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1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah .
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1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. It came to pass in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushanthe citadel, 2 that Hanani one of my brethren came with men from Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews who had escaped, who had survived the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. 3 And they said to me, “The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.” 4 So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven. 5 And I said: “I pray, Lord God of heaven, O great and awesome God, You who keep Your covenant and mercy with those who love You and observe Your commandments, 6 please let Your ear be attentive and Your eyes open, that You may hear the prayer of Your servant which I pray before You now, day and night, for the children of Israel Your servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel which we have sinned against You. Both my father’s house and I have sinned. 7 We have acted very corruptly against You, and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, nor the ordinances which You commanded Your servant Moses. Nehemiah 1:1-7
1 And it came to pass in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, that I took the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had never been sad in his presence before. 2 Therefore the king said to me, “Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing but sorrow of heart.” So I became dreadfully afraid, 3 and said to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should my face not be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies waste, and its gates are burned with fire?” 4 Then the king said to me, “What do you request?” So I prayed to the God of heaven. 5 And I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, I ask that you send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ tombs, that I may rebuild it.” 6 Then the king said to me (the queen also sitting beside him), “How long will your journey be? And when will you return?” So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time. 7 Furthermore I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let letters be given to me for the governors of the region beyond [c]the River, that they must permit me to pass through till I come to Judah, 8 and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he must give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel which pertains to the temple, for the city wall, and for the house that I will occupy.” And the king granted them to me according to the good hand of my God upon me. Nehemiah 2:1-8
The book of Nehemiah is full of all kinds of teachable lessons that man can pull out and use in so many ways, but it is pretty clear that the main purpose (Nehemiah’s purpose) was … • about rebuilding. • It’s about restoring some things. • It’s about returning to some things.
1 Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brethren the priests and built the Sheep Gate; they consecrated it and hung its doors. They built as far as the Tower of the Hundred, and consecrated it, then as far as the Tower of Hananel. 2 Next to Eliashib the men of Jericho built. And next to them Zaccur the son of Imri built. 3 Also the sons of Hassenaah built the Fish Gate; they laid its beams and hung its doors with its bolts and bars. 4 And next to them Meremoth the son of Urijah, the son of Koz, made repairs. Next to them Meshullam the son of Berechiah, the son of Meshezabel, made repairs. Next to them Zadok the son of Baana made repairs. 5 Next to them the Tekoites made repairs; but their nobles did not put their shoulders to the work of their Lord. 6 Moreover Jehoiada the son of Paseah and Meshullam the son of Besodeiah repaired the Old Gate; they laid its beams and hung its doors, with its bolts and bars. 7 And next to them Melatiah the Gibeonite, Jadon the Meronothite, the men of Gibeon and Mizpah, repaired the residence of the governor of the region beyond the River. 8 Next to him Uzziel the son of Harhaiah, one of the goldsmiths, made repairs. Also next to him Hananiah, one of the perfumers, made repairs; and they fortified Jerusalem as far as the Broad Wall. Nehemiah 3:1-8
1 Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brethren the priests and built the Sheep Gate; they consecrated it and hung its doors. They built as far as the Tower of the Hundred, and consecrated it, then as far as the Tower of Hananel. 2 [b]Next to Eliashib the men of Jericho built. And next to them Zaccur the son of Imribuilt. 3 Also the sons of Hassenaah built the Fish Gate; they laid its beams and hung its doors with its bolts and bars. 4 And next to them Meremoth the son of Urijah, the son of Koz, maderepairs. Next to them Meshullam the son of Berechiah, the son of Meshezabel, made repairs. Next to them Zadok the son of Baanamaderepairs. 5 Next to them the Tekoitesmaderepairs; but their nobles did not put their shoulders to the work of their Lord. 6 Moreover Jehoiada the son of Paseah and Meshullam the son of Besodeiah repaired the Old Gate; they laid its beams and hung its doors, with its bolts and bars. 7 And next to them Melatiah the Gibeonite, Jadon the Meronothite, the men of Gibeon and Mizpah, repaired the residence[e] of the governor of the region beyond the River. 8 Next to him Uzziel the son of Harhaiah, one of the goldsmiths, maderepairs. Also next to him Hananiah, one of the perfumers, maderepairs; and they fortified Jerusalem as far as the Broad Wall. Nehemiah 3:1-8
9 And next to them Rephaiah the son of Hur, leader of half the district of Jerusalem, made repairs. 10 Next to them Jedaiah the son of Harumaphmade repairs in front of his house. And next to him Hattush the son of Hashabniahmade repairs. 11 Malchijah the son of Harim and Hashub the son of Pahath-Moab repaired another section, as well as the Tower of the Ovens. 12 And next to him was Shallum the son of Hallohesh, leader of half the district of Jerusalem; he and his daughters made repairs. 13 Hanun and the inhabitants of Zanoahrepaired the Valley Gate. They built it, hung its doors with its bolts and bars, and repaired a thousand cubits of the wall as far as the Refuse Gate. 14 Malchijah the son of Rechab, leader of the district of Beth Haccerem, repaired the Refuse Gate; he built it and hung its doors with its bolts and bars. 15 But the gate of the fountain repaired Shallun the son of Colhozeh, the ruler of part of Mizpah; he built it, and covered it, and set up the doors thereof, the locks thereof, and the bars thereof, and the wall of the pool of Siloah by the king's garden, and unto the stairs that go down from the city of David. 16 After him repaired Nehemiah the son of Azbuk, the ruler of the half part of Bethzur, unto the place over against the sepulchres of David, and to the pool that was made, and unto the house of the mighty. Nehemiah 3:9-16
Through out the chapter we see “made repairs” and “built”. • There are two lessons that we can pull from this. • How to go forward in the work of God. • How to repair spiritual walls in our house, in our individual lives, in the church.
