NEHEMIAH: RETURN. REBUILD. RESTORE. REVIVE.
SERIES INTRODUCTION // 2.4.24 // REV. KYLE CAUDELL
WHAT KIND OF PERSON WILL
“The eyes of the LORD roam throughout the earth to show himself strong for those who are wholeheartedly
to Him.” —2 Chronicles 16:9
That’s the kind of man we will find in this series on the book of Nehemiah and we’ll see that God uses him in an incredible way!
Before we begin, it’s vital that we set the stage for this series.
Around 1,000 years after the time of Moses and four centuries before Jesus was born, the nation of Israel and the Jewish people were in a desperate situation.
What got them there?
Through Moses, God had called the nation of Israel out from under the tyranny of Egypt and towards the promised land.
After 40 years of wandering in the wilderness because of their persistent doubt and disobedience, with both Moses and those who refused to put their trust in the Lord now gone, Joshua leads Israel into the Promised Land.
Strengthened by the Lord, they drive out the wicked Canaanites and are firmly established as a nation.
It’s a
Things remain this way until the book of Judges where we learn that Israel became envious of the pagan nations that surrounded them because theu all had human kings.
They soon demanded their own.
A Prophet and Judge named Samuel warns them that this will end so poorly that they will cry our God to and ask for deliverence dfrom from the very Kings they appoint BUT they’d made their decision.
They choose
King Saul had the opportunity to serve God and, for a short time, he did that.
However, just as Samuel had predicted, Saul would not
In an act of incredible mercy towards Israel, 1 Samuel 16:14 tells us that “The Spirit of the LORD had left Saul” and in time, the Lord appointed
King David builds a military powerhouse and Israel flourshises under his leadership.
When David dies, his son,
Again, Israel flourishes, particularly economically, the great
Yet, after he dies, things get bad.
His son, Rehoboam assumes the throne but most of the
The monarchy was split into two Kingdoms, the Northern Kingdom (called
The Northern Kingdom fell relatively quickly to the Assyrian Empire and though the Southern Kingdom lasted a bit longer, it was eventually overthrown by the Babylonians.
Through a terroristic system of conquering any land, region, or people they so choose, the Babylonian Empire eventually becomes the most dominant force in the known world and remains on that perch until 539BC when the Persian Empire, led by King Cyrus
As powerful as Cyrus the Great was, like all Kings and rulers before and after Him, He’s not really in charge because the
“A king’s heart is like channeled
in the LORD’s hand: He directs it wherever he chooses” —Proverbs 21:1
The Lord begins to move and at the end of 2 Chronicles, we find He begins to direct the heart and mind of Cyrus the Great and presses him to allow some of the Jews to go back and
Led by Zerubbabel, Jeshua the Priest, and a large group of
A while later, a Prophet named Haggai shows up and compels them to get back to work! They do just that.
A few decades later another Persian King commands a scribe named
That’s where we are on the timeline and with that context in mind, let’s lean into the first few verses of Nehemiah.
“The words of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah: During the month of Chislev in the twentieth year, when I was in the fortress city of Susa, Hanani, one of my brothers, arrived with men from Judah, and I questioned them about Jerusalem and the Jewish remnant that had survived the exile. They said to me, “The remnant in the province, who survived the exile, are in great trouble and disgrace. Jerusalem’s wall has been broken down, and its gates have been burned.” —Nehemiah 1:1-3
Because culturally, we don’t rely upon city walls and gates to protect us, we have a difficult time seeing the gravity of this situation.
Without the
“A person who does not control his
is like a city whose wall is broken down” —Proverbs 25:28
Like a man without self-control is a sitting duck, so is a city without walls.
That’s the dire straights situation that Israel in in here.
“When I heard these words, I sat down and wept. I mourned for a number of days, fasting and praying before the God of the heavens” —Nehemiah 1:4
Nehemiah is living in the lap of luxury and opulence surrounds him, yet when he hears that Jerusalem’s walls are knocked downs and its gates are burned and it knocks his knees out from under him.
THE QUESTION – Is the compassion and empathy we see here
Is the Lord just describing what happened or prescribing what He wants my heart to look like?
The only way we can rightly interpret scripture is to compare it to other
“
one another’s burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ” —Galatians 6:2 “‘Make fair decisions. Show faithful love and
to one another. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the resident alien or the poor, and do not plot evil in your hearts against one another.” —Zechariah 7:9-10 “As God’s chosen ones, holy and dearly loved,
compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience” —Colossians 3:12
That’s what is happening here in the first few verses of Nehemiah. Far removed personally from their hardship, he’s moved to tears, sincere
That’s the kind of love, concern and compassion that all who profess Christ as King are called to.
BUT THAT’S NOT ALWAYS THE CASE WITH US, IS IT? Particularly if it’s not affecting us
To close our time, I want you to see something in verses 5-7 that’s necessary for us to grow in our care and concern for other believers
“I said, Lord, the God of the heavens, the great and awe-inspiring God who keeps his gracious covenant with those who love him and keep his commands, let your eyes be open and your ears be attentive to hear your servant’s prayer that I now pray to you day and night for your servants, the Israelites. I confess the sins we have committed against you. Both I and my father’s family have sinned. We have acted corruptly toward you and have not kept the commands, statutes, and ordinances you gave your servant Moses.” —Nehemiah 1:5-7
IN ORDER TO GROW IN EMPATHY FOR ONE ANOTHER AND THE WORLD AROUND US WE MUST HAVE A
At this moment in history, there was no tangible evidence that God was faithful or was making good on His promises. Israel had lost the Promised land. They were still under rule of Pagans. They only got to go back to the city because a King said they could.
Yet, look at Nehemiah’s prayer:
“I said, Lord, the God of the heavens, the great and awe-inspiring God who
his gracious covenant with those who love him and keep his commands…” —Nehemiah 1:5
To grow in empathy and compassion, we must
IN ORDER TO GROW IN EMPATHY FOR ONE ANOTHER AND THE WORLD AROUND US WE HAVE TO HAVE A RIGHT VIEW OF
In his prayer, Nehemiah confesses the sins of Israel but look carefully at the end of verse 6…
“Both I and my father’s family have sinned” —Nehemiah 1:6
It’s impossible to
Having too lofty a view of myself roots out the ability to really
THE MORE I BELIEVE THAT I SHOULD RECEIVE