Zachariah

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0:00 The rest of us were still going through this story. Says the story. And we're on chapter 19. If you're reading along with us, we're like turning the corner here. We talked last week about life in exile with Daniel and Shadrach, Meshach and Bednigo and the fiery furnace and Daniel and the lion's den.

0:30 This week we're talking about how they get let sent back. It's crazy that it happens. It doesn't happen to nations that are conquered in the ancient Near East when they're conquered by Assyria or Babylon or Persia. They're not sent back home ever. That's not how it goes. But remember we talked last week about how Jeremiah, God spoke through Jeremiah to Israel and he said, hey guys, while you're there in exile, get set up. You're going to be there for 70 years.

1:01 Build homes, create families, cultivate gardens and work for the welfare of the people around you. Work for the welfare of the city because as their welfare increases, you increase. And it's crazy to me. It still is crazy. It was crazy last week that though Israel is conquered, though they've failed at the job of being Israel so dramatically that they had to be removed from the land. Though they were removed from the land of Israel, yet God tells them the same thing he

1:32 told Adam and Eve. He told Noah after the flood. He told Abraham when he's getting to promise to take the land. The same thing that the command for Israel in failure is the same as in success. Go out, be fruitful and multiply. Love your neighbor and serve them well and the place will increase. So it simplifies for us what our calling might be, whether we are Israel in exile or Israel at home, whether we are the church in exile or the church at home, our call is the same.

2:08 Do, fill the earth and subdue it. To love the neighbor and work for its welfare. And so God tells them, hey, hang out and do it for 70 years. Then in 70 years, I'll bring you back to the land. We'll set you up as a city on a hill again. And we'll go through the situation one more time and see if we can't bless the world through Israel. So the story we're reading this quick synopsis now jumps us the 70 years forward and there

2:39 arises a king who just decides, he's like, I'm going to send these people back. If you want to look at a text with me, the place to start this story is in Ezra. It's fun that we, the nice thing about reading through this is you get into pages that are crisp in your Bible. If you're reading a paper Bible, blank crisp pages. So Ezra, I haven't read a lot of Ezra, but the fun thing about Ezra and Nehemiah is

3:12 it's a real narrative. So if you like reading scripture, Ezra and Nehemiah are good books to read because it really tells a story and it gets kind of nuanced. So we're going to go through a couple chapters here in the beginning of Ezra if you want to follow along. So Ezra chapter one starting at the first verse, the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in the first year of Cyrus the king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled. The Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia so that he made a proclamation

3:46 throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing. Thus says Cyrus the king of Persia, the Lord the God of heaven has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has charged me to build a house at Jerusalem which is in Judah. Whoever is among you of all his people may his God be with him and let him go to Jerusalem which is in Judah and rebuild the house of the Lord the God of Israel. He is the God who is in Jerusalem and let each survivor in whatever place he sojourns

4:16 be assisted by the men of this place with silver, gold, with goods, with beasts, besides free will offerings for the house of God that is in Jerusalem and then rose up the heads of the fathers, the houses of Judah and Benjamin and the priests and the Levites and everyone whose spirit God had stirred to go up and rebuild the house of the Lord that is in Jerusalem and all who were about them aided them with vessels of silver and gold with goods with beasts and with costly wares besides all that is freely offered.

4:47 So we don't get an explanation in Ezra about why Cyrus does this other than the Lord stirred up his heart and the Lord stirred up the heart of Cyrus such that Cyrus said you know God has called me to build a temple for him in Jerusalem. Everybody who would like to can go back and what you'll see if we were to read through the next chapter or so he goes back into his treasury and takes an account of all the

5:17 things that they took from Jerusalem and gives it back and there's an accounting in the book of Ezra of all the exact items how many of each of them there were so that they kept track so that they go back to Jerusalem taking all the things that Nebuchadnezzar stole they're going back with them to Jerusalem and on top of that then the people gathered around them and gave them stuff the people that weren't going it sounds a little bit like remember when the Israelites leave Egypt and they've been they've been abused and held hostage even

