Rebuilding the Wall

Thus far we have gleaned some vital information from the Old Testament scriptures regarding a few faithful men and their mind for repair of that which belonged to the Lord. We began with Jehoash and Josiah, kings of Judah and Jerusalem, who worked to repair the temple and reestablish the sacrifices of God, and moved on to the great prophet Elijah, who had the mind to repair the altar of the Lord in his showdown with a group of false prophets of the Gentiles. We now shift our focus to a man named Nehemiah, who was given information regarding the affliction of his brethren in Judah and Jerusalem (Nehemiah 1:2-3). As we move through the first six chapters of the book, we must be mindful of how this man moved into action. The scriptures tell us Nehemiah fervently prayed unto God (1:4-11), he developed a plan (2:5-8), he gained perspective through his inspection (2:11-18), and then sprung into action to rebuild (3:1-32, 4:15-23, 6:15). Now it important to note that this plan did not unfold without opposition (2:9-10, 4:4:1-14, 6:1-14), to which Nehemiah was prepared for due to his diligence and fixation on the task at hand. He was able to withstand the resistance and conspiracies of Sanballat and Tobiah, who attempted with overthrow his plan of rebuild. Through all of this Nehemiah was even able cause the oppression of he poor Israelites to cease among their brethren (5:1-13), which feeds into a wonderful truth that was gleaned in the past weeks; when we have the mindset of repair and rebuild, the good in the outcomes will many times compound and show themselves to be exponential as God will consistently blesses his people greater than expectation (cf. 2 Chronicles 24:14, 2 Kings 22-23). Let’s take from this and apply to our dispensation which is now in Christ Jesus. When we focus on the repairing of the Lord’s church, we will be mindful to fortify ourselves, building up a wall against the opposition. I recall Paul warning the  Ephesian elders to beware of those coming in with the disguise of sheep, but are indeed wolves (Acts 20:29 cf. Matthew 7:15). Peter addresses something similar as he warns of false teachers that will rise up as false prophets existed in the past (2 Peter 2:1ff). In rebuilding and repairing, we should be careful as to not be beguiled by opposition through friendly overtures that appear to be for good, but purposed for destruction (Galatians 2:4). In other words, we should be on guard for the Tobiahs and Sanballats of the world who suppose to add assistance, but really have no part or lot in the matters of the church (Hebrews 13:15). 

Repairing the Altar

The altar, simply put, is an instrument or a place where offerings are made to God; a place where gifts are given to God. In the reading of the Old Testament, we see an altar mentioned on numerous occasions, beginning with Noah when he and his family were delivered from the flood (Genesis 8:20). As Solomon was building the temple, we even see him overlay the altar with pure gold, in order for sacrifices to be continually offered in thereon (1 Kings 6:20). During the time of that great prophet Elijah, we see a battle between he and the prophets of Baal. This comes at a time where Jezebel, the wife of Ahab, committed the wicked atrocity of putting all of the prophets of the God to death, with some being hid by the faithful Obadiah (1 Kings 18:4). Elijah reasoned with the prophets of Baal and asked the wonderful question, “How long will you falter between two opinions” (1 Kings 18:20)? In other words, the prophet was giving the rhetoric to his audience to provoke a thought about the god in which they worshipped. It is now Elijah against 850 prophets to prove who the true God of heaven was. Amid this demonstration, the scriptures teach us that Elijah ‘repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down’ (18:30). What a wonderful conclusion to see the Great God of Israel responsive to this faithful prophet amid the wickedness that was plaguing His people through the acts of Ahab and his wife. As we fast forward to the dispensation of Christ Jesus, which is now, we realize that we do not have the physical altar still here to offer up various types of sacrifices upon, but we have something new and better (Hebrew 8:6-8). It is certain that we should maintain an appreciation for the the Lord’s authority in our sacrifices, and must follow the commandments and examples given in the new testament (Colossians 3:17). As we endeavor to repair the Lord’s Church, we must be cognizant of those breaches that have popped up and work tirelessly to repair our sacrifices, beginning with the spiritual altar that we now have through Christ and his sacrifice on Calvary’s cross (Hebrews 13:10-16). In order to offer up sacrifices that are pleasing unto God, we must reemphasize the blood shed for us on the cross by Jesus and focus on the teachings he left for us in this life!

