Ezra 6:14 (CSB)
“So the Jewish elders continued successfully with the building under the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah son of Iddo. They finished the building according to the command of the God of Israel and the decrees of Cyrus, Darius, and King Artaxerxes of Persia.”
Look at the order at the end of that verse. The house was finished according to the command of the God of Israel, and then according to the decrees of three kings. This section of Ezra was written in Aramaic, and the word behind God’s command and the word behind the kings’ decrees are nearly identical. Ezra sets them side by side on purpose, and he puts God first.
Earthly authority did not produce God’s purpose. Earthly authority served it.
Picture it in three layers. In the foreground stand the people of Israel with their tools. Behind them stand the kings with their decrees. Over all of it stands the command of God. He wanted it done, and it got done.
That guards you from two errors at once. The first is acting as though everything depends on you. It does not. Jesus, the chief Shepherd, runs His church (1 Peter 5:4). He will preserve her, protect her, and bless her. The older you get, the better you sleep with your head on the pillow of God’s sovereignty.
The second error runs the other way. He is sovereign, so sit still. But He has given you a work and you are responsible for it. You are simply not responsible for all of it.
God’s sovereignty does not make your labor unnecessary. God’s sovereignty makes your labor fruitful. How can you know that serving Christ produces fruit? Because He commanded it to be so.
So hear His Word. Put your hands to the work He gives you. Then leave the outcome with Him, because what He has decided will come to pass.
What work has He handed you that you have not yet picked up?
Reflect
Look back over the past week and find which error was yours. Either you carried a weight God never handed you, or you sat still because He is sovereign anyway. Name it plainly. Then take up the one task in front of you and leave the results with the One who runs His church.