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EZRA/NEHEMIAH, Part 7

Published June 17, 2011 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: Nehemiah, Working for God

GETTING READY TO WORK

Nehemiah 2:11—20

Nehemiah is one of Longfellow’s “great men”:

Lives of great men all remind us

We can make our lives sublime,

And, departing, leave behind us

Footprints, that perhaps another—

Sailing o’er life’s solemn main

A forlorn and ship-wrecked brother—

Seeing, shall take heart again.

His footprints have been left behind, distinctive footprints, on the sands of the history that serve well to inspire with fresh courage many discouraged hearts in service to the Lord. Maybe that’s you. Maybe you’re discouraged in your work for God. Perhaps you feel like you’ve been banging your head against a brick wall for so long and that your prayers haven’t been getting past the ceiling. If that’s how you feel, look at what Nehemiah did. He is a fine example for you.

His trip from Persia to Jerusalem took three months. So far, as we have learned, God had answered all of his prayers, and now Nehemiah has put his faith where his mouth is. He was now on his way to work. Let’s take a look at how Nehemiah did that. Notice that he—

1. Took time time to reflect

I went to Jerusalem, and after staying there three days… (verse 11)

There must have been a lot to see and think about in Jerusalem because Ezra, when he first went to Jerusalem, did the same thing!

So we arrived in Jerusalem, where we rested three days. (Ezra 8:32)

Both men were literally on fire to get Jerusalem rebuilt, we wonder why they simply waited around town for three whole days. Why not get started right away? Knowing Nehemiah as well as we do by now, we can be assured that he didn’t just “wait around.” We imagine that he spent the three days in prayer and thoughtful consideration. This is a good lesson for us to take away: we should never be in a reckless rush to work for the Lord.

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31)

To wait upon the Lord means to trust in the Lord; it means to have His thoughts on a thing; it means to be sure things are done His way. It’s not sitting around thinking about Him. Waiting on the Lord is not a passive activity you engage in when you don’t know what else to do. Nehemiah, for done, knew exactly what needed to be done, yet he took three days before he did anything, making sure he was walking in lock-step with His God. David did the same thing, by the way. When he was confronted with a crisis, here is what he did—

Then King David went in and sat before the LORD… (1 Chronicles 17:16a)

Things happen to a believer when they spend time alone with God. If you are living a feckless Christian life, maybe it’s because you don’t spend enough time in His presence.

2. Made an honest assessment

I set out during the night with a few others. I had not told anyone what my God had put in my heart to do for Jerusalem. There were no mounts with me except the one I was riding on. By night I went out through the Valley Gate toward the Jackal Well and the Dung Gate, examining the walls of Jerusalem, which had been broken down, and its gates, which had been destroyed by fire. (verses 12, 13)

Three days after his arrival in Jerusalem, Nehemiah decided to make secret tour of the city walls, taking just a handful of close friends with him. Perhaps he didn’t want to cause undue alarm or speculation, so he did this survey at night.

While he did not make a complete circuit of the walls, he did carefully examine the most vulnerable areas to the north. Just like a wise doctor who begins treatment of a patient by making a thorough diagnosis of the case, Nehemiah made a thorough investigation of the walls. What he found was far worse than he could have imagined. There was so much debris that Nehemiah had to dismount and walk carefully among the rubble. Everywhere he looked was the evidence of the complete and utter destruction the city suffered at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar and the great Babylonian army generations earlier.

A lot of Christians today are living in a fool’s paradise because they stubbornly refuse to believe things are as bad as they really are. How many Christians pray for Christian persecution in China and around the world? Do we even believe Christians are being persecuted? Have believers bothered to noticed how many of their freedoms have been taken away in this country? We wonder where some believers have their heads stuck when it comes time to ask for prayer requests and they can’t think of anything!

It is definitely true we live in a sinful world and it is equally true that things are destined to get worse and worse as the Lord tarries, but that doesn’t mean we don’t pray for the country in which we live and the world in which we work. More Christians need to be like Nehemiah was and do what he did: look at their world and make an honest assessment so we know how to pray and, like Nehemiah, know what to do.

3. Asked for helpers

Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in: Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace.” (verse 17)

Nehemiah called a meeting of the leaders in the surrounding area of Jerusalem, and at the meeting, the matter was clearly laid before them. The cupbearer told them his story, of how God had called him to undertake the work of rebuilding the walls and of how God had moved on the heart of King Artaxerxes. And these people needed that kind of encouragement. The walls and gates of Jerusalem had lain in ruins for close to 140 years in spite of attempts to rebuild them. They had become so discouraged and so frustrated in doing the work of the Lord, they had pretty much reconciled themselves to the fact that the walls and gates would never be rebuilt.

How many believers are in exactly the same position today: discouraged and frustrated with their faith, their Church, and maybe, if things are bad enough, with God Himself? Believers like that need to be encouraged by those of us who have experienced the goodness of God firsthand.

