Nehemiah 3:1-32 - Homilies By J.s. Exell

The Church engaged in a work of moral repair.

I. THAT THE CHURCH IS ENGAGED IN REPAIRING MORAL RUIN . "And next unto them repaired Meremoth" ( Nehemiah 3:4 ). Jerusalem was once a strong and beautiful city; now it is in ruins. Society has not always been a ruin. Man has not always been a wreck.

1. The desolation was extensive. The entire city was waste; not a wall or gate remained intact. And man's entire intellectual and moral nature is laid waste by sin; he has no unfallen faculty.

2. The desolation was varied. The sheep gate, the doors, the beams, the locks had all been destroyed; and so all the manifold capabilities of man have been injured by sin.

3. The desolation was pitiable. It was sad to see Jerusalem in ruins; but much more so to see the ruin of the human soul.

4. The desolation was visible. Travellers saw the ruined city; the fallen condition of man is evident to all.

II. THE METHOD WHICH THE CHURCH SHOULD PURSUE IN ITS WORK OF MORAL REPARATION .

1. There must be good official leadership. "Then Eliashib the high priest rose up" ( Nehemiah 3:1 ).

2. There must be a wise use of individual talent. "Goldsmiths," "apothecaries" ( Nehemiah 3:8 ).

3. There must be pursued a common purpose through a variety of tasks.

4. There must be a recognition of the power of the domestic affections ( Nehemiah 3:29 ).

5. There must be a strict attention to the minute detail of the work. "And set up the doors thereof, and the locks thereof, and the bars thereof" ( Nehemiah 3:6 ).

6. There are always those in the Church who refuse to aid in its enterprise.—E.