Ezra Ch1v1-11 - God's Purposes Always Prevail

Well, please be turning in your Bibles to Ezra.

! I'm just going to make some adjustments here.

Thank you.

It will be available for you on the table afterwards.

I encourage you to read it just to get a bit of a background

and to understand the flow of the message of Ezra and Nehemiah.

So do take your copy, one per family, afterwards.

Now, just before we read the first chapter,

Ezra comes where it does in the Bible.

But just so you know, and I think this is helpful for us,

that chronologically speaking, as we move through time,

Ezra and Nehemiah really come at the end of the Old Testament

in terms of history and God's dealing with his people.

So it takes us up to the exile when God's people are taken into exile

and they're returned.

So Ezra and Nehemiah is all about the return of God's people back to the land.

So that just sets us in the right place.

Let's read Ezra chapter 1, verses 1 to 11.

Ezra 1 · chapter mention

In the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia,

in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah,

the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus, king of Persia,

to make a proclamation throughout his realm

and also to put it in writing.

This is what Cyrus, king of Persia, says.

The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth

and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah.

Any of his people among you may go up to Jerusalem in Judah

and build the temple of the Lord, the God of Israel,

the God who is in Jerusalem,

and may their God be with them.

And in any locality where survivors may now be living,

the people are to provide them with silver and gold,

with goods and livestock,

and with freewill offerings for the temple of God in Jerusalem.

Then the family heads of Judah and Benjamin

and the priests and Levites,

everyone whose heart God had moved,

prepared to go up and build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem.

All their neighbours assisted them

with articles of silver and gold,

with goods and livestock,

and with valuable gifts,

in addition to all the freewill offerings.

Moreover, King Cyrus brought out the articles

belonging to the temple of the Lord,

which Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem

and had placed in the temple of his God.

Cyrus, king of Persia,

had them brought by Mithridus,

the treasurer,

who counted them out to Sheshbazar,

the prince of Judah.

This was the inventory.

Gold dishes, 30.

Silver dishes, 1,000.

Silver pans, 29.

Golden bowls, 30.

Matching silver bowls, 410.

And other articles, 1,000.

In all,

there were 5,400 articles of gold

and of silver.

Sheshbazar brought all these

along with the exiles

when they came up from Babylon

to Jerusalem.

Let's pray.

By your word,

you brought the world into existence.

And by your word,

you sustain the world

and provide us with all that we have.

And we ask

that by your word today,

it would speak into our hearts and lives

and change us

and cause us to depend upon you

and worship you.

In Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

Well, looking out on our world,

it's difficult to see

who is in charge.

The great superpowers of the world

seem to do as they please,

blowing and blustering

about their next move.

Russia threatens military invasion.

Europe seeks economic sanctions.

America demands political change.

Trump says

a united Ireland

is on the way.

Meanwhile,

China and Iran

sit back plotting

and planning their next steps.

And that's not to mention

AI

and the thought that

AI could wipe out humanity

within 10 years.

Listen to the news today

and you come away thinking

the world

is in chaos.

Is there anyone

in charge?

Well, take a look with me

at verse 1.

It's a time of great

change.

It's the first year of

Cyrus,

king of Persia.

So the balance of power

has been shifted

from the Babylonian empire

to the Persian empire.

Nebuchadnezzar,

who ruled with an iron fist,

has been obliterated

by Cyrus,

the new superpower king.

But despite this change

in power,

Ezra writes

to remind us

that God

is ultimately

in charge.

We can summarize

the message

like this.

Behind the superpowers

of the world,

God is sovereignly

directing

the history

of the world

and all its events

until they reach

his desired

and appointed end.

That's a bit of a mouthful,

but it's important,

so we'll read it again.

Behind the superpowers

of the world,

God is sovereignly

directing

the history

of the world

and all of its events

until they reach

his desired

and appointed end.

In other words,

God plans

and his purposes

always prevail.

