Nehemiah and the People's Confession

Nehemiah 9:1-5 (NLT)

9 On October 31 the people assembled again, and this time they fasted and dressed in burlap and sprinkled dust on their heads. 2 Those of Israelite descent separated themselves from all foreigners as they confessed their own sins and the sins of their ancestors. 3 They remained standing in place for three hours while the Book of the Law of the Lord their God was read aloud to them. Then for three more hours they confessed their sins and worshiped the Lord their God. 4 The Levites—Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Kenani—stood on the stairway of the Levites and cried out to the Lord their God with loud voices.

5 Then the leaders of the Levites—Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah—called out to the people: “Stand up and praise the Lord your God, for he lives from everlasting to everlasting!” Then they prayed:

“May your glorious name be praised! May it be exalted above all blessing and praise!

Galatians 3:29 tells us, if we belong to Christ, we are the true children of Abraham. We are his heirs and God's promise to Abraham belongs to us. That makes the Israelites, God's choses people, our spiritual ancestors. In this passage from Nehemiah 9, we find our spiritual ancestors confessing their sins. They had already stood for 3 hours listening to the Law being read before 3 hours of confessing and worship began. Then, they stood to praise the Lord and began to pray on behalf of themselves and their ancestors. This is powerful! When was the last time you stood for the reading of the Word or to actually read the Word? This may seem unusual, but I want to ask us to stand (privately of course) and read aloud to yourself and to your Lord the prayer these people prayed. Some things will strike a chord in you for you will relate to their struggles, their disobedience, and their blessings. You will recognize in God's nature toward them His nature toward you. You will see Jesus more clearly as you realize their Messiah had not yet come. You will be blessed! I pray you will press pass the awkwardness, take God's Word in your hands, and stand to your feet to honor and praise the Lord by reading aloud to Him Nehemiah 9:6-37. May His presence be very real to you!