There was a lot of work to be done, and one of the best ways to begin a work for God is get others working. Notice the carefully chosen words Nehemiah used. He did not say, “Go and build,” rather, he said, “Come, let us rebuild.”

Nehemiah couldn’t do it all himself. Jerusalem could not be restored to its former glory by the hard work of one man any more than the work of building the Church of Jesus Christ can be accomplished by the pastor alone. Every member of the church needs to be involved in building it. Unity of faith ought to be manifested in unity of effort. As a ruined Jerusalem was an embarrassment to every Jew, so a weak and powerless Church is an embarrassment to every member.

4. Was inspiring

I also told them about the gracious hand of my God on me and what the king had said to me. (verse 18a)

Discouraged Christians need encouragement, and there is no more encouraging word than a testimony about what God has done for you. Naturally, in order to be an encouraging Christian you yourself have to have a relationship with Jesus Christ. You have be praying prayers that get results. You have to be the recipient of God’s blessings.

Nehemiah had all of that going for him and he wasn’t afraid to tell his story to those who needed to hear it. He took the time to tell them of how God had called him to undertake the matter of rebuilding Jerusalem and how God had moved on the heart of the king.

These people were discouraged. They were down hearted, and what they needed was precisely what Nehemiah could provide: a vision and decisive leadership. God’s people need leadership today just as much as they needed it Nehemiah’s day. We may think that things “have never been this bad before,” as we look at the state of the Church of Jesus Christ. But the fact is, God’s people have forever been targets:

The idols speak deceitfully, diviners see visions that lie; they tell dreams that are false, they give comfort in vain. Therefore the people wander like sheep oppressed for lack of a shepherd. (Zechariah 10:2)

Sounds like the typical, hapless Christian and church member today, doesn’t it? And it also sounds like too many Bible teachers and preachers, who think nothing of spewing false teaching, leading astray those who follow them. No wonder the Church is trouble today. Judah of yesterday was in trouble, and at the right time, God sent them Nehemiah, the man with vision and leadership.

The earnest appeal was received by the people, who were ready to get to work.

They replied, “Let us start rebuilding.” So they began this good work. (verse 18b)

All it took was one man with a vision of something bigger than himself. They began the “good work.” The stage was set for a most remarkable feat to be accomplished. In our wildest dreams, we could never imagine the enormity of the task at hand for the disorganized, largely unskilled and scattered remnants of Israelites in Judah.

5. Faced opposition

But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official and Geshem the Arab heard about it, they mocked and ridiculed us. “What is this you are doing?” they asked. “Are you rebelling against the king?” (verse 19)

That’s par for course, isn’t it? The more Christ-like you become, the more bitter others become. Remember; the people hated Jesus without cause, and the disciple is no greater than His Lord.

So, it became obvious at the very beginning the rebuilding, the job was going to be a little harder than they thought! Sanballat and his henchmen were relentless in their mocking of God’s people. Sanballat means “strength and courage,” and sometimes the world seems that way to believers. We feel overwhelmed when we are confronted with the world and its ideas and philosophies. Tobiah means, strangely enough, “the Lord is good,” and is very typical of one who claims to be a believer, one who may be a believer in name only. The Church is chock full of people just like Tobiah: people with a good name but a bad heart. These are people that will side with the world if given the choice. These two laughed and mocked the people of God. They saw what they were doing and misinterpreted it; they thought they were rebelling against the king,not knowing the rebuilding efforts had the blessing of the king!

It’s sad but true that sometimes the greatest opposition to the work of God comes not from without but from within. Sometimes the work genuine believers do will be laughed at and mocked and misunderstood by other “believers” just like Sanballat and Tobiah.

6. Declared the whole truth

“The God of heaven will give us success. We his servants will start rebuilding, but as for you, you have no share in Jerusalem or any claim or historic right to it.” (verse 20)

Nehemiah faced the scoffers—the “practical atheists” of his day—head on with a simple, brief, fearless, and determined statement. He declared to them the whole truth about God. Look at the faith of that statement! Here was a man who knew what he had to do. Here was no wishy washy, middle-of-the-road, open-minded, milquetoast Christian that we are so familiar with today. Nehemiah didn’t need to hear “all sides of the story” or take seriously the objection of people who didn’t matter. No opinion matters, no philosophy matters, if they are contrary to God’s revealed Word! It’s past time that Christians started to take seriously the words of God to Isaiah:

The LORD Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy, he is the one you are to fear, he is the one you are to dread. (Isaiah 8:13)

The work of Nehemiah and his partners was God’s work, not theirs. All they had to be was faithful in the work. God was for them. He was in the work. When we are working for God, it’s the same thing. We cannot fail when God is in our work.

