Text: Nehemiah 8:1-12
We find the Word and the Table in every covenant chapter of God’s book. God gave the Word to Adam: permission and command regarding trees allowed and forbidden. Abraham: covenant promises and the divided sacrifices in Genesis 15. Moses: commands at Sinai; eating on the mountain in Ex 24. David: promise of eternal Davidic king; temple as place of sacrifice and fellowship with God. Ezra: Word read, then they went to eat of the sacrifices. Jesus: living Word speaks the words of life at the table – this bread is His body; this wine is His blood of the covenant, shed for many for the remission of sins. So we in the church chapter of God’s history continue reading the word and coming to the table.
Be at peace and be reconciled to all those you see here. As far as it depends on you, be at peace with all. And that is farther than you think it is. Work at this. Set the bricks in the wall with good mortar. Set them straight, true, and strong. Because too often when an offense remains, it solidifies, and the wall is unfit, and has to be redone. As you partake of the benefits of the house of God as one stone or one room within it, remember that the cornerstone was set at the cross, with sacrificial love and care for the rest of the stones. Resolve again to live yourself in the same pattern, with regard for the whole body, with your stone, in your room, whether you have a dining room, a beautiful foyer, or a humble back bathroom.
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