Class Lesson July 21, 2013

Hey Gang,



We continue this week with Bible stories that fit together to tell one story – God’s Story. This 13-week study helps us understand the Bible’s story, our place in the story, and its implications for our lives today. Why are we studying this series? Because it can lead us not only to understand the Bible’s overarching message but also to encounter the Lord God who is its ultimate Author. After all, it is His story.





The lessons in this series are: 

1. June 2 - God Begins the Story
2. June 9 - God Chooses a People
3. June 16 - God Delivers His People
4. June 23 - God Instructs His People
5. June 30 - God Dwells Among His People
6. July 7 - God Establishes a Kingdom for His People
7. July 14 - God Disciplines His People
8. July 21 - God Restores His People
9. July 28 - God Promises the Messiah
10. August 4 - God Sends His Son
11. August 11 - Jesus Is Crucified and Raised
12. August 18 - Jesus Commissions His Church
13. August 25 - God Completes the Story

 

Life Goal

Live by the truth of God’s Word no matter what.

The southern tribes of Benjamin and Judah repeatedly rebelled against God until He backed off and Nebuchadnezzar swept in. In three crushing waves in 605, 597, and 586 B.C., the Babylonians attacked Judah and deported thousands of Hebrews to Babylon until there was no Israel, no Temple, and no hope left. Their long-suffering God stepped up to show He was not through yet.

We all fail, but it is reassuring to know that God desires to bring us back to Himself. We can: Refuse to rebel against God, Refuse to let past misbehavior doom the present and the future, Actively obey God so we don’t accidentally disobey, Know God’s Word to distinguish what’s right.

I. SEEK AND CALL ON GOD – JEREMIAH 29:10-14

10 For this is what the Lord says: “When 70 years for Babylon are complete, I will attend to you and will confirm My promise concerning you to restore you to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you”—this is the Lord’s declaration—“plans for your welfare, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. 12 You will call to Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you”—this is the Lord’s declaration—“and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and places where I banished you”—this is the Lord’s declaration. “I will restore you to the place I deported you from.” 

Jeremiah was called to be a prophet of God during the 13th year of King Josiah’s reign (Jer. 1:1). Of all the Old Testament prophets, the Bible tells us the most about Jeremiah’s personal life. He was a prophet during the downfall of Judah, witnessing the Babylonian invasion. Jeremiah was a prophet who experienced great sorrow. This rose from the people totally rejecting him and the message from God. He was ridiculed often for standing up for God. Jeremiah was deported to Egypt, against his will. He concluded his prophetic ministry displaced in Egypt.

In the final decades of Judah’s existence, the prophet Jeremiah’s warnings of impending judgment were ignored. Jeremiah watched thousands of the nation’s elite citizens taken into captivity while he stayed in Jerusalem with a ragtag remnant. When he heard false prophets predicted a quick restoration, Jeremiah wrote a letter to the exiles in Babylon, declaring God wasn’t through with His punishment or promises – not an easy message but a true one.


What did God promise to the people of Judah in these verses? What was their part in this promise?

• Through Jeremiah, God explained that Judah would be captives in Babylon for 70 years.
• God would bring the people of Israel back from exile.
• God used Jeremiah as part of a bigger story of restoration.
• The attitude of the Jews would be different toward God in this new season. They would call upon Him and seek His guidance.
• Restoration is two sided. God promised accessibility to the Jews, but they must seek Him. This included obedience, respect, and love.
• Gathering from the nations meant God was gathering all Jews. Those who had earlier been exiled by Assyria in 722 B.C. were also eligible for restoration.

How would you fell upon receiving this letter – encouraged, discouraged, confused, hopeful, angry, resigned, determined or what?

• Seventy years was a lifetime. Not everyone hearing this promise would see it fulfilled. The important point of this is it was God’s timing and not theirs. There would be no quick, easy restoration. God’s people needed to accept the reality of where they were and press forward, not in worrying, but in intense times of soul searching and God seeking. In that process God’s good plans for them would start being fulfilled. His plans were not necessarily for health and wealth. His plans that would give them a future and a hope were the plans He’d been writing in His Story all along – to bring people into a relationship with Himself.

What repeated actions bring lasting restoration? What tends to block restoration between you and people, how about between you and God?

• God’s discipline, either because of sin or simply because it’s time to grow up, may have left you exiled and far from home. He promises to restore you. He may also promise it will take a while. Good will happen during that process if you respond to, and obey, your Almighty Creator. If you don’t see that happening, don’t panic. He’s not through yet!

What will you do while God is plotting for your joy and working His plan in your life?

