Go a little deeper
Pastor Keith Kirkpatrick opens with the claim that brokenness is common to every person and is usually discovered early, and that God is the one who rebuilds. He turns to Jeremiah — the prophet who warned of destruction, was beaten and imprisoned, and yet promised that God restores those who return to him.
The teaching then traces the exile and return: Jeremiah warned that sin takes people where they do not want to be, yet God promised to visit them and bring them back, and later promised restoration of health and fortunes. Pastor Keith moves through the tabernacle and Solomon's temple, the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem, and Jesus' own body as the greater temple, applying temple language to believers and to the church. Cyrus of Persia then sends the exiles home with a grant to rebuild.
In Ezra, the returning exiles gather as one, their leaders rise up, and they build the altar before the temple, worshipping despite fear. Pastor Keith applies this as sacrifice before breakthrough, celebrates the worship at the foundation's laying, and notes the mixed joy and grief it produced. He closes with the opposition that followed, a call to fight the right enemy, and an invitation to believe in Jesus, followed by a prayer of response.
Take this with you
Sin leads to exile; God does not abandon his people
Pastor Keith reads Jeremiah 27:22 as a warning that sin takes people to a place they do not want to be — a lonely, dark exile. But the same verse promises that God will visit them and bring them back. The point is that consequence for sin does not mean God has given up, and he restores those who return to him.
Repentance is a change of direction
Pastor Keith reads Jeremiah 15:19 as describing repentance: returning to the Lord is a change of thinking, not merely being sorry — stopping what you have done and doing what God wants. Restoration is presented as God's response to returning to him rather than to our own way.
Sacrifice comes before breakthrough
In Ezra the returning exiles built the altar before the temple, bringing sacrifice before construction. Pastor Keith applies this as putting sacrifice ahead of blessing, including the hard work of marriage and family, and turning over to God what consumes your life. The people worshipped despite fear of surrounding peoples.
Celebrate the foundation, not just the finish
In Ezra 3:10-13, when the foundation was laid, priests and people praised God with trumpets and cymbals, and the shout was heard far away. Pastor Keith urges celebrating milestones before the work is complete, while acknowledging that older people who remembered the first temple wept — the same moment produced joy and grief.
Expect opposition, and fight the right enemy
Ezra 4 opens with adversaries offering to help build, and the leaders refused them. Pastor Keith warns that following Jesus invites opposition, insists the battle is not against flesh and blood, and calls for fighting the right enemy rather than other people.
The conversation,
in their words.
Transcript from the recording’s captions. Select any timestamp to hear the original audio.
well today I want to spend some time with you talking about rebuilding everyone say rebuilding rebuilding rebuilding is so important in your life because it's the work that God does it's who he is he he is the origin of all building the Creator and rebuilding is what he does it's in his DNA When You Believe in the Lord God Almighty he rebuilds and at some point in each of Our Lives you will discover a Brokenness that needs to be rebuilt every single one of us it is the one common denominator that every single human being has in common we are all broken and usually you discover that
Brokenness early in your life I mean typically it's in your childhood that you discover things aren't the way they ought to be when your parents are fighting when you discover you only have one parent and others kids have two parents when you discover that things aren't the way they ought to be or you you built this metaphoric home in your heart and your parents get divorced and that home is now in Ruins or when you trusted someone that should have protected you but instead they harmed you they violated you and that wall of security around your life has been destroyed at some point you discover that I've got Brokenness so what do I do with the Brokenness and then you grow up and if you don't deal with the Brokenness and allow God to rebuild your life that will be manifested in more Brokenness as the saying goes hurt
people hurt people if you don't heal and become who God wants you to be you you will replicate this we we talk about this as generational curses they continue on in your life because you don't break the Brokenness you don't break the bondage the stronghold but I believe today that God has a message for some someone that he is the Rebuilder he is the restorer he is the Redeemer he is the one that takes dead things and brings them back to life and he doesn't take your life when you believe in him and make your life better he gives you new life that's important to understand that you become a new creation not a better creation you're a new creature and today I want to talk to you about the promises found
in God 's word because God tells us what he's able to do in the midst of our ruins in the book of Jeremiah the prophet he's known as the weeping prophet because he has a message for his people during his time which is difficult he warns the people you're not following the Lord you're not doing what God says and because of that there will be destruction there'll be Brokenness the city will be in ruins our lives will be in Ruins and he tells the king he tells the priests and no one seems to want to hear this message they know that there's one true God they have a temple to Worship in but they're still worshiping false idols and as Jeremiah says if you don't trust in the Lord if you don't turn to the Lord if you don't do what he says there will be
