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fter spending some time settling back into their homeland,
the remnant of Jews re-gathered in Jerusalem to commence the building
project. The temple of God was going
back up!
The first thing to consider about this endeavor is the fact
that these Jews willingly proceeded despite the dangers which they perceived to
be all around them (Ezra 3:3). Or, maybe we should say that they proceeded
BECAUSE of their fear of the menacing realities all around them. Sometimes
difficulties drive as more quickly to the throne of grace.
So, the people made sacrifices to God, and they got busy
preparing to build. Then, they began to build. With live sacred music being
played to accompany their efforts, they laid the foundation of the temple. Oh, what a wonderful effect that had on the
congregation of Jews. The sound of the workmen and the musicians soon gave way
to the sounds of spontaneous praise. Both tears and laughter were mixed
together at that scene. Then the people exploded into shouts of joy and cries
of release. Surely there was a deep mixture
of emotions within the hearts of those holy people. Relief that God's promises
were being realized; sadness and shame in being reminded of the past failures
of the nation; gratitude for a second chance; sorrow in understanding that
things would not be like before... it was a lot to take in.
You know something... all of us react differently to the
glories of God's goodness. Some weep, some shout, others laugh or maybe even
pass out. But, surely our emotional idiosyncrasies are all but irrelevant when
compared to the condition of our hearts. Whether we sob or shout, our hearts
should be pure, humble, grateful and submissive as we are blessed with God's
grace.
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