Morning, brothers and sisters.
I’d like for us to turn this morning to the book of Revelation, Revelation chapter 3. I want to read some verses out of the letter to the church in Sardis.
We know there were seven letters written to seven churches toward the end of the first century. They were applicable to the people of God at that hour, and they are applicable to us in this hour.
Revelation chapter 3, starting in verse 1:
And to the angel of the church in Sardis write:
He who has the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars, saith these things:
I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and thou art dead.
Wake up, and establish the things that remain, which were ready to die:
for I have found no works of thine perfected before My God.
Remember therefore how thou hast received and didst hear; and keep it, and repent.
Let’s pray.
Lord, we do thank You so much for this grand and glorious privilege of being in Thy presence. Lord, we thank You that we can testify this day that we have heard the voice of the Lord.
Lord, we thank You for how You speak, Lord, through Your table, Lord, as we hear Your words echo throughout eternity: “It is finished.”
And Lord, we thank You that Your voice has spoken, and You have made every provision for this time as we consider Your Word. Lord, this is a written Word, and we look unto Thy Holy Spirit to really cause it to be breathed upon in a fresh way within all of our hearts and within our lives.
Lord, that we could come and afresh look off unto You, put aside the things that would distract us and hinder us, and really allow You to speak this day. Lord, we thank You for the voice of the Lord, and we want to hear Thy voice this morning. In Thy precious name, amen.
We know when the Lord was writing to these seven churches toward the end of the first century, He looked upon each one of those churches, and He was looking for one thing. That one thing was Himself.
He looked upon the different assemblies there, and He said, “I’m looking for Myself. I’m looking for My character and nature to be formed within a people.”
And brothers and sisters, in the day and hour in which we’re living, what is our Lord looking for? As we gather, both in our individual lives and as we gather together, what is the Lord really looking for?
He’s looking for the manifestation of His life. He’s looking for the manifestation of His character in a people in this hour.
We thank the Lord that He has given us His Word to help us live in this hour. As I was thinking about this particular message to the church in Sardis, I was reminded of a phrase used throughout the book of Revelation: the testimony of Jesus.
As the Lord was looking for that testimony of Jesus, He saw some things that were weakening that testimony. He said, “You need to strengthen these things. These things need to be strengthened, that My testimony, My life, would shine brighter.”
I think, brothers and sisters, if we were really honest with ourselves in these days, we would know that the Lord is still looking for that same thing. He is looking for the testimony of Jesus to be expressed through a people.
He desires that there would be a people upon this earth who would simply live in the simplicity and purity of devotion unto Him—not distracted by all the complicated things of this world or drawn away by all the other things, but allowing the one thing that is necessary to really govern our lives.
As we allow that one thing that is necessary to govern us, that is what strengthens us. The strengthening is not ourselves being strengthened, but His life coming forth in us in a grander and more glorious way.
As we look at these verses, let me read again verses 2 and 3, because that is really the focal point:
Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which are about to die;
for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God.
Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard;
and keep it, and repent.
It is interesting that, at the end of verse 2, He says, “I have not found your deeds completed.” But what is the standard there? He says, “In the sight of My God.”
It is not our sight. He is the standard, and we have been hearing this throughout the messages recently. So often we set such a low standard. We set a standard of maybe two meetings a week. “That is pretty good.” But is that God’s standard?
He says, “I have not found your works complete.” He does not condemn them for their works. He says that their works are not complete. This means they had started. They were on the way of doing God’s will, God’s heart, and God’s purpose. There was something that originated from Him.
In some of these letters, He talks about evil works, but there is no speaking here of evil works. He says, “The works that I gave you to do, the works that were inspired by Me, you have not completed. You have come short. You have settled down. I want you to wake up, continue on, and complete the work that I have called you to in this hour.”
It is so precious, brothers and sisters, because at times we can think we have done enough. We can settle in. We can think, “We have done pretty good.”
How do we do that? We do that, brothers and sisters—and I am so guilty, which is why I can share as an expert—because I compare myself to other people and say, “Oh, I’m doing pretty good. Look at that slob over there,” you know?