destruction now the people of his day did not like this message they beat Jeremiah up they put him in Chains they threw him in prison at one point they threw him down deep into a sistern that had no water but it was still muddy and he sank down in the mud this message was not well received sometimes when you tell the truth people don't want to hear it there were other prophets during Jeremiah's day which were sharing another message they were saying don't worry everyone it's all going to be good peace we proclaim the world will be just fine it's what the Antichrist will do someday and it could be soon and so the world was listening to false prophets false Messengers and Jeremiah is over here saying if you don't believe in the Lord there will be destruction but that was not the end of
the message right in the middle of the message Jeremiah lets us know but if you trust in the Lord There's Hope for everyone 18 times Jeremiah uses the word restore let me give you a glimpse of what he says Jeremiah 15: 19 therefore thus says the Lord if you return that's the image of repentance I talk about repentance being a change of thinking it's turning to the Lord not your way but God's way it's not just being sorry for what you've done it's stopping what you've done and doing what God wants you to do and the Lord says if you return I will restore you and you shall stand before me God is letting them know that he's a god of Mercy he's a god of
hope he's a rebuild building God in Jeremiah 27:22 Jeremiah gets honest and says they shall be carried to Babylon and remain there until the day when I visit them God warns his people that you're going to be taken from the place where you are to the place you don't want to be that's what sin does sin will take you to the place you don't want to be if you don't trust in the Lord with your finances if you don't trust in the Lord with all your heart your mind and your strength you will end up in a place you don't want to be we call this Exile it's a lonely place it's a dark place it's a desperate place and God warns his people that they will physically geographically spiritually emotionally relationally
you're going to be taken from this place to that place but it doesn't mean that I won't visit you it doesn't mean that I've given up on you there's a consequence to sin but we've got a a God That Forgives sin and we've got a God that rebuilds us after we repent from our sins so God says you're going to go to Babylon but I'm going to visit you declares the Lord then he says then I will bring them back everyone say back back God's not going to leave you there someone needs to hear this today if you're broken your life is in Ruins you're not sure what God's going to do he doesn't want to leave you there you don't have to stay in Exile I will bring them back and restore them to this place Jeremiah 30:17 we see
that God just doesn't do this in a few areas the Lord says for I will restore Health to you I will God says everyone say I will I will this is definitive this is a promise of God I will restore Health to you and your wounds I will heal declares the Lord because they have called you an outcast our God is able to heal any disease any sickness that which the doctor says incurable is curable with God Jesus says what's impossible with man is possible with God it was an angel that told Mary for nothing will be impossible with God there's no such thing as impossible with God if health is broken and not the place that it should be we have a God that even restores Health God went even further
and talked about finances Jeremiah 33:7 I will everyone say I will I will God says restore the fortune of Judah and the fortunes of Israel and rebuild them as they were at first God has a promise of restoration he's in the rebuilding business that if you get yourself in a mess if you find yourself in financial ruins our God is able to rebuild to restore and bring back although This Promise was to the Israelites some 2500 years ago his promise Still Remains today what other nation is still talked about today 2500 years later Israel God has a plan for his people God's word will will not
fade it will not disappear no matter what's happening in this world we can turn to the promises of God's word and I declare over your life today that God wants to rebuild your life he wants to restore you I believe that over your family the one that you can't see how he's gonna do it my God is able I believe that over this city I tell you a year ago the lord gave me a message I declare war on the devil th war is not over it is just begun and when the rubber meets the road and things get a little uncomfortable and things might even get weird because this is a spiritual battle some people get uncomfortable and slowly exit the war but I am believing in the name of Jesus Christ Yeshua ham Mia the one that
Rose from the grave he still breaks strongholds he still casts out unclean spirits the Demonic is still alive I let me just speak this for a second I don't want to go on too much of a rabbit Trail but what we just witness in Israel with Hamas against the Jewish people is not new that's because demons are not new demons do not die one day they will be locked up in Hell For Eternity but until the then their only job is to torment God's people so if your life has ever been in torment or ruins or Brokenness that's because you have a real enemy of your soul you've got to declare war because you have all authority to have all Victory you are more than a conqueror because you're a child of God nothing will separate you from the love
of God even if you end up in nakedness even if someone takes your life when you believe in Jesus you become who God wants you to be you are sealed with the power the Holy Spirit God has given you everything you need but we've got to believe God's promise that he's going to bring it back he's going to restore we've got to believe that what God rebuilds will be better than anything I can do we just sang a song about building upon this Foundation Jesus said anyone who hears my words and does them is like he who builds his house on the rock but if you hear God's word and do not put them into practice your foundation is just it's sand and when the storms of life come you wonder where is God why is my life slipping away there is a foundation upon
