Walking with God

 

Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month the people of Israel were assembled with fasting and in sackcloth, and with earth on their heads. And the Israelites separated themselves from all foreigners and stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers. And they stood up in their place and read from the Book of the Law of the LORD their God for a quarter of the day; for another quarter of it they made confession and worshiped the LORD their God. (Nehemiah 9:1–3 ESV).

 

Our reading today describes a solemn day of national assembly for the Israelites as they sought spiritual renewal following the rebuilding of Jerusalem's walls. Eugene Peterson writes in his book Answering God, “God works with words. He uses them to make a story of salvation. He pulls us into the story. When we believe, we become willing participants in the plot… We can do this recklessly or robustly, throwing ourselves into relationships and actions. When we do this, we pray.”

 

Israel got pulled into the story of reconciliation by confessing their sins through prayer. But they had to prepare themselves to enter God’s arena. First, Israel prepared an atmosphere of reconciliation. They gathered before the Lord, knowing that they and their ancestors had all blown it. Then they fasted, pushing out sinful desires and creating space for God. Next, they remembered their holy identity and separated themselves from the practices of other nations. And they told God their story of sins through prayer. There was a cycle of reading the Law, confessing their sins, and worship.

 

In their prayers, they gave honor and praise to God alone. They remembered that salvation was God’s idea, not theirs. Their prayers returned them to the story of God, who kept his promise to make something out of them despite their sins.

 

Jesus is God’s idea too. We are invited into a story we did not write. Jesus wrote us into the book of life by his great love for us, ushering us into the big story of God’s mercy and grace. That’s the story you and I get to tell!