What Kind of Person Are You? - Meditations on Nehemiah 3

"And next to them the Tekoites repaired, but their nobles would not stoop to serve their Lord." (Nehemiah 3:5, ESV)

 

"After him the Tekoites repaired another section opposite the great projecting tower as far as the wall of Ophel." (Nehemiah 3:27, ESV)

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    There will always be people who can't catch the vision. For whatever reason, they don't see what you're so excited about. In this instance, it was the leaders of Tekoa, a city 12 miles south of Jerusalem. We don't know why they refused to help in the project. It may be because they felt that it was too far from home. Traveling was quite different 2400 years ago. The feet were the normal mode of transportation. At an average of 2.5 miles per hour, this 12 mile trek would have taken five hours, and that doesn't include potty breaks!

    Of course, this is just conjecture. There could have been a hundred reasons why they didn't volunteer. They were just as creative at making excuses as we are today. Nehemiah indicates, though, that behind their excuses was pride: they "would not stoop to serve their Lord." Repairing the wall was beneath them. They considered in unimportant, not worth their time or effort.

    By reducing all of their excuses to this one thing, Nehemiah makes a significant implication about pride: it is pervasive. Pride is one of the sins that usually lie behind all other sin (unbelief being the other). In other words, sinful actions do not sprout without the soil of sinful thoughts. Just as right behavior comes from right thinking, so wrong behavior comes from wrong thinking.

    Pride is the mindset that develops when the self is the center and goal of our thoughts. We all know people who think that they are better than everyone else, that they are God's gift to humanity. But pride is not always so obvious; it is usually much more subtle. It is the unspoken motive that seeks to preserve one's own comfort, convenience, and aspirations. It is the attitude behind the belief that we don't need any help from anyone, from God or other believers. It is the driving force behind the false humility of those who see themselves as perpetual victims or those who insist that they don't have anything to offer. In a very real sense, we are all guilty of pride in one form or another.

    Now compare the nobles of Tekoa with the men whom they governed. Nehemiah tells us that the Tekoites did not follow their leaders' example. They were willing to stoop. In fact, they were willing to stoop low enough to help repair multiple sections of the wall (along with Meremoth and Meshullam, Neh. 3:4, 21, 30). They could have done one section and called it good; they had done their part. But instead of saying, "That's not my job," they did what needed to be done. These men were humble enough to put the task and the good of the community above their own personal convenience.

    What about you? Are you more like the men of Tekoa or their nobles? Are you so noble that you don't think it your job to do the menial labor that is often required in the life of the church? Or are you willing to be inconvenienced and offer yourself for the good of those around you?

 

(This is not to say that there are never instances where a person cannot help out. It is simply a reminder that we ought to keep our motives in check. I am grateful that most of you have proven your willingness to pick up a trowel. Your work and your humility have been a great blessing!)