A Church in Repair

For a church to continue to grow, troubleshooting will always be necessary and actions taken to fix said troubles must certainly follow. In order for a congregation to move from a ‘church in despair’ to a ‘church in repair,’ we must collectively be able to identify issues with the a zealous heart to fix what has been identified. The principle is certainly found as James describes what it is to be a faithful hearer and doer of the word (James 1:21-25). It is no longer enough for the Lord’s church to criticize and identify issues, but we must be prepared to assist and aid in repairing what we find. The emphasis stays on reading and studying our scriptures to ensure that we are likening ourselves to the church of the first century. We read of the care, concern and diligence of the early Christians to continue in the apostle’s doctrine and the doctrine of Christ, by conferring with those inspired men and recalling scriptures for this assurance (Acts 2:42 cf Acts 15:1ff, Acts 17:11). In this process we must ask ourselves a series of questions; “Are we properly imitating the positive aspects of the churches we read of in scriptures?” “What is the Lord’s church lacking?” “What is my role in assisting in the repair of the church?” Questions as such do not only display the mindset of a troubleshooting individual, but also show one’s mind towards growth. For an Old Testament principle, let us consider Jehoash, who reigned in Judah after the wickedness of Athaliah. What wonderful faithfulness we see of Joram’s daughter to be able to hide the infant, so that he may one day be able to rule. The scriptures say of this man, “And Jehoash said to the priests, ‘All the money of the dedicated fights that are brought into the house of the Lord- each man’s census money, each man’s assessment money- and all the money that a man purposes in his heart to bring into the house of the Lord, let the priests take it themselves, each from his constituency; and let them repair the damages of the temple, wherever and dilapidation is found’ (2 Kings 12:4-5). As we read through the story we see the king, having the mind to be instructed, identified an issue and was persistent to see the repair of the very issue. Let us, as the Lord’s temple, have the heart to repair the breaches of today so that we may be the glorious church in whom God is well pleased!

Preparing For Harvest

Preparedness is a key indicator of a wisdom and the gaining of wisdom is something each Christian should be mindful of or striving for. King Solomon describes a wise son in this matter, “The proverbs of Solomon: A wise son makes a glad father, But a foolish son is the grief of his mother. Treasures of wickedness profit nothing, But righteousness delivers from death. The Lord will not allow the righteous soul to famish, But He casts away the desire of the wicked. He who has a slack hand becomes poor, But the hand of the diligent makes rich. He who gathers in summer is a wise son; He who sleeps in harvest is a son who causes shame” (Provers 10:1-5). In Solomon’s description of a ‘wise son’ he emphasizes the importance of a diligent and dutiful hand. He even associates slackness to poverty in the context, which is something each one of us should be wary of. We should have the mind and disposition to keep busy in this life so that we can prove our own wisdom. In focusing on the latter portion of this text, we see Solomon highlight the wisdom of the son that gathers or reaps in the summer. In contrast, he exclaims that shame is associated with those who sleep during a time of harvest or reaping. A point that  should be gleaned, in addition to ones diligence, is that we must be prepared for certain season in our lives. We can see through the example of the harvest that a lack of preparation or even our slackness can prohibit us from reaping the blessings that God has bestowed upon us and ultimately prove ourselves to be foolish in this life. Consider the examples we have visited over the last two weeks; Jesus telling his disciples of the plenteous harvest (Matthew 9:37) and the current state of harvest when speaking to the Samaritans (John 4:35). In the figurative sense, Jesus is explaining to his students that we can be effective in winning souls in the current state, as many people are ready or desiring to hear the word and know the truth. Likewise, we must be prepared in sharing the gospel with those souls who are seeking. Paul tells Timothy to ‘be ready’ (2 Timothy 4:2), he admonishes the church in Ephesus to have their ‘feet shod with the preparation of the gospel’ (Ephesians 6:15), and Peter states we must undergo a sanctification process to be able to answer questions that people present us (1 Peter 3:15). In other words, we must use the instruction and wisdom of the scriptures to be prepared for the harvest at hand, which includes telling people of the wonderful works of God and using wisdom to win souls!

