When Opposition Comes, Where is Our Focus?

Have you ever been betrayed? Ever have anything stolen from you? Has anybody ever judged you wrongly, even purposefully? Lied about you? What about bullying you or demeaning you for who you are?

We live in an imperfect world where these kinds of things happen. I venture to guess that most if not all of us have felt shame and fear posed on us by others. But where do you go when you feel isolated and alone? When the trials of life come your way, what do you do?

In the book of Ezra, God commanded His people who were living under Persian rule to rebuild His house which was destroyed some seventy years earlier as a result of their disobedience. The people obeyed the Lord for a time and began doing His work, but as soon as opposition came against them, they stopped.

For sixteen years construction on the temple was at a standstill. Why? Because the people lost their focus. They forgot that God was the One who stirred the heart of the Persian King of the empire. At first, their perspective was incredibly high. They were on cloud nine and felt as if nothing could touch them. Yet, when the storm, came they ran. As soon as they turned their focus away from God and looked intently at their problems, they became overwhelmed by their isolation and attacks.

Now how many of you know that when you look away and wander far from God He is right there to raise you up again?

God will never forsake His own! He may allow us to experience hard times, both from outward circumstances and people as well as when it is self-inflicted. However, His greatest desire is to restore us to Himself and to grow us in our faithfulness. So this is where it gets good. In the account of Ezra, God comes back to restore His people and give them yet another opportunity to trust Him.

He sent His Word through the prophets, and look what happened in Ezra 5:1-5

"The prophets...prophesied to the Jews...and then they arose and began to rebuild the house of God..."

Immediate obedience without hesitation. Yet, with obedience often comes persecution and this was no exception. What we see next is the local government coming against the Jews questioning their motives and threatening them to cease and desist work on God's house. The officials sent word to the King in hopes to once and for all shut down the Israelites. However, look what the text says:

"But the eye of their God was on the Jews, and they did not stop them..."

There is huge significance in the terminology used here of God's interaction with His people:

1. God is protecting His people
2. God is watching to see how His people will respond to the present circumstances

Sixteen years earlier these same people chose to fear man rather than God. Now, the response has changed. They didn't even wait for a decree from the King to begin building. As soon as God spoke, they obeyed. As soon as trials came, they looked at God and acknowledged His authority over the entire situation.

There is always a response that we have to make when it comes to God's Word. We always have a choice. Will we obey or disobey? Will we fear God or man? The choice to be faithful is ours.