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Good weekend to you my ‘Walking with Jesus’ friends,
This is a significant edition of “Walking with Jesus” for today we conclude a several month journey through much of the Old Testament of the Bible.
Beginning way back in October 2023, with the exception of a few weeks for Christmas and Easter, we’ve been following a detailed journey through the history of Israel beginning with Joshua leading them from their 40 years of wandering in the desert into the Land of God’s Promise. We’ve journeyed through the Judges, the Kings and Chronicles and some of the prophets, all the way to Nehemiah. Hopefully you’ve learned the Bible is NOT laid out chronologically, but we’ve made every attempt to walk through 1000 years of Israel’s Biblical history accurately and chronologically.
Yesterday I left you at the great dedication ceremony in Jerusalem of the city wall the people had built under Nehemiah’s guidance, in 52 days! You’ll recall King Artaxerxes had sent his cupbearer Nehemiah to Jerusalem to give oversight to that wall rebuild project, even though we have no evidence Nehemiah had any formal engineering or construction training, nor any leadership experience, but clearly God’s hand of guidance and wisdom was upon Nehemiah in this great project!
Nehemiah sent reports back to the king, I’m sure, and the king expanded Nehemiah’s role and responsibilities naming Nehemiah governor of the region which included Jerusalem. The king also extended Nehemiah’s time away from Susa to bring organizational leadership to every aspect of life in Jerusalem. Nehemiah 13 is Nehemiah’s final summary of things God led him to do for the city of Jerusalem.
Nehemiah 13:6,7 give us a very important glimpse into Nehemiah’s adventure in these times: “While all this was going on I was not in Jerusalem, for in the 32nd year of King Artaxerxes I had returned to the king. Sometime later I asked his permission and came back to Jerusalem…”
Historians confirm that Nehemiah first came to Jerusalem to lead the wall rebuild project in early 445bc, which was the 20th year in the reign of King Artaxerxes. The Jerusalem wall was completed in October 445. If Nehemiah returned to the king in his 32nd year of reign, that would be 433bc.
So, what was intended to be a short term ‘leave of absence’ request by Nehemiah to lead the wall rebuild, turned out to be 12 years, most all of that time as regional Governor, re-assigned by King Artaxerxes.
We presume Nehemiah’s time back in the palace of Susa was short lived for King Artaxerxes saw Nehemiah’s great value as Governor over the region of Judah and Jerusalem, and the king recommissioned Nehemiah back to Jerusalem. We have no record of either the deaths of Ezra the scholar and teacher of the Law of God, nor Nehemiah the wall builder and governor.
But what I see in Nehemiah’s closing chapter 13 is a several times repeated little phrase Nehemiah used: “Remember me for this, my God…” (Nehemiah 13: 14,22,31) In fact the very last words of Nehemiah’s record are: “Remember me with favor, my God.”
Now I wonder what you understand was Nehemiah’s thinking that he would enter that into his record three times in his closing chapter? Clearly while Nehemiah had been commissioned by the most powerful man in the world at that time, King Artaxerxes, Nehemiah lived every day, taking on every assignment as an assignment ultimately from God! Nehemiah’s driving motivation was to bring glory to God in everything he did, no matter the task or where on planet earth he was at any moment in time. Can you and I say that?
I’m fascinated by the fact that King Artaxerxes commissioned both Ezra and Nehemiah to relocate from Babylon and Susa, major cities in the Persian Empire, to go to broken down Jerusalem in Judah, about 850 miles away! It was not banishment from the palace. Oh no! The king trusted both men. The king knew Nehemiah and Ezra sought to honor God with every aspect of their lives. The king knew the region of Judah needed God honoring leadership more than anything!
Both men accomplished their enormous leadership tasks by first making sure their souls were clean and right before God, always making every effort to honor God in their lives before they engaged the tasks in their leadership work! Both men faced every challenge, every problem with God’s truth, God’s moral code, and God’s laws as they were led by the Spirit of God.
By the time both men neared the end of their lives Jerusalem was a city flourishing with new growth and vitality, functioning with God honoring organization, led by God honoring people. For this season of time in Israel’s history, all schemes of the dark kingdom were confronted and repelled, and God was greatly honored and glorified in Jerusalem life.
While Isaiah had brought his messages from God for Israel nearly 200 years before, these words were greatly fulfilled through Nehemiah and Ezra and those who followed their lead: “They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of His splendor. They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations…Their descendants will be known among the nations…all who see them will acknowledge that they are a people the LORD has blessed.” (Isaiah 61:3b,4,9)
As you and I look at our cities and the opportunities God gives you and me to make a difference in our cities in our day, can we see Nehemiah and Ezra as great role models for us?
Nehemiah and Ezra both grew old and died serving God and King Artaxerxes in Jerusalem, as far as we know. God sent one final prophet to Jerusalem about that time; Malachi and his four chapters of God’s messages close out the Old Testament. The white page between the Old and New Testament in your Bible represent about 400 years of time, from the days of Nehemiah, Ezra and Malachi to the time God sent the angel Gabriel to this very same Jerusalem for an encounter with a priest named Zechariah, who was praying in the Temple in Jerusalem. That encounter is found in Luke 1 and Gabriel’s message to Zechariah opens the New Testament and predicts the coming of Jesus, God the Son, the Savior of the world!
This weekend let’s thank God for His constant involvement in our world, in every generation, every century, in every part of our world and the record He has given us of His story with the people of Israel from Abraham all the way to our present day!
Let’s thank God for those who’ve gone before us, pointing us to Jesus, helping us understand the privilege we have of being part of God’s story!
Monday we’re going to begin a new journey in “Walking with Jesus” which will give us a grand overview of the “Grand Narrative” of God’s eternal plan & purpose with our world and our human race, including you and me! So, here’s a great worship song of perspective as we conclude our walk with Nehemiah and Ezra, and I’ll see you right back here on Monday . . .
Today’s Scripture: Nehemiah 13.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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