Ezra 5 (Part 2) Bible Study (Tattenai's Letter to King Darius) | Pastor Daniel Batarseh

Ezra chapter five. In our first bible study of 2026, we will be exploring something unique. We will be looking into a copy of a letter written by some governors from the Persian Empire who had oversight over the Judean province, reaching out to the king of the Persian Empire known as Darius at this point, reporting on the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem. And this letter makes up most of Ezra chapter five and it reveals what the governor beyond the river shared with king Darius expressing concern about this renewed interest in the house of God. And now we have to remember something because we had a little bit of a pause from our last study.

Sixteen years had passed since the people laid down the foundation of the temple and gave zero attention to it from that point on. And the reason for that was due to some opposition and eventual distraction. But through the ministry of two prophets, Haggai and Zechariah, the hearts of the people were stirred as they preach the word of the Lord to them and the work of the temple began once more. And there was such momentum behind that that it actually gained the attention of the political authorities. Now at first glance, if you look at verse six down to verse 17, that's the letter right there.

One might wonder why the Holy Spirit saw fit to include this report in scripture. I mean, what value does this document written by a man named Tetonai, sharing with a gentile king have to offer us as followers of Jesus Christ today. And what we have here is yet another example that whenever we encounter a passage of scripture that seems unhelpful, irrelevant, maybe insignificant, to remember the words of the Apostle Paul who said, all scripture is breathed out by God and is profitable. All scripture is profitable including this executive document written by a gentile governor to a gentile king. Today by the grace of God, we will benefit from this And we'll begin to do so by reading it in its entirety.

And so I hope you have a Bible with you. I hope you own a Bible and you bring it with you to church. Let's read from Ezra five six down through 17. This is a copy of the letter that Tathani, the governor of the province beyond the river and Shathar Bozanai and his associates, the governors who were in the province beyond the river, sent to Darius the king. They sent him a report in which was written as follows.

To Darius the king, all peace. Be it known to the king that we went to the province of Judah, to the house of the great God. It is being built with huge stones and timber is laid in its wall in the walls. This work goes on diligently and prospers in their hands. Then we asked those elders and spoke to them thus, who gave you a decree to build this house and to finish the structure?

We also asked them their names for your information that we might write down the names of the leaders. And this was their reply to us. We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the house that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and finished. But because our fathers had angered the God of heaven, he gave them to the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this house and carried away the people to Babylonia. However, in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, Cyrus the king made a decree that this house of God should be rebuilt.

And the gold and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple that was in Jerusalem and brought into the Temple Of Babylon, these Cyrus the king took out of the Temple Of Babylon and they were delivered to one whose name was Sheshbazar whom he had made governor. And he said to him, take these vessels, go and put them in the temple that is in Jerusalem and let the house of God be rebuilt on its site. Then this Shesh Bazar came and laid the foundations of the house of God that is in Jerusalem. And from that time until now, it has been in building and it is not yet finished. Therefore, if it seems good to the king, let search be made in the royal archives there in Babylon to see whether a decree was issued by Cyrus the king for the rebuilding of his house of God in Jerusalem and let the king send us his pleasure in this matter.

Let's pray together. Father, we sang a precious powerful truth that is found throughout the word that your blood contains a double cure. That it can save a man from eternal wrath and at the same time save him from impurity, from corruption, from pollution. And we pray Lord, being justified by your blood forever, sealed by the Holy Spirit that you would continue to save us by purging us and washing us and sanctifying us. We pray that these verses and how we expound them and how we hear them would be a means of that grace that we would know greater purity in your sight, a greater purity in our hearts to your glory and to our good.

In Jesus name, we pray these things. Amen. What a unique passage. And I believe that if we consider it as a whole, if we get a bird's eye view of it, there emerges at least three key truths that we can benefit from. The first thing is that this text validates how our faith is deeply rooted in history.

The Bible is very generous and expansively mentions kingdoms and emperors and people groups and administrators and officers by name, and they are in many cases confirmed by archaeology. What you and I have before us is a book that makes claims, yes, that provides references, absolutely, but they align with reality. They are true. They can be verified. These are not myths.

