Act in Faith on the Word of God

Transcript

GRM 779
03/17/2002
Act in Faith on the Word of God
Ezra 5:1-6:22
Gil Rugh

Turn in your Bibles to the Book of Ezra and chapter 5. Let me review just a little bit with you the setting of this portion of Ezra. When the Jews returned from the 70-year Babylonian captivity, their intention was to rebuild the temple as the center of worship for the nation. Not to start with rebuilding the walls of the city, but to rebuild the temple so that worship would be at the heart and focus of their life as a restored nation. The beginning point of the construction of the temple was the building of the altar where the worship of God was centered in the sacrificial system. God had said in the book of Exodus chapter 29, verse 43, concerning the altar, "I will meet there with the sons of Israel, and it shall be consecrated by My glory." So, in chapter 3 of Ezra we had recorded the building of the altar in preparation of the building of the temple.

In chapter 3, verse 1, we noted at the end of verse 1, "the people gathered together as one man...." They had unity in their ministry together. They were obedient, end of verse 2, to the Word of God. They were doing what was "written in the law of Moses, the man of God." And they also had a fear of the enemies that were surrounding them. In verse 3, "they were terrified because of the peoples of the lands." Unity in the project God had given them; obedience to the Word of God; and yet, fear of the overwhelming enemy that surrounded them.

Following the setting up of the altar, they proceeded to lay the foundation for the temple itself. Down in verse 10 of chapter 3, "Now when the builders had laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord..." there was a celebration of praise to the Lord. Verse 11, "they sang, praising and giving thanks to the Lord, saying, 'For He is good, for His lovingkindness is upon Israel forever.'" We noted that some of the old-timers were overwhelmed by sadness as they remembered the former glory and saw that what was now taking place would not match the former glory. So, in verses 12 and 13 there is weeping mixed in with rejoicing as some were reflecting on the past and were saddened by the lost glory. Yet, there is rejoicing by many for what God was presently doing.

Chapter 4 records the opposition that arose from people around, surrounding peoples, to the work of the Lord in the building of the temple. Their first approach was first to try to join hands with God's people. In verses 2 and 3 they came and said, 'Look we worship the same God. We have been worshipping Him since the days of the Assyrian captivity. We want to help you build.' Really what they're trying to do is infiltrate among God's people, and thus weaken and ultimately destroy them. But by God's grace their offer is turned down. Verse 3 they are told, 'You have no part in what we are doing. We don't worship the same God. You are not joined with us and will not help.' And you see their true character come to light because when that approach is rejected, they become more open in the opposition. In verse 4, "Then the people of the land discouraged the people of Judah, and frightened them from building." They sent counselors to the king to undermine the Jews by turning the king against them. So, you see the opposition that has built. And by the time you get to the end of chapter 4, they are successful. They bring the work on the temple to a halt. Verse 24 of chapter 4, "Then work on the house of God in Jerusalem ceased." They were successful in getting the king to order a stop. The year was 536 B.C., and the work will be stopped for 16 years on the temple. And it will resume in 520 B.C. So, between chapter 4 and chapter 5, you have a 16-year gap. As we end chapter 4, the work has stopped on the temple. That was in 536. Chapter 5 opens with resuming work on the temple. That happens in 520 as the events of chapter 5 will unfold.

There are two prophets who are key to resuming the work--the prophet Haggai and the prophet Zechariah. They are familiar to us because each of them wrote a book that bears their name--Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi. So, two of the last three books of our Old Testament are authored by these two prophets.

Note verse 1 of chapter 5. "When the prophets, Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem, in the name of the God of Israel, who was over them, then Zerubbabel..." and Joshua, and so on. These two prophets are used of God to initiate the rebuilding of the temple.

Turn over to the book of Haggai, third book from the end of the Old Testament, so it's not a very large book, but it's not too difficult to find because you can go to the end of the Old Testament and back up. And the third book from the end of the Old Testament, just before the Book of Zechariah, which is just before the book of Malachi which concludes the Old Testament. You have the prophecy of Haggai. Haggai gives four messages, and he dates each of these four messages. They take place between August and December in 520 B.C. If he is giving the Hebrew months here, we can translate them over to basically the period of time we'd be talking about which would be between August and December. He gives four brief messages which comprise the book of Haggai. Each time he gives a message he dates it. You'll note verse 1 of Haggai 1. "In the second year of Darius the king, on the first day of the sixth month..." Down in verse 1 of chapter 2, "On the twenty-first of the seventh month..." Down in verse 10, "On the twenty-fourth of the ninth month..." Down in verse 20, "...on the twenty-fourth day of the month..." So, each of these messages are dated, and they are tied as well to the reign of the king Darius so we are enabled to place them in a time framework.

