Would you join me this morning
one more time in the book of Ezra? The book of Ezra. For the next two Sundays, I plan
to set Ezra aside for a couple of messages on the incarnation.
The Lord Jesus came in a very, very special way. God created Adam in a very special
way, created Eve in a very special way. But when our Savior came,
he came in a very special way. He was born of a virgin. He did
not have Adam's Adamic nature. And we are thankful. Here in
the book of Ezra chapter 3, I'd like to read the first five verses
this morning and spend our time in verse 5. Ezra chapter 3. Verse one, 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 Josedec and his brethren, the priests, and Zerubbabel,
the son of Shealtiel and his brethren, and builded the altar
of 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, and to the Lord even burnt offerings morning and evening. They kept also the feast of tabernacles,
as it is written, and offered the daily burnt offerings by
number according to the custom as the duty of the everyday required. And afterward offered the continual
burnt offering, both of the new moons and of all the set feasts
of the Lord that were consecrated and everyone that willingly offered
a free will offering unto the Lord. We're going to stop there
in our reading this morning. We made some comments on verses
1 through 4 here in the past, and we'd like to look at these
words this morning found in verse 5. I can't help but think, and
I'm nearly sure, that every time they offered these burnt offerings,
daily burnt offerings, weekly burnt offerings, and then the
seasonal burnt offerings, that there were not some of that host
of people that look forward to the time when this would all
be over and the Messiah had come. They were not just built upon
or facing or looking forward to all of these burnt offerings,
but those who knew something, those who had been revealed the
glory of God in Christ Jesus. could look ahead, just as we
look back, and see the fulfillment of all the Old Testament prophets
in one person, the Lord Jesus Christ, and His purpose in coming
was to give His life a ransom for many. They could look forward
to that. While they were there, and in
those days and in those times, they went through with these
burnt offerings in a daily, continuous manner. A reminder to them And that daily, the fall was
everywhere. And they were in desperate need
of a substitute. Would you turn with me to the
book of Hebrews for a short reading? The book of Hebrews gives us
a lot of information from an eye of the New Testament about
the Old Testament law, even as is brought out here in the book
of Ezra, chapter 3, and there in verse 5, they offered the
continual burnt offerings. Here in the book of Hebrews,
chapter 10, we have the Holy Spirit called on the Apostle
Paul to write some things to some saints that were known as
Hebrews. They were Jews. And among them,
there were many that were having trouble going from the Old Testament
law to grace and grace alone. Paul faced this when he wrote
to the churches of Galatia. There were those that were having
trouble going from the Old Testament law to grace and grace alone. That's a real difficulty if we
don't have the revelation of Jesus Christ. We will find it
difficult to try to get rid of the Old Testament law We will
hang things on the walls we shouldn't be hanging. We'll do observations
of things that are not necessary. But if you know the grace of
God, those things were types and shadows and pictures just
like the Apostle Paul was used to write to our Hebrew brethren
here in the book of Hebrews chapter 10. Verse 1, for the law having
a shadow of good things to come. a shadow. It was just a shadow
of good things to come. And not the very image of the
things can never, with those sacrifices which they offered
year by year, continually make the comers thereunto perfect.
There was no hope in those sacrifices. There was no change made by those
sacrifices. In fact, as we read the very
next verse, for then would they not have ceased to be offered?
If there had been efficaciousness in those sacrifices, there would
be no longer any need to offer them. But there was none, so
they continued on. And the last sacrifices that
were made by Israel by the Levitical priests was in about AD 70 when
God caused a man to come down there and say, enough is enough. Titus Caesar came down and destroyed
the temple completely and put away all those sacrifices. The
Lord had already declared, it's enough. But they didn't have
enough. They still were religious. The
great veil between the holy place and the holy of holies was rent
in twain from top to bottom. And those Jews went in there
and sewed it back together. Well, let's read on. But in those
sacrifices, verse three, there is a remembrance again made of
sins every year. A constant reminder, a daily
reminder, a weekly reminder, a monthly reminder. And then
they had the new moon services and all of these things. It is
not possible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away
sin. Wherefore, when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice
and offering thou wouldst not, but a body thou hast prepared
me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices
for sin thou hast no pleasure. They were a shadow of good things
to come. They were a picture of Jesus
Christ coming as the substitute for his people. That's all they
were. Then said I, Lo, I come in the
volume of the book it is written of me, to do thy will, O God.
