Nehemiah 9
After their time of celebrating the Feast of Tabernacles - or booths- we now read of the people assembling together in an attitude of repentance and confession of their sins and reading God's law.
They confessed that time and time again their ancestors had turned away from God, ignored his laws and killed the prophets he sent to them to warn them.
They acknowledged God's great mercy and goodness to them:
They praised the LORD that he had done all of this not because of them, but because of what he is - merciful, gracious, mighty, just, of great kindness - and faithful in keeping his promise to Abraham.
This chapter speaks to me today - does it to you, dear reader? Do you see how this sad tale of sin and yet wonderful mercy of God is like your own life? Time and time again we reject God and turn away from him, and yet time and time again when we cry to him for help he hears and forgives us.
It is like Psalm 107 says - we turn away from him, we cry unto him in our trouble, and he saves us in our distress. Why? Because we are so wonderful and important? No! Because, 'he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever' (Ps 107:1). I feel totally inadequate to truly express what love this is. Words cannot give justice to what he is - his patience and kindness. How undeserving we are of his love!
Listen to the words in verse 17, 'but thou art a God ready to pardon...'. 'Ready'! When we speak of somebody or something being ready we mean there is a sense of preparedness, and waiting, for an action which can immediately take place. We might call to someone - 'are you ready?' When they answer 'yes' it means we can immediately do that thing or go to that place which they have got ready for.
Our most Holy and merciful God is prepared and waiting and ready to pardon our sins - he is willing. He has made his people acceptable unto him through the life and sacrifice of his dear Son, Jesus. He has prepared the way.
My unbelief sometimes makes me feel that I have to almost 'twist his arm', as if to try and make him begrudgingly forgive me! Sometimes I feel that I need to grovel on the ground to make him take notice and have pity on me. And whilst it is the repentant sinner that God forgives we don't earn our pardon when we have done due penitence; we don't convince him that he really should forgive us because we are trying so hard. This may be how I am and you are in relation to other people when they have annoyed us and we feel we ought to forgive them and don't really want to - but not God! He doesn't reluctantly forgive us! He is 'ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness'. How far short we fall of what he is, and how we misjudge him!
Listen to his words in Isaiah 1: 18, 'Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be wool.' The LORD, through Isaiah has just been speaking of all the abominable sins of his people, and yet he is calling them to him, in their sin, and saying let us reason together! Sinners who have nothing to justify their rights to be forgiven - nothing to excuse us! And yet, 'Come now' to me, the God of heaven and earth, 'ready' to forgive you. How beautiful this is! When we feel it in our hearts it is as if we bathe in his love.
In the end of this chapter we also read of the people telling God that in the fertile and prosperous land which he had given them to enjoy, they are now servants. The produce of the land, their very bodies and their cattle were all in servitude and at the pleasure of their enemies. This was causing them great distress, and because of all this they were promising in writing their commitment to following God again.
Whilst we know that we cannot keep ourselves, this shows us the effect of God's chastisement on them. No longer at this point in history were they rebellious and wanting their own way. We sense a spirit of submission to God's just dealings with them, softened hearts, repentant hearts turned again to their God and Maker. Have you experienced this softness of heart and willingness to follow him? What a great God he is, who is not only ready to pardon us, but he gives us that right attitude before him and makes us willing to follow him. May we be renewed in this spirit hour by hour, day by day, ever looking up to him in loving obedience, and thankful adoration, saying 'what wilt thou have me to do?'
'I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions, for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins'
(Isaiah 43:25)
'Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!'
(Psalm 107: 8, 15, 21, 31)
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