Think of a musical

conductor

and his orchestra.

With a tip

of his baton,

the strings

are silenced

and the trumpets

blast.

At his direction,

the whole symphony

moves to its

glorious crescendo.

Or think of a weaver

controlling the loom.

She pulls

all the colours

one by one,

introducing

different strades

and strands.

And at her direction,

the tapestry

takes shape,

moving towards

its final

design.

Well,

God

is the conductor

of this world.

He directs

the nations

to accomplish

his plans.

God is the weaver

of this world's

tapestry.

He controls

every event

to fulfil

his promise.

God's purposes

always

prevail.

And we're

going to see

three ways

in which this

is worked out

in practice.

Here's the

first one.

God works

for the good

of his

people.

God works

for the good

of his

people.

Let's go

to verse

one again.

In the first

year of Cyrus

king of Persia,

in order to

fulfil the

word of the

Lord spoken

by Jeremiah,

well,

let's take a

pause there.

What had

God spoken

through

Jeremiah?

Well,

keep your

finger in

Ezra and

jump forward

to Jeremiah

Jeremiah 25 · chapter mention

chapter 25.

Now,

although we're

moving forward,

remember,

Jeremiah comes

before

Ezra and

Nehemiah

in terms of

history.

So,

Jeremiah

Jeremiah 25 · chapter mention

chapter 25.

here we

are reminded

of what the

Lord had

spoken by

Jeremiah.

It's about

50 years

before

Ezra's

time.

And God

is speaking

to his

people about

what will

happen.

Let's pick

it up in

verse 8.

Therefore,

the Lord

Almighty

says,

Because you,

that is

God's

people,

have not

listened to

my words,

I will

summon all

the peoples

of the

north,

and my

servant

Nebuchadnezzar,

king of

Babylon,

declares

the Lord,

and I will

bring them

against this

land and

its inhabitants

and against

all the

surrounding

nations.

verse 11.

The whole

country will

become a

desolate

wasteland,

and these

nations will

serve the

king of

Babylon for

70 years.

And that's

what happened.

The Babylonians

came under the

rule of

Nebuchadnezzar,

and they took

God's people

into exile

for 70

years away

from their

home.

But that's

not all

God had

to say.

Jump

forward to

Jeremiah

Jeremiah 29 · chapter mention

chapter 29

and verse

10.

So

Jeremiah

said,

you're

going to

go into

exile for

70 years,

but there's

something more.

Verse 10,

this is what

the Lord

said,

when the

70 years

are completed

for Babylon,

I will

come to

you and

fulfill my

good promise

to bring

you back

to this

place.

For I

know the

plans I

have for

you,

declares

the Lord,

plans to

prosper you

and not

to harm

you,

plans to

give you

hope and

a future.

Now down

to the

end of

verse 14.

I will

gather you

from all

the nations

and the

places where

I have

banished you,

declares the

Lord,

and will

bring you

back to

the place

from which

I carried

you into

exile.

Back to

Ezra.

So Ezra

begins with

God's people

in exile,

but now

the 70

years

are up.

The

Babylonians

have gone

and Cyrus

and Persia

are the

ruling

power.

So how

is God

going to

fulfill his

promise to

bring his

people back

from exile

back to

their homeland?

Well,

God would

do two

things.

First,

the Lord

moves the

heart of

the king.

The Lord

moves.

The heart

of the

king.

Verse

one.

In the

first year

of Cyrus,

king of

Persia,

in order

to fulfill

the word

of the

Lord spoken

by Jeremiah,

the Lord

moved the

heart of

Cyrus,

king of

Persia,

to make

a proclamation

throughout his

realm and

also to put

it in

writing.

And what

was that

proclamation?

Verse

three.

That any

of God's

people among

you may

go up

to Jerusalem.

They can

return home.

Cyrus may

be the

new

superpower,

but in

the world,

he is

God's

servant.

