raised to walk

Before the Resurrection

Raised to Walk

This Easter, let’s look at the resurrection in a little larger context than we normally view regarding this important Christian doctrine. It is easy to focus attention on the immediate setting of the crucifixion of Jesus to the degree we miss the bigger picture the Bible portrays of the context and contrast between life and death. As we consider several lessons the Bible is teaching “before the resurrection,” remember there is a large context (life vs death) and an immediate context (the nature of a Jewish religion in the culture of the Roman Empire) for the doctrine of the resurrection.

Consider also that God tends to teach important concepts to His people by first previewing or introducing the subject, then by teaching about it in space and time, and finally by reinforcing the concept in practical, historical settings.

The Raising of Lazarus

Our Scriptural passage for the day is John 11:1-57. Many recognize a structure of the Gospel of John which focuses on signs (John 2:11) through which God reveals the glory of His Son (John 1:14). The raising of Lazarus from the grave becomes the ultimate sign of His ministry and previews the resurrection of Jesus himself. The impact of this event is multiplied exponentially by the interactions with the disciples during an unhurried journey to Bethany, the connection between beliefs about the resurrection and immediate behavior, and the understanding by Mary and Martha and the religious leaders that the resurrection changes everything.

The setting in the previous passage, John 10:22-42, reveals the immediate context of this Scripture. Jesus and the disciples had attended the winter Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem. The December festival was about ninety days away from the Passover. The 11th chapter of John indicates following the raising of Lazarus the Passover feast was “at hand” (John 11:55). This phrase usually indicates the time is within the month. For more information on the immediate setting of this passage, see the Mediterranean Moments article.

This is For You

John spends a little time at the beginning of the eleventh chapter to identify the main characters in the account (John 11:1-5).  Messengers arrive to Jesus with an announcement, “The one whom you love is ill.” John uses the phrase of himself – in a very personal, yet humble way. Jesus loved the family and had a more intimate relationship with them than He did with many others. Just as the Twelve had a special place in the life of Jesus, this family occupied a similar position.

Jesus’ first statement reacting to the news is comforting. “This illness does not lead to death.”  But Jesus adds some depth to the observation. “It is for God’s glory, so the Son of God may be glorified through it.” This is one of the few times that Jesus refers to Himself directly as the “Son of God.” Jesus’ preferred title of Himself seems to be the “Son of Man.”

If there was any question about the depth of this relationship, John clarifies it completely in verse five: “Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.” John probably uses the term “her sister” rather than her name, Mary, because there were so many women named “Mary” in the life of Jesus. The real question comes with the unexpected action that follows. “So when Jesus heard that Lazarus was ill, He stayed two days longer in the place where He was” (John 11:6 ESV). While we would have expected Jesus to drop everything and head to Bethany, He stays where He is two more days.

Jesus’ attitude toward this illness is the same as in John 9:3. The sickness provides an opportunity for “the work of God to be displayed” in His life. What is true here can be applied to every trial that a Christian faces. Our natural reaction to trials is to treat them as an intruder, getting rid of them as quickly and painlessly as possible. When we offer our trials to God and allow Him to use them as He pleases, we bring glory to His name as He works through and in the trials of life.

Perhaps the relaxed response of Jesus confused the disciples. After two days, Jesus announced they were heading to Judea (John 11:7). The disciples, ever protective of their Master, reminded Jesus that Jewish leaders were ready to arrest or kill Him. “Our friend, Lazarus, has fallen asleep and I must wake him.” The disciples giggled under their breath. “Lord, he will wake up on his own.” Can you see Jesus shaking His head and saying, “Lazarus is dead.”

But you said his illness wouldn’t lead to death. Jesus continued more deeply, “I am glad that I was not there. This all happened for your sake, so that you may believe. Let’s go to him.”

The Believer Never Tastes Death

At this point, our expectation rests upon Peter saying something. But it isn’t Peter who speaks, but rather Thomas. Some thirty days before we have labeled him a “doubter,” Thomas speaks confident words that indicate he may understand what Jesus is trying to teach. “Let’s go with Him that we may die with Him” (John 11:16).