Zechariah's prophecies will be given over a longer period, about two years--520-518. He will overlap. He will start in October but he will go on to February of 518. So, he has a longer ministry recorded than Haggai.

It's interesting Ezra's record at the end of chapter 4 indicates that the building came to a halt because of the activity of the king. But when you come to the prophets, they say the real reason the temple has not been finished is the disobedience of the people. And we find something here that is important for us all--sometimes we find it easy to find excuses for what we really don't want to do. And that can come even in our service and obedience to the Lord. And really what you have are the Jews are using the circumstances and situation as an excuse for not doing what God says they should be doing. And really their excuses don't count because God is not fooled. So, Haggai comes on the scene, and he comes on the scene with a message of rebuke for what they are doing.

The first message is a message of strong rebuke. Look at verse 2. "Thus says the Lord of Hosts, 'This people says...'" Now here's what the people were saying, their thinking, their attitude: "The time has not come, even the time for the house of the Lord to be rebuilt." It's not the right time. We're not opposed to rebuilding the temple. Oh, we want the temple to be rebuilt. Yes, that needs to be done. This just isn't the right time. Now the opposition certainly contributed to it. They could claim, look, the king of Persia has put a stop to the work. The enemies around us won't tolerate the building of the temple. So, there were a lot of reasons that could be offered, but "Then the word of the Lord came by Haggai the prophet saying," verse 4, "'Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses while this house lies desolate?'" You know what? They'd found time to build their own homes, but no time to build the house of the Lord. God took it personally.

God took it as an act of rebellion. You can't get My house built, but you can get your house built. Easy to fall into the pattern. People are going to serve the Lord but first I have to get this taken care of. First, when I get this done I'll be in a better position to serve the Lord. When this takes place, then I'll be able to devote myself to doing what God would want me to do. Here they were involved in getting themselves all settled in, but of course, once we've got our own homes taken care of and we don't have that distraction, then we'll be able to concentrate our attention on building the temple. Sixteen years have gone by. There's no temple, but they have nice houses to live in. So, that well-known statement of Haggai, "Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses while this house lies desolate?"

One commentator put it this way: "They had deluded themselves into thinking that if they first made themselves prosperous and satisfied their own needs, then they would be in a better position to meet their obligations to the Lord. What they failed to see, however, was that when one neglects to discharge his obligations to the Lord first, whatever he does for himself will not prosper." And what God had done was withheld His blessing from them. The harder they work, the more they tried to gain, the further behind they got. You can see how you get trapped in a cycle? That becomes its own excuse for not proceeding, because you become more absorbed in trying to satisfy your own needs.

So, in verse 5, "Consider your ways!" says the Lord. That'll be said again in verse 7. "Consider your ways!" What do they consider? "You have sown much, but harvest little; you eat, but there is not enough to be satisfied; you drink, but there is not enough to become drunk; you put on clothing, but no one is warm enough; and he who earns, earns wages to put into a purse with holes." Where'd the money go? I don't know; it's gone. God has brought judgment. That's the problem.

Look at verse 11, "I called for a drought on the land, on the mountains, on the grain, on the new wine, on the oil, on what the ground produces...and the earth has withheld its produce." Know what? No matter how hard you work you can't get ahead. Know why? I'm against you. I'm withholding My blessing. You know what God wants? He demands that He be put first. Not after I get it all together; not after I'm settled; not after everything's okay, then I'm going to devote myself to the Lord. God demands to be first! To be taken care of first and His business to be done first. So, that's the message of Haggai--You won't prosper. You're going to wait until everything is taken care, but it's never going to happen because God's against you, because God's not going to stand in line to wait His turn. He's first. So, a strong message of rebuke from Haggai the prophet.

