The things you find in a wall...

Our current sermon series at Haven is "Nehemiah: Getting it Done!" This week we are looking at chapter 3 which outlines how the restoration of the wall began. In the chapter is listed 10 gates, all of which were in need of repair. Dr. Harold Willmington in his huge volume Willmington's Guide to the Bible draws a helpful parallel between Jerusalem's gates and the summary of a Christian's life to serve as a reminder to us. I thought it to be a clever observation so I share it with you here.

The sheep gate - reminds us of the Cross

The fish gate - reminds us to share our faith ("fish for men")

The Jeshanah ("old") gate - reminds us of our old nature

The valley gate - reminds us of suffering and testing

The dung gate - reminds us of the works of the flesh

The fountain gate - reminds us of the Holy Spirit

The water gate - reminds us of the Word of God

The horse gate - reminds us of spiritual warfare

The east gate - reminds us that Christ will return

The inspection gate - reminds us of our future reward