Look what

Cyrus says

about himself.

Verse

two.

This is what

Cyrus,

king of

Persia,

says.

The Lord,

the God

of heaven,

has given

me all

the kingdoms

of the

earth.

And he,

that is God,

has appointed

me to

build a

temple for

him.

Whatever his

beliefs in

God, it

seems Cyrus

knows that

he is there

by God's

design.

And he only

has what he

has because

God has

given it to

him.

You see,

long before

Cyrus came

to power,

even before

Cyrus was

born,

God had

set his

plan in

motion.

Listen to

what another

prophet Isaiah

says.

Now take

this,

Isaiah is

speaking about

150 years

before Cyrus

is born.

and this

is what

the Lord

says.

This is

what the

Lord says.

I am

the Lord,

the maker

of all

things,

who says

of Cyrus,

he is my

shepherd and

will accomplish

all that I

please.

He will

say of

Jerusalem,

let it be

rebuilt,

and of the

temple,

let its

foundations be

laid.

Isn't that

amazing?

150 years

before Cyrus

came to be,

before he was

even named,

God had

said,

Cyrus is

going to

come,

and he

will accomplish

all that I

please.

You see,

Cyrus is

God's

instrument

to fulfill

God's

purposes.

God had

promised that

he would

rescue his

people from

exile,

and nothing

is going

to stop

him.

In order

to fulfill

the word

of the

Lord spoken

by Jeremiah,

the Lord

moved the

heart of

King Cyrus.

But not

only does

the Lord

move the

heart of

King Cyrus,

the Lord

moves the

heart of

the people.

King Cyrus

gave the

command,

verse 3,

any of his

people among

you may go

up to

Jerusalem in

Judah and

build the

temple of

the Lord,

the God

of Israel.

Now that

may seem

good news.

Cyrus is

telling us

we can go

home.

After

70 years,

we get

to go

back.

But remember

a whole

generation

has died.

70 years

is a long

time.

Not many

of the

people in

captivity

remember what

home was

like.

Now they're

settled.

Their kids

are in

school.

They've got

work to do.

They have

homes to

live in.

Who wants

to go back

to Jerusalem?

It's ruined.

It's desolate

and broken.

After all,

it's a thousand

miles away.

That's a five

month walk.

I'm not going

back.

Are you

going?

No.

Well,

just as

God had

moved

Cyrus,

now God

moves the

heart of

the people.

Verse

five.

Then the

family heads

of Judah

and Benjamin

and the

priests and

the Levites,

those who

worked in

the temple,

everyone

whose

heart

God

had

moved.

It seems

as if

God

hadn't

intervened

and if

God

hadn't

given them

his

desires

to move,

they would

have stayed

put.

God

had to

move

their

stubborn

and reluctant

hearts.

You see,

God is the

ultimate

superpower.

He is the

grand

conductor

of history.

He is the

master

weaver

of every

event.

God

had

promised

that he

would

rescue

his

people

from

exile

and

that

he

would

bring

them

home

and

he

will

move

the

heart

of

the

king

and

he

will

move

the

heart

of

his

people.

Nothing

will

stop

him.

God

works

for the

good of

his

people.

God's

purposes

always

prevail.

The

second,

God

resides

for the

joy

of his

people.

He

works

for the

good of

the

people

and he

resides

for the

joy

of his

people.

Exile

meant

separation

not just

from their

homeland

but also

from God.

So if they

were going

to return

from exile

that meant

a joyful

return

to God.

Look at

what Cyrus

commanded

again.

Verse

2.

The

Lord,

the

God of

heaven,

has

given

me all

the

kingdoms

of the

earth

and has

appointed

me to

build a

temple

for him

at

Jerusalem

in

Judah.

Any

of his

people

among

you may

go up

to

Jerusalem

in

Judah

and

build

the

temple

of

the

Lord.

End

of

verse

5.