which no one can strip from you in the Old Testament when we read about God's people God designed and destined them to have a relationship with him so he gave them the Torah the instructions of God the the law of God and at first glance it seems like just rules and Commandments but it's actually lifegiving God God knew what was best for his people and on the journey From Slavery to Freedom God instituted this practice of a tabernacle a place where people could meet with God and the Tabernacle represented the presence of God and and God's presence fell upon the Tabernacle it was a fire by night and A Cloud by day and God would meet with his people in this Tabernacle they would bring their sacrifices and God instituted different rituals with the priests where they would they would be reminded of their sins and the mercies of God and one day God would raise up a
man named David who was a man after God's Own Heart and David says we can't just have a temporary place for God's presence he's worth more so David collected all of his money and he he collected some of the best items from all over the world to build a permanent Temple well David wouldn't be the one that would build it it would be his son Solomon that helped erect a permanent Temple and it was spectacular they only used the best for God because God is worthy of it all somehow today we think that that's not the case but may I just say he's still worthy of it all he is worthy of our best and Solomon erected this Temple and it was magnificent but God warned his people that if you don't trust me if you don't follow my ways you will be in Ruins and in 586 BC the Babylonians came and ransacked Jerusalem now Jerusalem is
really important this is why it's important to understand Bible History so that you understand present day history Jerusalem is a picture of heaven it's the city that's called Zion it it's the city of God Jerusalem got ransacked by the Babylonians God allowed this to happen because his people were not following his ways and we we learn that a father disciplines the his sons whom he loves and he allowed them to be ransacked the City was destroyed it was in Ruins completely broken and those who were strong were taken into captivity into Exile and those who were completely weak were left to take care of The Vineyards Not only was the the city broken but the temple was destroyed and all that was in the temple the gold the silver the bronze all of the tools and the utensils were taken far away from God's house the
temple and at some point God's going to fulfill his promise but we fast forward to the New Testament nearly 600 years later Jesus would be born and while on the cross he who is without sin took our sin and we're told that while he was on the cross when he took his last breath the very curtain that divided the holy of holies the place of God's presence where God would dwell and the temple was torn in two Jesus had promised that this Temple's going to come down and on the third day it's going to be raised back to life everyone thought he was crazy but he was talking about a greater Temple he is the presence of God Jesus rose from the grave God himself shows the world who he is
glorified and who we can be in him and in Acts chapter 18 Jesus promised that by believing in him you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you you will do things you could never do on your own so that you'll be his witness and then we we we're told in 1 Corinthians 3:16 do you not know that you just point to your neighbor and say you you you are God's Temple and God's spirit God himself the person the presence of God the one whom they made the Tabernacle to travel the one whom they made this ornate absolutely gorgeous Temple to dwell in God now wants to dwell where in you he wants to dwell in
you God wants to show the world what he's able to do through you people would travel all over the world to come to the temple it was awesome kids would get together and they would laugh and they would play because they would come several times a year to the temple to offer their sacrifices and their offerings you would see your your third and second cousins you would you would get to see everyone there was Fellowship there was Community but now this all happens here through us through the church God's power Works within us and so we're told in verse 17 if anyone destroys God's Temple God will destroy him for God's Temple who's God's Temple come on you for God's Temple is Holy and
you are that Temple because of Jesus we all have access to God it's no longer about traveling to a temple to experience and encounter God it's now about believing in the Lord Jesus and allowing God to work through you that when you go before Jesus and you pray God let this word speak to me and I'm talking about the Bible God will speak to you now if you read the Bible as an ordinary book it will be an ordinary book but when you inite invite God to speak to you this book comes alive all of a sudden there's Revelation from the beginning to the end you discover it's all about Jesus so after several decades of being
in Exile kingdoms come and kingdoms go the Babylonians were no longer the strongest force and power now the Persians or rising up in power and God would do something spectacular you read in the book of Ezra chapter 1 in the first year of Cyrus King of Persia now you got this remnant of these Jewish people the Israelites who who are in this region Babylon now known as Persia in that first year of Cyrus the king that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah you remember Jeremiah remember what he said yes you will be taken but yes I will restore God's going to do it he'll make a way you don't know when you don't know who who's going to use but in this case he'll use Cyrus because God's word will be fulfilled the Lord stirred up the spirit
of Cyrus King of Persia here's what the king does he says hey by the way your temple and your holy city is in Ruins that's not okay why don't you guys go back and rebuild it and I'll give you a grant to help rebuild it you tell me we don't have a way making God some of y'all are trying to figure out your finances and your pension numbers and you're trying to figure these things out you leave it to God and he might have a pagan take care of your problems but you've got to trust in him you've got to believe in him you've got to know that he's the one that's going to do it so many times we we bring the burden on oursel Peter says you should just cast all anxiety on him because he cares for you more than you care for yourself he created you he's actually God and his time time for us to raise up and say I do believe your God Cyrus says I want
