The second temple had just been rebuilt in Jerusalem, all approved and paid for by King Cyrus of Persia, but Nehemiah received this report, “Things are not going well for those who returned to Judah. The wall of Jerusalem has been torn down, and the gates have been destroyed by fire. Nehemiah said, “When I heard this, I sat down and wept. In fact, for days I mourned, fasted, and prayed to the God of heaven. Then I said, “O LORD, God of heaven, THE GREAT AND AWESOME GOD who keeps His covenant of unfailing love with those who love Him and obey His commands, LISTEN TO MY PRAYER! Look down and see me praying night and day for your people Israel. I CONFESS that WE HAVE SINNED AGAINST YOU. Yes, even my own family and I have sinned! O Lord, please hear my prayer! Listen to the prayers of those of us who delight in honoring you. Please GRANT ME SUCCESS today by making the king favorable to me. Put it into his heart to be kind to me.” (Nehemiah 1:3-6, 11) Nehemiah was King Artaxerxes cup-bearer and he COULD NOT APPEAR SAD before the king.
NEHEMIAH DID WHAT ANY ONE OF US SHOULD DO WHEN WE ARE TROUBLED;
- ACKNOWLEDGE GOD’S GREATNESS– Pray the Lord’s prayer.
- MAKE SURE OUR HEART IS RIGHT WITH GOD- Repent of our sins.
- MAKE OUR REQUEST KNOWN TO THE LORD- The Lord knows what we need but He says, “Call to Me, and I WILL ANSWER YOU, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.” (Jeremiah 33:3)
Nehemiah said, “I took the wine and gave it to the king. Now I HAD NEVER BEEN SAD IN HIS PRESENCE BEFORE…the king said to me, “Why is your face sad?” So I became dreadfully afraid, and said, “May the king live forever! Why should my face not be sad, when the city, lies waste, and its gates are burned with fire?” Then the king said, “What do you request?” After I prayed to the God of heaven. And I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, I ask that you SEND ME TO JUDAH, THAT I MAY REBUILD IT.“ (Nehemiah 2:1-5)
The king wrote letters for Nehemiah, so he could get all the help he needed, and after much persuading he got most of the people living there to help, “So the wall was finished—just fifty-two days after we had begun.” (Nehemiah 6:15) It was 2.5 miles in length, 40 feet high and 8 feet thick.
The Book of The Law was brought out, “Ezra stood on the platform in full view of all the people. When they saw him open the book, they all ROSE TO THEIR FEET. Then Ezra praised the LORD, the great God, and all the people chanted, “AMEN! AMEN!” as they lifted their hands. Then they bowed down and WORSHIPED THE LORD WITH THEIR FACES TO THE GROUND.” (Nehemiah 8:5-6)
Your Personal Pastor -Bill Stockham