These are not just stories. This is actual accounts that have legitimate grounds and are reliable. I'm not sure if you know this, but I think of the Book of Mormon for example. That book makes many many references to civilizations and rivers and lakes and mountains and plains, especially in the ancient Americas that have never ever ever been discovered, that have no reference, that have never actually been identified. And that book has many other problems, but it pales in comparison to what we have here.

This this book that contains robust discoveries and consistent with historical accounts that support the the scriptural narrative. So here we have an an actual snapshot of two officials corresponding and, their names are actually something that you can see outside of the bible and they're in our bible. Secondly, by way just of observation from a bird's eye perspective, this text here reminds us that on every level and in every setting, God is thoroughly aware of what takes place. And he's always working on behalf of his people. Look back at Ezra five verse five for a moment.

There's an interesting comment made by the Holy Spirit where we're told that the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews. This was this was something that was provided in connection to this investigation that was taking place from the Persian Empire. That God's eye was on his people. And that's a remark about the Lord's protective oversight, his watchful care over those who belong to him. And it is something that we encounter right before we are introduced to this letter.

Meaning what? That any conversation that is held about or conspiracies that are made against those who belong to our God never escapes God's notice. He is vigilant. He is someone who takes all things into account. He's constantly surveying and supervising and is sovereign.

And that should bring us tremendous comfort because the position of the Jews at this time is something that we can relate to as a church in the West. We too live in a time, we we live in an era under governmental powers that should they choose can meddle and interfere with our efforts. However, the outcome of this letter as we're about to discover is that these authorities are ultimately subject to a heavenly jurisdiction. One that ultimately orchestrates everything for the good of his people. So here you have Tatianai speaking with the King Darius and perhaps they are very unaware of the fact that God is the one who has his eye over all of this and he's gonna determine the end no matter what they decide for the sake of his people.

Finally, I I think this letter gives believers across all ages insight, rich wisdom of how we can and must relate to government powers. And that's where I want us to spend most of our time this evening. I want to consider from this text at least four principles that each Christian must know and adopt in relation to secular government. Four insights that we must grasp in order for us to be more complete and consistent in our testimony and witness for Christ. So if you're a note taker, this will be especially helpful.

Four principles of how a Christian should relate to secular government. And the first point is pretty straightforward. We must remember that all governments are governed by God. You know, there is difference of opinion here regarding Tetonai's stance toward the Jews. Was he among the adversaries of the people of Judah and Benjamin that we learned about in Ezra chapter four?

Was he hostile? Was he aggressive? Did he hate them? Or was he someone that was more neutral? Was he just a faithful officer in the Persian Empire who just want to make sure that everybody in his province was doing things legally and appropriately and according to code?

Well, arriving at a conclusion becomes even more complex when you compare the words of Tethni in his letter with that letter that we read in Ezra chapter four, where we see something about a copy of a letter that was sent to Artaxerxes, when a report was made about the people rebuilding the city and its walls, which would come at a later time. We're not gonna look at that entire letter but let's get an idea and contrast what we find in this previous letter with the one that we just read. Go to Ezra chapter four and and I want you to see it from verse 11 down to verse 13. This is a copy of the letter that they sent, that is the Samaritans, to Artaxerxes the king. Your servants, the men of the province beyond the river, send greeting.

And now be it known to the king that the Jews who came up from you to us have gone to Jerusalem, they are rebuilding that rebellious and wicked city. They are finishing the walls and repairing the foundations. Now be it known to the king that if this city is rebuilt and the walls finished, they will pay no tribute, custom or toll and the royal revenue will be impaired. Would you agree that this is a much different tone than Tathanais? Absolutely.

Perhaps the difference is enough to suggest that this man Tathanais was unbiased toward the Jews. He was just again, trying to do his job right. But I don't think it's that simple. I think it gets yet again even more complicated when we remember that comment that we saw earlier in Ezra five five. Look at it again and notice what we're told before this letter is granted to us.