you guys to go back to Jerusalem I want you to start rebuilding that Temple and in Ezra chapter 2 we get this exhaustive list of who's there I just love that the Bible is so brutally honest here's who went to church that day we don't do that here at the end of Ezra chapter 2 they take an offering some of the heads of the families when they came to the house of the Lord that is in Jerusalem they made Free Will offerings for the house of the Lord to erect it on its sight so those that came back they can see that this this Temple was in Ruins and they decided to give an offering to say we believe that it's not going to stay this way at some point we've got to say in our hearts we believe that God you don't want to keep this city this way you don't want to keep this state this way I'm not going to change the world by
being political on social media I'm going to step into God's Kingdom I'm going to do things God's ways and I'm going to show the rubber meets the RO I'm going to give my financial offering I'm going to get involved in what God's doing and by the time we get to Ezra chapter 3 we see a people that are united everyone say United United something special happens when we're United it's our theme for 2023 at Journey Church God wants us to be United one of the examples God gives of a of unity is that of a body the church is described as a body so many different members some of you are just toes some of you are elbows and some of you are eyes and some of you are noses and and just because someone else isn't like you doesn't mean they don't get to be a part of the body God wants us to function healthy and strong and in Ezra 3:1 we
read that that at this time the children of Israel they they gathered together and it says they gathered as one man to Jerusalem they gathered as one man they were United we're here let's unite together then in verse two it says in the the first two words then arose everyone said arose arose it comes a time in your life where you have to decide I'm going to sit back am I going to get engaged am I going to get involved am I going to take some action this is a verb here the leaders decided to rise up you have jhua you have zerubabel they rose up and what did they do we we read in that same verse they built the altar of the god of Israel they built the altar of the god of Israel so they were in un they rose up
and they built they did what needed to be done what did they build they started with what did you hear what they started with an altar everyone say an altar an altar an altar is important this is the place you bring your sacrifice so if you want to give a sacrifice to God you bring an altar so before they built the temple they built an Al altar they're going to bring a sacrifice they were in unity I believe if you're going to see breakthrough in your life your greatest breakthroughs come after your greatest sacrifices it always works like that God's not going to give you the greatest blessings in your life just because you prayed to win the lottery somehow he says now you're ready for this you really want good wealth work
for it then God will say now you're ready now I want to trust you you really want a a blessed family you really want a blessed marriage you got to work for it you got to sacrifice never happens by accident or happen stance ever why did dads walk out on their families they don't want to put in the sacrifice why do people steal from their work you hear about soccer moms stealing from the nonprofit soccer committee why' they do that they don't want to put in the work it's the devil toce ceing that somehow you can get the greatest breakthrough and blessing without the sacrifice they start with the sacrifice
I really appreciate the the order in which we're we're understanding a rebuilding of Our Lives if you want to put the Lord first in your life start with the sacrifice uh the Holy Spirit just told me someone's got to decide right now exactly what that looks like meaning you got to go home and and flush down all your alcohol maybe it's your marijuana some of you are staring at pornography so long it has completely ruined your lives you really want to rebuild sacrifice sacrifice this is not about money you got to give on the altar that which has been consuming your life give it to the Lord and when something's sacrificed what happens to it it's gone Romans 121 says your life should be a Living
Sacrifice that's your worship your life is no longer yours I'm giving you on the altar my life now today we don't have an altar it's metaphoric it's actually your heart we this place where the commitment cards go that's an altar it's it's it's a position of the heart to say God I'm giving you my life we read this all happened in the midst of some dark difficult days look at verse three they set the altar in its place for fear was on them because of the peoples of the land and they offered burnt offerings on it to the Lord burnt offerings morning and evening so here they come to the altar right in the midst of a world that was not safe the wall was destroyed around Jerusalem the enemy still occupied the region and then they still were willing to worship God
have yall just paused for just a moment before and ever said like man this world is weird there was a guy the other day driving the wrong way down Greenwood and ran into a bunch of other cars and he gets out in his underwear wielding a knife it's not even safe to like drive on Greenwood Avenue anymore it's not safe to go to the grocery store it's not safe to go to school my kids this year at their school they're constantly having to be trained what to do if a shooter comes in you're going to cover the windows you're going to lock the doors you're going to barricade you're going to hide in the back room you just pause for a second and say that is so wickedly evil that kids can't go to school and just be safe that's exactly what what happened last Saturday in Israel people were going about their businesses and little babies were ripped out of their mom's
