The Danger of Compromise

Readings for today: Nehemiah 12-13, Psalms 52

It usually starts small. A tiny step. A shift of one degree. One little compromise. We justify it in all sorts of ways. Surely God will understand. Surely God will make an exception this one time. Surely God knows we aren’t perfect. But then the compromises keep coming. A tiny step turns into several larger steps. One degree turns into two degrees then three. One little compromise opens the door to other, more significant compromises and the next thing we know, we are in full rebellion against God’s commands.

The last chapter of Nehemiah details a list of reforms he instituted for the people of Israel. It’s a startling way to end a book. No “happily ever after.” No “riding off into the sunset” for Nehemiah. His story ends in conflict. His story ends in confrontation. He even loses his temper and starts beating people and tearing out their hair! All this coming after an amazing time of worship where the entire population of Jerusalem gathered to sing the praises of God.

It is so easy for us to compromise. So easy for us to slide back into old habits. Someone once told me that humanity’s ability to sin is only surpassed by her ability to justify her sin. I believe it. I see it in my own life. The people of God compromised in all sorts of ways. They allowed people of foreign descent, people who worshipped other gods, to join them in worship at the Temple. For the sake of political expediency, they gave Tobiah - one of their sworn enemies - his own room in the Temple. They neglected to care for the Levites and other Temple servants by refusing to tithe, forcing them to fend for themselves. They refused to honor the Sabbath. They married foreign women. Their spiritual leaders desecrated their priestly office by intermarrying with those who did not worship Yahweh. In each case, I can almost hear the justifications. I can imagine the rationale. Our wives promised to put away their foreign gods! We’re trying to rebuild our lives and local economy and have to work on the Sabbath! If we give Tobiah a place of honor, perhaps he’ll leave us alone. From a human perspective, it all makes sense.

If I am honest, I too fall into these same traps. It’s easy for me to justify neglecting my time with God. It’s easy for me to attend worship on Sunday mornings and make it all about me and what I get out of it. It’s easy for me to justify working 24/7 without ever taking a break. It’s easy for me to give in to certain people in my life simply to avoid conflict. It’s easy for me to compromise my convictions for the sake of those I love. Frankly, it never ends well. Eventually all the little compromises I make start to stack up along the way, creating a burden far too heavy for me to bear. Eventually, the house of cards I build comes crashing down around me, leaving me far worse off than I could have imagined. God demands my obedience. Jesus Himself says, “If you love Me, you will obey My commands.” Following Christ is not easy. Following Christ requires great sacrifice. Following Christ means dying to “Self” with all its disordered desires and unrestrained passions.

Readings for tomorrow: Esther 1-5, Psalms 53

Step of Faith

Readings for today: Nehemiah 10-11, Psalms 51

There’s a little story in today’s reading that’s often overlooked. It’s lost in the middle of the mess of Israel’s national sin and their massive celebration at the dedication of the wall. It’s just two lines but the significance is huge. “Now the leaders of the people stayed in Jerusalem, and the rest of the people cast lots for one out of ten to come and live in Jerusalem, the holy city, while the other nine-tenths remained in their towns. The people blessed all the men who volunteered to live in Jerusalem.” (Nehemiah‬ ‭11‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭CSB‬‬) Why is this a big deal? Well, when you think about it, living in Jerusalem at this particular time, under these particular conditions, meant placing yourself in significant danger. The city was well-known to be a threat in the region. The different tribal groups surrounding Israel had already tried to stop the city from being rebuilt. Even with a new wall, it would take a while for the city to regain her fighting strength. Furthermore, basic services were non-existent and the entire local economy would have to be rebuilt. It wasn’t going to be easy work. It would be much more comfortable to live out in the villages where you could cultivate your own land. Those living in Jerusalem would have to be dependent on food supplies coming in from the countryside, all of which could easily be disrupted by their enemies. So the men who volunteered to live in Jerusalem were risking their very lives. It must have been a huge step of faith.

