Knowledge brings responsibility!

I have used this information in my teaching times (on a number of occasions) over the past year and a half. It is based on Nehemiah 1 where Nehemiah receives distressing news of conditions back in Jerusalem.

Nehemiah had a pretty cushy job with the Persian king. He got paid to eat and drink. He was also, in all probability, one of the closest advisors to the king and spent a great deal of his time in his presence. Life was good! But when Nehemiah got the bad report concerning the Holy City Jerusalem, he couldn’t rest and enjoy the good life any longer. He spent four months weeping, praying and fasting over the conditions there.

During this time he repeatedly asked God for directions concerning his personal involvement. Weeping, praying and fasting were not enough for Nehemiah. But through these times, God answered Nehemiah’s prayer and instructed him to go to the king and request the necessary documents and funding to lead a group back to Jerusalem with a God given plan to rebuild the walls and repopulate the city.

In our 9 AM Sunday school class yesterday (January 11, 2009) we spoke about the pain present in the world at the time of Jesus birth. Our Lord came into a world that endured genocide and tyrannical political leaders and the first few years of his life, he lived as a refugee in Egypt. But Jesus didn’t hide or try to keep himself insulated from these issues. He was part of the daily life, living as salt and light to a dark world with the taste of death in its mouth.

I don’t know what God has in store for our world; it really doesn’t look too good right now, but I do know that as a disciple of Christ, I’m not to hide or keep myself insulated from the pain of this world. As Nehemiah did, I need to weep, pray and fast as I seek God’s direction for my life. And then as Nehemiah and Jesus modeled, I need to live as salt and light in a tasteless and dark world.

With God’s help, Nehemiah got the wall rebuilt in 52 days. I wonder what rubble God would have me to dive into over the next few days?

Always In Pursuit!