Neh No.1 The Broken Wall

Perhaps not the easiest book in the Old Testament to find, but if you go to the end of the historic books of Chronicles, you'll move then into Ezra, and following that is Nehemiah. Let's read this chapter together. That is, if you've got the authorised version, please come in on the even-numbered verses.

When we've had this scripture reading, Peter Edwards will be speaking to our boys and girls. Nehemiah 1. The words of Nehemiah, the son of Hakaliah, and it came to pass in the month Chislew, in the twentieth year as I was in Shushan the palace. And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach.

The wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burnt with fire. And said I, Beseech thee, O Lord God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments. We have dealt very corruptly against thee and have not kept the commandments nor the statutes nor the judgments which thou commandest thy servant Moses.

But if you turn unto me and keep my commandments and do them, though there were of you cast out unto the uttermost part of the heaven, yet will I gather them from thence and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to set my name there. O Lord, I beseech thee, let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer of thy servant and to the prayer of thy servants who desire to feel thy name and prosper, I pray thee, thy servant this day, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man, for I was the king's cupbearer. Well, with interest we look forward to coming around that passage of Scripture later on in our service.

You might care to have your Bible open at the book of Nehemiah and keep it open at the first chapter. I must confess I've waited for a long, long time to preach from this book. In nigh on eight years of pastoral and preaching ministry in the tabernacle, I've not so much as touched on one verse from this slender volume.

There have been temptations that have come my way to do so, but I've resisted them, thinking that though this book is very much a favourite, there was to be a time in the history of this church while I was exercising pastoral ministry, when we were to come to it and to look into it. And I feel that that moment has arrived, and so we launch out on a series of studies Sunday morning by Sunday morning, broken only on a couple of occasions by a special weekend of meetings in March, and at the end of March for the Easter program, we shall be going consecutively through this book. And I trust it will excite your interest, and you'll be coming along, reading the chapters in preparation for our meditation on this word.

And may God by the power of His Spirit turn this book into a burden that you will take upon yourself. May it become a stimulus to your own life. May you not think in terms of Nehemiah and the Jews living hundreds and hundreds of years ago, but think in terms of Peter and Joan and what have you in the tabernacle congregation, and God speaking to you and directing you as you engage in service, achieving something for Jesus Christ, and to bring honor and glory to His name.

Alan Redpath, in a commentary, a book that he has written on this volume, makes this assertion, that this is the classic in the whole Bible on the subject of personal service for God. The classic in the whole Bible on the subject of personal service for God. Now, Nehemiah was someone who realized that he had something specific to do for God on the practical level.

But before he attended to that task, he ensured that he was right on the spiritual level. And I want to make that as the opening observation as we start to delve into this first chapter, that a prerequisite for successful service in the church of Jesus Christ is to be right spiritually. And then you'll be right horizontally or practically.

With that in mind, let me tell you a little bit about the history that is at the back of this book. Without this, it will not become too obvious what are the lessons that we are to draw from studying this volume. The Jews had been carried off into exile by the Babylonians, as predicted by some of the seers who recognized that the Jews were living in such a fashion that God would punish them.

For seventy-odd years then, they were with the Babylonians. The Babylonian empire was eclipsed by the Persians later on. And King Artaxerxes suggested that the Jews should return from exile to Jerusalem.

Some 50,000 of them did in the year 530 BC. When they got to Jerusalem, with enthusiasm, they attended to the gigantic task of resurrection, of rebuilding the temple. But the project was so great, and hostility from tribespeople who had moved into the area was so intense, that after a while, they abandoned their activities.

They went to their own homes, and they were only concerned about building them and making them secure. God, in His infinite grace, raised up two men whose books are also recorded in the Old Testament by the names of Zechariah and Haggai. And these two men, they tackled the spiritual conflict that there was amongst the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

And they said that the people were to attend to the rebuilding of the temple. This was to be number one priority. As a result of the inspiring ministry of these two Hebrew prophets, the temple was completed in some twenty years.

Sixty years further elapsed, and another consignment of Jews arrived in Jerusalem under the leadership of Ezra. Ezra, the book that precedes the one that we are studying. Now, he was a mighty man of God.

And as he looked around Jerusalem, he was displeased. Not because the temple was in a state of disrepair. That wasn't exactly the case.

But the lives of the Jewish people, they were in a state of disrepair. And so Ezra preached the ethics of God. He preached a message in which he told the Jews they were to get right with the Lord.

And you can read about this in his book. Some years after that, Nehemiah received a burden from the Lord to go to Jerusalem. And really it's that burden that we are to attend to during this series of Bible studies.

You will find that though the Jews had been back in Jerusalem for some ninety odd years, and despite the ministries of the two prophets I quoted, and that of Ezra, the wall around Jerusalem was in a state of disrepair. Jerusalem, therefore, was still vulnerable to the enemies of the Hebrews. Now, that's enough of the ancient history lesson.

We had to sketch in the background, as I say, so that we can more easily understand the principles of teaching that we are to take from this book and apply to our own situation. So, let me break off and say this. That the wall around Jerusalem, which was in a state of disrepair, speaks to us of the work of God which continually needs to be done by the redeemed community.

