10/27/2008
Ezra 3:1 - 3 (HCSB) 1By the seventh month, the Israelites had settled in their towns, and the people gathered together in Jerusalem. 2Jeshua son of Jozadak and his brothers the priests along with Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and his brothers began to build the altar of Israel’s God in order to offer burnt offerings on it, as it is written in the law of Moses the man of God. 3They set up the altar on its foundation and offered burnt offerings for the morning and evening on it to the LORD even though they feared the surrounding peoples.
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The Israelites are returning from captivity in Babylon. Decades have passed and some of the very old Israelites remember the former temple that now lies in ruins. Many of the usable stones have been looted for other buildings. What remains is rubble and ashes.
The younger Israelites dedicated themselves to rebuilding the temple and began by building the altar first. But this was not necessarily an easy task. They chose to rebuild the altar even before they had rebuilt the city walls. In the decades that they had been in exile, foreigners had come in and inhabited the surrounding land and did not like the Israelites returning. This made for a dangerous situation, yet, the people Israel had their priorities right. When we align ourselves with His plan, the rest is of no consequence.
How often have we changed our behavior because of our fear of ridicule? Have we ever masked our Christianity so that we could fit-in better?
The Israelites were literally taking a chance with their lives by sacrificing out in the open. Yet, they committed to honor God first and trust Him for security. We should do the same.
In our lives, we don’t risk physical retribution for our devotion to God. The most we risk is ridicule and mockery. Perhaps we should look at those returning Israelites and model our behavior. We should consider our devotion to God such a superior task that nothing can turn us from it.
Jeff Justus
Cleff Publishing
www.cleffpublishing.com
©2008 Cleff Publishing, all rights reserved.
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