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Scripture: Nehemiah 1:7-11
7“We have acted very corruptly against You and have
not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the ordinances which You
commanded Your servant Moses. 8“Remember the word which You commanded
Your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful I will scatter you
among the peoples; 9but if you return to Me and keep My
commandments and do them, though those of you who have been scattered were
in the most remote part of the heavens, I will gather them from there and
will bring them to the place where I have chosen to cause My name to
dwell.’ 10“They are Your servants and Your people whom You redeemed by
Your great power and by Your strong hand. 11“O Lord, I beseech You, may
Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant and the prayer of Your
servants who delight to revere Your name, and make Your servant successful
today and grant him compassion before this man.” Now I was the cupbearer
to the king.
A. Nehemiah Remembered God’s Word vs. 7, 8
There are some things we need to remember and some we
need to forget. Paul exhorts us not to allow our past sins hinder our walk
with Him. Our past may limit our service in some instances. The most
striking illustration come from the Old Covenant priesthood. In Leviticus
21:16-24;
16 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 17 “Speak
to Aaron, saying, ‘No man of your offspring throughout their
generations who has a defect shall approach to offer the bread of his
God. 18 ‘For no one who has a defect shall approach: a blind man, or a
lame man, or he who has a disfigured face, or any deformed limb,
19 or a man who has a broken foot or broken hand, 20 or a hunchback or a
dwarf, or one who has a defect in his eye or eczema or scabs or
crushed testicles. 21 ‘No man among the descendants of Aaron the
priest, who has a defect, is to come near to offer the Lord’s
offerings by fire; since he has a defect, he shall not come near
to offer the bread of his God. 22 ‘He may eat the bread of his God, both
of the most holy and of the holy, 23 only he shall not go in to the
veil or come near the altar because he has a defect, that he may not
profane My sanctuaries. For I am the Lord who sanctifies them.’” 24
So Moses spoke to Aaron and to his sons and to all the sons of Israel.
Isn’t that amazing? In contrast, we are so blessed to
live in the “age of grace” where we are invited to “.
. . draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive
mercy and may find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:16
God does have standards for service and we do well to
follow them, but Christ has made us priests onto God and our perfection is
in HIM! So, with that in mind, Paul tells us his approach in Philippians
3:13,14.
13 “. . . forgetting what lies behind
and reaching forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the
goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus”
Now, going back to the original thought, there are some
things we have to remember! God brought to Nehemiah’s mind God’s
warning by way of His Word through Moses. Vs
7& 8; 7 “We have acted very corruptly
against You and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the
ordinances which You commanded Your servant Moses. 8a “Remember the word
which You commanded Your servant Moses,”
Now let’s
look at the message from God.
B. Nehemiah Remembered God’s Warning
8b “. . . If you are unfaithful I will scatter you
among the peoples;”
Nehemiah remembered the warning from the writings of
Moses and saw the results of disobedience unfolding before his eyes. See
Deuteronomy 28:64,65;
64 “Moreover, the Lord will scatter you among
all peoples, from one end of the earth to the other end of the earth;
and there you shall serve other gods, wood and stone, which you or your
fathers have not known. 65 “And among those nations you shall find no
rest, and there shall be no resting place for the sole of your foot; but
there the Lord will give you a trembling heart, failing of eyes, and
despair of soul.”
There are multitudes today who refuse to hear or
believe God’s Word. They too will pay a price. Consider Paul’s stern
warning in 1st Corinthians 6:9,10;
9 “Or do you not know that the unrighteous
shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither
fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor
homosexuals, 10 nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor
revilers, nor swindlers, shall inherit the kingdom of God.”
Happily he goes on to describe how in wonderful grace
some caught up in perverse lifestyles were gloriously saved and set free
from sin’s bondage. See 1st Corinthians
6:11
“And such were some of you; but you were washed, but
you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord
Jesus Christ, and in the Spirit of our God.”
