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November | November 12, 2019
Tuesday, November 12, 2019
Whenever you attempt to do something for God, don’t be surprised if you encounter opposition. At first it might not seem like opposition, but be alert. Ezra 4 describes the process. “When the enemies…heard that the exiles were building a temple for the Lord, the God of Israel, they came…and said, ‘Let us help you build because, like you, we seek your God and have been sacrificing to him.’”
The Jewish leaders wisely rejected the offer. Their wisdom became evident when in Ezra 4:4-5 it says, “Then the peoples around them set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building. They hired counselors to work against them and frustrate their plans.” The project was started despite their fear. Now, under attack, they allowed their fear to get the upper hand. Frustration overtook them.
When their enthusiasm waned the enemy lodged an accusation against them to the new king, Xerxes. They warned him to check historical records to find evidence that Jerusalem “is a rebellious city…a place of rebellion from ancient times.” They claimed, if the king didn’t stop this project before it was finished it would come back to haunt him. He had a search made, and sure enough, it was true. So the king ordered the project to be stopped until he ordered otherwise.
Satan knows how to stop us from doing God’s will. However, we’ll learn in this book of Ezra how to overcome his attacks.
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