In Nehemiah chapter 3, we find a long description of the various families of the children of Israel who were rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. Several weeks ago, our pastor preached a Sunday morning sermon from this passage, and while rereading the verses later, I noticed a sad phrase tucked into verse 5. While the goldsmiths, apothecaries, priests, Levites, and merchants were all tackling their respective sections of the wall, there was one group missing. Verse 5 tells us, And next unto them the Tekoites repaired; but their nobles put not their necks to the work of the Lord.
The rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem, of course, was not just rebuilding a physical wall. As the Bible says, this monumental undertaking by God’s people was the work of the Lord. Rebuilding the wall was the job given to them by God. Similarly, we can apply this passage to our own lives today.
When I consider “putting my neck to the work,” the picture that comes to my mind is a yoke. A cow being milked is technically helping in the work of the farm, but an ox in a yoke pulling a plow is truly putting his neck to the work.
In our Christian lives, we can be, and often are, called to many areas of service. Some of these tasks are more enjoyable than others, while others require more “neck work.” For example, I will happily change diapers in the infant nursery all day, but teaching a third-and-fourth-grade Sunday School class requires me to put my neck in a yoke and pull a heavy plow in a stony field under the desert sun! To another person, that Sunday School class might be enjoyable, while changing diapers is the “neckbreaking” work. Still another might not mind teaching Sunday School or changing diapers, but waking up an hour earlier to have time to pray for the needs of the church is the most difficult.
My simple point is that we cannot expect all the work of God to be that which we find easy or enjoyable; however, we should be willing to do all of it. The nobles of the Tekoites in Nehemiah 3 were unwilling to do the hard work. May that never be said of us!
Think back to what work of the Lord once seemed an honor and a privilege, but now you have become “too noble” to do it. Was there a time when you would have eagerly served in a nursing home? Do you remember when you would have jumped on a church bus to participate enthusiastically or how honored you felt to be asked to help in cleaning the church bathrooms? Were there mornings when you would spend extra time in prayer for a friend who needed your supplications, but now your time is too precious? Was there a time when you would have rushed to get to the foreign field if God had called your family to go, but now your nobility dictates that you to stay in the comfort of your own country?
There is no class system in the work of God; in fact, the Bible even tells us in I Corinthians 1:26, For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. If we want God to continue to use us in His work, we must possess the humility and the willingness to do whatever He calls us to do: big or small, easy or hard, enjoyable or neck-breaking. Let us all be busy putting our necks to the work of the Lord!
by Abigail Medford
