As
a result, the people couldn't distinguish between the noise coming from
the shouts of joy and the noise coming from the weeping people, because
everyone was shouting loudly and could be heard a long way off. Ezra
3:13 (ISV)
Because of
Israel’s refusal to abandon their idols and worship the one true God,
they were judged by the Lord and taken away into captivity by the
Babylonians. This captivity was to last 70 years. The Persians
overthrew the Babylonians in 539 B.C. and King Cyrus made a decree
granting all Jews permission to return to their homeland. The main
objective upon returning home was to rebuild the Temple that the
Babylonians had previously destroyed. When the foundation for a new
Temple way laid, for many it was a time of great joy. However, others
were not happy about what they were witnessing. Why was one group so
excited and praising the Lord, while the other group was sad and
weeping?
The elders of Israel remembered the first
temple. They remembered the gold and the glory. They remembered the old
days when the temple of the Lord was one of the wonders of the ancient
world. They remembered a temple that housed the Ark of the Covenant and
the mercy seat. They began to see that this temple new would be
smaller. They also knew that all the things that made the first temple
precious, the Ark and its contents, the mercy seat, and the glory cloud
were forever gone. This realization broke their hearts and they wept
bitterly.
The other group, did not remember the first
temple. They had no idea of what it had looked like or of the glory
that had been in it. All they remember was a life of captivity and
bondage in a foreign land. No doubt many of these people had been born
during the time of Israel’s captivity and all they could remember was
their slavery. But, they also remembered how God in His power had
delivered them from that bondage. They could not remember that first
temple, but they were thankful for what they had! These young people
had no frame of reference concerning the old days, but they were excited
about what God was doing in their day.
My friends, it
is not fair to compare the visible demonstration of the height of what
was with these early moments of what we are now experiencing.
Understand this, we have yet to see the Church as God has planned it.
God is laying a new root system and foundation for things to come. Some
people are so caught up on the past, they miss what God is doing in the
present. Does that mean we trade in church pews for theater seats and
lighting? Does that mean we exchange the preacher for illustrated
sermons and worship dramas? NO!!!! We also can not become so trendy
that we forget about what God has done and the power used to do it.
We
can sit here looking back to the past, longing for the old days,
dreaming of the way things were, and get absolutely nothing done for the
Lord. We can also become all caught up in the latest movie, book or
trend and still fail to do anything for the Lord. The key is to be
where God IS not where he was or where you think He'll be. The people
of God have always done better, when we are all focused on opportunity
God has before us and not our own little agendas.
If
we’re going to "SHIFT", we all need to focus on the real concrete issue:
What is God saying NOW? We should not focus on secondary issues and
get sidetracked. (to be continued)
Prayer
God,
help me to do what You have called me to do! I realize cannot go back
to the times of great revival in the church and live in them. Neither
will I, embrace everything that is being promoted in this modern age. I
commit my life to You, show me where I can be most effective in giving
You glory while I still have time in Jesus Name, Amen.
Go Deeper
Ezra 3: 7-13; Isaiah 43:19; Jeremiah 31:13; Matthew 10:34; Matthew 23:23; Acts 2:17
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