The Jews had to start over, so to speak, in formal worship to God in the Temple. The Temple was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar during the destruction of Jerusalem and the Jews were carried off to Babylon. Judah was held in captivity for 70 years before being allowed to return home. Upon returning home, the work of rebuilding the Temple would soon take place. They had to start over.
As the work began many of the older people were dismayed at the smaller size of the Temple compared to the old Temple that was destroyed. “But many of the older priests, Levites, and other leaders who had seen the first Temple wept aloud when they saw the new Temple’s foundation.” (Ez.3:12 nlt) Discouragement was felt by those who saw the work as insignificant, but the Lord was pleased that the work had begun. It may have been a small beginning, but the Jews were given the opportunity to start over now that they were back in the Promised Land.
Has the Lord God given you another chance to start over and restore your relationship with Him? It may not be the same at first, and it may be a fraction of what it was. In comparison, it’s not even close to where you had been, but God will be please when you take up that opportunity and begin again. He is the God of second, third, fourth, and fifth, chances. Don’t despise these small humble beginnings He is giving you. No matter what brought you to this place, confess your sin before God, accept His forgiveness, and start a new relationship with Him however small the beginning, and thank Him for another chance He has afforded you at the start of this New Year.
“So you, by the help of your God, return, hold fast to love and justice, and wait continually for your God.” Hosea 12:6 ESV
The following statistics are not very comforting and based on the findings, many of you reading this could be among them. According to marriage.com, 40-50% of all marriages in the United States end in divorce. Non-married relationships have the following statistics, 58% of Americans consider their breakups to be dramatic or messy, 40% of long-distance relationships in the U.S. fail, 70% of straight unmarried couples break up within the first year, the average relationship last for two years and nine months before ending, and 85% will experience a breakup in their lifetime. (1)
Broken relationships between couples are heartbreaking for the couple and for their friends and families. And speaking of friends and families, broken relationships occur here as well. The statistics are not the same, but the brokenness is just as real and hurtful. The sad reality is that we live in a broken world and broken relationships are in step with the world. Another sad reality is that Christians are part of these world statistics. There are countless reasons for broken relationships among Christians, but this is not a devotional to survey them or to offer advice, except to say God is in the relationship business.
The most heartbreaking broken relationship one could have is a broken relationship with the Lord God, and they are many reasons for those as well. But, one thing is certain, it’s all on us. If you feel God has moved away from you, the question to ask is, who moved? It takes two to have a relationship and only one to break it. The Lord will never be the one to break it. “If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny who he is.” (2Tim.2:13 nlt) The Lord will be waiting for us to return as the father waiting for his prodigal son to return. (Lk.15:11-24) Broken relationships with God are easily repaired, it only takes one of us. It takes us to repent and return to Him. A strong non-fractured relationship with the Lord will help you in any broken relationship you have as you look to Him for advice.
“The people responded, ‘In view of all this, we are making a solemn promise and putting it in writing. On this sealed document are the names of our leaders and Levites and priests.’ The document was ratified and sealed with the following names: The governor: Nehemiah son of Hacaliah, and also Zedekiah.” Nehemiah 9:38-10:1 NLT
The walls and gates around Jerusalem were completed, the enemies of the Jews have backed off, the city has been repopulated, worship was restored, and the festivals commanded by the Lord were taking place, but there was some unfinished business to take care of. The people were deeply convicted of their sin as we learned last week in chapter 8, but there was no formal acknowledgement and confession. Nehemiah chapter 9 opens with, “On October 31 the people assembled again, and this time they fasted and dressed in burlap and sprinkled dust on their heads.” (Neh.9:1 nlt) Christians at times resemble the Jews here in Nehemiah. We are convicted of sin but continue to go along without dealing with it or we just go through the motions hoping that feeling will go away. It needs to be dealt with, and the people of Israel understood this and the leaders to action in leading them.
The Levites led the reading of God’s Word for three hours followed by three hours of confessing their sins and worshiping God. Confession of sin is an act of worship to a holy God, praising Him, as we confess, for His forgiveness and restoring us as if we have never sinned. Coming before Him with the right attitude, humbling ourselves is a manner of worship. The Jews had fasted beforehand and covered themselves with dust dressing in burlap. They had shown their distress over their sin. We don’t need to go that far today, but that same attitude can and should be expressed through prayer and fasting.
