Ezra 3

Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow

The matter of the day in his day. Ezra 3:4 (AVm).

The text is taken from an account of the keeping of the Feast of Tabernacles after the Jews had returned from Babylon.

The Feast of Tabernacles, which was held in the month of October, was one of the great Jewish festivals. It was their harvest thanksgiving, and celebrated the ingathering of the year's corn and wine and oil. It was a time of great joy, and to express their joy the Jews gave presents to each other, much as we do at Christmas.

The feast lasted for eight days and on each day sacrifices were offered up sacrifices of rams and lambs and bullocks. Now there was an unusual thing about these sacrifices. They varied each day. On the first day thirteen bullocks were offered, on the second twelve, on the third eleven, and so on. Each day a bullock fewer was offered until on the seventh day seven were sacrificed. On the eighth there was a change. One bullock only was offered up, along with one ram, seven lambs and a goat.

Now this little bit of a verse which we have chosen today refers to these sacrifices. Each day differed as you have seen, and these old priests kept to the laws and rules that had been laid down. They didn't offer up Monday's sacrifice on Tuesday, or Wednesday's on Thursday. They offered their burnt offerings as the duty of each day required, or, as the margin puts it, “the matter of the day in his day.”

I think it would be a good thing if we chose these words as one of our mottoes.

The Duke of Wellington was once asked by someone how he was able to write his remarkable dispatches in the midst of all the pressure of war. Do you know what he replied? “My rule has always been to do the business of the day in the day.” If we would attend to the matter of each day in its day, some of us would be much happier and more comfortable people. If we could just stick to the work of each day in its day and put our whole mind into that, we should avoid a great deal of worry and the loss of much energy.

Now there are three things which it is good to remember.

1. Don ' t bother about yesterday today. Nobody wants you to, nobody asks you to. If you have made mistakes, well, it just can't be helped. I daresay you are sorry about it. But the best way to be sorry is to try with all your might to do better today.

2. Don ' t bother about tomorrow today. If you look after today, tomorrow will look after itself. So don't keep worrying about all the dreadful things that are going to happen about the tooth that is going to be pulled, and the examination that is going to be held. And don't keep dreaming so much about the wonderful things you are going to do some day that you let slip the golden opportunities of today. The boys and girls who do nothing but dream about what they will do some day often grow up into the men and women who do nothing but regret what they might do if they had their chances over again.

He used to dream of things he'd do

When grown to be a man,

Beguiling boyhood's years away

With many an idle plan.

And now, when grown to be a man,

He knows no greater joy

Than dreaming of the things he'd do

If he were still a boy.

(Thomas Nun an, in A Garland of Verse, 81.)

3. Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today. There are lots of people who are never ready tomorrow because they wasted time and opportunity today. There are plenty of people who lose their chances tomorrow because they didn't do their duty today.

If you ever visit the north-east of Scotland you must go to see the fine old Castle of Dunnottar, which stands on a cliff two miles south of Stonehaven, the county town of Kincardineshire Dunnottar Castle formerly belonged to the Keiths who were Earls-Marischal of Scotland and had charge of the Scottish regalia. There are many thrilling stories connected with the history of that old keep, but it is not of those I want to tell you today.

About a mile inland from the castle lies the old churchyard of Dunnottar where the Earls-Marischal were formerly buried. In the days of Sir Walter Scott the family vault in the burial ground (cemetery) was fast falling into decay. At that time the castle and its property belonged to Keith of Ravelstone, who was a relative of Scott.

Now Mr. Keith conceived that it was his duty to repair the vault and he accordingly took estimates for that purpose. It was reported that £10 would be required to put the building in order. Mr. Keith offered £5 and his offer was refused. Two years later he regretted his decision and offered the full sum. But meantime wind and rain had been doing their work and the answer came back that £20 would now barely suffice. The result was that, as Sir Walter Scott says, Mr. Keith “hemmed and hawed” for three more years and then offered £20. The problems had widened and the reply was that now £50 would be required. One more year Mr. Keith delayed, and then sent a check for £50. It was returned by post immediately with the information that the burial vault had collapsed the preceding week!

Boys and girls, that story speaks for itself, but remember that there are golden opportunities passing by you every day opportunities not only of growing wiser and better, but of doing little kindnesses to those around you.

One other story I want to tell you. Once an Indian native told a missionary that he believed in Jesus and meant to give Him his love some day. A native helper who was standing by said to him, “If you and I were walking through a jungle and came face to face with a tiger, and I put myself in front of you and cried, ‘ Run, brother, for your life,' would you love me?” “Yes, surely.” “When? some day?” The native saw the point. He said, “I will give myself to Him now and you shall baptize me tomorrow.”

That is all, boys and girls. I'm not going to preach a sermon, but I want you to preach it to yourselves.