Above, when he saith, Sacrifice, and offering, and burnt offerings,
and offerings for sin, thou wouldst not, neither hast pleasure therein,
which are offered by the law. Then said he, Lo, I come to do
thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that
he may establish the second, by the which will we are sanctified
to the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Now I've had people say that
That word all means everybody. It is a time factor. It is once
for all time. Never again will the Lord Jesus
Christ be required to do anything for our sins. He took care of
it one time on the cross, and he took care of everything that
was ever symbolized in all of those sacrifices. In fact, more
than was ever symbolized because he could do in himself what they
could not do with thousands of sacrifices. By the sacrifice
of himself, he offered up himself a sacrifice for sin, which was
effectual. and which accomplish the task.
Verse 11, and every priest standeth daily, ministering and offering
oft times the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But this man, the Lord Jesus,
this man, after he offered one sacrifice for sin, sat down at
the right hand of God, from henceforth expecting till his enemies be
made his footstool. For by one offering he hath perfected
forever them that are sanctified. how glorious was the pictures,
but how wonderfully glorious is the person when he fixed it
all, took care of it all by the sacrifice of himself. So those
that witnessed these daily sacrifices were reminded daily of sin, but
Jesus Christ has taken care of that. Now notice back there in
Hebrews chapter And I think it's in verse 2 Hebrews chapter chapter
10 and verse 2 it says for then would they not have ceased to
be offered because that the worshipers once purged should have Had no
more conscience of sin Now that's what happened in Christ those
sacrifices couldn't do that for the people They had conscience
of sin, reminder every day of their sin. But the Lord Jesus
Christ has put away that, and there's no more conscience of
sin. Now, it doesn't mean that we're
not sinners. It means that it's all been taken care of. We are
so glad. Now, I can say again, I'm thankful
I don't live in these days. But when we go back and read
the book of Ezra, we're as if we were there when we heard the
word of God through the prophet Ezra, and these things taking
place, we can say, we, too, look forward. We, too, look for the
Messiah. We look, too, when this is over
with. Well, going back to the book
of Ezra, chapter 3 and verse 5, it talks about their and afterward
offered the continual burnt offerings, both of the new moons and of
all the set feasts of the Lord, which were consecrated. Now there's
a passage in the book of Colossians, I believe, fits this very well.
In fact, the word moon is brought up. In the book of Colossians
chapter two, would you turn there with me, Colossians chapter two,
and I want to begin reading with verse eight. Colossians chapter
two. Remember, these are a shadow
of good things to come. Christ is the reality. These
are a picture. He is the substance. He is the reality. There's nothing
like getting a hug from my wife. Her picture just can't do it. All right, the book of Colossians,
chapter 2, verse 8. Beware lest any man spoil you
through philosophy and vain deceit, after the traditions of men,
after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in
him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. Now notice
verse 10. And ye are complete in him. That's what he said over there
in the book of Hebrews, chapter 10. We have no more conscience
of sin. The penalty of sin is not hanging
over the people anymore. It has been taken care of by
Christ. He faced and took care of the penalty of sin. So we
can say, though unworthy we are, I get to approach the King of
glory on the merits of the Son of God. It is His blood and His
righteousness alone that I get to meet the King of glory. Well,
here in the book of Colossians chapter 2, it says there in verse
10, and ye are complete in Him. There is no other thing that
can be added and there is nothing that needs to be taken away.
We are complete in Him. which is the head over all principality
and power, in whom also ye are circumcised, and with the circumcision
made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the
flesh by the circumcision of Christ, buried with him in baptism,
wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the
operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead. and you being
dead in your sins, and I'm circumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened
together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses." It just
continues to get better and better. God's word is so explicit on
what we have in Christ. We are complete and there is
no more a challenge of sin against us and who can lay to the charge
of God's elected is God that justifies. He's taken care of
everything that was required. Then he goes on to say here in
the book of Colossians Chapter 2, he says in verse 13, and you
being dead in your sins, hath he quickened together, hath forgiven
you all your trespasses. Verse 14, blotting out the handwriting
of ordinances which was against us. We could spend days, months,
and even years in this passage of scripture about all the sweet
blessings that we have in Christ Jesus. He's blotted out all the
handwriting of ordinance which was against us. What is that?
The law. He took care of it. It was nailed
to the cross. He fulfilled every jot and every
tittle of the requirements of God's law. Nobody was ever able
to even come close. The only way we can find in the
scriptures that anybody came close is as they stand in Christ
and stand in Christ alone. And then they are made perfect,
righteous, holy children of God. Going on it says, which was contrary to us, and
took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross, and having spoiled
principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing
over them in it. Let no man, therefore, judge
you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of holy day, or of
the new moon, or the Sabbath days." Don't let anybody say,
well, you're not keeping this. You're not doing that. We have
all been taken care of, God's people have been taken care of
in Christ, and we say, I trust Him. If you have an issue, bring
it up with Him. Who shall lay anything to the
charge of God's elect? Bring it up with him. Take it
up with him. I can't defend myself because I know what I am. But
he comes to the defense of his people. They are my people. I have bought them with a price.