And

they

can

go up

and

build

the

house

or

the

temple

of

the

Lord

in

Jerusalem.

Now

why is

there so

much

focus

and so

much

instruction

about

the

temple?

Well

the

temple

was a

symbol

of

God's

presence.

So

God's

plan

through

Cyrus

is to

rebuild

the

temple

that is

broken

so

that

his

people

may

experience

his

presence

once

again

because

God

longs

to

reside

with

his

people.

Notice

here

the

progression

of

God's

presence.

It's

so

encouraging.

Look

at

verse

2.

Do you

see there

in verse

2 we're

told that

God

is the

God

of

heaven.

He

is the

God

of

supreme

power

and

absolute

purity.

You

cannot

get

close

to

his

fearful

beauty.

He's

the

God

of

heaven.

But

verse

3.

Do you

see it

there?

He

is the

God

who

is

where?

In

Jerusalem.

The

creator

of the

universe

is

coming

close

to his

creation.

he

moves

from

heaven

to

earth.

But

much

more

than

that.

Look

at the

end of

verse

3.

He

is the

God

who is

in

Jerusalem

and

may

their

God

be

with

them.

God

is the

God

who is

with

his

people.

You

see

God

rescues

his

people

so

that

he

might

reside

with

his

people.

God

commands

that

the

temple

be

rebuilt

so

that

he

can

be

among

his

people.

This

is the

kind

of

God

he

is.

He

longs

to

get

close

to

his

people.

Now

of course

at this

stage

the

temple

hasn't

been

built.

The

instructions

have

just

been

given

go

back

and

rebuild

it

it

presently

remains

in

ruins

in

Ezra.

But

God

had

made

a

promise

the

temple

will

be

rebuilt

for

their

joy.

And

in

case

we

don't

believe

it

we'll

just

jump

to

chapter

6

for

a

sneaky

peek

at

what's

ahead.

Chapter

6

verse

14

the

middle

of

verse

14

they

finished

the

building

of

the

temple

according

to

the

command

of

God

of

Israel

and

the

decrees

of

Cyrus

and

then

look

at

verse

16

then

the

people

of

Israel

the

priests

the

Levites

and

all

the

rest

of

the

exiles

celebrated

the

dedication

of the

house

of

God

with

joy

God

is

the

ultimate

superpower

the

conductor

of

all

of

history

the

master

weaver

of

every

event

he

resides

for

the

joy

of

his

people

the

God

of

heaven

comes

down

to

be

with

his

people

God's

purposes

always

always

prevail

well

third

God

provides

for the

needs

of his

people

whoops

forgot

that

third

God

provides

for the

needs

of his

people

so

the

return

from

exile

has

begun

soon

God's

people

are

going

to

be

back

in

their

homeland

soon

the

temple

is

going

to

be

rebuilt

soon

their

houses

are

going

to

be

rebuilt

but

homes

and

temple

is

going

to

cost

money

right?

Materials

aren't

going

to

come

for

free

so

where

are

the

readies

going

to

come

from?

Well

we're

told

in

verse

4

and

in

any

locality

where

survivors

may

now

be

living

the

people

are

to

provide

them

with

silver

and

gold

so

verse

6

all

their

neighbours

assisted

them

with

articles

of

silver

and

gold

whoa

it's

like

they've

won

the

lotto

but

let's

give

credit

where

credit

is

due

no

one

has

set

up

a

go

fund

me

page

no

rich

aunt

has

died

and

left

an

inheritance

God

who

moved

the

heart

of

Cyrus

and

the

hearts

of

the

people

can

also

move

it

seems

the

wallets

of

the

oppressor

he

can

open

up

their

bank

accounts

so that

they

have

what

they

need

we

could

imagine

God's

people

packing up

all their

belongings

ready for

that long

walk

home

and as

they begin

their

journey

the

neighbours

are rushing

out

and giving

them

gifts

to help

them rebuild

!