The disciples were no doubt puzzled as they made their way to the village near Jerusalem. Jesus had said this sickness did not lead to death, but now Jesus had clearly stated that Lazarus was dead. Jesus had never been wrong before. What did all of this mean?

Not too long ago Jesus had been teaching the very same thing. In John 5:24, Jesus says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my words and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.” In John 8:51, Jesus responds to accusations by the Pharisees, “Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.” The Pharisees changed the wording to “taste death,” but Jesus did not correct them.

You will never taste death. Those are powerful words – but especially in light of the circumstance with Lazarus. “Jesus must have been wrong,” you can almost hear the skeptic murmuring. Death is all around; it has claimed another victim.

Outside Target Stadium in Minneapolis, the home of baseball’s Minnesota Twins, rests a plaque commemorating an historic event. At the location, just outside of Gate 34, exactly 520 feet from home plate stands a statue of a golden glove. The spot marks the landing of the longest home run ever hit by any Twins player – hit by Harmon Killebrew, Hall of Fame third and first baseman. On June 3, 1967 Killebrew launched one of his 573 home runs an amazing 520 feet, a record that, as of 2020. still holds for the Twins.

On May 13th, 2011, Killebrew left an even greater statue, written in a powerful blog on his website.

It is with profound sadness that I share with you that my continued battle with esophageal cancer is coming to an end. With the continued love and support of my wife, Nita, I have exhausted all options with respect to controlling this awful disease. My illness has progressed beyond my doctor’s expectation of cure.

On that evening, Killebrew entered hospice care preparing to die. Four days later, the man nicknamed “The Killer” and “Hammerin’ Harmon” passed away. It did not matter how many home runs he hit. There was no care given to his amazing career. Death is the great equalizer. You live; you die.

Or did he? Did Lazarus? Jesus says to Martha, outside of the grave of her brother, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet he shall live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die” (John 11:25-26 ESV). Though he die, he never dies.

Jesus taught the same thing earlier in John’s gospel. In John 5:24, Jesus says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my words and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.” In John 8:51, Jesus responds to accusations by the Pharisees, “Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.”

Martha, do you believe this? Really? Are you ready for Lazarus to be raised to walk?

We Get What This Means

Mary and Martha believed in the resurrection of the dead, but they believed that it happened later, before heaven and at the judgment. Jesus wants them to look at the reality of a resurrection right now. The resurrection makes us be raised to walk differently. The Pharisees understood the implications of this teaching. “If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation” (John 11:48). From this point on, the Jewish religious leaders made specific plans on how to kill Jesus. They didn’t understand that Jesus was saying, “You cannot kill me.”

Life versus Death

The reason is that death is bigger than an event that marks the end of the body’s life. Death is what many people live every day. Since Adam’s sin, death has reigned through people on earth. The expression, “This has been a living hell,” has more truth to it than most realize. Because of death, two things dominate our lives – fear and guilt. The fear of death produces a pervasive bondage that is inescapable and unending. The condemnation of guilt shackles us to the wall, keeping us from ever touching the healing powers of life.

“Don’t you know … We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:3-4 ESV). “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:1-2 ESV).

We don’t have to live like this anymore. Was that what Jesus meant when He said, “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10 ESV)?

Raised to Walk

I remember the words from almost sixty years ago, just as clearly had it been only sixty seconds. Warren Robbins, minister of the Plainfield Christian Church, rested the head of a nine-year-old boy in the palm of his hand. Bending at his back, he lowered the quiet and still body into a pool of less than warm water. Family, friends and curious strangers gazed at the ceremony taking place behind the shadows of the church pulpit.

“Buried with Him in the likeness of His death. Raised to walk in newness of life.”

I wonder if the words rang just as loudly in the ears of Lazarus for the remainder of his earthly years. I would imagine that he clings to them even now.

“Lazarus, come forth.”

