By J. Vernon McGee
When the Lord Jesus Christ rode into Jerusalem to proclaim publicly His right and title to kingship, the multitudes shouted the hosannas. This so enraged the religious rulers that they attempted to silence the voices of praise and, failing, demanded that the Lord rebuke and silence them. But He, with biting satire, answered them saying, "If these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out" (Luke 19:40). With bitter irony He sent them back to the ABCs written in the walls of Jerusalem, for those very stones and walls were proclaiming the gospel message and the gates were fairly shouting, "Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in" (Psalm 24:7). Those stones had been giving a message for centuries, and they are still speaking today.
A Broadcast Through the Ages
John the Baptist had been silenced, the apostles would be silenced and scattered, and the Lord Jesus Christ had not actually lifted up His voice, but the stones in the walls of Jerusalem were singing the "Hallelujah Chorus." The gates were hymning a psalm of praise. They are still crying out in the inky blackness of sin. Theirs is a continuous song in the night - a psalm of praise and a golden voice singing a song of deliverance. It is a trumpet of jubilee to slaves of passion and pride; a loudspeaker calling out above the din and melee of the day; a harmonious chorus in the babel of this world's confusion. It is a foghorn across the ocean of life; a siren in the night of sin; an SOS from the sinking ship of civilization; it is a broadcast that never goes off the air.
Shakespeare was using poetic license when he wrote, "Tongues in trees...Sermons in stones," but, my friend, the Word of God proves this to be accurate. And so we come to the gates and walls of Jerusalem and listen to their paean of praise, "Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in."
Nehemiah Meets the Task
In chapter three of the Book of Nehemiah, Nehemiah and his helpers have undertaken to repair and restore the walls of Jerusalem after the return from seventy years under Babylonian captivity. It was a most arduous task, for in conquering the land the Babylonians had leveled the walls and debris had settled over the area. The report of reconstruction given to us in that chapter of Scripture is as dry as an engineer's report. It's just about as interesting as any great city's report on the repair and maintenance of its streets and freeways.
But we become fascinated as we make this tour of the walls of Jerusalem with Nehemiah. We want to stop at the gates and listen to their music. There are ten of these gates, and they form an instrument of ten strings from which vibrates heaven's harmony. As we stand back to better examine the massive stones of the walls, they begin to speak. They have a message for us, for you and I are building walls - spiritual walls, if you please - with the same gates and having the same message. Today God has given us a subcontract that you and I might build these walls of Jerusalem in our own hearts and lives.
The Tour of the Gates
The Sheep Gate
So let's begin our tour. The first step is taken in verse one:
Then Eliashib, the high priest, rose up with his brethren, the priests, and they builded the sheep gate; they sanctified it, and set up the doors of it. (Nehemiah 3:1)
The Sheep Gate in Jerusalem was near the temple; it was where the sacrificial animals were brought in to be offered on the altar. It is in keeping that the priests should build this particular gate, for it speaks of Christ and His work upon the cross for us. That is exactly what the prophet had said:
...He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. (Isaiah 53:7)
If there be any doubt whether or not the prophet was referring to the Lord Jesus, all we have to do is turn to the incident recorded in Acts 8. There we read about the Ethiopian eunuch who, with a great retinue of servants, was crossing the desert and reading this particular section in Isaiah, though he had no notion what it was all about. Philip was called by the Spirit of God to join himself to that chariot, and as he did he asked the eunuch the specific question, "Do you know what you are reading?" Now, I am afraid that this man gave the answer that a lot of folk would give were they to tell the truth: "How can I understand? I haven't the slightest idea, and how could I unless someone helps me?" As he read about the person being led as a sheep to the slaughter, the Ethiopian eunuch had this question: "I don't quite get it. Is the prophet speaking of himself, or is he speaking of some other man?" Philip explained that he was speaking of another man, and he "...began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus" (Acts 8:35).
When John the Baptist marked Christ out for His ministry he said, "Behold the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). Personally, I think the Lord Jesus came in at the Sheep Gate every time He entered the city except at the Triumphal Entry. We can't be dogmatic about it, but we do know that on one occasion He came in through the Sheep Gate to the Pool of Bethesda. It was there that He healed the blind man. That act was symbolic of the fact that He came as the Lamb of God to take away the sin of the world. And the poor man whom He healed is a picture of every sinner who, if willing to come to the cross of Christ, will find deliverance from sin.
