Treat each other with love

Introduction

Scripture

Father God, we thank You for Who You are. A great Big God who sees each and every one of us here and cares deeply about us. We ask this day, as we are continuing in this time of worship to You, reading Your Word and hearing Your Word, that You refine us with it. Mold us, make us, shape us, rearrange us so that we can be more like You, and made more into the image of Christ. Help us be a people who love You and love others so much, that we are moved into action by whatever it is You are going to show us about Yourself today and what that means in our lives. Help us do this, because all too often our selfish and sinless flesh war against our will to follow Yours. As we are doing this, and as we are coming into Your Word today, we ask that You take away any distraction that we may have, and make it go as far away as it possibly can, because we want to see and we want to know You better. It’s in these things that I ask and in Jesus Christ’s Holy and precious name that I pray, Amen.

5 There was a widespread outcry from the people and their wives against their Jewish countrymen. 2 Some were saying, “We, our sons, and our daughters are numerous. Let us get grain so that we can eat and live.” 3 Others were saying, “We are mortgaging our fields, vineyards, and homes to get grain during the famine.” 4 Still others were saying, “We have borrowed money to pay the king’s tax on our fields and vineyards. 5 We and our children are just like our countrymen and their children, yet we are subjecting our sons and daughters to slavery. Some of our daughters are already enslaved, but we are powerless[a] because our fields and vineyards belong to others.”6 I became extremely angry when I heard their outcry and these complaints. 7 After seriously considering the matter, I accused the nobles and officials, saying to them, “Each of you is charging his countrymen interest.” So I called a large assembly against them 8 and said, “We have done our best to buy back our Jewish countrymen who were sold to foreigners, but now you sell your own countrymen, and we have to buy them back.” They remained silent and could not say a word. 9 Then I said, “What you are doing isn’t right. Shouldn’t you walk in the fear of our God and not invite the reproach of our foreign enemies? 10 Even I, as well as my brothers and my servants, have been lending them money and grain. Please, let’s stop charging this interest.[b] 11 Return their fields, vineyards, olive groves, and houses to them immediately, along with the percentage[c] of the money, grain, new wine, and fresh oil that you have been assessing them.”12 They responded, “We will return these things and require nothing more from them. We will do as you say.”So I summoned the priests and made everyone take an oath to do this. 13 I also shook the folds of my robe and said, “May God likewise shake from his house and property everyone who doesn’t keep this promise. May he be shaken out and have nothing!”The whole assembly said, “Amen,” and they praised the Lord. Then the people did as they had promised.14 Furthermore, from the day King Artaxerxes appointed me to be their governor in the land of Judah—from the twentieth year until his thirty-second year, twelve years—I and my associates never ate from the food allotted to the governor. 15 The governors who preceded me had heavily burdened the people, taking from them food and wine as well as a pound[d] of silver. Their subordinates also oppressed the people, but because of the fear of God, I didn’t do this. 16 Instead, I devoted myself to the construction of this wall, and all my subordinates were gathered there for the work. We didn’t buy any land.17 There were 150 Jews and officials, as well as guests from the surrounding nations at my table. 18 Each[e] day, one ox, six choice sheep, and some fowl were prepared for me. An abundance of all kinds of wine was provided every ten days. But I didn’t demand the food allotted to the governor, because the burden on the people was so heavy. 19 Remember me favorably, my God, for all that I have done for this people.

Context

In last week’s text, Nehemiah and all the people had made great progress on rebuilding and renewing the city of Jerusalem. In fact, at that point, the walls were half way as tall as they will be, and everywhere was connected. Thus, the town now had some protection from outside forces and enemies. This, however, did not sit well with everyone. As the enemies of Israel, were not happy about this, as now they could not terrorize, abuse, and extort the city of Jerusalem for everything it was worth. They were angry, so they took drastic action, first by turning to psychological warfare while the people were already exhausted from the work, but then also and by planning to surround the city and kill every last one of them.

Seeing and perceiving the threat, Nehmiah took action. He reminded everyone of the great and awe inspiring God they worshiped and served, re-focused them on the great things He has already done and the promises He will fulfill for them. He also boosted their attitudes and morale with this and then made a military defense plan of the city. With their defense plan well made and armed, and God going before them to frustrate the enemies plans, the enemies backed off and the people got back to work, remaining ever vigilant and ready to fight both physical and spiritual warfare.