If death was all around you – close enough to touch, poignant enough to smell, etched forever into the granite of your vision  – and somehow you evaded its snare and walked away, wouldn’t you walk differently? Wouldn’t your life be filled with a humbling wonder of how and why your life continued? Could you keep your tongue from shouting your experiences to everyone who would listen? The realization that you had been raised to walk again would be an explosive, volcanic force in your life for the rest of your days.

Raised to walk in a newness of life.

A lot has changed in a year. 2020 – the year of the Corona – has been a year of a lifetime. Health scares and concerns as COVID death tolls mount, economic woes skyrocket as workers are laid off and businesses close, as well as quarantines and distancing alter how we meet. As if all this wasn’t enough, our leadership cannot put aside differences to plan a united strategy for overcoming these challenges.

 

Just as lack of sleep or intense physical exertion makes us exhausted and weary, stress, uncertainty, depression and battling the devil makes us spiritually weary. Spiritual weariness ties our spiritual, mental, emotional and even physical health into knots. The fruit of our spirits become withered and spoiled. The distance between God and man seems insurmountable. Rest is desperately needed.

 

Perhaps no one knows weariness better than God Himself. Humbly put to earth and a cross to alter the eternity of humanity, Jesus prayed to the intense level of sweating drops of blood in the garden. Grace and unconditional love allows weariness to be overcome.

 

The same God who understands being weary, teaches us extensively about rest. To a people where the culture wears busyness as a badge of honor, God urges us to breathe easier under a banner of rest. God’s heart for rest goes deeper than just a respect for the Sabbath, it teaches us the eternal value of ceasing from our labor.

 

Jesus offers an incredible invitation with the power to free the spirit and to release the burdens that we carry. “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28 NASB).

 

The world labels us by what we can do, who we know and our potential to perform. It seeks to shackle us to our past – we are who we are because of it, and we will never be able to escape it. Sounds like rhetoric spewed from the lips of the devil, doesn’t it?

 

Since the sin in the Garden, human have spent their lives trying to “work” their way back into God’s graces. Man has hoped that if he could just cultivate enough from the soil, somehow it would make up for the sin and God would be pleased. Woman hoped the same for her contribution to the toil, but also prayed the day would come when one of her children would be better than her.

 

Isaiah offered a prophetic ray of hope. “The whole earth is at rest and is quiet; they break for into shouts of joy” (Isaiah 14:7 NASB). The day would come when we would rest from thinking we could work enough to please God. He accepted us graciously.

 

Let’s train our spiritual eyesight to focus on strength for the weary, finding and understanding God’s rest by seeking His guidance from some of the Psalms.

 

 

wrangling with words

Did you ever read something in a book that made you stop and reread it? You couldn’t believe what you just read, so you were compelled to read it again, just to make sure. Words are like that. Individual words help us look beyond the big picture, in order for us to understand the nuances, meaning and application of the text.

Paul tells the Galatians, “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh” (Galatians 5:16 ESV). The word “walk” is the Greek word περιπατέω (PERI-PATEO), a compound verb that is used 95 times. The meaning is always very concise and clear.

The words together literally mean “to walk around.” The word “peri” means around and suggests the idea of encircling something. The word “pateo” means to walk. It denotes the movement of the feet, while it is often meaning a walk, it focuses on the steps and it can even mean to trample.

When the words are combined, as they are in Galatians 5:16, the word means to habitually walk around in one general vicinity. In this setting, the word is often translated “live.” The word has walked around in one region for so long that it has now become his own environment. One commentator mentioned the word could be explained by thinking the person has walked one path so many times, in such a habitual way, that he would be able to walk the path blindfolded.

One of the most powerful images of fellowship with the Father goes back to the Garden of Eden and their walk with God. From that time forward the idea of walking with someone took on deep meaning. To walk with someone is to live in fellowship and harmony with him. God can only live in a way that reflects His character. Walking with God, then, is to live according to the path that God has lined out for life, to live a life that is in obedience to Him.

In secular literature, the word περιπατέω often meant to stroll. A person who strolls is not anxious, frustrated or overwhelmed. Rather he is a person who is restful, unhurried and calm. The person who walks in the Spirit is at peace.

