Are You a Nehemiah? Part II

"So I prayed to the God of heaven" (Nehemiah 2:4b NASB). This was the response of Nehemiah after King Artaxerxes asked him what he would like to have done regarding the desolation of his homeland, Jerusalem. At first glance this seems like a very nonchalant response. Nehemiah prayed. What's the big deal? After all, most of us would do the same would we not? What is interesting is not that Nehemiah prayed, rather it is how he prayed.

As we saw in the previous post, Nehemiah lived during the time of Israel's captivity in Babylon. This captivity followed the deportation and exile of the Jew's from the ancient Kingdom of Judah in 586 BC. As a part of this watershed event in Jewish history the great city of Jerusalem was sacked, walls burned, and laid in ruin. When word of this finally reached Nehemiah the Scripture tells us that he was deeply grieved, burdened, and began to pray:

I beseech You, O LORD God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who preserves the covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments, let Your ear be attentive and Your eyes open to hear the prayer of Your servant which I am praying before You now, day and night, on behalf of the sons of Israel Your servants, confessing the sins of the sons of Israel which we have sinned against You; I and my father's house have sinned. 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, saying, 'If you are unfaithful I will scatter you among the peoples; 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.' They are Your servants and Your people whom You redeemed by Your great power and by Your strong hand. 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. (Neh. 1:5-11 NASB)

Now there are many things we can learn from Nehemiah's prayer. However, for the sake of brevity allow me to share just a few quick things.

First, notice that Nehemiah did not just pray once, but "day and night". So many times we may become discouraged that our prayers are never answered in the manner we feel they should be. Much of this may be the result of a lack of persistence in our praying. Jesus addressed this when He instructed his followers to "ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you (Mat. 7:7 ESV). In the original language (Greek) the verbs "ask", "seek", and "knock" are in the continuous action tense. This means the words are better translated, ask and keep on asking, seek and keep on seeking, knock and keep on knocking. What Jesus was teaching here is persistence in prayer. Let us be clear, Jesus is not suggesting that if we bug God enough He will eventually just give in and give us what we want. What He is teaching is that there is mysteriously a correlation between our passionate persistence and fervency in prayer and God's answering. Nehemiah was determined to continue to approach God until he received an answer. I'm confident we would find much clearer and satisfying answers to our prayers if we learn to pray in this manner.

A second thing we should notice in Nehemiah's prayer is his obvious contrition. If you are like me then you find yourself often times developing a pattern of prayer that could be described more as selfish as opposed to submissive. It is easy for us to treat God like some sort of a cosmic grandparent (meaning we expect He should give us just about anything we ask for). When we do this we have sinned against God because we have in effect committed idolatry. That is, we have worshipped the god we have created in our own minds rather than the one true God revealed to us in the Bible. To the contrary, Nehemiah clarified in his prayer just who this God was he was praying to, "O LORD God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who preserves the covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments..." Obviously Nehemiah understood that God is greater than him and sovereign over him thus he submitted to him. This I believe is the starting point of contrition. For Nehemiah prayer was not just about what God could do for him, but more so how Nehemiah could serve God.

Nehemiah was truly broken hearted and repentant over his sin and the sin of his people. He confessed those sins to God and then pleaded with God to keep His promises to His people. Nehemiah was not asking for God to simply give him what he wanted. He was asking for God to allow him to be a part of accomplishing what God wanted. The Scripture does not expressly tell us that God told Nehemiah that He wanted him to be the one to go back to Jerusalem and lead the effort to rebuild the city. However, it is implied in Nehemiah's answering of King Artaxerxes, "if it please the king, and if your servant has found favor before you, send ME to Judah, to the city of my fathers' tombs, that I may rebuild it." Through Nehemiah's persistent prayer and contrite heart God shaped Nehemiah's perspective and desire to be willing to walk through the door He provided. Nehemiah went on to be the successful leader he became largely because of how he prayed. Are you a Nehemiah?

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"Is it in You?"

Here's a video sent to me from a fellow blogger. It is a bit of a spin from the recent Gatorade commercials where the athletes sweat the color of Gatorade they have been drinking. Take a look and then answer the question: Is it in you?

