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When the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were building a temple for the Lord, the God of Israel, they came to Zerubbabel and to the heads of the families and said, \u201cLet us help you build because, like you, we seek your God and have been sacrificing to him since the time of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us here.\u201d But Zerubbabel, Joshua and the rest of the heads of the families of Israel answered, \u201cYou have no part with us in building a temple to our God. We alone will build it for the Lord, the God of Israel, as King Cyrus, the king of Persia, commanded us.\u201d Then the peoples around them set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building. They bribed officials to work against them and frustrate their plans during the entire reign of Cyrus king of Persia and down to the reign of Darius king of Persia. (Ezra 4:1-5).

There are two things in this passage I want to reflect on today. The first is opposition to the kingdom of God. Israel had returned from their exile in Babylon and begun to rebuild God\u2019s temple. Immediately, enemies appear.

Let us notice that this is normal.

When Abram arrived in the land of promise, famine struck. When the Israelites got too numerous in Egypt, Pharaoh enslaved and killed them. All through their journey in the wilderness, they faced struggle and opposition. When Jesus was born, there was an immediate threat on his life. The post-Pentecost church encountered persecution before she had time to catch her breath.

Now, for generations, western civilization has been directed by people who by and large got their guidance from the Christian scriptures. In that cultural space the church grew lax and fat, and church leaders exercised significant influence and even power in the public sphere. Generally, it was easy to be a Christian.

But no longer.

Christians are in the minority and the church has lost her moral authority. In fact, by her own doing, the church has largely become suspect. Like in the days of Zerubbabel, we face extensive, sustained and somewhat organized opposition. This will not go away.

Many Christians are unsure how to live in this new reality. We are surprised and unprepared for it.

All I really want to say about this is that we were not really reading the Bible. Throughout the scriptures, God\u2019s people faced opposition. And Jesus himself told us that in this world we would face trouble (John 16:33). I don\u2019t think we took him seriously.\xa0

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The second thing to reflect on is the question: how should we respond?

The returned exiles offer us a warning. People came to them offering help. What they really wanted was control and influence. They were folks who worshipped multiple gods and were inviting the returned Jews not to worship God alone. Zerubbabel would not budge. We need a renewed call in the church to the Lordship of Christ, to living each day under the influence of his kingdom.

Let me encourage you with this question: did you spend anytime in personal confession yesterday? Confession is about discerning the ways in which we did not live according to God\u2019s Word. if we don\u2019t take time for confession, can we really say that we desire to worship God alone?

When Jesus spoke to his disciples about having trouble in this world, he also encouraged them. Here is what he said, \u201cI have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world\u201d (John 16:33).

When we face opposition, we should not lash out in anger and fear. Rather, we ought to ask Jesus to let his peace invade our hearts, so that we can respond with love and gentleness. We do not have to be afraid of the world because in the end, only Jesus\u2019 kingdom will remain. And that kingdom comes in small acts of love and kindness by his followers.