Everything He Can Do

Nehemiah 13

After Nehemiah had done everything he came to do in Jerusalem, he went back to his job serving the king in Babylon. Then, after some time (v. 6), he returned to Jerusalem, and he was horrified by what he found they had done in his absence.

Eliashib was the priest who had been appointed over the chambers of the House of God. But he had married the daughter of Tobiah, the Ammonite who tried to make so much trouble for them. (See 2:9-10; 4:2-3; 6:1-4, 5-9, 10-13.)

Now, while Nehemiah is gone, this priest who was one of the leaders in Jerusalem, had married this enemy's daughter; and, as he was in charge of the chambers in the Temple, he cleaned out one of the large rooms so that Tobiah could move in! In the very courts of the Temple!

On that day (that Nehemiah returned) they read aloud from the book of Moses in the hearing of the people, and there was found written in it that no Ammonite or Moabite should ever enter the assembly of God, because they did not meet the sons of Israel with bread and water, but hired Balaam against them to curse them. However our God turned the curse into a blessing (13:1-2).

So Nehemiah threw him out! It was displeasing to me, so I threw all of Tobiah's household goods out of the room. Then I gave the order and they [ritually] cleansed the rooms; and I returned there the utensils of the House of God with the grain offerings and the frankincense (vs. 8-9). 

And he also found that the priests had not given the Levites and Singers their portions of the tithes, so they had to go out and work their own fields, instead of doing their service for the Lord in the Temple (v.10). 

So he restored that all the tithes would be gathered and distributed properly, and he appointed other priests and Levites to handle all this, because they were considered reliable (vs. 12-13).

And he also noticed that they were not observing the Lord's Sabbaths, so he had them shut the doors of the wall for the Sabbath, and he stationed his servants to guard the gates so that no one would go in or out over the Sabbath. And he had to persist in this, as traders and merchants would spend the night outside the wall hoping to sell, and he had to threaten to remove them by force so that they would not come on the Sabbath. And he commanded the Levites to be gatekeepers on the wall, to preserve the Sabbath. 

Also, all the other Jews that had married women from Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab, had children by them who didn't even speak Hebrew! So it's obvious they weren't being taught about God, but worshipped the idols. 

Nehemiah had to remind them that even Solomon, who had no equal among the Nations of the world, and was loved by God to make him the king over Israel; even his heart was led astray by foreign wives. 

So Nehemiah found a lot that had gone astray while he was gone, and he again set up a system so that they could maintain it, as he did before when he left. He did everything he could to help the people to be faithful. He was really concerned that God's people would do well and obey His commandments so that they could stay in The Land and prosper, and be God's people. 

And he was praying to God throughout this whole book, with everything he was doing to set things straight (1:4-11; 2:4; 4:4-5, 9; 5:19; 6:14; 13:14, 22, 29, 31). He knew that God was with him in all of this, and he naturally was talking with God through it all. And God strengthened him and gave him the wisdom and discernment to know when he was being tricked or deceived, and helped him to work with these wayward children to lead them back into God's ways.

So often we are led astray by the world around us. It seems real, and it seems to affect our lives in many ways. Although we live in this World, surrounded by the World system, we are not to be of this system of the World (John 17:14, 16)--we are citizens of Heaven, and we're just here in this World as though we're away at a boarding school. 

We are God's children, here to learn about our Father and how He thought up, designed, and made the Earth for us. To learn how He planned for us to live in this World we made on His Earth, for the few days we are here. When our Graduation Day comes, we will be His adult children, His kings and queens, fully authorized to help Him run His Family Business, His Kingdom. 

We have God's Holy Spirit living inside us, right now, in our spirits, to teach us and help us and strengthen us and grow us up into the people He designed us to be. 

But the Israelites didn't have God's Holy Spirit in them as we do now. Often they were on their own to try to obey and make righteous choices and decisions. So they went over and over, enjoying God, then forgetting Him, and going their own way, and having problems and troubles, and crying out to God, and He rescues them again, and they enjoy Him again. Over and over.