And Nehemiah pulled NO punches: these naysayers would have NO part in the rebuilt Jerusalem. They would have no part it in its blessings. They would forever be on the outside looking in because they were never part of God’s work

These losers, Sanballat and Tobiah, remind us of Simon the Sorcerer. He followed Peter around because he saw the power of God in Peter and he wanted that power for himself. Of Simon the Sorcerer, Peter declared:

You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. (Acts 8:21)

It’s frightening to think of how many “Simon the Sorcerers” fill our pews today, wanting the good things of God but doing absolutely nothing of value for the Kingdom of Heaven.

When the walls of the New Jerusalem are finally built, will you be on the inside looking out, or on the outside looking in?

(c) 2011 WitzEnd

EZRA/NEHEMIAH, Part 6

Published June 1, 2011 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: answered prayer, Nehemiah

ANSWERED PRAYER

Nehemiah 2:1—8

Some four months had elapsed since Nehemiah was given the devastating news that much of Jerusalem, including the walls and gates, remained in a state of ruin. This was the worst possible news a faithful Jew could have received, and Nehemiah was properly exorcised. He fasted and prayed, interceding to the God of Heaven on behalf of his people. His prayer stands as a classic example of what true intercessory prayer looks like, and in chapter 2, we see how God answered it.

1. Setting the scene, verse 1a

In the month of Nisan in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was brought for him, I took the wine and gave it to the king.

The first thing we notice about this verse is its importance to Bible prophecy. In the book of Daniel, his vision of the 70 Weeks begins “in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes.” So, this particular month of Nisan is important for a couple of reasons.

Nehemiah had just spent four months in prayer about the situation up in Jerusalem, praying in secret, earnestly pleading with God, yet in public up until now, he gave no indication that anything was on his mind. This shows us the quality of Nehemiah’s character; long before Jesus gave this teaching, our royal cupbearer was practising it:

And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. (Matthew 6:5—7)

Nehemiah kept doing his job and nobody knew what was on his heart; he was able to keep his sorrow and concern to himself. So, on the the one hand, we have to give Nehemiah some credit, but on the other hand, sometimes help can be found in the strangest places when our needs are made known. In keeping our needs to ourselves, we may well be forestalling the very blessing we desire so much! While we don’t want to play the hypocrite in public claiming everything is alright with us, we don’t want to run around playing on people’s emotions to elicit help from them. Honesty is the best policy; when somebody asks you if you have a need, it’s best to be honest with them.

Nehemiah was not the only cupbearer, which may explain why it took almost four months before he was able to broach the subject to the king.

2. A startling question, 1b—2a

I had not been sad in his presence before, so the king asked me, “Why does your face look so sad when you are not ill? This can be nothing but sadness of heart.”

So far, Nehemiah had been able to keep his feelings to himself. Perhaps the Lord had helped the cupbearer to control his emotions, and this would have been to his benefit. Those who came into to a Persian king’s presence, even a cupbearer, did so with great respect, placing their right hand over their mouth so as not to defile the king with their breath! Not only that, those who came to see the king did so rejoicing, in a happy and joyful state. Regardless of their personal feelings, anybody in the king’s presence were expected to keep their problems away from him. But for Nehemiah, this was no longer possible.

Artaxerxes seemed to have a good relationship with Nehemiah; he expressed genuine concern for this cupbearer. The text suggests there was more conversation than what is recorded. It seems as though the king had a conversation with Nehemiah, concluding that he was not sick and that he looked sad for some other reason.

The king had opened the door, Nehemiah didn’t have to push the subject. He didn’t have to whine or put on a big show to get the king’s attention. In God’s providence, Nehemiah found favor in Artaxerxes eyes. They were probably friends in some way. So, the door was open a crack and in faith, Nehemiah was poised to walk through.

3. An honest answer, verses 2b—3

I was very much afraid, but I said to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should my face not look sad when the city where my ancestors are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?”

It took a lot of courage and faith for the king’s cupbearer to give this honest answer, and Nehemiah was fearful. The NAB translates the last phrase of verse 2 this way:

I was seized with great fear.

This describes perfectly what Nehemiah felt when the king confronted him. Fear and anxiety had gripped him. Of what was Nehemiah afraid? It wasn’t the question that he was afraid of, but rather he was afraid of the answer he would now have to give. It was God’s will that Jerusalem be rebuilt and the remnant was definitely in a state of disobedience in leaving large portions of the city untouched. But there was a reason why the building had stalled:

Now issue an order to these people to stop work, so that this city will not be rebuilt until I so order. Be careful not to neglect this matter. Why let this threat grow, to the detriment of the royal interests? As soon as the copy of the letter of King Artaxerxes was read to Rehum and Shimshai the secretary and their associates, they went immediately to the Jews in Jerusalem and compelled them by force to stop. (Ezra 4:21—23)

No wonder Nehemiah was so fearful; Artaxerxes was behind the work stoppage! How could Nehemiah express his sorrow for something that was basically the fault of the King? To his amazement, he told the truth and found the king to be in a favorable mood. As the Lord had moved on the heart of Cyrus (Ezra 1:1), so He must have moved on Artaxerxes heart. Note, though, the cleverness of Nehemiah’s answer. He did not mention Jerusalem by name, referring only to “the city where my ancestors are buried.” The Persians were very respectful of tombs and burial places and the desecration of any tomb would have aroused sympathy from the king. Nehemiah was clever and tactful; he knew how to talk to this pagan king.

