Compassion for God's Glory! Part One

Welcome

1 Corinthians 1:26–29 ESV

26 For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; 28 God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, 29 so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.

Good Morning! I’m Pastor Wayne and I’d like to welcome you all to the gathering of Ephesus Baptist Church.

Today, you are here not on the basis of anything good that you have done, but because our Savior chose what is weak and foolish in order to save the world. May you revel in the hope that we have in Christ this morning as we worship Him together.

If you are visiting with us this morning, we want you to know that Ephesus is an active faith community on a mission with Jesus.

We don’t all share the same story; in fact, we come from many different paths. But here, we are one people giving our all to love God, love others, proclaim Jesus, and make disciples in our generation.

We have a connect card in the pew in front of you. I invite you to take one and fill it out! Please be sure to include your name, email, and address. If you have prayer needs, you can let us know about those as well.

I promise, our prayer team will lift you up soon. You can place those cards in the offering plate when it comes around.

Scripture Memory

1 Peter 3:8–9 ESV

8 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. 9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.

Opening Scripture

Psalm 48:1–14 ESV

1 Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised in the city of our God! His holy mountain, 2 beautiful in elevation, is the joy of all the earth, Mount Zion, in the far north, the city of the great King. 3 Within her citadels God has made himself known as a fortress. 4 For behold, the kings assembled; they came on together. 5 As soon as they saw it, they were astounded; they were in panic; they took to flight. 6 Trembling took hold of them there, anguish as of a woman in labor. 7 By the east wind you shattered the ships of Tarshish. 8 As we have heard, so have we seen in the city of the Lord of hosts, in the city of our God, which God will establish forever. Selah 9 We have thought on your steadfast love, O God, in the midst of your temple. 10 As your name, O God, so your praise reaches to the ends of the earth. Your right hand is filled with righteousness. 11 Let Mount Zion be glad! Let the daughters of Judah rejoice because of your judgments! 12 Walk about Zion, go around her, number her towers, 13 consider well her ramparts, go through her citadels, that you may tell the next generation 14 that this is God, our God forever and ever. He will guide us forever.

Introduction

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,

Humpty Dumpty had a great fall;

All the king’s horses and all the king’s men,

Couldn’t put Humpty together again.

Humpty Dumpty is a famous nursery rhyme about human need and despair. Written around 1803.

Humpty Dumpty was an egg, which fell off a wall and broke apart. Being an egg, he could not be put together again by any force or knowlegde on earth.

For the writer of this nursery rhyme, Humpty Dumpty was intended to be a symbol of the origin of life and the world of humanity.

It was designed to lament the fact that humanity had fallen. Humanity is broken, and not even the most powerful people on earth—not the king, his army, nor his wise men—were able to put the broken pieces of life back together again.

Isn’t that the world we live in. A world that specializes in producing broken people.

Once we find ourselves to be broken, we discover that no power on earth can put us back together again.

Now that is an interesting story, is it not? Thankfully there is another story!

We love stories. God knows that we love stories and Our Heavenly Father is the best storyteller. Being made in His image, naturally predisposes us to loving His stories.

The whole Bible is one big story! It begins as a story, “In the Beginning...” and it ends as a story complete with a happy ending for some.

One of the reasons we love stories is that stories have a way of drawing us in. They have a way of gripping our hearts.

It’s one thing to read in God’s law, “You shall not commit adultery.” But it’s another thing to read the story of David committing adultery with Bathsheba!

The negative command is clear enough in the Law, but when you read David’s story of Adultery it shakes you to your core.

Embedded within the larger story of the Bible are smaller stories that help us to see the whole story more clearly.

The book of Nehemiah happens to be such a story. It is a true story about broken things and broken people.

It is a story that reveals an epidemic of moral compromise and spiritual apathy. It has intrigue, betrayal and deceit.

Much more than a bedtime story about a broken wall that gets fixed, it is a true life story of broken people who are restored by one ordinary man being totally consumed with obeying God. Egg shells of humanity being rebuilt and revitalized with life!

A closer look will reveal a man whose ink well was often mixed with tears, and whose heart was broken over the condition of the city walls. In Nehemiah, you will find a man who had compassion for God’s glory!

Nehemiah is a story of rebuilding, refocusing, and revitalization of not just individuals but whole communities and cultures.

As we study the Book of Nehemiah together, I want you to ask yourself a probing, life altering question, “What is it in your life that lies in ruins?”