Ezra five five. But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews and they did not stop them until the report should reach Darius and then an answer be returned by letter concerning it. Look at the second part of this. We looked at the first part that the eye of God was on the elders, but look at the second part. What does this imply for the Holy Spirit to note that it was God's power that restricted these officials from forcibly stopping the Jews from building means that they would have done so if they could.

So, yes, Tatani and these other associates would have put a stop to the work, but it was the eye of God that hindered him. It was his invisible power. So what do we do with all this? I mean, does it even matter? I think it does.

I think the best conclusion to make is that this man doesn't seem to be neither viciously opposed to the Jews nor entirely at ease with their expanding activity in this area. He's much more civil than the ones who wrote that letter in Ezra chapter four. No doubt. But he's not entirely comfortable either. And this is what this means for us.

No matter if a government is totally favorable, partially favorable or alright opposed to the people of God, The Lord directs the affairs of his own. It in no way diminishes his ability to intervene. Does it matter if that government is pro christian or anti christian? Does it matter if they praise the church or hate the church? It doesn't matter what kind of feelings those in power have towards the righteous.

None of that influences what God is capable of doing. And Paul confirms this in Romans 13. You know this very well. Let me just read the first verse of that chapter. Let every person be subject to the governing authorities for there is no authority except from God.

And those that exist have been instituted by God. No matter that form of government, no matter who's in that position of power, no matter what they do, whether it's good or evil or something in between, God in his sovereignty elevates and promotes and establishes these powers. And that will do us much good. In fact, that's the foundation for understanding these following three points. To always remember that no matter who is elected, no matter how policies change, no matter what things are violated or things that are promoted, all governments are governed by God himself.

We come to the second point. We must strive as Christians to be respectable citizens. Let's revisit the first words of the response of the Jews when they were being approached by these officials. Look at verse 11. And this was the reply to us, we are the servants of the God of heaven and earth and we are rebuilding the house that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and finished.

But because our fathers had angered the God of heaven, he gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldeans who destroyed this house and carried away the people to Babylonia. You know, the Jews could have made this whole process a lot more difficult for Tetani and the others. Or they could have expressed frustration and and and been stubborn or rude, but but no such thing exists. Instead, you actually get the impression that they honor, they they respect, they they actually comply with their wishes. So there is no sense here that they ruin their testimony.

There's no sense here that they're ready to go to war. They're easy to work with. They they have integrity. They're firm but but they are kind. And it's an illustration of what our attitude should be towards those who have been established above us in terms of governmental powers.

That we should be always be ready to meet the demands of those who are in such positions as long as they do not ask us to violate any portion of scripture. Now, in his first epistle, the Apostle Peter addresses a wide range of believers. He he speaks about believers and speaks to believers this person, Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia. I mean, they're they're everywhere. And like Paul, he gives them instructions about how they should yield and how they should daily posture themselves in light of these powers that reside over them.

But he actually gives them two motivations to do so in humility. Two incentives if you would, for them to remain strong and steadfast in their testimony before those who have such positions of power. And I want you to be reminded of them with me today. First Peter chapter two verse 13. Peter says, be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution whether it be to the emperor supreme or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good.

What was Paul Peter's primary reason here? Peter's primary reason is presented in that first phrase there right after b subject. In verse 13, for the Lord's sake. For the Lord's sake. What an amazing statement to make.

For the Lord's sake. So when you're tempted to cheat on your taxes, to be dishonest, and you try to rationalize it because you've seen the corruption of politicians on the news. You even seen it firsthand. You know what the Holy Spirit's words to you and I are? Be honest for the Lord's sake.

When you want to try to create your own loopholes with any kind of ordinances or regulations of various kinds, because you want to save yourself some some time or maybe money, follow what's asked of you for the Lord's sake. For the Lord's sake. That's that's a very powerful set of words. Because what Peter does is he invokes the personal and relational dynamic of our faith to promote holiness in our lives. You know, you and I are not obeying what we're asked to obey for the sake of our own creeds or because we have a set of beliefs or or the the ultimate reason at this point with Peter is to do it because you love the person of Christ.

