Ezra - Rebuilding the Temple

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Ezra 3: 8-10

Vs. 8- Now in the second month of the second year of their coming to the house of God at Jerusalem, Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and the rest of their brethren the priests and the Levites, and all those who had come out of the captivity to Jerusalem, began work and appointed the Levites from twenty years old and above to oversee the work of the house of the Lord.

• Erecting an altar to restore worship with God was urgent and most paramount. This could not wait.
• The men waited several months before work commenced on the physical temple.
• Delay in re-building of the temple was neither due to lack of finances nor materials (Ezra 1:4, 6-11; 2:68; 3:7).
• Jesus would not release a man to commence work on any external work, when our inner lives are still in ruins. Reconnecting with God took several months. Their obedience to leave captivity was just the first step.
• Even when the call to Arise and Build was clear; these men still needed to come into a quarry experience for decluttering and moulding; seek God and wait for instructions/approval on when and how to build according to pattern.
• Oneness amongst the men was the result of God working on their hearts, as well as renewing their minds whilst waiting.

• Even when the call on our men is clear, let their hearts be open, pliable and surrendered to God’s outworking on their lives.
• Let their expectations be of the LORD.
• Lord, let our men know that their times are in God’s hands.
• Help our men maximize and value their dark room/quarry experience instead of seeing it as a waste of time. Make it clear that their inner lives are of utmost importance to Christ.
• Even when they have the resources to build; cause our men to still wait on Jesus for instructions on how and when to build.

Vs 9 - Then Jeshua with his sons and brothers, Kadmiel with his sons, and the sons of Judah, arose as one to oversee those working on the house of God: the sons of Henadad with their sons and their brethren the Levites.

Fathers, sons, brothers and brethren all arose as one to oversee those working on the house of God.

• Jesus, find expression and continuity in all of our men- Fathers, sons, brothers and brethren.
• Don't allow our sons to arise but our fathers are asleep in Babylon.
• In every generation, LORD please capture the heart of all our men so that they can be disciples indeed who arise as ONE.

Vs. 10 - When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priests stood in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise the Lord, according to the ordinance of David king of Israel.

• Help our men bend down to lay the foundation of Christ as the Chief cornerstone; builders of destiny; intercessors/priests over their home; Levites that bring down the very presence of God. All these done not by power or might but by the Holy Spirit.
• Cause our men to stand in the authority that Christ has bestowed on them.
• Cause our men to appreciate the diversities amongst them without breaking ranks.
• Let the set-up and standard of their labour be CHRIST.

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Ezra - God's Standard for Rebuilding

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Ezra 1: 1 – 7

The rebuilding done by the Israelites, following their return from Babylon after 70 years was remarkable. Operating in sorrow and joy, they were able to gather in one accord to build unto the Lord; following the standard of God.

1. On their return, their hands were full of businesses to provide for themselves and their families; but these were not excuses for them to refrain from building as commanded.
2. Their holy zeal for the things of God, made them see all other areas of their lives as secondary to the paramount call of heaven. Matthew 6:33
3. They could not build a temple immediately, but they could not be without an ALTAR! They made good use of their fears in building an altar as a matter of urgency.
4. They built on the same foundation, at the same place and on the same bases in order to follow God's requirements, in meeting the standard of Heaven. 1^st Corinthians 3:11 and1^st Corinthians 10:1-4

Prayer:

• Lord, increase the zeal of our men for the things that pertain to God. Deliver them from all forms of excuses (no matter how genuine), that are taking them away from heeding the call of heaven in their lives. Let them trust in Your supernatural provision.
•  As the life of Jesus is an Altar made ready for us, Lord please help our men to make “an altar” ready through their lives as “one man” for their generation and generations to come. Let them build on the same foundation as laid down by our Lord Jesus Christ. Release a fresh spark, that will fire them up for the service of God into their lives.
•  Lord, please open the eyes of our men to the urgency in building with You for their generation and generations after them. Let the fear of God drive them into purposeful building for Your Kingdom. Help them to put the glories of this world behind, and set the CROSS of Jesus before them at all times.
•  Lord, let the lives of our men meet Your requirements at all times. Make Your standard their daily code, and help them to obey the instructions of heaven without delay. Grant them divine ability to approach You faithfully and to perfect holiness in the fear of God always.