Of course, you do not look at some people. You do not want to be compared to them, because it wipes you out and condemns you. So we are so relative. We look at ones and say, “Oh, I am doing pretty good. I have a pretty good Christian life.”
Even as an assembly, we can say, “Oh, we are doing pretty good.” We compare horizontally. But what is the standard of how well we are doing? The standard is Christ.
He says, “Your deeds have not been completed in My sight.” It is His eyes that are looking upon us. It is His eyes that are calling us to wake up and strengthen those things that remain. It is His mercy that calls us.
As Jerry shared last week, the Lord is speaking. We have heard many messages recently. The Lord is speaking to us, and it is a wake-up message: to really return to our Lord and allow Him to complete and do the works that He started within us.
It is His mercy and His love that call us to continue on in Him—that we would wake up, not fall asleep, and that we would strengthen those things that remain. The things that remain are of Him.
When it says, “Strengthen the things that remain,” we ask, “Well, how do we do it?” The Lord, in His wonderful way, always shows us. He shows us very clearly.
He says in verse 3, “How do you strengthen the things that remain? Remember therefore what you have received and heard, and keep it, and repent.”
Remember. We have this table of remembrance. Remember what you have received and heard.
That caught my attention so much, because so often we think, “Oh, we need a new thing. I want to do a new thing. Let the Lord do a new thing.” The Lord is not talking about new things. He says, “Remember what you have already received. You have got it all. You have received it. You have heard it.”
“Remember what I have shared with you. Remember the words you have heard. Remember what I have written to you in My Word.” It is not some new revelation, new experience, or new thing. He says, “Remember.”
When you started those works that are not complete, you knew what you were walking in. There was Christ, and He was encouraging you. Remember that, brothers and sisters.
Oh, what a privileged people we are. We are those today who have received and heard. We are so blessed. We have received. We have heard.
I am not even talking only about the messages we have heard on Sunday morning. Brothers and sisters, our children—the ones who have grown up in this assembly every Sunday hearing the Word of God—we have received and heard.
Do we know the treasure sitting back in the far corner of that room in this building, in that tape ministry, on that website? We have received and heard. Do we remember it, or are we looking for something else?
The Lord is saying, “No. Remember what I have spoken to you. I have spoken to you. I have said this. You received it and heard it.”
But so often we just go along in life. We hear a message and keep going. We hear another message, or read a book, and then another book. We have this whole trail of messages we have heard, books we have read, and things we have studied in the Scriptures.
Do we ever stop, look at the treasure we have, reflect upon it, and bring it to remembrance? Or are we always just pressing on?
The Lord wants us to strengthen the things that remain by considering what He has given to us. He says, “You have received this. You have heard this.” In one sense, as it says, we are without excuse.
Brothers and sisters, in the days in which we are living, to whom much is entrusted, much is expected. And brothers, we have been entrusted with so much.
We do not know what the future of the summer conferences will be. But do we know what we have received and heard through the Christian Family Conference? Do we know the privileges we have had?
Do we ever go back, pull those tapes out, listen to them, read those transcripts, and consider the dear labours of love that transcribed those messages of what we have received and heard? Or do we just continue on: “Oh, I wonder what it is going to be next week. I wonder what it will be then.”
Brothers and sisters, the Lord keeps calling us back. Jerry used that word last week: return. Remembering is returning to what we have.
We have a great and precious heritage. I am talking about the heritage we have in the Lord. Is our heritage beautiful to us? It was so precious to David.
The Lord is calling us: reflect; remember what I have shared with you. Not merely to bring it to remembrance, think about it, and say, “Oh, yes,” but what do you do then?
He says, “You have received it. You have heard it. Keep it.” This is what I have spoken to you. I have poured out My Word to you all these years. You have My written Word. You have thousands of years of others who have poured out and shared My life. As you receive it and hear it, keep it.
What will that do? It will lead us to repentance. We have heard of repentance lately too. This is a common word.
