"Then rose up the chief of the fathers of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests, and the Levites, with all them whose spirit God had raised, to go up to build the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem." Ezra 1:5
Sent into captivity, the Israelites suffered a great deal at the hand of the Babylonians and the Assyrians. But God's plan did not falter. The Israelites sinned against God, which led them to their current predicament, yet God's ultimate will prevailed.
Time and time again, you read in Scripture how man disobeyed God, suffered the consequences, then God made everything work out according to His purposes. In the Old Testament, the disobediences did not prevent Jesus Christ from coming and suffering, dying, being buried, and raised again for our salvation. In the New Testament, disobedience did not keep the Gospel from being spread throughout the known world.
And the neat thing: God uses the most unusual characters to bring about His will.
Take Cyrus, King of Persia, a gentile king who conquered Babylon. According to his own words the "LORD God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth;" (Ezra 1:2).
He ruled all of what is now Turkey and northern Greece, part of what is now Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Syria, Iraq, Kuwait, Iran, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, probably some of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and maybe into Pakistan. He also ruled all of what is now Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, Egypt and Libya, and quite likely had great influence in what is now Bulgaria and Macedonia.
That's quite a territory, even by today's standards, especially when you consider the diversity of people located in those regions. I confess, I find this astounding and a sure sign of God's hand moving the leaders of nations.
But the greatest take away I have, when I ponder all that happened to Israel, is that I cannot thwart God's ultimate plan. I can't stop His judgments, and I can't stop His acts of mercy. I can't keep Him from holiness, and I can't keep Him from extending grace.
And quite frankly, that causes me to sigh with relief. Because, if the salvation of the world or the judgment of the world relied on whether I obeyed or disobeyed, whether I chose the right thing at the right time—if the future outcome of even one person's life depended upon me, we'd be doomed. I'm not wise enough, knowledgeable enough, righteous enough, smart enough, anything enough for that responsibility.
Yes, I'm not denying that my actions have consequences. I'm not denying that I'll miss out on some blessings if I disobey God. But I am ever so grateful that all of eternity does not rest on my shoulders.
"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23