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Ezra - Rebuilding the Altar

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Ezra 3:2-6

Then Joshua son of Jozadak 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. ³ 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. ⁴ Then in accordance with what is written, they celebrated the Festival of Tabernacles with the required number of burnt offerings prescribed for each day. ⁵ After that, they presented the regular burnt offerings, the New Moon sacrifices and the sacrifices for all the appointed sacred festivals of the Lord, as well as those brought as freewill offerings to the Lord. ⁶ On the first day of the seventh month they began to offer burnt offerings to the Lord, though the foundation of the Lord’s temple had not yet been laid.

• The proclamation of God through King Cyrus was for men to arise and build a temple for HIM in Jerusalem.
• Jerusalem was desolate, abandoned, the men were fearful of the people around; the city walls and gates in ruins; notwithstanding that the first action for the men was to build an altar. The natural man may have focused first on rebuilding the city walls to protect themselves.
• They searched the scriptures and found what was written in the Law of Moses.  Leviticus 1-8 & 23
• They not only returned to the land, they also returned to the Law of Moses.
• The Bible was their final authority so that neither the ideas nor opinions of individuals factored into their decision on how to build the Temple.
• The focus must never first be how to protect and nourish our lives- the first port of call ought to be the ALTAR- the place of sacrifice; the place of communion; the place of rededication and repentance. The Word of God (JESUS) ought to be the final authority that dictates all we do.

 Prayer Points

• Let the hearts of our men return both to JESUS and HIS Word.
• Let JESUS (the Word) be the final authority in the lives of our men.
• Make our men those who search the scriptures, to find out what is written concerning them and help them pursue that instruction to the end.
• Open their eyes to see that putting their spiritual lives in order is of higher priority than national defence.
• Let our men enjoy the blessing of YOUR protection as they seek to put CHRIST first.
• Notwithstanding the fears; threats; logical sense; lack etc., help them focus on standing on the altar of the FULL GOSPEL.
• The altar symbolises sacrifice; a place of repentance, re-dedication & de-cluttering; and a place of communion. Bring these virtues to bear in a definite way in our men. The altar must not just become a formality for them.
• Cause the Word of God (JESUS), to dwell richly in their hearts such that HE prevails over the decision on how to build instead of individual ideas or opinions.
• In accordance with what is written, let our men arise and build- step into their labour and inheritance.

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Ezra - Oneness, Prerequisite for Revival

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Ezra 3:1

And when the seventh month had come, and the children of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered together as one man to Jerusalem.

All of the men who arose must have been:

·         Confronted with uncertainty as they returned to Jerusalem

·         Exposed to myriad challenges whilst in Babylon that could have easily marred them

·         Different ages, tribes, status and experiences (Ezra 2:2-68).

Despite their differences in background; challenges or experiences; they all had a common thread that set them apart- ONENESS.

•   Different men but ONE in their responses- God moved on their spirits and they arose to go up and build (Ezra 1:5)
• Oneness in vision and mission- To build the house of the LORD in Jerusalem
• Gathered together as one man- Regardless of whether one man was a slave and the other a representative of heads of families; Israelite by Family origin vs. Unknown origin; Forgotten ones vs. Leaders.
• One in Faith- Trusted in God for provisions, skill set and know-how to start and complete the assignment

Revival inevitably breaks forth and the heavens are opened when men who respond to God’s call to build ‘gather together as ONE- e.g., Disciples in the Acts of Apostles; John Knox; Rees Howells; Watchman Nee. It is in this unity of Spirit that God commands His blessing (Psalm 133; Acts 2:1; Acts 2:42-47; Acts 4:23-31)

Possible delays in Revival

• A man cannot be a tool for revival if he is not first ONE with Christ.
•  Delays in any man’s obedience can cause a ripple effect delay on all the lives he’s suppose to impart.
• Men who bypass God’s call will only attempt to artificially gather together other men- this does not result in revival even though lives may have been blessed as a result.
• The devil tries to stifle the gathering together of men who have responded to God and are one in vision, faith and end goal.