the

temple

this is

no charity

case

this

is

the

rich

generous

provision

of

God

towards

his

people

look at

verse 11

in all

there were

5400

articles

of

gold

and

of

silver

Sheshbazar

brought

all these

along

with the

exiles

when they

came up

from

Babylon

to

Jerusalem

can you

see

that God

is the

grand

conductor

over

all of

history

he's the

master

weaver

of every

event

the supreme

power

who can

move the

heart of

a king

and open

the wallets

of the

oppressor

God

provides

for the

needs

of his

people

God's

purposes

always

prevail

now

before we

move on

we want

to just

pause a

minute

and see

how this

all relates

to us

because it

tells us

of a

great

God

and as

we look

at our

news

and hear

about all

the events

in the

world

surely

it should

tell us

do not

fear

do not

worry

God

is in

control

we don't

need to

worry

but there's

something much

more important

than that

you see

the Bible

tells us

that we

have all

been born

into a

kind of

exile

we are

all

spiritually

separated

from God

we are

living in

a place

away from

his presence

without

hope

and without

a future

you see

the point

is

we all

need

rescued

we need

set free

from our

bondage

in exile

we need

to be

restored

to be

the kind

of people

God

created us

to be

and the

good news

is

God

will move

heaven

and earth

to do

it

in fact

his rescue

of humanity

will be

so momentous

that God

will come

in the

person of

King Jesus

a king

who only

does

what

pleases

God

a king

who has

the desires

of the

father

in his

heart

for Jesus

is the

ultimate

superpower

who enters

the world

to save

us

who comes

from heaven

to earth

to be

present

to save

but the

world is

stubborn

and hard

hearted

the world

has said

no to

God's

king

and we

too

we have

all pushed

him out

we haven't

listened to

his word

and Jesus

was rejected

and beaten

and crucified

and as we

look at the

king and

the cross

it seems

that God's

grand rescue

has failed

but the

death of

Jesus

the king

it was

all part

of God's

wonderful

plan

Acts 4

reminds us

indeed

Herod and

Pontius Pilate

the superpower

rulers of the

day

met together

with the

gentiles

and the

people of

Israel

in this

city

to conspire

against

your holy

servant

Jesus

whom you

anointed

they

did

what

your

power

and will

had

decided

beforehand

should

happen

you see

God

is the

grand

conductor

of history

the

master

weaver

of

every

event

the death

of Jesus

was no

mistake

it was

his

design

for

Jesus

had to

come

and die

for our

sins

so that

we could

experience

his presence

in us

and with

us

and by

his spirit

he moves

stubborn

hearts

so that

we can

return

to God

so that

we could

know him

and enjoy

his presence

forever

and for

all who

follow

King

Jesus

God

has made

a great

promise

to us

in

Christ

that

as we

journey

with

him

God

will

meet

all

your

needs

according

to the

riches

of his

glory

in

Christ

Jesus

what

a

big

God

we

have

let's

go

back

to

Ezra

did

you

notice

what

else

Cyrus

did

in

verse

seven

moreover

King

Cyrus

brought

out

all

the

articles

belonging

to the

temple

of the

Lord

which

Nebuchadnezzar

had carried

away from

Jerusalem

had placed

and placed

in the

temple

of his

God

when

Nebuchadnezzar

was king

of Babylon

he came

and defeated

God's

people

he took

all the

temple

stuff

and he

put it

all into

the

temple

of his

God

it was

his way

of saying

my

God

is bigger

than

your

God

I

win

and you

lose

well

here we

are

70

years

later

Babylon

is

crushed

Nebuchadnezzar

is defeated

God's

people

return

and all

the items

for the

temple

go with

them

in other

words

God is

saying

loud and

clear

I'm

bigger

than

any

God

I

win

every

time

you

see

to

stand

against

King

Jesus

means

we

will

lose

but

if

we

stand

with

King

Jesus

you

and

I

are

on

the