I think, as the Lord’s return draws near in these days, one of the phrases the Holy Spirit will be speaking to us more and more will be this call to repentance. We will see how we have come short, how we have fallen asleep, how our works are not complete, and how we need strengthening.
As we come and return, He does not condemn us. The voice of the Lord cries out at Calvary and says, “It is finished. I have made every provision for you.”
We were studying 2 Peter the other night in our Friday-night times. It talks about all the precious and magnificent promises that are in Christ, and that we have received everything related to life and godliness.
Oh, brothers and sisters, we have received. We need to remember what we have received and what we have heard, that we could reflect upon it and allow the Holy Spirit to breathe in a fresh way and rekindle those sparks, rekindle the flame, that we could press on in Him and complete the work that He has called us to.
Brothers and sisters, this strengthening that the Lord is calling for is not some strength to do supernatural things. It is really the strength to live a normal Christian life in an abnormal time.
It is a normal strengthening. This is not some giant, hero-type strengthening. This is the normal strength of life, that we can live in these abnormal times—just to live the normal daily Christian life.
It is the strengthening of His life within us that we can go on. We have to remember, too, that the Lord never calls us to something that He has not already equipped us for.
Strength is a relative term. We just had a little announcement about Elias being born. Now, you sit over there and say, “Okay, Elias, hold your head up.” He does not have the strength to hold his head up, but that is where he is. That is the normal, natural thing.
If one of us cannot hold our head up—if my head is always falling—it may just be because I am sleepy, so I need to wake up and be strengthened. For me not to be able to pick up a chair afterward would be a sign of weakness, because I have that ability.
In the same way, the Lord calls us to strengthen. There is a strengthening for the babies, a strengthening for the young men, and a strengthening for the old men. Those are the three categories our Lord speaks of in 1 John.
There is a strengthening for where we are. It is the strengthening to live this normal life in Him. Would we receive that and allow Him to speak it?
I love how the Lord says in verse 2, “You are not complete.” Brothers and sisters, to me, what this is echoing forth is that the Lord has a plan and a purpose. He has something that He desires to complete.
As He has saved us, He has not only saved us and called us, but He has drawn us with purpose. He has a plan. Again, He has revealed His plan to us through His Word and through brothers and sisters throughout the centuries.
He says, “Remember this. This is My desire. This is My heart.” But we are coming up short. We are settling in. We are content where we are. We are distracted by the daily cares of life.
We can even be distracted by doing things for the Lord. But may the Lord draw us back to see that He has a call. He has a work that He wants to complete in this day and time. May we be those who respond to that.
Oh, how precious it is as we read these verses. There is no condemnation here. This is a love letter written to us.
As Lenny mentioned, the love of God never ends. When do we know the love of God the most? It seems like we often experience it most in our weakness.
When we have really screwed up, when we have really gone off course, when we have fallen asleep, we hear that love of God—that voice—in a fresh way saying, “Wake up.”
This is a love call to wake up. This is a lover calling you to wake up. This is not your father waking you up to go to school. We do not like those wake-up calls.
But this is your Lover waking you up: “Hey, wake up. I want to spend time together. Get to know Me.” When we hear the voice of One we love calling us to wake up, we get up pretty quickly.
When we hear the voice of one we do not care about, we can just kind of pretend we are still asleep until they kick us out. But we have to remember, brothers and sisters, this wake-up call is a call of love. It shows us how much He loves us, that He never gives up on us, and that He is always wanting to encourage us.
During the times I will be sharing—I am not sure how many—I would like for us to fellowship on this thought of strengthening the things that remain.
The Lord, in His wonderful mercy and all His wisdom, always gives us beautiful pictures to consider. One of the pictures He gives us in the Bible concerns a time when the people of God were at one of their weakest points. It was one of the low points in the history of the people of God, and they needed to be strengthened.
In this, we see the great faithfulness of God coming in, moving upon a people, waking them up, that they could be about His plan and complete what He had called them to do.