5:50 enslaved for 200 years and then they're getting ready to leave and the Egyptians give them money and wealth out of their house as they're leaving they get to leave with booty from Egypt right same way here they leave Babylon with all the things but this is the kicker for me one of the kickers Cyrus is like you guys can go back and and if you read the story here and then a little

6:23 bit in the Amayah you catch here it says all those in whose heart it stirred to return and the rest gathered around them and gave them things this is crazy to me not all the Israelites go back after 70 years I don't know exactly what to make of that but think about it they some of them get comfortable and they get the opportunity to go back and rebuild the temple in Jerusalem they get

6:58 liberated and they give money to the people on the journey that are going to go and build and they stay in the foreign land I don't know what to make of that we could talk about that for a while but it's very interesting to me that there are Israelites who would stay in Babylon rather than go back and return and rebuild the temple what's that they had kids in high school was too yeah they had to wait so they got done they couldn't move

7:35 well if you go forward into chapter two the exiles return Ezra gives us a whole counting of who was there and how many went and then they in chapter three they start to rebuild the temple and there are people there remember that that when they carried off the Israelites into exile they didn't take everybody they took the best the best the best the smartest the wealthiest they took the

8:07 top of the top away with them and they left other people there and then as they and they decimated the city and so as the the 70 years they were gone different people moved in they married and had kids with different people groups so when when the Israelites come back there's people there it's not like it's and they've made a home and so the Israelites come back and they're ready to start elbling room out kicking people out of their spaces and rebuilding the temple and the people around there are like we would like to help you and the Israelites are like we are on a commission

8:40 from God we're not interested in your help and it's probably because the worship of the people there was interwoven with all sorts of things and the Israelites are coming back after being kicked out for 70 years and they're like we're going to get this right this time we're not going to mix and marry all the things together we're going to be set aside to the god of Abraham is

9:30 the king in the line of David so Ezra, Nehemiah, are a priest's prophet types they're kind of overseeing the construction on behalf of Zerubbabel who's sent by Cyrus so you got Zerubbabel the king Ezra, Nehemiah the prophets Nehemiah when you read part of his story he's talking about rebuilding the wall around Jerusalem they start rebuilding the temple and it gets hard immediately so then they pause and they work on the wall but they're getting such a tax it says that they built the wall with the trowel and one hand and a sword and another because they're like fighting off and making at

10:05 the same time I'm saying that they are sent miraculously sent by God back from Babylon to do a job and it's hard as soon as they get there that's what I'm saying like it's a miracle that Cyrus just wakes up and is like the god of creation and life the god of Abraham Isaac and Jacob has stirred up within me to build a house let's give them all their money back then let's pay them on top of that then let's do something we never do for nations send them back and let them rebuild

10:36 their own temple that's a miracle they experience a miracle they go back all excited and when they get there it's hard as soon as they get there so I'm saying I don't know anybody most of my life is very easy you know no challenges nothing weird to figure out oh that's crazy everybody's life is hard I mean I don't know if I burst your bubble your life is

11:08 hard but not only yours everybody's life is hard everybody's life is hard as are Nehemiah get back there they got to build this wall and they're like having to use a sword and a trowel and and they're trying to do the work of God very clearly the work of God then it gets worse this is like really interesting to me maybe not to you guys but if you go to

11:39 chapter four of Ezra so they're putting up with four several rulers actually it takes them a long time one thing worth noting they get the foundation set up for the temple and there are priests and Levites who are with them who had served in the previous temple that was destroyed in Solomon's temple and they get the foundation laid out and they get so excited that the foundation is laid out there's a group

12:09 of young people that are like celebrating loudly and then there's a group of the priests and Levites who served in Solomon's temple who are crying and wailing okay the young people didn't know the old one and can't believe they get a temple to their own god the old guys who saw the new one are so disheartened by how much smaller and less magnificent this temple is than Solomon's that they're crying it's mixed now the reason I tell you that is because as like the as having led projects

