The book of Ezra is all about repairing and restoring a relationship with God. After more than a generation of captivity, the Israelites finally returned to Jerusalem and returned to God.
In the first chapter, King Cyrus of Persia sends the Israelites back to the city of the temple so that they can once again worship God. In the second chapter, the people return to God’s law to determine who is qualified for service as a priest. In chapter three, the priests build an altar and resume sacrifices to God according to the law of Moses. Finally, after nearly a century, God is worshipped by His people and in His temple once again.
While this restoration is wonderful, note that God never moved. His people sinned, fell away, and failed to worship Him, but God never moved, and the same is true for us today. When we sin or fall away from God, we are the ones who have moved. Likewise, when once faithful Christians stop attending worship or stop living a Christian life, they may have a host of reasons or excuses, but God has never moved.
Whether we become spiritually distant from God or commit to growing closer to Him every day, we need to be willing to make whatever changes are necessary because God has never moved.
Matt Langfield