A man of destiny (2)

In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfil the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing:

This is what Cyrus king of Persia says:

“The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem, and may their God be with them…”.  Ezra1:1-3

Last time we saw how God’s people Israel received a wonderful surprise when, against all expectations, they were released from slavery in the land of Babylon. The Persians had become the new superpower after the defeat of the Babylonians in 559 BC, and their king, Cyrus, encouraged them to go back home to Judah, and to rebuild their temple in Jerusalem.

To talk of this remarkable turn of events as a “miracle” is hardly an exaggeration – though of course something like it had been foretold by the prophet Jeremiah.

Various truths are suggested by this event.

1 First, and most obvious: God is the ruler of history and the lord of all people. Quite simply, there is no other God beside him, and he ultimately will bring all the affairs of this troubled, fallen world to a triumphant climax. Empires come and empires go – and yes, that includes America, Russia, China and the rest (wasn’t there once a British empire?), but the kingdom of God will last for ever. We as Christians are happy to trot out this truth – but do we really believe it?

2 This suggests, second, that as Christians we should take a prayerful interest in what we see on our televisions or read in our newspapers. Paul, in the New Testament, tells his readers to pray for leaders and rulers (1 Timothy 2:1-6), and also to be good citizens of the nations in which they live, even if their rulers, like Cyrus, know nothing of God (Romans 13:1-7). After all, imperfect government is better than no government at all, as we wait for the day when that perfect kingdom is ushered in.

Jesus was no revolutionary in a political sense – he told his followers to “render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s” (that is, taxes and other civic duties) as well as to God what belongs to him (that is, the glad obedience of our hearts).

But he also taught them in his own special prayer to ask that God’s kingdom “will come on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). Those are not just empty words! If we are sincere in praying them, we had better mean business about living them into reality in our daily lives! Are we good citizens, demonstrating the sacrificial love of Jesus in the way we live?

Some Christian groups tend to retreat into their own little bubbles and almost cut themselves off from the world around them. But Jesus likens the kingdom of God to yeast which is mixed with flour until it is “worked all through the dough” (Matthew 13:33). As Christians we are called to be silent witnesses for Christ, active in our communities, as well as proclaimers of the gospel message.

3 Third, the story of Cyrus raises the mystery of how human wills interact with God’s. Was Cyrus nothing more than a puppet in the hands of God? He obviously didn’t think so himself! – judging by the sense of self-importance we get from his words in Ezra 1:2. Yet the Bible is very clear that his political decisions sprang ultimately from the will of God: “the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus…” (1:1).

Reading this brings to mind another biblical situation – sadly, a very negative one - from some 500 years earlier: not Cyrus and Persia, but Pharaoh and Egypt.

According to Exodus 9:16 Pharaoh was “raised up by God” in effect as an example of his divine judgment. Elsewhere in Exodus it is said both that Pharaoh “hardened his heart” towards God, and also that God “hardened Pharaoh’s heart”.

Well, which was it? That is a question – in essence the enigma of divine predestination as against human free will - that Christian thinkers have wrestled with over the centuries, and to which there is no satisfactory answer. The wise Christian will be wary of those who are too dogmatic, who think they have such mysteries neatly buttoned up! The Bible assumes that all of us have to carry responsibility for our decisions and actions – but it also assumes the supreme sovereignty of God.

If we fail to maintain the balance between those two seemingly contradictory things we end up either making God weak (subject to our whims) or tyrannical (imposing his will upon us, regardless of our freedom): and neither of those conclusions is in tune with scripture as a whole.

These are difficult depths to swim in! Perhaps it’s enough to affirm our faith in the perfect justice, mercy and love of God, and simply let it be…

4 Oh yes, before I finish… the Cyrus story affords a vital fourth lesson too: Christian, expect the unexpected! We never know what God might have up his sleeve! Christian, pray with expectation!

Father God, thank you that you are Lord of all creation and Lord of all history, the one on whom we can fully rely and in whom we can completely trust. Until the day comes when your kingdom is established on earth as it is in heaven, help me to live daily in such a way as to bring that about. Amen.