In Nehemiah’s revival, the Word of God was exalted to where the people gave it a deep, personal hearing. To neglect the reading of the Word of God in our public or private worship is a calamitous error. Paul urged Timothy, “Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching” (1 Tim. 4:13). We sense a lofty touch of infinite majesty when we read the Word of our eternal God. Significantly, when Ezra opened the book of the law, “the people all stood up” (Neh. 8:5). Catch the dignity and respect that the people assigned to the reading of God’s Word: They “stood up.” These people did not have our ready access to the sacred Scriptures. Reproductions had to be handwritten, and no one had his own copy. They were so starved for the Word that God’s Spirit energized them to stand and listen to it being read for six hours at a time. Today we need God’s people to get involved in reading and hearing the Word as enthusiastically as they did in Nehemiah’s day. Mark I. Bubeck and Craig Bubeck, Fire from Heaven: God’s Provision for Personal Spiritual Victory (Colorado Springs, CO: David C Cook, 2010).
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