When to Expect Spiritual Sabotage

If they think they’re not in danger they won’t expect the strike. We see this play out in the history of Israel.

When to Expect Sabotage

Ezra 3 is a wonderful chapter displaying how full of worship and praise the Israelites were after doing God's will. They seemed to be on a spiritual high and set on doing whatever God wanted. But then, in chapter 4 we find godless neighbours attempting to sabotage the Israelites’ efforts to serve God. They seemed innocent at the start, but their intentions were quite the opposite. The Israeli leaders tried to cast aside these saboteurs but failed to do so resulting in “the people of the land weakening the hands of the people of Judah”. This eventually led to Israel completely ceasing the construction of the temple.

Similarly, Satan tries to sabotage our service for God. by attacking when we think we are doing well. Maybe we’ve spent hours studying our Bible or have pleased the Lord through some spiritual service. These are brilliant things, but it’s at times like these when Satan will strike. It’s at times like these when we must have our guard up. Are we prepared for Satan’s attacks? Or will we crumble at the first sign of opposition?

“Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” (1 Corinthians 10:12)

The Joy of Restoration

This setback in the building of the Temple does not end God's plan for Israel. God sends prophets in chapter 5 to their laziness and to encourage them to get back on track. Take, for example, the prophet Haggai:

“Ye have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes.” (Haggai 1:6)

Through Haggai, God showed the nation how miserable their lives were while they weren’t following God and challenged them to get back to building the house of God. With this newfound motivation Zerubbabel led the Israelites to restart their construction of the temple and finish the work. 

“and this house was finished on the third day of the month Adar … and the children of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the captivity, kept the dedication of this house of God with joy” (Ezra 6:15-16)

We need to hear the words of Haggai too. When I’ve sinned or I’m not doing God's will, I can feel depressed – everything seems empty. Yet when we come back to God, how amazing that our lives can once again be filled with joy and fulfilment. Maybe our circumstances won’t change but when we’re in full communion with God there is nothing that tops the joy we have.