We see this picture in the Old Testament books of Ezra and Nehemiah. We would like to look at Ezra and Nehemiah and allow some of the things there to encourage us, to be a picture to us, and to help us in this hour, that we too, in our weakened condition, would allow the Lord to grab our hearts and strengthen us in the days in which we are living.
As we look at Ezra and Nehemiah, perhaps we are somewhat familiar with these books. Normally, when you think of Ezra and Nehemiah, you know the people were in captivity and they came back.
In the book of Ezra, we think about the altar being restored and the house being built—the first six chapters. In Nehemiah, we think generally about the wall being restored—again, the first six chapters.
But is that the end of the books? In Ezra, there are four more chapters. In Nehemiah, there are other chapters. The outward work is done, but then the Lord has a work He wants to do among the people.
We see this so beautifully through the ministry of Ezra. We could say that Ezra was used by the Lord to strengthen the people of God in that hour.
There are two verses that really set the scene and more or less convey my burden for this time together. The first one is in Ezra 7.
Ezra is still in Babylon, and the king has decreed that Ezra can go back. The testimony of Ezra’s ministry is his own testimony in Ezra 7. Look at verse 27.
The people had gone back the first time. The altar was built, the house of God was there, and everything was functioning. Then Ezra writes, while he is still in captivity:
Blessed be the Lord, the God of our fathers,
who hath put such a thing as this in the king’s heart,
to beautify the house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem;
and hath extended lovingkindness unto me before the king, and his counsellors,
and before all the king’s mighty princes.
And I was strengthened according to the hand of the Lord my God upon me,
and I gathered together out of Israel chief men to go up with me.
The burden and call of God upon Ezra’s life was to beautify the house of God, or to strengthen the house of God.
Really, in the whole second part of Ezra, what we see is the strengthening of the functioning of the house of God. How is the house of God beautified? There is a greater display of Christ.
It is not adorning it with new carpet and new drapes or anything—even though they are really nice. It is more of Christ being displayed in His house. The more Christ is displayed, the more beautiful it is, and the stronger the testimony.
Ezra comes because some things are going on within the house of God that should not be going on. In the last chapters of Ezra, he beautifies the house by doing a cleansing work, a returning work, and a repenting work.
Then, if you look over at the book of Nehemiah, there is another verse. Look at Nehemiah 7. We are looking at the seventh chapter of both books because, in both books, the first six chapters speak of the outward work: the altar and house being built, and here, the wall being built.
When you come to Nehemiah chapter 7, the wall has been finished. Then verse 4 speaks of the condition of the people within the city:
Now the city was wide and large;
but the people therein were few,
and the houses were not builded.
The city was large and spacious, but the people were few. Since the Lord had called them to return to the city, there was a weakened condition there because the people were few. There was a need for strengthening.
We can see how the Lord, through the latter part of Nehemiah, uses His servants Nehemiah and Ezra to strengthen that city life—or, we could say, to strengthen our corporate life together if we look at it in our day.
As we look at Ezra and Nehemiah, there is a strengthening in service within the house of God, and a strengthening of our lives together. These things were weak in those days, and brothers and sisters, I believe they are weak in our day—not only here, but throughout Christianity in the days in which we are living.
Before we get into looking at these books, let us go back and set the scene, because we need to understand the condition of everything.
We said that the people of God at this point were in Babylon. How did they end up there? A good number of centuries earlier, Israel and the people of God were at their zenith under David and Solomon.
The temple was finished, and the glory of God came down. We could say that this was the zenith of the expression of the life of God’s people upon the earth in Old Testament times. The glory of the Lord came down and filled the temple. God was satisfied. That was His home.
But we know that soon after Solomon’s death, because the sons did not handle things rightly, they were divided into two kingdoms. Israel was the northern kingdom, the ten tribes, and Judah was the southern kingdom, the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin.
Even though there was this division, God, in His mercy, continued to send prophets to speak to them. Again, it was the love of God, the voice of God, crying out to His people to return and repent.
There were judgments that came, trying to wake them up. Throughout this, there were things the Lord was doing to wake the people of God as they continued in declension.
