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There Is Work That We All Can Do
When Nehemiah came to Jerusalem to rebuild its walls, he received
tremendous help from his Jewish comrades. Workers of all varieties came
‘out of the woodwork’ to aid in the project. Many merchants assisted in
the building, including “goldsmiths” and “perfumers”
(3:8). Women helped (3:12). The priests (including the high priest) and
the Levites as well built their part (3:1,17). While there were a few “nobles”
who “did not put their shoulders to the work of their Lord,” yet
for the most part the percentage of the remnant who participated in the
job was phenomenal. Further, their is no record of complaining or
bickering over who would build what. People did their work, whether they
were building “the Fountain Gate” or the gate for taking out the
garbage (3:14-15). Each one found a piece of the wall they could help on
and got to the work. They “had a mind to work” (4:6). No wonder,
then, that “the wall was finished... in fifty-two days” (6:15).
Beloved, there is work to be done in the kingdom of God today, and no
task assigned by our Lord is too small. Did not our Lord say, “And
whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the
name of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose
his reward”? (Matthew 10:42). Let us find what work we can do in the
kingdom (both individually and collectively in a local church) and ‘put
our shoulders to the work.’ Truly, there is work that we all can do!
--Mike Noble
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