• You can fret, fuss, and try to fix things. Or you can live in faith, seeking Him with all your heart even in the setbacks, trusting He’ll work what’s best in His time for His glory and your joy.
• This week focus on listening to God for His solutions to your situations. Seek His answers and guidance, rather than try to press your agenda. As you seek and serve God, you’ll discover yourself right in the center of His plans that give you a future and a hope. It’s not magic; it’s love.
• Actively let God restore you, even when you’ve failed in major ways.
• Believe God’s Word is completely reliable, and therefore worth knowing and doing.

1. Even in the darkest of times, the Lord is working on our behalf and for His glory.
2. The Lord desires the best for His people.
3. Those who earnestly desire the Lord will find Him and be found by Him and will enjoy the benefit of being in right relationship with Him. 

 

 

II. LET GOD RESTORE – EZRA 1:1-5

The Decree of Cyrus

1 In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, the word of the Lord spoken through Jeremiah was fulfilled. The Lord put it into the mind of King Cyrus to issue a proclamation throughout his entire kingdom and to put it in writing: 2 This is what King Cyrus of Persia says: “The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and has appointed me to build Him a house at Jerusalem in Judah. 3 Whoever is among His people, may his God be with him, and may he go to Jerusalem in Judah and build the house of the Lord, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem. 4 Let every survivor, wherever he lives, be assisted by the men of that region with silver, gold, goods, and livestock, along with a freewill offering for the house of God in Jerusalem.”

Return from Exile

5 So the family leaders of Judah and Benjamin, along with the priests and Levites—everyone God had motivated—prepared to go up and rebuild the Lord’s house in Jerusalem.



Ezra was a critical leader in the history of Judaism. He was a reformer and preserved the teachings of Judaism. Ezra was a priest and scribe who lived and served during the 5th century B.C. (Ezra 7:1-6). He was a descendant of Aaron. Ezra was a priest sent with a large group of Israelites back to Jerusalem around 458 B.C., during the reign of Artaxerxes of Persia. Ezra was charged with studying the law of God, practicing it, and teaching it to reestablish the Israelite community. He is a likely author of both I and II chronicles, as well as Ezra.


The Hebrews settled and decades passed. Then one October night in 539 B.C. while the royals partied, Belshazzar saw the handwriting on the wall. Daniel informed him his days were numbered (Dan. 5:5, 26). The Persian army snuck in and overthrew the Babylonian empire without a fight. God demonstrated it was time for His people to go home. God used a foreign ruler to restore the people. Isaiah had prophesied this 140 years earlier (Isa. 45:1-7). Cyrus the Great was politically savvy, not God-fearing. His foreign policy of allowing exiles to return home and restore their customs and regions got him points with local gods and garnered loyalty among his empire. He likely had no idea his kingdom policies were under God’s plan.



How have you seen God work in an unexpected way? Does your experience help you understand how the Hebrews must have felt when they heard Cyrus’ edict?

• About 50,000 which was a fraction of the Hebrews in Babylon took Cyrus up on his offer. God motivated these to go (1:5). Those who stayed behind may have been motivated by God to give assistance and compile a freewill offering for rebuilding the temple.

How was God working in Cyrus to repatriate the Jews?

• Cyrus’s decision to repatriate the exiles involved many different people groups. Yet, he specifically referenced the God of Israel when writing his proclamation to the Jews.
• Cyrus provided financial means for the Jews to sustain and return to their land.
• God was working in the Jews to create a desire to go back to their homeland.
• These verses indicate that God began the work of restoration, fulfilling Jeremiah 29:10-14.

How has God specifically begun the work of restoring you to Himself?

• God takes an active role in restoration.
• He has plans to restore us.
• Listening to God is critical to the restoration process. He knows how to make us beautiful.
• God provides the practical help we need to be restored through His Word and other followers of Jesus who can help us.

1. All things are under God’s control.
2. God is at work even when we cannot see it and even when we think He is not.
3. Those who are bold to step out as God leads need the support of others who stay in place.

III. HEAR GOD’S WORD – NEHEMIAH 8:1-6

1 all the people gathered together at the square in front of the Water Gate. They asked Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses that the Lord had given Israel. 2 On the first day of the seventh month, Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly of men, women, and all who could listen with understanding. 3 While he was facing the square in front of the Water Gate, he read out of it from daybreak until noon before the men, the women, and those who could understand. All the people listened attentively to the book of the law. 4 Ezra the scribe stood on a high wooden platform made for this purpose. Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah stood beside him on his right; to his left were Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hash-baddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam. 5 Ezra opened the book in full view of all the people, since he was elevated above everyone. As he opened it, all the people stood up. 6 Ezra praised the Lord, the great God, and with their hands uplifted all the people said, “Amen, Amen!” Then they bowed down and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.