12:43 before Ezra Nehemiah are here on the clear will of god they know this is god's call to go and do it and as soon as they get there it is hard and they press through and they get the foundation and half of the people are displeased i'm trying to tell you Ezra Nehemiah the job of accomplishing the call of god on their life is difficult for Ezra Nehemiah the people sent by Cyrus

13:17 back do you know Cyrus is the first time someone's called a messiah in the story of scripture a liberating king he's not even an Israelite but he is the king who liberated Israel out he sent them on the miraculous decree they could not be clearer in the call to god they're building a temple and they can't make everybody happy and they've got opposition right and the opposition gets worse look at chapter four Ezra chapter four now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin

13:50 heard that and that the returned exiles were building a temple to the lord the god of Israel they approached Zerubbabel so the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin those are the two tribes that are left right that they had returned that the returned exiles were building a temple to the lord the god of Israel they approached Zerubbabel the descendant of David who's the king and the heads of the fathers of the houses and said to them let us build with you for we worship your god as you do and we have been sacrificing to him ever since the days of Esar Hadan king of Assyria

14:28 who brought us here so they were brought there but Zerubbabel Jeshua and the rest of the heads the fathers houses and Israel said to them you have nothing to do with us in building the house of our god but we alone will build to the lord the god of Israel is king Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded it then the people of the land discouraged the people of Judah and made them afraid to build and bribed counselors against them to frustrate their purpose all the days of Cyrus king of Persia even until the reign of Darius king of Persia and so it goes on then they get a letter from

15:01 artists ursis the next king commands him to stop so they have like the the physical pragmatic immediate problems that they can't make everybody happy and people against are working against them then the people appeal to the political authorities and the bureaucracy then sends a letter and says Cyrus was crazy we're not letting concord nations build their own temples you guys got to stop so they had built the foundations and the wall but now they're told to stop by artyserxes

15:34 and then they go back so look at skip to Ezra chapter five if you're following along now they've been stopped for a period of time and god speaks look at he says uh Ezra chapter five now the prophets Haggai and Zachariah the son of Ido prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the god of Israel who was over them and then Zorubel the son of Shail Tael and Jeshua the son of Josodak arose and began to rebuild the house of god that is in Jerusalem with the prophets of god and the prophets of god were with them

16:08 supporting them so okay they get this miraculous decree from Osiris the Messiah to go back and do this thing and it's hard as soon as they get there and they can't make everybody happy some of the people for whom they are doing this are dissatisfied and then their neighbors are sent against them but they're working anyway and then their neighbors appeal to the political authorities off away hundreds of miles away and those people write a letter back and say you got

16:43 to stop and so now they're stopped for years they're stopped and then Haggai and Zachariah god speaks to Haggai and Zachariah Haggai and Zachariah say something to Zorubel and his dudes and they start building again this is fun because we have what god said to Zachariah if you go to the book of Zachariah it's tricky to find it's in the minor prophets so just use your table of contents it'll go faster

17:21 Zachariah the prophet of god in chapter four and the angel who talked with me came again and woke me like a man who was awakened out of his sleep and he said to me what do you see and I said I see I see and behold a lamp stand all of gold with a bowl on top of it and seven lamps on it with seven lips on each of the lamps that are on top

17:52 of it and there are two olive trees by it one on the right of the bowl and the other on the left verse four and I said to the angel who talked with me what are these my lord then the angel who talked with me answered to me and said do you not know what these are and I said no man I don't know what I'm looking at right I wouldn't either then he said to me the angel said to Zachariah this is the word of the lord to Zorubabel doesn't answer him what he's looking at he's like don't worry about that here's what you got to tell Zorubabel the king not by might nor by power but by my

18:29 spirit says the lord of hosts who are you oh great mountain before Zorubabel that you shall become a plane and he shall bring forward the top stone amid shouts of grace grace to it not by might nor by power but by my spirit says the lord tells the rubabel who are you great mountain that you won't move in front of Zorubabel tells her about that they will saw grace grace as he puts the final stone upon the temple god is trying to tell through Zachariah two kings Zorubabel hey