4. A critical moment, verse 4

The king said to me, “What is it you want?” Then I prayed to the God of heaven…

If the king’s first question filled him with fear, this second question must have filled Nehemiah with astonishment! The king had opened the door a crack with the first question, but now that door is swinging wide open! This is the providence of God at work. This is a broad question the king asked Nehemiah. We might well imagine what thoughts rushed through Nehemiah’s mind. Was this the answer to his prayer? Was Artaxerxes the tool in God’s hands that would make Jerusalem prosper again? Was Nehemiah witnessing a great miracle of salvation wrought through this king? Had the time finally arrived when all the desires of his heart were about to be met in Artaxerxes? What a golden opportunity had just presented itself!

What did Nehemiah do? If we have learned anything about this man, it is that he was a man of prayer. Nehemiah was a man of God first and foremost, and he knew that what was going on in Jerusalem was God’s business, not his and not Artaxerxes, so he did what any man of God would have done: he prayed again. This time, though, it wasn’t a long intercessory prayer with fasting and mourning. No, this was the first of many “arrow prayers” Nehemiah prayed—short, pointed prayers sent up to God in a moment of need. Right there, in the presence of the king, Nehemiah shot up a quick prayer to the Lord.

Had this man of God not been living and walking in the Spirit in the first place, he probably wouldn’t have thought about praying at this particular moment. In this brief moment, we see Nehemiah’s true character. Even when caught off-guard, his first impulse was to pray. When God is that important to us, we’ll do that too. When God becomes our greatest reality, nothing will be more natural than prayer. Very often we hear Christians say things like, “I just don’t have time to pray these days.” Believers that have that attitude don’t understand the true nature of prayer. Nehemiah found time to pray while he was standing in front of a pagan Persian potentate.

5. A great request

Having gained the favor of the king—both the Kings of Heaven and of Persia—this cupbearer was ready to ask for two big things.

(1) If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my ancestors are buried so that I can rebuild it. (verse 5)

The first thing Nehemiah asked of the king was to allowed to leave the king’s presence so that he could go to Jerusalem to help rebuild it. Now, as far as we know, Nehemiah was not a roofer or a bricklayer; he was a politician, so his request reveals even more about his character. This devoted servant of God not only prayed for his people and his city, but he had so consecrated himself to God, that he was ready to be used by Him as soon as the opportunity presented itself in whatever capacity the Lord deemed fit. Just like Isaiah, Nehemiah could say, “Here I am, send me!”

How can believers expect God to do great things for us or through us if we are not prepared to make a sacrifice for Him? Faith that costs nothing is worth exactly that. To be sure, our prayers would take on a whole new dimension if we offered them with a spirit of sacrifice, as Nehemiah did.

(2) “If it pleases the king, may I have letters to the governors of Trans-Euphrates, so that they will provide me safe-conduct until I arrive in Judah? And may I have a letter to Asaph, keeper of the royal park, so he will give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel by the temple and for the city wall and for the residence I will occupy?” (verses 7, 8a)

This is an interesting request. Obviously Nehemiah was a man of faith who trusted the Lord, but he had no problem, as a government official, asking for help and protection that only the government could provide. God provides what His people need in a variety of ways, but we must never forget what James said:

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. (James 1:17)

It doesn’t matter where the “good and perfect gift” seems to come from, if it is received by a Christian, then it has come from God.

6. An abundant answer, verses 8b, 9

And because the gracious hand of my God was on me, the king granted my requests. So I went to the governors of Trans-Euphrates and gave them the king’s letters. The king had also sent army officers and cavalry with me.

Nehemiah had asked much of the king, and the king gave Nehemiah everything he asked for, but this man of God never lost sight of his Source: God. The secret of success in serving the Lord lies right here. When a believer’s life is in “the gracious hand” of God, signs and wonders will be done. The measure of blessing will be according to the power of that hand that is upon them. God’s gracious Hand gripped Nehemiah the day he sat down, wept, and prayed for his people. Unlike Jacob, who wrestled with God and was touched by God in humiliation, Nehemiah had yielded himself completely to God’s heavy, yet gracious Hand.

Like Ezra before him and countless believers after him, Nehemiah was conscious that the Hand of God was on him. He knew that he was an instrument by which God would accomplish His will for His people.

