If you’ve noticed I have tried to pick men of the bible we usually do not talk about much. Elijah, Naaman and now I want to talk about another man we seldom talk about.
I would like to call your attention to the prophet called Nehemiah. We may gain some help from this distinguished man who accomplished a great work.
He was one of the last of the prophets, and he was supposed to be contemporary with Malachi, and perhaps his book was one of the last of the Old Testament books that was written.
He might have known Daniel, for he was a young man in the declining years of that very eminent and godly statesman.
We are sure of one thing at least—he was a man of sterling worth. Although he was brought up in the Persian court among idolaters, yet he had a character that has stood all these centuries.
His name means consolation of the Lord or literally YHWH comforts. This may seem insignificant but when Jesus was brought to the temple for dedication we read this Luke 2:25 (NASB)
25 And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him.
Simeon and many of his day were looking for a Nehemiah type to come and restore Israel the way Nehemiah did in the days after the Babylonian exile.
This man was brought up in the captivity and had never seen his own country Israel and especially the city of his father’s -Jerusalem.
He was a very prominent man in King Artaxerxes’ court as his cup bearer. He was trusted and the King cared greatly about him.
One day in November or December of BC 445 his brother and some men from Jerusalem came to see the King, perhaps on some official business and Nehemiah inquires about his people and the city of Jerusalem.
What he is told distressed him greatly. Now it happened in the month Chislev, in the twentieth year, while I was in Susa the capitol ,2 that Hanani, one of my brothers, and some men from Judah came; and I asked them concerning the Jews who had escaped and had survived the captivity, and about Jerusalem.3 They said to me, "The remnant there in the province who survived the captivity are in great distress and reproach, and the wall of Jerusalem is broken down and its gates are burned with fire." Neh 1:1-3 (NASB)
Although he had never been there, Nehemiah was greatly disturbed about this news. The people were suffering poverty and hunger. The city walls were broken down and had never been rebuilt, leaving the people vulnerable to attack from their many enemies and the gates were nothing more than ashes.
Now I know what you are thinking. God is going to raise up this man and use him in a great way to correct all of this and you would be right. However something needs to be done first and foremost.
Nehemiah tells us exactly what that thing was 4 When I heard these words, I sat down and wept and mourned for days; and I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.5 I said, "I beseech You, O LORD God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who preserves the covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments,6 let Your ear now be attentive and Your eyes open to hear the prayer of Your servant which I am praying before You now, day and night, on behalf of the sons of Israel Your servants, confessing the sins of the sons of Israel which we have sinned against You; I and my father's house have sinned.7 "We have acted very corruptly against You and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the ordinances which You commanded Your servant Moses.8 "Remember the word which You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, 'If you are unfaithful I will scatter you among the peoples;9 but if you return to Me and keep My commandments and do them, though those of you who have been scattered were in the most remote part of the heavens, I will gather them from there and will bring them to the place where I have chosen to cause My name to dwell.' Neh 1:4-9 (NASB)
The confession of sin before God. Those who expect to receive blessings from God when they are not ready to surrender and give up their sins will be a long time waiting.
God cannot or will not use a man who refuses to acknowledge and repent of his sins.
Daniel was used in a mighty way in Babylon but not before he confessed his own sin (and by the way not one sin is recorded in the scriptures) and the sins of his people. Before he even finished that prayer the Lord sent his answer.
We are told these men arrived in November or December and Nehemiah wept, and mourned and fasted and prayed until late March or early April.
This was the mourning Jesus spoke about in Matthew 5:4 “Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted.
We are an instant result driven people today. What we want, we want now. This man prayed for four months continually before his answer came. Now he still fulfilled his duties to the King so it was not like he was on his knees 24 hours a day. But his heart was always in touch with God fulfilling what Paul tells us “to pray continually”.
If the answer or blessing does not come tonight, pray harder tomorrow and if it does not come tomorrow pray harder the day after.
I am not sure that when Nehemiah began this prayer, he thought it would be him that God would send to rebuild the walls and gates of that great city. But when your heart is in harmony with God, He will prepare and equip you for whatever it is that needs to get done.
The King saw this sadness on Nehemiah’ face and inquired about it and Nehemiah told him everything. Perhaps Nehemiah thought the King would send a band of soldiers and engineers to fix the walls and gates but instead the King sends Nehemiah and gives him letters of authority to accomplish this work.
Now make note of this this, it was a big deal for Nehemiah to give up the palace of Shushan and his high office, and identify himself with the despised and captive Jews.
He was among the highest in the whole realm. Not only that, but he was a man of wealth, lived in ease and luxury, and had great influence at the King’s court.