19:03 don't worry about how powerful they are the armies and horses and hasslers that come against you don't worry about the might don't worry about the political right and authority he says don't worry about the power or the might these aren't the things that get the work of god done but the great spirit of god that does it this is what accomplishes the work of god not by might nor by power but by my spirit says the lord i love the idea that god does whatever he's got to do gives uh zachariah a

19:36 picture of some kind of heavenly room that he doesn't understand and in order to get his attention and then tell him this word to Zorubabel so that Zorubabel can go build the underwhelming temple for the people of god who will not like it because god wants to get it done and Zorubabel does and this temple lasts longer than Solomon's temple serves generations this is the temple that Jesus

20:08 enters into Zorubabel gets it built i was making a list of the things people have done in this story because one of the character traits that should be coming out to you by now in this unsatisfactory synopsis of the story of scripture that we're reading is god's ridiculous commitment

20:38 to humanity over and over again to work through people who ignore him and would rather do it on their own i was like you think about Zorubabel watching the capstone being put on and the people of god going grace grace to us and to it the great accomplishment of israel unique among the nations restored by the Persian king sent back with money to build a temple to their god when no one else gets

21:08 to do it what and so i was thinking about do you know uh Noah built a boat that survived a flood that covered the earth and he there was at least one day where he stood on the prow as the only floating on the water in all of the earth a person did that Moses stood at the edge of a sea large enough to swallow an army held up his arm and the waters split

21:50 person did that stood there boom and then nations millions of people on dry land uh likewise joshua at the river jordan puts his foot into the water and it stops and they walk across into the land that has been promised to their people for hundreds of years to take possession of a thing that god would give them person did that uh nations thrived

22:21 in deserts drank from rocks and ate food that fell on the ground uh david that people defeated giants whom nations were afraid of with rocks remember the have you seen like the videos of the slingshot and the throw and he threw the rock and it hit him in the head and he chopped off his head and carried it around people did that of course one of the ones i love peter just like a fisherman walked on the sea of gallily like people did that i'm saying

23:09 like i um um i don't know what you are called to uniquely but i know you can do it i mean i the the i've said it before this is densely populated with cool people so there are a lot of cool callings in the room challenges difficult things there are pragmatic problems in front of

23:42 you people actual people coming against you yes and when you do things half of the room will be dissatisfied of course and there will be bureaucracy and powers outside of your control set against you yes you guys have cool callings i don't know what they are i know you can do it why because the spirit of god is with you

24:18 this is crazy there are things in the world yet to be done that god won't go in front of you on there are things set out that because he loves you he will wait for you to get done i don't know what they are some of you know exactly what it is that you should be doing great most of us don't it's like

24:50 what am i called to well i really like coloring and like it's hard to figure out most of us what is the thing that i am called to and we could spend lots of time and take surveys online and get assessments all very good but the principle to find your calling is like a step above what we told the kids

25:25 it starts by loving your neighbor solidarity and self-sacrifice with the people around you put your whole self into it find a way to love your neighbor meaningfully with your skill sets and your talents with your networks and your resources and see what comes next i'm telling you that there is god-sized calling available for you for which he will bring the spirit of god down from wherever to support you in it not by might nor by power but by my spirit

25:59 that where mountains can be moved things you could not get done will get done because god is with you and it usually starts by something simple going who can i stand with at my own expense start in your home and then look at who god stirs up in your heart in your city and go stand with them at your own expense and see what comes next ziruba bell built a temple we don't have to

26:29 build a temple we have a lovely warehouse with weird noises that's good enough but we have lots of neighbors who need folk to stand next to them in our city and you are the ones though all with all that stands against you you are the ones god has commissioned whether you succeed or fail it's still the job for you work for the welfare of your city love your neighbor as god loves you let's pray that we could do it hey lord thank you for the promise of your spirit send it quickly

27:04 that you might stir up in our hearts as you did syrus the calling that you have put on our lives teach us how to love our neighbors well and fulfill the calling that you have set out for us in jesus name we pray amen