A Leader Against Injustice
Notes
Transcript
Review
Review
Turn to Nehemiah 5.
Last week’s message was about injustice. In Nehemiah’s day, rich Jewish rulers were using an economic downturn to take advantage of their poorer Jewish brethren. It was a great injustice and it angered Nehemiah greatly.
In our day, many people claim to be the victims of different types of injustice. We hear of social injustice, racial injustice, environmental injustice, among others. We learned that there are three ways we can put these claims to the test.
There must be a measurable pain
There must be a traceable cause and effect
There must be an impossible situation
In a world where “injustice” is a buzzword, we must test what we hear to avoid carrying a burden of guilt that others would lay upon us. We must Biblically discern between those who claim victim status and those that are truly victims of injustice.
Introduction
Introduction
Let’s continue the story in verse six.
Read Nehemiah 5:6-13.
One person said,
We are not in the exact situation that Nehemiah was in. [In other words, we do not wield a governor’s authority like did.] It is not our primary responsibility to reform society or the financial industry when it oppresses the poor. - Stephen Minion, notes on Nehemiah
However, Nehemiah’s response teaches us how to respond to injustice that is up close and personal. His example shows us how leaders should respond to injustice in their area of influence.
Nehemiah’s response to the injustice being conducted among his own people:
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His heart was moved - Nehemiah 5:6
“I was very angry…”
Nehemiah doesn’t hide his feelings about this, does he?
We don’t have to look at Nehemiah and be like, “tell us how you really feel.”
You know what’s interesting? These are the same words that Nehemiah used to describe Sanballat’s anger in Nehemiah 4:7.
Read Nehemiah 4:7.
So you can see by comparison, Nehemiah’s pretty hot when he hears about this. Some of the poor Jews come to Nehemiah with news of what is happening and I can just imagine Nehemiah’s outrage.
“You mean to tell me that the rulers and nobles are putting you into slavery when we worked to get you out of slavery to the Gentiles? Are you kidding me?”
Nehemiah hears their cry and their words and what happens? His heart was moved. He was righteously angry at this injustice! He was righteously angry about this sin!
One of the worst things you can do as a leader is turn a blind eye to an obvious problem.
When we bought our house in July of last year, one of the first things I noticed about the house is that there was an internet cable that had been run from the telephone pole to the electrical mast on top of our roof. That’s where it got suspicious, because from the ground, I couldn’t tell if the cable was cut or if it ran directly through my roof and into my house.
I remember telling myself, “I need to check that out sometime.”
Like any good homeowner, I was busy and put it off. I put it off until one day a thunderstorm came and we discovered a leak in the ceiling of our living room closet.
When I pulled back the soggy drywall, you can guess what I found. Sure enough, some internet technician had drilled a hole through the roof - asphalt shingles, tar paper, and plywood - and pulled the cable through. As I recall, he went the “extra mile” and tried to plug the hole with some electrical tape.
I don’t know how that leak didn’t happen sooner, but I was reminded of something: don’t turn a blind eye to an obvious problem.
Nehemiah rightly could have said, “this isn’t my problem. I came here to get the walls built, not deal with your squabbles.”
He didn’t do that though. He let his heart be moved for the sake of the less fortunate.
Application: If you are in a position of leadership, don’t turn a blind eye when problems surface. Don’t look away when some injustice takes place in your area of influence. Let your heart be moved. Like it or not, you’re a leader - that’s your job. So don’t ignore it and don’t sugarcoat it. Face the problem. Let your heart be moved if someone under your leadership brings a story of injustice.
Nehemiah was not a politician who asked, “What is popular?” or a diplomat who asked, “What is safe?” but a true leader who asked, “What is right?”
Wiersbe, Warren W.. Be Determined (Nehemiah): Standing Firm in the Face of Opposition (The BE Series Commentary) (p. 73). (Function). Kindle Edition.
Nehemiah was a lot like our Savior in this regard: he hated sin!
And when he had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, he saith unto the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it out: and his hand was restored whole as the other.
Application: Maybe you’re not in a position of leadership this morning, but you can be like Nehemiah in this regard: be tenacious against sin in your own life. Don’t turn a blind eye to sin. Don’t ignore it. Don’t sugarcoat it. Face the problem. Let the convicting Spirit of God move your heart against your sin.
Nehemiah’s heart was moved. Secondly…
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His response was careful - Nehemiah 5:7
Read Nehemiah 5:6-7.
Nehemiah surely was angry, but he didn’t let his anger control his response. He responded only after careful consideration and thought.
On the evening of June 4th, 1944, Dwight Eisenhower made a momentous decision. Everything else was ready, but the success of the D-Day invasion hinged on the weather forecast.
Before the landings, the weather needed to be calm for 48 hours.
A low tide at dawn was needed to expose German defenses.
For nighttime operations, the invasion had to occur one day before or four days after a full moon
Furthermore, the invasion had to align with the Soviet summer offensive in the East, to maximize pressure on German forces.