In one sense, I am saying that each one of us can identify ourselves in the person of Nehemiah. There is a work, as the hymn we've just been singing, tells us, for us to do for the Lord Jesus Christ. In one sense, you can reduce all responsibilities amongst Christian people into the metaphor of wall building.

And I want to ask you, what is the wall like that you should have built, let's say, around your own soul? Is that strong? Is it tall? Is it true? Is it wide? What is the wall like that you should have built around your mind so that thoughts that are sometimes put your way are not accepted in the citadel of your mental process and ultimately, therefore, cause you to engage in sin? What, you people who are married, is the wall like around your marriage? Is it strong? Or is it vulnerable? Is it in a state of decay? Or has it been built to the glory of God? What is the wall like around this tabernacle? If it is true, as I dare to believe is the case, that the Holy Spirit is doing a work amongst us at this moment, which is truly remarkable, then let us realize this. The devil is annoyed. And if we have not a wall around this local church, then the devil will get in somewhere.

He knows where we are vulnerable. He knows that area of the wall which has not been attended to perhaps for a long time. There is a wall, or should be a wall, around the National Church of Jesus Christ in this country.

Have you examined that wall recently? Have you seen whether it is strong? Or is it in a state of disrepair? If that is so, if the latter is the case, then your reaction should be the same as Nehemiah. We have been talking about the global Church of Jesus, for I referred to Thailand some moments ago. What is your information about the state of the wall around the Church of Jesus Christ international? Do you see parts where it is in disrepair? Where it has been breached by the devil? Then as a Nehemiah, you should attend to that situation and do what you possibly can to build the wall of Jerusalem.

So it is along that line, not purely historically, that we have an interest in this book. The wall in Jerusalem stands for the work of God around the world and in our own hearts and lives. So, let's come now to this third verse.

Because here Nehemiah receives from his own brother some information concerning Palestine and particularly the state of the Holy City. The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province, says the brother of Nehemiah, are in great affliction and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem also is broken down and the gates thereof are burnt with fire.

Nehemiah receives this news. He is to be God's man whom God will raise up for such a time as this to do a work that will last for eternity. This book contains the memoirs of Nehemiah.

It is, I say, an autobiography of a man who is used remarkably in the service of God. And notice that Nehemiah could have followed a very successful business career. The 11th verse tells us that he was cupbearer to King Artaxerxes.

That position was one of trust and confidence. It was one of the most responsible in the whole of the Persian Empire. But when Nehemiah, this successful young Jew, hears of the state that exists in Jerusalem, he forgets all about his professional advancement.

He is not so concerned with his job at the headquarters of the Persian Empire. Rather, he is distressed to hear that the purposes of God for Jerusalem are being frustrated. Ninety years the Jews have been back in the Holy City.

They've had the ministry of three outstanding men. Yet one of the major things that should have been done in Jerusalem have not been attended to. Nehemiah hears and he's got his priorities in order.

Nothing really matters but the fulfillment of God's purposes in Jerusalem. I wonder, my friend, have you ever made a survey of the situation as it exists here in Worthing? Those of you, to make myself more clear, who engage in work in our boys' club, in our girls' club, in all the various ministries of our youth fellowship, amongst our women's work, in every aspect of the tabernacles ministry, have you done a survey of the environment in which we are working in these days? You see, this in effect is what Nehemiah had engaged in. His brother had told him something of the state that existed in Jerusalem.

And when Nehemiah realized this, that the wall was still in a condition of disrepair, that became the most important thing on the horizon of his mind. He didn't slip into the service of God because he'd got a spare evening that he'd like to fill up with doing something important. He recognized that eclipsing everything else in his life was the bringing to pass of God's will at Jerusalem.

Now I apply it to the tabernacle, and to myself. How do we engage in the service of God here? Slipping into it as a hobby, you know, I'm free on a Wednesday night I'll go and see Graham Brown or Eunice Risbridge on a Tuesday or the other folks who are in spiritual leadership who are engaged in working in the total ministry of the tabernacle. It's not just your freedom on a Wednesday night that we're looking for.

We're not running a center for hobbies here. We're looking for men and women who recognize that the wall is in a state of disrepair and far more than the advance of any other thing in their lives they place the advance of the kingdom of God and the shearing up of these walls to make this church strong and to bring about the fulfillment of God's purposes amongst us. Tell me again you folks who engage in work amongst our women or amongst the Sunday school boys and girls.

Some of the teachers will hear this message on tape. How do you go into your work? Jesus surveyed the situation in his day. He saw people as sheep without a shepherd, and that moved him.

He saw men as a blind group being led by those who were equally blind, therefore disqualified from giving them assistance. He got his priority dead right. Spot on.

He didn't just give the what someone has called, and it's rather a pregnant phrase, the fag ends of his time to almighty God. He gave the whole time, his whole life dedicated for what? Spiritually speaking, building up the wall of Jerusalem. Nehemiah is the man who receives news from this reconnaissance party as to the state of things in Palestine.

Let's break it open and take it into a second category. What was his immediate reaction to this news? Listen to verse 4. And it came to pass when I heard these words that I sat down and wept and mourned certain days, and fasted and prayed before the God of Heaven. Ninety years, I repeated, gone by.