God doesn’t call us to be comfortable. The life He calls us to live requires self-denial, picking up a cross, and intentionally walking by faith, not by sight. Jesus himself says that anyone who would come after Him would have to lose their life in order to gain it. The people in the Bible face all kinds of challenges. Temptation is everywhere. Life is incredibly hard. They were subject to the same fears and anxieties that we struggle with as well. But they learned to trust God. Not perfectly. Not always faithfully. But on balance, their lives reflected a long obedience in the same direction. I love how one author - I think it was either Tolstoy or Dostoevsky - described the Christian life. “It’s like a drunk man stumbling from one side of the road to the other.” As crazy as it can get and as often as we fail, at least we are on the right road.

When was the last time you took a great risk for God? When was the last time God called you to do something uncomfortable, something challenging, something beyond you? When was the last time following Christ cost you something? Time? Opportunity? Some of your hard earned treasure? When was the last time you took a step of faith?

Readings for tomorrow: Nehemiah 12-13, Psalms 52

The Power of Corporate Worship

Readings for today: Nehemiah 7-9, Psalms 50

I remember attending a men’s conference when I first became a Christian. Tens of thousands of men gathered together to sing and pray and hear some of the best preachers in the world at the time. They came from every tribe, tongue, and nation. They come from every ethnicity and socio-economic class. They came from every denominational background and church experience. Worshipping in that environment was one of the most powerful experiences of my life and I will never forget it.

Human beings are worshipping creatures. Our earliest records from the prehistoric cave paintings in places like Spain and France to the depictions on walls of temples and palaces to the written accounts we have from the ancient world show how important worship has been to the human race. There is something deep inside that seeks transcendence. Something within that is drawn to contemplate eternity. One of my favorite professors at Princeton, a leading intellectual in the science and religion debate, believed this was one of the features that made Homo Sapiens unique. We seem to be hardwired for worship.

We see this on display in our reading today. All of the families who have returned from exile in Babylon gather in Jerusalem, within the safety of her newly rebuilt walls, to worship. And what is at the center of their worship experience? The reading and preaching of the Word of God. What we read today is one of the main reasons the church still centers her worshipping life largely around preaching. We believe the “foolishness of preaching” is the primary vehicle God has ordained to advance His Kingdom here on earth. For days, the people of Israel listened to Ezra read the Law. They celebrated as it was interpreted by their leaders for their understanding. They feasted and prayed and sang together. It must have been Woodstock on steroids!

Now reflect on your own worshipping experience. How do you feel when you gather with God’s people? How much do you participate or do you find yourself holding back? When the songs are sung and the prayers are prayed, are you part of it? Or do you consider yourself to be more of a spectator? And what about when the Word of God is read and proclaimed? Do you find yourself hungering and thirsting for more? Or does it barely make a mark? The most important thing you can do as a Christian is come to worship fully prepared to engage. The more you give yourself to the experience, the more you will get out of it. Furthermore, you will find yourself influencing those around you to join in as well. And the more God’s people get engaged, the more the Spirit moves, transforming and changing hearts, and lifting us up into the Lord’s very presence where there is an abundance of joy.

Readings for tomorrow: Nehemiah 10-11, Psalms 51

Social Justice

Readings for today: Nehemiah 4-6, Psalms 49

God clearly cares about justice. Justice for the fatherless. Justice for the widow. Justice for the poor and marginalized in human society. These themes show up over and over again throughout the Scriptures. God cares about how we treat each other. He cares about the systems we use to set up our communities. God cares about the laws we pass to govern our towns, cities, states, and nations. If you had any doubt about that before today, our reading from Nehemiah should settle it for you.

Nehemiah was the governor of Judea. He was charged not only with rebuilding the wall around Jerusalem but also rebuilding Jewish society in an area that was overrun with people from all sorts of different tribal backgrounds. These people did not share the same convictions as the Jews. They did not have access to God’s Law. They were not part of God’s covenantal people. But the problem Nehemiah ran into was not with the pagan people already living in the land. The problem was with God’s people who had returned. They quickly built a society where it was every person for themselves. Those who were rich got richer. Those who were poor got poorer. They were charging interest, something expressly forbidden by God’s Law, and even selling their fellow countrymen into slavery. Considering their history of slavery in Egypt, Nehemiah must have felt like he was living in the Twilight Zone.