We know the northern kingdom never responded. There was never any record of good kings there. Eventually, in roughly 720 BC, the Assyrians came, captured them, and took them away.
Then you had Judah remaining. If we look at Judah’s history, we see a history of revival and declension. Ones would be raised up: perhaps a king, a prophet, or a priest who could influence a young king.
At different points in time, ones were raised up, and the people of God in Judah—the tribes of Judah and Benjamin living in Jerusalem—returned to the Lord. They would actually work on the house of God at times.
But even that came to an end because of their disobedience. In 588 BC, the Babylonians came in and took them away. Babylon had already conquered the Assyrians, and there came a point in time when the people of God were in captivity.
It is interesting, particularly as you look at Judah, that before they were taken into captivity, they were serving the Lord. The temple service was going on. But what else were they doing? They were serving other gods.
They were serving themselves, and they were serving other gods. They were going through all the outward ceremonies, offering all the sacrifices at the temple. All the temple service was going on, but they were also serving other gods and having other high places.
Finally, the Lord said, “Enough,” and they were taken into captivity in Babylon.
What is Babylon? The word itself simply means confusion. If we look back through the Old Testament, we see two places that speak of the world to us: Egypt and Babylon.
When the people of God were in Egypt, that speaks of the world before they were saved. But Babylon, with its confusion, speaks of the religious world.
All the religions of the world were coming out of there and influencing the people of God. In a weakened state, they were taken captive and placed in Babylon to undergo the Lord’s refining.
They loved idols so much that the Lord took them to the capital of idols. In Babylon there were idols everywhere, and the Lord said, “Okay, I am going to cure you of these idols. I am going to put you here with all these idol worshippers and see if I can cure you of that.”
I remember when I was young, when I was in high school, my father caught me smoking one day. He was not mad—at least he did not appear to be mad. He said, “Come on over to my office.”
He took me into the office and said, “You want to smoke?” I said, “Yeah.” I got caught, so I figured there was no use lying and adding to it.
He said, “Okay, have a cigar.” So I started puffing. He said, “You have got to taste the cigar. You have got to inhale it.” So I did.
My father loved cigars and pipes. I was smoking this cigar, and I said, “That’s pretty good.” He said, “Have another one.” I cannot remember exactly, but I think I might have had a couple of puffs off the second one.
After my experience of smoking and inhaling a couple of cigars, and the aftereffects of that, I never had any desire to smoke anymore. To be around smoke just made me sick.
This is what the Lord did to the people of Judah. He said, “Oh, you want idols? Here, come on. Go to this country of idols, and you will just get inundated.”
They were in it so much that the people of Israel were cured of any other idol worship. Brothers and sisters, sometimes a thing we want, we might get it. We might think, “Oh, this is great,” but the Lord is curing us of something so that we can go on.
If we look back at the people of Israel in Babylonian captivity, church history often refers to the church of God as being in Babylonian captivity. Martin Luther referred to it during the Reformation.
With the spirit of confusion that is in Christianity today, I think we could say that much of Christianity is in Babylonian captivity. We are in a place of confusion. There is not a clear testimony of the people of God upon the earth.
That is why the Lord is calling us to wake up, strengthen those things that remain, and be that clear testimony unto Him, that He may complete the work He is doing.
May we really learn from Ezra and Nehemiah what the Lord is calling us to. Let us turn back to the first chapter of Ezra and look at the proclamation that let the people go free, that let the ones return.
At this time, Persia had come into power. In Ezra chapter 1, verses 1 through 4, we see Cyrus’s proclamation:
Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia,
that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished,
the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia,
so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom,
and put it also in writing, saying:Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia,
All the kingdoms of the earth hath the Lord, the God of heaven, given me;
and He hath charged me to build Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah.
Whosoever there is among you of all His people, his God be with him,
and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah,
and build the house of the Lord, the God of Israel
(He is God), which is in Jerusalem.
And whosoever is left, in any place where he sojourneth,
let the men of his place help him with silver, and with gold, and with goods, and with beasts,
besides the freewill offering for the house of God which is in Jerusalem.