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Just a Little Silly Humor!

Just thought I would lighten the load for everyone with a little silly humor i found:



Everyone be sure to comment and let me know your thoughts on this! Also, if you have some other good silly humor stuff let me know.

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Are You a Nehemiah?

Recently I have been teaching through the book of Nehemiah on Wednesday evenings. It has been a true challenge and joy. This book gives us such a wonderful reminder of how God works in our world and in His people. John MacArthur says, "Nehemiah is a book about dreaming big dreams, about solving monumental problems, about the power of prayer, about standing strong in the face of harsh opposition, and about motivating people and leading groups to do great works for a great God." The book of Nehemiah truly speaks to all of the great needs facing us today. As I continue to study this rich book there are several things that should stand out and speak powerfully to us in our current times. Throughout the next several blog entries I'll be sharing some of these things.

Allow me to start where the book itself starts, with the man Nehemiah. Nehemiah must have been a unique and intriguing man. However, we get very little from the Scriptures about the make up of his personality. The Scriptures do tell us that he was a Jew and the cupbearer for King Artaxerxes during the time of the Babylonian captivity. Moreover, the Scriptures give us wonderful insight into his heart, character and integrity.

It goes without saying that anyone who stood in the unenviable position of king's cupbearer was an individual who possessed at least a high enough level of integrity to earn the king's trust (As cupbearer Nehemiah was the one who tasted the king's food and drink testing it for poison). One might argue that Nehemiah possessed such integrity because his life depended on it! While this may have been the case to a certain degree(Nehemiah 2:2), I believe his integrity was ultimately the result of his deep-seated faith in God.

It is this faith that drove Nehemiah to brokeness and contrition when he discovered that his homeland laid burned and in ruin. It is also this faith that gave Nehemiah the courage to ask the king to allow him to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the city. Nehemiah was a man who saw the great need of his people and the great sin of his people against God. Although he easily could have continued living a life of ease and comfort as a member of the king's court, his concern was for something greater than himself. He developed a burden for change.

Today, more than ever, we need individuals of character like Nehemiah who will look beyond their own comforts, desires, and pleasures in this life and will see the ruin that exists as the result of God's people once again falling captive. No longer captive to the Babylonians, Persians, Assyrians, etc., rather captive to selfishness, lust, materialism, greed, covetousness, and so forth. We need leaders cast from the mold of Nehemiah who will allow themselves to be broken before God and cry out for true change. We need "Christians" who once again care enough about God's people, plan, and purposes that with great courage will hear the voice of God, step out on faith, and become an instrument of change! Are you a Nehemiah?

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Where Have All the Moral Questions Gone?

As I have contemplated and analyzed last night's Presidential debate I have found myself continually perplexed by what I watched. I am fully aware that the great pressing concern of Americans right now is the economy. I also believe our national defense is a high priority. What absolutely puzzles me though, is the fact that neither candidate spoke (nor did they in the first debate) to me. That is, neither spoke to Evangelical Christians.

It's clear both candidates were attempting to hit hard on the hot button issues that interest swing voters. I'm also aware that the majority of the questions were asked from audience members. Nonetheless, it appears the candidates have either forgotten or taken for granted a great part of the voting public. My guess is that they feel they can sidestep many of the toughest questions each would be faced with as president, the "moral" questions.

Both campaigns would like to believe that since their candidates are not being forced to speak to these issues, the issues have somehow faded off the scene and out of existence. Thankfully, some are still raising these tough questions. In fact, the day before the debate George Weigel of, Newsweek, reminded us of some of these tough, yet very important questions in his article, Dangling Conversations: Posing the Moral Questions Facing the Next President. Here are his questions:

ON MATTERS OF FOREIGN POLICY
1. This past April, Pope Benedict XVI spoke at the United Nations of the "duty to protect" and described it as the litmus test of political legitimacy. Does the United States have a moral obligation to act, alone or in concert with others, when governments manifestly fail in their "duty to protect"?

2. Religiously-shaped moral conviction plays multiple, dynamic roles in 21st century world politics. Very few people at the Department of State, the Department of Defense, or the Central Intelligence Agency understand this. What will you do to change that?