Thankfully, Nehemiah was a bold and godly leader. He understood sin must be confronted on both a personal as well as systemic level. Listen again to how he handled the situation. “There was a widespread outcry from the people and their wives against their Jewish countrymen. Some were saying, “We, our sons, and our daughters are numerous. Let us get grain so that we can eat and live.” Others were saying, “We are mortgaging our fields, vineyards, and homes to get grain during the famine.” Still others were saying, “We have borrowed money to pay the king’s tax on our fields and vineyards. We and our children are just like our countrymen and their children, yet we are subjecting our sons and daughters to slavery. Some of our daughters are already enslaved, but we are powerless because our fields and vineyards belong to others.” I became extremely angry when I heard their outcry and these complaints. After seriously considering the matter, I accused the nobles and officials, saying to them, “Each of you is charging his countrymen interest.” So I called a large assembly against them and said, “We have done our best to buy back our Jewish countrymen who were sold to foreigners, but now you sell your own countrymen, and we have to buy them back.” They remained silent and could not say a word. Then I said, “What you are doing isn’t right. Shouldn’t you walk in the fear of our God and not invite the reproach of our foreign enemies? Even I, as well as my brothers and my servants, have been lending them money and grain. Please, let’s stop charging this interest. Return their fields, vineyards, olive groves, and houses to them immediately, along with the percentage of the money, grain, new wine, and fresh oil that you have been assessing them.” They responded, “We will return these things and require nothing more from them. We will do as you say.” (Nehemiah‬ ‭5‬:‭1‬-‭12‬ ‭CSB‬‬) It’s important to note Nehemiah not only confronts those who are perpetrating the sin, he sets up systems that will govern the region far into the future. God’s people will not be sold into slavery. God’s people will not charge each other interest. God’s people will re-distribute their wealth to care for the poor.

It’s a challenging read for us. The cultural gap between an ancient near east empire and a 21st century, capitalist democracy is massive and yet the principles remain the same. We too need to grapple with our personal responsibility for the sinful choices we make. We need to own where we have failed. Where we have allowed greed and selfishness and envy and jealousy to cause us sin against our brothers and sisters. We also need to grapple with the systems we’ve created that perpetuate injustice. Systems that may privilege the rich over the poor. Privilege the strong over the weak. Privilege those with influence over those who are shut out of the system for whatever reason. It’s a “both/and” and not an “either/or.” Most of all, we need to follow Nehemiah’s example and confront sin wherever it may be found so we root it out and live as God has called us to live.

Readings for tomorrow: Nehemiah 7-9, Psalms 50

Finishing Strong

Readings for today: Nehemiah 11-13, Psalm 126

There’s nothing better than accomplishing a great task for God. It could be the planting of a new church. Building a new church building. Launching an evangelistic crusade. Starting a medical clinic in an impoverished area. There’s nothing better than stepping out in faith, risking it all for the sake of God’s mission, and then seeing your hard work bear Kingdom fruit. I’ve seen it in the church I am privileged to serve. Every time God challenges us to take on a monumental task, our church family has responded and our faith in Christ has grown. We’ve planted new churches around the world. We’ve launched a new local mental health clinic. We paid off all our debt. We launched a highly successful Alpha program to reach new believers. The list goes on and on and every time we hit a milestone, we celebrate. Just like the nation of Israel did when they finally completed the wall.

Completing the wall would have meant so much to the people of Israel. First and foremost, it would have pointed them to the faithfulness of God. God is the one who made this happen. God is the one who laid it on the heart of Nehemiah to build the wall. God is the one who moved the heart of the emperor to provide materials and resources. God is the one who protected them from their enemies along the way. Second, completing the wall would’ve signified safety and security. Now the people could build their homes and businesses without fear. Now they could begin to plan for their future. Now they could rebuild their city and reclaim their national identity. Thirdly, completing the wall would have sent a signal to all their enemies. No longer would Israel be a doormat. No longer would they be an easy mark. No longer would they be at their mercy. The wall was a powerful symbol in addition to being a physical monument.