Christ not only came in through that gate, but also when He was arrested and was led out to be crucified, they took Him out through that gate. The Sheep Gate was the place of judgment, and it tells us that He bore the judgment of our sin. It is at this gate that we must begin with God. He is not prepared to meet us anywhere but at the cross.
It is of interest to note that "next unto him the men of Jericho built" (Nehemiah 3:2). Jericho was the city of the curse, and the men of Jericho were building right next to the Sheep Gate. That is not by accident, for Christ bore on the cross for you and me the awful curse of sin. Paul, in writing to the Galatians, said:
Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree. (Galatians 3:13)
Freedom from the curse of sin awaits us at the foot of the cross.
The Fish Gate
And the fish gate did the sons of Hassenaah build.... (Nehemiah 3:3)
Standing before this gate we hear, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men" (Matthew 4:19). We believe that the Fish Gate was next in line to the Sheep Gate. You will recall that the first thing the Lord did with those whom He saved was to send them out immediately to witness for Him. Examples of this are the woman at the well and the poor possessed man among the tombs (see John 4:5-38 and Mark 5:1-20).
But at the time of Nehemiah's record, the Fish Gate was in disrepair. That is like so many Christians who, day by day, month by month, year by year, make no attempt to win anyone to Christ. Though this is true, still I am encouraged. Lately I have seen more people turn to Christ because someone was "fishing" than at any time in my ministry. There are many Christians who are fishing; sometimes they do not catch anything. Half the time when I've gone fishing I haven't gotten even a bite, but there is one sure thing: You will never catch a fish until you try! He is calling us to be fishers of men. Today is the hour of the layman, it is the hour of the average believer, because all around you today there are hearts that are hungry. The child of God has a marvelous opportunity to fish.
For your encouragement, let me give you this "fish story." Many years ago when I was teaching the Book of Revelation in my church, there was a little lady who began coming to the studies and, as a result, she accepted Christ as her Savior. Before we finished the study of Revelation, she, her husband, and her family moved to a nearby town where she became connected with a great industry. On Good Friday I was invited to speak to the Christian Fellowship Class of that company. After I had spoken to the class, its president said to me, "That lady is, without doubt, one of the most effective instruments for Christ we have here, and the reason is that she has made a business of it; it is the object of her life. She rejoices in her own salvation and tactfully talks with others." In a few moments she joined us and, expressing thanks for the message, explained that she had to rush over to the telephone company where they were just beginning Bible classes. That little lady was doing all of that in an effort to win souls.
Jesus said to His disciples, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." He is giving us the same message as we stand before the Fish Gate.
In contrast to the above account, we find an interesting note:
And next unto them the Tekoites repaired; but their nobles put not their necks to the work of their Lord. (Nehemiah 3:5)
I should hate to be a member of that group. Think what it would mean to be recorded on God's eternal page that, when the opportunity presented itself to put your neck to the work of the Lord, you were a shirker and fell down on the job! They were right next to the Fish Gate. Scripture says, "He that withholdeth grain, the people shall curse him..." (Proverbs 11:26). Today some are withholding grain (the Word of God) from those that are hungry.
The Old Gate
Moreover, the old gate repaired Joiada, the son of Paseah.... (Nehemiah 3:6)
The Old Gate is one of intense interest to me. In Jeremiah 6:16 we find this statement:
Thus saith the LORD, Stand in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk in it, and ye shall find rest for your souls.
My friend, we are living in a day when we are interested in the "new" thing - the latest model in an automobile, the latest styles in fashion, and the latest gadgets for the house. A man once remarked to me, "My, you have an old place, haven't you?" That struck me as strange. I thought that I had a new home; it was only seven years old at the time. But in Southern California, it was already an old house. Thus it was borne in upon me that we are living in a day when things are changing radically and rapidly. The conditions under which our grandfathers proposed to our grandmothers are vastly different from those under which the young folk of the present day deal with the matter.
