Ezra Set His Heart
Ezra-Rebuilding from the Ruins • Sermon • Submitted
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· 45 viewsThe Reason the Hand of God was on Ezra's life was because he set his heart to know and live the Word of God. May we do the same.
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
The theological term is anthropomorphism. This is a term, a phrase that means that we give God humanlike characteristics. When we use the phrase, God’s eye is upon us, we don’t mean it that God literally has an eye, but rather that God sees what is going on in our lives.
One of these anthropomorphisms is the hand of God. We talk about the hand of God being on our lives. We want to see the hand of God moving in our hearts, in our nations, in our church. What we mean is a figure of speech that points to God’s sovereign power in creation and in his actions on his people’s behalf.
This is what I mean when we talk about rebuilding and restoring. This is what I want us, as the church, as a local church, to be a part of. Realizing that the only hope we have is going to be found in the church, not in the halls or powers of government, of business institutions, or any other sort.
We want to see God’s hand upon us. We want to see God working and moving on our behalf. We want to see God’s presence and power and glory moving and manifesting in great and mighty ways with lives truly being changed.
But here is the question. Do we want to do what it takes to see the hand of God on our lives? are we willing to put in the work, the effort that is needed to see God’s presence and Spirit manifest in our midst? What price are we willing to pay to see God’s presence, His hand upon this church? That is the question that is and must be answered in our hearts today, and that is my challenge to you this morning.
This is why the book of Ezra is so fascinating and the life of Ezra the priest, the star of the book is so fascinating. We realize that God’s hand is and was upon his life, and that becomes evident as you read these two chapters. Let’s get into them and look at the Hand of God being on the life of Ezra.
I. The Hand of God on the Life of Ezra
I. The Hand of God on the Life of Ezra
Chapters 7 and 8 really give us a biographical sketch of this man Ezra. We see a little more about his lief and what kind of a man this was who led the Israelites into this restoration of the temple, this rebuilding from ruins of the mess that had been left by the captivity, the exile at the hand of the Babylonians.
And we notice in verse one that this writing occurs
Now after this, in the reign of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Ezra the son of Seraiah, son of Azariah, son of Hilkiah,
This is sixty years after the rebuilding of the temple had been completed. So, what is going on is that there are still men and women in Babylon, men and women who had not made the journey yet back to Jerusalem, and God was calling them back from the land of Babylon to their homeland.
And we’re told that
this Ezra went up from Babylonia. He was a scribe skilled in the Law of Moses that the Lord, the God of Israel, had given, and the king granted him all that he asked, for the hand of the Lord his God was on him.
And notice what we are told there. The king was giving favor to Ezra because the hand of God was on his life. The king doesn’t know this. He thinks he’s currying favor, he thinks he’s maintaining peace, he thinks he’t pacifying and codifying Ezra, but God says, no, you’re actually doing this because the hand of God was on the life of Ezra.
And verse 9 repeats that phrase. The good hand of God was on his life, God was working and moving in his life, God’s favor was over the life of Ezra, and this is how it was happening.
For on the first day of the first month he began to go up from Babylonia, and on the first day of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, for the good hand of his God was on him.
What we see is that Ezra did not start with a change of clothes, an extra pair of shoes, whatever you want to say to head to Jersualem. He starts out with a letter from the king, a decree that he is to go, that he is to bring gold and silver and furnishings for the house of God.
I didn’t read them but look at verses 20 and 21.
And whatever else is required for the house of your God, which it falls to you to provide, you may provide it out of the king’s treasury.
“And I, Artaxerxes the king, make a decree to all the treasurers in the province Beyond the River: Whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven, requires of you, let it be done with all diligence,
In other words, God was supernaturally providing, even out of the treasury of a pagan, wicked kingdom, the supplies necessary for the work to be done in Jerusalem.
And what is Ezra’s response? A recognition that God’s hand was on him.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of our fathers, who put such a thing as this into the heart of the king, to beautify the house of the Lord that is in Jerusalem,
and who extended to me his steadfast love before the king and his counselors, and before all the king’s mighty officers. I took courage, for the hand of the Lord my God was on me, and I gathered leading men from Israel to go up with me.
Chapter 8 tells us more about this journey that they are taking. Verse 1-14 tells us who was involved in this journey, who gathered together to be a part of this trip. And in the midst of the trip we are told about a special person, a minister for the house of God. And Ezra says these words in verse 18
And by the good hand of our God on us, they brought us a man of discretion, of the sons of Mahli the son of Levi, son of Israel, namely Sherebiah with his sons and kinsmen, 18;
In other words, God blessed and favored them with the right person necessary, the right person needed, the right man with the right discretion in order to see the work of God accomplished.
