Sermon Tone Analysis

I

These last few weeks have been interesting in many ways.

One of the hardest things though was being unable to respond instantly to problems.

Two weeks ago I received a call from our alarm company saying that a motion sensor was set off in the church.

It was in the late evening and everyone else on the call list was probably asleep already.

Normally I would have just jumped in my car and come right over, but I had to figure something else out.

Of course that needed solved right away, but sometimes it is not so urgent, or we give it more urgency than it needs.

One of the things I did while isolating was I did some more work on the dining room table I am attempting to build.

There was plenty to do and I had brought my materials and most of my tools with me.

However, I realized that there were some things I was missing.

Normally I would just hop in the car, run to Home Depot or Lowe’s and buy what I was lacking.

Instead, I simply went on to another step, realizing that I still had things I could do and that I could wait to tackle “that problem” until I was able to be back in society.

I think there is something in my nature that makes me want to tackle a problem the moment I think about it.

We

Anyone else have this temptation?

We want to instantly address problems.

This often can get us in trouble too.

Think about it, what do you do when you hear bad news?

What about when something breaks?

Today we are going to be starting a series on Nehemiah so let’s open our Bibles to Nehemiah chapter 1.

God

As we are turning there I want to remind you of the setting of the book of Nehemiah.

If you will recall after the reigns of King Solomon, Israel was divided into two kingdoms.

The northern 10 tribes were known as Israel, and there history is characterized by evil kings and eventually they are conquered by Assyria and deported.

Their defeat was so complete that history has lost track of anyone descended from those 10 tribes.

The two southern tribes, Judah and Simeon became the kingdom of Judah with some Benjamites sprinkled in as most of Benjamin’s territory came under control of Judah.

The kingdom of Judah continued to have a descendent of David on its throne for most of its history and while it had both good and evil kings, after weathering the attack from Assyria, eventually it to was conquered and deported by Babylon, which had defeated and replaced Assyria.

Yet when the Medes and Persians overthrew Babylon, which is recorded in Daniel, the process of the exiled Jews (from Judah) returning began.

Before we get into Nehemiah let’s read in Ezra chapter 4. If you have found your way to Nehemiah, just turn back to the left a few pages.

A few things to note.

First, those who opposed the rebuilding of Jerusalem preyed on the King’s insecurities.

Second, Artaxerxes was wise in that he gave himself time to review.

Lastly, the letter was used as an excuse to do more then they were commanded.

It is most likely that these are the events that immediately precede what happens in our text.

Things were not as Nehemiah thought they would be.

The temple had already been rebuilt.

I’m sure he was expecting that progress was being made on the wall.

Instead it had be destroyed and the gates burned, again.

Let’s take a look at Nehemiah’s response.

Nehemiah does three things that I think we can learn from here.

First, he prays.

Not only does he pray but he fasts.

Nehemiah’s Action Plan

He prays and fasts

In his prayer he references Deut 4:25-27 and acknowledges the sins of his people and he also takes personal responsibility for his sins and the sins of those who went before him.

But then he also paraphrases Deut 30:1-6 which reads:

Use the Bible as your prayer book.

Nehemiah uses the Bible to acknowledge the sins of his people and to call upon God to do what He promised to do.

We are much more likely to see answers to prayer that are yes when we pray in keeping with God’s word.

Nehemiah’s Action Plan

He prays and fasts

He is patient

Four months later Nehemiah finally allows the king to see that something is wrong.

Nehemiah was extremely patient, continuing to pray and fast.

Why did Nehemiah choose this time?

We do not know, but we do know that Nehemiah did not rush in to the king with his problem, he prayed, fasted, and was patient.

Nehemiah’s Action Plan

He prays and fasts

He is patient

He proceeded when the opportunity was there

Nehemiah seized the opportunity when the King asked him what was wrong.

He also continued praying before he asked.

Not only that, but he had prepared for the encounter.

So maybe the real action plan looked like this:

Nehemiah’s Action Plan

He prays and fasts

He is patient

He planned

He proceeded

Please do not misunderstand this as “God helps those who help themselves.”

That is a bunch of well meaning baloney that is not found in the Bible.

We must pray and we must act.

Prayer alone is not enough.

Faith alone is not enough.

Genuine faith spurs action that is bathed in prayer and scriptural truth.

You

What problems are you facing right now?

How are you facing them?

Are you facing them as if you must act and then wait for God to bless you or your action?

Or, do you approach them as Nehemiah did, prayerfully, with a patience, some planning, and then being ready to proceed as God gives the opportunity.

Take a few moments right now and pray to God about what He is speaking to you in this moment.

Pray

We

Now I want us to turn our attention to our church.