Nehemiah Today

His Message is Timeless

The story of Nehemiah begins with his hearing a report about the distress of his beloved Jerusalem. The walls are broken down and the city is at the mercy of attack from enemies. Nehemiah, who is the Persian king's cupbearer, is troubled by the news and finds himself driven to prayer.

Of course, the trouble of Jerusalem begins years earlier when they ignored their divine mission and sought to be more like the nations that surrounded them. Proverbs 25: 28 says: "Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control." Then, as now, there was a drive to throw off traditional wisdom and the results were disasterous. The walls of Jerusalem fell long befor the Babylonians destroyed them.

Senator Jim DeMint and David Woodward speak of the more modern attempt in their book: Why We Whisper: Restoring our Right to Say it's Wrong. Outlining the expense society incurrs running away from traditional values, the authors lament: "As elected officials and judges continue to throw traditions overboard from the ship of state," conspicuously absent from the political debate "is the mounting cost in dollars [and] debt." Consider the costs society bears as a result of the 'sexual revolution' alone. Treating STDs alone is bankrupting our health care system and safety net programs. When you add the costs of bearing the burden of out-of-wedlock child bearing and trying to replace the support once found in traditional ramily structure, there is much to lament. It's been said that "You are not G-d's messenger if the message doesn't break your heart." Its time to honestly lament the distress of our people in this day.