Notice these Scriptures that describe humans walking with God.

And after the birth of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God 300 years and fathered other sons and daughters.

These are the family records of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among his contemporaries; Noah walked with God.

Genesis 5:22; 6:9 HCSB

 I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be My people.

Leviticus 26:12 HCSB

And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you except to fear the Lord your God by walking in all His ways, to love Him, and to worship the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul?

Deuteronomy 10:12 HCSB

Only carefully obey the command and instruction that Moses the Lord’s servant gave you: to love the Lord your God, walk in all His ways, keep His commands, remain faithful to Him, and serve Him with all your heart and all your soul.

Joshua 22:5 HCSB

He said:

“Lord God of Israel, there is no God like You in heaven above or on earth below, keeping the gracious covenant with Your servants who walk before You with their whole heart.”

1 Kings 8:23 HCSB

Mankind, He has told you what is good and what it is the Lord requires of you: to act justly, to love faithfulness, and to walk humbly with your God.

Micah 6:8 HCSB

And what agreement does God’s sanctuary have with idols? For we are the sanctuary of the living God, as God said: I will dwell among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be My people.

2 Corinthians 6:16 HCSB

But you have a few people in Sardis who have not defiled their clothes, and they will walk with Me in white, because they are worthy.

Revelation 3:4 HCSB

What comes to your mind when you think of taking a walk? Is it a chore? Is it relaxing? What images does it bring up from your past? Where do you like to walk? Who do you like to walk with? What do you like to talk about?

What are the lessons that the Bible may be making when it compares life with God to walking with God?

  1. What does it mean to walk by faith and not by sight?
  2. Do you think God literally and visibly walked in the Garden, or is that symbolic?
  3. What does it mean to walk in the light?
  4. Why does the Bible describe Enoch as someone who walked with God?
Mediterranean Moments

Understanding the context of a passage places God’s truth in a human time and place. The English word “context” comes from the Latin “contextus” which means “a joining together.” The word originally meant “to weave together” in such a way that taking one thread from the others would destroy the fabric.

How does our passage of Scripture fit into the tapestry of God’s entire message to humanity?

The Bible encourages us to be together.

The author of the book of Hebrews – possibly the Apostle Paul – challenges Christians toward “not forsaking our own assembling together” (Hebrews 10:25 NASB). Holman Standard translates the phrase, “not staying away from our worship meetings” (Hebrews 10:25 HCSB). The Contemporary English Version proposes, “Some people have gotten out of the habit of meeting for worship” (Hebrews 10:25 CEV).

Being Together Means More than Being in the Building at the Same Time

At face value, preachers and teachers today have used the verse to challenge us to be in church, to attend worship and to participate in Sunday school. And Wednesday prayer meeting. And Sunday evening church. And now small groups. And now online community.

Making these applications are not wrong – but are relatively shallow. You have heard preachers and teachers admonishing you to examine the context of a verse of Scripture. Often we teach context means what comes before and what comes after the passage. It does, but context means so much more. For a more thorough understanding of context, see our helpful article on context.

Mediterranean Context

This section of our studies in called “Mediterranean Moments” to help us understand that context is a picture as big as the Mediterranean Sea and the culture it contains. Context included the historical setting – what was going on in the communities around the Mediterranean at the time the book was written. Context also includes the literary background of the passage – is the passage a record of history, is it poetry (remember Hebrew poetry is different than American poetry), or is it anyone of a number of other literary conventions?

A third area of context is theology. Many passages of Scripture teach us about God and about what is involved in having a relationship with Him. Doctrine falls into a category all itself. It is a jargon – technical talk that is only used and understood by a select group of people. There is nothing wrong with jargon. Most of us have those kind of words in our vocabulary that not everyone else understands. Medical professionals have a jargon. Attorneys have a jargon. There is even a jargon for the members of your family. Christians have a jargon.