And you're doing it for his smile, you're doing it for his pleasure, you're doing it to bless him ultimately. I think Peter emphasized that here because there's little motivation to actually comply with governments because they are weak and and many times they're also evil and and they pervert their own laws as well. But you can take what Peter says here and apply it to any aspect of your life. You will reach and I will reach new heights of holiness and we will remain strong in our sanctification if we are constantly aware of this dynamic of our relationship with God. It's personal.

He feels, he knows, he sees. My allegiance is not just to a ministry. My allegiance is not just to a set of convictions. It's to a person. Do it for the Lord's sake.

So when you have that internal struggle, when you're being pulled in one direction by the flesh, I'm gonna I'm gonna I'm gonna do this for God, for the Lord himself. That's not the only motivation he gives. Look at verse 15. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you shouldn't put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. That's in the same context.

This is the will of God. It's God's will for you and I to be subject to these authorities. But he expands on that. Peter is essentially saying, do not give the world another reason to question the validity and the effectiveness of the gospel. As followers of Christ, we must not become known as disorderly, disruptive or disrespectful.

Now, when people know that a Christian is moving into the neighborhood, when a church is entering into a community, they should have a sense that that place, that region is going to prosper. That there's gonna be greater peace on those streets. That there are people now that are gonna have something to offer. That are gonna be a greater pleasure to work with. Not to be rowdy, not to be arrogant, not to be stuffy, not to be dishonest, not to be cheap.

What Peter's concern here is that we would strip away a protective layer from the gospel's witness should we be careless in this component of our walk with Christ. That we're serious about all these other things but when it comes to laws and it comes to what's asked of us, when it comes to all these different things that we just think that we walk autonomously and we use biblical excuses to try to justify our disconnect from society. If we're not careful, we can actually do much more harm than good. You know, I recently heard of a gentleman who had a Bible verse on his business logo and he was notorious in his county as a road rager. So I'm getting this from somebody that I know very well.

And more than that, not only was he known as a troublemaker, he has a bible verse on his logo. But he's actually notorious online because he's been picked up by phone cameras for assaulting and verbally attacking people on the roads. What a shame. With all that being said however, your respectability and mine should never cause us to hide our convictions. It should never cause us to be timid about our submission to the greatest authority, God himself.

The first thing that these Jews said when approached by these governors was what? We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth. I love that. The reason why we do what we do is because we have this authority over us. We are bound to something greater than anything in this world.

And as much as we we must respect men and women in high positions, we should never be intimidated by them. Should the opportunity arise, we should actually present to them the gospel. They need it just as much as any of us. So the second point is that we must strive to be respectable citizens. That's exemplified by these Jewish leaders, but we come to point number three.

And that is, we must be good stewards of the freedoms and the rights granted to us. So after sharing the biblical directives that these Jews are complying with, they do something exceptional. I love what they do here in verse 13. Let's read it again. However, in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, Cyrus the king made a decree that the house of God should be rebuilt and the gold and silver vessels of the house of God which Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple that was in Jerusalem and brought into the Temple of Babylon.

These Cyrus, the king, took out of the temple of Babylon and they delivered. They were delivered to one whose name was Sheshbazar, whom he had made governor. And he said to him, take these vessels, go and put them in the temple that is in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt on its site. What are they doing here? They are presenting the legal justification for their actions.

This endeavor is backed up by the law. We have a decree to do this ultimately from God, but I wanna tell you that even Cyrus signed off on this. And they continue to explain as we just read and elaborate on this point, but here's the lesson. Whenever God in his sovereignty allows for governments to give his people his church freedoms, we have to seize those occasions. And we must take advantages of such opportunities for the sake of the gospel.

I fear that many Christians take their religious liberties here in the West for granted. And I think one major reason for that is because they fail to comprehend how from the old to the new testament, serious minded ministers and followers of Christ knew how to make the most of such opportunities when they arrived. Did you know that the Apostle Paul repeatedly invoked his civil rights and expected the government to honor them? He did this throughout the book of acts, not so that he can live a comfortable life, not so that he can live a more prosperous life, but because he saw it as a tool to protect his ministry. You know, Paul not only knew the law of God, he was very educated and informed about the law of the land under Roman rule.

