Sermons on Ezra 8:21-21:23:

Restoring Religion Series

Contributed by Jim Drake on Jan 5, 2008

Who is worship supposed to be about? God. And it is His worship that He was restoring in Jerusalem in this passage. This message looks at restoring our religion.

1. Worshipped as family (3:1 – they gathered together as one man) 2. Worshipped fittingly (3:2 – in accordance with the Word of God) 3. Worshipped freely (3:3 – in spite of the fear of the nations) 4. Worshipped fully (3:4-5 – they kept all the feasts and offered all the offerings) It seems like ...read more

Scripture: Ezra 3:1-5

Denomination: Baptist

What Are You Waiting For? Series

Contributed by Jim Drake on Jan 13, 2008

God had faithfully restored everything required for the remnant to start building the temple. Now the only thing left for them to do was to start building. But they were satisfied, so they delayed.

1. The first setback is satisfaction with religious activities 2. The second setback is satisfaction with raw materials 3. The third setback is satisfaction with royal grants Let me tell you a story about a 33-year old California man named Larry Walters. Several years ago, Larry had an idea. ...read more

Scripture: Ezra 3:6-7

Denomination: Baptist

Hall Of Fame # 8 - The Levites Series

Contributed by Jonathan Campbell on Jan 14, 2008

Levites are mentioned throughout scripture. This sermon suggests some adjectives that could be used to describe them.

INTRODUCTION Famous Levites in scripture - Aaron (Exodus 4:14) & Barnabas (Acts 4:36). They were descendants of the tribe of Levi and were assistants to the priests. Four words spring to mind in connection with Levites: 1. PRACTICAL Their work was practical rather than spiritual. OT Levites = NT ...read more

Scripture: Ezra 2:40, Ezra 2:1

God's Presence

Contributed by Donato Solano on Jan 22, 2008

Submission to God and His powerful presence are two of the keys of success as we journey in life. Our submission can be demonstrated through fasting.

INTRODUCTION 2008 is a journey that no man has charted already. How can we know what are the prospects in life in store for us in this journey? In today’s scripture, Ezra ask Israel to fast to ensure themselves of success and prosperity in their journey back to Jerusalem. They did not just pray ...read more

Scripture: Ezra 8:21-23, Ezra 8:24-36

Denomination: Baptist

Work It! Series

Contributed by Jim Drake on Feb 12, 2008

What can the remnant teach us about how to be a working church? They can teach us three traits of a working church.

1. A working church is mobilized (3:8a—emphasis on “ALL they that were come out of the captivity unto Jerusalem”) 2. A working church is organized (3:8b—emphasis on “APPOINTED” and “SET FORWARD THE WORK) 3. A working church is unified (3:9—emphasis on “TOGETHER”) Well, the delay is over. Last ...read more

Scripture: Ezra 3:8-9, Ezra 3:4

Denomination: Baptist

What's All The Racket? Series

Contributed by Jim Drake on Feb 12, 2008

Did you know that there are times that the church should be noisy? Not from idle talking and milling around during worship—but a church should be noisy just like the remnant was. A church should be noisy when it’s working.

1. Initial celebration (3:10-11) 2. Individual hesitation (3:12) 3. Ideal harmonization (3:13) One time there was an old farmer who wasn’t much into modern conveniences. As a matter of fact, he didn’t have much contact with the outside world at all. He thought that everything he needed was right ...read more

Scripture: Ezra 3:10-13

Denomination: Baptist

Hall Of Fame # 10 - The Porters Series

Contributed by Jonathan Campbell on Feb 14, 2008

Porters are mentioned in both Testaments. Let’s take a closer look.

TEXT "The children of the porters" - Ezra 2:42 INTRODUCTION When we talk of porters today, we think of those who work in hospitals. Such people are responsible for moving patients, for taking meals to patients and other important tasks. In Bible times, however, a porter had a much simpler job: 1. ...read more

Scripture: Ezra 2:42

Hall Of Fame # 11 - The Nethinims Series

Contributed by Jonathan Campbell on Feb 14, 2008

"Nethinims" is a strange word. It is not a word we are familiar with today. But it is part of God’s inspired word so it deserves our attention.