For him to go to Jerusalem and lose all of this was like Moses turning his back on the palace of Pharaoh and identifying himself with the Hebrew slaves. Yet we might NEVER HAVE HEARD OF either of them if they had not done this.
What a great picture of God leaving His ivory palaces and throne to become one of us in order to redeem us!
Now you would think this was a good thing. Rebuilding the city walls and the temple of God. What better ministry? But not everyone is pleased or happy.
9 Then I came to the governors of the provinces beyond the River and gave them the king's letters. Now the king had sent with me officers of the army and horsemen.10 When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard about it, it was very displeasing to them that someone had come to seek the welfare of the sons of Israel. Neh 2:9-10 (NASB)
This did not deter Nehemiah and after three days, in the middle of the night he awoke and surveyed the damage going from gate to gate around the temple area.
If we look around we can see many churches in a similar state; if not physically then surely spiritually. It seems like everything is falling apart and in shambles. But all God needs is one man or woman with a burning for improvement and things will change.
Nehemiah is that man with a burning in his heart for Gods city and makes his plan known to the officials, elders and priests to rebuild, and the work begins but again not everyone is happy or pleased.
19 But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official , and Geshem the Arab heard it, they mocked us and despised us and said, "What is this thing you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?"20 So I answered them and said to them, "The God of heaven will give us success; therefore we His servants will arise and build, but you have no portion, right or memorial in Jerusalem." Neh 2:19-20 (NASB)
They tried to incite the people to give up, using the accusation that if you build the walls it may be taken as a sign that you intend to make war against the king.
First, the king approved the project and secondly the King of kings was with them and so this work could never fail.
Just as those men did not want to see the restoration of Jerusalem; in the same way men today do not want to see the cause of Christ go forward.
It doesn’t take long to build the walls of a city if you can only get the whole of the people involved in it. If the Christians of this country would only rise up, we could evangelize America in twelve months. All of the Jews had a hand in repairing the walls of Jerusalem. Each built over against his own house, priest and merchant, goldsmith and apothecary, and even the women. The men of Jericho and other cities came to help. The walls began to rise.
In Nehemiah chapter 3 we see that all the Jews were involved, even the high priest and his brothers and sons. But not only that; the men from Jericho came to help as well as other surrounding cities.
Ridicule and mockery is a very strong weapon. It can cut as deep as a sword and be just as deadly
1 Now it came about that when Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became furious and very angry and mocked the Jews.2 He spoke in the presence of his brothers and the wealthy men of Samaria and said, "What are these feeble Jews doing? Are they going to restore it for themselves? Can they offer sacrifices? Can they finish in a day? Can they revive the stones from the dusty rubble even the burned ones?"3 Now Tobiah the Ammonite was near him and he said, "Even what they are building—if a fox should jump on it, he would break their stone wall down!" Neh 4:1-3 (NASB)
But when a man has God on his side such ridicule and mockery falls short and accounts for nothing and so Nehemiah offers a prayer.
4 Hear, O our God, how we are despised! Return their reproach on their own heads and give them up for plunder in a land of captivity.5 Do not forgive their iniquity and let not their sin be blotted out before You, for they have demoralized the builders. Neh 4:4-5 (NASB)
Prayer is a powerful weapon as well, and when you are praying to the one and only God it is far more powerful than anything the enemy can throw at you. And so the wall is built to half its height.
Ridicule soon became a planned act of violence and these mockers now planned to attack the Jews and kill them but the plan was found out.
Each worker now carried a sword. And only half the people worked while the other half stood guard in the gates and the gaps that were still in the wall both men and women and children.
This stopped the plan for a while but soon the enemy rose up again and was planning to gather together against Israel. But when they came near they saw that the wall had been completely finished and reinforced and lost their courage, saying that the Lord must surely be with them seeing this was accomplished in only 52 days
When the direct approach does not work Satan often turns to deception and this is exactly what happened.
1 Now when it was reported to Sanballat, Tobiah, to Geshem the Arab and to the rest of our enemies that I had rebuilt the wall, and that no breach remained in it, although at that time I had not set up the doors in the gates,2 then Sanballat and Geshem sent a message to me, saying, "Come, let us meet together at Chephirim in the plain of Ono." But they were planning to harm me.3 So I sent messengers to them, saying, "I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. Neh 6:1-3 (NASB)
It is a master piece of the devils work to get men into friendly discussions with his followers only to pounce on them later. Verse 4 tells us they sent a similar message four (4) times and Nehemiah answered the same way each time. I am doing a great work and I cannot come down.
