INTRODUCTION
„X Nehemiah was a layman, cupbearer to the great ¡§Artaxerxes,¡¨ who ruled Persia from 464 to 423 B.C. Nehemiah¡¦s name means ¡§The Lord has comforted.¡¨
„X A cupbearer was much more than our modern ¡§butler¡¨ (see Gen. 40). It was a position of great responsibility and privilege. At each meal, he tested the king¡¦s wine to make sure it wasn¡¦t poisoned. A man who stood that close to the king in public had to be handsome, cultured, knowledgeable in court procedures, and able to converse with the king and advise him if asked (see 41:1-13). Because he had access to the king, the cupbearer was a man of great influence, which he could use for good or for evil.
„X The nation of Israel was not very strong after the return from captivity, the moral was low. The opposing nations wanted to keep Jerusalem in bad shape.
„X In 538 B.C., Cyrus of Persia allowed the Jews to return home.
„X 536 B.C., about 50,000 returned from captivity to Jerusalem.
„X 535 B.C., the Temple reconstruction began.
„X 515 B.C., the Temple was completed.
„X 458, Ezra returned
„X 445, Nehemiah returned to rebuild the walls of the city.
The city of Los Angeles burned in the late spring of 1992. The pallor of smoke from the fires started in the riots that followed the Rodney King verdict was visible over the whole metropolitan area, and television carried the sight all around the world.
The riots confirmed the unfortunate wisdom of an architectural trend that had been growing for a decade: erecting homes, stores, and public buildings that look like fortresses. Concrete and steel do not burn like wood; windows that aren¡¦t there can¡¦t be smashed. As society becomes increasingly lawless, structures with the characteristics of a wall surrounding an ancient city are becoming the first line of defense against crime and mayhem.
„X In Nehemiah¡¦s time it was important to the safety of a city¡¦s inhabitants that there be a strong, high wall surrounding their homes and businesses. Only in this way could threatening hordes be kept at bay. So there was joy among the returning citizens of Jerusalem as the gaps in the wall were filled in. The task was completed because ¡§the people had a mind to work,¡¨ and as they worked, they lifted up their cause to God in prayer. It was an example of the proverb, ¡§Pray as if everything depends on God, and work as if everything depends on you.¡¨
„X Nehemiah gave up a lot to do what was best for his county. It takes sacrifice to build a great nation.
Fifty-six men signed the Declaration of Independence. Their conviction resulted in untold sufferings for themselves and their families. Of the 56 men, five were captured by the British and tortured before they died. Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. Two lost their sons in the Revolutionary Army. Another had two sons captured. Nine of the fifty-six fought and died from wounds or hardships of the war.
Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships sunk by the British navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts and died in poverty. At the battle of Yorktown, the British General Cornwallis had taken over Thomas Nelson’s home for his headquarters. Nelson quietly ordered General George Washington to open fire on the Nelson home. The home was destroyed and Nelson died bankrupt.
John Hart was driven from his wife’s bedside as she was dying. Their thirteen children fled for their lives. His fields and mill were destroyed. For over a year, he lived in forest and caves, returning home only to find his wife dead and his children vanished. A few weeks later, he died from exhaustion.- Kenneth L. Dodge, Resource, Sept./ Oct., 1992, Page 5
„X Today our nation is at a crossroads. Will you be one of those great people who make a difference, or will you be one of those pessimists who complain, but do nothing to make things better? Even with all the problems our society has, it is still the greatest nation on earth in which to live. Let¡¦s work to keep it that way!
„X What will it take?
SERMON
I. TO BUILD A GREAT NATION, IT TAKES PEOPLE WHO CARE. C-1
1. Nehemiah cared enough to ask. 1:1-3 (READ)
„X Brother came back from a visit. Sometimes e just turn a blind eye to what is going on around us. We need to care enough to ask how things are going before we can do anything about it.
2. Nehemiah cared enough to weep. 1:4 (READ)
„X How many times have you been heartbroken over what is going on around you? Difference makers are the ones who are driven by the passion to make things better.
3. Nehemiah cared enough to pray. 1:5-10
„X Before we take off and act, we must take the time to pray. He prayed for over 4 months before he got any kind of answer from God. The answer was not what he may have expected. Notice that
4. Nehemiah cared enough to volunteer. 1:11 (READ)
„X A lot of people proclaim to care, but few are willing to be a part of the solution.
II. To Build a great nation, it takes faith. C-2
1. Nehemiah had the faith to wait on God. 2:1-3 (READ)
„X Nehemiah had been praying for a solution to the problem. Now he is before the king. The king is going to provide him an answer to his prayer. I do not believe this is what Nehemiah envisioned when he started praying.