And every one of them shall be with me for eternity. That's
how it stands in the courtroom of God. And God the righteous
judge says, Amen. Amen. All right. And then it
says there, Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of
holy day. Oh, you didn't go to church on
Christmas. Or that's the only day you go to church. Hallelujah,
you went. May God impress to go more. And on the new moon, now that's
one of those services over there. Every time the new moon came
around, we had special sacrifices. He says, don't get into that.
Don't get into that. Christ has made you complete.
You're whole in him. Now, people may bring it up and
all we get to do is say, I'm going to point you to Christ. I hung it in the men's restroom.
It was a track back there, do or done. If you haven't read
it, you need to. It's a wonderful track. A lady
talking to her neighbor says, I can sum up your religion by
two letters, and I can sum up mine by four letters. And he
said, how's that? He says, in your religion, it
is D-O. Do, do, do. In Christ, it is
D-O-N-E. Done, done, done. Big difference. Broad chasm between the two.
And if we're going to fall into this group that we're saying
we're going to get holier and right more righteous by keeping
the law of God, we're doing, doing, doing, and not trusting
him who done, done, done it. All right. Going back to the
book of Ezra once again, there's a third part in that verse of
scripture that I'd like to look at. And there it says, in Ezra
chapter 3 and verse 5. Ezra chapter 3, verse 5, it says,
and of everyone that willingly offered a free will offering
unto the Lord. Now I had Brother Craig read
from 2 Corinthians chapter 9 this morning. There's a verse of scripture
in there. This is my second word in 32
years about giving. It's not the reason they were
here. God's people will do that. But
in there it says, God loveth a cheerful giver. Did you know that we own this
building because a fella didn't believe in a cheerful giver? This building was once owned
by the Jehovah's Witness. They sold it to a guy who had
a cabinet shop and he was running everything through the church
name so it would be a tax deduction. He got caught and he was forced
to sell it. He was asking $150,000 and finally
came down to $75,000 when we found out about it and we said, hallelujah. His lying and cheating was to
our glory. God used it for our good. So
we got a building that was worth a whole lot more because some
guy decided to run everything he had through the name of his
church so he could get a tax deduction. Well, caught up with
him. We're the beneficiaries. Hallelujah. All right. So God love of the
cheerful giver. Now, in that latter part of that
scripture is a term that we run into an awful lot. Free will
offerings. Free will. I'll never forget
a preacher that was a missionary that was a good friend of Brother
Henry Mahan's. He came over from England to visit with Brother
Henry, and they're going down the street, and here's a church
sign that says, and this man made a comment. He says, I've
known they believe it, but I've never seen it advertised on their
sign, Free Will Baptist Church. It's all over in the South. I
grew up in a church that believed that, but they didn't advertise
it out on the front. You just found out about it when
they started preaching, and it was summed up in this way. You
know what free will is based upon? That everybody that is
ever born is in a neutral category. God is voting for you, and the
devil is voting against you, and it's up to you to make a
choice. You know, philosophy has produced that and philosophers
have got into pulpits. If we look into the scriptures,
we'll find out that is a philosophy that is in total error. Now,
you had some type of free will this morning, whether to choose
post toasties or Wheaties. I had oatmeal, drop some peaches
into it. I had that. Now I found out that
God even directed that. But there is that ability. But
when it comes to spiritual things, we find out that we don't have
a free will because we are captured by our own nature. Free will
is able as long as it agrees with our nature. If we're in
sin, if we're in the fall, now that's the area philosophers
don't believe in the fall. Even most free will preachers
don't believe in the fall as it's recorded in the word of
God. It was a little wreck. It was a little injury. It was
a little problem. There was a slight infraction.
It was just, I'm going to give you a warning. We thank God for
that when it happens when a state trooper or a sheriff's deputy
or a city officer pulls us over and says, I'm giving you a warning.