In today’s text, we see the fall out of events that would have started long before, but now are finally at a breaking point. The people couldn’t eat to survive and they were powerless to provide for themselves because of how others within the Jewish community were dealing with one another, especially the poor and less fortunate. The wronged/used and abused were crying out for justice and help. These people knew that God takes how you treat others very seriously. And they were not being treated fairly. Believers today, that is, we/you will do well to remember this fact. He has high expectations for you, as it is the second of the great commandments, to love others. So, let’s dive into the text today to see an example of mistreatment and it being resolved.So, let’s jump into today’s text where, I want you to see, do, and include these actions as you go and Treat each other with love.

Message

The first action I want you to see, do, and include as you treat others with love is to: Make wrongs known 1-5

5 There was a widespread outcry from the people and their wives against their Jewish countrymen. 2 Some were saying, “We, our sons, and our daughters are numerous. Let us get grain so that we can eat and live.” 3 Others were saying, “We are mortgaging our fields, vineyards, and homes to get grain during the famine.” 4 Still others were saying, “We have borrowed money to pay the king’s tax on our fields and vineyards. 5 We and our children are just like our countrymen and their children, yet we are subjecting our sons and daughters to slavery. Some of our daughters are already enslaved, but we are powerless[a] because our fields and vineyards belong to others.”

At the point of desperation, the people cried out, we can’t take it anymore, how are we supposed to live, how are we supposed to survive!?..... Remember, almost everyone had just spent time away from their homes and farms, and were now unable to provide for themselves. Many cried out, I have way too little food to feed all of my children…….. Some where saying, we have borrowed out our fields and homes to eat during this famine. Some cried out, the king’s taxes are so high we’ve had to mortgage out our fields. And worse yet some cried out, we are Isrealites and are equal to the others, in God’s eyes we are all precious and important and protected by His law, but the times have gotten so bad that we have had sell our children out to slavery to survive. Now not only are we without our children, but also we don’t have the help we need to work our fields. This was a very bad and very desperate time for the people of Israel. One thing to know, some context, is that it was very illegal for Jews to buy brother and sister Jews as slaves, they could be hired as servants for a time, but not purchased forever, as seems the case here. Many Isrealites had been wronged at this time, and those that were wronged were desperately crying out because of it.

It’s so important, both then, now, and evermore, for people to speak out and make it known when they have been wronged or treated unfairly. To not do so, is wrong on so many levels and will only lead to more hurt and bitterness in the future. Just look here, you know these events couldn’t have happened overnight. This kind of problem takes time to get to……, a stretched law here, a deal that benefited one over another there, and all this progresses and progresses and goes and goes until you have a great big problem! As the old business saying goes, “If they give you an inch, take a mile” and that is how the people were treating one another.

This of course is a greedy and wrong mentality, and one that is to be condemned for Christians of any walk of life. Rather than being gready, we should seek to only take what we have earned and what is fair, because our riches are not accumulated on earth, but rather in heaven. As greedy as these wrong doers and takers were, those that are the victims here, have a role in this as well. For starters, both sides should have never accepted or made these corrupt offers and also they should have spoken out and made charges against the financial abusers much much sooner than now……. That is, if everyone was considering each other, and treating one another with love, it would have never gotten to this place, but these were desperate times, and bad decisions were made all around. So believer, I want you to know and understand that simply looking past a wrong that was done to you, is not a loving action….. Now, forgiving them may be, but pretending that it didn’t happen isn’t. Ignoring or pretending it didn’t happen only sets the offender up to make the same mistake again and again. So, if someone has sinned against you, it is your duty to love one another enough to make it known, and work together in harmony to live a life of peace together, instead of going on where one person continually wrongs the other and the other lives with gritted teeth and anger towards the other. God takes how you treat others very seriously. So, make wrongs known so that you can be restored to one another in love.

Another action I want you to see, do, and include as you treat others with love is to: Walk in the fear of God 6-13

6 I became extremely angry when I heard their outcry and these complaints. 7 After seriously considering the matter, I accused the nobles and officials, saying to them, “Each of you is charging his countrymen interest.” So I called a large assembly against them 8 and said, “We have done our best to buy back our Jewish countrymen who were sold to foreigners, but now you sell your own countrymen, and we have to buy them back.” They remained silent and could not say a word. 9 Then I said, “What you are doing isn’t right. Shouldn’t you walk in the fear of our God and not invite the reproach of our foreign enemies? 10 Even I, as well as my brothers and my servants, have been lending them money and grain. Please, let’s stop charging this interest.[b] 11 Return their fields, vineyards, olive groves, and houses to them immediately, along with the percentage[c] of the money, grain, new wine, and fresh oil that you have been assessing them.”12 They responded, “We will return these things and require nothing more from them. We will do as you say.”So I summoned the priests and made everyone take an oath to do this. 13 I also shook the folds of my robe and said, “May God likewise shake from his house and property everyone who doesn’t keep this promise. May he be shaken out and have nothing!”The whole assembly said, “Amen,” and they praised the Lord. Then the people did as they had promised.