The Coming Harvest

When considering the season or the ‘time’ harvest, the pupil of the scriptures must consider the surrounding context to glean just what God intends with its use. We can too determine if it is to be used in a literal or figurative sense as well. Last week, our discussion was based on Jesus’s use of harvest stemming from Matthew 9:35-38, where we see him coaching his disciples on the readiness of the harvest in the present tense. Additionally, we see Jesus use the harvest as something that is to come. Consider what he states at the conclusion of a parable concerning the wheat and tares; “Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, ‘First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn’” (Matthew 13:30). We should all truly dive deep into this parable to bring out the meaning and see how it relates to the rest of the scriptures, but we stop at this verse to identify that Jesus is implicating a harvest that is coming. He later goes on to explain that the harvest is ‘the end of the age’ (v. 39), and if that be so, we should be diligent in this life to prepare for the event described and explained in this very parable. For us, this would include living a life following after Christ and doing the will of God. But in the context of this parable, it would too ensuring that we guard ourselves form the tares that the devil is working so hard to sow amidst our lives. We often times think of what Paul writes to the Christians in Corinth as generically not intermeddling with the children of this world, but I believe this parable employed by Christ, along with the words of Paul gives us insight into one of the most intimate relationships known to man; marriage (2 Corinthians 6:14-18). Furthermore, this is supported by God’s attitude and responses toward his people intermarrying with the children of the wicked one throughout biblical history (cf. Genesis 6:2-4, Numbers 31:16). All things considered, the Christian should guard his or herself from the tares of the wicked one, so that we can be of those gathered into the barn Christ describes in his parable.

Harvest of God

The concept of harvest is sprinkled throughout the holy scriptures, both in a literal and figurative sense to convey various messages to God’s people, or to simply give context to a specific time of an event. The word is first used when God makes his covenant with Noah and creation post flood stating, “I will never again curse the ground for man’s sake, although the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; nor will I again destroy every living thing as I have done. While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, Winter and Summer, and day and night shall not cease” (Genesis 8:22). What God is doing is setting the course of seasons, which inherently proclaim his love and care for his creation. As we seek to uncover the meaning of harvest, we see that it is a time for the maturation and gathering of crops that God has allowed to grow from the ground and be provided as sustenance for mankind. The Great God of Heaven is declaring that He will not only suffer a continuance of seasons to change and night to turn from day,  He will not cause a cessation of these provisions to be made of the ground and gathered by mankind, which truly depicts His persistence of care. We can use principles from the postdiluvian covenant made with Noah and apply it to the manner in which Jesus uses the concept with his disciples: “But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send our laborers into His harvest” (Matthew 9:35-38). In one sense, God continues to provide for His creation, seed time and harvest to fill our hearts with gladness, but we must also be prepared to do the necessary work to reap benefits given through His providential care. This principle can be applied to the figurative sense as well, as it pertains to the gathering of individuals who are “mature fruit,” and his continual care for those who have been added to His kingdom. 

Born of the Gospel

When looking at biblical genealogies, we make the search with one reason in mind; to track the Messiah which was to come into the world. Matthew begins his gospel with this in mind, showing the generations from Abraham, through David, ultimately leading the Jesus Christ. What great way to begin the book, knowing the historical importance of Abraham and David as it relates to being individuals who were children of the Most High God in heaven, and men who promises were made unto. All month long we have been discussing what it means to be Born of God, and this one must conclude that this rebirth comes through the obedience of the gospel. In realizing the relationship of Christ to Abraham, we read that a blessing would come to all nations through his seed (Genesis 22:17-18). The reader then realizes the seed in this context was not Abraham’s progeny, Isaac, for the same promise was reiterated to Isaac a few chapters later (Genesis 26:4 cf. Galatians 3:16). The explanation is that Abraham became the father of many nations by his example of faith and that Christ descended from this man’s lineage according to the flesh in order to fulfill the promise of God. Furthermore, we read about the relationship between Jesus Christ and David, the great king of Israel, who God assured by covenant that a seed would come from him that would set up the house of the Lord and have a kingdom established which has no end (2 Samuel 7:12-14). The scripture teaches that Solomon’s kingdom certainly came to and end, but the everlasting kingdom would come through Jesus Christ. Imagine how the audience of Paul felt when stringing these very points together in the synagogue when given the opportunity to preach the word. The speaker refers to the men as “stock of Abraham,” and declares the scriptures fulfillment through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, which proves He was begotten of God (Acts 13:1-41 cf. Psalm 2:7). To confirm the proposed idea of our rebirth connecting to our reception and obedience of the gospel of Jesus Christ, Paul states, “For though you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel” (1 Corinthians 4:15).

