Rebuilding

Nehemiah tells us of the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem, after they had been destroyed during Nebuchadnezzar’s siege and the fall of Jerusalem in 586 B.C. (2 Kings Chapter 25). In Chapter 4:1-3, Nehemiah describes the opposition they received from the surrounding inhabitants. At first, Local leader Sanballat, ridicules the Jews’ efforts in rebuilding and was very angry. Later, When Sanballat along with Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites and the men of Ashdod realize that the Israelites are beginning to succeed…

“They all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and stir up trouble against it.” Nehemiah 4:8

Often times God gives us a task to do as well. Many people may try to discourage us from undertaking the tasks God has put before us. They can ridicule us, or try to dissuade us from his work with what they describe are their best intentions. Sometimes the things that would keep us from doing God’s work don’t come in the form of people, but may in fact be the barbs of Satan in the form of reminders of past failings, or self doubt.

Nehemiah offers a plan to combat those people and things that would inhibit us from achieving his will. He first coaches us to pray (Nehemiah 4:4), and then begin the work, guarding against those who would seek to sideline us (Nehemiah 4:16-22).

There is a happy ending to Nehemiah’s story:

So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days. When all our enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were afraid and lost their self-confidence, because they realized that this work had been done with the help of our God. – Nehemiah 6:15-16.

What exciting words, “they realized that this work had been done with the help of our God”. May we carry out work to completion, so that those around us may know that the things we have done are done with the help of the God of this universe.

Deja Vu

The title for this posting is entitled Deja Vu but it could have been as easily entitled, “Ripped from the pages of the Bible.” I was listening to a newscaster who was saying that he has been reporting on the wars in the Middle East for thirty years and conflicts in that region are not a new phenomenon. I think he was implying that he was an expert in the field. Another news program stated there had been forty years of conflicts and wars in the Middle East. The Bible records many such wars that were fought for land & the right to exist for the nation of Israel. The book of Joshua details the fight for land that took place in order to carve out a nation for the people of God. This goal to make the land of Canaan, now modern day Israel and portions of Lebanon, a new nation for the Israelites was based on a promise God made first to Abraham, (Genesis 15:16-21) then to Isaac (Genesis 26: 3-4 & 6),and finally Jacob (Genesis 35:9-15), that said the lands in which they were now an alien would at some time become the land of their descendents. That time came to fruition after the exodus of the Israelite nation from Egypt. Joshua 1:2 gives God’s command to make the move and Joshua 1:6 speaks of God’s encouragement for the people and he confirms again the promises he made to their forefathers regarding the land.

But how much is enough? God communicates the borders of the country in this way. Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite country—to the Great Sea on the west( Joshua 1:4). He further extends the boundaries in Joshua 13:2-6.

But with these blessings from God comes conditions. In Joshua 1:7-8 God coaches the Israelites to follow all of the laws that he gave to Moses, mediate on the law, and they will be prosperous and successful. If Israel seeks alliances with the nations they deposed, intermarry with them, Joshua 23:12-13 and/or cease to worship God in favor of their gods, he will be angry and the land will no longer be theirs Joshua 23:16

The book of Judges goes on to describe how some of the people of the Israelite nation turned their back on God by worshipping other gods. The boundaries of the nations expanded and contracted throughout the reigns of Saul, David, and Solomon. 2 Kings 17:7-41 & 2 Kings 25:1-2 describes the conquering and wholesale exile of Israel and Judah by the Babylonians. And Nehemiah recounts the struggle of the re-building process of Jerusalem. Throw in a little Roman occupation during the time of Jesus, and subsequent conquering nations after that and you have a recipe for a land in constant war and upheaval.

The Middle East conflicts we hear of today are not unlike the ones that took place thousands of years ago. The Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs web site gives a timeline from 1948, when Israel declared their independence to today, of the actions and conflicts that have taken place to establish the current nation of Israel.

This link gives a map of the changes for that territory from the Kingdoms of Solomon & David to 1967. This link show what is termed, modern day Israel.

The pictures of death and destruction on the nightly news are horrific for both sides and should not be minimized. However there is hope for the believer. Christ says in Matthew 24:6“You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.” Some are speculating that the current conflict is a sign of the end. Even on one of the news programs there was a segment on, “Is this Armageddon?”

Are these the signs of the end of the age? It’s not clear, certainly there have been periods of time where the believers were sure the events of their time were signifying the coming of Christ, and then it did not come to pass. But as believers, we know & have this hope whenever Christ returns:

“At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.” Matthew 24:30-31