Would you say that America needs to rebuild some walls? • Would you say that America needs to repair some things that have been destroyed? • What about the sanctity of marriage? • What about the sanctity of human life? • What about respect for authority? • What about the Lord’s day?
What about some spiritual walls in your own home? • Are there some walls that need to be rebuilt in your own house? • I’m not talking about dry wall and 2x4 studded walls • I’m talking about things that used to be rock solid, but now are crumbling and breaking apart. • Such as family devotions • Such as conversations • Such as not forsaking the assembly. • Like Nehemiah, do you weep and mourn over the walls in your life that are broken down and are in need of repair?
Do you believe that these things can be repaired? • Can God repair the things in America and your house that have been destroyed? • Yes, He can! • If you allow Him to. • How about being better stewards? (Matthew 25:14-30) • How about honoring your wife? (1st Peter 3:7) • How about reverencing your husband? (Eph. 5:22) • How about training your children? (Eph. 6:4) • How about respecting your parents? (Eph. 6:2-3)
Answer the question Are there some things that need to be repaired at your house? in your heart…
In Nehemiah chapter 3, we see some examples for repairing the walls. • You can make the application. • This evening, we are only going to look at three of them. • There are about seven examples that can be applied.
15 So the wall was finished on the twenty-fifth day of Elul, in fifty-two days. Nehemiah 6:15
In order to finish what you start, you have to start! • To do something for God, you have to do something for God!
3 Then Eliashib the high priest rose upwith his brethren the priests and built the Sheep Gate; they consecrated it and hung its doors. Nehemiah 3:1
In order to finish what you start, you have to start! • To do something for God, you have to do something for God! • Nehemiah 3:1 – “rose up” • They got started! • It was actually past time to start. • It is past time for some of you to start. • We are going to talk about things that will help us rebuild and repair things in our life, and one of the things we have to do is finish what we start!
11 Malchijah the son of Harim and Hashub the son of Pahath-Moab repaired another section, as well as the Tower of the Ovens. Nehemiah 3:11
“another section” • A chain is only as strong as its weakest link. • I would hate to be the weakest link in the church. • I would hate to be the weakest link in my house/family. • I have been! • That’s why I am speaking to you tonight. • To warn you! • Don’t be like I have been.
One piece at a time. • One section at a time. • One thing at a time. • Ask yourself right now… • What part, what piece of your life, what section of your house needs to be repaired? • Maybe getting back to services more regularly. • Maybe getting back to devotion/study. • Maybe it’s your finances. • Maybe it’s just getting more consistent with a schedule. • In your life, in your home, what is it that you need to fix? • What is it that you need to repair??
Here is what happens… • Sometimes you look at your home, you look at your family and all the things that are wrong, all the things that need to be repaired, and you just feel overwhelmed. • I know! I’ve been there! • I’m there now! • What I have learned, is that you just have to grab hold of one of them: • Maybe it is going to bed earlier. • Maybe it’s waking up earlier. • Maybe it’s reading your bible every day. • Maybe it’s praying every day. • Maybe it is turning off insta-glam, snap-clap, fakebook and actually interacting with people in person!
Whatever it is, get you one section of the wall and say…” I’m going to build that until it is solid.” • Then you go to the next piece, then the next piece until you get a wall that is strong! • The devil wants you to be overwhelmed. • The devil wants you to look at your life, he wants you to look at your home, he wants you to look at your job, he wants you to look at your finances and just say “I quit! There’s just to much here to be fixed! • The way to move forward in the work of God, the way to rebuild the walls in your life is one thing at a time! • Just put your hand to the plow and get busy! • Before long, you can say…Done!
1 Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brethren the priests, and they builded the sheep gate; they sanctified it, and set up the doors of it; even unto the tower of Meah they sanctified it, unto the tower of Hananeel. Nehemiah 3:1
“they sanctified it” • Twice the bible says they sanctified it. What’s that mean? • They gave it to God. • They dedicated it to God. • They said this is your work, this is your wall God, and we do it for you! • The point is, we can’t spend our time trying to please others. • What pleases one person, doesn’t always please the other. • We need to worry about pleasing God, not man!
Let me give you something to think about, because I have been doing a lot of thinking on this stuff myself. • Have you given your wardrobe to God? • Do you realize how is easy it is to know what to wear when you dress for the glory of God? • Give your work to God. • Give your marriage to God. • Give your kids to God. • They dedicated their work to God! • What about you?
Could you go home today and get out all of you CD’s, DVD’s, maybe you have some old VHS tapes, just stack them up and say… ok God, I want to give these to you. • God, here’s the music I’ve been listening to. • Here are the books I’ve been reading. • Here are the movies and TV shows I’ve been watching. • You see, they gave it all to Him. • It was all about him! • As Christians, we often start out right and we have our eyes on Him, but then we get the big head and it becomes about us and it becomes about me. • Everything we have, everything we are, needs to have a Godward attitude! • It’s all about Him!
Go home and give Him your music collection. • Go home and give him your TV shows. • Go home and give him your wardrobe. • Don’t look in the mirror young lady and try to impress some young boy at church or in the world. • Look in the mirror and impress God! • The same goes with you older ladies, men, young men. All of us! • Whatever your work is, whatever your part of this wall is, it’s God! • Give it to Him!
For time’s sake, I’m just going to give you a few more examples and let you ponder on them. • Even when others are doing nothing • Although they are in leadership positions (I’m not talking about elders, I’m speaking about parents) • Make sure you respect each other (even if your not particularly fond of them) • Never forget the ultimate goal (Heaven) • Do you see anything that is in need of repair? • Are you ready to start working on the wall? • Are you ready to give it to God?
