God’s Vision for You-Nehemiah 2:1-20
Nehemiah 2:1-20
Key Verse: 2:12b
“I had not told anyone what my God had put in my heart to do for Jerusalem.”
We love to hear stories about ordinary people who overcame the odds of life and wind up doing something great. We have so many examples of people like this. In 1880, Helen Keller was born blind and deaf, but she overcame the odds and became a leader, inspirer, and the first deafblind person to graduate from college. In 1860, a simple lawyer from Illinois became the 16th President of the United States and fought for the freedom of American slaves. During the Jewish Holocaust, Oskar Schindler, a German industrialist was able to save 1200 Jews by helping them to work for his company. There have been countless number of men and women who have done great things and have become great leaders and great examples for others. One such person was Nehemiah. Nehemiah was a plain and ordinary Jewish man who lived during the Babylonian exile. But he wound up doing something great and extraordinary for his people. Even though all of us here are ordinary 21st century folks, we too can do something great for God and for others. But the question is, “Yea, but how?”
First, it all begins with God (1-9, 12b)
In the first book of the Bible, Genesis, we learn about the creation of man and woman. Men and women are different from other created beings. Unlike monkeys, we don’t go around picking and eating bugs off of each other’s backs. We also don’t squeal and roll around in the mud. Rather, God created us for a specific reason. He created us for His own glory and for His own good purpose. God created us to be happy, to be fruitful, to be victorious, and to be successful (Gen 1:28).
In Chapter 2, Nehemiah shows us first hand how we can do something great for God and for others. He begins by saying “I took the wine and gave it to the king. I had not been sad in his presence before.” (1b) Nehemiah was a Jewish exile and slave in Persia. But unlike the other exiles, he was living pretty happily in King Artaxerxes palace as the cupbearer. At that time, a cupbearer was the same as the prime-minister. In other words, next to the king and queen of Persia, he was second in command. So one would think that Nehemiah would be a pretty happy man, right? However, four months ago, he had heard that the walls of his city in Jerusalem had been broken down and its gates had been burned with fire. So Nehemiah was in morning for his city and for his people.
After bringing the king some wine to drink, the king noticed that Nehemiah had a very sad look on his face and so he asked, “Why does your face look so sad when you are not ill? This can be nothing but sadness of the heart”. In those days, a servant of the king had to always be happy, whether or not he really was (Est 4:2). If he made the king angry, he could be killed right on the spot (Pr 20:2). So naturally, Nehemiah was afraid to be sad in the presence of the king. But when the king noticed that Nehemiah was sad, he did not kill him. Rather, he asked what was wrong and Nehemiah answered him, “Why should my face not look sad when the city where my fathers are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?” And to this, the king asked, “What is it you want?”
Nehemiah must have had a great relationship with the king. If I went to the President of the United of the States and told him that my house was old and was falling apart, I highly doubt he would ask me, “What is it you want?” But the king of Persia asked Nehemiah, “What is it you want?”. Again Nehemiah was afraid. He was about to ask something that no one would ever dare to ask a king. What did Nehemiah do? Nehemiah said in verse 4, “Then I prayed to the God of heaven.” Nehemiah went to God in prayer. Minutes before his arrest, Jesus also came to God in prayer. Jesus was in great agony for he knew what lay ahead for him. Jesus would be beaten, flogged and crucified. At first, he prayed for God to take away his sufferings. But through prayer, God gave Jesus renewed strength to fulfill the vision that God had given to him. Through prayer, God also strengthened Nehemiah. When you feel weak and afraid, then go to God in prayer. When you do, God will strengthen you. Isaiah 40:31 says, “But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. “ What happened after Nehemiah prayed? Nehemiah made a bold request to the most powerful king of the entire world. He asked the king to allow him to go to Jerusalem so that he could rebuild the wall of Jerusalem. What a brave man! In the book of Ezra, we learn that it was the king himself who had stopped the people from rebuilding the wall in the first place (Ez 4:21). But now Nehemiah was asking the king to change his mind. Not only that, the king could have seen this as a declaration of war. In ancient times, city walls were built in order to defend themselves from enemies. So perhaps Nehemiah wanted to rebuild the wall so that he could attack Persia. After this, Nehemiah requested three more things from the king. First, letters to the governors of the Euphrates for safe conduct. Second, a letter to the keeper of the king’s forest to provide lumber for the rebuilding. And third, he snuck in one more request. At