Thursday: Nehemiah Prepares for His Task
No question, the Lord had called Nehemiah to this task and would provide all that he would need. Armed with the knowledge of God’s promises and the certainty of the call by God, Nehemiah proceeded. But he moved ahead carefully and prayerfully. In other words, even though he knew God was with him, this knowledge didn’t keep him, basically from thinking through what he would do.
Read Nehemiah 2:11-20. What does Nehemiah do to prepare for the project of rebuilding the wall?
Preparing for the Task
Leadership Lessons:
Lesson 1: Nehemiah does not tell anyone what the plans are that “God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem” (Neh. 2:12). Not only does he not tell the enemy, but he keeps it from the Jewish leaders as well. He is on a scouting mission to figure out what needs to be done.
Lesson 2: Before presenting anything, Nehemiah does his homework and plans out all the work that will be required.
Lesson 3: When he does speak of the task, Nehemiah first outlines what God has done so far to lead this expedition, and then he adds the words of the king. He encourages before he asks for commitment. It is nothing short of a miracle that the Jews respond so favorably and decide to build, despite the resistance that will come. God had prepared not only the king through Nehemiah’s prayers and fasting, but also the Jewish people, so that they respond boldly and courageously.
Read Nehemiah 2:19-20. What do these verses tell us about Nehemiah’s faith? How might texts like Deuteronomy 7:9, Psalms 23:1-6, and Numbers 23:19 have helped Nehemiah?
Our conversations demonstrate who we are and what we truly believe. Nehemiah tends to speak uplifting words. He is not afraid to include God in all that he says and to glorify Him as well, even when people jeer and laugh at him. Even though Nehemiah knows the contempt the enemies feel toward them, he doesn’t mince words or leave God out of the conversation. Like Joseph in Egypt many years earlier, Nehemiah is not afraid to promote His God among people who do not believe in Him.
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Nehemiah, Knew what he wanted to do but building a wall around a city is not something you do on the spur of the moment. it requires planning.
The M1 freeway between Sydney and Newcastle is being repaired. It is the road we have to take when we go to our nearest big shopping centre. A couple of years ago the road authorities decided that about 20km of the freeway - the bit we use -needed repair and upgrading. It is a massive task. It is a divided highway with two traffic lanes going each way. The old pavement was breaking up so it had to be replaced and an extra lane had o be added on each side. All this had to be done while allowing the traffic - estimated at being 30-50000 vehicles per day - to travel freely. Every time I travel to our shopping centre I appreciate the huge amount of planning and management that has to go into this project.
Nehemiah's task of rebuilding the walls was not just a case of looking at the broken walls and putting a few stones back in place. Broken wall material had to be removed, foundations laid, materials supplied, manpower trained and inspired, and all this done with the threat of the local neighbours putting up a bit of a fight in opposition.
Nehemiah, by all accounts was a godly man. He prayed and asked for God's guidance, but he did not stop on his knees, praying. He used his God-given talents for organisation and planning to get moving on the task at hand. He was a man of action. And he must have had the charisma to inspire the others as well:
Nehemiah had a plan but it was not all smooth sailing, but he revealed it to the people in stages, if he had told them everything up front they would have been discouraged.
The LORD has a plan for this world and the universe, so although we might not see the whole picture, we must trust Him and do out part as He has revealed it to us.
The LORD' s overall plan is for us to eventually live forever in a perfect world.
However like He told Israel in Jer 29:11, His plan was for them was for a future of peace, but it would take over 70 years in captivity, but He told them so they would have hope. We also have this hope of eternal life.
What is most important? Our physical life or our eternal salvation?
“You will often find it best not to commit your plans to others. If you want to serve God, go and do it, and then let other people find it out afterwards. You have no need to tell what you are going to do, and, I may add, there is no need for you retelling what you have done, for very, very frequently God withdraws himself when we boast of what is being done.” (Spurgeon).
He begins to do things to prepare and plan in rebuilding the City.
Nehemiah wasn’t just sightseeing. Instead, he carefully studied the broken-down walls and the burned gates.
Nehemiah knew the job of rebuilding the walls couldn’t go forth unless he saw exactly how bad the situation was.
The preparation allowed Nehemiah to present a credible plan to rebuild the city.
The people were willing to be led by a man with vision
Psalms 29:18
Where there is no vision, the people perish
Without a vision—people are doomed to wander aimlessly.
Are we people wandering aimlessly in this earthly journey or we focused on our mission and vision?
Nehemiah's faith was in action. Many of us believe in God but fail to do his will in Nehemiah's case it was not so.He also claimed God's promises and that's a wonderful thing to do.