Captain James Stagg was the chief meteorological adviser to Eisenhower. He would synthesize all the data from two British teams and one American team and present his forecast and recommendation to Eisenhower. In the early days of June, 1944, the weather was particularly unstable. Storms in the region heightened the uncertainty. The science of meteorology was young, so the decision to proceed with the invasion was nearly a gamble as much as anything else. It required the utmost care and thought.
On the evening of June 4th, Captain Stagg delivered a slightly more optimistic forecast to the general.
“We hoped that with this break, we could do it,” Eisenhower later said. After a brief moment of contemplation — “about 45 seconds,” he recalled — he gave the order that would change the course of history:
“OK, we’ll go.”
New York Times article, https://archive.is/Q41lG#selection-1267.0-1271.39
June 6, 1944, became an historic day only thanks to the careful planning of some Allied meteorologists and their Supreme Commander, Dwight Eisenhower.
Nehemiah tells us, “I consulted with myself” In other words, he thought it over. He let himself cool down a bit and carefully consider his response.
In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: But he that refraineth his lips is wise.
He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding: But he that is hasty of spirit exalteth folly.
We would save ourselves a lot of headache - a lot of foolishness - if we would slow down and think through our response to things a little more.
Nehemiah let his heart be moved at the plight of the poor, but imagine with me what could have happened if he heard their cry and then turned around and dumped fuel on the fire by blasting the nobles and rulers. Imagine what the outcome would have been had he in anger lashed out at the very leaders he was working with.
I can tell you what would have happened: the work on the walls would have ceased. Sanballat and the enemies of the Jews would have been victorious without a shot being fired. The Jews would have quit and disbanded.
Nehemiah really had to thread the needle here in order to fix the problem without making it worse.
Application: If you are in a position of leadership, tackle problems only if you have first thought them through.
Get the facts
Pray about it
Understand how Scripture applies to the situation
Then plan how you will respond. Do yourself a favor and write down your thoughts. Once you see it on paper it just might change your perspective on how you will address the situation.
Application: If you are not in a position of leadership, address sin in your own life by thinking it through:
Go beyond the symptoms and consider the root issue of your heart. Ask yourself, “what is going on inside of me?”
Pray about it - 1 John 5:14-15
And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.
John says that towards the end of his letter that is all about holy living and fellowship with God. Christian, you can have confidence that when you pray for God’s help and strength to live in victory over sin, He will grant that request!
Apply Scripture
Talk with your pastor
Develop practical steps for change
Nehemiah’s heart was moved, his response was careful, and thirdly,
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He rebuked the guilty - Nehemiah 5:7-13
When faced with a problem, one of the greatest questions that leaders grapple with is this: when do you speak up?
You can’t sit on your hands forever. So when do you speak up? As we go through these next verses, we’ll consider some thoughts on that.
Read Nehemiah 5:7-8.
Nehemiah’s rebuke had several elements:
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He specified the charge - “ye exact usury”
The injustice was clear. Nehemiah knew exactly what was taking place. He could see the victim’s pain. He could trace the cause and the effect. He knew who the perpetrators were. He knew who the victims were. He knew that this was a situation that the victims couldn’t get out of. So he was armed with the information he needed to be specific about the charge.
If you’re a leader wondering if you should speak up, ask yourself this question: “can I be specific about the problem?”
If you can’t pinpoint what the injustice is, then you’re not ready to openly confront it.
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He invoked a higher authority - “the fear of God”
Read Nehemiah 5:9-10
You know why Nehemiah could challenge these Jews to walk in the fear of God? Because he had a life to back it up.
Application: If you’re not living in the fear of God, don’t invoke the name of God because people will call you out on it and your rebuke will be empty.
Nehemiah was the real thing. According to what he says in verse ten, he could have demanded certain taxes of the Jews, but he didn’t. His life backed up his words, so he could command them to walk in the fear of God.
If you’re a leader wondering if you should speak up, ask yourself this question: “have I lived by the standard that I am about to set?”
Don’t be a Christian in name only. Live what you say you are.
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He brought them to a point of decision - “we will restore them”
Read Nehemiah 5:11-13.
The rulers and nobles had nothing to say. All they could do was admit that they had broken God’s law and take steps to repent. That’s exactly what they did.
Application: If you are in a position of leadership, there comes a point where you must step out and lead. True leadership is making the right decisions even when it is not popular.
If you’re a leader and wondering if you should speak up against an injustice, do you have the credibility in their lives to make an appeal to do right? If you haven’t established credibility by your right conduct, you won’t have any grounds to make an appeal for them to do right.
Conclusion
Conclusion
Nehemiah was A Leader Against Injustice. He saw that this situation was a legitimate injustice and because he was a decisive leader, he took action to correct it. The payoff was significant. Not only did he restore unity among the Jews, but he also protected the building project. The walls would continue to rise.
