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| Worship
and Rebuilding |
| William
Mikler |
"When
the seventh month came and the Israelites had
settled in their towns, the people assembled
as one man in Jerusalem. Then Jeshua son of
Jozdak and his fellow priests and Zerubbabel
son of Shealtiel and his associates began to
build the altar of the God of Israel to sacrifice
burnt offerings on it, in accordance with what
is written in the Law of Moses the man of God.
Despite their fear of the peoples around them,
they built the altar on its foundation and sacrificed
burnt offerings on it to the Lord, both the
morning and evening sacrifices" (Ezra 3:1-3
NIV).
Introduction
In
or around 538 b.c., nearly 43,000 Hebrews returned
to Jerusalem from Babylon for the express purpose
of rebuilding their fallen Temple. Once settled
in their towns, these Hebrews gathered in Jerusalem
for the important first step that had
to precede the rebuilding of their Temple. The
first step was the renewal of Faith and Worship,
based on the reinstitution of the morning and
evening sacrifices of the lamb. Because these
sacrifices were foundational to the life, worship
and work of the people, there could be no hope
of rebuilding anything without them.
The
morning and evening sacrifices of the lamb had
been instituted by God through Moses at Sinai.
According to God's appointment, weekday and Sabbath,
morning and evening, day by day, a year old lamb
was sacrificed as a burnt offering to the Lord.
These sacrifices were to be carried out perpetually
and they were requisites for God's meeting
and speaking with Israel, for His consecrating
of the priests and the Tabernacle (and later
the Temple,) and for His dwelling among
the people. In short, God would not meet with
or dwell among His people, nor would Israel know
Him, if the lambs were not sacrificed daily (cf.
Exodus 29:38-46; Numbers 28:1-10). Thus, Israel's
ongoing fellowship with God was made conditional
upon her faithfully maintaining the daily sacrifices
of the morning and evening lambs. The Hebrew rebuilders
knew that the rebuilding of their Temple (and
later, their Nation) was doomed if they didn't
reestablish their fellowship with God on the basis
of these sacrifices. The
Books of Ezra and Nehemiah should be read as one
book. Ezra tells us of the rebuilding of the Temple,
and Nehemiah tells us of the rebuilding of the
city walls of Jerusalem after the Temple
had been rebuilt. In the order of things, the
rebuilding of the Temple preceded the rebuilding
of the city Walls. The lesson illustrated in
this biblical narrative is that the establishment
of Worship necessarily precedes the rebuilding
of Society. It is worshipping faith that must
precede and accompany the Christian rebuilding
of society and its institutions.
Our Ezra text suggests many things to Christians
who take seriously their responsibility to "...rebuild
the old ruins, raise up the former desolations...repair
the ruined cities, the desolations of many generations
(Isaiah 61:4). May the Holy Spirit help us as
we examine His word.
The
New Beginning in a Call to Worship
Let
us first acquaint ourselves with the historic facts
of the remarkable first assembly of rebuilders which
our text features, making some New Testament applications
as we go along.
"When
the seventh month came and the Israelites had
settled in their towns, the people assembled as
one man in Jerusalem." The first day
of every festival month was a day of blowing of
trumpets (Numbers 10:10). The first day of the
seventh month was unique. It was the Day of Trumpets.
This day was a sabbath, a day of blowing of trumpets,
a day of holy convocation, and a day of offerings
made by fire to the Lord (Leviticus 23:23-25).
It was on this very special day that the newly
arrived exiles of Israel ã assembled as one man
in Jerusalemä for the reinstitution of the daily
sacrifices. We may assume that it was the clear
sound of trumpets blown by priests (cf. Numbers
10:1-10) which signaled the day and summoned Israel
to holy convocation on the site where the sacrifices
would be offered to Jehovah. The
great multitude of rebuilders was marked by unity
of faith and purpose as they assembled, not for
business or political reasons, but for Worship.
What a lesson this suggests for those of us who
wish to rebuild the ruins of our fallen world.
Public Worship before Public Work - gathering
to God through Christ crucified is the proper
starting point for all of our rebuilding efforts.
The
Significance of the Seventh Month
The
seventh month, Tishri, was the last month of the
Mosaic calendarâs religious festival year. It
was during this "last" month that the
year's worship culminated in three great and holy
worship events. First, there was the Day
of Trumpets on the first day (Lev. 23:23-25; Nu.
29:1). Second, on the tenth day was the
Day of Atonement (Lev. 23:26-32). This day secured
right standing (justification) for Israel for
the entire year to come. Third, beginning
on the fifteenth day, was the seven day long celebration
of the Feast of Tabernacles (Lev. 23:33-43). This
feast reminded Israel that she had dwelt in booths
on her sojourn from Egypt to the Promised Land.
This Feast was also a harvest feast÷a feast of
ingathering (cf. Lev. 23:39-43)÷ that under normal
circumstances celebrated the past year's productivity
and looked forward to productivity in the coming
year. For the rebuilders, this Feast would primarily
look ahead.
The
Christian is able to understand that the Day of
Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and the Feast
of Tabernacles each prefigured Christ and His
gospel in profoundly symbolic ways. The Day of
Trumpets symbolized the gospel call and the inauguration
of the New Testament era. The Day of Atonement
symbolized the atoning work of Christ and all
the benefits of redemption and justification that
are ours by Godâs grace and doing. The Feast of
Tabernacles prefigured, among other things, the
future ingathering of the Gentiles into the Church
and the development of the world under Christian
stewardship. One might say that the seventh month
itself, filled as it was with awesome and glorious
worship, provides us a typological figure of the
entire New Covenant dispensation.