So we should not be subject to these cycles, as they were. We have no excuse. God's Spirit in us makes us united as one with Him and perfect in love (John 17:23; I John 4:16-17, as He is so also are we in this World). Since God's Holy Spirit is living permanently in our spirits, then we always have Him to help us to love one another perfectly. We just need to listen to Him constantly. 

O my Father, thank You for giving us all these stories of how Your people did right and how You made things go well for them, and how they messed up and the problems they had; but they could always return to You. Your arms are wide open to us all, Father. 

Your Son came to be one of us, so He could make us fit to live with You. And You extend the invitation to everyone, as You are not willing that any would perish, but that all would come to repentance and let the Lamb of God be their personal Sacrifice (II Peter 3:9). 

His Blood, splattered on the sides of His altar, the Cross, does not just cover our sins, but washes them away totally, so that there is not a hint or shadow of a stain of sin on us, but we are cleansed thoroughly, as though we'd never sinned at all. Perfect. Fit to live with You in Your Heaven.

O Father, You have done everything possible and impossible to show us Who You are, and how much You love us and want us. Jesus even prayed, that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the World (John 17:24). 

Jesus wanted me to be with Him, and You love me more than I can imagine! I am one of your princesses, who will be a queen when I have graduated this "school." His bride, and He is my Bridegroom. 

I pray, Father, for all those who don't know you yet, even in my own family. Please show them Yourself and Your ways, so they also will be among all of us who are praising You and worshipping You and giving You all the majesty and honor and glory, forever and ever. 

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

God Loves A Party

Nehemiah 12

This chapter records probably one of the greatest concerts God's people performed for Him. They were dedicating the wall that they had finished building, so they formed two choirs with orchestras to accompany the singing, and they played and sang marching on top of the wall in two directions, one going left and the other going right, then came together at the Temple, singing and playing the instruments. 

This must have been a marvelous performance, with singing and instruments playing and everyone rejoicing in the Lord, even the women and children rejoiced, so that the joy of Jerusalem was heard from afar (v. 43). 

I can imagine God smiling down upon His children, receiving all their joyful praises and sacrifices. Just like parents do when their children happily honor them in love and fun. 

I'm glad that God gave us music. The right music fosters such joy and rejoicing and fun and good family relationships, enjoying one another in love. Along with the food, too, of course (the sacrifices). What a grand party they had that day.

And they all shared in the bounty. So all Israel in the days of Zerubbabel and Nehemiah gave the portions due the singers and the gatekeepers as each day required, and set apart the consecrated portion for the Levites, and the Levites set apart the consecrated portion for the sons of Aaron (v. 47).

O my Father, You are a party-God! You love to party with Your people, in enjoyment and goodwill. You told Your people to come have a week-long party at Your House three times every year. You know that we cannot work all the time, so You gave us the Sabbath so we'll take off at least one day each week, and You had them take vacations to unwind and renew friendships. 

Father, You know how You made us, You know how You want us to function without burning out. You want only good for us, as every good father desires for his children. 

If only we would listen to You, and take You seriously, and go ahead and take time off--even if it looks like it would cut into our bottom line. Show us that allowing breaks and vacations really does make us more productive, and we will be able to enjoy more and more of Your bounty You put into this Earth for us. 

And we can enjoy concerts, too, and other wholesome get-togethers. All good for our mental and emotional health, and to strengthen bonds with family and friends. People will last forever, none of the stuff we work for. So we can enjoy the stuff and share it with one another, and value the people we love. 

And when we love God and love one another, we will be obeying all His Law. 

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

What Is Your Music?

Nehemiah 11

This chapter tells us about how the leaders lived in Jerusalem, and the rest of the people lived in the surrounding towns of Judah. But now that the wall was finished, the city needed to be populated.

So they cast lots, probably similar to us throwing dice, to bring one out of every ten to also live in the City of Jerusalem. Others also decided to move there, too, instead of on their ancestral property, and they were honored for doing so. We have here the lists of who moved to the city, and also the towns that they moved out of. 

And, Of the sons of Asaph, the singers were over the business of the House of God. For it was the king's commandment concerning them, that a certain portion should be for the singers, due for every day (vs.22-23). 

