Which Part of the Wall Is Yours?

Nehemiah heard what God would have him do.  When he obeyed, he was never the same, nor were those around him.

• Nehemiah heard, and was never the same afterwards.
  “… and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. 3 And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.” Nehemiah 1:2-3Jerusalem was the center for worship to the one God in Heaven, and the main place of worship was forsaken. If Jerusalem was in disarray, it meant that worship to the true God was not being performed by His people.
• Nehemiah’s heart was broken.  He wept, mourned, fasted, and prayed over the condition God’s people had allowed their nation to be in.
  “… when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven,” Neh. 1:4
• He confessed and recognized Israel’s and his own sin.
  “… thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Israel thy servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee: both I and my father’s house have sinned.” Neh. 1:6
• He claimed a promise (it may have come from Deut. 30:1-3) from the Word of God.
  “But if ye turn unto me, and keep my commandments, and do them; though there were of you cast out unto the uttermost part of the heaven, yet will I gather them from thence, and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to set my name there.” Neh. 1:9  
• Then God started working. He used a king to send Nehemiah on his way (Neh. 2) to lead in the restoration of Jerusalem.
• Nehemiah then shared his burden with Israel.
• Even Nehemiah’s opposition saw that he had a concern for Israel. His burden was for the people of God to return to worshipping God.
  “When Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, heard of it, it grieved them exceedingly that there was come a man to seek the welfare of the children of Israel.” Neh. 2:10
  He did not want His people to be a bad testimony (reproach) for God!
  “Then said I unto them, Ye see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lieth waste, and the gates thereof are burned with fire: come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach.” Neh. 2:17 
• He told Israel that God was in the endeavor to rebuild the main place of worship.
  “Then I told them of the hand of my God which was good upon me; as also the king’s words that he had spoken unto me…” Neh. 2:18a
• They shared Nehemiah’s burden and went to work. From that point on, the rest of the book is dedicated to the work done by Nehemiah and Israel. There is a time to get close to God and to get right with him.  Once we have heard from Him, it is time to get to the work He has for each of us — until He stops us!
  “… And they said, Let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for this good work.” Neh. 2:18b

Elisashib (Neh. 3), the man of God, started rebuilding the wall and soon others picked a spot next to him (Chapter 3), and started working.  Chapter 3 eternally remembers who picked which spot, and what they did.  They all started working!

There is a work that needs to be done!  Today, our country and our world have forgotten the God that has created them and given them this land. His worship has been neglected and is desperately in need of “repair.”

God’s people desperately need to have a burden similar to Nehemiah’s and help restore a nation to one that puts Him first and obeys His commandments. God’s people need to pick a spot on the “wall” that is closest to them and start building.   Yes, there will be opposition and conflicts as Nehemiah faced, but the work still needs to be started.

Our task is not manually rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem, as it was in Nehemiah’s day.  Today’s main place of worship is in man’s heart.  Few have heard the truths from the Word of God that will change, save, and rebuild lives. The truths from the Word of God have to be placed in men’s hearts by God’s people telling them. If practiced, Its truths will change communities, cities, states, and countries. Those that are saved have heard and know those truths.  It is our responsibility to tell and share it with all that we meet.  Go to work! Go and tell!

The saved children of God will never be reminded of their sins.  Bless God; they are all under the blood of Christ, because of what He has done for us. That is not a reason to sit, soak, and not serve.  We are accountable for what we do for the cause of Christ.  Many that have gone before us have quit or refused to labor. His work needs to be rebuilt, and you and I are the only ones left to rebuild it.   It is our task to complete. If we do not tell them, and be an example of how God wants His people to live, who will?

Will you tell others about Christ? Will you tell them about the One that can give them hope, save their souls, change their lives, and who is the only one that can change this world?  Do not have a moment’s delay because of worldly excuses.  Others have done that and look what we have as a result.  There is work that needs to be done; time is short!  Pick your part of the “wall” and start today!

“Whatever God gives you to do, do it as well as you can.  This is the best possible preparation for what He may want you to do next.” — MacDonald