hands their heads were cut off it was absolutely awful it was evil we have to call it what it is it's evil it's wicked there's a real enemy there's a devil and in the midst of all this they're still saying I'm going to sacrifice The New International Version put it this way despite their fear the same verse despite the fear of the peoples around them they built the altar on his foundation and sacrificed burnt offerings on it to the Lord morning and evening this is a fight day and night we've got to give our lives as a sacrifice to the Lord are you tracking with me this world is as evil as you think it
is there's no need to be afraid Jesus said it over and over do not be afraid afraid fear not but your sacrifice is a direct response of how you see God how do you start your day how do you end your day how do you live your life you be the sacrifice then here it comes later in the same chapter we're going to see a rebuilding everyone say rebuilding rebuilding now we're ready for the rebuilding I'm going to trust God I'm going to give you my whole life and then we're told that this was a season that we now call in our calendar September October very important season on the Jewish calendar they have all these festivals they have all these holy days where they give God their best so they didn't just give sacrifice of offerings they kept giving offerings you know what God loves a cheerful giver when you give because you just love God listen if there's any burden on you
whatsoever to give to Journey Church please don't give that is not of God but the more you start giving of God you realize that God actually gives back and you can't outgive God I never heard of someone going broke because they gave to God you give to God because he's worthy of it so you start to read verse four and five and and there's the these holy days and they're bringing their offerings before God and we're going to see the rebuilding the blessing comes now then you look at verse 8 and N the leaders start rising up they made a beginning they come together they grab the priests they grab the young people what are they doing they start rebuilding the foundation verse 8 and N then we get to verse 10 the foundation is laid may I encourage you today that when God begins a work in your life you got to celebrate the
Milestones don't wait until God's totally finished to start worshiping him look at verse 10 and the builders laid the foundation of the Temple of the Lord and the priests and their vestments came forward with trumpets of the Levites the son of a Asaf with symbols to praise the Lord according to the directions of David the king of Israel they sang responsively and praising and giving thanks to the Lord here's the song they sing for he is good for his steadfast love andure forever toward who Israel this is a song that was sung for centuries now it's been sung for Millennia after Millenia God is always good his love endures forever God has a plan for Israel and all the people shouted with a great shout when they praised the Lord because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid it
wasn't done yet but the foundation was laid and what they do they praise God there was worship when God's rebuilding your life your life should be worship everyone say worship worship it's exactly what it sounds it's giving worth worship is not music at church we see in this story music does stir the Heart of Worship there's something about music that changes the atmosphere usually of our own Hearts it can calm you down it can set the Precedence you can pray through through music but music isn't worship it's giving God glory and honor and praise and when they did this they shouted that's why sometimes at Journey I'm just asking you to shout and sometimes it's inside of me and I want it to be inside of you and
then little golf claps come out and I think oh if we can just learn that he's worthy of a good shout once in a while God is doing something he may not be finished yet but if you could just know that the foundation is there today that wasn't there yesterday and we did this in the midst of the evil ones trying to discourage us then I would just understand I've got something to worship but I'll warn you there's something about worship that gives mixed emotions do you know what I'm saying because there are some that come into this room and say it is way too loud there are too many lights and I don't like the songs oh we may not be the right church for you but I know great church
Downtown that might be a little softer might be a little different worship is weird because one person might say listen the Holy Spirit was moving God was working great and the other person over here would be like that wasn't of the Lord that was awful how can that provoke two different emotions well this happened in the days of old 2500 years ago the same thing happened look what happens if you keep reading verse 12 but many many of the priests and Levites and the heads of the father's houses old men who had seen the first house these are guys that came back to see what was there is now gone and they're rebuilding and they don't like it this is nothing like the old house this Foundation looks entirely different though many shouted aloud with joy verse 12 many people were praising
God verse 13 so that it says that the the people could not dis distinguish the sound of joy shout versus the sound of the people weeping for the people shouted with a great shout and the sound Was Heard far away people were sad and they were crying because God was rebuilding something but he was doing something new it was different I was raised in the 80s and 90s and I always told myself I will never be like that older generation that didn't understand what what we do and then I hear my teenagers listen to music and I say what is that stuff how did that happen so quickly I just felt like yesterday I was the one saying I will never be like that
