Reading: Nehemiah chapter 1 verse 1 to chapter 2 verse 10
Ill:
• It was the late American pastor and author Donald Barnhouse;
• Who stunned his congregation one Sunday by declaring; “Prayer changes nothing”.
• The church was packed full of people,
• Yet you could have heard a pin drop.
• Now his comment was deliberately designed to make folks think.
• The point he wanted to make was; “It is God who THROUGH prayer changes things!”
Ill:
• I like the story of the 72 year old woman;
• Who went to bed one night and prayed this prayer;
• “Please God give me the skin like a teenager’s”
• The next morning she woke up covered in acne!
Ill:
• A more series story is told about a particular region of Africa,
• Where the first converts to Christianity were very diligent about praying.
• In fact, the believers each had their own special place;
• Outside the village where they went to pray in solitude.
• The villagers reached these “prayer rooms”
• By using their own private footpaths through the brush.
• When grass began to grow over one of these trails,
• It was evident that the person to whom it belonged was not praying very much.
• Because these new Christians were concerned for each other’s spiritual welfare,
• A unique custom sprang up.
• When ever anyone noticed an overgrown “Prayer path,”
• He or she would go to the person and lovingly warn, “Friend, there’s grass on your path!”
We have recorded in Nehemiah chapter 1 & 2 some insights to help us pray better:
• Until I started preparing for this sermon;
• I never actually realised how much prayer pervades (saturates) this entire book!
• Prayer is one of the overriding themes of the book;
• It is the secret to Nehemiah’s success.
• The prayer we read in chapter 1 is the first of 12 different prayers recorded in the book.
• In fact the book begins with prayer in Persia and closes with prayer in Jerusalem.
Now your homework today is to read those 12 prayers:
• (Only take you about 15mins):
• You will see an incredible variety in his prayers;
• e.g. chapters 8 and 9 contain prayers that are filled with adoration.
• e.g. chapter 12 is full of thanksgiving;
• e.g. chapters 1 and 9 contain prayers of confession.
• e.g. chapters 1 and 2 contain prayers of Petition (requests).
• Those 12 prayers also contain prayers of anguish, joy, protection, dependence & commitment.
• Nehemiah is a book or rather a story of compassionate, persistent, personal & corporate prayer.
• As you read the book you will discover that prayer gives Nehemiah perspective;
• It also widens his horizons, sharpens his vision and dwarfs his anxieties.
So really if you want to get to grips with prayer:
• You ought to go home and at least read (better still study);
• The book of Nehemiah!
Ill:
• (1st). The closest finger to you is the thumb.
• Pray for those that are closest to you. Pray for your parents and your brothers or sisters.
• (2nd). The next finger is called your index finger. It is used for pointing.
• Let this finger remind you to pray for those that point you in the right direction.
• Pray for your teachers at school, your Sunday School teacher, and your pastor.
• (3rd).The next finger is the tallest finger.
• This finger reminds us to pray for our leaders.
• Pray for the prime minister and other leaders in our government;
• And those who are leaders in our town.
• (4th). The fourth finger is the called the ring finger.
• Did you know that this is the weakest of all the fingers?
• Just ask any one who plays the piano and they will tell you that is true.
• Let this finger remind you to pray for those who are sick.
• (5). The next finger is the smallest finger.
• The Bible says, "Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought."
• Let the little finger remind you to pray for yourself.
• So the next time you are talking to God, and you can't think of anything to say,
• Let the "Five Finger Prayer" help you.
Back ground:
• If you don’t know who Nehemiah was let me just give you a bit of background info.
• In the year 586BC Babylon (was a world military super power);
• It had invaded Judah (Southern kingdom) and took away the Jewish people into captivity.
• They became slaves in a foreign land.
• They actually deported the people in three stages;
• During the third stage the Babylonians not only took the people,
• But they destroyed everything in the land;
• Including all of Jerusalem and therefore they destroyed the temple as well!
• We pick up the story when Nehemiah is still in Babylon;
• He is a slave, not a poor-one, he is in the palace as the kings food taster (possibly his butler).
• His chief concern will be to go back home and to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem,
• Because without walls the city was vulnerable to attack from any enemy.
Ill:
• Story told about a Jewish man in New York who bought a little shop;
• Problem was it was squeezed in between two gigantic department stores.
• He wondered what to call his little shop,
• After much thought he decided to call it ‘ENTRANCE!’
• The broken walls and the vulnerability of Jerusalem was a crushing problem;
• To most of the people it was a hopeless situation!
• For Nehemiah (like the Jewish shop keeper) it was a golden opportunity!
• With God’s help he would overcome this situation and not be crushed by it!
