S) " 5 But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews, and they did not stop them until a report could come to Darius, and then a written reply be returned concerning it."
Ezra 5:5 (NASB)
O) In this part of history, the remnant that returned to rebuild the temple at Jerusalem had been stopped, previously. But, through the prophetic encouragements they received (v.2), the rebuilding project was starting again. Like the initial rebuilding, they would face opposition again, but this time it plays out a little differently. Indeed, the sovereign God was with them that they would continue building at this point. In this chapter, their opponents wrote a letter to Darius, asking him to, basically do some research into the annals of history. They asked the king to verify if the Jews actually had a commission to rebuild the temple.
A) The fact that God is sovereign is not really something I've ever questioned, but sometimes I think I forget all the ways He can exercise His sovereignty. In this verse, we see God is going to move on behalf of these leaders, but we don't see exactly how it unfolds until chapter 6. "Spoiler Alert:" In this case, God protects His plan through, what is essentially, the legal system of Babylon (see chapter 6). The old adage, "The Lord works in mysterious ways." is true. Sometimes God does seem to work things together in unforeseen, inexplicable ways. However, sometimes His providence is fairly explicable. Reading the history of Cyrus' ordinance (see 2 Chronicles 36 and Ezra 1), I can see God had the pieces in place, so that when Darius did do his research, he would easily decide to rule in favor of the Jews. When I think about this in my own life, there are parallels with the founding of my country, and how things have unfolded in the centuries since. To be sure, while the U.S. was never officially a "Christian country," the vast majority of .citizens here were Christians at the start. In the present day, Christianity has never faced as much opposition here, as it does right now. Even still, there are a great many laws that have already been put in place, laws that God Himself may have ordained directly, that protect my freedoms as a Christian. So, while the culture is taking a definitive turn away from Christianity, I still have confidence that, at least for a while longer, God's sovereignty will continue to protect my freedom of religion, in a sort of already-established-law sort of way.
P) Father, You are holy and just. You are sovereign and wise. Whatever comes, my prayer will continue to be, that Your will is done. I trust in Your providence, security, and plans. Thank You for giving me the freedom to worship You how You deserve to be worshiped. Thank You for giving me the freedom to read my Bible in public, to share my study openly on the internet. But, even if all of those freedoms are stripped away, even if being a disciple of Christ was eventually outlawed, I am still committed to doing exactly that. You are worth serving at all costs. Be glorified in my life, and may Your will be done. In Jesus's name I pray. Amen.
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