I love the book of Nehemiah; he was a faithful man, one who feared God, a leader with a single vision and served one great God.
Nehemiah 2:17 KJV – “Then said I unto them, Ye see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lieth waste, and the gates thereof are burned with fire: come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach.”
Nehemiah saw that the walls of Jerusalem had broken down, and the gates were burned with fire. He sat down and wept and mourned “MANY DAYS.” He fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.
Nehemiah was a man of great prayer; before he did anything, he began to pray, intercede, and his speech was of excellence. He cared about his own sins and the sins of his nation, and he knew that God was his most trusted advisor and turned directly to God.
Nehemiah was a man who yearned for the restoration and holiness of all God’s people.
Nehemiah was the king’s cupbearer, and he was concerned about Jerusalem; others had attempted to build Jerusalem’s walls but failed. He had no idea how extensive the damage would be, but he had a vision for the run-down city, and God enabled him to see possibilities in a task that seemed impossible.
Nehemiah prayed four months before he approached the king to ask for help.
Nehemiah faced unexpected problems; throughout the story, his enemies ridiculed him, plotted to kill him, mocked him, accused him of lies, accused his motives, slandered him, and tried to bring fear and intimidation.
Have you ever felt like Nehemiah? Has someone ever tried to destroy your character, your marriage, or brought false accusations, accusing you of doing something you did not do?
Nehemiah refused to participate in the slander, he gave God the glory, and he handled these problems by putting his faith in God. He made his prayers to God and stood watch against the enemy day and night. He put on the whole armor of God, and like Nehemiah, we too can put on the whole armor of God as in Ephesians 6:10-18. Nehemiah stood equipped because his eyes were on the LORD of Hosts.
I love this scripture, “And I looked, and rose up, and said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, Be not ye afraid of them: remember the Lord, which is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses.” (Nehemiah 4:14).
When Nehemiah was taunted by his enemies, he replied with truth, he said; our God will fight for us; he knew the Lord will fight His battles, and he asked the LORD for strength. I love Nehemiah’s response to their taunting messages, Nehemiah 6:3, “And I sent messengers unto them, saying, I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to you?”
Nehemiah was mission-minded, remained devoted to the task at hand, and refused to allow the opposition to distract him from the work God had given him to do.
Oh, may we have compassionate hearts and serve the Lord with gladness and have a heart for a lost and dying world.
The minute we said yes to Jesus, yes to the Gospel we put our faith and trust in Christ Jesus we were given a ministry, a command, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:” (Matthew 28:19).
We were given the great commission of sharing the gospel, especially by how we live our lives and the words we choose to speak. Talk is not cheap; words have the power of life or death; the scriptures tell us to use our words wisely. “Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.” (Colossians 4:6).
Proverbs 18:21 KJV – “Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.”
1 Thessalonians 5:11 KJV – “Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.”
Ephesians 4:29 KJV – “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.”