and all of a sudden sometimes I find myself weeping saying that's not music you listen to this then my kids hear it and they say nah that's not for me when we talk about building extra classrooms for kids we're talking about kids' Church from the beginning of this church we've never said kids are the future church because they're not kids are the church we've got to believe that when they accept Jesus to be their savior they get the same Holy Spirit any adult gets it's never too late with God for the old person that's hanging on the cross and cries out last minute Lord please have mercy on me and Jesus says to you who have sinned greatly
today you'll be with me in Paradise but he also says let the little children come quit hindering them I love them you should be a little bit more like them you ever mess with one of them you're going to go into the dut River with a big millstone around your neck that's what I'm saying I love children why do we avoid some of Jesus tough teaching he talks so much about money cuz he knew that it would be the very Jesus is the one that said it's hard for the rich to get into heaven you guys know that Americans are the richest people in the world you sitting here today you come in and get coffee and donuts we pay for that coffee and donuts we come in and treat this place like a country club you don't pay dues to be a part of the church you believe in Jesus you get the Holy Spirit you get to be a part of
God's family and then Jesus says invite other people go get the Misfits yeah go get the prostitutes oh you go get the sick and the hurting you let them know that they have a place at the table I want to finish with this part of the story this is probably the most difficult part but someone's going to resonate well with this because God's rebuilding something in your life and you better believe that he's going to do exceedingly and abundantly immeasurably far more than you could ask God he's going to do it friend but it's not going to happen easily there's going to be some adversar Aries look at verse one of chapter 4 now when the adversaries everyone say adversaries adversaries it's the very name given to the devil our adversary you are going to have adversaries now
what did these adversaries want to do in verse one and two it says hey let us build with you you ever had a girlfriend like that oh you want to build with me sure come along no no that's your adversary do you know what adversary is enemy this your enemy what do you do with the Enemy hey you want to come help build with me no I'm going to give you a few thousand dollars worth of counseling right here it is okay to have boundaries and not let the enemy build your life the enemy might be around you right now the enemy might have access to you right now but that does not mean that you have to allow the enemy into your
life you go read I'm I'm going to have you do a Bible study now go read Ezra chapter 4 they said you ain't have any place in building God's Temple we have learned from our parents and our grandparents and our great-grandparents what happens when we do this and we're not going to do it again now that is not easy and I want to warn you today if you allow the Lord the rebuild building in your life you will have opposition please hear me out on that I wish we would talk just a little more about that cuz in just a moment I'm going to invite you into a relationship with Jesus and I've got to warn you that when you decide to follow Jesus you have an enemy after your soul he's the devil and he's real Ephesians 4:12 warns us that we battle not against flesh and blood your enemy is not your parent it's not your
ex it's not your kids it's not your boss for we battle not against flesh and blood but there's a real army there's principalities you can call them what you will there are many different names just like the devil Satan Lucifer we can call them unclean spirits we can call them Little Devils we can call them demons but they are real and they are against you and there will be opposition and you know who the devil uses people now your battle is not against people so you need the revelation of the Holy Spirit to help you here your battle is not against other people so please don't fight other people please you fight the right enemy in the right way and you will have Victory in Jesus name you have all authority God has given you everything you need we have a common enemy we are
to be United as one man and nothing will stop us from rebuilding if we're United some people want you to stay in Brokenness I don't know why but they do I remember there was one person close to me that for a while just kept saying I I like the old Keith I like the old Keith and the old Keith inside of me was still there because the Bible warns us of the old man in Romans chapter 7 that wants to do what you don't want to do why do you do that when you don't do what you should be doing and the old Keith was like I don't want to ever go back to the old Keith he looked like he had his life together but he was burnt out he was empty he was broken he was de pressed and then he looked at he put on the mask in front of every else and said you all
good I don't want to go back to that I'm so happy the Lord has rebuilt my life some people over here weeping like I don't like the way things are today the world's not the same way it was today do you remember that pandemic we went through it's never going to go back to normal start rebuilding what God wants to do in your life there are no such thing as good old days there the best that you have to come in front of us we have the hope of Heaven in front of us let's go that's that golf clap I was talking about that's like a Hoin one in the PGA that good that was good well the Lord put this on my heart today to believe that someone here is completely broken and they need to be
reminded you do not need to stay that way you have permission to allow the Lord to rebuild your life and I'll tell you it's going to be better than than you ever could imagine take God at his word live by faith don't don't live by what you can see if you live by what you can see yep the enemy is real the enemy is occupying that which he should not occupy that's true in this region by the way we better start taking back that which the enemy has taken over our kids over all medicine we should we should start speaking it fentanyl is not welcome in this area meth heroin we we want to all gone in Jesus name that's not going to happen by us sitting on our Laurels you you can't sit back and do nothing listen you want to go up on the
