KJB Daily Devotion – Following Jesus Through Every Chapter
Date: Wednesday, September 27, 2017
Chapters: Nehemiah 6-7
Message: Answering God’s Call
Hello My Friend,
I will admit that while it can be challenging to serve God sometimes, there is no better fulfillment than seeing the results of doing whatever it is that He called you to do. Do I always answer right away? No. I do get distracted, tired, or lazy sometimes and take a little longer, but thanks to God’s grace it does get done. Answering God’s call first comes by hearing His ring. “Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called. Art thou called being a servant? care not for it: but if thou mayest be made free, use it rather.” – I Corinthians 7:20-21.
“Art thou called being a servant?” There is so much garbage going around about the past, people being brought to America in the early days, many of them sold as slaves. Now, this was hundreds of years ago, and whether people choose to accept that it was the normal thing do to back then, the truth is it was. And in fact, people of all colors were paid to be servants and not just for the wealthy, just about every household had someone in there to help them with work, whether it was in the home, farm, or field. Did everyone get treated fairly? No. Does every servant get treated fairly today? No. Being a servant is not always a bad thing, we are all servants to someone, even owning a business means you serve the customer. What better person to be serving than God Himself? Just like any task or job we set out to do, they can come with challenges. When Nehemiah accepted the call from God to go to Jerusalem and help in rebuilding the city I do not think he anticipated so many challenges, but he set his mind on rebuilding the walls around the temple and nothing or no one was going to stop him. First, the haters attempt to hinder him, but he did not budge and continued.
“That Sanballat and Geshem sent unto me, saying, Come, let us meet together in some one of the villages in the plain of Ono. But they thought to do me mischief. And I sent messengers unto them, saying, I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to you? Yet they sent unto me four times after this sort; and I answered them after the same manner. Then sent Sanballat his servant unto me in like manner the fifth time with an open letter in his hand; Wherein was written, It is reported among the heathen, and Gashmu saith it, that thou and the Jews think to rebel: for which cause thou buildest the wall, that thou mayest be their king, according to these words. And thou hast also appointed prophets to preach of thee at Jerusalem, saying, There is a king in Judah: and now shall it be reported to the king according to these words. Come now therefore, and let us take counsel together. Then I sent unto him, saying, There are no such things done as thou sayest, but thou feignest them out of thine own heart. For they all made us afraid, saying, Their hands shall be weakened from the work, that it be not done. Now therefore, O God, strengthen my hands.” – Nehemiah 6:2-9.
“For they all made us afraid,” Fear is the number one reason people are hindered from doing what God calls them to do. Some may say laziness or procrastination, but I believe that God’s timing is even in our waiting, and during that time He is preparing our heart. Think about it, are we really productive in doing God’s work if our heart is not right. Take Moses for instance, he was forty when he realized his people were not being treated fairly by the Egyptians and accidentally killed a man, he ran, but it was not until forty years later that God was able to use him. You see, our heart is the key to being effective for the LORD, He knows when the time is right for us to be called, now, when we are called and do not answer, that is when we hinder God, and when He will use any means necessary to get us to answer. As if it were not bad enough that the worldly people were trying to hinder Nehemiah, the Jews were too, actually, it was false prophets being paid to try and stop him.
“Afterward I came unto the house of Shemaiah the son of Delaiah the son of Mehetabeel, who was shut up; and he said, Let us meet together in the house of God, within the temple, and let us shut the doors of the temple: for they will come to slay thee; yea, in the night will they come to slay thee. And I said, Should such a man as I flee? and who is there, that, being as I am, would go into the temple to save his life? I will not go in. And, lo, I perceived that God had not sent him; but that he pronounced this prophecy against me: for Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him. Therefore was he hired, that I should be afraid, and do so, and sin, and that they might have matter for an evil report, that they might reproach me. My God, think thou upon Tobiah and Sanballat according to these their works, and on the prophetess Noadiah, and the rest of the prophets, that would have put me in fear. So the wall was finished in the twenty and fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty and two days. And it came to pass, that when all our enemies heard thereof, and all the heathen that were about us saw these things, they were much cast down in their own eyes: for they perceived that this work was wrought of our God.” – Nehemiah 6:10-16.
“that I should be afraid, and do so, and sin,” The world and worldly Christians have this false perception that they can get any person to fold, to go against their faith, and side with them. Let me tell you, while anyone can fall, the majority of the time they do because they are not grounded in Christ to begin with. Talking about Christ is one thing, living with Christ is another. While there is no way that we can possibly know if someone really is saved, the majority of them are known by their fruit. “For a good tree bringeth not forth corrupt fruit; neither doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. For every tree is known by his own fruit. For of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they grapes. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.” – Luke 6:43-45.
Now that the walls surrounding Jerusalem were repaired, there was still much work to be done. The city was huge, but very few people lived in it because it needed much repair. Through God’s directions, Nehemiah came up with a plan to rebuild the city with fellow Jews. Armed guards stood at the only entrance into the city, the gates were open during the day, but once they were closed no one was allowed to go through unless their names were found written in the register book. The register book was the Israelites only documentation that they were true Israelites that came from Babylon, anyone not found written in the book was denied entrance.
“And my God put into mine heart to gather together the nobles, and the rulers, and the people, that they might be reckoned by genealogy. And I found a register of the genealogy of them which came up at the first, and found written therein, These are the children of the province, that went up out of the captivity, of those that had been carried away, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away, and came again to Jerusalem and to Judah, every one unto his city; These sought their register among those that were reckoned by genealogy, but it was not found: therefore were they, as polluted, put from the priesthood. And the Tirshatha said unto them, that they should not eat of the most holy things, till there stood up a priest with Urim and Thummim. The whole congregation together was forty and two thousand three hundred and threescore, Beside their manservants and their maidservants, of whom there were seven thousand three hundred thirty and seven: and they had two hundred forty and five singing men and singing women.” – Nehemiah 7:5-6,64-67.
“therefore were they, as polluted,” Before we know Christ as our Saviour we are polluted, we are unclean and unable to eat of the holy things of God. Once we are saved our names are written in a register, it is also known as the Book of Life, and it contains the names of every soul that is saved. Urim means light, and Thummin means perfection, before Jesus came and gave His life on the cross we needed a high priest to stand before God and speak on our behalf, he too had to be cleansed of his sins even before he could represent us. Jesus, being the light and perfect one, not only became the high priest able to stand before God on our behalf, He also became the perfect sacrifice, the only one able to clean us once and for all, no need for redemption from sin ever again. “Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” – Hebrews 4:14-15. Praise God!
Jesus Christ Magnified: “And I sent messengers unto them, saying, I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to you?” – Nehemiah 6:3.
Today’s Prayer: God, I understand that there are some things that You allow me to go through so that I can learn from my mistakes and be an example to others, but I truly want to live my life the way You want me to. Lord, keep my eyes, ears, and heart on You, and help me to let go of hindrances that keep me from completing the work You have called me to do. Help me to be aware of the dangers approaching, to listen for the truths You tell me, and not the lies that others want me to believe. Let me be discerning, cordial to others, yet not listen to their vain or my own understanding, but Yours. Put Your hedge of protection around me and kick the devil to the curb, I am not going to let him intimate me by fear or any other way that can hinder me from doing what You call me to do. I ask these things in Jesus’ name. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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