This, in the middle of the list of all those who chose to live in Jerusalem, shows us how God values music. He had gifted that specific part of the tribe of Levi, the sons of Asaph, with musical abilities for singing and playing instruments. And even this foreign king gave honor to the sons of Asaph, because they led the worship of the people in the House of God. 

God loves music so much that He put a whole book of music in His written Word--the book of Psalms. Here we don't have any melodies, only the lyrics, because God loves a new song. And He knows that every People in every Nation in every Time will have a different culture, and will write melodies in their own style, according to their own culture, to worship our God over all.

God loves variation and diversity, as He unites us as one in our faith. So we can all sing of our God and His character and personality with different tunes and melodies and tempos. And in our differences in our songs, we will be united in our praise and worship. 

God made our bodies to work in amazing ways. Just as a carrier will allow an herb or medicine to be absorbed through our skin to reach the affected place that needs healing, so our brains are able to absorb the message of the lyrics through the tunes and music. 

That's why I am careful about what I subject my ears to hear, and I listen to Christian music on my radio, so that His principles of life and living will permeate my brain to form His attitudes. 

I have KLOVE playing on my radios in my home and in my car, and they like to issue "30-day Challenge"s to listen to only Christian music for a month, and testimonies from listeners who have taken them up on this challenge show that God's ideas presented musically can change lives. 

It doesn't matter what gendre is used, when God's ideas are presented lives change, whether in today's rock, country, rap, olde time hymns; or in African or Chinese rhythms. 

I think that's why God loves music so much. But our enemy also knows this, so much of the World's music promotes murder and adultery and other ungodly attitudes and twisted views of reality. People who say, "I don't listen to the words," are still getting the messages. 

O my Father, thank You for music! Thank You for those who know You who are writing new musical scores for Your songs in Psalms and other parts of Your written Word, and their testimonies of how good You are to them in so many ways. Thank You that we don't have to wait until we're in Heaven with You to worship You, but we can let everything we do and say and think be in worship of You. 

Show me how to let every moment of every day bring praise and honor and worship to You, Father, even while I still walk on this Earth. And may I feel Your smile and joy upon my ways, as I walk with You. 

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

An Orderly Society

Nehemiah 10

This chapter lists all the leaders who signed the formal contract, the covenant the last chapter ended with, and what they all agreed to in it. 

The rest of the people, ... all who separated themselves from the neighboring peoples for the sake of the Law of God, together with their wives and all their sons and daughters who are able to understand; all these now join their fellow Israelites the nobles, and bind themselves with a curse and an oath to follow the Law of God given through Moses the servant of God and to obey carefully all the commands, regulations, and decrees of the Lord our Lord (vs. 28-29).

Then the list of everything they promised to do to follow all these laws is listed here. So they determined to:

• Not intermarry with other peoples,
• Follow all the weekly Sabbath rules to not buy or sell, and 
• The seven-year rule to leave their fields fallow and forgive all debts, and
• To finance the Temple by giving the Temple Tax,
• And to furnish everything the priests and Levites needed for all the Temple services and their provisions (the tithes),
• And to present the firstborn of their sons and all their animals.

Now all the people there agreed to follow all the stipulations of all the laws and rules, so everything should run like clockwork, if they do. 

Father, You have laid out how life can proceed smoothly, peacefully, and morally. These people had their consciences, and they knew right from wrong, so they should have been able to order their society for the benefit of all the participants. And You would receive the credit for their peace and well-being.

Help us, Father, to follow Your ways, as our Source and Provider of everything we need. Show us how to love You, and how to love one another as You have loved us. Lead us into doing all the wonderful things You planned ahead of time for us to do, Father. Continue to roll out all Your plans for us as we walk in Your ways to accomplish all Your purposes for which You created. Namely, Your honor and glory and majesty. 

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

Cycles Of Life

Nehemiah 9

This is a long chapter. It recounts their whole history from Abraham all the way down to their present day: back in their Land, but still in servitude to the king in Babylon. 

Nehemiah prays, However, You are just in all that has come upon us. For You have dealt with us faithfully, but we have acted wickedly.