the end of verse 8, he requested lumber for the residence he would occupy. In essence, Nehemiah was saying that he would move out of the king’s palace and would live in Jerusalem. Wow! What if the king refused? The king could have yelled out to his guards, “Off with his head!!!!!!!!” In the movie “Braveheart”, the gay lover of the prince of England gave the king some advice on how to stop William Wallace’s war rampage. The king looked at the boy, put his arm around his shoulder, led him to the window and threw him down plummeting to his death. But what happened to Nehemiah? Did the king throw him out of the window? Look at verse 8b. Nehemiah said, “And because the gracious hand of God was upon me, the king granted my requests”. God had moved the king’s heart to allow Nehemiah to rebuild. And not only did God move the king’s heart to allow Nehemiah to rebuild, but the king also sent army officers and cavalry with Nehemiah in order to protect him. We learn here a very important lesson. All greatness, leadership, and visions begin with God. Nehemiah was a Jewish exile and slave in Persia. He was made a eunuch, which means he could have no children and also which means he probably had no wife. Nehemiah wasn’t born into leadership. He didn’t go through any special training and didn’t read books on how to become a leader. Rather God put into Nehemiah’s heart a desire to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem. Verse 12b says, “I had not told anyone what my God had put in my heart to do for Jerusalem.” When cry out and pray to God, God puts in our hearts His desire and His vision. When we receive God’s vision, God helps us to put it into practice. I encourage all of you to come to God in prayer until God puts His vision into your hearts.
Second, courage and zeal (10-16)
Look at verse 10. Sanballat, an official of the Persian Empire and his friend Tobiah who was governor of Ammon, became disturbed when they heard what Nehemiah was going to do. These two men really didn’t like the Israelites. So they wanted to stop Nehemiah. So, in order to complete his vision, Nehemiah needed courage. A leader can possess many qualities such as skill, endurance, brains, and confidence. But what all leaders need the most is courage. With courage, a leader can do anything. He can face failures, threats, disappointments, and discouragements head on, without giving up. But how can we obtain courage? In the movie, “The Wizard of Oz”, the cowardly lion really wanted courage. So he went to see the Wizard of Oz who gave him a medal of courage. Courage however doesn’t work like this. Courage comes from God. The best example of courage comes from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Jesus lived in the glorious kingdom of Heaven with His Father God. In heaven, Jesus had no pain. However, God wanted to send him into our sinful and painful world so that he could bring us back into His glorious kingdom. But to do so, would take a lot of courage. Jesus would be rejected, betrayed, and beaten. He would be flogged, nailed to a cross, and crucified by his own people. Jesus, a sinless man, would have to die for each of our sins. Jesus knew this, but yet he came. He came because he caught God’s vision to use him to save the whole world through his death and resurrection. Jesus’ courage and leadership are matchless. Through him, his 11 disciples caught God’s vision as well and they began to teach the whole world about God and about His Son Jesus Christ.
Courage comes when we have absolute faith in the vision that God has given to us. Nehemiah knew without a shadow of a doubt that his vision came from God. So without fear, he went to Jerusalem to rebuild the wall. But the task would not be easy. Upon his arrival he began to survey the city and realized that it would be a very difficult task. The wall was in so much turmoil that not even his horse could walk over the debris. But Nehemiah didn’t despair or give up or say, “It’s too hard.” Rather, with courage and zeal, he formed a plan for its restoration; a plan which he carried out with great skill and energy, so that the whole wall was completed in an astounding 52 days! (Neh 6:15) Courage and zeal comes when we believe in the vision God has given to us. Two years ago, Dr. Ben Toh caught God’s vision for our West Loop ministry. At first, he faced many obstacles, but he did not give up. Three months ago, we held our first worship service on the third floor of this building. Now, Dr. Ben has caught God’s vision to raise 1000 members. Surely, God will hear and will answer his prayers. Third, teamwork (17-18, 20).
How do you spell “success”? “T E A M W O R K”. Every leader needs a supporting team and every team needs a strong leader. There’s an Arabian proverb that goes something like this, “A lion leading 1000 lambs will defeat a lamb leading 1000 lions.” Nehemiah was the perfect leader. After assessing the city, he didn’t go to the people and say, “No problem. We can do it!” But he first reminded them of the cold hard facts. He said, “You see the trouble we are in.” “Trouble” means “a source of difficulty” (Google definition). What was the trouble? The trouble was, Jerusalem was in ruins and its gates had been burned down.
