Nehemiah – Week 1 – The Wall
To see our video on this topic, click here: Our Wall
Sunday we gave the back-story of The Wall that plays such a big role in the story of Nehemiah. We barely touched on Nehemiah, the man. He’ll show up in the conversation next week…
(One thing to get out of the way right off the top: this whole study will make SO much more sense if you actually read the book of Nehemiah. If you haven’t already done so and you want to get caught up, please go here and read chapter one. I talked to some people who sort of didn’t pick up on everything we were trying to communicate yesterday and I found out they hadn’t read the chapter in advance. I think if you read it, some lights will come on.)
For God’s people in Nehemiah’s time (400’s BC), the wall of Jerusalem was more of a “who” than a “what.” The Wall surrounded the entire city and it created a sense of identity, community and security for God’s people. Don’t get me wrong…it wasn’t like the wall was an idol or that it took the place of God. It was more a symbol of God’s promises and love for the people. It really defined God’s people and their culture.
The people of that day didn’t view walls as we do today. In this day of individuality and personal liberty, we see walls as negative symbols of division or as barriers. This wasn’t the case for Nehemiah’s people. The wall was them. When Nehemiah heard from a distant city that Jerusalem was attacked by the enemy of God’s people and that the wall was destroyed, he mourned and wept, much as we did when we watched the World Trade Center’s towers come down at the hands of terrorists. A part of us died, and so it was with Nehemiah’s people. It shook them to the roots and left them exiled, devastated, or enslaved. Nehemiah could have just shot a few sincere prayers in the direction of Jerusalem for healing, or he could have said “Our strength is in God, not the wall. Good riddance!” But after a time of contemplation and mourning over all that the wall meant, he was moved by compassion to lead a rebuilding project that would restore the identity of God’s people. And God honored Nehemiah’s plan!
To bring this historical story to life here in this place and time, we need to understand what parts of our culture have the same significance for us that the wall had for Nehemiah’s people. In the Ashland area, what represents our sense of identity and security and life? What makes us feel connected to God? What reminds us that He is with us and that we are part of His ever-growing, ever-greening Kingdom? Those things make up our wall. The enemy, Satan, has destroyed so much of this Wall that represents life and growth in our area. Many of our churches are declining and stagnant. Thousands of jobs have evaporated. Shops and stores have closed down. Young people are moving out of the city. Morals and decency have decayed. We have a pessimistic outlook when it comes to our future and even we Christians seem to have a shriveled, skeptical view of our role here.
If we believe that our mission on earth is to be part of God’s Kingdom and to join Him in making “all things new again” we should be mourning and devastated about the souls and spirits of our people that seem to be dying or losing hope. God invites us into a season of loss. To think of the life that was meant for this city in comparison to the reality we tend to settle for. He wants us to remember His original dreams for His creation and to be aware that the enemy has invaded and has devastated and has lulled us into apathy and has dragged us into captivity.
We need to awaken to the news that our wall has fallen. Weep. Pray. Fast. That moment of somber reflection will make room for compassion and a groaning for God’s dreams to be restored in our city. And I pray that it will move us to lead that restoration.
To see our video on this topic, click here: Our Wall
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