Sermon Tone Analysis

“*PROFILE OF A REMNANT PEOPLE*”

(A Series on Ezra: Building His Church)

 

Westgate Chapel 3~/5~/95 a.m.

Ezra 2:1-70

 

PROPOSITION:  Those who respond to the call of God to be His remnant people and rebuild Zion have a common profile...a common identity, similar companions, a commitment to ministry, evidence of their security, and a Source for their success in rebuilding the City of God.                                                        

! i. introduction

!! -     THE book of Ezra, in the Old Testament, is the story of how God rebuilt the city of Jerusalem and the Temple...using a remnant  of His people who had been in captivity in Babylon for over 70 years.

!! -     GOD had delivered the Israelite nation from slavery in Egypt, 470 years earlier, and had taken them to the promised land of Canaan.

!! -     HE made them a chosen people through whom He would reveal Himself to the nations of the world.

!! -     BUT in the 400 years that they were in the Promised Land they had gotten lazy and fat and had turned to worshipping the pagan gods of the Canaanites surrounding them.

!! -     SO, after sending prophets and tough times to try and turn them back to Him, He sent Nebuchadnezzar to  take the nation of Israel into captivity in Babylon.

!! -     FOR 70 years the people of God languish in a foreign land, held captive by a pagan king.....longing to go back to Zion.

!! -     NOW, after 70 years of God’s discipline in that dark land,  hope begins to flicker.

!! -     CYRUS is the Persian king on the throne of Babylon and  is moved by the Spirit of God to let Israel return to Jerusalem to rebuild the city, the Temple and worship the Lord again.

!! -     NOW, remember that these Old Testament stories have been handed down to us so that we can draw lessons from them for our lives...as God calls His people to return to Him today.

!! -     PAUL says in I Corinthians 10:11, concerning the history of the nation of Israel, that,

!!!       “*These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.*”

!! -     THE Church of Jesus Christ is the one on whom “*the fulfillment of the ages has come.*”

!! -     THE reason for Creation, for the nation of Israel, for Moses’ life, for king David’s reign, for Jerusalem, for the Old Testament temple......for the life of Christ, His death and resurrection....is the Church.

!! -     GOD is today revealing His love for the world, calling to the world to Himself, through the Church.

!! -     THE Church of Jesus is the people “*on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.*”

!! -     THIS is why it is so important that we live in the power and victory of the Holy Spirit.

!! -     GOD has chosen to focus His work in the world through the Church of Jesus Christ.

!! -     IT is why He is calling a remnant people to leave Babylon and rebuild the city of God, Zion, the Church of the firstborn.

!! -     REMEMBER that wonderful passage in Hebrews 12:18-24,

!!!       “*You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm*.....(22) *you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God.

You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly*, (23) *to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven.

You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect*, (24) *to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.*”

!! -     SO, the lessons that we learn from the Israelites who returned to rebuild the City of God as it lay in ruins, are crucial to our lives today....as we look to be a part of the restoration of the Church in our times.

!! -     TURN with me please to Ezra 2.

!! -     IN this chapter the returning people have been gathered for the trip back to the City of God.

!! -     AND there are five things about them....a profile of God’s restoration people that I would like to share with you from Ezra 2.

!

ii.

live in a “zion” IDENTITY

!! -     LET’S read together from verse 1.

!!!       “*Now these are the people of the province who came up from the captivity of the exiles, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had taken captive to Babylon (they returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his own town*....”

!! -     “THE people of the province....”

!! -     THAT was their identity.

!! -     THAT was what they called themselves....”the people of the province.”

!! -     THEY might have been slaves and servants under a Persian king, living in Babylon.....but they were “the people of the province.”

!! -     THE province being referred to here is the province of Judah....where the City of God was, and the ruins of the Temple.

!! -     IT was 1,000 miles away at the time.

They were slaves in a foreign land.

Getting back seemed impossible.

What Persian king would let such cheap labor return?

!! -     BUT that had not mattered to them.

!! -     THEY had not been totally absorbed by the world that surrounded them.

!! -     THEY were not citizens of Persia.

!! -     THEY had not lost their identity.

!! -     THEY were still “the people of the province” who had been taken captive by Nebuchadnezzar and were on their way back home to the City of God.

!! -     THAT is our first lesson from Ezra 2 this morning.

!! -     WE are people of God, the Church of the firstborn, Zion, the City of God.

!! -     THAT is your identity, and mine.

!! -     THIS world is NOT our home.

!! -     OUR citizenship is NOT in this place of bondage.

!! -     HEBREWS 11:10 says of Abraham, our father in the faith, that he was not tied to this world because.....

!!!       “*.....he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.*”

!! -     EPHESIANS 2:19-20 says,

!!!       “*Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household, *(20)* built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone*.”

!! -     WE must live with that sense of our self-identity.

!! -     WE are “people of Zion, the City of God” before we are ANYTHING else.....and we must live like that, make our choices based on that.

!! -     DOES that mean that we check out and live in Idaho waiting for the rapture?

NO!!!!!!

We are called to rebuild the City of God as an ark of salvation for the rest of the world.

!! -     LESSON #1 is.....”Live in a Zion identity.”

!

iii.

be with partners in the vision

!! -     THE second lesson that we learn from the profile of this returning remnant people is found in verse 2,

!!!       “*Now these are the people of the province who came up from the captivity of the exiles*......(2) *in company with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Seraiah, Reelaiah, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispar, Bigvai, Rehum and Baanah*)....”

!! -     LOOK who these people were in company with!

!!! ~*     Zerubbabel.

!!!! •     He was of the lineage of king David.

!!!! •     He was promised to reign on the throne of David.

!!!! •     He was a man of God on a mission.

Listen to what Zechariah 4:9 says about him.

!!!!!       “*The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple; his hands will also complete it.

Then you will know that the LORD Almighty has sent me to you.*”

!!! ~*     Jeshua...or Joshua the High Priest.

!!!! •     He was a man who moved under the influence and anointing of the Holy Spirit.

!!!! •     He was also a man on a mission.

!!!! •     Zechariah 4 portrays him as one of the olive trees through whom the oil of the Spirit is poured out to bring light to Israel.

!!! ~*     The other men listed in Ezra 2:2 are also leaders in the restoration of Zion.

Men of vision and faith.

!! -     VERSE 2 says that the returning people were “in the company” of these men, Zerubbabel, Joshua, Mordecai.

!! -     HERE is the lesson for us today.

!! -     IT matters who you hang around with.

!! -     SOME of the people around you are staying in Babylon and are going to die in Babylon.

!!! ~*     Their lifestyle says it.

!!! ~*     Their choices say it.

!! -     OTHERS around you are part of God’s remnant people on their way to rebuilding the City of God.....get in their company.

!! -     LESSON #2 is...”Be with partners in the vision.”

!!!!  

! iv.

commit yourself to MINISTRY

!! -     NOW, the next  several verses are a fascinating listing of names and numbers.....and speak to the fact that God is intensely interested in every ONE.

!! -     LOOK at the detail....by NAME and NUMBER (*READ SOME*).

!! -     NOW look at verse 36....the priests are listed and numbered.

!! -     VERSE 40...the Levites listed by name and number.

!! -     VERSE 41....the singers.

!! -     VERSE 42....the gatekeepers.

!! -     VERSE 43...the temple servants.