Sermons

After 12 years as governor, Nehemiah had returned to Persia. We don’t know how long he was there, but during his absence, spiritual compromise and decline set in. The reforms were short-lived. Spiritual compromise snuck in through the spiritual leadership. When Nehemiah returned, he found that compromise was rampant in the very areas the people had covenanted to stand against just a few years before! A lesser man may have said, “I give up! It’s useless to try to reform these people!” But Nehemiah strongly confronted the problem of compromise.

Today we get to Nehemiah 11 & 12 and it is another one of those portions of Scripture that you look at and think, “Why did God put this in His inspired Word?” From 11:3-12:26 there is a lengthy register of the names of the Jewish citizens. These two chapters include: 1. The families who repopulated Jerusalem (11:3-24) 2. The families who lived in the cities of Judah and Benjamin (11:25-36) 3. The priests and Levites of Zerubbabel’s return (12:1-9) 4. The high priests (12:10-11) 5. The priests and Levites after Zerubbabel and Jeshua (12:12-26). 6. The dedication of the wall (12:26-43) 7. The organization of temple support (12:44-47)

In Nehemiah 8, we saw the beginning of a revival as God’s people gathered and listened to His Word being read and explained. In chapter 9, the people repented and confessed their sins. Now, in chapter 10, they make a corporate covenant to put God’s truth into practice in a number of specific areas.

If we can learn anything from Nehemiah chapters 8 & 9 it’s that they are taking their sin very seriously. They are not just flippantly dealing with it but they want to restore fellowship with God and they don’t want sin to be held against them.

The reading/preaching of God’s word brings spiritual renewal by leading us to repentance, moving us then to rejoicing/obedience, and creating in us a celebratory heart that is thankful to be delivered from sin/death and the evils in our lives.

The chapter serves as a pivot in the Book of Nehemiah. Chapters 1-6 describe the restoration of the wall of Jerusalem. Chapters 8-13 tell about the restoration of the people of Judah and the repopulating of the city so that it would become a vital center for national/spiritual life.

In his goal of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, Nehemiah had to stand up to the violent threats of the enemy. He had to deal with internal conflict between the wealthy and poor Jews. He is almost done now. The breaches in the wall have been repaired, and the wall is complete except for the doors in the gates. But the enemy has not given up.

No matter what the cause of the disunity, we should work at resolving conflicts in the church in a biblical manner. Passivity is not adequate. We must pursue peace in a godly manner without compromising truth or holiness.

Nehemiah's story shows that whenever you try to accomplish anything significant for the Lord, you will face strong opposition. Satan never bothers with half-hearted people who are content with a ho-hum spiritual existence. But if you come on fire for Christ, look out!

Why did God include Nehemiah 3 in Scripture? What does He want us to learn from it? I believe that it’s here to show us the importance of working together to accomplish God’s purpose. Last week we looked at what God’s work requires of us as individuals, today we’re going to look at what God requires of us as a community.