And it helped him strategize with the gospel. Let me give you one example. So Paul was not a perfect man and the bible shows us that. He was an exceptional man, a remarkable man of God. But on one occasion, him and his ministry partner Barnabas had a feud on account of who?

John Mark. And so they parted ways. Does anybody remember who Paul chose to replace Barnabas? Silas. Here's my question for you, why Silas?

We're introduced to Silas earlier in acts 15. He appears to us as a chief among the men, among the brothers. And he's sent with another man named Judas to go to the church in Antioch to help with some affairs there. A few verses later in acts 15, we learned that Silas was a prophet. And that's all we're really told of him before we learn that Paul selects him as his ministry partners, his missionary partner in his next missionary tour.

But why Silas? Especially when you consider the fact that he has the same profile as Judas. Was it a personality thing? Was it random? I want to give you, I think, is one clue to why I believe he selected Silas.

Would you like to know it? There's something that happened with Paul and Silas in Philippi, when they were unjustly beaten and imprisoned by the magistrates. And when the magistrates realized that they had erroneously jumped to conclusions, they let these men know, you can go your way now. We're sorry. And Paul protests.

And I want you to see what he says in acts 16. Look at verse 37 in acts 16. But Paul said to them, they have beaten us publicly uncondemned Men who are Roman citizens and have thrown us into prison. And do they now throw us out secretly? No.

Let them come themselves and take us out. Is Paul being petty here? Is he just a little hurt and bitter so he wants to make a show of this? No. Paul was publicly shamed.

Paul was publicly arrested and people knew that he came into town as a missionary. That's the last sight that people had. So he says, look, you misjudged us, now you have to rectify and you have to clean this up and you have to show the citizens that we're actually innocent men. So we're not going out secretly, we're gonna go out publicly. But notice verse 38, the police reported these words to the magistrates and they were afraid when they heard that they were Roman citizens.

Who's the they? Paul and who? Silas. Could it be that Paul not only took into account Silas's character and his gifting, but that he was also a Roman citizen? Which was a rare status for someone of Jewish descent.

Because he was a strategist, because Paul was smart, he was wise. He thought to himself, this man will be of most benefit and most profit to my trip to these places of Jewish descent, but also like me carrying a Roman citizenship. And look, we have an example here of how that came to be of great help. And it reinforces for us that believers should not consider it unspiritual. It's not unimportant to make use of the freedoms and the rights that we have in this country, that we have access to, that benefit and shield the things that we wanna do in God's name and for God's glory.

So let's let's not be foolish. Let's not be uninformed. Let's seek to exercise and enjoy and and really recognize these freedoms as a God given thing. They are. They're not separate.

Remember point number one, all governments are governed by God. The tyrannical ones and even the ones like this beautiful nation. With all its faults, there has been no nation like this nation that grants the church the freedoms that we have. So let us be stewards of these things. But we also have to consider this final thought.

We must do all things with integrity and honesty. Go back to Ezra five. I want you to consider the last verse. After reporting what the Jews had said, Tethaniah makes a request. Therefore, if it seems good to the king, let search be made in the royal archives there in Babylon to see whether a decree was issued by Cyrus, the king for the rebuilding of his house of God in Jerusalem and let the king send us his pleasure in this matter.

There was a simple way to discover and to validate the claims of these Jews. Just look at the Royal Archives. Is there anything of Cyrus's decrees that confirm what these claims are? And in in just a few moments, it would either confirm the honesty of these men or it would show that they were liars all along. And this is something for us to see and emphasize.

I know this is similar to the second point of being respectable citizens, but emphasizing it as a principle for life will be for our good. What would happen if they lied? We know that they didn't lie, but if they did lie, yeah, they would have gotten themselves in trouble that but they also would have tainted their testimonies. Remember, they're still under the old covenant. Even in this season, in this chapter of redemptive history, they have a calling from God to be a light to the nations.