Like some of those in Thessalonica their lives were
turned around!
2 We give thanks to God always for all of you,
making mention of you in our prayers; 3 constantly bearing in
mind your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in
our Lord Jesus Christ in the presence of our God and Father, 4 knowing,
brethren beloved by God, His choice of you; 5 for our gospel did
not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit
and with full conviction; just as you know what kind of men we proved to
be among you for your sake.” And 9 & 10; 9 For they
themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and
how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God, 10 and
to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that
is Jesus, who delivers us from the wrath to come.
1st Thessalonians 1:2-5,9 & 10
C. Nehemiah Remembered God’s Promise vs. 9
9 but if you return to Me and keep My
commandments and do them, though those of you who have been scattered were
in the most remote part of the heavens, I will gather them from there and
will bring them to the place where I have chosen to cause My name to
dwell.’
God will someday heal their land! 2nd
Chronicles 7:13-18
13 “If I shut up the heavens so that
there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I
send pestilence among My people, 14 and My people who are
called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn
from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their
sin and will heal their land.
Here is a wonderful promise to the nation of Israel. The
promise is to Israel. The principle applies to any people
who will give themselves over to His grace alone; who will repent, seek
His face and strive to conform to His Sovereign Will. GOD
BLESS AMERICA!
D. Nehemiah Requested God’s Provision vs. 10, 11
10 “They are Your servants and Your people whom You
redeemed by Your great power and by Your strong hand. 11 “O Lord, I
beseech You, may Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant and
the prayer of Your servants who delight to revere Your name, and make Your
servant successful today and grant him compassion before this man.”
As He did with Nehemiah, God has given us a
mission. May He likewise give us a burden for our community and our
country. 1st Timothy 2:1-6;
1“ . . . I urge that entreaties and
prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all
men 2 for kings and all who are in authority, in order that we may lead
a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. 3 This is good
and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all men to
be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one
God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man
Christ Jesus, 6 who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony borne
at the proper time.”
Beloved, now is the day of
salvation. Why not trust Him today?
God has given us a
mission.
Now may He give us a burden for our community and our country.
1st Timothy 2:1-6 “ . . .
I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made
on behalf of all men, 2 for kings and all who are in
authority, in order that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all
godliness and dignity. 3 This is good and acceptable in the sight of God
our Savior, 4 who desires all men to be saved and to come
to the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God, and one
mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave
Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony borne at the proper
time."
It is our prayer that God will use this message to bring the Truth that
set us free and brings a peace that passes all understanding.
Jesus said “Peace
I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give
I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”
John 14:27 There is no way to have that kind of peace except
by coming to God through Jesus Christ. Jesus said “. . . I
am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by
me.” John 14:6
Dear sinner, you need to confess your sin, Dear ones who have need of
salvation; repent of sins and come to God
accepting the fact that Christ died on the cross, rose from the dead and
paid the full penalty.
Dear saints who know the Savior, we need to avoid sin and should we
sin, keep our sins confessed up to date and pray for
the servants of God all the while serving God ourselves on every occasion
and opportunity as God enables and directs.
We see that these are great assets for the
Christian. Have you found a church home? Better yet; have
you found new life in Christ? Why not come to Him today? God will receive those who will come to
Him. He has provided the
means for you to be saved, baptized and be a part of His New Testament
Local Church ministry -- He gave His Son to intercede; all you need to do
is cast yourself upon His mercy and grace.
Jesus said in John
6:37-40
38
“For
I have come down from heaven,
not to do My own will, but the
will of Him who sent Me. 39
“And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all
that He has given Me I lose nothing,
but raise it up on the last day. 40
“For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds
the Son and believes in Him, may have
eternal life; and I Myself will raise him
up on the last day.”
It
is important to note Luke's comment in Acts
4:12
“And
there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven
that has been given among men, by which we must be saved.”
Please contact
us if you sense your need to come to Him. We can help. (To
reach me just
click on "contact us.")
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