Daily Bible Devotionals

“Now at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought out the Levites in all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication with gladness, both with thanksgivings and singing, with cymbals and stringed instruments and harps. And the sons of the singers gathered together from the countryside around Jerusalem, from the villages of the Netophathites, from the house of Gilgal, and from the fields of Geba and Azmaveth; for the singers had built themselves villages all around Jerusalem.” Nehemiah 12:27-29 (NKJV)

As I mentioned earlier, many scholars see the gates around Jerusalem as representative of the different ways that people enter into the Lord’s presence. If there were an issue that stood between you and God, there was a gate you could enter through, which corresponded to your particular issue. The names of the gates were symbolic. You could leave your burden at that gate, so to speak, and enter, unhindered, to meet with the Lord. To facilitate your entrance into Jerusalem, gatekeepers and musicians were stationed.

“After the wall had been rebuilt and I had set the doors in place, the gatekeepers and the singers and Levites were appointed.” Nehemiah 7:1 (CJB)

There is an old saying: music calms the savage beast. That idea is definitely true when it comes to worship music. The reason for music within the context of a worship service is to prepare the hearts of worshippers to receive the message of God’s Word. If we must lay down our “loads” before we enter Jerusalem, music softens the heart and sweetens the experience; music, therefore, is the spoonful of sugar that helps the medicine go down.

Traditionally, Jerusalem was to be open 24-7. That is 24 hours/day, 7 days/week. The symbolism was that the Lord was accessible at all times. Therefore, gatekeepers and musicians conducted their duties in shifts so there would continually be praise before the Lord.  

“Those who were musicians, heads of the Levite families, stayed in the rooms of the temple and were exempt from other duties because they were responsible for the work day and night.” 1 Chronicles 9:33 (NIV)

Can you imagine a church today, with the surrounding neighborhoods completely inhabited by its worship team and their families? The sole reason for their close proximity was that they continually led music - a never-ending jam session.

I like the relationship between gatekeepers and musicians. There is a kind of balance between the FREEDOM of music and the ACCOUNTABILITY of gatekeeping. Too much liberty with no accountability leads to anarchy. Too much accountability without freedom to worship just seems kind of fascist. I thank the Lord for that balance of holiness and grace, which allows us to fear the Lord as we boldly approach His throne.

“The leaders of the people took up residence in Jerusalem; while the rest of the people cast lots to bring one-tenth of them to live in Jerusalem the holy city, with the other nine-tenths in the other cities. The people blessed all those who volunteered to live in Jerusalem.” Nehemiah 11:1-2 (CJB)

A “tithe” is ten percent. When followers of Jesus give ten percent of their income to support the ongoing ministry of their local congregations, it is called a “tithe.” Of course, the tithe is the minimum requirement, and any faithful believer will offer over & above the minimum whenever the need arises, as the Lord leads.

Nehemiah proposed a “tithe of the people” to repopulate Jerusalem and continue rebuilding. Not only was this decision good for the city of Jerusalem, but it was also a brilliant political move because it evenly distributed Jerusalem’s population among all the returning exiled tribes.

Historically, most of Israel’s problems came while the kingdom was divided after Solomon’s reign. Ten tribes rejected Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem because they rejected the Davidic kingship, which came from the tribe of Judah. The dispute grew to include the issue of where & how to worship. Nehemiah’s solution had Jerusalem populated by representatives of the entire remnant. Jerusalem was to be a cosmopolitan city yet focused on God.

We have a similar situation in the United States. Right on the border of Virginia and Maryland, a district was developed (the District of Columbia…the “DC” of Washington DC), which houses our federal government. The reason for the development of the District of Columbia is so that no state can boast of housing the nation’s capital. Our capital was designed as a city with no favoritism to any State. This is the idea for Jerusalem’s repopulation plan: God’s agenda would reign. With an evenly spread demographic, every tribe would be inclined to rush to Jerusalem’s aid because each family had relatives there.  

Beyond the practical and political reasons for this arrangement, there are more spiritual concerns. The people who repopulated Jerusalem were not chosen by election or whimsy. God chose each person. He made His will known through the “lots,” …a legitimate way of seeking the Lord’s will in Nehemiah’s day. Believers today don’t need to cast lots. We each have the gift of the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit), given in Acts 2 on the day of Shavuot (Pentecost).  

God chose people bent on holiness who would be confronted with opposition yet view opposition as an opportunity to stand faithfully. Perhaps those people would never have chosen to live in Jerusalem, but God knew what was best. Similarly, I never would have chosen to follow Jesus on my own, but He pursued me, and eventually, I believed the gospel. God has also chosen to give eternal life to those who believe in and follow Messiah Jesus. Therefore, when the Lord calls, I am eager to depart this body and be present with the Lord, taking up residence in the New Jerusalem!