In small ways and in big ways. And they're being investigated now. And you and I should take this and apply it in the following way. We may have a past that if explored objectively would speak out against us. But as Christians, you and I should strive to have and to maintain a clear conscience and a clean record.

In other words, if I were to be investigated by authorities or by anything else, would there be sufficient evidence that would be worthy to expose me as a fraud in one way or another? And I think that's a good question to ask each of us at the start of this new year. That where you are currently in your life privately, publicly, if there was to be probing in any facet of who you are, of what you do, what would be confirmed? Would there be some things that you'd be embarrassed about, ashamed of, that would hurt your witness? Or would it be confirmed that there is a pattern of integrity, of honesty, and of purity?

I want to let you know tonight that that lifestyle of being totally unafraid of anybody discovering anything about you because you are walking in holiness is totally possible by the grace of God. It's not some far fetched thing. It's not something that's reserved for a few. It's something that each of us can access and what a what a relief it is to know that there is nothing to hide in my life. Nothing.

I understand that there's privacy. I'm not talking about private matters. I'm not talking about living a totally unwise transparent life. I'm talking and I hope you understand where I'm coming from. I'm talking about somebody having access to your phone password and you being totally okay with it, because you have nothing to hide.

I'm talking about you and I and how we do our business dealings. If somebody were to look at the books, it would be clean. Not so that people can pat you on the back and reward you, for the Lord's sake. For the Lord's sake. These Jews are gonna be investigated and they have no worries.

There's no resistance. There's no fight. There's they're not squirming here. Yeah. Yeah.

We hear our names and here's the reason why we're doing it and you can check it out for yourself. I mentioned Paul earlier of how he was able to utilize his rights, but apart from Christ, he is one of the greatest inspirations regarding what I'm speaking of in this fourth point. Let's go to a final text before we close our time. Go to Acts 25. Paul here is being investigated in his own way.

Accusations were made against him by the Jewish leaders and so he is now before Festus, a Roman official. Look at acts 25 verse nine. But Festus wishing to do the Jews a favor said to Paul, do you wish to go up to Jerusalem and there be tried on these charges before me? Pause. Why is Festus doing this?

Because he's a politician, and he wants to make sure that he doesn't cause any problems with the Jews, and so he knows that the Jews want Paul to go to Jerusalem to be on trial. Why? Because it'll be a fair trial? No. Because there's an ambush waiting for Paul.

This is the context. That they want to assassinate Paul. Whether Festus knows this or not, it's not clear. But what is obvious is that he is a politician. And so he says, do you want to go to Jerusalem?

Now why isn't he enforcing it though? Doesn't he have the power to say, you're gonna go on trial in Jerusalem. Do you know why? Does anybody know why? He's a Roman citizen.

That's why. And so he gives Paul the option. Do you want to go to Jerusalem? Let's see what Paul says, verse 10. But Paul said, I'm standing before Caesar's tribunal where I ought to be tried.

To the Jews, I have done no wrong as you yourself know very well. If then I am a wrongdoer and have committed anything for which I deserve to die, I do not seek to escape death. But there's if there's nothing to their charges against me, no one can give me up to them. I appeal to Caesar. One of the glories of owning a Roman citizenship is that you, one, would do a fair trial.

That's why whenever Paul was beaten up and he said, hey, by the way I'm a Roman citizen. The reason why they panicked was because such authorities can get themselves in much trouble because they could not beat up a Roman citizen, unless it was first confirmed that they were guilty of any crime. They had the right to a fair trial, but more than that, they also had the right to appeal to the highest court in Rome. Any Roman citizen could say, I wanna go to the supreme court with my case. And that's what Paul is doing here.

I appeal to Caesar. So again, I just wanna show you repeatedly in the book of acts, Paul is a steward of his civil rights. He's not careless. He's not uneducated. He's not sloppy.

But look at his language here as he also appeals to his conscience. Verse 10. To the Jews the last part, I have done no wrong. And then he emphasizes in verse 11, if then I am a wrongdoer and have committed anything for which I deserve to die, I do not seek to escape death. Do you see what he's saying here?