The encouraging thing is the message was believed and responded to. And the people do take heed to the message of Haggai, verse 12 of chapter 1. "Zerubbabel... Joshua...with all the remnant of the people, obeyed the voice of the Lord their God and the words of Haggai the prophet, as the Lord their God had sent him. And the people showed reverence for the Lord." You know, talking about reverencing the Lord, you see the context here. When you submit yourself to the Word of the Lord and obey it you are showing reverence to the Lord. We're not talking about some kind of emotional feeling we stir up. When Zerubbabel and Joshua and the remnant of the people obeyed the voice of the Lord their God and the message He gave through the prophet, they showed reverence for the Lord. You see the issue here? It's a foundational issue. Will we honor the Lord? Will we show Him reverence? Oh, yeah, we want to do that; we're just busy about all these other things. Well, when we bow before the Lord and show Him obedience, then we are showing Him reverence.

So, in the opening part of chapter 2, you have Haggai's second message, and it's a message of encouragement to those who now have resumed the rebuilding of the temple. He tells those who are discouraged because of the glory of this temple not going to be like the glory of the last temple, don't be discouraged. Do the work of the Lord, there is the greatest glory yet to come. We have some of the great millennial passages of the prophets, Haggai, and particularly of Zechariah and the promises given there of the future glory God will bring to His temple. So, the ultimate glory that will come to the temple is yet future. Don't live in the past. The greatest glory of the greatest temple is not in our yesterdays, it's in our future, so be about the work of the Lord now. Haggai tells them, Do the work of the Lord now. Don't be discouraged. Verse 3 of chapter 2, "'Who is left among you who saw this temple in its former glory? And how do you see it now? Does it not seem to you like nothing in comparison? But now take courage'...declares the Lord, 'and all you people of the land take courage...and work; for I am with you.'" What more can we ask? I mean, I'm doing what God has called me to do and He is with me in the doing of it. That is a glory and a blessing of its own. And he goes on to tell them that there is also coming a day when the wealth of all the nations will be brought to His temple. So be looking to what God is doing and what God will be doing and will do in accordance with His promise.

Come back to the Book of Ezra. The work proceeds, verse 2, "Then Zerubbabel...Jeshua...began to rebuild the house of God which is in Jerusalem; and the prophets of God were with them supporting them." We just read a little bit of that message--Don't be discouraged. Those of you who remember the former glory, don't be discouraged; do the work. God's with you and there's greater glory that will come. Zechariah's prophecies are well known for their emphasis on coming glory.

Verses 3 down to 17, the challenges to the work, what do you think happens? As soon as they resume the work on the temple, the opposition is brought to life again. Now that's probably one of the things that kept them from resuming the work on the temple. You know what's going to happen if we start to work on the temple? It's going to stir up the opposition. Let's let sleeping dogs lie. We've got our hands full trying to build our own houses, getting ourselves established, getting enough to eat, enough to live on, and so on. There'll be time to rebuild the temple in the future; we don't need another battle. And sure enough, they start to work on the temple, verse 3, "At that time Tattenai, the governor of the province beyond the River..." and his cohorts come and ask, "Who issued you a decree to rebuild this temple and to finish this structure?" So, they give the names of those who were in charge of the project. "But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews, and they did not stop them until a report should come to Darius, and then a written reply be returned concerning it." So, what happens is the governor of the province comes and wants to know what they're doing. Then he wants to know the names of those who are involved in this project. Then he's going to send to Darius the king and ask what he should do, but the hand of the Lord is with the Jews because in the meantime, the governor does not put a stop to the building. He'll let them go on while he awaits word from Darius. Now that's the hand of the Lord involved. The providence of God in caring for them.

The Persian governor would have had reason for concern about what is going on. This is a time of turmoil in the Persian Empire. Cyrus, who had issued the original decree enabling the Jews to go back, had died in 530 B.C. His son, Cambyses, succeeded him to the throne but eight years later he committed suicide. He was succeeded by a distant cousin, so you can see what's happening now. We've got turmoil going on. You had a king who had been strong and powerful succeeded by a son who ends up taking his own life. Well, that ends up with a man coming to the throne who was a distant relative. That brought about a series of revolts throughout the empire. Darius was successful in putting those revolts down and solidifying his power. It is during this kind of situation that the governor of the province wants to know what he should do here and how he should handle this building project of the Jews.

