Mon.’s Devo - Our Walls and Gates

Read: Nehemiah 1:1-3:14, 1 Co. 7:1-24, Ps. 31:19-24, Pr. 21:4 Today we begin Nehemiah which is a continuation of Ezra, but both books span 110 years. It started with the rebuilding of the temple under Zerubbabel which lasted twenty-one years. Sixty years later, Ezra brought revival and restored correct temple worship. Nehemiah began thirteen years later when he learned that the walls had been torn down and the gates burned. He repented for the nation and remembered the promises of God about what happens when God’s people rebel and what happens when they repent. Nehemiah was king Artaxerxes’ cup bearer which meant that everyday he laid down his life for the king. The job of the cup bearer is to sip the king’s wine before he does to see if it is poisoned. If it is, he would die and the king’s life would be spared. On the day he learns of the condition of Jerusalem he is sad and the king notices and asks why. God used his favor with the king to supply him with everything he would need to return and rebuild the walls and gates. His adversary was Sanballat which means “hatred in secret”. He didn’t look too secret to me. He openly scorned Nehemiah’s plan to rebuild. Nehemiah divided the wall and gates and distributed the parts to different groups. If this temple represents us then the walls are our fortification to protect the Holy Spirit in us from being stolen by the world’s influence. The gates represent our ears, eyes, mouth, pores, etc. These are openings that allow information to come in and out. We must regulate what we allow in and out of these gates. We are not to grieve the Holy Spirit with evil things. Lord, may we build our walls and fortify our gates to honor the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives.