“We will not neglect the house of God.” (Nehemiah 10:39 NIV)
The Israelites had been in bondage. Their country had been ransacked, the Temple destroyed, the city walls torn down. They had spent seventy years (a lifetime, really) in exile and by what could only by described as acts of God, they had come home to land in shambles. Through the prophetic leadership of Ezra and Nehemiah, the temple and walls were being restored. The Israelites looked back and acknowledge the sin of they ancestors: intermarriage, idolatry, disregard for Sabbath, failure to tithe and make the approriate sacrifices. They humbled themselves before the Lord and made this statement. “We will not neglect the house of God.”
In my travels, I have seen the house of God in disrepair or abandoned altogether. In Iowa, rural churches are closing in droves. The historic buildings are being repurposed into quaint quilt shops, bridal boutiques and bars. In New Orleans, they were boarded up, fenced off and left empty. Google reveals, 24 catholic churches have closed in recent years. Huge, beautiful brick buildings with exquisite stained glass stand empty: decaying carcasses cast aside by a faithless people. It’s clear that the Church has left the premises. The streets are equally destitute and the residents left behind depend on the government instead of God. I suspect this is the case, to varying degrees, all over the country as believers age out and fail to replace themselves with new disciples.
These houses of worship initially appear to be built in better times: in seasons of economic boom or exceptional wealth. But the math and history doesn’t add up. Americans as a whole are wealthier now than they were a hundred years ago. Their priorities are just different. The previous generations scraped together whatever they had to honor God. They knew they needed His help to survive.
Perhaps we don’t need brick sanctuaries and stained glass for right worship, but we surely still need to worship. We are created to bow. We will lay before a lesser god if we refuse to fall before the one true God.
This is what is inspiring about the returning exiles. They looked at their crumbling country and they came together and said “We must not neglect the house of God.” They had every excuse in the book to spend their money elsewhere, but somehow they knew they needed to start in the sanctuary. They began on their knees with first fruit offerings. They set out to rebuild on the right foot with God. They understood He was mankind’s only hope of complete restoration.
This coming Sunday, I hope you’ll go to your local church. And while you sing or listen to the sermon, look up. Survey the walls and ceiling. Notice the carpet and the pews or chairs. Pay attention to the landscaping and parking lot. What condition is the building and property in? How old is the air conditioner and heating system? Look around and then look inside your own heart. Have you neglected the house of God? Are you there, asking Him to bless you, when you have not yet sought to bless Him?
“Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains in ruins?”
(Haggai 1:4 NIV)
Lord, we love to come into Your house. May our love be bigger and louder than words, though. May it include actions and investment. Open our eyes to see the need. May we be faithful to our tithe and to any other offering You desire. Restore Your house. Let the church stand for generations to come; a lighthouse to the lost, hurting and broken. Amen.