In looking at how God worked with these two men, Ezra and Nehemiah, we can see how the Lord calls all kinds of different people to do His work and how different people express their faith. Ezra, you will recall, had told his king that God would lead him and take of him and his people on the perilous journey from Persia to Jerusalem. When his king offered him protection, Ezra turned him down, preferring to trust in God. Nehemiah, a different kind of believer, thought nothing of asking his king for help and protection. Both of these men were towering men of God and men of faith, yet both fulfilled their callings in very different ways, both to the glory of God.

(c) 2011 WitzEnd

EZRA/NEHEMIAH, Part 4

Published May 15, 2011 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: Intercessory Prayer, Nehemiah, Restoration

Nehemiah, the Exorcised Man

Nehemiah 1:1—4

In the book of Ezra, we see a remnant of Jews heading back home to Jerusalem from Babylon. We read of their history and the story is all very much a matter of facts with a smattering of the story from the personal perspective of the priest, Ezra. Nehemiah covers the same general period of history, beginning about 13 years after the end of Ezra, and pursues this period of Hebrew history even further, but from a different, distinct perspective.

His big concern was for the construction of the walls around Jerusalem. Modern people wonder why there was a wall around Jerusalem in the first place and why Nehemiah was so bent out of shape about it’s constant state of disrepair. The wall around the City of David was both for protection and exclusion. It protected the Jews from enemy attacks and it kept unbelievers out of the city. The wall around Jerusalem speaks to us today of the moral and spiritual responsibility every believer has in their own lives; the responsibility to be ever vigilant; keeping watch that the enemy of our souls doesn’t find a way into our lives and overtake us. The wall around Jerusalem also speaks to the spiritual warfare that exists in the Church of Jesus Christ today. The Church is a place of refuge for believer, a place where they can find protection in God’s presence and the great Wall of the Spirit keeps the enemy out as long as believers are gathering in Christ’s Name.

No wonder Nehemiah was so upset when he got news that in spite of all the construction going on up there in Jerusalem, that wall remained unrepaired. In fact, that subject fills up the first seven chapters of the book. The remainder of the book concerns revival and reform within Jerusalem.

Nehemiah, like Moses before him, was singularly suited to the work God had lined up for him. He was a child of the captivity and was therefore in complete sympathy with the captives in Persia. He was also the king’s cupbearer, a position of great wealth and influence and pre-eminence among his people and the people of Persia. But Nehemiah was also a man of God; a man of great moral conviction and courage. Like Ezra, Nehemiah was intensely devoted to the cause of God.

1. Nehemiah’s position

…I was in the citadel of Susa…I was cupbearer to the king. (verses 1, 11)

At the very beginning of Nehemiah’s book, we see that there was a world of difference between Nehemiah and Ezra. Ezra was a priest, but Nehemiah was a man with great political influence and personal wealth. Even though this man occupied one of the highest positions in the Persian courts, he had not sacrificed his morality or religious principles. We have every reason to believe that Nehemiah held that enviable position because of his sterling, trustworthy character.

We know next to nothing about Nehemiah’s family, other than he must have come from an influential Jewish family living and prospering in the Persian, formerly the Babylonian, Empire.

God works like that; He has a way of getting His people into the right places to affect the most good for His people. The “person of God” should always be the most dependable person on the payroll of any business, by the way. But, very often like Joseph, their virtue may become their only fault.

2. Nehemiah’s question.

Hanani, one of my brothers, came from Judah with some other men, and I questioned them about the Jewish remnant that had survived the exile, and also about Jerusalem. (verse 2)

Not every Jewish exile returned to Jerusalem. Many Jews, like Nehemiah, had come to call Persia their home. They had started businesses and families and many of them were prospering and, rather than give all that up, they chose to remain in Persia, working, and sending money and other resources home to Jerusalem so the city could be rebuilt.

So, even though Nehemiah remained in Persia, he was a man of prayer, a devout believer, and was keenly interested in what was going on up in Jerusalem. A group of pilgrims, led by a man by the name of Hanani, made its way back to Persia from Jerusalem with news of the reconstruction efforts. Some scholars think Hanani was Nehemiah’s brother, but that’s pure speculation.

Nehemiah is a fine example of how believers ought to behave. We ought to be interested in God’s work. We should always be concerned about God’s House, what’s going on there, what condition it’s in. We should care about the welfare of other believers, whether we have the resources to help them or not. Where material resources may be lacking, there is always the most important resource available to us: prayer! We need to be like Paul, who said this:

For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. (2 Corinthians 5:14)

Christ’s love for the Body of Christ should compel us to be concerned about the Body of Christ; its welfare, its reputation, and so on.

Like Paul, Nehemiah was deeply concerned about the state of Jerusalem and the people living there, even though he lived a world away.