Context and You

Finally, the context of the Bible involves you. The meaning of a passage of Scripture is critically tied to how it applies to you today. The context of the Bible involves the culture of the time in which it was written, but it involves the culture today because it speaks to the times today. Paul was unaware of the COVID pandemic when he penned the book of Philippians. If Jesus is the same “yesterday, today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8), then the context must include how it applies to the COVID crisis.

The danger in my writing those words and you reading them is that it seems very subjective. The meaning of the Bible cannot be totally dependent upon what it means to you. The absolute nature of an unchanging God prohibits that. But the context of a passage of the Bible must blend the other three things. To focus only on one of these four critical areas of context and ignore the others does the Bible a disservice.

Fellowship and Together

The historical context of fellowship and assembling together does not include “going to church.” Church buildings were non-existent for the first century church. The first Christian church building recorded was a house church founded sometime between 233 and 256. But it wasn’t until the 11th through the 14th centuries when Western Europe saw a mass emphasis toward church construction.

How did Paul stay connected with all the churches he started throughout the Mediterranean world? Can we learn lessons from Paul’s methods that would help us in today’s culture?

“Promises to Obey – assembling a ‘to do’ list,” from the lesson series, Return from Babylon | scattered & gathered, June 2020

 

 

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our Scripture

Because of all this we make a firm covenant in writing; on the sealed document are the names of our princes, our Levites, and our priests.

28 “The rest of the people, the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, the temple servants, and all who have separated themselves from the peoples of the lands to the Law of God, their wives, their sons, their daughters, all who have knowledge and understanding, 29 join with their brothers, their nobles, and enter into a curse and an oath to walk in God’s Law that was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of the Lord our Lord and his rules and his statutes.

We obligate ourselves to bring the first fruits of our ground and the first fruits of all fruit of every tree, year by year, to the house of the Lord (ESV);

 

New American Standard Bible: Nehemiah 9:38 NASB, Nehemiah 10:28-29 NASB, Nehemiah 10:35 NASB

New International Version: Nehemiah 9:38 NIV, Nehemiah 10:28-29 NIV, Nehemiah 10:35 NIV

The Message: Nehemiah 9:38 MESSAGE, Nehemiah 10:28-29 MESSAGE, Nehemiah 10:35 MESSAGE

New Living Translation: Nehemiah 9:38 NLT, Nehemiah 10:28-29 NLT, Nehemiah 10:35 NLT

 

our lesson

Do you keep or break promises? If you break them, you are certainly not alone. We have all broken promises before – to our family, our friends and to God. Broken promises have a disastrous effect on our relationships with others and within ourselves.

Enjoy a one page summary of the lesson. You can print copies for use with your group.

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[su_pullquote align=”right”]Points to Ponder

1) How do you feel when someone breaks a promise to you? What does it do to the relationship that you have with the person?

2) Sometimes promises are broken for legitimate reasons. When this happens, how do you explain that you will do your best to not let it happen again? How can you best ask for forgiveness?

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why do we break promises

So why do we continue to break promises? First, most people begin with good intentions. We want to please the people that we know and love. We want to do a good job at work or school. While there are some people who intentionally mislead others, most just aren’t able to follow through.

Second, we make our promises based on what our “best self” would do in the circumstance. But our “best self” is rarely at work in keeping the promise. Begin today to work toward keeping your word. If remembering is a problem, find some high tech ways to be reminded of the actions that are needed. Explore the reasons behind why you have difficulties keeping your word.

[su_pullquote]Verse to Memorize

For all the promises of God find their “Yes” in Him. That is why it is through Him that we utter our Amen to God for His glory (2 Corinthians 1:20 ESV). [/su_pullquote]

promises to Nehemiah

For Nehemiah, the people of faith signed a covenant to live their lives with God. First they agreed to walk with God. Henry Ford once said, “Those who walk with God always reach their destination.”