Note: For Nehemiah prayer was a process:
• As we look at chapter 1verses 1-11:
• You will discover that Nehemiah went through a progression concerning prayer;
• He did not start out an expert,
• Like each one of us he had to developed, to grow into a person of prayer!
Ill:
• No-one suddenly becomes a good marathon runner.
• No-one suddenly becomes a good dancer (ill: ‘Come dancing’).
• No-one suddenly becomes a good prayer;
• It requires disciple, patience, training & practice!
• For Nehemiah the process of prayer started when he grew concerned about a problem.
• Problems often drive us to prayer, and that was also true for Nehemiah!
(1). He was Concerned About a Problem (vs 2)
“Hanani, one of my brothers, came from Judah with some other men,
and I questioned them about the Jewish remnant that survived the exile,
and also about Jerusalem”.
• It was visit from a family member that caused Nehemiah to begin his process of prayer;
• One of his brothers returned to Babylon having visited his old country & city Jerusalem.
• Verse 2 says that Nehemiah;
• “…questioned them about the Jewish remnant that survived the exile, & also about Jerusalem.”
• The word, “question” means “to inquire or demand” an answer.
• Nehemiah was greatly concerned about what was happening back in his homeland.
• He could have insulated himself if he chose to, after all he was safe in Babylon.
• But he didn’t, he questioned these tourists & wanted to hear a 1stt-hand report of the situation.
This is an important starting point to prayer.
• I find it is so easy to stay uninvolved & unaware of problems & difficulties in the lives of others.
• If we are honest;
• Some of us don’t want to even think about stuff that’s going on in our own lives,
• Much less take the time to investigate what is happening in the lives of others.
• Not so Nehemiah!
• He is very concerned!
Note:
• At this point in the story Nehemiah is still in Babylon;
• He has not yet been released and given permission to return back to Judah.
• We know from verse 11 that Nehemiah was the cupbearer to the king.
• His job was to taste the king’s wine before the king drank it to make sure it was not poisoned.
• As cupbearer, Nehemiah had a great job.
• He had intimate access to royalty,
• He had status in his community,
• He had fine cloths, the best food and wine and also a place to live in the palace.
• It was a cushy job that provided everything he needed.
• And yet…he was not a ‘happy bunny’, he was troubled!
As far as we know Nehemiah had never been to Jerusalem:
• He had heard stories about it,
• He knew that his ancestors had been led away in chains when Babylon destroyed it.
• He knew this was his homeland;
• He knew that it was important to his God, therefore it was important to him!
Ill:
• And as he thought about Jerusalem,
• He listened to the news that was reported by his brother and his friends (verse 3);
• That the survivors were in great trouble and disgrace,
• That the wall of Jerusalem was in shambles and that its gates had been burned with fire.
• As he tried to imagine the humiliation and the indignity of this once great capitol city,
• And he could barely stand it.
• The phrase translated in verse 3 as, “great trouble” means;
• That the people had “broken down and were falling to pieces.”
• Ill: Like the city itself, the returnees:
• Were a broken and depressed people, we might say; ‘Their life had been squeezed out of them’.
• We could use three words to summarize the bad news Nehemiah heard that day:
• They are: ‘Remnant, ruin, and reproach’ – ‘Remnant’ (a few survivors), ‘Reproach’ (shame)
Here is the point I am trying to make:
• Nehemiah was broken over the complacency of the people of Jerusalem.
• They were living in ruins and they accepted it.
• They were willing to walk around and put up with the devastation;
• Instead of being concerned enough to do something about their situation.
Listen as we try to apply this:
• Nothing is ever going to change in your life,
• Or in the life of this church.
• Or for that matter, our nation, or our world;
• Until we become concerned about the problem.
• If you want to make a difference to your……
• Your life…your Church…your community….your nation….your world.
• Then open your eyes and your mind:
• See the need around you, feel the pain and ask God to do some rebuilding?!
Note:
• When Nehemiah heard this report,
• Verse 4 tells us he hit the ground and began to weep.
• The verse goes on to say;
• “For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven”.
Tough Questions:
Question: When did you last weep for anyone?
Question: When did you last weep for a family member?
Question: When did you last weep for someone in this Church?
Question: When did you last weep for something you read in the paper or saw on TV?
Question: When did you last weep for the suffering people of the world?
Question: When did you last weep for lost people of the world?
Notice: that Nehemiah also fasted.
• In fact, we know from comparing the different dates in this book;
• That Nehemiah wept, fasted, and prayed for four months!
• Some of us struggle with 4 minutes, or 4 hours.
• For 4 months Nehemiah had regular times of prayer and fasting.
Question: What is fasting?
Answer: Fasting generally meant going without food and drink for a period of time;
• Not only was it a sign you meant business with God (cost involved)
• But the time you could have been eating and drinking were given over to prayer.