The Jews separated themselves from all foreigners as they confessed their sins, which was a very hard thing to do. Some of these foreigners were heathen women which God had commanded not to intermingle with. They were now married to them and possibly had children. Sin has a way of complicating our lives in a way we never thought possible. There is an old saying, ‘Sin will take you further than you wanted to go, keep you longer than you wanted to be kept, and cost you more than you wanted to spend.’ Once entangled in sin, the only way out is complete confession and repentance to the Lord.
The Levites led a prayer to God on behalf of the people. (Neh.9:5-37) The prayer begins by acknowledging God’s greatness and majesty, a good place for us to start when we pray. They continued with reciting Israel’s history from the Abrahamic covenant to their time in Egypt and the wandering in the wilderness, through the conquest and settlement of the Promised Land, through the judges, the prophets, and up to the present situation. God’s on-going goodness to Israel is noted along with each time throughout history their fathers disobeyed and sinned against God and now the present generation has done the same.
The people were yearning for that same goodness God had shown to their father’s generation by responding, “In view of all this, we are making a solemn promise and putting it in writing.” (Neh.9:38a nlt) They were making an appeal for a new covenant agreeing to follow God’s Laws. The leaders, priests, and Levites signed the document, “On this sealed document are the names of our leaders and Levites and priests The document was ratified and sealed with the following names: The governor: Nehemiah son of Hacaliah, and also Zedekiah.” (Neh.9:38b 10:1 nlt) The godly leaders took the first step and put their names on the document of confession and promised repentance. It is sad, but some of them were also guilty of the same sins, but they led in a godly manner of confession and repentance before the people.
Godly leaders today can fall into sin as we are often reminded. Their true character will come to light even more so in how they respond to their downfall. Is there full confession and repentance or are there excuses and cover-ups that eventually cause them to disappear from the scene? Our pastors and spiritual leaders need our constant daily prayers. Satan does not rest but is continually scheming to bring them down.
The leaders in Jerusalem set an honest godly example for the people who “joined their leaders and bound themselves with an oath. They swore a curse on themselves if they failed to obey the Law of God as issued by his servant Moses. They solemnly promised to carefully follow all the commands, regulations, and decrees of the LORD our Lord.” (Neh.10:29 nlt) They agreed not to intermarry with non-Jewish people. They agreed to keep the Sabbath free from commercial activity, support the Sabbatical year, and to support the needs of the Temple.
The book of Nehemiah is filled with examples of godly leadership, all in which are applicable for our day, but as mentioned above some of them did fall. They led the people into sin by either ignoring the sins they had seen being committed or the people followed their lead. Either way, we need to remember we are all sinners. That is not a reason to excuse the sin or dismiss the sinner, but to pray for confession and repentance. May godly leaders continue to lead the way.
You possibly may have heard it said when Jesus rose from the dead, ‘the stone was rolled away not to let Jesus out, but to show the tomb was empty.’ Indeed, it was. Jesus rose in His new glorified body and had no need for a door to be opened for Him. Matthew tells us an angel descended amid a great earthquake and rolled away the stone, and just in time for Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of James, had just arrived at the tomb. The women were discussing along the way how would they move the stone away to anoint Jesus’ body which they had intended to do. (Mk.16:3) There was a barrier of a large stone between them and Jesus that needed to be moved. But as they arrived, the stone had rolled away.
Is there a stone in your life that needs to be rolled away that is creating a barrier between you and the Lord? Your busy work schedule is causing you to lose all interests in the things of God, the things of this world are winning the battle to be on top of your priority list, or perhaps it’s some besetting sin that is continually reoccurring that is the stone needing to be rolled away. So, what do you do?
Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of James, met Jesus on the road while running from the tomb. The stone had been rolled away and Jesus wasn’t in the tomb but stood before them alive. The stone has been rolled away to show you that Jesus has risen from the dead. He is alive, ready, willing, and able to forgive your stones of sin and break down that barrier by rolling those sins away and placing them under His blood to be remembered no more. Ask Jesus to place those sinful stones at the foot of His cross by confessing and repenting of them, and He will. The stone was rolled away for our benefit. Jesus is not dead, He’s our living savior ready to forgive.
In 1980 the Charlie Daniels Band released the recording of ‘In America,’ the lead single from their album ‘Full Moon.’ The song rose to number 11 on the billboard charts as a call to patriotism after the stresses of the 1970’s in the United States. The opening line is, “Well, the eagle’s been flyin’ slow And the flag’s been flyin’ low And a lotta people sayin’ that America’s fixin’ to fall.” (1) The premise was, if united, America will stand and not fall from outside forces looking to destroy us. Although we fight among ourselves, we are united when threatened from the outside. That may still be true today, but what if the sources looking to destroy us are not on the outside, but from within. The phrase, ‘the enemy from within’ has got a lot of traction in the United States lately just three weeks before the election. However, I am not referring to any one political party, or any individuals, but to the nation as a whole.
The prophet Jeremah was commissioned by God to warn the people of Judah of the destruction that was coming their way because of their sins. Throughout his messaging Jeremiah not only warned them, but also let them know that if they repented and turned back to God, they would not be destroyed. “This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘Even now, if you quit your evil ways, I will let you stay in your own land.’” (Jer.7:3 nlt) God is gracious and merciful. The people of Judah had plenty of opportunity to turn back to God, but they continued to turn their back on Him. America is in the same place today. America has turned their back on God as a nation.
Yes, the United States is a secular nation, but it has been founded on the principles of God’s Holy Word, the Bible. The Lord has blessed us throughout its short history and will continue to bless us if those founding principles stay in place. But if we remove them, I’m afraid our blessing will be removed as well. America will be fixin’ to fall.
For those of you who think America will never fall, remember God judged His own chosen people for turning their back on Him and not repenting. You may say but Israel was a theocracy, and you would be right, however, compare Jeremiah’s words of warning to them and the United States today. See how they are related. “But I will be merciful only if you stop your evil thoughts and deeds and start treating each other with justice; only if you stop exploiting foreigners, orphans, and widows; only if you stop your murdering; and only if you stop harming yourselves by worshiping idols. Then I will let you stay in this land that I gave to your ancestors to keep forever.” (Jer.7:5-7 nlt)
This enemy from within America is exactly what Jeremiah told Judah before their destruction and captivity if they did not repent; evil thoughts and acting on those thoughts, not treating each other with justice both personally and in the courts, a broken immigration system that is exploiting the innocent, not caring for the less fortunate among us, people being murdered every day on our city streets and in the womb, and worshiping the idols of our desires.
One other line from Charlie Daniels’ ‘In America,’ “We’re gonna put her feet back On the path of righteousness and then God bless America again.” (1) I don’t think we have done that, but just the opposite. America’s fixin’ to fall, but it does not need to be. If we do put our feet back on the path of righteousness, God will bless America again!
Webster’s New World Dictionary defines ‘remorse’ as “a torturing sense of guilt for one’s actions.” If a picture could be included as an example under the description, we would find Judas’ likeness as the one who betrayed Jesus selling Him out for thirty pieces of silver. Scripture tells us it was after Judas realized that Jesus had been condemned to die that he was remorseful. We don’t know what was in Judas’ mind as he made the deal to turn Jesus over to the Jewish authorities, but perhaps he didn’t think it through whatever his reasoning. Dr. Charles Ryrie suggests, “Perhaps Judas had only wanted to force Jesus to do something to confound His enemies, not to get Himself condemned.” (1) Judas indeed had a torturing sense of guilt. It did not turn out as he had planned. He felt remorse, but was there repentance?
‘Repentance’ in Webster’s New World Dictionary is, “to feel such regret over an action as to change one’s mind about.” I don’t think Judas’ picture would be on display in this case. In a sense, Judas did change his mind about the money, throwing it back into the temple, but his intent to make a point or whatever else his motives were, were still in tack. He did not change his mind about Jesus but felt remorse that his betrayal had gone badly.