How many believers and even church bodies have left the work to go down and discuss the “questions of the day” on the plains of Ono, when they should have been about the great work of seeking and saving the lost and building up Gods church body?
Once again they write a letter, this time using intimidation. We heard you are building the walls so you can rebel against the king and that you have appointed prophets to proclaim you as King of Judah. So if you do not come down to us we will tell the king what you are up to.
When this did not work they actually bribed a prophet in Jerusalem to council Nehemiah to go into the temple to hide for they were trying to kill him at night. This was so Sanballt and Tobiah could bring a charge of sin against Nehemiah.
Nehemiah figured out pretty quickly that this prophet was not sent from God and he refused to hide, knowing God was on his side.
1 Now when the wall was rebuilt and I had set up the doors, and the gatekeepers and the singers and the Levites were appointed,2 then I put Hanani my brother, and Hananiah the commander of the fortress, in charge of Jerusalem, for he was a faithful man and feared God more than many. Neh 7:1-2 (NASB)
The wall was finished as I said in 52 days and a census was taken of the people according to their genealogies.
Many had forgotten from which tribe or family they had come but Nehemiah found the great book of genealogies and determined this for the people.
Nehemiah was now governor of Jerusalem and had accomplished all that the Lord willed as far as the rebuilding of the city. But people need more than a city and walls and a governor.
The next thing he did was to build a pulpit out of wood large enough for Ezra the priest and 13 others and gathered the people for a large open air meeting.
These people had been in Babylon for over 70 years and much of the Jewish faith was lost or forgotten. Even finding people who could speak the Hebrew tongue was rare. Most now spoke Aramaic
This priest Ezra finds the books of the law (probably at the same time Nehemiah found the book of genealogies) and in this open air meeting reads Gods word and for some perhaps hearing it for the first time.
Nehemiah 8:1-3 (NASB)
1 And all the people gathered as one man at the square which was in front of the Water Gate, and they asked Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses which the LORD had given to Israel.
2 Then Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly of men, women and all who could listen with understanding, on the first day of the seventh month.
3 He read from it before the square which was in front of the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of men and women, those who could understand; and all the people were attentive to the book of the law.
For some reason we have fallen into the practice of separating the children from the adults in service in many churches. But if I am reading this correctly any who could listen with understanding were present.
From morning (probably the 6 Am hour of prayer) until midday (probably the 3 PM hour of prayer) Ezra read the scriptures to the people, the first five books of Moses.
Ezra stood on this massive pulpit with six priests on his right and seven on his left. He read the scriptures for almost 9 straight hours. Boy try that today.
Nehemiah 8:5-6 (NASB)
5 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.
6 Then Ezra blessed the LORD the great God. And all the people answered, "Amen, Amen!" while lifting up their hands; then they bowed low and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.
Many suggest that some of the things we call church today cannot be found in scripture and I disagree. Here the main speaker stands at the pulpit elevated above the people (not because he is above them but so they can see him) and opens his bible and everyone stood up. That seems familiar.
An opening prayer and God is blessed or praised and all the people respond with the double AMEN. Amen means we agree and a double amen means we absolutely agree.
They raise their hands in a sort of surrender but it also has the picture of the waving of the palms we see when Jesus arrived in Jerusalem.
Then they bowed low. Low enough that their faces touched the ground in humble adoration. We don’t do much kneeling any more and for some of us it might be quite difficult but it is a sign of reverence.
Nehemiah 8:7-8 (NASB)
7 Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, the Levites, explained the law to the people while the people remained in their place.
8 They read from the book, from the law of God, translating to give the sense so that they understood the reading.
Not only was God’s word read but it was expounded upon so all could understand it similar to what we do today
Nehemiah 8:10 (NASB)
10 Then he said to them, "Go, eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength."
Sounds very much like many services today. The people have their city, their temple and now they have God’s word.
Have you noticed a theme with these men, besides being men of the Bible? Each of them so far has accomplished a great work of God and for the most part, have had to go it alone.
God does not need an army or a large congregation to accomplish His will and purpose.
He needs a man or a woman whose heart is pointed towards Him and ready to be used.
• Moses stood before Pharaoh and all of Egypt boldly and confidently
• Elijah stood before all the prophets of Baal and disobedient Israel with no fear whatsoever
• And now Nehemiah rebuilds the city while enemies surround him and want him dead
It’s not about numbers or size. It’s about God
It’s not about status or position, It’s about answering “here I am Lord, send me”
When God is on your side, there is nothing we cannot do or accomplish, especially if it is God who ordains the work to be done
