This morning I came across a most unique scripture in “church building”. So many books are written about it, so many ideas are proposed concerning it – and we ourselves after our board meeting last week began to feel the prompting of the Lord to pursue more land for extra parking and we began exploring ideas in expanding our sanctuary. All this in preparation for building God’s temple and filling it with more people.
An interesting concept about how to build a church, or a program, or adding more people comes to us in Ezra.
Ezr 3:1-3 And when the seventh month was come, and the children of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered themselves together as one man to Jerusalem.
Then stood up Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brethren the priests, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and his brethren, and builded the altar of the God of Israel, to offer burnt offerings thereon, as it is written in the law of Moses the man of God. And they set the altar upon his bases; for fear was upon them because of the people of those countries: and they offered burnt offerings thereon unto the LORD, even burnt offerings morning and evening.
And this is the kicker: Ezr 3:6 From the first day of the seventh month began they to offer burnt offerings unto the LORD. But the foundation of the temple of the LORD was not yet laid.
They didn’t build the church FIRST to house the altar… they built the altar first to house the church. They didn’t build the church to protect the altar from the threat to their existence, they built the altar to protect the church.
The way they went about this was, FIRST – they had a mind to pray together in unity. “gathered together as one man”. They did this in the seventh month. In a time when most were in the seventh period resting – they went to work. SECOND – they didn’t build that altar as a showplace, or a place to house instruments, or for their own sense of accomplishment. They built it for one purpose, and one purpose only – “to offer burnt offerings thereon”.
Fear was upon them… you’d think they’d have sought the security of building a shelter in the natural. A place of refuge from those enemies. A place where the children would be safe. A place fortified with walls.
But… they did something that didn’t seem right or logical to the carnal mind. They built an altar and sacrificed. THEY PRAYED. They built this altar BEFORE the foundation of the temple was laid.
In anything you do – especially in a critical place in your life, when everything around you screams to build yourself a place of safety… put the altar first. Pray – First. Seek the Lord and He will be your shelter, your hiding place, your church builder, your fortification!!!
I challenge you… before you attempt anything today – PRAY.
Psa 127:1 A Song of degrees for Solomon. Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.
You build the altar and the Lord will partner with you to build everything that surrounds it.
Worship with me this morning:
Streetfire Ministries 