He sends a message to the king in verse 8, "Let it be known to the king, that we have gone to the province of Judah, to the house of the great God..." It’s interesting the way they put it, they recognized the God of Israel and they are building His house there, the temple. "Then we asked those elders", verse 9, "'Who issued you a decree to rebuild this temple and to finish this structure?'" We also asked their names so we could tell you who's involved here. Here's what the Jews told the Roman governor in response to the questions he had asked. "We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth and are rebuilding the temple that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and finished. But because our fathers had provoked the God of heaven to wrath, He gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this temple and deported the people to Babylon. However, in the first year of Cyrus, King of Babylon, King Cyrus issued a decree to rebuild this house of God." Now remember, Cyrus was king of Persia. But in the first year of his having assumed power over Babylon, so we're talking about the Persian Empire here but he is identified with Babylon and the first year when he had taken control over Babylon. So, the Jews lay it out. This is a temple built honoring our God by a great king of Israel, but it was our disobedience that brought God's judgment on us, and He used Nebuchadnezzar; but Cyrus, king of Babylon (which they would recognize as king of the Persian Empire) gave us permission to rebuild. So, that's the story.

He told them what Cyrus had done. Verse 14 and following tells how he had given provisions for the temple and showing how he was supportive of rebuilding the temple. So, in verse 17, "And now, if it pleases the king let a search be conducted in the king's treasure house, which is there in Babylon, if it be that decree was issued by King Cyrus to rebuild this house of God at Jerusalem; and let the king send to us his decision concerning this matter." The Roman governor says, I'm just asking if this is true. And if Cyrus gave such a decree, we want to respect it and we'll allow the Jews to rebuild the temple.

So, in chapter 6, King Darius issues a decree to search the archives in Babylon to find out if there was such a decree. And it's interesting. You read a decree was issued in verse 1 to search the archives, "where the treasures were stored in Babylon." And then in verse 1, "And in Ecbatana in the fortress..." there was found a decree. It's interesting, Ecbatana was 300 miles northeast of the city of Babylon; but it was used by the Persian kings as a summer residence. And when Cyrus issued his decree he was in the summer palace at Ecbatana. So again, by the grace of God the records are searched not only in Babylon but also in Ecbatana. The decree is found. It was in 538 that Cyrus had issued the decree to rebuild the temple.

So, in verse 3, here's what was found. "In the first year of King Cyrus, Cyrus the king issued a decree: 'Concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, let the temple, the place where sacrifices are offered, be rebuilt and let its foundations be retained, its height being 60 cubits and its width 60 cubits; with three layers of huge stones, and one layer of timbers. And let the cost be paid from the royal treasury. And also, let the gold and silver utensils of the temple of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took from the temple in Jerusalem and brought to Babylon, be returned and brought to their places in the temple in Jerusalem; and you shall put them in the house of God.'" So, very clear instructions had been given, and recorded, and kept in the records of the decrees of the King of Persia.

You know what goes on from here in verses 6-12 is Darius, the present king of Persia, gives instructions. What he says is, you are to do exactly as Cyrus said. The Jews were not to be bothered or hindered in any way from their rebuilding. Verse 7, "Let this work on the house of God alone; let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews rebuild this house of God on its site. Furthermore," verse 8, all the expenses for the building of the temple were to be repaid out of the royal treasury. "Moreover, I issue a decree concerning what you are to do for these elders of Judah in their building of this house of God: the full cost is to be paid to these people from the royal treasury out of the taxes of the provinces beyond the River, and that without delay." The people had all kinds of excuses why it wasn't the right time to rebuild the temple. They're struggling with their resources because God was opposed to them because they would not honor Him. But when they submit to His Word and obey Him, it is no problem for God to provide. In fact, he doesn't even need their giving to rebuild the temple. He can move on a pagan of a pagan empire to say, you know what, we'll foot the entire bill for the rebuilding of the temple. Let it be paid out of the royal treasury.

Furthermore, verses 9 and 10, all the items necessary for sacrifice were to be provided to the Jews on a daily basis. So all that was necessary, all the animals for sacrifice were to be provided to the Jews on a daily basis for them to carry on the ministry of the temple. His purpose? Verse 10, "that they may offer acceptable sacrifices to the God of heaven and pray for the life of the king and his sons." As you're aware, the Kingdom of Persia was not a democracy. It was not a republic. It was a dictatorship, so the king had a way of making his point. Verse 11, "And I issued a decree that any man who violates this edict, a timber shall be drawn from his house and he shall be impaled on it and his house shall be made a refuse heap on account of this." Very simply, any man who disobeys this decree, I want you to take a timber from his house, sharpen the end of it, and impale him on it. After you've done that, turn his house into rubble. Sort of takes care of anybody who thought they'd ignore the king's decree. Isn't it amazing how completely God moves on the heart of a pagan, godless man to accomplish His will? We have secular records that show this kind of policy of Cyrus, Cyrus' son Cambyses, and of Darius that they did supply similar support for reestablishing the religious activity in various parts of their empire. This was no an unusual part of Persian policy, but it was one God was using here for the accomplishing of His work.