Prayer Points

• We bring all our Ezra’s before YOU- make them rooted, grounded and established inside CHRIST.
• Cause them to be one with YOU.
•  Disrupt every journey to Damascus and divert them to JERUSALEM- THE CITY OF OUR GOD.
• Lord, accelerate Your work in the heart and lives of our Ezras so that revival will not tarry any longer on their account.
•  Remove any obstacle in the heart of our Ezra that promotes disobedience; undue hesitation to respond to God; remove every veil that makes them not embrace JESUS; fear of lack or unknown; short sightedness and coldness in spirit.
• Move on the heart of my Ezra and cause him to arise and build like YOU did for others who have gone ahead of him - Ezra 1:5
•  Cause our Ezra to follow the example of their BIG brother Jesus – who was one with God and the HOLY SPIRIT. Make my Ezra, one in passion, vision, mission, faith, love like Jesus  
•   Let us see in our days the exponential effect of all our Ezras' coming together as one man for the cause of Christ.
•   Let ACTS 2:42-47 become our reality.
•   Grant us the privilege of seeing our Ezra’s stand out as God’s representatives.
• Rebuke every attempt of the enemy to sow discord as our Ezra gather together as one man

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Ezra - Men who Heed the Call

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Ezra 2:1

• Responding to God’s call to arise and build is a call to follow Jesus and come up and out of captivity.

Ezra 2: 2 - 68

• Men, who arose and returned to Jerusalem and Judah to rebuild the temple, gladdened the heart of God.
• Those men knew they were never to return to Babylon.
• God is particular and deliberate in His dealings with each of our Ezra’s which is why He allowed and allotted 64 verses to list their names.
• God’s call to arise and build is extended to all men - no clan, tribe, tongue or class is exempt.

A look at the diversity of men who arose

Ezra 2:2  Leaders – Pastors; Bishops; Clergy; Prophets; Teachers; Governors; Senators; Commissioners; Chiefs; Princes; Princesses; Mayors; Queens; Kings; Prime Ministers & Celebrities

Ezra 2: 3-20 Israelites by families of origin - Spiritual adoption (gentiles whether born again now or not) or Jews by birth

Ezra 2: 21-35  Israelites by places of origin- Men from all nations, tribe or tongue

Ezra 2: 36-39 Priestly families

Ezra 2: 40 Levites

Ezra 2: 41 Singers

Ezra 2: 42 Porters; Gate keepers; Security guards.

Ezra 2: 43-54 Temple support workers- workers & ministers in different denominations

Ezra 2: 55-58 King Solomon’s official/servants-professionals; business men & civil servants

Ezra 2: 59-60 Ethnic minorities - Foreigners and  Refugees

Ezra 2: 61-63 Priests who naturalised as citizens via marriage & illegal or unknown origin

Ezra 2: 64-65 Slaves; Prisoners; forgotten ones & persecuted

Ezra 2: 68 Heads of families

Prayer Points

• Let there be a tangible effect to all our men, who will heed the call to arise and build.
• Please do not allow any of our Ezra’s quit half way. Help them go all the way- Holy Spirit, walk with them till the very end.
• Do not let our Ezra forsake Jesus like Demas, or betray Him like Judas or even despise their birthright like Esau.
• We do not want the names of our Ezra to be erased from God’s list
• Lord, send us Ezras' from all walks of life as seen in Ezra 2. Let none be too big to respond to You. 