3. Forget the chatter about "preemption." The correct term, within the classic just war tradition, is "the morally justified first-use of armed force." Do you think the first use of armed force is ever morally justifiable? Is so, when? If not, why not?

4. What role does distorted religious conviction play in creating the dangers we face from terrorists? How can American public diplomacy address those convictions?

5. What is the responsibility of the United States to help ensure that the new Iraq is safe for all its religious communities? What is the moral responsibility of the U.S. government toward displaced Iraqi Christians, many of whom have fled the country?

ON MATTERS OF DOMESTIC POLICY
6. Do you consider homosexuality the equivalent of race for purposes of U.S. civil rights law?

7. Is any public defense of classic biblical sexual morality a de facto act of intolerance and discrimination against gays?

8. Should Roman Catholic and evangelical social service agencies working with orphans be legally required to consider gay couples on an equal basis as foster-care providers? How about as potential adoptive parents?

9. Does the increasingly assertive role played by federal courts in adjudicating hotly contested questions of public policy threaten the moral fabric of American democracy, by taking serious decisions out of the hands of the people and their elected representatives? Are we becoming morally lazy in allowing the courts to decide so many issues for us?

10. Are you at all concerned that the trajectory of Supreme Court jurisprudence over the past six decades risks driving religiously informed moral argument out of our public life?

11. What is the moral balance to be struck between sensible work on climate change and the aspirations of the Third World poor, many of whom live in countries dependent on high-carbon-emission technologies for economic development?

12. How would your administration foster a culture of savings and personal financial responsibility in the United States?

13. What role, if any, should Washington play in elevating our national cultural life? Does it bother you that pornography is a major American export, and if so, what might be done about that?

14. What, if any, is the moral difference between a Supreme Court decision that puts unborn children outside the protection of the laws and a Supreme Court decision that once put black Americans outside the protection of the laws?

15. Does the ability to reprogram adult cells so that they function like embryonic stem cells change the moral character of the debate over stem cell research?

ON MATTERS OF CHARACTER
16. For what are you willing to risk your popularity, and perhaps your re-election?

17. Are you prepared to dismiss a subordinate who may be a friend, but who is manifestly not up to the requirements of the office to which you appointed him or her?

18. Can you live with able subordinates who are prepared to tell you, "Mr. President, you're wrong"?

19. There are things a president cannot tell the American people. But are there circumstances in which you would deem it your responsibility to mislead the American people? To deny what you know to be true? To affirm what you know to be false?

20. Who are your moral heroes?

Regardless of the issues the mainstream media and the two campaigns want to tell us matter most, we must do whatever possible to make sure these fundamentally important issues remain at the forefront and are not altogether dismissed. This will not be easy, but here a few suggestions that will help. First, personally research each candidate's political track record. Next, read carefully each parties platform (these generally can be downloaded from a party's official website). Finally, vote your conscience at the pole.

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What's Really at Stake, Saving the Planet or Saving Souls?

In a recent Newsweek article, a Religious-Right Revival, Lisa Miller suggests that Republican presidential nominee, Senator John McCain's selection of Alaskan Governor, Sarah Palin as his veep candidate has sparked a renewal of enthusiasm among the traditional religious right. Miller notes that a new, younger generation of evangelicals have moved beyond the traditional hot button issues of abortion and same sex marriage to issues more in tune with the mainstream such as "global warming, Darfur, illiteracy, human trafficking, preventable disease", etc. While this shift in cares among the "new" evangelicals is really no surprise, since these are the issues pertinent to their generation. It is the driving force behind this shift in concerns suggested by Miller that I find attention grabbing. Where as traditional evangelicals have been primarily motivated by things such as the preservation of the freedom to propagate the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all people, upholding the sanctity of human life, and restoring the traditional family. Today's younger evangelicals are "Eager to help care for the planet, these Christians are building bridges between left and right, between the secular and the devout, even among subscribers to different holy books. These "new" evangelicals, according to the mainstream press, are exciting now because they're politically powerful."