Nehemiah heard the news, and you saw what it said, HE. WAS. ANGRY. So much so, that he had to take time away, take counsel with himself to calm down before he could make things right in a way that benefited everyone. He decided there was only one thing for it, the nobles and officials had broken the law of the land and their heritage, so the they must be held accountable for this. This level of greed was not the way the nation needed to be led, especially in such desperate times as a famine and a large rebuilding project that everyone was involved in. So, they were brought before everyone and charges were made against them, and could not make a defense for themselves, because they knew and everyone knew that what they were doing was wrong. You see, it was VERY wrong in Israel to charge another brother and sister interest on a loan, as it was seen as profiting off of another misfortune and thus disrespectful to them and God. Nehemiah tells them, I have loaned out to those in need, but not given any interest. This is a time for charity and gifts, not profiteering off your kinsmen! You should be walking in the fear of God, because of your personal bounty, instead of giving the foreigners a reason to mock our God by your actions. So, do you promise to make this right, return what you have wrongly taken and never do so again?.... They agreed, and to hold them further accountable, He had them take an oath before the priests that each of them would do the right thing. When it happened, everyone was thanking and rejoicing to God, as now the outside and inside oppressors were handled by God, and everyone could go forward and prosper.

What you walk/move in the fear of (that is, a healthy respect and consideration), has a huge impact on how you think and what you do. Now, you may or may not know this about me, but from time to time I take a huge interest in Napoleonic era war films/documentaries/and stories. In one story, a team of french guerilla and terror style fighters had taken a town in Spain and lots of captives. One of which, was the wife of a spanish colonial who’s brigade was to join up with a team of crack english rifleman and take back the city. One way or another, this plan was learned, and the French guerilla general sent a message to the Spanish colonel: “if you come here, your wife, who we see is with child, will die and that secret you are hiding will be well known….. Do what I say, and I will return her to you and not say anything about the secret.” This General wanted the Spanish Colonial to betray the English and lead them to their deaths. When the English officer figured out what was going on, a fist and sword fight happened between the two of them, but at this point several soldiers' lives were needlessly lost. While about to be finished off in the fight, the Colonel came clean to the English officer, and they hatched a plan to free his wife together. Ultimately, she was realised, but at the cost of a heroic and sacrificial death by her husband to win her freedom. The Spanish Colonial moved in fear/respect of the wrong person, and as a result both he and many soldiers died.

The Nobles in Jerusalem were moving in the fear/respect of the wrong thing as well. They moved in the fear/respect of riches, comfort, influence, and luxury, all at the cost of others lives and well being. God takes how you treat others very seriously. So, Nehemiah held them accountable before God for their actions. You too, child of God, are accountable before God for what you walk in the fear of, and what that fear moves you into doing and thinking. So, I urge you today, to walk in a healthy and strong fear of God. Consider the need to honor and respect Him in all of your actions and deeds, no matter how difficult and no matter the personal loss, which will follow. You are called to treat others well, but you cannot do this without first respecting and fearing God well, which the Psalms tells us is the starting point of wisdom. So, as an action of treating each other well, ensure that you are walking in the fear of God and not anything else.

The next action I want you to see, do, and include as you treat others with love is to: Devote yourself to good 14-19

14 Furthermore, from the day King Artaxerxes appointed me to be their governor in the land of Judah—from the twentieth year until his thirty-second year, twelve years—I and my associates never ate from the food allotted to the governor. 15 The governors who preceded me had heavily burdened the people, taking from them food and wine as well as a pound[d] of silver. Their subordinates also oppressed the people, but because of the fear of God, I didn’t do this. 16 Instead, I devoted myself to the construction of this wall, and all my subordinates were gathered there for the work. We didn’t buy any land.17 There were 150 Jews and officials, as well as guests from the surrounding nations at my table. 18 Each[e] day, one ox, six choice sheep, and some fowl were prepared for me. An abundance of all kinds of wine was provided every ten days. But I didn’t demand the food allotted to the governor, because the burden on the people was so heavy. 19 Remember me favorably, my God, for all that I have done for this people.