Just a note on verse 11 with the decree to impale someone. You might think this is just a little bit of hyperbole. Herodotus, the fifth century Greek historian, records that Darius, in response to a rebellion at Babylon, impaled 3,000 Babylonians as a punishment. So when you read verse 11, don't think it's hyperbole. When he had trouble at Babylon, he had 3,000 Babylonians impaled on stakes to show he meant business. So, when he says anybody who disobeys this decree will be impaled on a stake from their own house before we turn the house into absolute rubble, there was no doubt that this would be done if the decree was not obeyed. So, the decree was obeyed. And verse 12, "And may the god who has caused His name to dwell there overthrow any king or people who attempts to change it, so as to destroy this house in Jerusalem, I, Darius, have issued this decree, let it be carried out with all diligence!" So "Tattenai, the governor of the province...and their colleagues carried out the decree with all diligence, just as King Darius had sent."

You know sometimes we struggle so hard. It seems nothing goes right. We're trying to do what we want done in our energy. We come up with all kinds of reasons and excuses why the work of God can't get done. But, what God calls us to do is be obedient, be faithful. God did not have any problems in funding His temple. God did not have any problem in getting the necessary support from the king for the building of His temple. What the opposition and the problems and the difficulties did was test His people to see their commitment to Him, to reverence Him, to obey Him, to honor Him. We seem to think we're going to do it when the time is right. When things are easy. When it comes naturally. When I have extra. And we fail to appreciate that difficulty and trials are sometimes brought by the Lord to test us in our faithfulness. And here when the people respond to the message, what? The work moves along. The pagan governor raises questions but does not intervene. The pagan king becomes their strongest ally, not only to give them permission to proceed but to provide all the necessary funds and all the necessary animals for sacrifices for the ongoing ministry of the temple. You say, why didn't they do this earlier? Well, think about the blessings that we miss in so many areas because we are unwilling to trust the Lord.

Verse 14 of chapter 6, "And the elders of the Jews were successful in building through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they finished building according to the command of the God of Israel and the decree of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia. And this temple was completed on the third day of the month Adar; it was the sixth year of the reign of King Darius." Artaxerxes is mentioned here. He's a later king, so we'll have more to say about him later in our study of Ezra. He's mentioned because later he will contribute to the work of the temple. But here you have it completed, and what he's saying is, God worked. And you note, it was through the word of the prophets, the command of God that He had given to Israel, and the decree of these pagan kings. Therein you see the sovereignty of God. They had to do what? Obey the word of the prophets, the command God gave. Then God moved in His providence on the heart of the pagan kings. But you note, He didn't move on the heart of the pagan kings to make contact with the Jews and say, why don't you begin rebuilding their temple? You know what the Jews had to do? They had to take the Word of God and act in faith. Now I'm sure there was fear and trepidation when the governor of the province came knocking and asking, what are you doing? ‘And give me the names of those who are leading this project.’ But they went ahead, they walked by faith, God blessed, and the temple gets built.

The temple is completed, according to verse 15, in the month Adar. That's our February/March. It corresponds to the period of time we have in our February/March. It was 515 B.C. That's 21 years after the work started in 536. Four and a half years after Haggai gave his first message. So it was a project that took some time, but it is done. The temple had been destroyed in August of 586, 70 years had gone by.

