The Returning Remnant - The Sequel

A Genealogy of Returners

There must be some level of generational instruction dependent upon God’s continual faithfulness.

Messianic undertones remind us that Christ must be at the center of all we do.

We would do well to remember the church is always only one generation from passing away!

Where are the Levites?!

Ezra 7:13 “I make a decree that anyone of the people of Israel or their priests or Levites in my kingdom, who freely offers to go to Jerusalem, may go with you.” Permission is given for anyone who wanted to return to be able to return.

NO ONE CAME!

What happens when the people of God prefer exile in a pagan kingdom to their God-given calling?

We must be certain of our identity in Christ (2 Pet.1:10 “Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall.”)

We must guard against the temptation to love the things of the world (1 John 2:15 “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.”)

What should our response be to brothers and sisters who love the things of this world?

Pray. If the Spirit isn’t at work, it won’t work…period.

Lovingly confront.

First, deal with your own plank.

Second, share the truth in love in order to help them with their speck. (And note that Jesus doesn’t qualify sins as to what is a plank and what is a speck. Your sin is a plank, no matter how small you deem it. And, the other person’s is a speck, no matter how large.)

If this doesn’t turn them, seek godly counsel and help. Ezra does this, and notice the outcome: God provides the Levites he needs.

Finally, if there is no response, consider their need for the gospel.

Weep.

Pray.

Preach.

Spiritual Preparations and a Worshipful Return

First, Ezra calls a fast, and the purpose of the fast, he says, is to “humble ourselves before our God, to seek from him a safe journey...”

God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble (James.4:6; 1 Pet. 5:5; Prov.3:34).

Is there a better expression of humble dependence on God than fasting, trusting Him for physical provision, and to pray, expressing the need for His divine intervention and provision?

Even the most humble among us can be brought low when we remember how infrequently we may turn to the gift of prayer. Instead, in ignorant pride, we simply carry on our daily tasks without so much as even giving God an afterthought.

Second, while Ezra is God’s leader, the man for the job, it doesn’t all fall on his shoulders. There is shared responsibility. A fit reminder for the church. All parts are necessary.

1 Corinthians 12:12–26 ESV

For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit. For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.

Finally, good stewardship culminates in God’s worship.

There were burnt offerings as the people were thankful for safe travels. A faithful God had protected them by His grace and mercy.

And, they set about to obey what they’d been commissioned to do, delivering their message to the king. (1 Tim. 2:1-2 “First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.”) They weren’t rebellious, they simply sought to do what was right, what was dignified.

A bit of transparency…this passage was one of the more difficult in Ezra to preach so far. There was a lot of just…information, a lot of content simply about what was going on. There wasn’t a ton that was theologically invigorating. I even bought a new commentary to give a fresh look, because I was struggling. Divine timing, I think. I was reminded that while yes, this passage may not be the most intellectually stimulating passage in Scripture, it’s a passage that happens on the highway of Israel’s life. There are pertinent reminders about generational faithfulness…the need for letting go of the world and clinging to our identity in Christ and His call on our lives…how to spur one another to love and good deeds, especially if we see another starting to slip…dependence on the Divine, fleshed out in healthy prayer life…and the necessity of every part of the body. All of this should take place on Believer’s Blvd., the path we travel every single day. And what a reminder, that God is at work in the dull and everyday moments of our lives, not just in the spiritual mountaintops. May we learn to look for Him in the simple moments of every day.