Sermon Cloud

Nehemiah 13

The bible shows repeatedly that the memories of God's people tend to be short and they tend toward waywardness. And, just like the people of Judah, we have a propencity to lapse into old habit patterns. As such, we must constantly examine our hearts and maintain a state of repentance.

In Chapter 13 of Nehemiah, we see how Nehemiah took on the sinful disobedience of the people of Judah. These were precisely the sins that the people had sworn to repent of in Chapter 10. Nehemiah's dealings with the people under his governorship might seem especially harsh, but as the verses in Chapter 13 illustrate, his zeal for God was very great. His actions were pursued with prayerful dependence on the Lord. Nehemiah acted with great zeal to bring his people to repentance for renewal and reform, much like Jesus had acted in His Father's house (John 2:13).

Nehemiah took on the reform of 4 abuses by the people of Judah:
1. God's house was defiled; Nehemiah expelled Tobiah.
2. God's servants were neglected; Nehemiah restored the tithe system.
3. God's day was being misused.; Nehemiah enforced the Sabbath.
4. God's law was being ignored; Nehemiah condemed mixed marriages

In summary, Nehemiah is best remembered as the man who rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem. But, we should also remember that he was the man chosen by God to prepare Judah for the arrival of the Messiah. His leadership was powerful and effective because he was on his knees in prayer to God, offering himself to be used as a mighty instrument in His hands. We should all put ourselves at God's complete disposal - just as Nehemiah did.

The life and leadership of Nehemiah is a mighty demonstration that he who kneels before God can stand before anyone!