Somewhere along the way, in the first year of Nehemiah’s time in Jerusalem, King Artaxerxes appointed Nehemiah to be governor of the land; he remained in this role for 12 years. When coming into the office, Nehemiah discovered something, that the governors before him had absolutely fleeced the people for everything they could. You see, legally, they had a right to a food allowance, but they also embezzled money where they could, and took people’s land for collateral when they couldn’t pay taxes or repay borrowed money or grain. This practice didn’t end at the top though, the governors servants and officials did the same. This was a burden to the people, one that Nehemiah could not be a part of, because he walked in the fear of God, and not the love of money. In fact, Nehemiah devoted himself to what was good for the people and to God. He put his hand to the hard work of rebuilding, he fed many people and dignitaries out of his own pocket (even though legally he had a right to take an allowance for it). He even loaned out what others needed, with little to no expectation that he would receive back, that is, he was generous. God saw this, and God loves this, as the scriptures tell us that God loves a cheerful giver.

When we think about someone who devoted themself to doing good, no one comes to mind that is a better example than The Lord Jesus Himself during His earthly ministry. Think about it, He always devoted Himself to doing good, he healed people, comforted them, He served others, and most of all He provided His life to be the sacrifice that would pay the penalty for our sin. Jesus consistently showed His disciples that He was interested in them doing good also, not because it was it was impressive, commendable, or even the right thing to do; but more importantly because that’s who they were, people devoted to doing good, because they devoted themselves the one and only perfectly good person, Jesus Christ the righteous.

So then, are you a believer that devotes yourself to doing good? You should be, because God takes how we treat others very seriously. We should be looking for ways constantly to do good for another, asking one another where you need help, where you are struggling, can I help ease that burden? Is their others inside and outside the church body that we should consider doing good for, so that God can be glorified through our actions. Also, remember, when you are doing good, devote yourself to it, that you are doing so for a good reason. Encourage one other, stir one another up to do the same. Not that you would appear good, or have a good status among people, or find favor in the eyes of influential people. No, doing good doesn’t work like that. That’s doing selfishness with a lie of piety. It's a sin. It’s lying. Instead, devote yourself to doing good because you love a good God that loves people. So, treat each other, no matter who, with love and not other motives.

Conclusion

Beloved, how we treat each other, as a faith family, is so so so important. How we treat others outside the family is important also. Don’t let Satan get a grip on you, and don’t let him get a foothold in how others perceive Jesus because you mistreated someone or mishandled a conflict. Instead of ignoring a problem, lean to it (don’t shy away from it) so that the situation can be made right and peace can abound. God cares about how we treat one another, so remember to make wrongs known when they happen to you, that person can’t right the wrong if you don’t do this. As a preventive measure, Walk in the fear of God, esteeming yourself as less and others as more, just as Christ did on the way to the cross. And Devote yourself to good, as a child of God (a follower of Jesus) this is something you are to do day by day and look for opportunities for, that God can be honored to your devotion to goodness and our perfectly good God.

With all of that being said, I would be remiss if I didn’t share the Gospel (or the Good News) of Jesus Christ with you today, for the benefit of both believer and non-believer in the room. This begins all the way back at the beginning, God created everything, and he created all things good. He gave His most treasured creation (us, mankind) the ability of free will, the ability to choose Him or rebellion. Man was deceived by Satan and desired to be like God and sinned (or rebelled against God). This brought the curse of sin and death into the world and it remains with us to this day; which separates us from God. God, though, loved His creation (mankind) so much that He worked through history to redeem all mankind that would turn to Him from sin so that we can experience a full and perfect relationship with Him again. This was through the perfect and final sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the pay for sins. Accepting this free gift from God, makes you new and forgiven. All you have to do is accept this free gift by repenting and believing in the Lord Jesus and you will get to experience the good side of God’s justice forever. So, now that you know this, you can no longer plead ignorance. I invite and urge you to respond today non-believer and apply this to every part of your life believers in the audience today.

With that, Let’s conclude. Brothers and Sisters, I love you all. During our last song together, if you need prayer, or want to talk more about Jesus, or have something you want to talk about, I’ll be here, don’t be afraid to come on down. Let’s pray. Father God, we thank You for who You are and what You are doing to us here in this place. May whatever it is that You are doing in each heart here, continue as we leave to go out into the world this week. Change us, mold us, make us, re-arrange us, that we can be both better lovers of You and better proclaimers of You. It’s in these things that I ask and in Jesus Christ’s Holy and precious name that I pray, Amen.