Psalm 55; Neh. 4:1-23; Rev. 7:4-17; Matt. 13:31-35
Chapter 3 of Nehemiah is a recitation of those who worked on the wall. The important thing is that Nehemiah had each man and family work on the wall where they lived and worked, the part of the city where they were invested most. We may be scattered about in our churches today but the original pattern for Anglican churches was the parish model based on geography. Where you lived was where you went to church and ministered in that locale, it is an important concept and one we should struggle to sort out in our context. In chapter 4 Nehemiah faces opposition first from the two mentioned earlier who, as the work progresses are joined by others and then the families of the Jews working and living in Jerusalem begin to come and attempt to get them to leave off the work. Was there persecution for them because of the work in the city? Finally, Nehemiah arms the people against the possibility of attack, half were always prepared to fight and the others worked with one arm in order to be prepared for a fight. They were spread all over the city so he stationed sentries with trumpets to sound the alarm if there were an attack and all could come to that trumpet and join in the fight. Through it all we see Nehemiah praying and enjoining the people to the work for the glory of God and promising that He would protect them and fight for them.
When Zerubbabel began the work on the temple, the prophet Zechariah said, for the Lord, “For whoever has despised the day of small things shall rejoice, and shall see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel.” We like to measure things by their size, we have proven time and again that we are incapable for accurately seeing things. Jesus compares the kingdom of God to a mustard seed and to leaven for dough. In both cases these things seem insignificant and yet what they produce is far beyond their size. We need to understand this principle and to be like Nehemiah, trusting in the Lord for the outcome, knowing that in His hands what is small and insignificant today can be a great thing.
The 144,000 are sealed, twelve thousand from each tribe of Israel, and then the scene immediately shifts to a great multitude that cannot be numbered from every nation, tribe, language and people on earth singing praises to God and to the Lamb for salvation. The first group seems like a large number, a great Biblical number of twelve times twelve thousand but even that group seems insignificant in light of this larger throng. The destruction of the earth is for their sakes, those who have suffered in this life will rejoice in the new creation where there is neither suffering nor sighing, justice will be done.
O Thou fount of blessing, purify my spirit;
Trusting only in Thy merit,
Like the holy angels who behold Thy glory,
May I ceaselessly adore Thee,
And in all, great and small, seek to do most nearly
What Thou lovest dearly.
No comments:
Post a Comment