Recovering from disaster can be slow, grinding hard work. Once each issue is resolved there always seem to be other problems which need to be dealt with. We know it from personal experience of clearing up the simple accidents of home life, but we also know it from bigger issues that seem to dominate our broken world.
We’ve seen it from the Old Testament book of Nehemiah on Sunday mornings recently. Yet last Sunday morning we read the surprising request from those who bore the burden of clearing up that they wanted their leaders to read the Old Testament scripture (what they called the Law) to them and then make sure they understood what it meant! That sounds a bit random, even strange to us! What was going on?
These were people who knew very well that the state they were in was because the Bible – what we might call “the makers instructions” – had been ignored! They also knew very well the truths described in the Psalms about how to be blessed:
It includes
“the one whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on His law day and night. “ (Psalm 1)
and that
The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. (Psalm 19)
They were hungry for what they called God’s ‘Law’, not because they wanted a list of ‘dos & don’ts’ but because, properly understood, the Law of God accurately describes what we are like, and wonderfully describes what God has done and is doing so that we can know Him and His love to us – all of which was ultimately in the Lord Jesus coming to save us.
Recovery from disaster needs certain hope. That’s what they found in the Bible and so can we!
Spencer Shaw