Ezra Chapter 4. Opposition + God = Overcomers
It was God's plan to have God's altar and Temple rebuilt as well as the walls. Because it's God's plan, he can make it happen. That doesn't mean you won't face opposition. Just know when you're doing the Lord's work there will be opposition and obstacles that sometimes slow down or stop the process temporarily. God allows opposition.
Opposition:
1. Reminds us it's not by our might nor by our power but by God's power (Zechariah 4:6).
2. Remind us to put our trust in God. (Proverbs 3:5-6).
3. Teaches us to be patient and helps us grow spiritually (Psalm 37:7).
So let us not be discouraged. Let's remember what 1st John 4:4 says that we are overcomers in Christ and greater is he who lives in us than he who is in this world.
It’s good to keep the proper perspective in the midst of opposition. This chapter and Pastor Blair’s comments made me think of what we read in Romans 8:31-39.
“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
When God begins to build, Satan seeks to destroy as we see here. When you look at early church history, the enemy first tried persecution to stop the growth. When that didn’t work, he sought to mix religion with culture and compromise as he did here with the Samaritans and the Jews. He continues with this tactic today with success in a lot of churches.
The enemy will also try to remind us of our failures and our shortcomings as was done here in the letter to the Persian king. The enemy condemns using truth from our past as he did here. But it is never God who condemns because Romans 8:1 tells us “there is no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus”. Remember the condemnation of the enemy hopes to stop our work for the Lord, where the conviction of the Holy Spirit will always motivate us to continue it. Thank you, Lord.