Did you catch it? Their primary motivation is the planet! Now do not misunderstand me, I care for our planet. I believe our planet is very important. In fact, I happen to think it is the most important planet in our universe. I also, understand that we have a God-given responsibility to be good stewards of this planet. However, what I do not understand is why these new evangelicals have made preserving planet Earth the great calling of their generation.

I suspect several contributing factors. However, allow me to touch on what I believe to be the one that tops the list and concerns me most, a diminished view of the authority of the Bible. Miller reported that "of the 60 million white evangelicals in this country, 60 percent of them believe the Bible is literally true." This suggests that 40 percent of them do not believe the Bible to be authoritative for their lives (It is probably not to great a stretch to also suggest that the majority of the 60 percent is made up by traditional evangelicals). Since so many of the younger professing evangelical Christians are not looking to the Bible as the primary basis for the development of their worldview, they must look to other outlets such as pop culture and the mainstream media to form their views. This is why they have developed a distorted non-Biblical outlook that sees taking care of the planet more important than reaching souls with the Gospel. It is also precisely why these evangelicals have put aside the "divisive religious rhetoric" and have no problem uniting with followers of distinctly different faiths. Is it any wonder they have become politically powerful? Unfortunately, in becoming so they have compromised the long standing identity of evangelical Christians in America and undermined the decades of hard work, prayer, and action so many faithful traditional evangelicals have given.

As for the enthusiasm of traditional evangelicals with relation to Governor Palin, there are many things that make her attractive. There is her so called "maverick" reputation, the fact that she is young and a woman, or even the fact that she is a faithful wife and "hockey mom" of a traditional family. However, what I believe makes her most attractive to traditional evangelicals is the fact that she is a conservative evangelical Christian who is shaped by a Biblical worldview. She has been an agent of change in a state where leftist environmentalists have thrived. She led her state in making great contributions to the country regarding the production of oil and other natural resources. She obviously is not a part of the new breed of evangelicals who are focused on saving the planet, and for that I am thankful. We do not yet know enough about the governor to know exactly what kind of an evangelistic passion she possesses, but I have a hunch she like her fellow traditional evangelicals values the saving of human lives for eternity far more than saving the planet.

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Sorry It's Been So Long!

Hello everyone, Please alow me to apologize for not posting anything new for several months. Life as a pastor often becomes so demanding that generally simple things, such as blogging, become difficult to fit in to a busy a schedule. Nevertheles, today I just had to make time.

For years I have been reading Charles Spurgeon's, Morning and Evening, daily devotional book. I've tried several other devotionals but none have proven to be nearly as rich as Spurgeon. This morning's read was such an encouragement to me that I felt compelled to share. Here it is:

"For You Lord, have made me glad through Your work."

Psalm 92:4

Do you believe that your sins are forgiven and that Christ has made a full atonement for them? Then you should be a joyful Christian. You should live above the common trials and troubles of this world!

Since your sin is forgiven, can it matter what happens to you now? Luther said, "Smite, Lord, smite, for my sin is forgiven; if You have but forgiven me, smite as hard as You will." In a similar spirit you may say, "Send sickness, poverty, losses, crosses, persecution. Send what You will, You have forgiven me and my soul is glad."

Christian, if you are saved, be glad, grateful, and loving. Cling to the cross that took your sin away. Serve Him who served you. "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service" (Romans 12:1)

Do not let your zeal evaporate in the vapor of some little song. Show your love in expressive expressions. Love the believers in Him who loved you (Romans 12:10). If there is a Mephibosheth who is lame or in need, help him for Jonathan's sake (2 Samuel 9:3ff). Where there are poor tried believers, weep with them; carry their cross for the sake of Him who wept for you and carried your sins.

Since you are forgiven freely (Romans 8:32), for Christ's sake go and tell others the joyful news of pardoning mercy. Do not be content to keep this unspeakable blessing for yourself alone. Preach the story of the cross. Holy gladness and holy boldness will make you a good preacher, and all the world will be your pulpit.

Cheerful holiness is the most forcible of sermons, but the Lord must give it. Seek it this morning before you go into the world. When you rejoice in the Lord's work, there is no need to be afraid of being too glad.

I hope you were as uplifted and challenged by the words of the great preacher as I was. May we all live this day and this life filled with His gladness!

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