That's how it goes. When things are going well for us, we tend to forget that it's God Who has blessed us, and we're drawn away from Him. Then we mess up and find ourselves in trouble because we choose to go our own way instead. So we cry out for help, and in His mercy He come to the rescue. 

This scenario has played out in cycles all through their history; and indeed, throughout all of human history. God is good to reveal Himself and His ways to us, but we are proud and want to decide for ourselves (how the serpent deceived Eve, to want to make her own choices). 

So we are drawn away from our God Who made us, by the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life (I John 2:16); wanting right now all the things of the World that we need and want. This World is very enticing and it seduces us into thinking in ways that are contrary to God's good for us. 

In view of all this, we are making a binding agreement, putting it in writing, and our leaders, our Levites and our priests are afixing their seals to it (v.38).

When our focus is on right here, right now, rather than on the Lord our Source; then we can easily get caught up into the "rat race" of "keeping up with the Joneses," competing with one another. Or just wanting to satisfy our own personal comfort and pleasure; not considering that we live only a few moments here, no matter how long our lives are, and we can't take it with us. 

So we need to be careful how we live our lives. We need to pay attention to how we're thinking. We need to be sure that we're believing what God has actually said to us, and take Him seriously. 

From what we believe, we think and have our attitudes; and our thinking and attitudes produce the words we say and the way we live our lives. That's why we can't afford to let ourselves slip into sin, into anything that doesn't come up to the high standards our Lord sets for us, that bulls-eye we miss. (The word "sin" is an archery term that refers to "missing the mark.") 

The Israelites had God's Word; His commandments, statutes, precepts and laws. But we have God's Holy Spirit living inside us, in our spirits. So we have no excuse. He has promised to "never leave us or forsake us" (Hebrews 13:5) while we're here in this World (Matthew 28:20), to teach us and guide us and make sure that we end up where God wants us to. But the journey we each take to get there can be rocky or smooth, depending on our choices. 

When my road seems kind of rocky, I must examine my own heart to see if my choices lately have been selfish or self-centered, if I missed an opportunity to bless a brother or sister. Or, if I've done right, and it's the enemy trying to ruffle my feathers. So I will need to confess, or run from temptation, or resist the devil; whatever the situation calls for. 

Father, thank You that You have given me Your own Holy Spirit to live in my spirit, making it alive. Thank You that Your Spirit is always with me, even when I grieve Him (Ephesians 4:30). Open my eyes to see, my ears to hear, and my mind to understand what is going on around me and in my own life. Give me Your discernment to be able to choose the right, and strengthen me when the right is the hard choice. 

Help us all, Father, all Your children, to follow You closely in Your footsteps. Hold on to us securely, as You have promised to do, that we would be faithful to You and Your ways, not turning to the right or to the left, not running ahead or lagging behind, not wandering off or pulling away. 

Thank You for Your Holy Spirit to seal us up for Yourself, for that Day when Your Redemption will be finished (Ephesians 1:13-14), and we will experience Resurrection Life without the hindrance of this flesh (II Corinthians 5:4-5), to serve You continually, and enjoy the pleasure of You forever.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

The Joy Of The Lord Is Your Strength

Nehemiah 7 & 8 

Chapter 7

Now that the wall is finished, Nehemiah is taking care of all the paperwork involved in this whole project, and he records who came back from Babylon to Jerusalem. 

He is very careful about the people all being able to document who they were, and some of the priests didn't have all their "papers" so they weren't permitted to participate in the duties of the priesthood. 

This was very important, because God was very specific about who He wanted to come near Him in service. 

And He is very particular about those He allows in His own personal Family today, too. He invites everyone, but only those who also want Him are given this privilege. Only those who know they deserve death, and let the Lamb of God be their personal Sacrifice. 

He won't force Himself on anyone who doesn't want Him. 

Chapter 8

Then everyone gathered to hear the reading of the Law to the men, women and others who could understand. And all the people listened attentively to the Book of the Law (v. 3). This was a good time to do this, now that the work is done, to pause and reflect on God and His goodness to us. And the Levites were there, making it clear and giving the meaning so that the people understood what was being read.