3. The answer.

They said to me, “Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire.” (verse 3)

This was terrible news. It was the worst news Nehemiah could have received. He was not given a pretty picture, and to Hanani’s credit, he hadn’t sugar-coated it. What a pitiful spectacle was God’s cause and the state of His people! The Jews that had returned home were in “great trouble,” which we can understand. It was a Herculean task, rebuilding an entire city from the ground up. But the people were a “disgrace.” Why a disgrace? Because they had failed in their attempts to rebuild the city. The nations around Jerusalem could see this and it reflected poorly on God. After all, was God not responsible for the rebuilding effort? Was the whole restoration of Jerusalem not His idea? The people were failing and they were a disgrace to the cause of God.

Did you know that God’s reputation in the world depends in large part on how you live your life? If you are “a failure” as a Christian, then you bring disgrace upon God, and are therefore a disgrace yourself. Nobody wants to be known as a “disgrace,” yet churches are full of disgraceful believers, living half-lives, making a mockery of their confession of faith, holiness and purity as they recklessly pursue their own worldly agendas, doing whatever makes them feel good, all the while justifying their sin before God and man.

The people up in Jerusalem were suffering greatly from poverty, sickness, and reproach, and the wall of their protection and defense went unrepaired. They were still reaping the fruits of their rebellion and idolatry; their 70 year captivity hadn’t accomplished its purpose.

Weakness and reproach, failure and disgrace will always characterize the people of God when their walls of separation are broken down and the gates of praise smashed. A powerless, praiseless Christian is nothing but a disgrace, a reproach to the Name he bears.

4. What Nehemiah did.

When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven. (verse 4)

This is a pretty phenomenal verse for several reasons. Nehemiah could have gotten angry and criticized the people up in Jerusalem, but he didn’t do that. Nehemiah was not indifferent to the problems of the Jews who had gone home. He showed genuine concern about the state of both the city and the people. Think about it. Thousands of people left their relatively new homes in what was a Babylonian state, now Persia, to embark on a perilous journey back to Jerusalem, a place no Jew had seen for 70 years and almost certainly nobody who returning there had ever seen, to rebuild and to re-establish a Jewish presence there. For these brave Jews, Jerusalem must have seemed like a fable. Yet they went, their faith inspired by Ezra and other people of faith. They survived the trek, they began the rebuilding, they had experienced revivals of faith and felt the unseen hand of God. Yet for all they had seen and experienced, their work had stalled and their faith was faltering.

The Church of Jesus Christ and the cause of God today is in jeopardy. It is being attacked from without by enemies of the Gospel and the plan of God, and from within by worldly, lackadaisical Christians who are so in name only. Is anybody really concerned about the state of the Church and its members? We are all very good about criticizing it, about pointing out its faults and failures, but are genuinely concerned about it? And if we are concerned about it, what are we doing about it?

What about the believer who is stumbling in their walk with God? Are we concerned about him and his welfare? Or are we neutral about their condition? Today in the Church of Jesus Christ there is a lot of talk but very few tears; there is a lot of criticism but little compassion. Like Paul, many centuries and a dispensation later, Nehemiah knew how to weep for the state of his people. Like Jesus, Nehemiah was moved with compassion over their condition.

Notice how this man addressed God: “the God of heaven.” That was not a mere title of honor or respect, we see that phrase often in both Ezra’s writing and Nehemiah’s, and it is used with a tinge of sadness. God no longer dwelt among His people, as in earlier days. Thanks to their sin and rebellion, God had removed His presence from His people. Ezra knew this; Nehemiah knew this, yet they instinctively knew that God still cared for His covenant people. As we read his prayer, we see Nehemiah doing what Daniel did: he confessed the sins of his people. Of course God was well-aware of them, but this man of God assumed the place of ultimate humility before an all Holy God of the universe to plead the case of a weak and wayward people, whom he loved so much and whose cause was vitally important to him.

God is looking for people like Nehemiah; people who do not have a casual relationship with Him, people who have more than a passing concern for their church and their fellows. God is looking for men and women who are so in tune with His will for His people that they grieve as He grieves when but one follower of Jesus Christ struggles in their faith. God is looking for prayer warriors not armchair quarterbacks. Are you willing to step up and plead the case for your church’s weaknesses, rather than criticize? Are you willing to show love and compassion for a wandering believer, so that you’ll weep and pray for them, as Nehemiah did for his people?

There aren’t too many Nehemiah’s in the church, but we sure do need them now more than ever.

(c) 2011 WitzEnd

EZRA/NEHEMIAH, Part 2

Published April 19, 2011 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: Babylon, Cyrus, Darius, Ezra, Nehemiah, rebuilding, Restoration, Success

THE KEY OF SUCCESS

(IN THE LORD’S WORK)

Ezra 6:14

So the elders of the Jews continued to build and prosper under the preaching of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah, a descendant of Iddo. They finished building the temple according to the command of the God of Israel and the decrees of Cyrus, Darius and Artaxerxes, kings of Persia.