Come Die, Come Live (If anyone wants to come after me)

If anyone wants to come after me  

Let them say 'no' to their own way
If anyone wants to be my disciple  
Let them say 'no' to their own way

Come die, come live 
This is true freedom 
Come die, come live 
Lay down your own life and follow 
Lay down your own life and follow

Whoever fights for the rights to their own life  
Will lose it both now and forever
Whoever lays down their own life for my sake
Will find it and keep it forever

Graham Kendrick

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Ezra- Come Up and Out of Captivity

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MEN OF COURAGE!-Ezra 2:1

Now these are the children of the province that went up out of the captivity, of those which had been carried away,... Vs. 1a

The enemy seeks to waylay the hearts of our men with sin; sinful habits; love for the world and world system so that they are perpetually lost in Babylon.  This deters their manifestations as sons of God and perpetuates the groaning of the earth. Heeding God’s offer to arise, take up your cross, come, and follow Me is a call to come up and out of captivity. Yet, only a select few respond. Many others seemed satisfied to settle in Babylon.

Captivity- the state of being kept in a place (such as prison or cage) and not being able to leave or be free: confinement: impoundment: imprisonment

What is it that makes a man at ease in captivity?

Why would everyone not gladly accept the offer to come up and out of imprisonment?

Hebrews 11:24-27 (AMP)

²⁴ [Aroused] by faith Moses, when he had grown to maturity and become great, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter,

²⁵ Because he preferred to share the oppression [suffer the hardships] and bear the shame of the people of God rather than to have the fleeting enjoyment of a sinful life.

²⁶ He considered the contempt and abuse and shame [borne for] the Christ (the Messiah Who was to come) to be greater wealth than all the treasures of Egypt, for he looked forward and away to the reward (recompense).

²⁷ [Motivated] by faith he left Egypt behind him, being unawed and undismayed by the wrath of the king; for he never flinched but held staunchly to his purpose and endured steadfastly as one who gazed on Him Who is invisible. 

• Help our men see that what Babylon offers are fleeting treasures, temporal and only a mirage.
• Like Moses, let our men be motivated by faith to leave Babylon- being unawed and undismayed by whatever consequences come their way.
• Our men must arise, never flinched- holding staunchly to their purpose in Christ.
• Let it dawn on our men, that the man of Calvary is the only remedy that releases men from captivity.
• Deliver our men from this body of sin (death) - let the cross and the work of grace save them from every captivity that hinders their rising and shining.
• Stabilise the hearts of our men to choose the person of Jesus and the principles of the cross over the comforts of Babylon.
• Help our men to discern environments that do not glorify Jesus and grace to re-align accordingly.
• Lord, help our men understand that anything they do that is not for and to Christ is considered idle service and idle investment. 

...and who returned to Jerusalem and Judah, everyone to his own city Vs. 1b

Our men will not come into their own city (inheritance) unless they arise, leave Babylon and come into Jerusalem (Christ). 

Ephesians 3:14-21

• Lord, help our men soberly and solemnly answer the question- ‘For which cause are they living?’ Vs. 14
• Confront our men with the question of ‘What are they bowing their knees to/for?’- Please engage their hearts until Christ become the answer to that question. Vs. 14
• Strengthen our men with might in their inner man by the help of the Holy Spirit. Vs. 16
• We ask that Christ through faith will actually dwell; settle down; abide; make resident and remain permanently in their hearts. Vs. 17
• Let them comprehend the breadth, length, depth and height of God’s love and be filled with the fullness of God. Vs. 18-19

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Ezra- Hear God's Voice

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MEN OF COURAGE!-Ezra 1

Ezra 1:5: "Then rose up the chief of the fathers of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests, and the Levites, with all them whose spirit God had raised, to go up to build the house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem..."

There was good response from some: Judah, Benjamin, the priests, Levites and individuals whose hearts God moved. They heard the voice of God beyond that of King Cyrus. Only those who hear God's voice above that of man can successfully arise. They knew that once they left captivity to build, they were not to come back no matter the challenges that came their way. Their decision to arise could not be reversed.

Those who arose did not confer with others to see their opinion. They heard the challenge and they arose. Yet they did not look down or critcise others for not arising with them. When God's call comes on us, ours is to arise. Our arising might be what God will use to encourage the fainthearted and fearful until they too can hear God. Our arising must never depend on another brother who is still considering whether to arise or not.