mountain to snowboard and ski do it but do it for the glory of God let the world know the one that made this you're going to go to work go to work for God let people know you're a Jesus Freak he rebuilt your life shout don't be the one that cries and says oh this world isn't like it used to be when I was 10 it's cuz at 10 you did not pay taxes you didn't even wash your own dishes you can't go back today the most important thing I could ask you is have you believed in the Lord Jesus because the Bible says there is no other name by which you can be saved no other name God came into this world and shows
us his love through the person Jesus Christ Christ it's so important that all salvation is found in him and when you believe in Jesus he changes everything he brings you hope he brings you forgiveness he brings Liberation he starts healing that which was hurt inside of you he starts rebuilding your life if you've never done that right now is your time there's no better time don't wait for another day Jesus doesn't say go get your life right and then follow me he just says drop everything and follow me it doesn't mean it will be easy but it's absolutely worth it he's given you his word so that you can get to know him greater you are now belong to a great family I met a wonderful couple they're actually on vacation from New York and they came to church today not because they have to not because their parents made them they are enjoying life and
they decided we go to church and they said whenever we're on vacation we go to church on Sundays that's because we're a part of the family of God we're so glad you're here today if you want to be a part of that family right now right where you are all you have to do is say yes to Jesus you have to believe in your heart he died on the cross for your sins from this day forward you have to be willing to confess him as Lord and if you do that you're saved there's anyone here today that wants to do that I want to just have you take this serious would you close your eyes right where you are right where you are close your eyes sometimes I do this with our eyes open sometimes I to do with our eyes closed but right now this is so serious I need you to understand this is a matter of Heaven and Hell hell is a real
place it's forever being separated from God you do not have to be separated from God any longer from this day forth you can know that God loves you he made you he's given you a plan to prosper you a plan for Hope a plan for healing if you want to receive Jesus today as your savior would you just raise your hand nice and high and say that's me I want to believe in Jesus I'm saying yes to Jesus praise God praise God young people are going to change the world is what's going to happen God loves you he wants you to take him serious I'm going to pray with you in just a moment he loves you so much anyone else here today praise God he loves you so much anyone else you raise your hand you can even look at me when you raise your hand anyone else yes praise God young man loves you so
much anyone else might be at home right now now and you're making this decision right where you are there's no greater decision than to say I believe in Jesus I believe right where you are you can put your hands down I want you to pray with me we're going to pray out loud just so we can hear the words that we believe in our hearts and if anyone's ever prayed this prayer these aren't the right words they're not words of repe repetition you just have to believe in your heart it's not a prayer that saves you it's Jesus prayer is talking to God it's conversation is listening and talking to the Lord right where you are would you would you repeat after me these words Lord Jesus I believe in you forgive me of my
sins today I follow you I receive salvation I received the Holy Spirit I give you permission to rebuild my life in Jesus name amen amen let's let's keep praying for a moment Lord I want to pray over those in this room that have a Brokenness that's so big a Brokenness that if we all saw each other's Brokenness we we couldn't handle it but you can almighty God you can handle the hurt that happened years ago in this room I pray today in the name of Jesus Christ that you would replace bitterness with your blessings I pray that all of that hurt that we came into this room with we would surrender it to you right now if
you've got some hurt that just came came to your mind immediately would you just raise your hand and say I need to give this to God all over the place all over the place God you see the Brokenness God I pray for restoration right now in the name of Jesus that by the power of your Holy Spirit you can do what no one else can do God give Vision give Revelation speak through your word don't allow the devil to touch any of those hands that went up today God we pray for a rebuilding in your church we pray for a restoration of Hope in this house we pray pray that God we would rejoice in our sufferings knowing that it's not wasted God that you're doing something greater God that we would look forward to being with you forever so I ask today for miracles God miracles of Health miracles of finances miracles of relationships with grown kids I'm asking
God that those young people that raise their hands to say yes to you Lord that this would be so genuine you would light a fire in this generation of those that will raise up to be preachers that are bold evangelists missionaries that Lord in this day we would get to see you work thank you that you're not finished with us you are the great Rebuilder the restore of our souls we are your temple Holy Spirit dwelling Us in Jesus name amen amen amen
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Exile, repentance, and the promise to return
Jeremiah's warnings are set against false prophets promising peace. Pastor Keith reads the exile as a consequence for sin, but also draws on Jeremiah 15:19, 27:22, and 30:17 to argue that God visits, restores, and heals his people rather than abandoning them.