The
Offerings on the First Day of the Seventh
Month
Though
our text makes special mention of the morning
and evening sacrifices, it must have been that
all the burnt offerings prescribed by Moses
for this day (including grain and drink offerings)
were offered up to God on this day. These offerings
would have included, in addition to the regular
burnt offerings of the lamb (Nu. 28:3),
one young bull, one ram, one kid, and seven
lambs (cf. Nu. 29:1-6). The assembly thus
gathered to worship God on the basis of substitutionary
sacrifices, among which the lambs were most
prominent. How this preaches to the Church,
which gathers unto God because of the sacrifice
of the Lamb who takes away the sin of the world.
The
Priests Build the Altar and Offer Sacrifices
on It
Because
the Temple had long lain in ruins, the
priests necessarily had to construct the
altar of burnt offering in order to reinstitute
the sacrificial system. Once it was built,
the priests then offered the sacrifices
commanded by Moses. They did so with courage
that overcame their fear of long time
residents of Judea who were hostile to
the Jewsâ return. In the rebuilding of
the altar and the offering of sacrifices
on it according to divine precept, the
rule of the Word of God was reestablished
in Jerusalem. Todayâs ministers need not
build an altar for the people of God,
but if the Church would rebuild the world,
her ministers must as a first duty call
the Church to worship by clearly setting
forth Christ and Him crucified (cf. I
Corinthians 2:2) in all the depth, clarity
and power of the gospel.
The
Trumpets Sound Again
We
return now to the trumpets. The trumpets
that had sounded to call the people to assemble
were now, according to the command of God,
blown over each of the burnt offerings (cf.
Nu. 10:10). The trumpets foreshadowed the
preaching of the gospel in ways that these
rebuilders could not imagine. Even so, the
trumpets announced the sacrifices with a
joyful sound that doubtless stirred the
hearts of the worshipping multitude. In
like manner, Christian ministers must blow
the trumpet of the gospel so as to call
attention to Christâs sacrifice, to honor
it, to celebrate it, to noise it abroad,
and to give the people of God a clear sound
that stays with them, like a melody, when
they lift their hands to worship, and when
they set their hands to work.
This
remarkable assembly of rebuilders was
witness to holy and dramatic events. Their
ears heard the trumpet blasts that
called them to worship and sounded over
the sacrifices. Their nostrils smelled
(and breathed into their own lives) the
aroma of the burnt offerings that permeated
the assembly. Their eyes saw the
mediatorial work of the priests and the
ascending smoke of the sacrifices. Certainly
their hearts were quickened and their
minds were illuminated by the awesome
pageantry as all the senses were called
to attention. In all, faith was directed
heavenward by the ascending smoke of the
sacrifices as the Holy Spirit preached
to them in ritual imagery to trust Almighty
God. Would that all our senses were aroused
and brought to keen and respectful attention
by the gospel that is sung and prayed
and seen and heard in the assemblies of
Godâs Church. It is in worship that lives
are quickened and that the desire to obey
is sharpened. It is in worship that the
motivations of the will are purified and
the thoughts of the mind are clarified.
It is in worship that the worshipper of
God is empowered to serve God in the world
around him.
The
whole of our text preaches Christ and
His gospel to us. Of the many lessons
and parallels we could draw from our text,
I will conclude this message with four
of them. First, for rebuilders,
our text calls us to the right order of
things. Just as the Temple was the
first order of business in the restoration
of Jewish life, so must Faith and Worship
be rebuilt before any serious Christian
Rebuilding of civilization can be done.
Second, our text points us to
the only true foundation for faith, worship
and life, and that is the Lamb of God,
Jesus Christ. Just as faith and worship
for the returning Jews was based primarily
on the mediatorial sacrifices of the morning
and evening lambs, so must the redemptive
sacrifice of Christ be foundational to
our faith and worship.
Third,
our text shows us the importance of the gospel
preached in calling the Church to worship. Just
as the trumpets summoned the Jews to assemble
for worship, so the gospel summons us. Just as
the trumpets were blown over the burnt offerings,
so must the gospel be heralded over the sacrifice
and ascension of Christ.
Fourth,
our text demonstrates the underlying importance
of true worship to all Christian rebuilding and
development efforts. For old Israel, the rebuilding
of life and culture began in earnest with a holy
convocation centered around the gospel as they
knew it in their day. Can we expect to rebuild
our world with any other starting place than solemn
and holy assemblies that approach God on the basis
of Christ crucified? I think not. For rebuilders,
rightly ordered worship is the necessary first
call of the hour. It is time for Godâs ministers
to blow the gospel trumpet and for Godâs people
to assemble in solemn assembly so that God might
be worshipped, and so that mercy and grace might
be obtained by the Church on the basis of Christâs
finished sacrificial work. There is no other starting
place than this for the simple reason that Faith
and Worship must both precede and accompany
the Rebuilding of our fallen world, and must do
so on the basis of the gospel that honors Christ,
instructs our faith, calls us to worship and sends
us into the world with power to refashion it in
the limitless power of grace.
A
Closing Prayer
May
the ministers of the gospel sound the
gospel trumpet in such a way as to call
all Christian rebuilders to worship
God, through Christ, by the power of
the Holy Spirit. May the worship of
the Church become what God wishes it
to be. And may worshipping rebuilders
be graced by God to rebuild and develop
the world for the glory of God. In Jesus'
name, Amen.
©
1999 William Mikler, Emissary International.
All rights reserved. Used by permission.
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