HAVE WE A MIND TO WORK?
By Chas. B. Reynolds
The record of success, which, under very adverse circumstances, was attained by the Israel of God under the leadership of Nehemiah in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, is replete with interest and encouragement for us to-day, showing, as it does, what may be done by feeble instrumentalities under the very greatest difficulties, if only the people have a mind to work, to patiently continue in well doing, to work in harmony, and under the direction of the Spirit of God. God is no respecter of persons. The God we love is the same God as of old: he is just as ready and willing to help and bless, and in the hour of extremity to manifest his miraculous power, and give sustaining grace and strength, to-day as in the days of Nehemiah. Man’s necessity is God’s opportunity. He is an ever-present help in time of need. When we do all we can, then God’s blessing makes our inefficiency a full sufficiency. We have ample evidence of this in our history as a people. Think of the great discouragements under which the work of proclaiming present truth commenced. What a mighty work was to be done—to repair the breach in God’s holy law, to educate the people up to the great and solemn truths of the third angel’s message. Friends so few! Resources so limited! Oh, how seemingly hopeless the task! Think of those brave, noble-hearted pioneers in the work, in their little upper chamber, which was alike office and home. They were destitute of necessaries, and were obliged to exercise all their skill and ingenuity in making each poor article of furniture serve a multiplicity of purposes. Like the apostles of old, they had, for their Herculean task, only their poverty, their obscurity, their weakness; but blessed be God! like them they had the truth. Like them, too, they had hearts of faith, and zeal, and love to God and their fellow-men,—a faith to believe that God is, and that he is a rewarder of those that diligently seek him, a faith that daily grew by daily exercise, and that has buoyed them up under every trial, perplexity, opposition, and discouragement, to the present hour. They had a mind to work. They used all they had, little though it might be. Trusting in God, they worked through darkest clouds, persecutions, and contumely. Midst hope and fear, in joy or sorrow, they never faltered, never gave up, never stopped. They did all they could all the time. Even in severe sickness they went forth, trusting in Israel’s God. They had a mind to work, and therefore God helped, sustained, blessed them. They did not give up because as the work grew it made greater, more continual, heavier demands upon them; but as they increased in strength and experience they increased their labors. All the way they have realized their insufficiency, the utter inadequacy of the means at their command with which to perform the work assigned them; but, like the apostles of old who were commanded to feed five thousand with five loaves and two fishes (not actually enough for themselves), they have given their little all to Jesus. He has accepted, blessed it; then they have used it; and as they have used it, it has increased, and proved an abundance. Well might the enemies of God’s truth say, in the language of those of old, “What do these feeble Jews? Will they fortify themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they make an end in a day? Will they revive115the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned? Even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall even break down their stone wall.” Neh. 4:2, 3. Spite of Sanballat and Tobiah, who have harassed and tried to hinder, even to the present hour, how wondrously God has prospered the work in the hands of these faithful ones! Why? Because they have had a mind to work, because they have patiently continued in well doing, because they have loved God, and their eyes have ever been upward, gazing at the proffered reward. To them Jesus has been no ideal imagining, but a reality, a tried, trusted friend, with whom each hour they love to hold sweet converse. They have labored on, bearing the cross through many and many long, sleepless nights of intense anxiety, with wearied frame and sorrow-laden, aching heart, ignoring self, making every demanded sacrifice, leaving home, friends, even their dear children—sacrifices not the less hard to make because made promptly, uncomplainingly. How wondrously God has blessed their labors! and now they can say, See what the Lord hath wrought. We hope to share with them the “Well done.” Do we believe God is a God of justice? Can the sacred lips of Jesus declare of us, “Well and faithfully done”? Can a just and righteous Saviour bid us welcome, declare us blessed of his Father, bid us share the reward with these faithful, sacrificing laborers in his cause? Have we, like them, a mind to work for Jesus? or do we evince a mind to work for self? Wherein have we done well? Wherein have we proved faithful? How many stones have we sought for, raised from the rubbish, helped to fit for the Master’s use? God help us to examine our condition, and see just where we stand. The question is not, What are we giving of our abundance? but, What are we sacrificing for the work? Are we rejoicing that the wall is being so rapidly built? Are we giving grateful praise to God for the glorious progress of the cause? This is well. But what are we doing to help the work? While the faithful leaders lay broad plans, are we among those who cavil, find fault, and murmur because calls are made on our time and means? Do we aggravate the wickedness of withholding by talking discouragement? Do we give a little help, what from our abundance we hardly miss, and that reluctantly, grudgingly, and yet expect to share the reward of the faithful? If we really believe the third angel’s message, we shall have a mind to work. We shall rejoice at having opportunity to share in the work of repairing the breach. It is true, we cannot all be master workmen, or overseers of the work. We may not have ability to be craftsmen to dress the stones or lay them symmetrically and securely; but we can all be burden bearers: we can help to stay up the hands of the workmen, and encourage them to continued effort. Do we feel our great lack, that at best all we can do will be but very little? Then there is the more need of redoubling our zeal and diligence—of doing all we can all the time. In rebuilding the wall in the days of Nehemiah, there was no place for drones, dreamers, idlers, doubters. God’s children worked sword in hand; ease, comfort, self were ignored. Their whole hearts were engaged in the one great work of building up the down-trodden wall of Zion. They rejoiced in the broad plans of the leaders, and gladly devoted their all—their time, their means—to carrying on the good work. Have we a mind to work for Jesus? Think what he has done for us. “I gave my life for thee. My precious blood I shed
That thou might’st ransomed be, and quickened
from the dead.
I gave, I gave my life for thee. What hast thou
given for me?
My Father’s house of light, my glory-circled
throne,
I left for earthly night, for wanderings sad and
lone.
I left, I left it all for thee. Hast thou left aught
for me?”