Verse 17, you have the dedication of the house of God. There is great joy, at the end of verse 16, they "celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy. And they offered for the dedication of this temple of God 100 bulls, 200 rams, 400 lambs..." Isn't it interesting? Who's footing the bill for all of this? Amazing the provision God makes. "And as a sin offering for all Israel," and note this because this is important. "And as a sin offering for all Israel 12 male goats, corresponding to the number of the tribes of Israel." No lost tribes. All twelve tribes are covered in what is done here. The return from the Babylonian captivity primarily involved two tribes, Judah and Benjamin. The ten tribes of the north never are restored in masse. It doesn't mean that some of them could not have been part of this return since it's in that area, but God is working with the nation that He has called and that includes all twelve tribes. So, the sin offering here is on behalf of all twelve tribes. They will be there at the end. Remember when we get to the Book of Revelation? The sealing of the 144,000 in the 7-year period before the return of Christ to set up His kingdom? Twelve thousand from each of the twelve tribes. God's Word will be fulfilled. So here they've been scattered. Assyrian captivity and deportation took place in 722 B.C. You think, well those ten tribes, they're gone. I mean, you'd never find them. And you have remnants primarily of the Babylonian captivity which was the southern kingdom. The southern two tribes come back, and there would have been some Jews left in the land from before, and there would have been some from the ten tribes that would have settled perhaps in regions around where they could have returned. But in God's perspective all twelve tribes are included in His provision and the sacrifice for the sin of the nation includes all twelve tribes.

Verses 19-22 you have the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread celebrated, showing how God had moved on the kings. These feasts would be a reminder of the deliverance from Egypt that occurred 900 years earlier as God moved in special and mighty ways there to deliver His people from the Egyptian bondage.

Down in verse 22, "They observed the Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days with joy, for the Lord had caused them to rejoice," now note this, "and had turned the heart of the king of Assyria toward them to encourage them in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel." Now it's just like the king Cyrus, being called the king of Babylon. Why? He's a Persian king but he conquered Babylon, so he's the king of Babylon. Well, the Persians had not only conquered the Babylonians, they had conquered the Assyrians. The Assyrians were an empire preceding, so they are viewed as the successors. He is called the King of Assyria because he is the ultimate successor to that empire as he is now the ruling king. It may be a reminder of the captivity of the northern ten tribes. They went into captivity when Assyria ruled and dominated. Now the king who conquered the Assyrians and the Babylonians has acted in the providence of God to assist the return of Israel. We're reminded, God is sovereign.

Now keep in mind Ezra does not develop it, but the prophets Haggai and Zechariah in particular included in their prophecies a prophecy of a coming glory that has yet to be realized. When all the wealth of all the nations is brought to Jerusalem, the temple has a splendor and a glory far exceeding anything that it has ever had. So, a reminder, the sovereign God who is working here is the sovereign God who will bring to fruition, complete fulfillment those glorious promises given through these prophets who were encouraging them in the present work. The work that's seen nothing in comparison to what there had been in the past, and they remind them, keep working; God is faithful; there is greater glory.

Let me just summarize some of the points from these two chapters and we'll be done:

1. God's Word is key in the accomplishing of God's work. It all boils down to God's Word and our obedience or disobedience to God's Word. It's the coming on the scene of these prophets that bring God's Word that are key to God's work being done.

2. God watches over His people. In chapter 5, verse 5, "But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews." A beautiful way to put it. "The eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews." We have that little song, His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me. Picked up from Jesus' statement about God watching the sparrow and we are much more valuable than them. Reminder, God watches over His people. His eye was on them. He was caring for them.

3. We should recognize the hand of God in discipline and in blessing. You know, the people are responding to the Word of God. And isn't it interesting? When you're responding to the Word of God, when you're submitting to the Word of God, the Word of God becomes more rich, more alive. I see the work of God more clearly and appreciate it more fully. Verse 11 of chapter 5, we are rebuilding the temple that was built many years ago by a great king. Verse 12, we lost it all under the discipline of the Lord for our disobedience. They saw the hand of God in it all. That's key. It was God's hand in their discipline. It wasn't that God had failed and so Nebuchadnezzar won a victory. No, that was the hand of God just as much as His blessings were. Just as much the hand of God when it's discipline as it is the hand of God when it's blessing, and they acknowledge that.

4. Intimidating situations can be God's means to bring great blessing. Verses 3 and 4 you have the governor coming and challenging them. What are you doing? Then asking for the names of those who are involved with this project. Al of a sudden, my name is going to be on the list sent to a pagan king who has had to deal with rebellion. What if the word comes back, everybody on that list is to be put to death? Darius was a man who would not be above such an action. If he'd put 3,000 Babylonians to death, he wouldn't think anything of executing a few Jews over here. Now my name's on the list. Down in verse 10, "We also asked their names so as to inform you, and that we might write down the names of the men who were at their head." As you come to chapter 6, that's what God used to bring great blessing. The consequences of their obedience are in God's hands. They only need to be concerned about doing what God told them to do. But, what if? Well, the 'what if's' are in God's hands, and God uses it to bring great blessing because out of it Darius will issue his decree.

