's all. That's their commitment to the work of Jesus Christ. Shame on us! When we think of the sacrifice of the cross, when we think of all that the Lord Jesus accomplished on our behalf, there should be an outgoing, a pouring out of our love to Him, saying, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? Facing a task unfinished. How thankful we are today of those who have got gifts and talents to bring into the service of the Lord. But the Holy Spirit of God has not left one single believer without a gift, for He distributes severally to every man as He will. That is, the Spirit of God sovereignly bestows gifts upon the church. And I'm here to tell you this morning that as a Christian you have at least one gift. But you see, the real question, it's not one of gift often, and it's not even one of opportunity. Sometimes it's one of faithfulness. It's one of commitment. I was thinking about the question that the servants of Naaman put to their master when he shunned the proposal of Elisha. Elisha said to Naaman, go and wash in Jordan seven times. And that proud Syrian general, he pulled back his shoulders and he says, are not Aban and Pharphar, rivers of Damascus, better than all these waters of Jordan? And my dear friends, he's right. Jordan is a dirty river. But here's what the servant said to Naaman. Here's the question that's been on my mind. If the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldst thou not have done it? And it seems to me that there are many empty-handed Christians, and they're waiting for the Lord to give them some great thing to do. My friends, the Scriptures teach us that if we're faithful in that which is least, God will promote us to that which is bigger. Faithfulness in little things is God's appointed way to bigger things. And I'm just wondering, does the fervor and the fervency of these Old Testament saints put us to shame? Maybe you're here this morning and you've lost your enthusiasm for the work. Maybe you're saying, well, I've done my bit. Sure you know I've done my bit. I've given here and I've given there, and I've done my bit. Do you know what David Livingstone said? That pioneer missionary to Africa, he walked over 29,000 men. Think of it. Walking. 29,000 men. His wife died early in his ministry. he faced stiff opposition from his Scottish brethren, and the words that he wrote in his diary tremendously challenged me. He said, Lord, send me anywhere, only go with me. Lay any burden upon me, only sustain me. Sever me from any tie but the tie that binds me to your service and heart. And when I read that, it left me ashamed. How do you feel? of the workmen. I wonder, is there some job in the assembly that you could do? You know what amazes me? I'm just telling you what's on my heart this morning. It amazes me, you know, that Christians can go outside the assembly, and they're involved in this organization, and that organization, and the other organization, and the other society, that's fine. But what I read most about in this book is the local church. It's the local church, you know. It's the local church in the New Testament. And your talents and gifts should be exercised here, I wonder, as God touched your heart, is there some wee thing that you could do, just some wee thing that you could do that nobody else could do? Something that maybe you feel is insignificant, but something that you could contribute to the ministry of the church here, whether it's in the creche, in the Sunday school, with the children and the youth, with the women, with the outreach, with the internet? Commitment. My time is gone, I just want to draw your attention to one verse in closing. Look at verse 12. There was much else that was in my heart that I wanted to say this morning. I want you to notice that worship was restored and work was resumed and then witness was recorded. Look at verse 12. But many of the priests and Levites and chief of the fathers who were ancient men, that had seen the first house when the foundation of this house was laid, Before their eyes wept with a loud voice, and many shouted for joy, so that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the house of the weeping of the people. For the people shouted with a loud shout, and the noise was heard afar off. Witness was recorded. The people shouted with a loud voice, and the noise was heard afar off. There was celebration. They sang. There was proclamation. They shouted. But notice there was lamentation. They sighed. I mean, look at verse 12. It says they wept. Why did they weep? Because they had seen the original house in its glory. They had seen Solomon's temple over 50 years before. And this new foundation that they were laying was nothing in comparison with it. These godly old men longed for the good old days. But it was the sins of their generation that had caused the fall of the kingdom to begin with. You see, there are people who are looking in the wrong direction. The tendency of the young is to look to the future. The tendency of the old is to look to the past. Warren Wiersbe says we can learn from the past, but we can't live in the past. And you need to be very careful because you can be getting yourself, and I've done it, and we've all done it, talking about the good old days. like the wee girl, and she was listening to her granny as her granny read through the stories of the Bible and she looked up into her granny's face and she said, Granny, wasn't God exciting in those days? Are you tempted to think this morning that God is no longer exciting? That his great deeds are all in the past? Are you like these old timers here? Someone comes along and looks at the foundation of the second temple and says, isn't the foundation of the second temple beautiful? And some old-timer says, sure. But you know, you ought to have been around when Solomon's temple was led. It was nothing in comparison to that. I remember when. I remember when Pastor Mullen was here. You know, there were souls saved every Sunday night. I remember when the Bible class was packed to capacity. I remember when the prayer meeting was on fire. I remember when I heard about a man who wrote a letter to the editor of the newspaper and he said, you know, your paper's not as good as it used to be. And the editor said, our paper never was as good as it used to be. And sometimes the older folk can discourage the young by their constant crack about the way it used to be. Oh, this is good. But you should have been back in W.P. Nicholson's day. We really had it then. I've got good news for you this morning. God is as just as real in 2009 as he was in 1859, as he was in the 1920s, as he was in the 1950s, as he was in the 1960s. And old saints can either be a help or a hindrance to young Christians, and young Christians can either be a burden or a blessing to old saints. And we need to work together as we go forward in the work of God. I like what Jerry Vine said, if you've got a congregation that's all old, they'll bind you up. He said if you've got a congregation that's all young, they'll burn you up. He said, if you've got a congregation of young and old, they'll build you up. It takes all of us together in the work of God. We certainly can't ignore the past, but the past must be a rudder to guide us, not an anchor to hold us back. God's people are a family. They're not a family album. They're a garden. They're not a graveyard covered with monuments. to pass successes. We could be singing or should be singing constantly, I'm pressing on the upward way. New heights I'm gaining every day, still praying as I onward bound. Lord, plant my feet in solid ground. Starting again. Worship restored, work resumed, Witness recorded. Is that what you need to do? Do you see that burned offering? Do you see it? Chapter 3. It not only speaks of the total consecration of Christ, it was all for God. I rarely hear that ministry at the table. all for God. But it not only speaks of the total consecration of Christ, it speaks of the total commitment of Christians. There's an old hymn that begins like this, As you're all on the altar of sacrifice, lay it. Is it? Are you totally sold out to Him. Let's pray. Father, thank You for Your Word. Thank You for its challenge, its encouragement, and its instruction. Blessed to all our hearts and us in Thy service. For Christ's sake, amen. Let's turn to our hymn books, to 400, Seventy, please, Savior, Thy dying love, Thou gavest me, nor should I ought withhold my Lord from Thee. Love my soul would bow, my heart fulfill its vow. Some offering bring thee now, something for thee. If you're not staying quietly and reverently on the second verse, and I'll go to the door and the rest of the congregation will sing through the hymn. 4-7