• Make our men of the stock that hear Your voice loud and clear, above the voices of those You use to mobilise them like Cyrus. Deepen their communion with You; let them trace Your dealings.
• Count them among those who respond to Your need and call once they hear You.
• Make their decision to arise and build be firm and irreversible, come what may. Let them look up always, not around. Not even to King Cyrus. Good as he was, he could not sustain in the days of challenges because he too was a man needing to look up.
• Help them depend on Your faithfulness rather than on man's mobilisation. Demas could not continue like Luke because his arising probably depended on Paul's mobilisation rather than on Your faithfulness. Once Paul became a prisoner of Rome, Demas forsook him and went back to love this present world in Thessalonica.
• Don't let them compare themselves with others but to know that Your dealing with them is unique though under a corporate umbrella. Rather, let them pursue Your plans for their lives knowing that each of their lives is meant to contribute something to the global move. United yet Unique.
• Don't let them look down on or criticise others for not hearing Your call yet; rather help them encourage others while they stay focused on their own call and arising. The call of Peter as a disciple and an apostle was different from that of Joseph of Arimathea, who also was a disciple. He fulfilled destiny- provided Jesus' grave. "And he made his grave... with the rich in his death;" (Isaiah 53:9).

Ezra 1:6. "And all they that were about them strengthened their hands with vessels of silver, with gold, with goods, and with beasts, and with precious things, beside all that was willingly offered."

When they arose, they found much encouragement from the others. There was much release of provision and freewill giving for the labour. The fear of lack was thrown out.

• Enlarge the hearts of our men. Open also their hands and make them an encouragement by being able to release Your resources in their hands for the labour of building lives.
• For some of our men, part of their arising will be to make resources available for the labour, like the owner of the upper room. Make this unusual call clear to as many as You are calling thus. Help them know that the resources in their hands belong to YOU so they can let it go when needed.
• Forbid it that there will continue to be shortage of labourers because of narrow hearts and tight fists among some of our men. Make them liberal and cheerful givers. Don't let them wait to be asked or pushed before they give. Let them see giving as Your calling on their lives too.

Ezra 1:7-11. "Also Cyrus the king brought forth the vessels of the house of the Lord, which Nebuchadnezzar had brought forth out of Jerusalem, and had put them in the house of his gods; Even those did Cyrus king of Persia bring forth by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer, and numbered them unto Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah."

Even king Cyrus was moved to release all the loot of his predecessors. He returned everything that was stolen from the temple in Jerusalem. These were definite treasures, numbered and weighed. Nothing missing, all accounted for.

• Cause everyone who is holding something concerning the destinies of our men to graciously release. Give them favour before the good men (Cyrus), the leaders and disciplers that are holding things of God in trust, to bless them and release them into destiny as they arise.
• Cause the wicked one that looted from their destinies to release also. Give the command from heaven upon the lives of our men. "It is time to release My men. They have decided to arise!"
• Lord, let nothing be lost or withheld in the release of their destinies. Every grace, every training of life, etc... Lord, please bring a release to all. Make abundant provision to our men as they arise.
• Thank YOU for our men as they commit to arise, go up, and build. Cause them to follow YOU all the way, come what may.

The Voice Of The Master Calls Me

1. The voice of the Master calls me

"Take thy cross, come follow me."

I reply, "My faithful Saviour,

Here I am, I am for Thee."

All the way, I'll follow Thee Lord

Come what may, what ere betides

While I live and when I'm dying

I am Thine forevermore!

2. Though the way of Calv'ry's narrow

May be painful to the flesh

Full of trials and full of snares

It's the only road to life.

3. The more I give up my own life
More of Thine will I possess.
Along with Thy endless riches
O Jesus, Thou art my own.

4. Give me Thy grace and Thy glory

To follow Thee step by step.

Grant me peace, joy and victory
Right from now, all through my days.

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