If I'm actually guilty and I deserve the death penalty, kill me. Kill me. I respect the law so much that if I'm actually guilty, put my head on the chopping block and get rid of me. But he is so confident of his innocence, that he says, I've done nothing wrong. You can look into it.

And he already says, you know it very well. There there is no substance to their accusations. There is no evidence. And what Paul says here, we should all be able to save our own lives. Like Daniel, when those who are envious of him wanted to try to find something against him.

They examine his life from every aspect and the only thing that they can come up with is what? Something to do with his faith. The only way that we can get this man to compromise is if we get him to face some kind of a law that would tempt him to recant. I want to assure you that it's possible to arrive at a place where we have nothing to fear about our testimony, whether in private or in public. And perhaps one of the ways that we can respond to this bible study is to look at our own lives in 2026, in the dawn of 2026.

Say, Lord, I have been tolerating this for years, I've been hiding this for some time and I want to let it go. I want to give it up. I want to have this kind of biblical confidence. And so let's remember these four things. In God's providence perhaps in the age that we are in with the politics that are before us, that we have to remember that all governments are governed by God, that we should strive to be respectable citizens, that we should steward these rights that have been given to us by God, and that we should also live honest and integral lives so that we could we can approach any tribunal, any court and not give them a reason to indict us, to hinder our ministries and to disqualify us in our service to Christ.

Let's ask God for this help. Father, we thank you with all that we are that you have used your words to enlarge our hearts. And we pray that if that work has not been done, if we were distracted, if we were unmoved, if we did nothing to supply to us, that you would reach down into our hearts and that you would pry it open and that you would flood it with your wisdom, your power, your grace. But we know that a subject like this can open up many questions and nuance and different shades of scenarios, but we pray that what you have granted us will be remembered and applied to situations that may be unique to our own lives. Thank you for equipping us.

Thank you for reminding us of an aspect of life that we may have ignored or or perhaps worse have intentionally been unfaithful in. Lord your word indeed is a double edged sword. No matter what part we go to it, it can cut. But we also know that it can heal and we pray that if our hearts have been cut tonight that we would see it as a faithful wound from a faithful God that will bring us to a place of greater joy as we allow you to do surgery in our hearts. Lord, we love you with all of us.

Here in this place we pray that you would help us love you more. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Let's stand and worship the Lord together. I wanna read to you one of Paul's boasts.

It's in second Corinthians chapter one verse 12. This came to mind as we were singing that last song. Paul writes to the Corinthians, for our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience that we behave in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, Not by earthly wisdom, but by the grace of God and supremely so toward you. You know, over the years people ask advice for certain situations. Sometimes there's conflict, dissension, problems.

And what I've shared with many I'll share with you. One of your main goals and anything that you find yourself in that is problematic or complex is to strive for a clear conscience. Especially if it's a situation that you can't control. Do all that you can to behave in this world with simplicity and godly sincerity. That will secure your joy, it will protect your testimony, and it will bring God glory.

And perhaps this is in God's great providence for us as a church, an important word to begin this new year. To be able to boast about our conscience not in arrogance, but simply in silent trust that God has done such a work in me that I can rest? Should accusations come my way? Should anybody say anything? Oh, I can tell you with confidence that I lived in simplicity and godly sincerity.

Can we ask God to help us know that? Lord we ask that you would grant us the same assurance and way of life. Lord, we saw how these Jews in Ezra chapter five were so free and so open even with their government, the Persian empire. We saw it with Paul before Festus and others. And Lord we pray that it would be our portion as well.

If there needs to be any changes by your grace, help us make those changes. If if there is an overly sensitive conscious, Lord heal us of that because that does not help us either. Bring us to that perfect balance in your word, perfect balance in the spirit to just compare our lives to the scriptures and to know that's all that you ask of us. And that whatever you ask for us you have the empowerment to realize it. We thank you for your word tonight in Jesus name.

Amen and amen. Amen. May the Lord be with you. We're continuing Ezra in the coming weeks. Read Ezra chapter six if you can before next Friday.

Fellowship with one another before you leave. God bless you, and Lord willing to see you at the Lord's day service to break bread. Take care now.