The Work Ceased
Notes
Transcript
The Work Ceased
The Work Ceased
21 Give ye now commandment to cause these men to cease, and that this city be not builded, until another commandment shall be given from me.
22 Take heed now that ye fail not to do this: why should damage grow to the hurt of the kings?
23 Now when the copy of king Artaxerxes’ letter was read before Rehum, and Shimshai the scribe, and their companions, they went up in haste to Jerusalem unto the Jews, and made them to cease by force and power.
24 Then ceased the work of the house of God which is at Jerusalem. So it ceased unto the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.
In 536 BC Cyrus king of Persia - had become the world power… Babylon had been conquered and captivity Jews had been heading back to their homeland… In process, Cyrus had made a decree for the Jews to be able to rebuild their city - zion - Jerusalem and also rebuild their temple… The work had not been going well, because as we see in our text, the city is not rebuilt, neither is the Temple…
From 536-530BC the work had progressed - but slowly...
Opposition is faced by the people of God, and some of the opposition may have just been a result of their apathy and lack of zeal in getting the job done.
1 In the second year of Darius the king, in the sixth month, in the first day of the month, came the word of the Lord by Haggai the prophet unto Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, saying,
2 Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, This people say, The time is not come, the time that the Lord’s house should be built.
3 Then came the word of the Lord by Haggai the prophet, saying,
4 Is it time for you, O ye, to dwell in your cieled houses, And this house lie waste?
they took care of themselves before the Lord - this was condemned by the Lord - It revealed a heart of selfishness and a personal agenda instead of a dedication and commitment to the Lord… (but that’s another message)
Opposition comes and the work ceases in 530 BC… and it stays shut down until the 2nd year of Darius - King of Persia - 520BC...
10 years of shut down
10 years of the house of God being in ruins...
The work had ceased...
This morning, on this Memorial Day Weekend - the year of the shut-down, I want to speak to you on the subject...
The Work Ceased
The Work Ceased
The devil has an agenda...
There is more at stake than the health of our communities
There is more at stake than economic melt down...
There is more at stake than schools and businesses being closed...
There is more at stake than just churches being closed for a pandemic...
There is an adversary that we have and he is evil!!!
“Satan is not out to disrupt, he is out to destroy”
The work had ceased...
Governmental interference with the work of God and God’s work halted...
Be Heroic 2. Stage Two: The Work Resumed (Ezra 5:1–6:12)
From 530 to 520, the Jews concentrated on building their own houses and neglected the house of the Lord. The Lord chastened His people to encourage them to obey His commands (Hag. 1:6), but they refused to listen. What means did God use to get the work going again?
6 Ye have sown much, and bring in little; Ye eat, but ye have not enough; Ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; Ye clothe you, but there is none warm; And he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes.
The Lord refused to bless His people that were not following him...
but What did the Lord do everyone back on track?
23 Now when the copy of king Artaxerxes’ letter was read before Rehum, and Shimshai the scribe, and their companions, they went up in haste to Jerusalem unto the Jews, and made them to cease by force and power.
24 Then ceased the work of the house of God which is at Jerusalem. So it ceased unto the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.
1 Then the prophets, Haggai the prophet, and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied unto the Jews that were in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel, even unto them.
2 Then rose up Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and began to build the house of God which is at Jerusalem: and with them were the prophets of God helping them.
Prophets...
Haggai
Aechariah
Zerubbabel
Jeshua
and other prophets with them
These prophets were not following their own agenda’s, they were following the direction of the Lord -
His Word
“Any work fo God that isn’t built on the Word of God will never prosper” Dr. Warren Wiersbe
6 By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; And all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.
10 The Lord bringeth the counsel of the heathen to nought: He maketh the devices of the people of none effect.
11 The counsel of the Lord standeth for ever, The thoughts of his heart to all generations.
There was a purpose that had been given
There was a plan that had been layed out
There was a pre-empting by the Spirit of God with the Word of God to accomplish the providential purposes of God...
2. Provincial Powers
3 At the same time came to them Tatnai, governor on this side the river, and Shethar-boznai, and their companions, and said thus unto them, Who hath commanded you to build this house, and to make up this wall?
4 Then said we unto them after this manner, What are the names of the men that make this building?
5 But the eye of their God was upon the elders of the Jews, that they could not cause them to cease, till the matter came to Darius: and then they returned answer by letter concerning this matter.
Tatnai the governor
Questioning...
Darius the Persian King
3. People
5 But the eye of their God was upon the elders of the Jews, that they could not cause them to cease, till the matter came to Darius: and then they returned answer by letter concerning this matter.
upon the elders of the Jews -
the eye of THEIR GOD was upon ...
8 Be it known unto the king, that we went into the province of Judea, to the house of the great God, which is builded with great stones, and timber is laid in the walls, and this work goeth fast on, and prospereth in their hands.
9 Then asked we those elders, and said unto them thus, Who commanded you to build this house, and to make up these walls?
10 We asked their names also, to certify thee, that we might write the names of the men that were the chief of them.
11 And thus they returned us answer, saying, We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and build the house that was builded these many years ago, which a great king of Israel builded and set up.
vs 11 - we are the people of God
vs 8 - the work prospered...
4. Presence of God
5 But the eye of their God was upon the elders of the Jews, that they could not cause them to cease, till the matter came to Darius: and then they returned answer by letter concerning this matter.
Dan4.32b
King James Version Chapter 4
until thou know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.
The Work Ceased...
The Work Ceased...
12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
There is a battle that is raging that we cannot see...