Now consider your own life. Consider the great things God has called you to. Consider the great plans God has for you. Consider all God wants to accomplish through you. Does anything come to mind? Can you look back and see some of the milestones you’ve hit along the way? If not, I encourage you to seek the Lord. Ask Him to show you what He wants you to do for Him. All of us have a calling on our life. All of us have a God-sized plan for our life. Something only God Himself can accomplish in and through us. Perhaps you know what God wants you to do but you’ve hesitated to take that step of faith. Don’t hold back! Don’t wait any longer! Step into the future God has for you! Perhaps you find yourself right in the middle of God’s plan. Perhaps you’re feeling stretched beyond your resources. Perhaps you’re coming to the end of your strength. These can be great signs that you are right where God wants you. Keep pressing in. Keep wading in. Keep it going. God is with you! He who began this great work in and through you will bring it to completion!

Readings for tomorrow: Psalm 106, John 1:4-14

The Power of God’s Word

Readings for today: Nehemiah 8-10

A friend of mine asked me a great question the other day, “Why do Christians preach?” Why not just feed the hungry, care for the sick, or lift up the poor? Why not just engage in good works across the world and let those things stand for themselves? Why not gather week after week to sing which is far more participatory than listening to one person speak for 30 minutes or more? Why not prep videos and encourage smaller groups of people to study the Bible together so you can focus on fellowship on Sunday mornings? When you think about it, there are so many other things we could organize our life around as Christians and yet preaching has always been an essential part of what we gather to do.

God’s Word is powerful. It is no ordinary book. These aren’t just everyday stories. They are not just words on a page. There is power in God’s Word and when it is preached that power becomes available to us. It convicts us of sin. It lifts up our hearts. It connects us with God Himself for this is His Word to us. We see this on display in our passage from Nehemiah today. Ezra is asked to preach the Word of God. To read the Revelation of God to His people and revival breaks out. The people of God are convicted to the core and they respond by recommitting themselves in faith to the Lord. It’s a powerful reminder of what happens when God’s people come with an eagerness to hear God’s Word and an openness to God’s Spirit. Listen again to how Nehemiah describes it…

“So Ezra the priest brought The Revelation to the congregation, which was made up of both men and women—everyone capable of understanding. It was the first day of the seventh month. He read it facing the town square at the Water Gate from early dawn until noon in the hearing of the men and women, all who could understand it. And all the people listened—they were all ears—to the Book of The Revelation. The scholar Ezra stood on a wooden platform constructed for the occasion. He was flanked on the right by Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah, and on the left by Pedaiah, Mishael, Malkijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam. Ezra opened the book. Every eye was on him (he was standing on the raised platform) and as he opened the book everyone stood. Then Ezra praised God, the great God, and all the people responded, “Oh Yes! Yes!” with hands raised high. And then they fell to their knees in worship of God, their faces to the ground…On the second day of the month the family heads of all the people, the priests, and the Levites gathered around Ezra the scholar to get a deeper understanding of the words of The Revelation. They found written in The Revelation that God commanded through Moses that the People of Israel are to live in booths during the festival of the seventh month. So they published this decree and had it posted in all their cities and in Jerusalem: “Go into the hills and collect olive branches, pine branches, myrtle branches, palm branches, and any other leafy branches to make booths, as it is written…Ezra read from the Book of The Revelation of God each day, from the first to the last day—they celebrated the feast for seven days. On the eighth day they held a solemn assembly in accordance with the decree.” (Nehemiah‬ ‭8‬:‭2‬-‭6‬, ‭13‬-‭15‬, ‭18‬ ‭MSG‬‬)

We are a spiritually hungry people. The problem is we seek to satisfy that hunger and quench our deep, spiritual thirst with all the wrong things. We turn to social media, the latest fads or trends, money, exotic vacations, even mission tourism to try to find significance and satisfaction and a sense of purpose and meaning. Sometimes these things help but they provide temporary relief at best. What we need is to hear from God. What we need is a Word from the Lord. What we need is to sit under His teaching day after day, week after week, so we might better understand Him and how He made us and what His plans are for us. This is why we preach. This is why we teach. This is why God’s Word is at the center of Christian worship.

