Free Passes to the Circus

For the past six weeks I've been studying the rebuilding of the Temple and the city of Jerusalem. I love the story of God's gracious discipline of the people of Israel to teach them the importance of radical obedience. In the book of Ezra we learn that God raised up King Cyrus of Persia to release the exiles in Babylon to go back and re-populate and rebuild Jerusalem.

The first two chapters of Ezra talk about the return, and how it was the people God called by his Spirit who chose to take the risk of obedience and journey towards Jerusalem. At the conclusion of Ezra 2, we read about an offering that the remnant offered God upon their safe return.

Ezra 2:68-69 says,
"When they arrived at the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, some of the heads of the families gave free will offerings toward the rebuilding of the house of God on its site. According to their ability they gave to the treasury for this work 61,000 drachmas of gold, 5,000 minas of silver, and 100 priestly garments."

While studying this passage of Scripture, I read these comments by Warren Wiersbe: "This was undoubtedly a thank offering to the Lord for giving them a safe journey. The people gave their offerings willingly and according to their ability, which is the way God's people are supposed to give today."

When I read that quote it struck me as odd. As I processed my reaction, I quickly realized that my response was odd, not theirs. Their response was actually ideal.

Why did a group of people giving a thank offering to God make me feel strange? As I mulled over my surprise, I concluded that it was a by-product of Entitlement Christianity. Entitlement Christianity is a frame of mind that expects rewards for obedience. If the Israelites had been afflicted by this entitlement perspective they would have never given a thank offering. Instead they would have paused and waited for God to dole out free passes to the circus because they were assets to his organization.

The Israelites who offered thanks got it right. They understood that the opportunity for obedience demands gratitude. They recognized that the fruit of a successful journey is the by-product of the grace and mercy of God. It was God who gave them the opportunity to go, and it was God's power that enabled them to finish.

God help me understand the sacred privilege of obedience and deliver me from the self aggrandizing sense of entitlement that plagues me.