Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Foreign pastor Chuck Allen here with another weekday podcast. And over the last few days, I've been in the Old Testament book of Nehemiah. We went through Nehemiah 1, Nehemiah 2, and today a short podcast on Nehemiah 3.
[00:00:18] Nehemiah, chapter three isn't the kind of passage most people post on Instagram. I mean, it's long, it's detailed lists, a bunch of names we can't pronounce.
[00:00:29] Things like Elisheb. The high priest and his fellow priests began rebuilding the Sheep Gate. The Fish Gate was built by the sons of Hasanaha. Meramoth repaired the section next to him. You get the idea, right? I probably butchered them all. Gate after gate, section after section, name after name. And at first you might think, what's the point?
[00:00:53] But if you slow down and listen, Chapter three is like a pulse, the heartbeat of a rebuilding movement. It's ordinary people, men and women, putting their hands to the work.
[00:01:04] It's families repairing the wall in front of their homes. It's skilled builders, priests, merchants, goldsmiths, even perfume makers all working side by side.
[00:01:14] In other words, the wall doesn't rise because of one person or even one person's leadership.
[00:01:22] It rises because everyone has a section. I just love that.
[00:01:28] You see, Nehemiah doesn't say, hey, here's what I'm doing.
[00:01:34] He's simply organizing, delegating, leading out front and helping.
[00:01:39] And the way he tells the story, each name matters. Listen to some of these names. Merrimath, Meshullam, Zadok, Jehoiada, Benjamin, Hashub.
[00:01:54] Every stone they set in place was part of something bigger than themselves.
[00:02:00] There is this one detail in verse 12, though.
[00:02:03] Shallum, son of Halusheth, leader of the Half district of Jerusalem, rebuilt the wall along with his daughters.
[00:02:14] Being a dad of six daughters, I can't help but think about this one. A father working side by side with his girls. In a culture where building projects were mostly men's work.
[00:02:26] It is a picture of dignity, of strength, of shared purpose, of family.
[00:02:33] Because rebuilding isn't just about bricks and mortar. It is about people stepping into the work together.
[00:02:40] Some of the names here rebuilt gates.
[00:02:43] I mean, think about that. Some of them just rebuilt gates.
[00:02:49] I love that. I mean, they had something specific to do and they did it.
[00:02:54] They didn't wait to figure out what is it all about. They just got at it. I mean, Nehemiah started with a prayer.
[00:03:04] His resources came from a prayer.
[00:03:07] He got people together to work together. Which, by the way, is really fascinating.
[00:03:13] And I look at this and when I'm reminded that it's about people stepping into work together, I really do get the fact that some repaired towers, some rebuilt gates, some tackled huge stretches, others just handled the part directly in front of their home. And that's the beauty of it. Everyone works where they are with what they have.
[00:03:36] So here's the thing for us, Nehemiah 3 is a call to pick up whatever section God has placed in front of us. You don't have to rebuild an entire city. You don't have to fix all of America. Just start with the piece of the wall that's yours.
[00:03:50] Maybe it's mentoring a teenager. Maybe it's loving a neighbor who feels isolated. Maybe it's delivering a meal for Meals on Wheels. Maybe it's just working and living with integrity and kindness day after day.
[00:04:05] Friend, your section matters, even if it feels small.
[00:04:08] And when you look at the whole chapter, you realize something powerful. None of these workers knew they were part of a story that would be told thousands of years later. They weren't thinking about history books. They were thinking about bricks and mortar, sweat and dust.
[00:04:23] And that's the way the kingdom works.
[00:04:25] Ordinary folks. Faithful work, eternal impact.
[00:04:30] So what's your section today? Where's God placed you to pick up tools, begin repairing. Don't wait for someone else to do it. Don't stand back and critique from a distance. Grab your section. Because walls rise when everyone shows up.
[00:04:44] Lord, give us eyes to see the part of the wall that you've called us to. Give us courage to step into the work with joy, even when it feels small.
[00:04:53] And remind us that when we build together in your name, we're part of a story bigger than we'll ever know.
[00:04:58] Thanks so much for listening to today's weekday podcast. My encouragement to you and me is that we might go live in a way today that our sectional wall gets built and people see hope rising in the process.
[00:05:12] Thanks so much for joining me on today's weekday podcast. God bless you. Bye now.