On a much smaller scale, when the consequences of our sins become known causing hurt and heartache to others, do we repent and change our actions and our way of thinking or are we tortured by a sea of guilt? Remorse is regretting the action due to the outcome. Repentance is asking for forgiveness and changing our minds about that sin, so it does not occur again. So as Christians may we realize being sorry is not enough and change our ways that brought about that sin. There will be a lot less heartache and a lot more love for one another.
“I looked for someone who might rebuild the wall of righteousness that guards the land. I searched for someone to stand in the gap in the wall so I wouldn’t have to destroy the land, but I found no one. So now I will pour out my fury on them, consuming them with the fire of my anger. I will heap on their heads the full penalty for all their sins. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken!” Ezekiel 22:30-31 NLT
The United States of America is still the greatest, most prosperous nation in the world today. Cemented on Judeo-Christian values from the pages of Holy Scripture by the founding Fathers, the United States has been blessed as no other nation for the undivided attention given to God’s commands and the truth given to us from our creator. But, I’m afraid those days are surely coming to an end. The United States as a country has abandon God and we are starting to see the beginning of the end of our freedom unless a radical change back to God is made very soon.
It is impossible for anyone to not be aware of the deterioration of the very fabric of our nation. Even the casual observer of the news is confronted with political turmoil, ever increasing crime, hatred towards others, racism, scandals within our government institutions, attempts to silence free speech, discrimination, churches turning away from the truths of God’s Word, and Federal government spending causing the rise in the debt ceiling. The fact is, although being aware of the crisis in our country, many people are either disinterested or simply don’t care. Others are too busy with their own concerns, some are part of the problem, and then there are others who do care but only complain. They never take the initiative by getting involved to help in any way they can, even praying for the country.
The Lord speaking through the prophet Ezekiel was looking for someone to intercede on behalf of the people of Jerusalem who were about to be taken captive, and the city destroyed. Their continued sinning by turning their back on God is about to unleash the consequences. Sadly, the Lord found no one to ‘stand in the gap’ rebuilding the wall of righteousness. There was no one to teach repentance and return to the Lord their God. Jerusalem was destroyed and the people taken to Babylon in captivity.
The United States must heed this warning from the Old Testament book of Ezekiel, if the Lord God did not spare His own people from destruction due to their sin, what makes us think He will spare the United States of America? “So now I will pour out my fury on them, consuming them with the fire of my anger. I will heap on their heads the full penalty for all their sins. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken!” (Ez.22:31 nlt) Who will help rebuild the wall of righteousness, the sacred Judeo-Christian values that established the United States, and stand in the ‘stand in the gap?’ Will it be you? Will it be me? May it be both of us!
The link below will help get us off to a good start. Today is Day 2 of ’40 Days of Prayer before the U. S. Presidential election.’ May we all be in prayer as we stand in the gap for the next 40 days for America and other countries around the world.
I say to myself, ‘I shouldn’t have done that,’ after I already did it. Then I ask myself, ‘why did I do that?’ to which I have no answer, most of the time. Solomon’s proverb may or may not be comforting at this time when he writes, ‘The Lord directs our steps.’ If I did something stupid, how could that be the Lord directing me, but on the other hand if it turns out for the good it had to be the Lord directing me. As I look back over my life, I’ve had many of those occasions perhaps you have too, but do not waste your time trying to figure out how the Lord directs our steps, just accept it.
You may ask, ‘Is God directing my steps when I am involved in sin?’ Absolutely not! God is holy and cannot accept sin in His sight. That is why God the Father turned His back on Jesus at Calvary when the sins of the world were placed on Him at the cross. God gives us free will in making choices in this life, but when we put our trust in Him and accept His Son as our savior God will lead those who are His according to His will. Do Christians still sin. Absolutely! Although God is not directing our steps into sin, He will still work out His purposes as we confess and repent providing us with grace and mercy.