 

[su_pullquote align=”right”]Words to Wrangle

The people of God are called out to be a people who are different than the world. We are a part of the covenant between God and man. The idea of the covenant was a written affirmation of the verbal agreement. The signatures of both parties made the agreement legally binding. Have you entered into such a covenant with God? Have you thought about writing down what you agree to keep as a part of your covenant? [/su_pullquote]

 

Next they promised to observe all the commandments of the Lord. Don’t you love how Nehemiah writes the phrase “the commandments of the Lord, our Lord?” We see things all the time, but there are times when we pay attention and times that we don’t. There are times we see God as almost impersonal – away from us, perhaps watching, reigning from afar. But there are times when we understand it is personal – this is our God, He is concerned with my welfare. He wants me to succeed.

Finally, the people pledged to obey. It takes more than observation of God’s ways, it takes actually doing what He asks. The word implies being compelled by a legal or moral duty, but it is actually a term used in biology.We need to obey because it is our very nature.

pledging to God

[su_pullquote align=”right”]Conclusions to Consider

1) A primary truth in this lesson is we keep our promises because of the certainty of God’s promises. Make a list of promises that God has made and how you recognize they were kept and fulfilled? Can you share one example of how God has kept a promise to you?

2) We can trust God, no matter the circumstance, because God always keeps His promises. Would you agree or disagree? Why? Do we really believe that statement?

3) We are participants in the new covenant with God. In what ways have you put your signature on the dotted line of the contract? [/su_pullquote]

 

It describes something that is restricted to a particular function because of its purpose and design. The lungs are made to breathe air, not water. We are obligated to be faithful and obedient to God by design.

 

The declaration is made by the entire company of people,  filling in the blanks that are implied  in Nehemiah 9:38. Everyone, from the oldest down to the youngest who could understand, was standing before God and sharing in this oath. They reinforced the oath with a curse, in essence calling down disaster if they should go back on their word.

 

 

Return from Babylon: Lesson Four
 sub-lessons
Want to take your study to a deeper level? The images to the right represent ten “sub-lessons,” each supporting the theme in today’s lesson.
Click on an image and you will be taken to another page of content. Pick as many as you like. If you have a small group that meets two weeks apart, there is a study for each week day.

 

wrangling with words

Did you ever read something in a book or printed page that made you stop and reread it? It hit you and it was almost like you couldn’t believe what your eyes read? Perhaps it was a statistic that was so astonishing. Maybe it was a quotation that you couldn’t believe so-and-so said that!  So you were compelled to read it again, just to make sure. Instead of looking just to comprehend the big picture, you looked closely at each word to find nuances and meaning.

You read it again and paused. You noticed. And thought. And nodded. And you understood.

It means more when we put our name in writing, doesn’t it? Do you remember the first contract you signed to buy a car or a house? Your signature meant your promise. I am really going to do this. There is responsibility in owning this property. It needs maintenance. I will sacrifice and make the required payments.

Because of how the people felt, because of the impact of the Law on their lives, the people wanted to commit to a certain type of behavior. Such a commitment needed to be written.

The term “covenant” is technically not in the text. The Hebrew word used describes “a firm promise” (see also Nehemiah 11:23). But the verb translated “make” is “to cut” which has huge connections to the concept of “covenant-making.”

Notice who signed the contract. Verses two through eight list twenty-one names of priests, although at least fifteen of them appear to be family names. This would explain the absence of Ezra’s name. These names are followed by the names of Levites and “chiefs of the people.”

Contracts and laws are designed to make sure people do what they are supposed to do – that they don’t forget or allow themselves to stray. The speed limit here is 65mph. There is a law that stops discrimination against people, to make sure that people are treated fairly and equally.

The Torah – the Law of Moses – did that for the people. But God longed for the day when the Law didn’t have to be written down, instead it would be written on man’s heart (Jeremiah 31:33, Ezekiel 36:26, Psalm 51:10). The Hebrew writer affirms that the day has arrived through Jesus Christ (Hebrews 8:10). 

 

Click on this image to return to the main page for Lesson Four: Promises to Obey

Mediterranean Moments

Understanding the context in which a passage from the Bible is written is important because it helps prevent wrong interpretations, which would result in bad theology and confusion. The [popup_anything id=”3076″] provides the complete meaning of Scripture as it is studied. The English word “context” was developed in the early 1400’s meaning a composition, a chronicle, the entire text of a writing. It comes from the Latin contextus which means “a joining together” The word was originally used “to weave together” in such a way that taking one thread from the others would destroy the fabric.

