The Old Testament ends with three very distinct building projects.  The first was the rebuilding of the temple under Zerubabbel which we read about two weeks ago in chapter 19.   God now has a place to stay with his people,  and worshiping God and making sacrifices for their sins could resume.   Second, they needed to rebuild the walls around the city of Jerusalem, protection from the surrounding enemies and raiders.  Walls and the temple where very important in the lives of the people.

The most important rebuilding project is however, was not a structure rather it was the lives of the people.  Evidence that God was at work would come not through a prophet, a building, the kingdoms prosperity, rather it came when they asked for the first time in 140 years for the Law of Moses to be read.   Israel was for the first time in a long time hungry, truly hungry for the Word of the Lord.  Because God allowed them to be in the wasteland for a period of time because of they repeatedly turned away from God, sinning again and again they now were in a place where they thirsted deeply for God.

By reading the Law, Israel refocused, re-centered, and were reminded of what was truly important.  Only by doing this could the people align themselves with God’s Upper story which is God’s desire to redeem his people, to restore our relationship with Him.

This begins by rebuilding the spiritual walls in our lives and taking down the walls of sin that exist in our lives.  Walls of anger, unforgiveness, hatred, jealousy, lust, coveting, discontentment, hurt, pain, self-centeredness, racism.

Questions:

1. What are the walls in your life that you need to take down so that you can rebuild your life with God at  the center?

2. Are you willing to place God’s laws, the ten commandments and the greatest commandment at the center of each day?

For the next few days and for the weeks ahead try reading the Law of Moses, the Ten commandments found in Exodus 20.