Who is There Among You?

Ezra 1:3, “[3] Who is there among you of all his people? his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of the Lord God of Israel, (he is the God,) which is in Jerusalem.”

In this passage of Scripture, Jeremiah came to King Cyrus of Persia with a message from the Lord. God wanted Cyrus to appoint someone to build a house for the Lord. The temple was destroyed during the time Nebuchadnezzar conquered and captured Jerusalem. Jeremiah asked this question from the Lord, “Who is there among you of all his people? his God be with him, let him go up to Jerusalem…and build the house of the Lord…” They were seeking for someone with three attributes:

1) Someone who was available

2) Someone who had God with them

3) Someone who was ready to work

God is still looking for people today who fit the above criteria. Some make the excuse that they don’t have any talents or abilities. It’s been said that the greatest ability is availability. Give what you have to the Lord, and His strengths will make up for our weaknesses

God is looking for someone with God’s touch on their life. We need the Lord in everything that we do. John 15:5 states, “For without me (Jesus), ye can do nothing.” It’s when we try to do things in our own power that we get ourselves in trouble. Let us seek the Lord and get the hand of God on our lives.

Lastly, God is looking for someone who is ready to work. In the verse above, God was looking for someone to build the house of the Lord which definitely takes work. 1 Corinthians 3:6, “I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.” We see that God gives the increase, but that is no excuse not to work. Paul planted and Apollo’s watered. Just like in a garden, there will be no increase if one does not plant and one does not water. We can’t expect God to bless us if we are not doing our part. It’s been said that we ought to work like everything depends on us and pray like everything depends on God.

Will you make yourself available for God? Will you ask God to touch your life, so you can be used of God? Will you purpose to work hard in the work that God has planned for you? No matter what God has planned for your life, we all need these three things in order to fulfill His plan. Don’t ever think your work is small compared to others’ work. There is no small work in the sight of God. Let us strive to be available, touched by God, and hard working in whatever it is God has planned for us.