Sermon Tone Analysis
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We are in a series of messages from the book of Ezra.
Last week we ended with this verse in chapter 4:
***Put up title slide***
How disappointing.
They were on a roll and some people, the enemies of Israel did all they could to stop the rebuilding of the temple.
They thought they succeeded, but it was only a delay.
Today we are going to continue reading about what happened in chapters 5 and 6.
I won’t read the entire passage, but you should follow up and do that at some point this week.
I’m going to summarize a good portion of it and it is up to you to make sure I am telling you the truth about what it says.
We have a lot of scripture to cover, so let’s jump right in.
It’s been 15 years since the rebuilding of the temple was stopped.
It stopped until the prophets Haggai and Zechariah gave a word from the Lord.
Generally, when the Lord speaks through people, he brings the same message through multiple people.
This was the case here.
The book of Ezra does not give us the prophesy to the Jews.
Are you curious about what this word to them was.
After 15+ years of the temple rebuilding not happening, what was said that they began that work again?
Let’s take a look at what Haggai said.
Turn with me to Haggai chapter 1.
The book of Haggai is near the end of the Old Testament.
If you find the Gospels, the short book of Haggai is just 3 books back from Matthew.
God acknowledges what “these people” are saying.
There is a very common phrase that people say to me.
Not just one person, but several come to me and start a conversation with: “There are these people and this is what they are saying.”
Often times it is a criticism or complaint.
My response to when someone tells me about what someone else is saying is always the same.
Please tell those people to come and talk to me about this.
I would love to hear what they have to say directly from them.
So, if you are a person who seeks out someone to talk to about someone else, let me encourage you to just go to that person direct.
Especially if it is me or another leader in the church.
God uses this as a way to get their attention.
This is a convicting opening sentence.
“People are saying the time has not yet come…but what do I say about this?”
Here is what God says:
You’ve been living in nice homes in the city while neglecting to rebuild the temple.
All the while, you are unsatisfied with where you are.
You are not fulfilling your destiny in coming back to Jerusalem.
Verse 5 says to “Give careful thought to your ways.”
That is a word for you today.
“Give careful thought to your ways.”
Are we on track with what God wants to do in and through us? “Give careful thought to your ways.”
Is there a level of dissatisfaction with what’s happening in our lives?
“Give careful thought to your ways.”
Does it feel like we are on a treadmill that just keeps increasing in incline and speed and we just can’t keep up anymore?
“Give careful thought to your ways.”
It’s not always our ways that are causing our dissatisfaction, and angst, but it never hurts to “Give careful thought to your ways.”
When we evaluate our ways, God will speak into those thoughts and offer a word of correction, a word of discipline.
In order to “Give careful thought to my ways,” I have to slow down long enough for the thoughts to manifest, to even ask the question.
Let’s continue…verse 7...
Ouch.
God has just told them that they have missed out on blessing because they have ignored their purpose.
I want to reiterate, just because life is hard, that doesn’t mean you are ignoring your purpose.
The book of Acts is full of accounts where the disciples where beaten and in prison for walking out their purpose.
It doesn’t hurt to do again what verse 7 says...“Give careful thought to your ways.”
When we do so honestly with the Lord, He will reveal the nature of our troubles.
If our ways need to change, He’ll reveal that to us if we approach our ways with humility.
And if our troubles are a trial we need to endure, then we ask for strength as we endure it.
Here is the people’s response to the prophetic word:
The Lord stirred up His people.
They came to Him with ready hearts and the Lord stirred them up and they began the work once again to rebuild the temple.
This wasn’t the end though.
Their opposition did not just go away…let’s head back to Ezra 5, verse 3
Again this work was questioned by the appointed leader, the governor.
As a result of the questioning and the answers he got, He sent a letter to King Darius that is the rest of chapter 5 and it lays out all the facts.
This one letter is very different from the previous letter in chapter 4.
Here is how it ends:
The last time a letter was sent asking what to do, they got shut down.
They restarted the building process in response to a word from the Lord.
They had no idea how the king would react, how this would be accomplished since it had been so long since king Cyrus had sent them home to rebuild.
The key is that they not only heard the word from the Lord and received it, but they also acted.
They began construction again right away.
Let’s look at the response from King Darius in chapter 6…starting in verse 6...
Bam.
That’s how you get something done.
That’s how you get on the side of the Lord.
Remember, they had no guarantee on how the people around them would react.
The promise was simply:
This message is for us as well.
He is with us.
He is with you and He is with me.
We can have confidence knowing that if the Lord is asking something of us, He doesn’t plan to leave us to our own wits, He plans to be with us every step of the way.
Here is the payoff…look what happens as a result of the Lord going ahead of them:
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