Friday, January 24, 2025

Today's Scripture
Nehemiah 8:1–3, 5–6, 8–10

All the people gathered together into the square before the Water Gate. They told the scribe Ezra to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the Lord had given to Israel. Accordingly, the priest Ezra brought the law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could hear with understanding. This was on the first day of the seventh month. He read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women and those who could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive to the book of the law. And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was standing above all the people; and when he opened it, all the people stood up. Then Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. Then they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. So they read from the book, from the law of God, with interpretation. They gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading.

And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people wept when they heard the words of the law. Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions of them to those for whom nothing is prepared, for this day is holy to our Lord; and do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” (NRSV)

Reflection

It’s a striking image: the entire community of Israel gathered at the Water Gate, standing attentively as the Word of God is read aloud. After years of exile and disconnection, this public reading — this act of worship — calls them back to their identity as God’s people. Yet this was no random meeting spot. The Water Gate was outside the temple courts, open to everyone — men, women, children, enslaved, or free — symbolizing a sacred encounter accessible to all. Here, God’s Word moved beyond walls to reach people in their need for revival and renewal.

I live in New England, where Puritan meeting houses still stand in nearly every town square, a quiet reminder of their enduring legacy. For the Puritans, these spaces were not ornate sanctuaries but simple places where communities gathered to pray, hear the Word, and encounter God together. Meeting houses were deliberately not sanctuaries. The Puritans held to the belief that ground becomes holy only when the people of God meet.

Both the Water Gate and Puritan meeting houses affirm a powerful truth: God’s presence is not confined to sacred buildings or consecrated ground. Rather, God meets us wherever we gather in faith — whether in sanctuaries, meeting houses, courtyards, online, or homes.

At Fourth Church, we are privileged to be stewards of spaces that inspire awe and devotion — the soaring Sanctuary, the peaceful Garth, and the warmth and openness of the Gratz Center. But God’s power moves far beyond these walls. It moves into the streets through the Chicago Lights Social Service Center and into bellies and hearts through our Meals Ministry. God’s power reaches into homes via our livestreams and Zoom groups and into human hands through acts of service and compassion.

The people of Nehemiah’s day didn’t need the temple to experience revival. The Puritans didn’t need cathedrals to hear God’s call. And we don’t need to be in a specific building to encounter God’s power today. Wherever people gather with open hearts — whether at a gate, a meeting house, or online — God’s presence transforms that space into sacred ground. God’s power is too large, too wonderful, to be limited by place alone but is revealed whenever God’s people come together to listen, to serve, and to follow.

Prayer
God of every time and place, there is no limit to your power or love. You make all ground holy when your people gather, so meet us wherever we are and renew our hearts with your boundless presence. Amen.

Written by Shawn Fiedler, Major Gift Officer

Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

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