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ELEMENTS OF CONGREGATIONAL SERVICE (XXIII)
SATURDAY, MARCH 28
Nehemiah 13:15-31

Hebrews 12:4-13

 

“…if ye do so again,

I will lay hands on you.”

 

ELEMENTS OF CONGREGATIONAL SERVICE (XXIII)
 
There is also need for resolve and resoluteness in the process of reformation, in addition to the vigilance required in order to maintain biblical standards. The pressure to conform to the world is always great, and only those who are resolute can truly “(l)ove not the world, neither the things that are in the world…” (1 John 2:15), and thus be able to weather the storm and onslaught.
 
I commanded that the gates should be shut, and charged that they should not be opened till after the sabbath (Neh 13:19). The measures taken may seem extreme, but similar measures had been used before. When the threat from the enemy was visible and real, they had set a watch at the gates. For their safety and security, the instruction was: “Let not the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun be hot; and while they stand by, let them shut the doors, and bar them” (Neh 7:3). Yet now, when the physical security seemed achieved, and the enemy not threatening as before, there was laxity. Those who agreed with the measures in Nehemiah 7 for the physical security of Jerusalem, had to see the need for the measures in Nehemiah 13 for the spiritual safety of the nation. As Nehemiah contended with the nobles, he reminded them of the danger they were in. The actions that seemed normal and acceptable to many had in the past brought “wrath upon Israel” (Neh 13:18). And if the evil of the compromise was not visible to the people, then it was upon Nehemiah to take action for their safety and security. His resoluteness was necessary since “the merchants and sellers of all kind of ware lodged without Jerusalem once or twice” (Neh 13:20). Addressing the evils of our days, especially those that have compromised the stand and faith of the church, will require us (and especially leaders in the church) to speak out resolutely against them. It will also require biblical measures to help resist the onslaught of worldliness and sin against the church. We cannot imagine how unpopular the closing of the gate of Jerusalem might have been to the inhabitants who had considered buying and selling on the sabbath as normal. But Nehemiah resolutely reformed the city.
 
THOUGHT: Firmness/consistency is essential for fruitful discipline.

PRAYER: (Use Nehemiah 13:14.)

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