From Imperial Roman persecution to the Muslim conquest of the Byzantine Empire to the Viking invasions to the Spanish Inquisition, to royal attempts to enforce use of a prayer book, God’s people have always faced opposition. So, what should we do when modern rulers try to stop us from doing God’s will?

In the first place, we must avoid compromising the truth just so we can keep the peace. When God’s people were trying to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem, the unbelieving people living in the land wanted to participate in the project (Ezra 4:2). But God’s people refused such help because they didn’t want to accommodate the worship of false gods. In the same way, while we should welcome everyone to worship with us, we must strive to bring everything we say and do into line with God’s will.

And in order to do that, we must listen to the Word of God. In the face of mounting opposition, the effort to rebuild the Temple ground to a halt (Ezra 4:24). But when Haggai and Zechariah prophesied to the people, reminding them of God’s will, they resumed the project in spite of the opposition they faced (Ezra 5:1-2). Just so, we must always go back to God’s Word to determine God’s will for our lives, and we must allow God’s Word to motivate us to live more consistently for His glory and for the good of others.

And we must not shy away from standing up for the truth. When their adversaries wrote letters to King Darius, lying about their intentions, God’s people insisted that they had done nothing wrong. In fact, they appealed to Darius to allow them to finish the Temple project that King Cyrus had approved years earlier (Ezra 5:6-17). We are also called to speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15), even to the highest authorities, confronting the world with the claims of Christ, no matter what consequences may come our way.

And when God’s ancient people stood on the truth and persisted in doing God’s will, they were blessed. For Darius not only allowed the Temple to be rebuilt – he paid for it out of tax money (Ezra 6:8). Moreover, he threatened to execute anyone who tried to stop the project from going forward (Ezra 6:11-12).

May God grant us political leaders like Cyrus and Darius who allow His will to be done! But may God also give us the courage to stay true to His will, no matter who holds elected office.

Ezra 5:6-17 (NASB)

6 This is the copy of the letter which Tattenai, the governor of the province beyond the River, and Shethar-bozenai and his colleagues the officials, who were beyond the River, sent to Darius the king.
7 They sent a report to him in which it was written thus: “To Darius the king, all peace.
8 “Let it be known to the king, that we have gone to the province of Judah, to the house of the great God, which is being built with huge stones, and beams are being laid in the walls; and this work is going on with great care and is succeeding in their hands.
9 “Then we asked those elders and said to them thus, ‘Who issued you a decree to rebuild this temple and to finish this structure?’
10 “We also asked them their names so as to inform you, and that we might write down the names of the men who were at their head.
11 “And thus they answered us, saying, ‘We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth and are rebuilding the temple that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and finished.
12 ‘But because our fathers had provoked the God of heaven to wrath, He gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this temple and deported the people to Babylon.
13 ‘However, in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, King Cyrus issued a decree to rebuild this house of God.
14 ‘And also the gold and silver utensils of the house of God which Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple in Jerusalem, and brought them to the temple of Babylon, these King Cyrus took from the temple of Babylon, and they were given to one whose name was Sheshbazzar, whom he had appointed governor.
15 ‘And he said to him, “Take these utensils, go and deposit them in the temple in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt in its place.”
16 ‘Then that Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundations of the house of God in Jerusalem; and from then until now it has been under construction, and it is not yet completed.’
17 “And now, if it pleases the king let a search be conducted in the king’s treasure house, which is there in Babylon, if it be that a decree was issued by King Cyrus to rebuild this house of God at Jerusalem; and let the king send to us his decision concerning this matter.”