“What are the things in your life that are broken and in need of God, the Master Rebuilder, to repair or revitalize?”

What about the church? Are there things that are broken that need to be restored, or reclaimed for the glory of God?

Nehemiah reminds us that God can and does restore the ruins of our lives, so take heart in that as we study this wonderful story in God’s larger story!

Nehemiah shows us what it looks like for a ordinary guy with a secular job (not a full time ministry professional) to live with a high view of God, a high view of Scripture, a love for the people of God and a passion for the glory of God in the real world.

We will see a real-life struggle with sin, opposition, critics, relational conflict, a nagging boss, and much more. This story is no nursery rhyme; it’s a real-life story.

So let’s dive in and see what God has in store for us in the pages of Nehemiah! Please stand in honor of God’s amazing Word!

Nehemiah 1:1–4 ESV

1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hacaliah. Now it happened in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Susa the citadel, 2 that Hanani, one of my brothers, came with certain men from Judah. And I asked them concerning the Jews who escaped, who had survived the exile, and concerning Jerusalem. 3 And they said to me, “The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire.” 4 As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven.

It’s my prayer, that through our study of Nehemiah...

1. We will experience the Lord’s revitalization. That we will experience spiritual renewal – individually and corporately through a renewed holiness, worship, & obedience for His glory.

2. It’s also my prayer that Nehemiah’s “holy passion” will inspire us to do great work for the glory of God here in Spring Hope and among the nations!

3. I pray that our vision of the greatness of God will be elevated, and that we will see the greater Nehemiah, Jesus Christ, who is a better leader and intercessor than Nehemiah, and a better priest and teacher than Ezra, and a better Savior than both.

Context

In order to appreciate the unfolding story of Nehemiah we need to understand the back story.

About a thousand years after God called Abraham, around 1050-931 BC, Israel becomes a mighty nation under Saul, David and Solomon. These were the glorious golden years of Israel.

But Solomon began to make disastrous compromises, disobeying God’s Word, and committing idolatry (cf., 1 Kings 11). Because of this sin and idolatry, the kingdom was divided in 931, into the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah (cf., 1 Kings 14).

In 722, we read of the fall of the Northern Kingdom of Israel to the Assyrians (2 Kings 17).

The Southern Kingdom of Judah held on until 586 when Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar conquers it (2 Kings 24-25). • The Babylonians destroyed the walls and the temple. They plundered the treasures. Jerusalem was completely leveled….

2 Chronicles 36:19–21 ESV

19 And they burned the house of God and broke down the wall of Jerusalem and burned all its palaces with fire and destroyed all its precious vessels. 20 He took into exile in Babylon those who had escaped from the sword, and they became servants to him and to his sons until the establishment of the kingdom of Persia, 21 to fulfill the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed its Sabbaths. All the days that it lay desolate it kept Sabbath, to fulfill seventy years.

God’s People are carried over 800 miles away to be recast as slaves and servants throughout the Babylonian Empire.

Sin and idolatry never satisfies; it instead brings destruction, alienation, and pain. Israel didn’t follow wholly after God and they suffered brutal consequences.

Psalm 137:1–6 ESV

1 By the waters of Babylon, there we sat down and wept, when we remembered Zion. 2 On the willows there we hung up our lyres. 3 For there our captors required of us songs, and our tormentors, mirth, saying, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!” 4 How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land? 5 If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its skill! 6 Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth, if I do not remember you, if I do not set Jerusalem above my highest joy!

Through a pagan King, God would make a way for his people to return to the land!

In 539, Babylon fell to the Persians when Cyrus “the Great” came to power (he reigned 539-530).

The Persians maintained a governmental policy that allowed people to worship freely, according to their own beliefs. They believed people would actually respond with greater loyalty to the Persian Empire because of this inclusive policy.

Ezra 1:1–5 ESV

1 In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing: 2 “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. 3 Whoever is among you of all his people, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and rebuild the house of the Lord, the God of Israel—he is the God who is in Jerusalem. 4 And let each survivor, in whatever place he sojourns, be assisted by the men of his place with silver and gold, with goods and with beasts, besides freewill offerings for the house of God that is in Jerusalem.” 5 Then rose up the heads of the fathers’ houses of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites, everyone whose spirit God had stirred to go up to rebuild the house of the Lord that is in Jerusalem.

This is amazing! God orchestrated the revitalization of His people. He even used “worldly means” to accomplish this great endeavor. Our God is sovereign over all Ephesus!