There was this wonderful proclamation that Cyrus made: anybody within Babylon, any of those who wanted to return, could return to Jerusalem.
Was this just happenstance? Was it just fate? Was it something that simply worked out? Brothers and sisters, this is one of the most confirming and encouraging words throughout Scripture that our God is a God of purpose.
Our God has a plan. Scroggie calls it “the unfolding drama of redemption.” From the very beginning until today, our God is a God of purpose, and He has a plan. There is nothing merely by chance. There is no happenstance.
Even this was not by chance. How do we know? It is confirmed by the Word of God. Is this the first time in the Scriptures that we hear of Cyrus, this king of Persia?
Let us turn over to the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah lived some 250 years before Cyrus was born, before Cyrus was ruling. Isaiah was living, and Isaiah was prophesying. Look at Isaiah 44.
The reason I want to turn to these verses is because I want us to see the preciousness of the Word of God—how the Word of God reveals to us the plan of God, the heart of God, and how He will accomplish it.
Just as He spoke in that hour to those people, He is speaking to us, and His Word confirms it. At the end of Isaiah 44, verse 28, Isaiah prophesies:
That saith of Cyrus, He is My shepherd,
and shall perform all My pleasure;
even saying of Jerusalem, She shall be built;
and of the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid.
Then Isaiah 45 begins:
Thus saith the Lord to His anointed, to Cyrus,
whose right hand I have holden,
to subdue nations before him,
and to loose the loins of kings;
to open the doors before him,
and that the gates may not be shut.
We see how the Lord, some 250 years before the book of Ezra, spoke this word. Isaiah was obedient and spoke this word. I wonder how it came across to Isaiah: “Well, I wonder who this fellow Cyrus is.”
But the Lord said it, so Isaiah declared it. He was faithful. The Lord declared that one day He would raise up Cyrus. For centuries they read these prophets and wondered about Cyrus.
Are there any other hints in the Old Testament of this release, this return to Israel? If we continue into Jeremiah, it is precious how the Lord prophesies again. He sends word through His prophets that even though the people are in captivity, one day there will be a day of release.
It is spoken of twice in Jeremiah. We want to look at these to show the preciousness of the Word of God and what it reveals of the Lord’s heart.
Jeremiah 25:12 says:
And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are accomplished,
that I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, saith the Lord, for their iniquity,
and the land of the Chaldeans;
and I will make it desolate for ever.
Then, in Jeremiah 29:10, a prophecy sent to those in exile:
For thus saith the Lord,
After seventy years are accomplished for Babylon,
I will visit you,
and perform My good word toward you,
in causing you to return to this place.
Through Isaiah and through Jeremiah, we see how this book of Ezra is being set up and put in place.
During the time when Cyrus was king, was there anybody in the court or in Babylon who could reveal this to Cyrus? Was there someone who could speak this Word, hear this Word, and know the times?
We often talk about knowing the signs of the times. How did the ones in those days know the signs of the times? By being in the Word of God. The Word of God said, “This will be the sign of the times.”
For us, brothers and sisters, if we want to know the signs of the times, it is by being in the Word of God that we will be able to discern them.
There was one there in the royal palace who could be used by God. Who was this? Daniel. Turn over to Daniel chapter 9.
Oh, how precious it is to follow this cord, this silver thread through, because it reinforces to us more and more that our God is a God of purpose, and He will accomplish that purpose.
Daniel 9:2 says:
In the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books
the number of the years whereof the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet,
for the accomplishing of the desolations of Jerusalem, even seventy years.
As Daniel was in the Word of God, that Word was quickened to him: at the end of that seventy-year period, there would be release. There would be a going back.
What was Daniel’s response? Look at verse 3:
And I set my face unto the Lord God,
to seek by prayer and supplications,
with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes.
Oh, how that Word of God strengthened Daniel. The Word of God captured him. Brothers and sisters, we so often talk about the Word of God affecting our lives and being lived out. How precious this is: the Word of God captured Daniel’s life.