To do God’s work, we first need to know what the problem is. Next, we need to pray, then face it head on and then do something about it. And lastly, we need help. Nehemiah said in verse 17, “Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace.” What was the problem? – The city was in ruins. What was the solution? – Let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem. And how was this solution carried out?
1. “let us rebuild”. The key word here is “rebuild”. Through this word, Nehemiah planted his vision into his people. He told them what needed to be done. A leader must share and plant his vision into the heart’s of others.
2. “let us rebuild”. The key word in this part is “us”. Nehemiah didn’t get his whip out and command the people to “Start rebuilding or else!” But he said, “Come, let us rebuild”. In verse 20, he said, “we his servants will start rebuilding”. There is a famous saying, “There is no ‘I’ in ‘Teamwork’”. How true this is. The other day, I made a horrible mistake in my company that impacted about $700,000 worth of merchandise. When my company found out about it, I thought for sure I was going to be fired. When I arrived at work, I thought they would say, “You broke it, you fix it!” Instead, my boss gathered 10 big wigs from the company and they all helped to resolve the problem. Without them, I probably would be living in the streets right now with my children and with my pregnant wife. Nehemiah said, “let us rebuild.” Nehemiah wanted to share the burden of rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem with his people. May we all share in the rebuilding of our ministry together.
3. “God will give us success” (20). Verse 20a says, “The God of heaven will give us success. ” In verse 18, Nehemiah told his people how the gracious hand of God was upon him. This was not merely Nehemiah’s plan. But Nehemiah was confident that God had sent him to lead the people in this task. Already, God was looking after Nehemiah. When we do something for God, we must believe that God is with us and God will give us success.
What happened after Nehemiah’s compelling speech? Did the people runaway? No. The people shouted, “Let us start rebuilding.” (18b) A leader must never be wishy-washy and indecisive. He must pray specifically. He must be bold and courageous. He must identify the issues. He must make a clear, firm, unwavering decision. He must share this decision with others. And he must participate in the good work. I use to think that leaders were born, not made. But I realize through Nehemiah that whenever one has God’s desire planted in their hearts, then they too can become great leaders. A few weeks ago, my family went to Washington D.C. While there, we visited George Washington’s home. I was in awe as I stood in his library. Just think, I was standing in a place where George Washington once stood. I wanted to stare and stare at his house forever. I even wanted to sleep there. But because hundreds of other people were behind me, I couldn’t. After this, we went to the back of his house. Behind it was the Potomac River. As I looked I thought, “Wow, I really want to become a great man someday just like him.” But then I thought, “When he was fighting the battles, I’m sure he never thought he was a great man.” To become great, General Washington had to suffer so much. What made him great was not his desire to become great, but what made him truly great was his desire to carry out God’s will for this land. When we have God’s desire in our hearts and share it with others and put it into practice, then we too can become great leaders for the 21st century.
Fourth, unwavering (19-20).
Again Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite came to cause some trouble. But this time they brought a friend, Geshem the Arab. Perhaps they thought, “Three’s a charm”. But because the king gave Nehemiah permission to rebuild, there was nothing they could. They could only ridicule and mock him. Whenever there is the work of God, there is always the work of Satan. Satan can’t stand when God’s work is going on. He wants to try to discourage and stop us from doing it. He even tried to discourage Jesus many times from doing the work of God. 2 Timothy 3:12 says, “In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” Also, Jesus said in John 15:18, “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.” We must never be discouraged. Rather, we must be unwavering and we must fight the good fight of faith to the end.
Who wants to do something great for God? Who wants to have a vision from God? 45 years ago, Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.’ I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.’” What happened to Martin Luther King, Jr’s dream? It was fulfilled! Any man and any woman can do something great for God. The only thing it takes is prayer, a vision from God, and a determination to see it to completion. I pray that God may help each of you to catch God’s vision for you. Who knows? Some day you may become the next President of the United States. Someday you may lead one soul to Jesus. Someday you may start your own church. Someday you might be giving the Sunday message. Someday you may save thousands of people from certain death. But you’ll never know unless you pray and catch God’s vision for you.