Ill:
It might be helpful to parallel fasting with of human friendship.
• When friends need to be together,
• They will cancel all other activities in order to make that possible.
• Because being with that person matters more than whatever else they had planned;
• It is a simple case of priorities.
• There’s nothing magical about fasting.
• It’s just one way of telling God that your priority at that moment is to be alone with him.
Note:
• We tend to think of fasting as going without food.
• But we can fast from anything.
• If might mean missing a TV programme in order to spend time with God,
• Or decide to miss a football match in order to spend time with God - that is also fasting.
• There’s nothing magical about fasting. It is an act of the will;
• It’s just one way of telling God that your priority at that moment is to be alone with him.
(2). CONVICTION about God’s Character (vs 5-6).
• After Nehemiah becomes concerned,
• He next expresses his conviction of God’s character in verse 5:
“O Lord, God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant of love with those who love Him and obey His commands.”
Notice scan the prayer and notice the names & descriptions he uses for God:
(a).
• In verse 5a Nehemiah called God “Lord.”
• He recognized God as ‘the Lord’ he recognised God as his master.
• In verse 6, he refers to himself as ‘God’s servant’.
• Nehemiah was under the authority & influence of his God !
(b).
• He then refers to His Lord as the “God of Heaven.”
• He acknowledged that his God was beyond the earthly realm and above all other gods.
(c).
• He next refers to Him as “great and awesome.”
• His God is not weak and impotent! He can do anything he chooses because he is ‘G&A’
(d).
• Finally, Nehemiah describes God as the one who “keeps His covenant of love.”
• God is truthful, faithful, reliable and can be trusted 100% (ill: Hate this expression 110%)
Remember at this point in the history of the world;
• Nehemiah’s boss, Artaxerxes the king,
• Was the greatest the mightiest, the most feared, the most important man on the planet,
• But Nehemiah knew compared to God, Artaxerxes was nothing.
• Quote: “Everything we do FOR God is based upon our concept OF God”.
Listen: when we go to God in prayer, things get put into their proper perspective.
Quote:
“Perspective is not what we see, but the way we see it.”
• Nehemiah with all the will in the world;
• Was unable to make any difference to the situation back home in Jerusalem.
• He couldn’t even change his job without royal permission;
• Never mind change an entire city that was a nine hundred mile, four month journey away;
But Nehemiah knew his God, he knew about God’s character,
• Nehemiah knew that he couldn’t!
• But he also knew that God can!
• So he prayed and he prayed and he prayed;
• Not because he was strong, in fact the opposite he prayed because he was weak!
(3). CONFESSION of sin (vs 6—7).
“Let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night for your servants, the people of Israel. I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father’s house, have committed against you. We have acted very wickedly toward you. We have not obeyed the commands, decrees, and laws you gave your servant Moses.”
• Nehemiah boldly asks God to hear his prayer, which literally means,
• “To hear intelligently with great attention.”
• But Nehemiah has a problem;
• As an individual and as a nation the people are not what they should be.
• So Nehemiah recognises the problem and takes it to God in prayer;
• He knew the principle that runs through the Bible.
• “If we confess our sins” – if we are honest with God & truly sorry before him;
• “He will forgive and cleanse us” – true in the OT and true for us in the NT!
Notice: at least three key ingredients in his confession of sin.
(A). INTENSITY.
• Overwhelmed by concern about sin and in awe of God’s character,
• Nehemiah gave himself to prolonged petition and intercession.
• He prayed day and night,
• Spending every moment of his spare time in God’s presence.
(B). HONESTY.
• Nehemiah made no attempt to excuse the Israelites for their sin;
• And actually owned his part in their culpability.
• He surveyed the grim record of Israel’s past and present failure,
• And he knew that he was not exempt from blame.
Notice that he prays,
“I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself…we have acted very wickedly…we have not obeyed…”
This is remarkable to me.
• It would have been easy for Nehemiah to look back and blame his ancestors,
• But instead he looked within and blamed himself.
• It’s so easy for us to blame others, isn’t it?
• We need to learn from Nehemiah and confess honestly,
• “Lord, I am wrong. I not only want to be part of the answer,
• I confess that I’m part of the problem.”
Urgency.
• Nehemiah recognized that sin is not merely a stubborn refusal to obey certain rules,
• But is also a defiant act of aggressive personal rebellion against a holy God.
• He knows that they “have acted very wickedly.”
• He didn’t try to candy-coat his sin. He owned it and called it what it was.
Ill:
The story is told about some Boeing employees;
• Who decided to steal a life raft from one of the 747s they were working on.
• They were successful in getting it out of the plant but they forgot one thing.
• The raft comes with an emergency locator;
• And this locator is automatically activated when the raft is inflated.
