Nehemiah Helps the Poor
Nehemiah 5:13-19
February 27, 2022
In our text for today, Nehemiah is working hard to make sure that the people of
Jerusalem do what they said they would do. Nehemiah had made a commitment to the
Lord, and he had kept his commitment. He sacrificially served God and the people of
Jerusalem. D.L. Moody said, “Lighthouses blow no horns, they only shine.” That is what
Nehemiah was doing. He was being a shining example of a leader who set aside his
personal gain in order to help these struggling Jews rebuild Jerusalem and get their own
lives back on the right track. Nehemiah used his position to help build people. He
did not use the people to build his position or his little private empire. It would be
hard to not notice what is happening to our own elected officials. It seems to me that
time after time, politician after politician goes to Washington, DC with average wealth,
but returns home extremely wealthy. Nehemiah was not like that. He sacrificed to
serve the people.
This passage is a story about a people in need and a leader who was willing to give up
normal opportunities that would have benefited him in order to help the people who
were struggling. The leaders before Nehemiah had added extra taxes and more
burdens to the people in order make their own lives better. The results of their
nefarious activity made matters worse for the people and for the city. Nehemiah
came to town to change things. He was given the opportunity to lead, and he led
with great honor. Someone said, “Leaders are people who accept more of the
blame and less of the credit.” This is certainly not teaching that leaders should not
be paid. That would be a wrong teaching according to the Bible. Remember, these
people were having trouble feeding their families. These were desperate times that
called for desperate measures. Nehemiah measured up by stepping up and
sacrificing to help the poor people in Jerusalem obey God. His action reminds us of
our Loving Heavenly Father who gives everything needed so that His children
can have value and meaning in this life. The love of God is amazing. In an old
hymn by Frederick Martin Lehman these words are in the third verse:
Could we with ink the ocean fill,
And were the skies of parchment made;
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade;
To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry;
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.
Nehemiah understood the love of God, and he loved others like God loved him.
After having a crucial conversation with some Jewish tax officials, here is what
Nehemiah wrote:
13 I shook out the folds of my robe and said, “If you fail to keep your promise,
may God shake you like this from your homes and from your property!”
The whole assembly responded, “Amen,” and they praised the LORD. And the
people did as they had promised.
14 ¶ For the entire twelve years that I was governor of Judah — from the
twentieth year to the thirty-second year of the reign of King Artaxerxes
— neither I nor my officials drew on our official food allowance.
15 The former governors, in contrast, had laid heavy burdens on the people,
demanding a daily ration of food and wine, besides forty pieces of silver. Even
their assistants took advantage of the people. But because I feared God, I did
not act that way.
16 I also devoted myself to working on the wall and refused to acquire any
land. And I required all my servants to spend time working on the wall.
17 I asked for nothing, even though I regularly fed 150 Jewish officials at my
table, besides all the visitors from other lands!
18 The provisions I paid for each day included one ox, six choice sheep or
goats, and a large number of poultry. And every ten days we needed a large
supply of all kinds of wine. Yet I refused to claim the governor’s food allowance
because the people already carried a heavy burden.
19 Remember, O my God, all that I have done for these people, and bless me
for it.
- How did Nehemiah try to insure that the officials would keep their promise? (5:13) 13
I shook out the folds of my robe and said, “If you fail to keep your promise,
may God shake you like this from your homes and from your property!” The
whole assembly responded, “Amen,” and they praised the LORD. And the
people did as they had promised.
To understand what Nehemiah did and put in a more modern context, this would be like
someone standing in front of us and turning their pockets inside out. The point he
was making was that his prayer to God for them was for them to keep their
commitment to God. He is praying that failure to keep their promise to the Lord would
result in the Lord removing His blessings. - In what ways was Nehemiah different from other officials? What prevented Nehemiah
from acting the same way the other officials did? (5:14-15)
14 ¶ For the entire twelve years that I was governor of Judah — from the
twentieth year to the thirty-second year of the reign of King Artaxerxes
— neither I nor my officials drew on our official food allowance.
15 The former governors, in contrast, had laid heavy burdens on the people,
demanding a daily ration of food and wine, besides forty pieces of silver. Even
their assistants took advantage of the people. But because I feared God, I did
not act that way.
Nehemiah was trying to relieve the suffering of the poor saints in Jerusalem. He was
not at the top of his own priority list. His first concern was to rebuild the city of
Jerusalem and the people of Judah. They had been oppressed by their former
governmental leaders who had over-taxed them and made their burdens heavy.
Nehemiah did not follow the pattern of the previous leaders because he feared God. He
understood clearly that God would not be pleased with him failing to help the citizens of
Jerusalem.
- In what way is Nehemiah a role model for us today? How were his actions like God’s
love for us?
16 I also devoted myself to working on the wall and refused to acquire any
land. And I required all my servants to spend time working on the wall.
17 I asked for nothing, even though I regularly fed 150 Jewish officials at my
table, besides all the visitors from other lands!
Nehemiah was devoted to the work on the wall. He worked on it. He required his
servants to work on the wall. Not only did he refuse his own allotment of food, he fed a
lot of folks at his own expense. Nehemiah’s actions remind us about how God expresses
His love toward us. He gave His one and only son to sacrifice for us. God’s focus seems
to be on trying to bless and care for His children, if they will cooperate. He wants what is best for
us and is willing to go to great lengths to provide for us. - What did Nehemiah want in return for his generosity to the Israelites? (5:19) 19
Remember, O my God, all that I have done for these people, and bless me for it.
All Nehemiah wanted was whatever God wanted to give him. He trusted God to settle
all accounts fairly or generously. His focus was on the work. He knew he could trust
God to take care of him. Our thoughts should never be on what we will get out of
serving the Lord. Our rewards are not to be our focus. We are to be well satisfied with
God’s provision. - What does it mean to be devoted to the work God has given us as Nehemiah was?
Serving the Lord is to be our top priority. It comes before everything else in life.
Sometimes we struggle with that because we may not understand what serving the Lord
looks like. That does not necessarily mean that we are to put every activity that some
church leader dreams up as our top priority. Our genuine service to God is our top
priority. Service to God is not about a list of things to do, it is more about the heart
with which we do the things that need to be done. - How could you be more useable in our purpose of making followers of Jesus? I
would like to help reduce unnecessary unstable lives. Teaching people how to
manage what God has given them is a priority for me. Teaching people to manage the
relationships in their life is a big deal to me. - What should we desire in return for the good deeds that we do?
We should desire the fulfillment of God’s sure promises. - If you could do anything in this world for the Lord, and know that He would make you
successful in this work, what would you do?