This verse may be taken to be the key to success, insofar as the remnant was concerned. Servants and maids, masters and mistresses, priests and laymen, in all close to 50,000 exiles eventually accepted the offer of Cyrus to leave their captivity and journey from Babylon to Jerusalem.

It was a long and perilous trek through sometimes hostile, always unfriendly terrain, yet this remnant considered themselves blessed to be able to return home and engage in the work of rebuilding. Really, these people were involved in the greatest work of all: the work of the Lord.

God’s work takes many forms; sometimes it may be in the form of preaching a sermon or teaching a Bible class. Other times the work of Lord may look a lot like physical labor, like laying brick upon brick . The Lord’s work is doing whatever He tells you to do in order to fulfill His will and purpose(s) for your life. For this remnant, God’s will was for them to rebuild the City of David. This they did with great joy.

1. The work, 1:3

Who is there among you of all his people? his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of the LORD God of Israel, (he is the God,) which is in Jerusalem.

The primary task of the remnant was not to rebuild their homes, although in time they would. The house they were commissioned to build was for the honor of Yahweh; it was to be a testimony to His Holy Name. This was to be God’s House, it was His will, and yet it was Cyrus’ command. Sometimes God’s work may not look like God’s work to you; it may come from unexpected sources or be prompted by unlikely circumstances.

But if you are a believer, it is your solemn duty to do the work God has commissioned you to do, in whatever form it may take. God’s work for you may take a surprising form, but if it is to His glory, do it. God’s work for you may be not be what you expect, but it it is His will, then pour your heart and soul into it. God’s work for you may be the very last thing you think you are capable of doing, but if it honors the Lord, then put your hand to that plow and don’t look back. Every believer should be engaged in building a house of testimony for God.

2. The beginning, 3:3

And they set the altar upon his bases; for fear was upon them because of the people of those countries: and they offered burnt offerings thereon unto the LORD, even burnt offerings morning and evening.

Notice the very first thing they they worked on: the altar. This work began in “the seventh month” (3:1), one of the most sacred months of the Jewish year. The first day of this month, Tishri, is Rosh Hashanah, the “new year.” Ten days after that is the Day of Atonement, then the Feast of Tabernacles. So you can see, Tishri was an important month; the perfect month to start a great work for God!

During their 70 year sojourn in Babylon, the Jews had no way to worship as they should; there was no temple, no altar. Instead, they were surrounded by dozens of Babylonian temples to a variety of deities. No wonder the people, as soon as they were set free, went straight for the altar to repair it.

The altar is the only acceptable place for God’s work to begin, whatever it may be. The altar must be given its true place in the house of God’s Church if it is to be built up and established. What is the altar of God’s Church? It’s not the doctrines of man. It’s not a church constitution or a book of denominational polity. The altar of the Church is the altar of Cross, and the Cross must be the basis of any work we do for God. All our work must be built upon the Cross, not upon our wisdom or talents or ideas and goals. Any attempted work for God is in vain and will come to nothing if it is not built on the Cross of Christ.

Notice what the people did once the they repaired the altar. They did not hold a “grand opening” or congratulate each other for a job well done. They immediately held a great worship service. This worship service was not some carefully crafted and orchestrated liturgical event, it was a spontaneous outburst of praise to God because the people were filled with joy and thanksgiving. The Church can take a lesson from this faithful remnant, because this is the kind of worship that results from when God’s people work His will.

3. The enemies, 4:1, 2

When the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were building a temple for the LORD, the God of Israel, they came to Zerubbabel and to the heads of the families and said, “Let us help you build because, like you, we seek your God and have been sacrificing to him since the time of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us here.”

You can be sure that what happened to the remnant when they began to rebuild the House of God and when they offered God shouts of praise and worship will happen to any believer who decides to live a life wholly dedicated to God.

Never forget Peter’s warning:

Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. (1 Peter 5:8)

It’s not a question of “if you attract the enemy” it’s “when will he notice you!” The Devil always sets his sights on Christians who are on fire and sold out to Jesus Christ. He has absolutely no interest in “the 75% majority” of Christians who are lazy and lukewarm; he has them right where he wants them and they pose no threat to him or his plans because they never attempt to do anything for God. But if you are a worker; if you are producer for the Kingdom of Heaven, you can be sure that it is just a matter of time before the enemy comes prowling around you.

The remnant stirred up the enemies all around them they worked for God and they came, professing to be their friends and people who loved God as they they did. God’s enemies are nothing if not slick and deceptive. And if you are not alert and if you don’t exercise some God-given discernment, you will be taken in and you will be devoured and spit back out, useless for God.

