One of the marks of those who love God is that they are sad when what they see around them is not as it should be. It could be in our families, our country, our local church or the world. Nehemiah, a hero in the Old Testament, was one of those people.

Here is how the book of Nehemiah starts: Chapter 1:1-7.

The words of Nehemiah son of Hakaliah: “In the month of Kislev in the twentieth year, while I was in the citadel of Susa, Hanani, one of my brothers, came from Judah with some other men, and I questioned them about the Jewish remnant that had survived the exile, and also about Jerusalem. They said to me, “Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire.” When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.” 

Then I said: “Lord, the God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night for your servants, the people of Israel. I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father’s family, have committed against you. We have acted very wickedly toward you. We have not obeyed the commands, decrees and laws you gave your servant Moses.”

Here is Nehemiah, a man of God weeping and mourning over the situation of his people and confessing the sins of his people. He saw what God saw and his heart was broken over what breaks God’s heart. 

Think for a moment about the state of American Christianity. Do we see what God sees and are we sad about the things God is sad about? I think of all the things that divide us, most of which have nothing to do with the Gospel but our own politics, preferences and desires. We are not unified as God said the church should be. We don’t love one another but criticize, critique and attack one another when our views don’t align with theirs. American evangelicalism is a mess. We are divided by politics, race and class. The attacks on each other on social media are extensive and growing. And it should hurt our hearts as it hurts the heart of God. And ironically, we all have the same Holy Spirit resident in our hearts. Yet we allow secondary issues to cloud our discipleship to the One God that we serve. 

I would challenge each of us to take a moment today and confess the sins of God’s people just as Nehemiah did so many years ago. If our hearts are to be like His heart we need to see and acknowledge the corporate sin of His people.

Father,  I am so thankful for your mercy because we need it. Forgive your people and your church for our divisive attitudes and actions and for allowing secondary issues to get in the way of our unity and fellowship. Amen.