Born of the Word

God has always wanted mankind to have an appreciation for His word, due to its significance and endurance. Therein, He created the means for rebirth and salvation. As we place a spotlight on its endurance, we surely remember the words of the prophet, Isaiah, and reiterated by Peter, which states, “All flesh is as grass, and all the glory of men as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, and its flower falls away, but the word of the Lord endures forever” Isaiah 40:6-8, 1 Peter 1:24). The relevance this has for us can be found in the preceding verse which states, “…having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and birds forever…” (v. 23). Not only will God’s word continue you in perpetuity, but all mankind has the ability to be born again and made new by this very word. Hence, we must keep a proper perspective of the scriptures, giving ourselves over to reading and studying so that we can know the will of the Lord. Peter emphasizes its importance by explaining the word’s value over that of silver and gold. From a secular worldview, we understand the importance of the material good, as it can be used in merchandise and trade, but from a spiritual perspective, the word of God has the power to accomplish much more than what material could ever. It is imperative that we believe on Jesus Christ, as the Word that became flesh, because of who he was sent from and the power of His words. “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63). Our obedience to the will of God through his word and Son, Christ Jesus, we have an opportunity to live and abide forever through the wonderful hope committed to us!

Born of the Spirit

We have to appreciate the humility of Nicodemus, for when questions arose of what was being taught by Jesus Christ, he availed himself for further study and discussion of God’s will. As he speaks with the Messiah when coming to him by night, Jesus teaches, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” and “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is spirit” (John 3:3-6). This statement certainly confounded Nicodemus, when it should have resonated with the knowledge he would have possessed being a teacher in Israel. The question that inevitably arises from Christ’s statements is, “What does it mean to be born of the spirit?” The New Testament unveils this information when deduced properly. In the immediate context, Jesus explains that one must be born again, and conjoins the water birth to that of a spirit birth (v. 5 cf. Titus 3:5). When the apostle, Paul, writes to the church in Galatia, he shows through the story of Abraham, God’s intent to have children born or the spirit and born according to the promise. “Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. But as he who was born according to the flesh then persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, even so it is now” (Galatians 4:28-29). What Paul is explaining is the process in which those early disciples were being mistreated due to their obedience to God, through the allegory of Ismael and Isaac. We ultimately gain the understanding that God gave the promise of the blessing of an everlasting covenant to and through a specific seed, which would come through Isaac. This seed is Jesus Christ, and those who believe on him, and are baptized into him, are those who are not only born of water, but also of the Spirit (Galatians 3:16, 26-29, Romans 8:1-11). 

Born of God

Little effort is needed for one to say that he or she identifies as a Christian. In a country where our religious liberties are still supported, there is little resistance if one makes this bold proclamation of faith. But as we search the scriptures, we quickly glean that the great God of heaven is not much interested in our lip service or self identification with Christ, but rather our obedience to Him. Isaiah brings this point into focus as he prophesies against Judah and Jerusalem during the divided kingdom (Isaiah 29:13). God desires our obedience, just as a father to his children. In this same vein, if we our children of Jehovah, the logical necessity would yield that we must have been born of Him. In other words, we need not fall for the traps of the world, which purports that individuals can belong to or be born of God after the teachings of men, or by some other means than what is taught in the scriptures. Many suppose to belong to Christ and his Father, but simply have not received him the way the Bible describes. In the gospel book of John, the writer explains, “He cam to his own, and his own did not receive him. But as many as received him, to them he gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in his name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:11-13). This text, like others, explains that in order to be children of God, we must believe on His son, and hold the proper reception of him. This, of course, cannot be limited to a lip-service form of belief, but one that moves us to receive Christ’s words and keep his commandments (John 14:15). Additionally, by receiving Christ, this indicates that the believer has received His Father (Matthew 10:40 cf. John 12:44-45 cf. 1 John 5:1). The scriptures show that we are in one of two categories: born of God, or born of the wicked one, so we must be diligent to ensure we are of the right seed (John 8:37-47).