God is building in us as well as through us. And His masterpiece will have His saints’ names upon it!
Before we go further, let’s clarify that Scripture calls for Christian separation, not isolation. We are told the Lord was “holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners” (Heb 7:26), but it was also said, “This Man receives sinners and eats with them” (Lk 15:2). At its root, separation is the meaning of holiness—to be set apart to God in attitude, values, goals, and life-style. At the same time, we’re called on to interact with sinners in wholesome ways, showing the practical results of walking with Him. That’s why Jerusalem needed both walls and gates! Now the building began. Who was the first one to roll up his sleeves? Praise the Lord, “Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brethren the priests and built the Sheep Gate” (Neh 3:1). In this, he’s like our Great High Priest, the first One to the work, who won’t quit till the project’s done. He’s the Author and Finisher, the Creator and Redeemer. But the high priest’s brethren worked as well. Aren’t you glad the Lord Jesus “is not ashamed to call them [that is ‘those who are being sanctified’] brethren” (Heb 2:11)! As we read through this fascinating chapter, we’ll have to keep our eyes on both the builders and what they’re building. Notice first the builders. Here we see it’s priestly work to build at the Sheep Gate. Some built alone, like “Zaccur the son of Imri” (Neh 3:2), bless his heart! Gibeonites were working, too, the Gentile representatives (v 7). And look there—a goldsmith and a perfumer (v 8), hard work for those unused to masonry. And “Shallum…and his daughters made repairs” (v 12). Some repaired by their own house, and some worked at the king’s house (vv 23, 25), both good projects. But in our next episode, we’ll note the special case of the Tekoites.