How does Nehemiah 8:2-8 fit into the tapestry of God’s entire message to humanity?

The government dictates our behavior by passing laws that support equality amidst diversity. But a law of the government cannot change the heart. Taking God out of society has emasculated the power from the law.

Are there practical things we can do to make sure we can keep our word? Does it help to know that all of God’s promises are “Yes” in Christ? Here are some important lessons to be found in the continuing story of Nehemiah.

The last verse of chapter nine prompts us to summarize the last lesson and to look forward to the events and activities of this lesson.

“Because of all this . . .”

Consider for a moment the scene painted in the earlier verses of chapter nine. The phrase “all the people gathered as one man” into the square is identical to Ezra 3:1, which also refers to an assembly on the first day of the seventh month. The object of the meeting in Ezra was to restore the altar of burnt offerings and sacrificial worship. This was key to the entire structure of Jewish worship, from daily activities to annual festivals.

The men and women who were gathered were people “who could understand what they heard” when the Torah was read. Ezra read the Law while standing on a raised platform that had been constructed for the event. Pomp and circumstance were a part of the ceremony. It is quite possible that the books read were not only the Torah, but also the Prophets and the other Writings. This would be practically the entire Old Testament which we know today. The reading lasted from early morning until midday.

The people bowed their heads as the Scripture was read and placed their faces on the ground. We are even told that the people wept as they heard the words of the Law. Because of this, the people responded.

We have separated ourselves from the people of the land

Verse 28 is telling. The rest of the people signed the contract as well. This was not just the decisions of the religious leaders or the government. The rest of the people – along with their wives, sons, daughters and all who have knowledge and understanding – joined in the contract.

The people of faith were called to be different than the people of the world. Peter tells us that “you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His own possession, that you may proclaim the excellence of Him who called you out of darkness and into His marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy” (1 Peter 2:9-10 ESV).

The people agreed they would be different than the world. They would keep themselves separate. They would not marry with those outside their faith. They would not dabble with the religious philosophies of others. In the world, but not of it. The idea is consistent with biblical teaching, even if it isn’t a direct quote.

The people … enter an oath

The declaration is made by the entire company of people, filling in the blanks that are implied in Nehemiah 9:38. Everyone, from the oldest down to the youngest who could understand, was standing before God and sharing in this oath. They reinforced the oath with a curse, in essence calling down disaster if they should go back on their word.

They agreed …

To Walk

We often speak of the life of faith as “walking with God.” Henry Ford once said, “Those who walk with God always reach their destination.” Leonard Ravenhill claimed, “Smart men walked on the moon, daring men walked on the ocean floor, but wise men walk with God.”

The people of faith signed a covenant to live their lives with God. This certainly affirmed the teachings of both the Old Testament (Micah 6:8, Deuteronomy 8:6, 2 Chronicles 7:17-18, Genesis 5:21-24, Genesis 6:8-9) and the New Testament (John 8:12, Romans 13:13, Ephesians 2:10, 1 John 2:6, 1 John 1:6-7, Galatians 5:16).

William Ritter once said, I recently found 382 biblical references to various forms of the word “walk.” There are a multitude of references that suggest how we are supposed to walk as Christians: walk in love; walk in wisdom; walk in the light; walk in the path; walk in the Spirit; walk in the law of the Lord; walk in the way of the Lord; walk in the fear of the Lord; walk in the peace of the Lord; walk honestly, forthrightly, courageously, worthily and humbly.

To Observe …

They were agreeing to observe and do all the commandments of the Lord. Don’t you love how Nehemiah writes the phrase “the commandments of the Lord our Lord?” We see things all the time, but there are times when we pay attention and times that we don’t.

“I am sorry officer. I didn’t see the speed limit sign.” We may have “seen” it – we just didn’t pay attention to what the limit was, or we understood what it was and we just didn’t heed the command.