INTRODUCTION Who were the Nethinims? They were servants of the Levites. Their work was humble but important. There are some great truths to be learned from the Nethinims. They were: 1. LIBERATED Ezra 7:24 "Also we certify you, that touching any of the priests and Levites, singers, porters, ...read more

Scripture: Ezra 2:43-54

Christ Our Altar Series

Contributed by Jonathan Campbell on Feb 20, 2008

Sermon about the brazen altar. According to Hebrews 13:10 Christ is our altar.

TEXT "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". INTRODUCTION There is much ...read more

Scripture: Ezra 3:2

Le Courage Du Croyant

Contributed by Créteur Fabien on Feb 24, 2008

Courage (vient du cœur). Force de caractère, fermeté que l’on a devant le danger, dans la souffrance ou dans toute situation difficile à affronter. Qui ont donné lieu à des expressions familières, comme prendre son courage à 2 mains. Faire appel à tout

LE COURAGE DU CROYANT, DU LEADER Introduction sur le sujet (10 min) Courage (vient du cœur). Force de caractère, fermeté que l’on a devant le danger, dans la souffrance ou dans toute situation difficile à affronter. Qui ont donné lieu à des expressions familières, comme prendre son courage à 2 ...read more

Scripture: Ezra 10:4

Denomination: Pentecostal

Almost Right Series

Contributed by Jim Drake on Feb 27, 2008

The question isn’t whether we’re going to encounter opposition. The question is, how are we going to handle it when it comes. The remnant did exactly what they were supposed to do—almost. They stood strong in the face of opposition but they didn’t quit

1. How did the opposition respond to the remnant? a. With distrust (1) b. With deception (2) 2. How did the remnant respond to the opposition? a. With discernment (3a) b. With determination (3b) c. With direction (3c) It would be nice if everything in life was easy, wouldn’t it? It would be nice ...read more

Scripture: Ezra 4:1-3

Denomination: Baptist

Swimming Upstream Series

Contributed by Jim Drake on Feb 27, 2008

Do you ever feel like everything is opposing you? That is what the remnant was experiencing. The first step to facing our opposition the right way is to "know our enemy."

In our walk as Christians and in our work as a church… 1. We must stand against the persistence of our opposition (4:4-7) 2. We must stand against the pervasiveness of our opposition (4:8-10) 3. We must stand against the persuasiveness of our opposition (4:11-16) 4. We must stand against the ...read more

Scripture: Ezra 4:4-24

Denomination: Baptist

Getting Where You're Going Series

Contributed by Jim Drake on May 31, 2008

Are we prepared for the journey that awaits us?

In his book, Gentle Thunder, Max Lucado tells the story of Sir John Franklin. It was 1845 in England. In 1845, America was at the beginning of what was called “Manifest Destiny.” That was the idea that we were destined to explore and inhabit and eventually annex the west. While we were ...read more

Scripture: Ezra 8:21-32

Denomination: Baptist

Where To Start? Series

Contributed by Jim Drake on May 31, 2008

Sometimes the toughest thing about a project is knowing where to start.

Have you ever had a project that was so big, you just didn’t know where to start? My garage is like that. It was a mess before we moved in and it’s only gotten worse. It absolutely drives me nuts. Several years ago, when we lived in Mississippi, I had a beautiful tool shed. I had pegboard on ...read more

Scripture: Ezra 8:33-36

Denomination: Baptist

Keeping An Eye Out Series

Contributed by Jim Drake on May 31, 2008

How do you feel when you see the sin in the world around you? Do you feel the same way about the sin that’s in your midst? What about the sin that’s in your heart?

It seems like every few months in the news, we hear about some new espionage investigation. One thing you can count on in this world. Somebody somewhere is spying on somebody else. As a matter of fact, the Defense Department spends millions of dollars per year developing new technologies to spy ...read more

Scripture: Ezra 9:1-2

Denomination: Baptist