• So, they took the raft out and went water rafting on the Stilliguamish River,
• They were quite surprised by a Coast Guard helicopter homing in on the emergency locator.
Trying to hide our sins from God is impossible.
He knows all about them.
Numbers 32:23: reminds us that,
“…you may be sure that your sin will find you out.”
Friends, we need to recognize that all sin,
those things we have blatantly done or carelessly committed,
or those things that we have left undone, must be identified and then confessed.
Are you trying to hide anything today?
It’s better to confess it now than to wait until your sin exposes you!
(4). CONFIDENCE in God’s Promises (vs 8-10).
While Nehemiah spends time in broken confession,
• He doesn’t wallow in a prolonged introspective examination of his failures and those of his brothers and sisters.
• He owns what he did wrong;
• And then he quickly expresses confidence in God’s promises in verses 8-10:
“Remember the instruction you gave your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations, but if you return to me and obey my commands, then even if your exiled people are at the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen as a dwelling for my name.’ They are your servants and your people, whom you redeemed by your great strength and mighty hand.”
In this part of his prayer,
• Nehemiah recalls the words of Moses;
• About the danger of Israel’s apostasy and the promise of divine mercy.
• His words are a skilful mosaic of great Old Testament warnings and promises,
• With quotes coming from Leviticus, Deuteronomy, 1 Kings, 2 Chronicles and Psalm 130.
What was the promise Nehemiah was getting at?
It was twofold.
• First, if Israel disobeyed, they would be sent to a foreign land.
• That had been fulfilled.
• The second part was that when the captivity was over God would send them back to Jerusalem. They were still waiting for that to be fulfilled.
• Nehemiah prayed, “Lord, the first part is true.
• We’ve disobeyed and we’re in captivity.
• But Lord, you’ve made a promise to bring us back home and protect us there;
• And that has not happened yet. I’m claiming your promise that you’ll make it happen.”
Are you as confident of God’s promises as Nehemiah was? If God said it in His Word, you can believe it and claim it. Nehemiah knew God would keep His covenant of love with his people. He also knew that, even though God did not need his help, he was ready to make a commitment to get involved.
(5). COMMITMENT to get involved.
Do you see the progression in Nehemiah’s prayer?
• His concern about the problem led him to brokenness.
• While he was weeping and fasting, he expressed his conviction about God’s character.
• As he focused on the greatness and awesomeness of His holy God,
• He was quickly reminded of his own wickedness and therefore cried out in confession.
• After owning his role in the nation’s depravity,
• He prayed boldly and with confidence in God’s promises.
• This then leads him to a commitment to get involved.
• We see this in verse 11:
“O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. Give your servant success today by granting him favour in the presence of this man. I was cupbearer to the king.”
Quote:
“It has been said that prayer is not getting man’s will done in heaven but getting God’s will done on earth”.
However, for God’s will to be done on earth,
He needs people to be available for Him to use.
While Nehemiah was praying,
His burden for Jerusalem became greater and his vision of what needed to be done became clearer.
He didn’t pray for God to send someone else;
He simply said, “Here am I, send me!”
He knew that he would have to approach the king and request;
A 3-year leave of absence and so asked God for “success,” which means “to break out or push forward.”
He wanted to see God break out on his behalf;
When he goes in front of the king to make his request.
He was claiming yet another promise from Proverbs 21:1:
“The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord; He directs it like a watercourse where He pleases.”
• Someone has said that the key word in this book is the word, “so,”
• Which occurs 32 different times.
• Again and again,
• Nehemiah assesses the situation, is moved to concern and “so” is compelled to action.
• The true measure of our concern;
• Is whether or not we are willing to make a commitment to get involved.
Quote: Martin Luther said,
“Pray as if everything depends on God, then work as if everything depends on you.”
Ill:
Swedish aupair;
“What are you doing on earth?”
Ill:
Franz Joseph Hayden (1732-1809) was present at the Vienna Music Hall,
• Where his oratorio The Creation was being performed.
• Weakened by age, the great composer was confined to a wheelchair.
• As the majestic work moved along, the audience was caught up with tremendous emotion.
• When the passage “And there was light!” was reached,
• The chorus and orchestra burst forth in such power;
• That the crowd could no longer restrain its enthusiasm.
• The vast assembly rose in spontaneous applause.
• Hayden struggled to stand and motioned for silence.
• With his hand pointed toward heaven, he said,
• “No, no, not from me, but from thence comes all!”
• Having given the glory and praise to the Creator,
• He fell back into his chair exhausted.
Quote:
“Prayer is preoccupation with my needs.
“Praise is preoccupation with my blessings.
“Worship is preoccupation with God alone”.
• And this unique prayer starts by focusing our attention of the everlasting God!
• No-doubt you will focus in on this next week.
