Friday, February 26, 2010
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Letters | Opinion | Editorial | Weekend Report |
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We all feel pain and sorrow BY Rev. Samuel M. Boodle: Nehemiah said, "Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is sacred to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength." — Nehemiah 8:10. A remnant of Israelites, who were exiles in Babylon, led by Nehemiah, along with Ezra the priest, were given permission to return to Jerusalem. Their intention was to rebuild the walls of the city and the temple. Their return home was not a comforting one. The city of Jerusalem was in total ruin. Furthermore, they constantly experienced interference from their neighbors who wanted to derail their efforts to rebuild the wall and the temple. The Israelites prevailed. God was with them. On the first day of the seventh month, the people asked Ezra the priest to bring out the book of the Law and read it to them. This he did from morning to evening. When the people heard God's law, they wept bitterly. They were extremely sad, because they had lived in contravention of the law. That's what the Law does. It cuts to the heart. God did not only give us law. He also gave us gospel. Therefore, after hearing the law, we are not left hanging with the fear of destruction. No, God is merciful and gracious. He comforts us with redemption. Nehemiah, the governor, saw the people's grief and despondency. Consequently, he was compassionate towards them. He told them that the day was not a time for sorrow and weeping. It was a time of rejoicing. It was a sacred day. Nehemiah showered them with the gospel. The law always sends us to the cross. There we receive the gospel. The gospel assures us of what God in His mercy has done for us in Christ Jesus and what He continues to do for us. In spite of our infractions, God is merciful to forgive us.
n See Boodle on REL11 Nehemiah instructed the people to go home and enjoy choice foods and sweet drinks. He instructed them to enjoy themselves and to share what they had with their neighbors. That is what God's grace is all about. In getting it, we are to share it with others. We in The Bahamas have always enjoyed God's bountiful grace. We are a blessed people and have been generous to others in the past. However, recent happenings suggest an uncaring change in us. I was very saddened, recently, at the negative reaction to the government's release of the Haitians in the detention centre. We are a Christian nation. Let us act like Christians. Releasing those Haitians was the least that we could do for a people whose capital city is in ruins, totally devastated by a major earthquake. It would have been callous of us to send them on their way, or to keep them detained. The chaos in Haiti will remain for some time to come. Had our government continued to detain them, the world would label us a most uncaring people. This would make the preamble of the Constitution, "an abiding respect for Christian values," insignificant. Natural disaster does not have a propensity for any particular group. Today the Haitians are affected, tomorrow, it could be us. As a people, let us be more compassionate. We are brothers and sisters in Christ. Although some of us have a little more, we are not different from others. We all feel pain and sorrow. In fact, we are all just a bit of dust. At the end of the day, we die and leave the comforts of this world to others. The God of the universe stood with the Israelites in their difficult times. He will stand with the Haitians. "Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength." Amen Rev. Samuel M. Boodle, pastor at The Lutheran Church of Nassau, can be reached at P.O. Box N 4794, Nassau, Bahamas or telephone 323-4107.
Thursday January 28, 2010 |
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