You would think by this time the Jews would have done the things that were essential for the for the security of Jerusalem, but no, they hadn't. And Nehemiah recognizes that there's a tremendous work to be done. So what does he do? Now if he'd been impetuous like Peter, and I must confess, like myself, probably have gone back home and packed his bags, gone on the mule train or the camel train or whatever other form of transport was available, gone to Jerusalem.

But no. And it came to pass when I heard these words that I sat down and wept and mourned certain days, and fasted and prayed before the God of Heaven. Do you know, and here I speak to my professional brethren, do you know the difference between a business enterprise on the secular level and an enterprise on the spiritual level? The successful businessman thinks in terms of bricks and mortar.

He thinks in terms of finance and personnel. And in the realm of commerce, that may be fine. It's not for me to pass comment on this.

But in the kingdom of God, and this is where the church sometimes goes wrong because we take business principles and apply them to the advance of the kingdom. In the kingdom of God, the essential ingredients for building the wall is not money. It's not personnel.

It's not an architect with ability. It's not a master builder to erect the wall of Jerusalem for the honor of God. It requires the ingredients of praying and mourning and fasting and weeping.

Do you know something? I've intimated it in the notes. If somebody came along here and offered £30,000 or so for that site, I would be grateful but I would be reluctant to take it. What that site needs, what our church needs, is not just money.

Now I'm realistic enough to know that God uses money. He uses things. But you see, a work of God needs a foundation and the foundation of the work of God, I repeat, is not money.

It's not the talent of men who are skilled in building, who are skilled in painting and decorating and plumbing and a thousand and one other things. This is the great distinction between working for God in the spiritual level and the commercial world around us. The essential ingredients are praying and mourning and crying.

This is the foundation upon which you can build a super structure of your bricks and your mortar. But unless you've got that foundation, my friend, you may have a building, but I prophesy one thing in the name of Almighty God. It'll be a jerry building.

And a jerry building collapses because the super structure is okay, but the foundation is hopeless. You can go around Europe. You can go around the United Kingdom and you will see jerry built churches, architecturally lovely.

Come inside on a Sunday, they're two-thirds or three-quarters empty. Now that's not self-congratulations for the tabernacle. God knows our work here continues only because of His infinite grace.

But when I appeal for men and women to come together in prayer, then I tell you from the depths of my heart and with Scripture as my warrant that it is that praying, it is that crying, it is that mourning, it is that beseeching God that keeps us together in community and allows us to advance and to build the wall of Jerusalem. R.K. Kendall has come over from the United States of America to occupy perhaps the most famous of all non-conformist pulpits in this country, that of Westminster Chapel. And he makes reference because he comes from the church of the Nazarene, originally.

He makes reference to a Nazarene evangelist by the name of Maynard James. One day James said to Kendall either personally or when Kendall was in a congregation, when spiritually you feel sterile and the work of God under your hand is not prospering, try tears. Nehemiah wept before the God of heaven because the wall of Jerusalem was in a state of disrepair.

I'm hoping next week if I can complete some negotiations successfully in London to present every member of the congregation who turns up to the tabernacle on Sunday morning, the evening, that's some incentive for you coming, a free copy of this book Why Revival Tarrys? And in the book there's reference to a couple of struggling Salvation Army officers who wrote to William Booth telling him they tried every way to get a move on to get a move in their citadel and failed. And he sent this terse reply, try tears, they did and they had revival. The immediate reaction to the news that the wall of Jerusalem was still broken down and the part of Nehemiah was to send him to his knees to send him to the God of heaven in intercessory prayer.

And the ultimate response well let me close down by directing you to what he had to say in the 11th verse Oh Lord I beseech thee, let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer of thy servant and to the prayer of thy servants who desire to fear thy name and prosper I pray thee thy servant this day and grant him mercy in the sight of this man for I was the king's cup bearer prosper thy servant this day says Nehemiah after he's engaged in intercessory prayer and says Redpath in his book Nehemiah takes a deep breath and he boldly goes into the presence of Artaxerxes whose name he doesn't even mention in the 11th verse and asks for permission to go to Jerusalem to attend to the work of God. Nehemiah who had a a shining career and in front of him were so many more prizes to be apprehended because he sees the state of disrepair in the wall at Jerusalem through the eyes of his brother is prompted to go into the king's presence and to ask leave for him to return to Jerusalem like Moses Nehemiah chose to suffer affliction with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. I'm going to come back next week to his prayer but listen there's a wall to be built around this church tasks to be done let's be careful to put in the right foundation not primarily money or material nor skillful architects or careful painting all these in their places but basic to that wall we want the praying we want the pleading we want the crying aye and we want the fasting have you got this vision? Is this your strategy? Then come with me elders, deacons congregation, old people middle aged, younger like and let's build that wall for God from cowardice defend us from lethargy awake forth on thine errand send us to labor for thy sake Father we dedicate ourselves to the task of building that wall around our souls around our minds around our marriages around this local church around this world give us help supply us with all the ingredients as we discover the resources that there are in prayer together and this we ask in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost Amen