Introduction

Good morning, everyone. Let us begin our study of the Book of Ezra. This book records one thing: the God we believe in is exceedingly powerful; He can stir the hearts of men. We truly cannot fathom how mighty God is, so we often perceive Him through human eyes! The theme of the first chapter is "God stirs the hearts of men to build His temple."

God Foretold the Rebuilding of the Temple Through Jeremiah

God once prophesied through Jeremiah that after seventy years of captivity, the Jews would return from Babylon to rebuild the temple for God. Upon hearing this prophecy, one might think, how is this possible? The Jews were a colony of Babylon; the Jewish nation was destroyed, and the temple was burned down, with all its gold and silver vessels taken to Babylon.

Who did this? Nebuchadnezzar. Since he himself destroyed Jerusalem, how could he rebuild it? We cannot understand it no matter how we think about it. However, the Book of Daniel proves that God reigns in the kingdoms of men. In fact, the story recorded by Ezra is similar to what Daniel experienced, and the events occurred not too far apart in time.

After Judah was taken captive, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon thought he was great and became very arrogant. As a result, God made him eat grass like an ox, as recorded in the Book of Daniel. The King of Babylon once destroyed the temple. Would you think: God, your temple has been destroyed, what are you so proud of?

In fact, God never cared about the temple. Did you think Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the temple? No, God sent Nebuchadnezzar to destroy it! In other words, the God we believe in is exceedingly powerful.

The time of Nehemiah was earlier than that of Daniel. Nehemiah witnessed the destruction of the holy city of Jerusalem and the temple. Then God stirred the heart of Jeremiah, and he made a prophecy, writing these words: After seventy years, the Jews will rebuild the holy city of Jerusalem and rebuild God's temple. How could anyone believe this? It's unbelievable; it seems too difficult!

Let's assume the Japanese devils destroyed Nanjing, China, and then said they would rebuild it. How is that possible? And it's letting the Jews go back to rebuild Jerusalem. Nebuchadnezzar thought he was great, having destroyed the temple of the God of heaven, but he was not greater than God! As soon as he became arrogant, God struck him, and he lived in an asylum for seven years, with a rope around his neck, "eating grass like an ox" all day long.

After seven years, he recovered from his mental illness and became the King of Babylon again. Later, the throne was passed on to Nebuchadnezzar's son and grandson. Then God raised up King Cyrus, who overthrew the King of Babylon and established the Persian Empire. The first thing he did after becoming king was to issue a decree to rebuild the temple.

I couldn't understand it before, but now I finally understand: God fulfilled the prophecy made by Jeremiah! We all misjudged, but nothing is impossible for God. If God wants to destroy a king, raise up a new king, and stir his heart to build His temple, what is so difficult about that?

In fact, if we carefully read the Bible, we will find that no matter what the situation, our God always reigns in the kingdoms of men! God reigns not only in the kingdom of Babylon and the kingdom of the Persians but also in the kingdoms of all ages. So we must not underestimate this God.

God Will Personally Fulfill This Prophecy

God personally fulfilled the prophecy of rebuilding the temple, which He had made through Jeremiah. What did God want the Israelites to see through these things? It was to let them understand how powerful our God is! It's just that people don't know; we often underestimate God's power too much, so God Himself fulfills this prophecy.

In the past, God raised up Moses to build the tabernacle, and later He raised up David to build the temple. In fact, David had this desire because God stirred his heart. In the time of Jeremiah, it was also God who stirred Jeremiah to make the prophecy of rebuilding the temple. Later, in the time of King Cyrus, God stirred King Cyrus to fulfill this prophecy.

It turns out that God is directing everything, but people just don't know how powerful our God is. Our God is too powerful! For example, Jesus Christ was crucified, died, and was buried, and rose from the dead on the third day. Has there ever been such a thing since ancient times? There is no such thing! Yet only Jesus Christ rose from the dead, and then overcame death for us and saved us.

So we sometimes cannot understand these words in the Bible! Therefore, Jesus asked His disciples, "Do you understand?" They said, "We understand." Jesus didn't say anything, thinking: You understand what? If you understood, you wouldn't be so "silly." So God will personally fulfill this prophecy; God will personally rebuild the temple.

If someone enters into God's plan and is willing to be used by God, that is extraordinary! God wants to use human history and the prophecies of the prophets to teach us to trust Him. We must not underestimate God. God made a prophecy through Jeremiah and then personally fulfilled this prophecy. How did He fulfill it? He raised up a king named Cyrus.