Readings for tomorrow: None

Corporate Sin and Confession

Readings for today: Nehemiah 1-4

The Bible makes it clear that sin is both individual and corporate. There are the sins I commit on a daily basis by the way I think, the way I speak, and the way I act. I am fully responsible for those sins and must confess them before a holy God so that I might receive forgiveness. But then there are the sins that I participate in - wittingly or unwittingly - that arise out of the “systems” in which I am embedded as a human being. For example, I am part of a family system. I have a spouse and children and I come from a family of origin that can often create all kinds of issues. So much of the counseling work I’ve done personally and professionally with others is focused on helping identify the generational sins that get passed down and how to break those patterns before they repeat themselves. In addition to a family system, I am part of a local social system in my community. We somewhat affectionately call it the “Parker bubble” and it impacts the way I think about life in both good and bad ways. I am also part of a political and economic system in the United States that frames my thinking both positively and negatively. And the list goes on and on. As a participant in these systems, I am at least partially responsible for propping up the system by the way I vote, spend money, participate and/or not participate in civic activities, etc. And therefore it is fully appropriate for me to confess the ways in which I contribute to a sinful, broken system and ask for forgiveness. This, by the way, is exactly what Nehemiah does in our passage for today.

“I said, “God, God-of-Heaven, the great and awesome God, loyal to his covenant and faithful to those who love him and obey his commands: Look at me, listen to me. Pay attention to this prayer of your servant that I’m praying day and night in intercession for your servants, the People of Israel, confessing the sins of the People of Israel. And I’m including myself, I and my ancestors, among those who have sinned against you. We’ve treated you like dirt: We haven’t done what you told us, haven’t followed your commands, and haven’t respected the decisions you gave to Moses your servant. All the same, remember the warning you posted to your servant Moses: ‘If you betray me, I’ll scatter you to the four winds, but if you come back to me and do what I tell you, I’ll gather up all these scattered peoples from wherever they ended up and put them back in the place I chose to mark with my Name.’” (Nehemiah‬ ‭1‬:‭5‬-‭9‬ ‭MSG‬‬)

Clearly, Nehemiah wasn’t personally responsible for the sins of his people. He wasn’t around when they rebelled against God and were exiled. He is generations removed from when the people followed Moses out of Egypt and into the wilderness. He isn’t even living in Jerusalem and participating in the current sins being committed by God’s people which we read about in Ezra. He’s in Babylon. He’s answered God’s call on his life to serve the king faithfully as cupbearer. He’s clearly got a tender heart for his people and conditions they find themselves living in. His heart is broken for the things that break God’s heart. He’s open to being used by God to change those conditions. Why then does he feel the need to confess? Why does he feel the need to confess the “sins of the People of Israel?” Nehemiah understands that sin has both an individual as well as corporate dimension. He understands he is personally responsible for his own sinful thoughts, attitudes, and actions AND he is responsible for participating in a communal system - the nation of Israel - that has collectively rebelled against God’s authority. He is not an island unto himself. In fact, Nehemiah probably didn’t think of himself as an individual first and part of a community second. Most people throughout history and even around the world today think far more communally than individualistically about life. And this is why he intercedes not just for himself but for his people.

What about us? How do you think about sin? When you spend time in confession before the Lord, do you include a confession of corporate sin? Perhaps it’s the sin of your family system going back generations that continues to have a ripple effect in your life today. Perhaps it’s the sin of your church family or your local community or our country. All of us are impacted by the sinful systems of the world around us and all of us participate and contribute to the perpetuation of those systems in some way, shape, or form. This is our confessional prayers must include both individual and corporate dimensions and thankfully God is faithful and just to forgive individuals but entire communities and people groups as well.

Readings for tomorrow: Nehemiah 5-7