Nehemiah, cup-bearer of the Persian King, Artaxerxes, boldly asked for permission to go to Jerusalem and help rebuild the city (Neh. 1:11; 2:4-5). Nehemiah led the Israelites out of apathy and political pressure, toward becoming safe and secure. He faced opposition and used savvy diplomatic skills to navigate a tricky political situation. Of most importance, he sought God’s counsel before making these moves. Nehemiah also exhibited engineering skills as he led the Jewish people in the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem.


The scribe Ezra did not join the first return to Judah because he wasn’t born yet. But 80 years after Cyrus’ Edict, Ezra headed to Jerusalem with about 2,000 others and led a spiritual revival. Thirteen years later, Nehemiah received news Jerusalem still lay in ruins. After days of mournful praying, and with the blessing of his employer, King Artaxerxes, Nehemiah led an expedition to rebuild Jerusalem’s walls. With cooperation and despite opposition, an adequate wall of defense was erected in just 52 days.


Finally the people could settle. But unlike their ancestors who settled and forgot God, these people acted on the fact that real protection was not a wall but God’s Word. So in the month of Tishri (Sept/Oct), they left the comfort of their homes to gather and hear the law. Envision a large assembly camped in the square in front of the Water Gate. As day broke, all eyes watched Ezra, followed by 13 men with unpronounceable names, climb onto a high wooden platform. Ezra solemnly unrolled the scroll of God’s law and the people stood in reverence. The experience must have been exhilarating. They listened attentively about six hours as Ezra read, perhaps from Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. As the day progressed, spiritual leaders explained the law. The people wept when they realized how far off track they had gotten. Nehemiah and other leaders assured the time for weeping was over. God had done a marvelous work of restoration among them and it was time to celebrate. They could live as restored people.



When was the last time you were awed by God’s Word? What is your understanding of the people declaration of Amen? How can we make declarations of “Amen” more meaningful?



How do you think the attitude of the Jews was different after their return?

• The Israelites had time to hear and understand the reasons why they had been exiled. Their return to their land was a grace-filled gift and unexpected.
• The people listened attentively.

Think on a time you strayed from God and had a grace-filled reunion with Him. How did you get to wanting reunion? What was different before and after in your attitude? Behavior? How did humility – right view of God and self – play a part? What has God taught you since that time?

• Too often like Israel we fail to take seriously the warnings of God.
• Once we have suffered and lost God’s blessing, we more likely understand how irreplaceable it is to be wholly devoted to Him.
• You can tell about a person based by the way they approach God. Those who are attentive versus those who are flippant not only please God but also get along with people. They bring blessings and not anguish to people.

The Lord has called us as His people. He has declared He will be our God. We know that we have failed Him, but we also know He desires to restore us to fellowship with Him. We too aspire to have a closer walk with Him and to strengthen our relationship with Him. This lesson has given us some suggestions as to how that can take place: trust His promises. Believe He is at work. Draw near to Him through His Word and through worship.


Tracking in the timeline of Jeremiah, Ezra, and Nehemiah, where are you in your responsiveness to Jesus?

• The people in Jeremiah’s age were defiant and failed to heed God’s instruction.
• The people in Ezra and Nehemiah’s era felt the agony of exile. Their folly had caused this pain. They became more responsive to God.
• Today, we can run the risk of living flippantly toward Jesus, half-hearted in our devotion, or we can live with repentant devotion that brings joy to God, to us, and to people around us. 

Prayer of Commitment

Dear Lord, Your Word is true because You are Truth. Increase my desire to know more of Your Word that I might know more of You. Amen.

How often have you thought, "I could have been so much further in Christ! I could have brought so much joy to His heart! I could have saved myself and my family so much pain and suffering. How blind and stupid I was: how enslaved I became by sin! How close I came to losing my very soul. I can never make up for all those wasted years."

In marriage, too, we can look back with some shame because we wasted so many precious hours, days, maybe years. Many of us can look back with regret at wasted years that have been eaten away by the consequences of sin and selfish attitudes! The fact is, the closer you get to the heart of Jesus, the more those wasted years grieve you. The more you fall in love with Christ, the more you cry out to Him within, "Dear Lord, how could I have hurt You so? How could I have been so deceived? I took years that belonged to You and threw them away!

"Oh God, Your Word is so precious to me now, and I am so thrilled to be growing in the knowledge of You! How much growth in Christ I squandered! How much revelation I lost! How much blessing and anointing I forfeited!" I don't care if you have been saved 30 years or 30 days - God can and will restore all your wasted years! This lesson this week is directed to three groups: the nation of Israel, the church and individuals in Christ's body. I want to focus this lesson on the third group, applying it to us as individual believers.

See you on Sunday!

In His Love,

David & Susan