Sermon Tone Analysis

!!! Arise And Build!

All Things Are Possible With God’s Help

!!! God’s Servant:  A Person Of Passion!

Nehemiah 2:1-10

 

 

*The Value Of Zealous Tears*

 

       One day while the famous English preacher George Whitefield was exhorting from the pulpit, he was overcome by emotions and he began to weep quietly.

Then lifting up his hands, he exclaimed, “O my hearers, think of the wrath to come!  Think of the wrath to come!  Flee to Jesus for refuge and salvation right now while there is still time.”

One who heard him said, “His earnestness brought tears to my eyes, and for weeks afterward I couldn’t get the picture of that concerned soul winner out of my mind.

My own heart was warned by his zeal.

Eventually the Gospel that he preached with such conviction resulted in my conversion.”

*/George Whitefield was an example of passion!!!/*

Do you have any zeal or passion about anything?

Does any subject or value or injustice make your blood boil?

Zeal or passion is *not* something that many have nowadays.

Most people are apathetic about life in general, but there is a man in the Bible by the name of Nehemiah who was a man of passion.

/(Let’s see if we can identify the passion of Nehemiah.

Please notice with me Nehemiah 2:1-10.)/

I.

The Passion (vv.

1-3).

In verse number one, we see that the month is March-April.

This is four months after Nehemiah had begun praying.

God does not always answer immediately, but he always answers.

He answers, “Yes,” “No,” or “Wait.”

Now, Nehemiah didn’t quit his job and run to Jerusalem.

He kept working until God answered his prayer.

There are many principles that we can learn from Nehemiah.

*Principle number one* when waiting on God to answer your prayer:  */“Don’t be in a hurry!”/*

I remember an old song that says:

 

“You can’t hurry my God; no, no, you just have to wait.

You have to trust and give Him a little more time,

No matter how long it takes.

You don’t have to worry—He’ll be there in a hurry.

He may *not* come when you call Him, but He’s right on time!”

 

\\        Now, some of you are wondering, “So what should when we do, while we are waiting on God?”  Well, *principle number two:*  “When you don’t know what to do, don’t do anything!”

Simply wait on God.

The psalmist wrote in

 

Psalm 27:14 (NASB-U), “Wait for the Lord; Be strong, and let your heart take courage; yes, wait for the Lord.”

The prophet Isaiah wrote in

 

Isaiah 40:31 (KJV), “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”

*/Even though Nehemiah didn’t quit his job and run to Jerusalem, he was still concerned about his people and his capital city./*

He was so concerned that it showed on his face.

This was most noteworthy because he had *not* been sad in the king’s presence before.

Perhaps Nehemiah had *no* real reason to be sad before, but He has one now!

Do we have this kind of concern today for our spiritual brothers and sisters?

·        Are we sad about the plight of those who are believers…in the world and right here in The House of the Lord?

·        Does your concern show?

·        How does it show?

·        Are you concerned about other things?

·        Does that show?

We are more concerned with blessings and wealth and material, than we are about our spiritual brothers and sisters!

 

/(Be that as it may, let’s get back to the story.)/

*/When the king questioned him about his sadness he became afraid./*

Why?

Because being sad in the king’s presence was a serious offense in Persia.

Ryrie says that a sad countenance was *not* tolerated in the royal presence.

You were *not* supposed to rain on the king’s parade.

*/In addition, being that he was the chief cupbearer; the King could have suspected foul play or treason on the part of Nehemiah./*

You could get your head cut off for less, but either Nehemiah couldn’t help his feelings or he let them show on purpose to get the king’s attention.

I think Nehemiah chose to let his real feelings show.

\\ ·        */It saddens me when my brothers and sisters are suffering./*

·        It saddens me when things are not going right at the church.

It’s about the Kingdom, and I want people to know it!

What saddens you?  */Familiarity robs us of the passion or enthusiasm that we should have about the things of God!!!/*  Norman Willis wrote in his little book /Enemies (From Within):  Exposing The Stronghold Of Negativity And Familiarity/, “Often we are guilty of familiarity and not even aware of it.

We would never consider ourselves to be familiar, because we feel deeply about a particular thing.

The problem is we never express the deep feelings we feel, so familiarity is unintentionally communicated.

Feelings of appreciation, honor, and thankfulness need to be expressed.

Your enthusiasm about the Kingdom of God must be communicated.

Your enthusiasm about your church and what the Holy Spirit is doing in your life must be expressed.

Where there is no expression of enthusiasm, there is evidence of familiarity.

Enthusiasm comes from a Greek word whose root is /en theos/, which means to infuse with a divine spirit.”[1]

·        I have a passion about the Kingdom of God.

·        I have a passion about the Church.

·        I have a passion about you, God’s people!

·        I have a passion about the miracles that God is working in our midst!

·        I have a passion about the healings that are going on!

 

Today, God has instructed me to do battle with the devil about negative passion!  Why, because negative passion cancels out positive passion!

God has me doing some research concerning how negative emotions and thought patterns bring disease and destruction to the physical body.

Many of us are physically sick, because we are emotionally sick.

Norman Willis, in this same little book identifies two agents of negativity:  sarcasm and negativity!

Willis says that sarcasm is negativity vocalized.[2]

Sarcasm is sharp negative language designed to inflict pain, but it is dressed in acceptability.[3]

Sarcasm bites and tears not only those it is aimed at, but those that it proceeds from.

God only spoke three times from the New Testament and they were always words of affirmation.[4]

This is why I don’t curse and why I strive to be positive and affirm people!

 

/(But it goes deeper than that!)/

The second agent of negativity is envy.

“Envy is negativity vocalized.

Envy is the negativity projected onto someone else due to a built-up resentment over a perceived advantage they may have.”[5]

It’s about what we think we deserve.

When we actually deserve nothing but death!!!

       “Envy is a poison that destroys the body from within.

Much of the disease we face as a society comes as a result of greed and envy.

The writer of the Proverbs wrote in

 

Proverbs 14:30 (KJV), “A sound heart is the life of the flesh: but *envy* the rottenness of the bones” (/emphasis mine/).

Proverbs 14:30 (NASB-U), “A tranquil heart is life to the body, But (/negative/) *passion* is rottenness to the bones” (/emphasis mine/).

“Envy also takes its toll on the body of Christ!”[6]  James wrote in

 

James 3:16 (NASB-U), “For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing.”

Underneath sarcasm and envy is anger, bitterness, and unforgiveness, which is ultimately—although subconsciously—aimed at God!

One antidote to negativity is what Paul wrote to the Philippians in

 

Philippians 4:8 (NLT), “And now, dear brothers and sisters, let me say one more thing as I close this letter.