In Nehemiah, we see the priest who was appointed over the chambers of God use the temple for purposes that it was not intended to be used for.
Then, in Matthew we see a similar thing happen—the temple was being used for something it was not supposed to be used for. In both instances, the places of God were cleaned out and then used for the correct purposes.
Nehemiah threw out all of the things that were not supposed to be there, then he had the chambers cleansed and brought in the things of God. In Matthew, Jesus went in and threw out all of the people who were doing things they were not supposed to be doing and overturned the tables and chairs. He declared that His house would “be called a house of prayer,” and then called them out for making it a “den of thieves.”
I look at these two passages and say, “Yeah! That’s right! No one is going to use the things of God for things they were not supposed to be used for! Good for Nehemiah and Jesus for doing what was right! I cannot believe those people—what were they even thinking!” Then the Holy Spirit gently nudges me and asks, “What about your temple?”
We do not have chambers of God or temples anymore, but we do have our bodies. In 1 Corinthians 6:19–20 we read “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.”
My body is now the temple of the Holy Spirit. He lives in me and was given to me by God. My body is now the house of God. The Holy Spirit in me is God present in my body. My response to that should be to honor God with my body. Just like the chambers of the temple were to be places of worship to honor God, so is my body.
What are things that I’m allowing into my body that are not honoring God? What am I listening to or seeing that is not honoring God? What am I consuming that is not honoring God? Where do I need Jesus to come in and “clear the temple?” Ask the Lord to show you.
To ask the Lord is to show you those things is a hard prayer to pray. It most likely means you are going to see some things in yourself that are not pretty. It also may mean that you have to evaluate what you spend time listening to, reading, and watching, and you may have to say no to some of those things.
There are lots of things that could come to light as you pray that prayer, but it is worth it to see those things and to have the Lord work in those areas in our lives.
Like Nehemiah and like Jesus, let us “clear the temple” in our own lives in order to worship and honor the Lord more and more.
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Week 6 Challenge:
How does Nehemiah display faithful leadership throughout the rebuilding efforts? What other leaders led God’s people with the same steadfast leadership and devotion to God? How can you lead others based on these examples?
Week 6 Reading Plan:
Week 6 Memory Verse:
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