It changed him and brought him to his knees in fasting, prayers, and supplication. When was the last time the Word of God brought us to our knees? When was the last time the Word of God captured us in such a way that we were in fasting and supplication?
“Lord, have Your Word worked out.” One reason I believe so much of our individual prayer lives, and even our prayer meetings, are so weakened is because we are not in the Word of God.
As Daniel was in the Word of God, his prayer life was strengthened. Throughout Scripture, we see that those who were in the Word of God had strength added to their prayer life.
We talk about desiring to strengthen the things that remain. As we are in this Word of God, our prayer lives will be strengthened. Our prayer meetings and our times together will have strengthening.
Why? Is it because we know how to pray more? No. It is because the Lord is showing us, and we are responding to Him touching our hearts and drawing us on.
This is what Daniel did. This is why the Lord, as He has revealed His plan and purpose to us, says, “Remember what you have heard. Remember what you have heard. Keep it. Repent.”
We have heard so much of God’s purpose, God’s plan, and God’s desire. But are we living it? Is it affecting our lives, or is it just another trophy on the shelf? “I have God’s eternal purpose here.”
When Daniel saw God’s eternal purpose, it changed his life. You would have thought Daniel was already a pretty serious Christian, but he did not stop. He saw that the work was not completed.
When he saw this, it kept him on. He woke up. He was strengthened to press on to the end. Brothers and sisters, how are we strengthened to press on? As the Word of God comes into our lives and presses us on to more of Christ.
May we have a fresh love for His Word and really allow it to work within us in this day and time.
Brothers and sisters, there is another great encouragement in this book of Ezra. We are not going to get too far in the book of Ezra today, but there is another great encouragement here.
If you look at the time in which this book took place, we could say the people of God were in a weakened state. We could say the people of God were in a place, or state, of ruin. There was no testimony upon this earth.
Go back to Ezra 1, one of the verses we just read. During the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, there is a phrase used: God is referred to as “the God of heaven.”
In verse 2, Cyrus refers to Him as “the Lord, the God of heaven.” No longer is He spoken of as the God of heaven and earth, though we know He is Lord of the earth. But there was not that testimony. There was not that people in His home and in His place.
During Ezra, Nehemiah, and the books that accompany them, you see that during this time of captivity, He is referred to as the God of heaven. It is a judgment on the people of God.
Brothers and sisters, today we know that God is Lord of heaven. He is Lord of all. He is Lord of the universe, of everything. But is He Lord of our lives? Is His lordship being expressed upon this earth in the days we have?
These people were in one of their most weakened conditions. As we look today, because of so much confusion, are we, as the people of God, in a weakened condition? Are we in a state of ruin?
If you look at us outwardly, if you look at man, we are in a state of ruin. But brothers and sisters, our eyes are upon the King. That is why we sang that hymn, “Great Is Thy Faithfulness.” It is His faithfulness.
If we look around horizontally, we may not see much. We may become disappointed in people. But if our eyes are upon the King, Who in spite of our unfaithfulness will continue to build His church, then we have hope.
The voice of the Lord is mighty. The voice of the Lord says, “I will build My church; and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” Do we believe that, or is that just a cute phrase?
He said it. He will do it. How we can enter into all the good of that.
If we look throughout Scripture and throughout history, it is often at some of the greatest moments of weakness that we see the greatest faithfulness of the Lord.
When the people of God were in Egypt, we could say that was a ruined state. There was no hope. But God, in His faithfulness, raised up Moses. We saw the nation come about.
We saw Moses and Joshua. They went in and took the promised land. But then what happened? We see things going down. We see the book of Judges, where there was such declension that everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
That sounds a lot like today, does it not? Everybody just does what is right in his own eyes: “I think I can do this. I can do that.” We all go by our own ways.
Is that what the Lord wants? What is right in our eyes? He says, “In My sight, I have not found your works complete.” In one sense, our eyes do not matter. It is His sight that matters.
Praise God, at this point of almost utter ruin, the Lord raised up Samuel, who brought in David, who brought in Solomon. Praise God, out of ruin we see the zenith again.