Jeremiah 15:19 · Jeremiah 27:22 · Jeremiah 30:17
- Pastor Keith says sin takes us where we do not want to be. Where do you see that pattern at work?
- How would you describe repentance as a change of direction rather than only regret?
- What difference does it make that God promised to visit his people while they were still in exile?
The temple, the cross, and the Spirit within
The teaching moves from the tabernacle to Solomon's temple, its destruction by Babylon in 586 BC, and forward to Jesus, whose death tore the temple curtain. Pastor Keith applies the language of 1 Corinthians 3:16 to believers themselves as God's temple.
1 Corinthians 3:16
- What changes when you think of yourself, and the church, as the place where God now dwells?
- Pastor Keith says Jesus was speaking of a greater temple — himself. What does that mean for how you understand the temple in the Old Testament?
Altar first: sacrifice, unity, and worship
In Ezra 1–3 the returning exiles receive a grant from Cyrus, give freewill offerings, and gather as one. Their leaders rise up and build the altar before the temple, worshipping despite fear. Pastor Keith applies this as sacrifice preceding breakthrough, and connects the altar to Romans 12:1.
Ezra 3:1 · Ezra 3:3 · Romans 12:1
- Why might building an altar of sacrifice come before building anything else?
- What would it look like to worship God morning and evening while surrounded by things that frighten you?
- Where is God asking you to rise up and take action rather than watch?
Opposition, tears, and the right enemy
The foundation is laid with praise, but older men who remembered the first temple weep, and the sound of joy and grief cannot be distinguished. In Ezra 4 adversaries offer to help build and are refused. Pastor Keith insists the battle is not against people, and encourages boundaries rather than letting the enemy into your life.
Ezra 3:10-13 · Ezra 4
- Why is it hard to celebrate a new foundation when you remember something that seemed greater?
- What did the leaders do when adversaries offered to help build, and why?
- What would it change to treat people as not being your real enemy?
Answers from this recording
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What does it mean to build the altar before the temple?+
In Ezra the returning exiles gathered as one, their leaders rose up, and they built the altar of the God of Israel before beginning temple construction. Pastor Keith reads this as sacrifice preceding breakthrough: giving God what is costly, including habits that consume your life, before expecting blessing, and he describes the altar now as a position of the heart. They built it despite fear of surrounding peoples and offered sacrifices morning and evening, which he connects to Romans 12:1 and a life given as worship.
Why were some people weeping when the foundation was laid?+
In Ezra 3:10-13 the older men who had seen the first temple wept when they saw the new foundation, while others shouted for joy, so the sounds could not be distinguished. Pastor Keith uses this to acknowledge that God may be doing something new and different, and that mixed emotions come with rebuilding. He notes that the foundation was something to worship God for, even before the work was finished.
How does the sermon treat opposition?+
Opposition is assumed rather than avoided. Ezra 4 opens with adversaries offering to help build, and the leaders refused them; Pastor Keith uses this to encourage boundaries rather than letting the enemy into your life. He insists the fight is not against people such as a parent, ex, child, or boss, but against real spiritual forces, and he describes the devil as real and active.