“Now the rest of the people—the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, the Nethinim, and all those who had separated themselves from the peoples of the lands to the Law of God, their wives, their sons, and their daughters, everyone who had knowledge and understanding—these joined with their brethren, their nobles, and entered into a curse and an oath to walk in God’s Law, which was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of the Lord our Lord, and His ordinances and His statutes:” Nehemiah 10:28-29 (NKJV)

Before Israel rebuilt the actual walls of Jerusalem, they had to rebuild the “spiritual” walls of Jerusalem by seeking God’s Word and praying. Then, before houses could be built within the walls of Jerusalem, the “homes” of Jerusalem had to be established through knowledge of God’s Word and personal & national confession. In today’s chapter, those “homes” are further distinguished by separation from “the peoples of the land” and toward “the Torah of God.” They were to be a nation in the World but distinguished from it.

We live in a day and age where tolerance and political correctness seem to rule the day. This generation of “Millennials” (18-30 years old) is characterized by a strong distrust of institutions and absolutes. So, it is hard for me to envision such a “separation,” as today’s passage describes, taking place in our culture, yet Jesus commands us to be “in the World but not of the World.” He even prayed to the Father about such an arrangement.  

“I have given them Your Word, and the world hated them because they do not belong to the World – just as I Myself do not belong to the World. I don’t ask You to take them out of the World, but to protect them from the Evil One. They do not belong to the World, just as I do not belong to the World. Set them apart for holiness by means of the Truth – Your Word is Truth. Just as You sent Me into the World, I have sent them into the World. On their behalf I am setting Myself apart for holiness, so that they too may be set apart for holiness by means of the Truth.” John 17:14-19 (CJB)

In a culture that seeks to be liked by everyone, I am reminded of the old saying: If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything. More than simply standing for “something,” believers are standing on God’s Word, the very thing that distinguishes/separates them from the World. But if you fear being disliked or rejected because of your pursuit of holiness, consider Jesus’ words.

“If the World hates you, understand that it hated Me first. If you belonged to the World, the World would have loved its own. But because you do not belong to the World – on the contrary, I have picked you out of the World – therefore the World hates you. Remember what I told you, ‘A slave is no greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you too; if they kept My Word, they will keep yours too.’” John 15:18-20 (CJB)

Holiness has a price, but the rewards are worth it!

“Our kings, our leaders, our priests and ancestors did not keep Your Torah, pay attention to Your commands, or heed the warnings You gave them. Even when they ruled their own kingdom, even when You prospered them greatly, in the great rich land You gave them, they did not serve You; nor did they turn back from their wicked deeds. So here we are today, slaves. Yes, in the land you gave our ancestors, so that they could eat what it produces and enjoy its good – here we are in it, slaves! Its rich yield now goes to the kings you have set over us because of our sins: they have power over our bodies, they can do what they please to our livestock, and we are in great distress!” Nehemiah 9:34-37 (CJB)

My grandfather, Virgil, was born in 1905. He was a very sharp guy up till the day he died in his mid-90s. For instance, when Virgil turned 90 years old, the State of Arkansas renewed his driver’s license! A year before he passed away, I had the opportunity to visit with Virgil and ask about his upbringing and what it was like living through the Great Depression. He smiled and said, “We can’t choose when, where, or to whom we are born. We can only choose how we live in response.” The returning Israelite exiles did not have the option to choose to be born in a time of God’s disfavor towards their parents or to be born into Babylon slavery. They only had the choice of how they’d worship.

If I could give today’s chapter a title, I would call it “How Our Actions Affect Others.”  With all of Israel assembled in the garments of humility, sackcloth, and ashes, Nehemiah led the people in a national confession. The confession was not just for the personal sins of the people in the assembly; it was also a confession of the sins of Israel’s forefathers, sins for which their descendants were still suffering the consequences. They were acknowledging how personal sin brought down an entire nation.

National sin begins when one person decides to step outside of God’s Word. Unless repentance comes quickly, a lawless mindset quietly spreads throughout the whole community. Compromised communities become compromised cities. Compromised cities infect a state, then a nation, and eventually the World. Recall how one bite of “forbidden fruit” has affected all mankind with a horrible sinful aftertaste. That is distressful news, and when confronted with it, the returned exiles had a choice to make. Would they continue fueling God’s disfavor or reverse it within their generation to set up their descendants to win? They chose God.  

Israel returned to God’s favor by retracing their parents’ steps back to the Lord. Instead of departing from God’s Word, they sought it. Instead of denying their sin and rebelling against God, the returned exiles humbly confessed their sins. As a result, personal holiness affected the community, cities, states, and nation, as it were.

Friends, America is in trouble, and the future looks bleak. The source of its woes is not financial; it is spiritual. We have departed from God’s Word and sold ourselves into credit and moral bondage. So, how should we respond to the revelation of God’s Word in our time? We should humble ourselves by personally repenting & turning back to the Lord. Your personal holiness can set national revival into motion.

