Mourning Over Jerusalem
September 22nd, 2009Today’s lesson scripture opens our week of study of Nehemiah. Nehemiah was one of those Jews who had done well and prospered under the Persian kings. His brother, Hanani, came back from a visit to Jerusalem and told Nehemiah how the walls of Jerusalem were broken down and its gates destroyed. In these opening verses we learn that Nehemiah was greatly saddened by the reports of how bad things were in Jerusalem.
1 The words of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah. In the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, while I was in Susa the capital,
2 one of my brothers, Hanani, came with certain men from Judah; and I asked them about the Jews that survived, those who had escaped the captivity, and about Jerusalem.
3 They replied, “The survivors there in the province who escaped captivity are in great trouble and shame; the wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been destroyed by fire.”
4 When I heard these words I sat down and wept, and mourned for days, fasting and praying before the God of heaven. Neh 1:1-4 (NRSV)
We complain today about how churches are losing membership, or how we are no longer connected to our roots (or, conversely, that we are irrelevant to the times). And what do we do about these worries? Most of us try to reinforce or protect our turf – that with which we are familiar. This includes both those who revere tradition and those who long for more contemporary connections.
Nehemiah, on the other hand, was a true risk taker. He was willing to abandon a life of comfort and privilege in Persia to venture back to a broken city. It was his faith in God that allowed him to see Jerusalem as the pivot point of the world – indeed of the Universe. Can we see the potential – or even envision the ultimate reality – of visions other than our own?
When God reveals His vision for each of our lives, then we too become willing to abandon our “lives of comfort” and become His servants – following His call and letting Him take the lead.
Aren’t we all called to be “risk taker’s”? I guess another word could be substituted there, we are all called to “trust”. In addition, we are also called to “obey” when we hear His call. That is exactly what Nehemiah did…he saw God’s vision, he trusted God’s faithfulness – and…then he went to work.
It could be that simple! – Karen