When the people learned how they hadn't been following the stipulations God required, they began to mourn; but it was the time of a very important Feast, the Feast of Tabernacles, which was a joyous celebration of being released from slavery. So,

Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priest and teacher of the Law, and the Levites who were instructing the people said to them all, This day is holy to the Lord your God. Do not mourn or weep. For all the people had been weeping as they listened to the words of the Law (v.9). 

And Nehemiah the governor told the people how to celebrate this Feast, and told them to rejoice, for the joy of the Lord is your strength (v. 10).

And, the Levites calmed all the people, saying, Be still, for this is a holy day. Do not grieve.Then all the people went away to eat and drink, to send portions of food and to celebrate with great joy, because now they understood the words that had been made known to them (vs. 11-12). 

They all went out to get branches to build temporary shelters for a week. This was like a vacation. So they all camped out while they listened to God's Word being read to them from day to day. 

This was like a camping retreat! Giving gifts like Christmas, and rejoicing in all God was doing for them, bringing them back to their land and back to Himself. 

O my Father, thank You for all Your goodness and generosity to us! Thank You for this story of Ezra and Nehemiah, Your servants, and how they ministered to Your people and their response. Father, You are very emotional, and You have given us emotions to feel our joy and love for You and the sorrow that draws us to You, and all the other emotions that make us feel alive. 

The reading of Your Law brought out conflicting emotions, and Your servants led them in understanding which emotions to pay attention to and which ones to ignore, because our emotions are not trustworthy to determine Truth. Your Word is Truth. Help me to always remember this.

When our emotions are flying wild all over the place, Father, help us to calm them with Your Word. Teach us how to manage how we tend to feel about what goes on in our lives, and when we feel weak, to remember that Your joy is our strength. 

Help me, Father, to rejoice in You no matter what is happening all around me. 

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

Focus To Finish

Nehemiah 5 & 6

Chapter 5

Nehemiah has been informed of all kinds of extortion that had been done against the people by the nations around them, and by their own Jewish brothers; even charging excessive interest. Some had even sold their children into slavery. 

So Nehemiah consulted with myself and I rebuked the nobles and the rulers, for charging excessive interest of their own people (v. 7); and Nehemiah himself bought back the people who had been sold into slavery to the heathen around them. 

And he had them make things right with one another, helping each other rather than profiting off their backs; so they could all benefit. 

And Nehemiah didn't accept the pay that was to be given to the Governor (v. 15), but instead focused on the work to be done, building the wall. 

He supported a lot of the people out of his own pocket because he realized how hard life was for the people, just beginning to rebuild their civilization from the ruins. 

Chapter 6

Since they were still making progress on the wall, their enemies stepped up their opposition to them, even slandering Nehemiah and trying to lure him out to where they could assassinate him. But he was aware of what they were trying to do, and didn't fall into their trap. 

And I am impressed with Nehemiah's continual awareness of the nearness of the Lord, praying one-sentence prayers scattered about as things progress (5:19, 6:14). 

In spite of all these distractions, the wall was finished in a record 52 days! (v. 15.) Because Nehemiah never took his focus off of his purpose for being there. 

O my Father, thank You for this story about Your man who took leave of his job serving a great king to come do a great work for You instead. His world would rank his near-to-the-king position as more important than building a wall around an "obscure" town far away. But he knew that this town was Your great city, and that You are a King above all kings, even the one he worked for.

Help me to always order my priorities aright, as Nehemiah did. Keep my eyes on Your ways, so that my focus will be sure. Strengthen me against all the distractions that try to take me away from Your purpose for me, and help me to finish the work You set before me to do, as Nehemiah did with the wall, and as Paul wrote that he also did (II Timothy 4:7). 

Father, keep me securely in Your hand. Keep my focus on You and Your ways; You are my prize, You are my reward, You are the one I seek to know. Father, all your gifts and benefits are nice, but it is You I want. 

Thank You, Father, for showing me that I will live with You where You are forever! You have given Yourself to me, and I give myself to You. 

You are my Bridegroom forever, and I am Your bride forever. 

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!