Bible Reading: Ezra 1. 1 Timothy 6:1-10
“Then rose up the chief of the fathers of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests, and the Levites with all them whose spirit God has raised, to go up to build the house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem” – Ezra 1:5 (KJV).
In the work of the kingdom in every generation, there are often people whose heart the Lord has touched to do the work. Such people commit their time, energy and finances to the work of God. Sometimes like in this context, God could stir the heart of an unbeliever to commit their time, energy and finances to his work. Sometimes like in this context, God could stir the heart of an unbeliever to commit to kingdom project. The hearts of kings are in God’s hand like the rivers, he can channel it to be favorably disposed towards church building project. God is the sole sponsor of his kingdom project but he often uses human instruments to execute or to accomplish it.
Such people whose hearts are stirred by God often make uncommon investments and sacrifices towards the work of God. In this context, Cyrus king of Persia was stirred by God to rebuild the house of God in Jerusalem; this was in fulfillment of the prophecy of Jeremiah the prophet. King Cyrus brought out the vessels of the house of the Lord which Nebuchadnezzar brought forth from Jerusalem and had put them in the house of his gods. King Cyrus challenged all the Jews that are stirred in their spirit to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the house and to give of their silver, gold and precious things towards the project.
Not everybody is a builder, there are some who only admire the building but will not commit, while there are others who will sit on the fence and watch. There are yet others who will attack the work and try to weaken, discredit or discourage the work. The builders serve as pillars in the house, while those who attack the work are like caterpillars that eat up the fabric (Galatians 2:9).
PRAYER: Oh God, make me a pillar in your house.
Rev. Vincent Diolu