We're thankful, but that's not what we find in the book of Genesis. If we have any knowledge about
the word of God, we're going to find out that what happened
in the garden of Eden was a serious issue because Adam disobeyed
almighty God for one reason. I'll not have him rule over me. Free will is the driving force
of natural man and natural man's religion. Free will is mentioned
17 times in the scriptures and every time it's attached to free
will offering. Free will offering. Each time
in these 13 times there's offering attached to it, the next word
in the sentence. The word translated free will
offering is used 26 times in the scriptures. Now there's a
wonderful place that we're gonna get to where it mentions this
word and it tells us how God deals with it on our behalf and
that is he makes us willing in the day of his power. That's
it. We will not be. Philosophers
have summed up free will in this phrase. Free will is the ability
to choose between courses of action unimpeded. Now, when it comes to where you're
going to sit in church, what you're going to eat for breakfast,
there is some reality to this. But when it comes to our position
before Almighty God, we will never Ever choose righteousness
because it is against our will We are captured the scriptures
teach us we are absolutely captured in the fall by the imputed sin
of Adam and if you don't believe it go to the cemetery it will
teach you on every headstone that the Penalty of sin is death Every headstone is a testimony
to that. The penalty of sin is death.
Now, God's taken away in Christ Jesus the victory of the grave
and the sting of death, but it doesn't take away death. In the
book of Ephesians chapter 2, Ephesians chapter 2, we find
in this wonderful passage of scripture that the apostle Paul
wrote to the saints at Ephesus as he's led by the Holy Spirit.
He wrote nothing of his own. There are a couple of letters
that apparently he wrote to different churches, but they're not in
the canon, and we have the knowledge they were not given by the Holy
Spirit. They were just letters. Now these
letters were given as the Holy Spirit gave him utterance. And
here in the book of Ephesians, we have the real issue that comes
and why free will is not applicable. Choose your color of your socks,
choose your breakfast cereal, choose your car color. But when
it comes to spiritual things, we are limited by our very nature. And our nature is not good. Now it doesn't mean that we cannot
do good things, but most of us, when we did good things, we're
doing it to be checked off in our righteousness for Christ.
We wanted some recognition for it. We wanted God to pay attention
to it. So those things don't count. I want to live by good neighbors.
I want to treat my neighbors good. I want to stay out of their
business. I want them to stay out of my
business. I like my property. People come to it, they have
the privilege of knocking on my door. That's all good, well. But when it comes to spiritual
things, we have an encumbrance around us that we cannot shake. Here in the book of Ephesians
chapter 2 verse 1, and you hath he quickened. Now this is the
problem. who were dead in trespasses and
sins. Do you remember the story of
the Good Samaritan? It's an interesting account that
the Lord gives to a group of Pharisees. In that account, it
tells us about a man going from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and
he fell among thieves. and they beat him and stripped
him and left him half dead. Now, there's more to that statement
than just catches our eyes. Everybody knows that he's alive. that there is some animation
that we have, and it doesn't depend on the health we have,
it doesn't depend on the circumstances we have, we have some animation. There is some physical life that
we exhibit. We move our fingers or hands
or we try to. We try to think, we have that
ability. But in that passage of scripture
it says he left him half dead. There is a part of every human
being by nature that is dead in trespasses and sin. And that's
the problem with trying to do something spiritual, and there's
the problem with trying to have a free will towards God. We are
dead in, as he says there, dead in trespasses and sin wherein
in time past you walked according to the course of this world.
The only people that don't agree with that are the unregenerate.
Once you're regenerated, you say, guilty as charged. according to the course of this
world, according to the prince and power of the air, the spirit
that now worketh in the children of disobedience, among whom also
we all had our conversation or our manner of life in times past,
in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and
of the mind, and were by nature the children of wrath, even as
others. The only people that will agree
to that are regenerate people. Everybody else says, that's not
talking about me. I may be bad, but I'm not that
bad. And I may appear at times to
be asleep, but I'm not dead. We've mentioned a number of times
when it comes to the discussion of dead and trespasses and sin,
there's only one place that there's ever a discussion about what
that word dead means, and that's in religion. Nowhere else in
the physical world, not discussed. In the spiritual world, well,
they're not really as dead as it says. And if there is an ember,
I've heard this, there is a coal of fire inside of everybody. using this application, and if
we just can fan that coal, like building a fire in a fireplace
with the coal that's left, if we just get some really, really
dry material on there and fan that a little bit, we can get
it to come to life. That may work in your fireplace,
but it will not work with your mother, your dad, or your children
or yourself. It will not work. There is no
coal of fire there. What is necessary if we're dead
in trespasses and sin? The condition of this certain
man, he's half dead. Well, everybody by birth are
half dead. They have a physical animation. But spiritually, we're dead and
that's where the people want to use the free will. and they
want people to choose God and it's impossible to choose God.
In fact, we find in the Book of Romans that the natural man
because of the carnal mind is enmity against God and is not
subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. It's a serious
problem. So free will is left out. No
man can serve two masters. You cannot serve God and mammon.