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Nehemiah 8. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“Then it was, when the wall was built, and I had hung the doors, when the gatekeepers, the singers, and the Levites had been appointed, that I gave the charge of Jerusalem to my brother Hanani, and Hananiah the leader of the citadel, for he was a faithful man and feared God more than many. And I said to them, ‘Do not let the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun is hot; and while they stand guard, let them shut and bar the doors; and appoint guards from among the inhabitants of Jerusalem, one at his watch station and another in front of his own house.’” Nehemiah 7:1-3 (NKJV)

As noted earlier, the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem is both a historical account and a symbolic picture of the Church today. Therefore, one question begs to be answered: Why did God’s people have to leave the land in the first place? Answer: They departed from God’s Word and began to follow after idols. Jeremiah said it well:

“How lonely lies the city that once thronged with people! Once great among the nations, now she is like a widow! Once princess among the provinces, she has become a vassal. Bitterly she weeps at night, tears running down her cheeks. Not one of all her lovers is there to comfort her. Her friends have all betrayed her; they have become her enemies.” Lamentations 1:1-2 (CJB)

After repeated prophetic warnings, God’s great patience transitioned into His justice. God allowed Israel and Judah to be besieged by the Babylonians. Furthermore, the Babylonians plundered and destroyed the city of Jerusalem. Solomon’s Temple, which had stood for approximately 400 years, was burned to the ground. Lest we consider God a tyrant, we should note that Israel’s idolatry has been going on since the generation after Joshua.

“When that entire generation had been gathered to their ancestors, another generation arose that knew neither the Lord nor the work He had done for Israel. Then the people of Israel did what was evil from the Lord’s perspective and served the Ba’alim” Judges 2:10-11(CJB)

Israel had been on a slow yet steady departure from God’s Word for many generations. Since the history of Israel is also a warning for the Church, we must ask how a nation collectively becomes idolatrous. First, individuals depart from the Word. Then, those individuals share their non-Biblical word views within the assembly. Eventually, the whole community becomes saturated with idolatrous thinking.  

So, how does a nation become virtuous? The very same way. Individuals (you & me) must return to the Word! When those individuals assemble, a culture of holiness develops, and the walls surrounding God’s people begin to be rebuilt. Important to note: We are not building ghetto walls to enclose ourselves. The walls of “Jerusalem” are walls with gates so that we can go in & out, and others can enter as well! True, we need gatekeepers and watchmen, but the intent is to allow those seeking virtue to enter.

“So the wall was finished on the twenty-fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty-two days. When all our enemies heard about it, and the surrounding nations became afraid, our enemies’ self-esteem fell severely; because they realized that this work had been accomplished by God.” Nehemiah 6:15-16 (CJB)

Have you ever had to deal with a bully? Because of their size, expertise, or influence, some people feel the need to intimidate, harass and threaten others. At the core of the bully’s heart is low self-esteem. Even if they have considerable power, they fear losing it, so they feel compelled to prove their dominance over and over.  

Some bullies are seriously pathologically mean and dangerous. They continue bullying long after being locked away in prison with other bullies. But most bullies cower in the midst of opposition. I’m not tall, so when I was younger, I was bullied. A big guy wants to prove himself, so he looks for the smallest guy to harass. What these bullies didn’t know was that I had a big brother, and the two of us were always fighting. So, I was bullied by several kids, but only once. You see, I knew how to fight. It is amazing how much blood a well-placed punch to the nose can produce. Bullies learned that there were easier wins out there than me. Has Satan learned that about you?  

Nehemiah and the struggling Jewish community faced a collection of bullies. They mocked Israel and puffed up their feathers like a peacock, but all their threats were nothing more than hot air. They were trying to intimidate Israel against following the Lord because history had proven that when Israel believed God, they were unstoppable. In short, their power through intimidation was coming to an end. Once the wall of Jerusalem was completed, the bullies’ true colors came out: they became afraid, and their self-esteem fell severely. Israel had won a great victory by submitting to God amid opposition. In fact, God had won a great victory through the lives of His submitted people. He led His people back to Himself by guiding them, step-by-step, to a right relationship with Him. He was reversing their steps, back up the same path their parents’ generation had walked down in their departure from God.

Yes, there was victory, but that did not mean the enemy gave up trying to undermine Israel’s return to the Lord. The enemy never quits; it just changes its tactics.

“Also in those days the nobles of Judah sent many letters to Tobiah, and the letters of Tobiah came to them. For many in Judah were pledged to him, because he was the son-in-law of Shechaniah the son of Arah, and his son Jehohanan had married the daughter of Meshullam the son of Berechiah. Also they reported his good deeds before me, and reported my words to him. Tobiah sent letters to frighten me.” Nehemiah 6:17-19 (NKJV)

If bullying does not prove effective, perhaps politics or intermarriage will. Maybe it will be something else. The reality is that the enemy never stops trying to stop us, so we must never stop pursuing the Lord. That is why we search His Word, every day.