Ezra goes on and mentions how they needed protection. But, he was embarrassed, he didn’t want to ask the king for a special guard, a special envoy, so what does he do?
For I was ashamed to ask the king for a band of soldiers and horsemen to protect us against the enemy on our way, since we had told the king, “The hand of our God is for good on all who seek him, and the power of his wrath is against all who forsake him.”
In other words, I didn’t want to ask the king so I asked God instead, and guess what, the Hand of God will be upon us.
They leave, they make the journey, and guess what Ezra tells us. verse 31
Then we departed from the river Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month, to go to Jerusalem. The hand of our God was on us, and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy and from ambushes by the way.
Six times, in describing this journey, the hand of God being on the Jews was mentioned. Six times, Ezra realizes that this is not because of his goodness, his efforts, his abilities, but rather because the hand of God was upon his life.
And this is what we want, this is what we desire. We want to see the hand of God, we want to see God moving and working, but, again, here is the question. What are we willing to do to see God’s hand upon our lives?
II. The Reason the Hand of God was on His Life.
II. The Reason the Hand of God was on His Life.
This is not a result of Ezra’s goodness, but rather a result of Ezra’s willingness and devotion to God, to His Word, to His ways. Go back to me to chapter 7 and notice,
A. Ezra’s Devotion to the Word of God.
A. Ezra’s Devotion to the Word of God.
And Ezra came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, which was in the seventh year of the king.
For on the first day of the first month he began to go up from Babylonia, and on the first day of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, for the good hand of his God was on him.
For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the Lord, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel.
Had devoted himself to” is literally “had set his heart on.” Ezra had dedicated all of himself and all his life to this wonderful ministry. In “study, observance of the Law … and to teaching” we have the secret of Ezra’s impact. He loved God’s Word and God’s people. He had “devoted himself” to the three things mentioned, but not as a hobby or pastime activity. He had devoted himself to the “study” of God’s law, to its “observance,” and to “teaching” it.
It was not just a passing fancy, not just a fleeting pastime, but rather a devotion, a single-mindedness to say, I will follow, I will do what God’s Word requires of me.
You have said, “Seek my face.” My heart says to you, “Your face, Lord, do I seek.”
Look at the three things listed here. A heart set on studying, on learning, on knowing, on understanding what God’s word says.
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.
He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.
But it’s not just knowing, it’s doing. He set his heart to study, and also to do it. WE must not just hear the Word, we must apply the word.
to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires,
and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds,
and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.
How do we put on this new self? We do by seeking the will of God, by looking into the word of God and applying it to our lives.
But he did not just study, and do, he also taught. He passed it on. He was sure to instruct the people in the ways of God.
Deuteronomy 6 gives us the most important prayer in Jewish life and faith.
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.
But the next words are essential. Verse 6 tells us to put these words on their heart, they are to do them, and then listen to verse 7.
You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.
The simple fact is, we will never see the hand of God if we are not devoted to the Word of God. If we do not set our hearts, make up our minds that we will get the Word of God into our lives and get our lives in the Word of God.
But it wasn’t just the Word of God, also look at
B. Ezra’s Willingness to fast and pray.
B. Ezra’s Willingness to fast and pray.
Ezra was needing to take the journey and was worried about making it with the resources he had. And look at what he did.
Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek from him a safe journey for ourselves, our children, and all our goods.
So we fasted and implored our God for this, and he listened to our entreaty.
Ezra realized that whatever happens, whatever comes to pass, it will happen when we seek the face of God, when we are humble enough to recognize that we need God’s hand upon our lives, and we are powerless to do anything apart from prayer.
the late Dr. A. C. Dixon of Spurgeon's Tabernacle once said when speaking upon this theme of prayer. I cannot quote him verbatim, but the substance was this: "When we rely upon organization, we get what organization can do, when we rely upon education, we get what education can do; when we reply upon eloquence, we get what eloquence can do; and so on. Nor am I disposed to undervalue any of these things in their proper place. "But," he added impressively, "when we rely upon prayer, we get what God can do."—The European Harvest Field.
Conclusion
Conclusion
Here is the point. WE want to see God move. WE want to see the hand of God upon our lives. WE are looking for the hand of God, but the question is this. Are we willing to do the work necessary to see the hand of God in our lives?