And Do

So the people pledged to observe – to always know what the Lord wanted accomplished. Then they pledged to obey, to actually do what the Law had said. Verse 35 uses the word translated “obligate.” We take on ourselves the obligation (Nehemiah 10:32). We obligate ourselves (Nehemiah 10:35). The word implies being compelled by a legal or moral duty, but it is actually a term used in biology. It describes something that is restricted to a particular function because of its purpose and design. The lungs are made to breathe air, not water. We are obligated to be faithful and obedient to God by design.

It is interesting that a part of the obligation they accepted was to take care of the Lord’s work in the Temple, for the service of the house and for the care of the people who officiated.

I raise my Ebenezer. I will obey. I promise.

 

Click on this image to return to the main page for Lesson Four: Promises to Obey

 

wrangling with words

Did you ever read something in a book or printed page that made you stop and reread it? It hit you and it was almost like you couldn’t believe what your eyes read? Perhaps it was a statistic that was so astonishing. Maybe it was a quotation that you couldn’t believe so-and-so said that!  So you were compelled to read it again, just to make sure. Instead of looking just to comprehend the big picture, you looked closely at each word to find nuances and meaning.

You read it again and paused. You noticed. And thought. And nodded. And you understood.

Jesus taught the importance of celebrating. The Master loved to tell stories. You would have been spell-bound to listen to Him because He had a knack for taking the most profound spiritual truths or doctrines and make them as simple as learning to throw seeds in the garden or baking a loaf of bread. A story – an object lesson – used to tell a spiritual truth is called a parable. About a third of His teaching used parables, and depending on how you count, Jesus told about forty different parables.

He speaks in parables because not everyone wants to hear. He used parables so that the hearts of those rejecting His words would not be hardened further. The same sun that softens the wax hardens the clay. The same gospel that humbles the heart of the honest seeker hardens the heart of the one who is clinging to their path of disobedience.

William Barclay wrote, “The parable conceals truth from those who are either too lazy or too blinded by prejudice to see. It reveals truth to him who desires truth; it conceals truth from him who does not wish to see the truth.” D.A. Carson states, “the parables spoke to the crowds do not simply convey information nor mask it, but challenge the hearers.”

Understanding parables

The term “parable” is a transliteration of the Greek word parabole (parah-bow-lay). The word means “to throw alongside.” A parable throws one idea alongside another for the purpose of providing a better explanation. The story in a parable illustrates and illuminates basic ideas and is not meant to have an “item-by-item” explanation for each detail, but rather a larger picture painted on the canvas.

The word starts with the Greek preposition “para.” It literally means alongside, but it stresses a nearness, a closeness or a relationship that is often not expressed in translation. It implies an intimate relationship, something that actually changes the nature of the two when separate and individual.

Let me give you an example. I might call your attention to “peanut butter alongside jelly.” We could be picturing a jar of peanut butter and a jar of jelly sitting next to one another on the kitchen cabinet or on the shelf at the grocery. But if the word “para” was used to describe “alongside” we would not think of the peanut butter and the jelly as separate, but instead we would think of them as already intermingled, as in a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

We bring the word “para” straight into the English on so many occasions. We often speak of a parachute, paradigm, paragraph, paralegal, paralysis, parameter, or paradox.

My two sons

The fifteenth chapter of Luke (Luke 15:1-31 ESV) describes an interesting point in the earthly ministry of Jesus. In the midst of intense criticism from Jewish religious leaders regarding His practice of eating with characters of ill-repute, Jesus tells three stories. The imagery wrestles your attention away from any other direction.

Do any of you have sheep? There was a woman who had coins. Once a man had sons. Everyone can relate to these stories. Haven’t we all had a pet that got off the leash and wandered away? Is there anyone among us that hasn’t misplaced our keys or our cell phone? Could there be a parent whose child never made a bad decision?

I finally found it! It was in the last place I looked! He came to his senses and it all worked out.

All three of the stories have similar circumstances. The stories all teach similar lessons. And all three stories end the same way: we call friends and neighbors and say, “Let’s celebrate! I found what I lost!”