Nehemiah: Review and Lessons – Newell

Review of Nehemiah

Report of Jerusalem’s state & Nehemiah’s reaction
1. Jerusalem’s condition (1-4)
2. Nehemiah’s prayer (5-11)
Preparation for and Nehemiah going to Jerusalem
1. Nehemiah before Artaxerxes (1-8)
2. Nehemiah arrives & identifies opponents (9-10)
3. Nehemiah’s initial actions and response to opposition (11-20)
The work of rebuilding Jerusalem’s walls begins
External opposition arises but the work continues
1. Initial opposition and Nehemiah’s response (1-6)
2. Enemies conspire, Nehemiah prays & plans (7-23)
Internal dissension arises and is dealt with
1. Greedy men & Nehemiah’s rebuke (1-13)
2. Nehemiah’s personal sacrifice for the work (14-19)
The work is completed
1. Further external opposition (1-9)
2. Further internal opposition (10-14)
3. The work is completed (15-16)
4. More internal compromise is revealed (17-19)
The census of those who completed the work
1. Faithful administrator given charge (1-4)
2. Census of the Jews in the land (5-73)
Revival comes to the workers
1. Ezra the scribe leads the people in hearing God’s word (1-8)
2. Nehemiah, Ezra & the Levites encourage the people (9-12)
3. The people celebrate the feast of booths (13-18)
The solemn assembly and joyful worship of God
1. The people gather to confess their sins (1-3)
2. The Levites lead the people in a prayer & covenant to God (4-38)
The people form a covenant with God
1. The names of those swearing to the covenant (1-27)
2. The terms of the covenant (28-39)
The disposition of the Jews in the city and land
1. The leaders and residents of Jerusalem (1-19)
2. The disposition of the people in Judah (20-36)
The lineage of the priests that returned
1. The lineage of the priests & Levites (1-26)
2. The dedication of the wall (27-43)
3. The keepers of the treasury, the singers & porters appointed (44-47)
Nehemiah’s return and enforcement
1. Nehemiah orders the cleansing of the chambers defiled by Tobiah (1-9)
2. Nehemiah reinstates the support for the Levites (10-14)
3. Nehemiah enforces the Sabbath curfew (15-22)
4. Nehemiah purges the ungodly marriages (23-31)

Leadership lessons from Nehemiah’s life

Have a vision (Pro 29:18; Hosea 4:6; Amos 8:11-12)
1. There has to be a good understanding of the LORD
  1. His holiness for how we should live (1 Peter 1:15-16)
  2. His greatness & power for our confidence and courage (Isaiah 40:12-26; Dan 4:34-37)
  3. His faithfulness & mercy to those who seek Him for our comfort (Deu 7:9; 1 Kings 8:23)
2. There has to be an emotional commitment
  1. a deep love for the LORD (Deu 6:5; Mark 12:30)
  2. compassion for His people (Mark 12:31; John 13:34)
3. There has to be the knowledge of God’s goals for us
  1. What should we be doing with our lives? (Ecc 12:13)
  2. What are the priorities in our lives? (Matt 6:33)
  3. What are God’s approved means for achieving those goals? (Psa 119:128)
    1. Most men believe the ends justify the means.
    2. Disciples believe the LORD Jesus Christ determines the ends and the means.
4. There has to be an eye that is ever focused on those goals (Heb 3:12-13)
  1. The world wants to distract us from serving the LORD.
  2. Our flesh wants to pull us away from God’s spiritual goals.
  3. The devil wants to keep us from bearing spiritual fruit.
5. There has to be a spirit of self-sacrifice (Luke 9:23-25; Matt 16:24-27)
  1. Nehemiah allowed his personal comfort to suffer for the cause (4:23)
  2. Nehemiah gave up the rewards due his position for the cause (5:14-19)
Pray and seek God’s blessing for everything you are called to do in this life
1. Aspects of great prayer
  1. Profess God’s glory (1:5)
  2. Confess your sins (1:6-7)
  3. Remind God of His promises (1:8-9)
  4. Invoke God’s jealousy (1:10)
  5. Request His blessing (1:11)
2. Other examples and aspects of prayer
  1. For success in godly activities (2:4)
  2. For deliverance from enemies (4:4-5)
  3. Combination of prayer & prudent action (4:9)
  4. For God’s blessing because of sacrifices for His people (5:19)
  5. For strength in His work (6:9)
  6. For God’s blessing because of zeal for His house (13:14)
  7. For God’s blessing for enforcing purity in His worship (13:22)
  8. For God’s judgment on those who defile His ministry (13:29)
Do right, no matter what the circumstances
1. In spite of great difficulties & disappointments
  1. A major rebuilding project
    1. Walls broken down & gates burned (2:13, 17)
    2. Much rubbish & debris to be removed (4:10)
  2. Resource constraints
    1. Few people (about 50,000) to do the work (7:5-73)
    2. Everyone had to pull double duty (build & guard) (4:16-18, 21-22)
    3. Logistics of defense for a widely scattered group (4:13, 19-20)
  3. Disappointments
    1. Lazy leaders (3:5)
    2. Greedy leaders (5:1-9)
    3. Failure to maintain what was accomplished
      1. Preeminence given to an enemy (13:4-7)
      2. Support of God’s ministers abandoned (13:10)
      3. Dedication to godliness compromised (13:15-16)
      4. Walls of personal separation broken down in families (13:23-24)
2. In spite of opposition from without
  1. Attempts to ridicule the work (2:19, 4:1-3)
  2. Attempts at intimidation (4:11, 6:10-13, 19)
  3. Personal and character attacks (6:4-7)
  4. Secret conspiracies (4:7-8, 6:12)
3. In spite of opposition from within
  1. Brethren sympathetic to external enemies (6:17-19; 13:4-7)
  2. Brethren intimidated by circumstances / enemies (4:12)
  3. Brethren that are selfish (5:1-9)
Follow up
1. There will be setbacks, so the plan must be revisited & revised (4:9-23)
2. There will be difficulties, so encouragement must be given (2:17-18; 8:9-11)
3. Not everyone has the same level of commitment, so enforcement and reinforcement is necessary
  1. Anger and public rebuke can be required (5:6-7)
  2. Confrontation and setting people in their place is appropriate when duties have not been performed (13:11)
  3. Giving authority and following up on activities is good (13:19)
  4. Requiring family members to only associate with those of your choice is your responsibility (13:23-28)
4. Without someone to press them forward, the majority will fall backward
5. This is a continual task: things are not over until we are out of this world