5. Chapter 6, verse 14 reminds us that God uses a variety of means to accomplish His purposes. He used the ministry of Haggai and Zechariah. He used the decrees of Cyrus, Cambyses, Darius to see that His work was done. You know, we sometimes think we have to help God out by telling Him how to get the job done. You know, I really just have to do what God has called me to do and let God solve His own problems, if I could put it that way. The Jews don't have to come up with what God is going to have to do to work this out! And how are we going to pay for it, and what happens in this situation and that situation? Well, all they had to do was what? Get about what God had told them to do. Little could they know that God would so work in Darius' heart that he would fund the whole project out of the royal treasury. That's more than they could have asked for! And furthermore, that he would provide the sacrifices on a daily basis so that the ongoing costs are met. And furthermore, he would declare the worst form of capital punishment to anyone who interfered with the Jews' work! I mean, how could the Jews have come up with this kind of idea? And they didn't have to! We get into trouble when we think we've got to be God. All I have to be is His servant. Be faithful. Be obedient. But what are you going to do if this happens? I don't know. What about this? I don't know. I'm just a servant here. I just do what the Master says, and leave in His hands all that needs to be taken care of.

6. The restoration of the nation encompasses all twelve tribes. And that's the end of verse 17. I am just dumbfounded at how many men I read that think God is done with Israel. I read here and find God makes a point even in these kind of places. To have a male goat representing each of the twelve tribes to be offered as a sin offering. Why, God, you know most of those tribes are lost; we wouldn't know how to gather them back together? Because God's Word includes all twelve tribes. How do people think that God will not fulfill the parts of the prophecies of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah as well as the others that relate to an overwhelming glory in Jerusalem at a future day? I mean, I just scratch my head and think I'm missing something. Here you go back and read, alright, we were doing all right when we got here. It's just like everybody closed their eyes and jumped over a cliff. Wait a minute, I just keep on going. God has established a pattern here, and why will He not do what is yet to be done in the prophecies of Haggai and Zechariah just as exactly as He did in what has already been done? And He will.

7. Obedience brings blessing. The problem with the building of the temple was not the opposition. It was not the power of the enemies. It was not the difficulties of the times. It was not the lack of resources among God's people. The problem was the lack of obedience. Nice to narrow it down to a simple, clear point. Just like our children. When they do something wrong; when they don't do what they're told, and they have a list of excuses that can go on for pages. Sometimes you just have to cut through them and say, You know what the problem is? You didn't obey. But...you don't...I...no, the problem is you didn't obey. Now we as God's children often find ourselves in that place. Oh Lord, the circumstances, the situation, you know, from within, from without, it's not a good time, it's not the right time, I know this would be the best time, but I....Just obey! Just obey. You know we have that little song Trust and obey for there's no other way? Well, it's not so difficult, is it? And I read Israel's history and I say, why did it take them years and years and years? Why did they quit? Why did they get distracted? Why did they forsake blessing after blessing? Who knows how much of the difficulties and trials and struggles of our lives are a result of the Lord working to get our attention? We ought to say, Lord, I submit to you. Lord, it will be your way. Lord, I want to walk in obedience to you, moment by moment, day by day. As the other song says, I don't know about the future, but I know who holds the future. And that's sufficient. God's work is done in God's way when God's people obey. Let's pray together.

Thank you, Lord, for your grace. Thank you for your grace and patience and love in dealing with the nation Israel, that you chose to be your special treasure. That you chose to be the people who would receive your blessing. A people that you promised to shower with good things and great glory. Thank you for your faithfulness even as this temple has been rebuilt in the days of Ezra. Thank you, Lord, for recording these events in your Word that we might learn from the Scriptures. Lord, we rejoice for Israel even as we grieve for their disobedience today. We rejoice in the glory that you have promised for them yet to be realized, when finally their stubborn disobedience is brought to an end and they trust the Savior. Lord, thank you for the glory that is promised to us. Thank you for the blessings of obedience. Lord, may we take to heart these lessons. Not try to make excuses out of circumstances or situations. Not to become so absorbed in our own personal lives and personal problems and challenges and difficulties that we find ourselves with less time for you. With trying to cover up disobedience. May we be faithful that you might be honored and we might experience the fullness of your blessings in our lives as we serve you together, for we pray in Christ's name. Amen.