Jehovah is the God of Heaven; He Alone is God

After King Cyrus gained the world, he concluded that Jehovah is the God of heaven; He alone is God. Cyrus was not born as an emperor; he did not descend wearing a yellow robe. Instead, he worked his way up step by step. As he worked, he seized the throne of Babylon and was "clothed in a yellow robe."

King Cyrus was very interesting. Where was he great? He had read the Book of Isaiah written by Isaiah long ago, which mentioned that there would be a king named Cyrus to whom God would give the world. Did you think he started reading this book after becoming emperor? No, he read it when he was young and was frightened after reading it.

If the emperor at that time also knew what the Book of Isaiah said, that God would give the world to Cyrus in the future, then he would have called Cyrus and killed him. However, the King of Babylon could not kill him and did not know that there was such a God in heaven, thinking: King Cyrus? Forget it! He didn't take the matter written in the Book of Isaiah seriously.

I guess there were indeed ministers who found the King of Babylon and told him about this, but the King of Babylon at that time was Belshazzar, the grandson of Nebuchadnezzar. This man was particularly arrogant and did not take King Cyrus seriously. In the end, he was killed that day, and later Cyrus became emperor. Chinese history is also like this, but people do not know that God reigns in the kingdoms of men, so I often encourage everyone to honor authority well.

More than a hundred years ago, Isaiah mentioned in the Book of Isaiah that there would be a King Cyrus in the future to whom God would give the world. When King Cyrus ascended the throne, he was very happy, and then he said, "Jehovah is the God of heaven; He alone is God!" This King Cyrus knew, but many Christians do not know! They think doctors can save lives. However, doctors cannot save people's lives. You put your life in the hands of doctors, but doctors do not know who to put their lives in the hands of!

So we are fortunate to be able to work with God to build His temple and build His glorious church. Isn't this God stirring our hearts? If God stirs our hearts, King Cyrus said, "May God be with this person." I wonder if we can know that Jehovah is the God of heaven; He alone is God! If we do not know that there is a God in heaven and only know that there are doctors on earth, then it is a tragedy!

Sometimes I minister with a lot of entanglement and pain, watching people rush towards destruction, unable to stop them! I tell them that Jehovah is the God of heaven, but they say, "I want to find a doctor." I think: You are already living under God's wrath. Can a doctor save you from God's wrath?

Brothers and sisters, keep an eye out. If you do not know that Jehovah is the God of heaven, He alone is God, God will definitely let you know, but people will "bite off more than they can chew." Think about it slowly! Recently, I have been very emotional, watching someone I minister to suffer such pain in the terminal stage of cancer. I feel very painful, but I am really helpless and can only say some comforting words.

Whoever is God's People Can Go to Jerusalem to Build the Temple

King Cyrus issued a decree saying, "Whoever 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 God of Israel, (he is the God,) which is in Jerusalem." After reading this, I was a little excited. What virtue or ability do I have that I can have such a blessing in this life, willing to build God's glorious church for Him?

Actually, it is embarrassing to say that God stirring people's hearts is a very magical thing. In the past, I looked for one local church after another, but I couldn't stay, wandering around, just couldn't find a satisfactory church. I was often stimulated, so I was very emotional.

Later, I built God's temple and God's church for God, but I took the wrong path at the beginning, and then I said, "God, I don't want to be a full-time pastor. I just want to be a pastor who doesn't get paid. I don't want to make a living by the gospel." As a result, God took away my job. God is too powerful! This time, I have to be a full-time pastor even if I don't want to.

The earliest group of people who built the church with me thought it was a joke when they heard me say that. They said, "Didn't you say a while ago that you didn't want to be a full-time pastor? How did you become a full-time pastor now? What were you thinking at the time?" I tell you, "You can't twist your arm against your thigh." My thigh can't twist against God's little finger, so I followed God, and then I started to let go.

But now when I think about it, how foolish I was, having to be "forced to Liangshan" to be willing. How wonderful it would have been if I had been willing! So later I thought, never wrestle with God again, and never wrestle with God's fingers again. May God be with this person. God, I will rise up to build your glorious church!

As a result, it was very magical. God showed me His power again and again, making me undeniable. God is too powerful. God is the God of heaven; He alone is God! It is hard to imagine that we can do what we are doing now, the church we are building, and the Mingding Doctrine we are preaching, but we have done it. God is clearly with us. We must cherish it!

