Daily Manna 5 February 2022
KEY VERSE: “And that which the rest of the people gave was twenty thousand drams of gold, and two thousand pound of silver, and threescore and seven priests’ garments.” – (Nehemiah 7:72)
TEXT: Nehemiah 7:70-73 (KJV)
70 And some of the chief of the fathers gave unto the work. The Tirshatha gave to the treasure a thousand drams of gold, fifty basons, five hundred and thirty priests’ garments.
71 And some of the chief of the fathers gave to the treasure of the work twenty thousand drams of gold, and two thousand and two hundred pound of silver.
72 And that which the rest of the people gave was twenty thousand drams of gold, and two thousand pound of silver, and threescore and seven priests’ garments.
73 So the priests, and the Levites, and the porters, and the singers, and some of the people, and the Nethinims, and all Israel, dwelt in their cities; and when the seventh month came, the children of Israel were in their cities.
Thomas Paine, an English-born American political activist, said, “A body of men holding themselves accountable to nobody ought not to be trusted by anybody”. Today, the major problem of many countries is leadership. Most of those elected into positions of authority in many countries end up not being accountable to the people who gave them the mandate and act as overlords.
In our text, the leadership of the returned exiles under Ezra made it a point of duty to document and account for the contribution of everyone in support of the work. He first captured the contributions made by “some of the chief of the fathers”. He singled out contributions made by the Tirshatha, which was prominent; and then gave accurate records of the rest, which the people gave.
There is need for accountability in the house of God. We must not follow the way of politicians in leadership, which gives room for murmuring and ill feeling in society. God’s house must be free from murmuring and suspicion by members. Therefore, leaders ought to be transparent in lifestyle and in accounting for the use of Church resources. To achieve this, leaders should always display competence, transparency and sincerity in getting and disbursing resources. If it mattered in the Old Testament, it also matters now.
Read yesterday’s Daily Manna here
Much can be learnt from the cooperation, commitment and willingness of the Jews. We must not neglect the least contributor in any project in the household of faith. Everyone and every contribution counts!
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Accounting matters to God; it should matter to us.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Deuteronomy 13-16
Thank you for studying today’s Daily Manna – Accountability Counts – by Pastor W.F Kumuyi
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Daily Manna 5 February 2022
