The Hand Of God Upon Me Series

“THE HAND OF GOD UPON ME” Neh. 2:8b

FBCF – 6/14/20

Jon Daniels

INTRO – Newsweek article – Doing research this past week preparing sermon. Did Google search for “the hand of God” just to see what some commentators & pastors had written. Surprised to see something pop up on the Newsweek.com website. I don’t normally think of Newsweek when think of conservative evangelical Christianity. So, I clicked on it to see what was written, expecting something negative, or at the very least, slanted against or away from showing Christians in a positive light. But I was surprised.

What I found was an anonymous article written in March, 1999, that is a powerful testimony of a man who gave His life to Christ at the age of 16, & said this in his testimony: “As a teenager, I needed to know for certain that I was right w/ God. I could not help but admit to myself that I was purposeless & empty-hearted. In a word, I was spiritually dead. But I know that God always had His hand on my life, leading me step by step.” The writer of this testimony shared that a few years later, as a student at a Bible college in FLA, he went out onto a golf course on a moonlit night, got down on his knees on the 18th green, & said, “’Lord, I’ll go where you want me to go, & I’ll be what you want me to be.’ Immediately, I felt a great peace in my heart.” (https://www.newsweek.com/gods-hand-my-life-163722)

I think it’s interesting that there was no author listed – just “Newsweek staff.” Says to me that this could be ANYONE’S story. It could be YOUR story.

- It could be YOUR story of God’s hand on your life.

- It could be YOUR story of realizing your sinfulness, your lostness, & your need for Jesus.

- It could be YOUR story of complete surrender to Jesus as the Lord of your life – “go where you want me to go – be what you want me to be.”

EXPLANATION – Open Bibles to Neh. 2:8b.

OT book of Nehemiah is a history book that tells the story of the rebuilding of the walls around the city of Jerusalem that had been torn down by King Nebuchadnezzar. Nehemiah’s heart is broken. It’s broken over the destruction of the walls. But it’s even more broken over the sinful condition of his heart & the hearts of the people of God. Chapter 1 tells that part of the story as he cried out to God in confession & repentance, & asked God to help him. And the chapter ends w/ an interesting stand-alone statement: “I was cupbearer to the king.”

Nehemiah:

- Layman

- Leader

- Loyal – to the king, his friends/family, God

- Loved his God & God’s people

Chapter 2 happens about 4 months after the events of chapter 1. God did not send Neh immediately after Hanani told him about the situation. Neither did Neh just take off on his own. And he didn’t immediately ask for permission to go. What he DID do was PRAY & WAIT for God’s timing.

While he was doing his normal, everyday job, the king noticed that he was obviously sad about something & asked about it. It was in this moment, when he was going about his regular duties that God opened up the opportunity for him to tell the king about what was going on & ask the king for his assistance. At the end of his requests, Neh said this: “And the king granted me what I asked, FOR THE GOOD HAND OF MY GOD WAS UPON ME” (v. 8b). Once he knew that, he moved forward in faith & confidence to do what God told him to do. And that’s the application for our lives today:

APPLICATION – When you know God’s hand is upon you, you can move forward in confidence & His strength to do His will.

How to know that God’s hand is upon you:

- Ask for it

- Position yourself under it

- Believe it

And when you know His hand is upon you, you have:

HIS HAND OF PROVISION – Neh seemed to be in an impossible situation – walls destroyed, gates burned, & he’s just a wine-taster for the king. Looks pretty bleak!

But not when God’s hand is upon you b/c His hand is a hand of provision – He will ALWAYS provide for His children – WITHOUT FAIL!

There’s another OT person who found themselves in a seemingly hopeless situation – Jehoshaphat, King of Judah, in 2 Chron. 20. Found out that a massive army was forming up to attack him. Struck fear in his heart, as it would any of us. And in 2 Chron. 20:12, we read these simple, but powerfully profound words: “We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.” Jehoshaphat knew to turn his gaze away from his enemies, & put it on God, who would provide for him.