Scripture: Nehemiah 13:31
and I
arranged for the supply of wood at appointed times and for the first
fruits. Remember me, O my God, for good.
Insights: Today’s
verse is the last one in the book of Nehemiah.
Our journey of building a spiritual wall of faith with bricks of
character has come to a conclusion. This
week we have looked at four areas of compromise that Israel had made in regards
to sin. Today we are going to look at the
ingredients behind Nehemiah’s right response to these sins. First, he honestly observed the situations
and recognized the sin present. Most
people are able to recognize the wrong, but they never move to the second
response which is to courageously act against the wickedness. Most people just sweep it under the carpet
and hope it goes away, but Nehemiah courageously acted. This courageous action was the second right
response Nehemiah took. The motivation
behind and the third right response to his actions was Nehemiah’s deep devotion
to the people. He loved them and wanted
the best for them. This final verse
shows us the last thing Nehemiah did in this process and that was pray and
interestingly enough that was where our journey began many weeks back. So, here is a recap of the bricks of
character we have learned need to be a part of our wall of faith: prayer,
preparation, solitude, perseverance, service, stewardship, humility,
discernment, selflessness, teach ability, prioritization, faithfulness, joy and
the trait for this week was repentance.
The reason it was repentance was because when Nehemiah honestly observed
and courageously acted against the sin of those people he was deeply devoted
to, they repented. They turned from
their wicked ways and turned back to God.
When we sin, we also must quickly repent and turn back to God in order
for the love relationship between the two of us to remain strong and
vibrant. The way we talk with God and
verbally confess our repentance is through prayer, which again is the predominant
theme throughout the entire book of Nehemiah.
Beloved, this construction project has been truly convicting on my heart
and I pray it has been with you as well.
May we live stronger lives in Christ Jesus as a result of these lessons
we have studied together. Live your life
in such a manner that our Lord is brought glory and honor.
Questions:
- Are you honestly observing and courageously acting for
the people you are devoted to?
- Is prayer a part of the equation for you helping others?
Prayer: Father, open my
eyes so I am able to honestly discern situation and empower me with Your
presence so I may courageously act on those situations. May the outcome of such interaction lead to
repentance. Amen.
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