“The earlier governors, before me, had burdened the people, taxing them more than one-and-a-half pounds of silver shekels for food and wine; and even their servants lorded it over the people. But I didn’t, because I feared God. Moreover, I put all my energy into working on this wall. We didn’t buy any land, and all my servants were gathered there for work.” Nehemiah 5:15-16 (CJB)

It is amazing how effectively a follower of Messiah can lead simply by communicating to those around them that there is no personal agenda for which the leader is exploiting the laborers. Nehemiah was not rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem for political advancement or personal profit. He simply labored as unto the Lord, and the people respected and followed him because of it. Jesus exhorted His disciples similarly.    

“Jesus said to them, ‘The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves benefactors. But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like one who serves.’” Luke 22:25-26 (NIV)

As a loyal subject of an earthly king, Nehemiah was “on leave” to Jerusalem only for a season. Afterward, he had to return to Shushan, where he came from. Still, he faithfully labored on behalf of his ancestors, his contemporaries, and the next generation. Nehemiah’s selfless attitude was very similar to Abraham’s.

“By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” Hebrews 11:9-10 (NKJV)

In our generation, we also must have the attitude that this World is not our home. If we keep this perspective, we will be free of the Worldly distraction that constantly nags us to get our “piece of the pie.”  Again, as with Abraham and Nehemiah, this World is not our home. Furthermore, we are given a task not unlike Nehemiah’s. He rebuilt the wall and gates of Jerusalem, but we are tasked to build God’s holy temple!!

“So then, you are no longer foreigners and strangers. On the contrary, you are fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s family. You have been built on the foundation of the emissaries and the prophets, with the cornerstone being Messiah Jesus Himself. In union with Him the whole building is held together, and it is growing into a holy temple in union with the Lord. Yes, in union with Him, you yourselves are being built together into a spiritual dwelling place for God!” Ephesians 2:19-22 (CJB)

Not are we building His dwelling place, human stone upon human stone, but we ourselves are stones, stacked & mortared in the apostle's teaching, with Jesus as our chief Cornerstone.

“Therefore I positioned men behind the lower parts of the wall, at the openings; and I set the people according to their families, with their swords, their spears, and their bows. And I looked, and arose and said to the nobles, to the leaders, and to the rest of the people, ‘Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, great and awesome, and fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses.’ And it happened, when our enemies heard that it was known to us, and that God had brought their plot to nothing, that all of us returned to the wall, everyone to his work. So it was, from that time on, that half of my servants worked at construction, while the other half held the spears, the shields, the bows, and wore armor; and the leaders were behind all the house of Judah. Those who built on the wall, and those who carried burdens, loaded themselves so that with one hand they worked at construction, and with the other held a weapon.” Nehemiah 4:13-17 (NKJV)

We live in perilous times. War, financial uncertainty, moral decay, family breakdown - dangerous times.   Would it surprise you to know that it’s all spiritual? Yes, in real-time, here on earth, it seems like the “enemy” is some extremist, corporate tycoon, media giant, or family member. But in reality, the enemy is the World, the Flesh, and the Devil. When we have human conflict, it is really the effects of the Lord in our lives standing in opposition to the effects of the “enemy,” both in our lives and the lives of others.

“For our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens.” Ephesians 6:12 (HCSB)

There is hope, therefore, beyond human conflict because if our oppressors submitted to the Lord, they would cease oppression and join us as brothers. It is part of the reason we suffer affliction for the cause of evangelism. We must love a person beyond their actions against us and see them apart from the “enemy’s” influence on them.

It is important, then, for us to take Nehemiah’s struggle to build the walls of Jerusalem both literally and metaphorically. True, the citizens of Jerusalem faced strong human opposition and risked their lives to rebuild the city’s walls and gates. But it also reminds us of a greater reality: The mission field is also a battlefield!

While we “wrestle not against flesh and blood,” recognizing the greater spiritual narrative, we still face human opposition. We need each other. The purpose of “community” is to render our weaknesses ineffective. So, from today’s passage, we can glean that we need to work together to rebuild the “walls of Jerusalem” in the Church at large. That means pastors and laity, husbands and wives, parents and children, and denominations with other denominations. When we work alone, the “enemy” has a greater chance of picking us off. But when we work in close proximity, we can lean into each other, or shall we say we lean into “the Lord’s strength, working within each of us”?

We must die to the notion that God exists solely to provide for our comfort and pleasure. We are created to live in community, which means dying to ourselves and living to serve the body of believers, trusting that they are doing the same for you by God’s grace. If the World saw that, many unbelievers would be more willing to believe!