Now, when I was in church, that word mammon was always money. You can't serve God and make
money. That just didn't make sense because
I was supposed to tithe. It just didn't make sense. Why
could they say that? Well, the Lord is using this
in a figurative manner. He's contrasting man unto God. You cannot make God your friend
and be a friend to unrighteousness or self-righteousness. You can't
shake hands with God and turn around and shake hands with unrighteousness
or self-righteousness and say, this moment I'm depending on
this, and this moment I'm depending upon God. You cannot serve two
masters. You'll either love the one and
hate the other or you'll love the other one and hate the other
one. By nature, we love our self-righteousness and we hate God. It takes God
to change things. Philosophers leave God out and
God's work out and man is in a neutral state and he can choose
between good and evil and the truth of the matter is, no, we
can't. Why does a man rob a bank? He's already a bank robber when
he does it, without even doing it. He's thought about it, went
and done it. He's already committed the crime in his mind, and then
he goes to do it. It isn't that he became a bank
robber because he robbed a bank. He became a bank robber when
he thought about it. Well, God didn't leave us out. All of his children have been
taken care of in the covenant of grace Now would you turn with
me over to the book of Psalms 110? Psalms 110 verse 3 Psalms
110 verse 3 we have hope God is hope Psalms 110 verse 3 What a wonderful
statement is made right here Thy people Psalms 110, verse 3, thy people
shall be willing in the day of thy power. In the beauties of holiness,
from the womb of the morning, thou hast the dew of thy youth.
Thy people shall be made willing in the day of thy power. When
is that day of power? God, in some way, moved his people
to hear something about God that's the truth. Not a lie, but the
truth about the gospel, the truth of God, the truth of the gospel,
the truth of Christ laying down His life a ransom for many. In
some way, what verse it is, I don't know because there is no certain
verse. that the gospel is contained
in. We preach the gospel from the book of Ezra. We preach the
gospel from the book of Malachi. We preach the gospel from the
book of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. We preach Christ and
Him crucified wherever we are. And by God's good grace, He applies
that seed in a miraculous way and gives folks the new birth. And then we're able to serve
God. to worship God, to love God. Thy people shall be willing,
for it is God, in the book of Philippians, it is God which
worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure. It is God that does that. We
can't get there from here. The train is not connected. There
is a great chasm. We can't get there from here.
But God, in his mercy, reaches down from his lofty, glorious
throne and lifts his people out of a horrible pit and sets them
on the Lord Jesus Christ and establishes their goings in him.
And we find out, it is he that hath made us willing to do his
goodwill. For the God which worketh in
you both to will and to do of his good pleasure, Several times
in the book of Ezra we have read, the Lord stirred up the spirit
of Cyrus. He had just walked his normal
kingly life, but God stirred him up and said, oh, it's time
for these folks to go home. The folks that went home, it
says the Lord stirred them up. They were content where they
were until the Lord came along and stirred them up. Now, not
everybody was stirred, but there were a few that were stirred,
and they went back to Jerusalem. In John, it says, he that hath
learned of the Father comes to me. God's taught us, we'll come to
Christ. If he doesn't teach us, we'll
never come. You cannot come. except it be
given of my Father. You cannot come unto me except
it be given of my Father. So this whole thing of free will,
when people bring that up, they're saying, I need to hear the gospel
because what I have isn't. That's just what they're telling
us. I need to hear the gospel because what I have isn't. I'm not in a position. I'm not in a neutral zone. Religion
teaches that we're in a neutral zone and it's up to us to choose
good or evil, and then we find out there is no neutral zone.
You cannot walk with God and walk with the devil at the same
time because they're not going in the same direction. No person can will his first
birth. Have you ever thought about that? We weren't even in the equation.
We're the equal sign. No man out of works produces
the new birth. God gives the new birth or regeneration
and then we're able to serve him. I was made willing in the
day of his power. Now those folks that offered
those free will offerings, I'm sure there were some of them
says, you know, I'm getting credit for this. And some of them were
saying, oh, God loves a cheerful giver. He's made that known to
me. I'm not going to keep track of
this. I'm just going to put it there. It's a wonderful thing
not to have to pass a basket. I like it. Just a box on the
wall. Nobody's embarrassed. My wife's
grandmother said every time she went to church, it cost her a
dollar. They passed the plate. She couldn't put not something
in, so she put a dollar in. Well, we don't charge you a dollar. They brought their freewill offerings.
God had touched them. God had moved in them. This is
what is right. This is what we purpose today.
But though God never intended ever to leave this in the knowledge
of anybody, that we're saved by our free will. Because we're
too dead.