„X Some of you here today may so passionate about our country that you will run for a political office in order to help make things better.
2. Nehemiah had the faith to ask the king to fix the problem. 2:4-8 (READ)
„X We have Nehemiah praying once again for guidance. Is this what I have been praying for?
3. Nehemiah had the faith to challenge others to action. 2:11-18a
„X The plan is in motion, but for great plans to take place, it takes the ability to motivate other people to act along with you. The job could not be done alone!
„X Nehemiah assesses the situation and then recruits help. READ 17-18
III. To build a great nation, it takes work. C-3-6
„X Edmund Burke said All that is necessary for evil to prevail is that good men do nothing
„X Throughout chapters 3-6 we have the rebuilding of the wall.
„X The task was a daunting one. When we look out and see some things we do not like, we must not get discouraged at the size of the task. We have many laws on the books that are there because one person saw an injustice and sought to fix it.
„X The work was hard; there was a lot of opposition. Whenever you are trying to change things, there will be opposition. The founding fathers faced what seemed like an impossible task when they took on the greatest military power on the earth at the time.
IV. To build a great nation, opposition will be faced. C-4,6
1. Verbal assault. 4:1-3 READ
San Bal ut
Am mon ites
2. Intimidation. 4:7-9
„X When verbal assaults did not stop the work, then the opposition resorted to intimidation. We must be prepared for this when we are trying to make things better.
3. Discouragement. 4:10 (READ)
„X Sometimes the task can be overwhelming. The criticisms and intimidation takes its toll.
4. Fear. 4:11-23
„X In verses 11-23 we see the fear starting to set in. Nehemiah sees this and formulates a plan to combat the problem. When we face fear, we must over come it. Nehemiah had one half of the servants work and the other half were to carry a spear.
5. Deception
„X When intimidation, slander and other methods do not keep us from doing what we are called to do, then we can expect some deception to take place.
„X Compromise. 6:1-4. Sanballat and Tobiah wanted to try to get Nehemiah to compromise what he was doing or they wanted to take his life, without Nehemiah the work would stop.
„X Slander. 6:5-9, when this did not work, they resorted to lying about what was going on. We see this today in politics. If one side does not like what the other is going to do, then they will stretch the truth about it.
„X Twisting of truth. 6:10-14 (Shemaiah the prophet)
CONCLUSION
„X In 1790 John Philpot Curran said, ¡§The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt.¡¨ Thomas Jefferson condensed Curran¡¦s advice with the familiar ¡§Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.¡¨
„X We see the wisdom of this advice in many areas of our lives. Careful, regular maintenance of the family car can help to insure our family¡¦s freedom from possible injury or death. In earthquake-prone regions of the world, building codes are reviewed after each major quake to see what changes are needed to protect people from future disasters. When an airliner crashes, that model of plane may be grounded until the cause of the crash is determined and any suspect parts are replaced on similar aircraft.
„X Years before Nehemiah and the Jews returned to Jerusalem, their ancestors had failed to be vigilant against the threats of idolatry and other forms of ungodliness. They eventually paid the price through their captivity in a foreign land. Now, to retain their newly gained freedom, they had to do their work with vigilance, always being ready to fight off an attack from their enemies. The same vigilance is needed by the people of God today: ¡§Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour¡¨ (1 Peter 5:8).
„X If we are going to restore our nation to its greatness, it is going to take Christians who care. People who care enough to come out of the comfort of our homes and do something about the decline of society.
„X If we are going to restore our nation, it is going to take people who have enough faith in God, not to write off the society.
„X If we are going to restore our nation, it is going to take people who it is going to take people who are willing to work for change.
„X If we are going to restore our nation, it is going to take people who are willing to stand up against many of the unrighteous causes. It is going to take people who are willing to stand for righteousness.
„X It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians, not on religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ! Patrick Henry
Dramatic loss of national morality after 1963: God’s judgment on a nation:
Unwed birth rates 15-19 yr olds shot up
Unwed birth rates 10-14 yr olds shot up 553% by 1983
Sexually Transmitted Disease rates 15-19 yr olds shot up 226% by 1975
Divorce had been declining for 15 consecutive years prior to 1963. After, the number of
divorces tripled every year until 1983.
SAT scores declined for 18 consecutive years after 1963; unprecedented in our history. We
are now graduating a generation of students that, academically, knows less that their parents.
Violent crime up 544%.
The U.S. is now #1 in the world in:
Violent crime
Divorce
Teen pregnancies (industrial world)
Abortions
Illegal drug use
Illiteracy (industrial world)
