Sermon Tone Analysis
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Renewal
I chose this slide for our sermon this morning because I was thinking about snow.
Most of us have had the experience of standing outdoors after a new snowfall.
No matter how dingy the streets looked, how sparse the foliage may have been, everything takes on a new freshness and light.
Even in the middle of night when everything is covered in snow it is difficult to have total darkness.
As we get to the end of our CASKET portion of Casket Empty Series, I was reminded last week that we might need to review the casket acronym.
C - Creation - and we looked at the beginning of the Old Testament.
C - Creation
A - Abraham - and we saw that Abraham was chosen by God and there was a covenant made with him that his progeny would be a blessing to all of creation.
C - Creation
A - Abraham
S - Sinai - and we saw the giving of the Law to Moses on Mount Sinai and all the covenants that were made there.
C - Creation
A - Abraham
S - Sinai
K - Kings - and we looked at several of the kings beginning with Saul, David and Solomon, then we saw the division of the kingdom, and the way the people continued to rebel against God.
Then last week we looked at:
C - Creation
A - Abraham
S - Sinai
K - Kings
E - Exile - The Israelites are conquered by the Babylonians and driven out of the promised land.
And then today we get to:
C - Creation
A - Abraham
S - Sinai
K - Kings
E - Exile
T - Temple - which in so many ways is a new beginning for Israel.
In many ways one would think that they would have learned their lesson after the exile.
As we finish the Old Testament we’re left with God’s people expecting that God himself will return to fulfill his promises.
They are waiting for God to restore his covenant people and to make a way for their sins to be forgiven and the Davidic king to be put back on the throne in Jerusalem and judge the enemies of Israel.
It’s important for us to remember that Israel had been chosen as a people, a covenantal people with God.
And yet, as we’ve seen throughout the Old Testament, over and over again they turn their back on God.
As they begin to move back into the land that had been promised to them way back with Abraham!
They’re moving back in, and Ezra, the priest begins to pray.
Now, first a little background to this prayer - The Israelites were told to keep themselves a separate people and not to intermarry with the people of the land.
Yet they did.
They’d been told not to worship the gods of the people in the land, yet they did.
And we saw the result.
Exile.
Now as they return their given the opportunity to rebuild the temple - the place where God’s spirit had dwelt - and this is the context of Ezra’s prayer.
Listen to how he prayed:
This is a reading from God’s Holy Word,
Thanks be to God.
Renewal
In the midst of their slavery, Ezra prays a prayer of confession.
He recognizes their slavery and that God has not forsaken them, but even there God is still with them.
And though God has not forsaken them, he recognizes that they have forsaken God and His Commandments.
He sees the circumstances that he and his people find themselves in as something they are deserving of.
So the people of Israel have begun to return to their land, but there is not an Israelite king on the throne.
They are not the rulers of the land.
They are under the rule of another - but, they have found favor to the point that they are able to rebuild the temple.
If you’d like to read another book that really highlights the rebuilding of the temple and the wall and the Godly leadership required to do so, I’d highly recommend the classic, Hand Me Another Brick, by Charles Swindoll.
Renewal
I think of the things that bring renewal to any person, team, group, or community.
When it comes to renewal one of the keys is recognizing where you have come from, and where you are.
An honest assessment.
This gives us a clue as to where we’re heading, whether as an individual or as a community.
I was reminded recently that you may be the most righteous person on the planet, and that doesn’t mean that your life will be roses and rainbows.
After all in our Bibles, we have the story of Job.
He was righteous before God and yet with God’s permission, Satan was able to try him beyond what any of us would ever wish on our worst enemy.
He lost his children in a tragic way, he lost his wealth, he lost seemingly everything.
And yet, unlike what Israel did, he took a deep look at himself, he counseled with friends and his wife - though if you know the story they weren’t much help.
What he did right though was he continued to seek after God.
As I read through the Job, and as I reflect on Ezra’s confession, I’m reminded of the Shema that was given to Israel back in Deuteronomy.
The word Shema is Hebrew and means “to hear.”
If there is anything that all of us might be considered guilty of it is that we have not loved the Lord our God with all our heart and all of our soul, and with all of our might.
Have God’s commands been continually on our hearts, but beyond that, have we been diligent about teaching them to our children?
Have we spoken about God’s words while at home, on the way, from the time we got up to the time we lied down?
Have we kept God’s words and commands before us?
It seems to me we all have a lot of confessing to do.
I don’t share that so that we will all go away feeling guilty, ashamed, or as failures.
My hope is that we will, as Israel was, repent and turn back to our God.
If we’ve witness anything throughout our journey through the Old Testament in this series, it’s been that God continues to pursue the people God’s chosen.
This remains true for us as well.
God pursues us - God loves you and as God did for the first people in the garden way back in Genesis - God calls.
God is calling you.
I believe that the fact that you are here listening to this message is a reminder that God is calling you.
How will you respond?
Will you turn and surrender to the embrace of grace and love?
Or, will you deny God and chase after the things you lift up as worthy of your praise?
Many years ago, I was sitting amongst a group of children for a children’s sermon.
I was sharing from Jesus’ speaking of the Shema in Luke 10:27
We talked about what it meant to Love God with ALL our heart, and with ALL our soul, and with ALL our strength, and with ALL our mind.
One of the little boys piped up and said, “Pastor Murph, if I do that I won’t have anything left!”
He’s exactly right, he won’t.
Neither will you.
It’s about giving everything to God.
That’s easy to talk about, but what does it look like?
A woman I knew at church back in college was a retired teacher, at the time in her 70’s.
Our church had invited a missionary from China to come speak.
He shared the great need in China for the Gospel.
He also spoke of how the communist country was outwardly closed to the Gospel but wanting to learn English which gave them an entry point.
He then put out a call to us inviting us to join him in sharing the Gospel in China.
My friend Lois went forward to speak with our guest that morning.
She wanted to offer her support and ask what other needs they might have.
She wanted to financially support his mission efforts.
The conversation went something like this:
Lois: I was moved by your presentation, and by the hunger of the Chinese people for the Gospel.
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