But then we see declension again, going down into Babylonian captivity. Here we have the book of Ezra—not based on the faithfulness of man, but on the faithfulness of God.
Out of this ruin, the Lord says, “I will build My people. I will do this.” Brothers and sisters, how we can continue to be encouraged by this.
After this, there was a return, but then there was more declension. It looked like utter darkness, what we call the four hundred silent years.
But what happened? The Lord found Anna, Simeon, Zacharias and Elizabeth, Joseph and Mary. Out of those, the King was ushered in.
Even in the despair of Calvary, when it looked like all was defeated, we see that greatest victory. He declared, “It is finished.”
Then, with only a few disciples, the church was built under Roman influence. Within two or three centuries, the church had overcome the Roman Empire. All throughout church history, we see this going on.
Brothers and sisters, in these days, it might not look to our eyes as though we are in such great shape. But it does not change the spiritual reality of what He is doing and what His desire is.
There is one thing you will notice during all these different times when the Lord moved in His faithfulness: there was always a coming together of the Lord’s people.
When the Lord did a work with Moses, when the Lord did a work through Samuel, and when the Lord did this work in Ezra and Nehemiah, there was a coming together of the Lord’s people.
When the Lord is working in the midst of ruin, those who have a heart for the Lord are seen coming together, not scattering.
In Ezra and Nehemiah, it testifies that these ones came together as one man. Ezra 3 and Nehemiah 8 both say that they came together as one man.
They were not a scattered group, but they came together as one man and continued on. Throughout church history, we can see how, at points of such outward ruin and declension, the Lord would raise up ones in His great faithfulness and draw the people of God back to Himself.
Brothers and sisters, in this hour, He is doing that. He has the same call for us: wake up, strengthen the things that remain, and return.
We hear this word, return. Return unto Him. Allow Him, as we and others stand as that one man before Him, to complete what He desires to do.
He is calling us, brothers and sisters, to this. It is so precious that, as we look throughout Scripture and throughout history, God has chosen to work through weak vessels to accomplish His purpose.
He did not pick the best and brightest. He took those who had a simple heart, who would return to Him and allow Him to be Lord of their lives.
We have heard in recent messages many calls individually to return. One thing upon my heart as we look at Ezra and Nehemiah is this: yes, we have a call individually to return.
There is repentance, consecration, sanctification, the narrow way, and a response to the call of discipleship. Yes, we have all these individual responses.
But brothers and sisters, there is also a collective response. The Lord desires not that we would merely be a group of individuals who congregate periodically.
He desires that we, as one man, would allow Him to draw us into that oneness, so that the simplicity and purity of the testimony of Jesus would be expressed in our lives.
We see this beautifully worked out in Ezra and Nehemiah. It is not based on our faithfulness. It is His faithfulness, and He is simply looking to us to respond.
How can we, as the people of God, be strengthened to stand for that simplicity and for that testimony of Jesus? Let us simply turn back to Revelation again and read those verses. We have said them; we need to hear them again.
In Revelation chapter 3, there is the call to wake up. How do we respond?
Remember therefore what thou hast received and didst hear,
and keep it, and repent.
Brethren, may we remember what we have received and heard. Then may we keep it, and may that spirit of repentance live within us.
Let’s pray.
Lord, I am so thankful that You are a God of purpose. Lord, I thank You in my individual life that You have not given up on me when so often I have fallen asleep.
Lord, I thank You that we, as the people of God, can be encouraged that You have not given up on us.
Lord, You are a God of purpose. You will build Your church. The gates of hell will not prevail against it. Lord, You are doing a marvellous work, preparing Your bride.
Lord, in this hour, we want to really be those who are found cooperating with You—not doing our own thing, not going about our own ways, but allowing You to work within us.
Lord, help us to take that time to remember what we have received and heard. We thank You that the voice of the Lord speaks. We thank You that the voice of the Lord has spoken.
May we be those who keep it and repent, that the work You desire to complete would be completed in this hour. In Your precious name, amen.