These enemies of the Jews offered to help them, but of course, their intent was really to destroy them. The child of God will always be destroyed when get in bed with the Devil. You cannot do the work of God with the Devil’s tools. Their work of restoration was a great success and they attracted their enemies. Thank God there were some men of God who had discernment and could see through they schemes of the enemy.

Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? (2 Corinthians 6:14—15)

When it comes to living and working for the Lord, there can be no compromise! And how the Devil hates believers who know how to stand up to him and stand their ground for Christ. The Devil never lets up his attacks, by the way.

Then the peoples around them set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building. They bribed officials to work against them and frustrate their plans during the entire reign of Cyrus king of Persia and down to the reign of Darius king of Persia. (verses 4, 5)

But the one thing the enemies got wrong was this: they set out to frustrate “their plans.” Rebuilding and restoring the Temple and Jerusalem was never “their plans,” they were God’s plans, and the Devil can never frustrate the plans of God. He will always prevail.

4. Temporary interruption, 4:24

Thus the work on the house of God in Jerusalem came to a standstill until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.

Sometimes, the enemy may win the battle, but he will never win the war! Just as in Ezra’s day, any apparent victory Satan may win is short lived. However, a careful reading of the text tells us just how and why the Lord’s work stopped: it was stopped by a lie. The enemies of the Jews lied about them, lied about their motives, and the king who was allowing the Jews to do their work was duped by all the lies.

Now, put yourself in the place of that faithful remnant. For two generations they had lived in exile. Finally, by the grace and providence of God, they were allowed to return home and rebuild His house, His city, and their lives. For a time, they had success, and they praised God, gave Him the glory and the credit, and all of a sudden, they had to stop the work all because of a lie. How do you suppose these people felt? Had they misinterpreted God’s will? Was God’s Word now untrustworthy? Did His providence mean nothing at all? Was it all a bad joke?

These are questions every single believer asks himself when he hits the proverbial brick wall and can’t seem to go around it or over it. It’s the old story of the human condition: life is never easy. Indeed, a true believer can be living according to the Word of God, doing just as he should be doing to fulfill God’s will for him and still experience seeming defeat at the hands of Satan. When that happens, you probably feel like Job. You definitely feel like the faithful remnant.

But winning a battle is not the same thing as winning the war.

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9)

5. A renewed effort, 5:1, 2

Now Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the prophet, a descendant of Iddo, prophesied to the Jews in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel, who was over them. Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Joshua son of Jozadak set to work to rebuild the house of God in Jerusalem. And the prophets of God were with them, supporting them.

In the face of certain defeat, what did the remnant do? They preached they Word of God and got right back to work. Another revival broke out. When God’s people listen to His Word and trust His Word, they will always move ahead. The trouble with so many so-called Christians today is that they would rather trust what they see and hear, instead of trusting in the Lord. But notice, in this bad and confusing time, the prophets—the preachers—stood up and boldly started proclaiming God’s Word. They didn’t let circumstances stop them. There is a great need today for preachers to stand up and preach the Word of God, not their own ideas. When God’s work comes to an apparent standstill, it’s the Word of God, proclaimed loudly and clearly, that gets the discouraged workers going again. Cheer leading, and other worldly methods of encouragement won’t do it. The only thing that get a discouraged child of God up and working again is a big dose the Word.

This faithful remnant needed to be reminded of that which they knew: Yahweh had saved them out of Babylon so they could serve Him in Jerusalem. It’s hard to remember things like that when circumstances are against you. God bless the prophets and preachers who don’t berate and beat up their flock when the flock strays a bit!

Haggai and Zechariah preached the Word, and it was not preached in vain. Darius, the king who had been duped, saw the light and “providentially” found the decree made by Cyrus that set the Jews free. He immediately set things right by sending a letter to those liars who were trying to stifle the people of God:

Do not interfere with the work on this temple of God. Let the governor of the Jews and the Jewish elders rebuild this house of God on its site. (6:7)

Thanks to the faithful prophets, we read this:

So the elders of the Jews continued to build and prosper under the preaching of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah, a descendant of Iddo. They finished building the temple according to the command of the God of Israel and the decrees of Cyrus, Darius and Artaxerxes, kings of Persia. (6:14)

Even though we are “more than conquerors,” we are still subject to the foibles of all people. We get frustrated in our work for God. We get discouraged. We get “weary in our well-doing.” The cure for our weakness is a clearer understanding of God’s will and God’s Word. It’s a greater appreciation for God’s grace and His purposes in our lives, both as individuals and as the Body of Christ. It’s a whole-hearted devotion and commitment to those purposes no matter what.

I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:14)

(c) 2011 WitzEnd

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Posts Tagged 'Nehemiah'

EZRA/NEHEMIAH, Part 7

(c) 2011 WitzEnd

EZRA/NEHEMIAH, Part 6

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EZRA/NEHEMIAH, Part 4

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EZRA/NEHEMIAH, Part 2

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