God's Word Makes Things Happen (Pt. 1)

Intro

I can’t stand it when people make promises they don’t have the power to keep

Often happens in books and movies

I’ll keep you safe = dead minutes later

I have to work hard to avoid making empty promises to my kids

Can’t always keep them perfectly safe; can’t guard their dreams; can’t keep them from disappointment

But God is different; He never makes any promises He can’t keep

What’s the difference? God is sovereign (in control) and loving enough to always see things through

I can’t keep my kids safe, but He can; I can’t guard their dreams, but He can; I can’t keep them from disappointement, but God can provide contentment in any situation

So when we encounter a promise of God in Scripture, we can take it to heart

Even when fulfillment seems a loooong way off

This was certainly the case for Israel during the time of the book of Ezra

History Lesson (Take Time; Explain Fully)

Israel was God’s chosen people

God made a covenant (unbreakable promise) with Abraham that He would make his descendants into a great nation

Descendants eventually became the nation of Israel, who enjoyed a unique relationship with God

They were God’s people, and He was their God

Part of the promise God gave to Israel was the Promised Land

God freed the children of Israel from slavery in Egypt (10 plagues) and helped them conquer Canaan for themselves

The Land was ALWAYS a significant part of the promise; to lose the land was to have the promise threatened

Unfortunately, Israel did not live up to their end of the covenant agreement with God

They disobeyed God’s law, and ultimately worshipped other false gods

The Lord sent many prophets to warn them to turn back to Him, but they refused to listen

This led to God allowing foreign nations to conquer Israel and bring them into exile

Exile = forced to leave their home (Promised Land) and live in a foreign land

The final conquest and exile was to the empire of Babylon

After Babylon conquered, the empire switched hands to the Persians

At the time of Ezra’s story, King Cyrus reigned over the empire that ruled Israel

Would he be a different king than the one that had conquered? God had a lot to say about it

Read Ezra 1:1-11.

God’s Word Makes Things Happen

First of all, God made a promise

“The word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah” in verse 1 refers to Jeremiah 29:10.

Read Jeremiah 29:10.

Remember, when God makes a promise, He is powerful and loving enough to see it through!

But there is more! There was an even more specific prophecy about Cyrus in Isaiah

Read Isaiah 45:1-7.

Jewish historian Josephus even records that Cyrus read this prophecy in Isaiah and desired to fulfill it

No matter the case, God CLEARLY knew what was going to happen, and CLEARLY is at work making it come to pass

God stays true to His Word by “stirring up” a number of people

To “stir up” is to motivate someone to respond so you can’t just sit there, you HAVE to do something

Like cheering loudly at a Jets game, getting carried away by the music at a concert, or rage quitting a video game

We have all been stirred to action

Perfect time to tell my “love story” with Karen; NOT a lesson to pursue a girl that says no!

In this story, it is the Spirit of God that stirs people to action in specific ways

He stirs King Cyrus into letting the people return home to resettle the Promised Land and rebuild the Temple

This was incredibly unlikely! It seemed impossible, but not with God

He stirs a number of Israelites to return home and begin the rebuilding process

Not everyone left right away, but only the select few chosen by God

He stirs the neighbours and communities of those returning to bestow them with gifts (v. 4, 6)

So now the Israelites were not only able to return home, but they were actively supported by their oppressors

And it was quite the generosity!

Silver, gold, goods, livestock, expensive items, and more given freely

Cyrus returned the vessels stolen from the temple

After such a time in exile, how could this all be possible?

It is possible, because God’s Word is powerful to make things happen.

When God spoke to the people through Jeremiah, it wasn’t an empty promise He couldn’t keep

He meant every word, and proved His power and love to His people as they returned home to the Promised Land

When God speaks to us through His Word, there are no empty promises He can’t keep

He means every word, and over and over again proves His power and love to us as He keeps His promises

This has to change the way we read the Bible

It is not like every other book; not something we just slog through because we are supposed to

It is living and active, making things happen in your life because of the work of the Spirit

The Holy Spirit stirred up Cyrus and the Israelites

Refer back to my story with Karen

The Holy Spirit actively uses the Word of God to change your life

Refer back to story of reading the Bible with Trevor; segue into treeplanting experience with my swollen face and NEED for God’s Word

Conclusion

Hopefully, you see that the promise of God in the Bible is clear: He is truly capable of making things happen

You have heard some of my stories

These are important markers: They remind me of the power of God’s Word the next time I need God to make something happen

But the most powerful stories will be your own

Take the final few minutes to:

Write down a few times where God has used His Word to make something happen in your life; a time when the Bible was truly “living and active”

Write down a prayer of where you would like God to make something happen in your life

Pray