Thursday, February 20, 2014

Earnest Work

Nehemiah 3:20 KJV
After him Baruch the son of Zabbai earnestly repaired the other piece, from the turning of the wall unto the door of the house of Eliashib the high priest.

Of all those working on the wall, the Word of God singles out Baruch to say he "earnestly" repaired the piece of the wall that was assigned to him. The word means fervency or with anger.[1] He poured himself into his labor.
  • Others did the work
  • Others had a mind to work
But only of Baruch does the Bible say he earnestly did the work.

In the world of the believers we find many who are about the work of the Lord:
  • People in churches
  • Pastors and
  • Missionaries
We may say of them all that they do their work. But it is likely that only a few do the work with all of the earnestness and zeal they are capable of. We all, with more or less zeal, apply one hand to the work of God and the other to the world. 

This passage tells us that, though God records the good that every believer is doing, He also sees the one who puts just that much extra into his service to God.




[1] But not in a negative sense.

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