Now this revitalization was accomplished in three stages or waves.

This first wave of returnees happens in 538, led by Zerubbabel and Jeshua (Ezra chs 1-6)

The Temple is completed in 516 (Ezra 6:13-15; Darius is ruler of Persia 522-486)

Esther fits in between the first and second wave of returnees; she’s in the palace in 478 (Xerxes is ruler 485-464).

A half century later around 458, the second wave of returnees occurred.

Ezra was in this group and was used mightily by God to teach His people His Word.

Artaxerses is now ruling over the Persian Empire.

Nehemiah leads the third wave of returnees about 13 years after Ezra returned. It is now around 445-444 BC.

Who Is Nehemiah?

Nehemiah 1:1 ESV

1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hacaliah. Now it happened in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Susa the citadel,

He’s the son of Hacaliah. Who’s that? We don’t know. He’s only mentioned here. It is assumed that we are told of his Father only to distinguish him from other Jews of the same name (Neh. 3:16; Ezra 2:2). Everything we know about Nehemiah comes from this book of the Bible!

Nehemiah’s name means “the consolation of the Lord” or “the Lord comforts.” God would use Nehemiah to revitalize and comfort the spirit of the discouraged Israeli exiles and bring them tremendous hope.

Nehemiah is an energetic leader who has a deep trust in the Lord along with precise planning, careful organization, and discreet compassionate action. Christian leaders can find great inspiration in the life and character of Nehemiah.

Nehemiah is not a priest or theologian, but he is a servant of God—at least, that is how he sees himself as you will see in the future (Neh 1:6, 11).

Nehemiah is a man who cares deeply for the things of God. He was a praying man. We will find him praying on 10-11 different occasions over the next 13 chapters.

What Did Nehemiah Do?

In Nehemiah 1:11, he self-identifies himself as “...I was cupbearer to the king.” He was a cupbearer. He carried a cup.

He was the guy that tasted all of the King’s food and drink to ensure that it was not poisoned. How would he know if it was poisoned? He would die. He was the protector of the King of Persia. He was the final line between the King and would be assassins.

While this was a risky position, it was also a position of great responsibility and privilege. To be able to stand before the King on a regular basis, the cupbearer would have to be someone who was clean, neat, and cultured. He would have been very knowledgeable in procedures of the King’s court.

Don’t mistake this as a great job for someone who wants to take risks and enjoys food and wine! This was not the position of a household servant. He had constant access to the king and as such, there was no one in a better place to influence the king.

This speaks highly of Nehemiah’s character and ability. But more than that this reveals God’s sovereign, providential hand at work in the life of His people. He had raised up Nehemiah for such a time as this!

Where was Nehemiah?

Nehemiah is in the fortress city of Susa in the month of Chislev. Chislev runs about mid November to mid December on our calendar.

Susa was the King of Persia’s Winter palace get away. It was a beautiful complex with acres of gardens filled with some of the most exotic flowers in all the world. It was a place of wealth, luxury, and bliss.

Conclusion:

In the midst of this beautiful royal palace, God has placed an ordinary man of impeccable character and obedient, determined faith.

Nehemiah is no different from me and you! He is an ordinary person who will be used in extraordinary ways.

Nehemiah reminds us that God can make a somebody out of a nobody.

Nehemiah reveals to us what God can do with a person who yields their life to the Will of God to promote the glory of God.

Not much is known of Nehemiah, He was not a member of Israel’s priestly tribe. He was not a royal family member. He didn’t have the normal qualifications and experience for a task as large as revitalizing the community of God’s people.

Nehemiah was by anyone’s standards, a common, average, run-of-the-mill kind of guy. He maintained a good job and a steady income, but it would be completely accurate to describe him as an ordinary fellow.

Yet, he reveals how an ordinary man can be used in extraordinary ways when his heart is yielded to our eternal, sovereign God.

1 Samuel 16:7 ESV

7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”

Before we gather together next week to study more of Nehemiah’s Quest, I want you to ask yourself a few questions.

Do you consider yourself ordinary?

Is there something in your life in need of repair?

What is your character quotient?

Do you have a special empathy and compassion for your fellow man?

Do you have a passion for the Glory of God?

If you think you have nothing special to offer God, think again. Take heart, Nehemiah is living proof that God delights in using ordinary people to restore, to rebuild, to revitalize His people, His church, and His world!

Hymn of Invitation

No. 325

Whiter than Snow!