Nehemiah 13

Neh 13:30-31 Thus I cleansed them of everything pagan. I also assigned duties to the priests and the Levites, each to his service, (31) and to bringing the wood offering and the firstfruits at appointed times. Remember me, O my God, for good!

Nehemiah completed the task he set out to do and returned home. Immediately Israel begins to compromise on the law of God. They are no longer worhipping false idols like in the days of their fathers before them, but we are seeing the begginning of what will become the Pharisees and everybody else.

You see in this chapter an Israel very similar to the one Jesus walked amongst. There are those who are laboring on the Sabbath. There are those who had defiled the temple. There are those who are marrying outside of Israel. This is especially forbidden because these marriages were a result of lust. We find merchants dwelling outside the city gates, therefore, if you wanted to break the Sabbath you could. Israel is immediately falling away from God but in a way like never before.

Nehemiah steps in and cleans house. This is a good thing. He cleans up the evil which is happening. His passion ignites another spiritual revival. He threatened all the merchants that he would attack them, and they left. He was a one man army for God. No doubt he birthed some followers through this, and hence we find two extremes during the time of Jesus. I am in no way saying that Nehemiah started the Pharisees. I am saying that sometimes the followers of a great leader take their eyes off Jesus and put them upon the leader. After this, there would people who did not really care about the things of God and there would be those who shoved the things of the Lord down everybody's throat.

Be careful who you are following. Great leaders will rise up and they will be full of passion. Follow Jesus. If you do, God will do a work through you like he did through Nehemiah. Just follow Jesus.