The Hebrew slaves in Egypt were suffering miserably. They cried out to God, and he rescued them (Exod. 15:2-3). We are in slavery too, slavery to sin.
Nehemiah and his people were rebuilding the broken city wall of Jerusalem. The work was half done. But the workers were exhausted (Neh. 4:10). How did they find the strength to finish—and in record time?
The Lord teaches children to obey and honor their parents (Eph. 6:1-3). Why? Isn’t it true that moms and dads sometimes make foolish mistakes?
Do you ever wonder how different your life would be if some momentous thing had never happened? For instance, what if your children had never been born? In his first letter to the church at Corinth, Paul asks us to consider what it would mean if Christ hadn’t risen from the dead (1 Cor. 15:12-20).
Mark 13:32-37 32 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is. 34 It is like a man going to a far country, who left his house…
1 Peter 3:1-6 3 Wives, likewise, be submissive to your own husbands, that even if some do not obey the word, they, without a word, may be won by the conduct of their wives, 2 when they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear. 3 Do not let your adornment be merely outward—arranging the hair,…
“Be filled with the Spirit” (Eph. 5:18) is a passive command. We can’t fill ourselves with the Spirit. We don’t control God. We can give him more room in our hearts, though. But how?
Nehemiah came to Jerusalem to rebuild the city’s damaged walls and gates. But Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem fiercely resisted the reconstruction project (Neh. 2:10, 19). Any church seeking revival must expect God’s enemies to employ the same tactics used against Nehemiah.
Americans who think themselves sophisticated tend to believe that gray is the best moral color. Question everything. Reject any moral principle that seems old-fashioned or inconvenient. But the Bible addresses moral issues in sharply contrasting terms (Eph. 5:3-14).
Nehemiah was a great leader. He saw a serious problem, prayed about it for months, formulated a vision for resolving it, and boldly asked the king of Persia to support it. But the plan to rebuild ruined Jerusalem would have failed if the people had refused to work (Neh. 2:18).
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