We must engrave this sentence in our hearts, "Jehovah is the God of heaven; He alone is God!" He can stir our hearts to build His temple. It is not that we made the right choice, but that God chose us in heaven. It is God who chose us in heaven to be His people. Whoever is His people can build God's glorious temple together.

But in those days, going to Jerusalem to build God's temple was no easy task. Who was eventually chosen? Zerubbabel. God stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, and he was appointed by Cyrus, the king of Persia, as governor of Judah, a regional authority.

"Any of his people among you may go up to Jerusalem, and may their God be with them." Do you see that? God not only stirred the heart of Cyrus, king of Persia, but also the hearts of Zerubbabel and the people of Judah. Then Cyrus issued a decree, and what was the result?

God Also Stirred the Hearts of the Jews

The Jews who had been exiled to Babylon had lived there for a long time. Some were even born there and had become accustomed to that way of life. When they were taken captive, Daniel was about ten years old. Seventy years later, he was eighty years old and still served as prime minister to Cyrus, king of Persia! Daniel lived through three dynasties and served four emperors: Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuzaradan, Belshazzar, and Cyrus. God was with Daniel.

I suspect that King Cyrus knew Daniel. At that time, Daniel felt that the seventy years were coming to an end, so he prayed at home. This prayer was significant, and as a result, Cyrus became king. The first thing Cyrus did after becoming king was to summon Daniel to the palace to discuss matters. Then Daniel came up with the idea of rebuilding the temple of God in Jerusalem. Subsequently, King Cyrus appointed Daniel as prime minister. So, having God with you is truly remarkable!

God not only did marvelous works in Cyrus and Zerubbabel, but also stirred the hearts of the Jews. The Jews were exiled to Babylon and became subjects of the Persian Empire, living in the capital. I ask you, would you rather live in the capital or be sent to a "godforsaken" place to build God's temple? It's a difficult decision.

As a result, after the Persian king issued the decree, the Jews eagerly signed up to return, in droves. They gave up their life in the capital. Some may have had thriving businesses in the capital and acquired many properties, which they now had to sell in order to return to Jerusalem, a place they had once dreamed of but was now very unfamiliar.

Daniel was ten years old when he was exiled. Now he is eighty years old. Does he still want to return to Jerusalem? If he were sixty, he would never have seen Jerusalem. If he were forty or fifty, he would not even know there was a Jerusalem. But the Jews had read the Pentateuch from childhood, from Genesis to Deuteronomy, as well as the Book of Isaiah, the Book of Jeremiah, and even the Book of Daniel. They had also heard the story of David, but they had no emotional connection or feeling for the temple in Jerusalem.

They were born in Babylon and could barely speak a few words of Hebrew. However, they spoke Persian and Babylonian fluently, just as the people of the Roman Empire spoke Greek fluently but stumbled when speaking Hebrew.

So I tell you, God also stirred the hearts of the Jews. These people made a very difficult decision. If they were not stirred, how could they have made such a decision? But I tell you, if these people were stirred by God but did not understand intellectually, they would return to Jerusalem and think: "Did I come here for 'Down to the Countryside Movement'? What am I doing here? I was doing well in the capital."

I am very moved. Let me insert a story about our generation. In the past hundred years, after World War I, Britain won a great victory and became the most powerful country in the world, occupying present-day Palestine, which is the land of Israel.

In fact, the British have a connection with Christianity. The British government issued an order allowing Jews to return to Palestine to establish the State of Israel. But in reality, many Jews in Europe lived comfortably, enjoyed a prosperous life, and had very successful businesses, controlling the economic lifeline of many European countries, much like the Jews in America today.

As a result, when these Jews returned to Jerusalem, they saw: "Oh my goodness, this place is 'godforsaken'," and they didn't want to go back! Sometimes people are really tragic. What happened? Since you don't want to go back, God raised up Hitler and killed six million Jews.

A small number of smart Jews went to Palestine and bought a lot of "godforsaken" land. At that time, the land was owned by the local Palestinians and Arabs. So now, one-third of the land in Israel was bought a hundred years ago.

But no one wanted to go back to build God's temple, and no one wanted to go back to rebuild the holy city of Jerusalem. As a result, God raised up Hitler and "bang" killed six million Jews. Therefore, they were displaced, and no country in the world would take them in. It was very difficult! Didn't they not want to go back? Then they experienced this period of history.

In fact, there were many Jews in the Persian Empire, and their businesses were quite large. Then they didn't go back because their hearts were full of business and making money, just like the Jews in Europe before World War II. So if God stirs your heart, will you obey that heart? This is what the Apostle Paul said, "Since God has stirred my heart to serve Him, woe to me if I do not serve Him."

So brothers and sisters, if God has stirred your heart, don't play games or talk nonsense with God, but obey Him. That is a glorious calling. Isn't it easy for God to make you lose your job or go bankrupt? I have a deep understanding of this. God may have wanted to say to me, "Hey, you rascal, I don't want you to build the church yet. Are you still playing part-time with me? You go full-time to make money to support the church? I'll make you lose your job, so you can't even think about it."

It's not that you don't have the ability, but that God is calling you. If you don't obey this calling, you will really be in trouble. Think about it. Thank God, I didn't have the guts. Since this is the case, then I should obey, because I can't outsmart God. What I say doesn't count. But if you had asked me at that time, did I have that glorious hope? A little bit, but my faith was so weak that it couldn't be weaker.

But as I kept doing it, over the years, some brothers and sisters said, "Teacher, I want to serve God." I said, "Who told you to come? If the church can't pay your salary, how long can you hold on? If you can hold on for half a year, then come! In case we ruin the church, you can go find another job." That's how much faith I had at the beginning, but God stirs people's hearts!

So until now, I really thank God that these brothers and sisters were stirred by God. In fact, it's still a mystery. They always thought, "Teacher, didn't you ask us to come?" I thought to myself, "How could I have had the courage to ask you to come at that time? Otherwise, I wouldn't have asked that question." Come if you come! Build the church together. If the church can't pay your salary, can you support yourselves for half a year? That's how much faith I had at the time.

I tell you, on the day the first group of co-workers came to work, I burst into tears! I finally ended the days of going to work alone and leaving work alone. It's so good to have God! God not only stirred me to build His church, but also gave me a group of brothers and sisters who love God. I finally made it through!

Although my faith was weak, my God is so awesome! So when I mention this, I am still grateful to God in my heart. It turns out that it's not that I have the ability, but that our God is so awesome! He prepared good co-workers for me and a group of brothers and sisters who love God. Because of this, I am also encouraged to serve the God who loves me with all my heart. And what happened? God is with us and has blessed many people!

It turns out that our God Himself fulfills His prophecies. He Himself sits on the throne and chooses His people to do His work. I have more and more faith in God. So our brothers and sisters must know that God is preparing honorable vessels. You can come to Chinese Mingding Doctrine Church. This is God stirring you.

God Himself Prepares Valuable Vessels

The gold and silver utensils that Nebuchadnezzar destroyed in the temple added up to hundreds of tons of gold, all of which were accumulated by David and Solomon. As a result, Nebuchadnezzar took them to Babylon. He thought he was so great that he could control God, and then he made an idol for himself. As a result, the Babylonian Empire was still there, and Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuzaradan, and King Belshazzar all went to the grave. Then God raised up King Cyrus.

David reigned three thousand years ago, and Cyrus, king of Persia, reigned two thousand five hundred years ago. So the cultural relics that Nebuchadnezzar looted at that time were at least five or six hundred years old, just like the cultural relics of the Ming Dynasty now, which are very precious and valuable. King Cyrus sorted them out and let Zerubbabel take all the utensils in the treasury back to Jerusalem to return to God's temple.

Are these things valuable? Valuable! But if God let King Cyrus issue a decree and let Zerubbabel take them away, "Your throne was given to you by me, what are you still arguing about?" As a result, the valuable utensils were all taken back together.
God wants to transport gold and silver treasures from all over the world. Those gold and silver treasures are not US dollars or gold, but you! You are the most precious vessels in God's eyes. God wants to raise up and choose those valuable vessels in this generation to build a glorious church for Him. How good!

"Our church is really not short of money." This is what I said to my co-workers. "As long as we have a heart and serve our God happily, no matter how much we have, we must have that rich mentality and keep investing! Just like David, he put all that he had accumulated into God's temple."

The most precious thing about the church we are building is that set of theological system, which we have acted out according to God's word and then summarized. If you act it out, you will know that Jehovah is the God of heaven, and only He is God. He is so divine! So don't worry, God has plenty of money, and God's house is very rich.

In the days to come, our church will increase its investment and build this internet church better and better, more and more beautiful, and more and more able to bless people. The most precious thing is this set of theology, which is really precious!

God raised up Zerubbabel. This was written by Ezra. In fact, it was fifty years later that God raised up Ezra to write the Book of Ezra, in which there is a sentence, "If you are willing to build God's temple, may God be with you." How good!

We will share this Bible study here. May God bless everyone!

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