It’s hard to accept at times that we could be in a certain place due to the consequences of our sin and yet the Lord continues to bless us. He uses us in influencing others towards Him according to His will. God does not give up on His children who confess and come back to Him. He will even use our past to glorify Him as we repent and live a life of righteousness. “A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.” (Is.42:3 niv) God does direct the steps of those who are His, even the stupid things we do. He will make them right. But remember God never directs us into sin, but as we confessed and repent, He will forgive us applying His grace and mercy. Hard to accept, I know. Just accept it and praise Him for it!
Being able to see clearly is essential for us to have a good quality of life. Other physical and mental God given abilities also enrich our well-being. In many ways they complement each other and those who suffer physical blindness have leaned heavily on other abilities. Being able to compensate for a deficiency physically such as not seeing clearly unfortunately doesn’t carry over in a spiritual sense. Sadly, those who do not see clearly spiritually do not even realize that they are blind, blind to their own sin. They live their lives in a self-righteous state ignoring the possibility that they also are in need of some correction.
One of the most quoted sayings of Jesus is, “Judge not, that you be not judged.” (Mt 7:1 esv) Many repeat these words with the false intent to criticize anyone who would make a judgment against another. The premise being Jesus’ words, “Judge not, that you be not judged.” But Jesus goes on to say, “For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.” (Mt.7:2 esv) Jesus is not saying that we are never to judge, but to not be condemning, hypocritical, or with a self-righteous attitude. In order to accomplish this within God’s standards we need to remove any false righteousness that has a hold on us blocking our vision to our inner selves.
Jesus’ used of comparisons has a way of undeniably coming to the point with precise clarity. He tells His listening disciples, “Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?” (Mt.7:3 esv) A ‘speck’ is a dry stalk, a twig, or a straw, in comparison to a ‘log’ which is a support beam. Obviously there is no comparison. With a strong support beam in front of you it is impossible to see a tiny wind-blown twig with any accuracy. Therefore you sense some fault and rush to condemning judgment without acknowledging your own faults. In a sense, you see right through your sin as if it didn’t exist.
As Christians, we have an opportunity to help a brother or sister in the Lord with the speck in their eye. However, we are unable to do so if we harbor sin in our lives. Let us confess our sins and rid ourselves of the log barriers affecting our vision and be able to help those in need resulting in all of us to ‘see clearly.’
“Then he began to denounce the cities where most of his mighty works had been done, because they did not repent…….…. And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.” Matthew 11:20, 23 ESV
FreeBibleimages.org
We have all heard the saying, ‘a picture is worth a thousand words.’ Truth is often revealed by an un-expecting snapshot, or a video capturing the events of an altercation. It is hard to deny the obvious when closely examining the material presented. Opinions change as facts become a reality. The truth becomes known regardless of the narrative that is being presented. Unfortunately there are those who will refuse to believe what the eyes see due to their indifference towards the truth as they view it.
Tragically the truth about God is being dismissed by those who are indifferent to the things of God, even though He has revealed Himself to us. The apostle Paul writing in Romans explains, “For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.” (Ro.1:20 esv) Yet there are those who investigate other places, even within themselves to find the truth, to find the meaning of life, and to find the good in themselves. They fail to find the need for repentance before a holy God, even though they see miracles all around them.
Jesus denounced several cities in the New Testament, especially Capernaum, due to their unrepentance. He performed miracles in Chorazin and Bethsaida, outskirts of nearby Capernaum, and they were unresponsive to them. And in Capernaum, where Jesus made His ministry headquarters, the results were the same. Those who have seen Jesus, witnessed His miracles and heard Him preach of the kingdom of God, were indifferent to Him and their need to follow Him. Jesus’ words were strong towards them for their unrepentance, “And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades.” (Mt.11:20a esv)
Today the same situation exists with even more responsibility. The knowledge of God and His plan for salvation through His Son Jesus Christ is made available in ways that would have been unimaginable in Jesus’ day. As Capernaum had a greater responsibility put upon them with Jesus conducting His business right in their hometown, we have an enormous responsibility to repent of the failure to get the Word out as Christ’s church. And for those who are indifferent to the God of the Bible and His Son Jesus, a greater knowledge of God is available to you in our day. Do not be denounce by Jesus for being one of the unrepentant.
Word for the Soul 