Nehemiah: Power Reveals the Heart
Pastor Fletcher preaches from Nehemiah 5:1-19 about how we respond to power and injustice. Discussion points: Our response to injustice is rooted in how we know God, the fear of the Lord is our response to experiencing God’s holiness and power, God loves to change our hearts to renew us.
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Scripture reader: [Nehemiah 5:1-19] Now there arose a great outcry of the people and of their wives against their Jewish brothers, for there were those who said, "With our sons and our daughters, we are many, so let us get grain that we may eat and keep alive." There were also those who said, "We are mortgaging our fields, our vineyards, and our houses to get grain because of the famine." And there were those who said, "We have borrowed money for the king's tax on our fields and our vineyards. Now our flesh is as the flesh of our brothers. Our children are as their children, yet we are forcing our sons and our daughters to be slaves, and some of our daughters have already been enslaved, but it is not in our power to help it, for other men have our fields and our vineyards."
I was very angry when I heard their outcry and these words. I took counsel with myself, and I brought charges against the nobles and the officials. I said to them, "You are exacting interest, each from his brother." And I held a great assembly against them and said to them, "We, as far as we are able, have bought back our Jewish brothers who have been sold to the nations. But you even sell your brothers that they may be sold to us." They were silent and could not find a word to say. So I said, "The thing that you are doing is not good. Ought you not to walk in the fear of our God to prevent the taunts of the nations, our enemies. Moreover, I and my brothers and my servants are lending them money and grain. Let us abandon this exacting of interest. Return to them this very day their fields, their vineyards, their olive orchards and their houses, and the percentage of money, grain, wine, and oil that you have been exacting from them."
Then they said, "We will restore these and require nothing from them. We will do as you say." And I called the priests and made them swear to do as they had promised. I also shook out the fold of my garment and said, "So may God shake out every man from his house and from his labor who does not keep this promise. So may he be shaken out and emptied." And all the assembly said Amen and praised the Lord, and the people did as they had promised.
Moreover, from the time that I was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, from the 20th year to the 32nd year of Artaxerxes the king, 12 years, neither I nor my brothers ate the food allowance of the governor. The former governors who were before me laid heavy burdens of the people and took from them for their daily ration 40 shekels of silver. Even their servants lorded it over the people, but I did not do so because of the fear of God. I also persevered in the work on this wall, and we acquired no land, and all my servants were gathered there for the work. Moreover, there were at my table 150 men, Jews and officials, besides those who came to us from the nations that were around us. Now what was prepared at my expense for each day was one ox and six choice sheep and birds, and every 10 days all kinds of wine in abundance. Yet for all this, I did not demand the food allowance of the governor because the service was too heavy on this people. Remember my good, oh my God, all that I have done for this people.
This is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
Preacher: I don't know who remembers the nineties classic starring Jim Carrey, The Mask. I have no idea if this movie is appropriate, at all whatsoever. I feel like it's probably fallen in lots of faux pas, but, I remember watching it as a child and I loved the movie because who didn't love Jim Carrey in the 90s. And, what I remember about the movie is that there was this really comic trope that happened in the movie, which was this idea that when people accumulate power, they really, their most core being of who they are gets magnified. And so with the mask, when Jim Carrey would put on the mask, he would become the zaniest creation known to man, because that is who is at core, who Jim Carrey actually is. But when bad guy would put on the mask, he would become all muscly and mean and like a mafia boss and become overpowerful and all this. It's the same trope that you see in the, Disney classic Aladdin, you know, where Aladdin finds the lamp and he's kind of a good guy, you know, at the end he lets the genie go, sorry, spoilers, and, but like when the evil Jaafar gets the lamp, he becomes very powerful and mean.
And, you know, we're all familiar with this line that was, was spoken in the eighties by Lord something when he said Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts. That's right. But what if the reality was a little bit more unsettling than that. What if the reality is that power might not just corrupt, but it might reveal the true nature of what is lying in your heart. I think that's what we see when we come to Nehemiah chapter 5, is that we see how different people use power and wealth. And how it reflects what is actually going on at their most foundational level.
Everyone imagines that if they had power and wealth, they would use it for good. They wouldn't use it to exploit others, but they would use it to help. But how do you know? I mean, how do you really know what would happen if great power or great wealth was put into your hands? How do you know you wouldn't use it for selfish or evil purposes? What sets apart the people who use their wealth and power to serve others versus those who use it to serve themselves? That's at the heart of Nehemiah chapter 5. So let's look at the story, Nehemiah chapter 5. I'm gonna start in verse 1, and I'm going to walk through the story and help you understand what we just read together a moment ago.
Verse 1. It says now there arose a great outcry of the people and of their wives against their Jewish brothers. Now the people of God, what have they been doing? They've been building the wall for a few months now, and they've been working on it. And what Nehemiah has actually demanded is that everyone works on the walls. And so all the farms have been short-staffed. Not only are they working on the walls, but they have to. Guard the walls at the same time. The farms are short-staffed, and so there's low food, and to compound that problem, there's a famine in the land also. And so the people are hungry, resources are running thin, and so a great outcry of the people and of their wives against who but their Jewish brothers. Because they've hit financial hard times.
And so three different things have, have had to happen because they've hit these financial hard times. First thing that they started doing whenever they reached these financial hard times is they started mortgaging their fields. And so that means that things are really desperate. They couldn't afford to eat, they couldn't afford to, to live their life. They mortgaged their fields, their vineyards, and their houses.
Verse 3, there were also those who said, we are mortgaging our fields, our vineyards, and our houses to get grain because of the famine. The last ditch effort. They're really putting their life out there. I think when I hit rock bottom, I may have mortgaged my guitar for a moment, but I don't think I've ever mortgaged an actual piece of property such as this. Second thing that they're doing after they're mortgaging their fields is they're borrowing money. Not just to eat, but to pay their taxes. They're borrowing money, and now they're stuck with these high interest rates, student loans, say amen if you've got those. Yeah, I said that all wrong. And if you got a, if you got the student loans, you might say amen. But anyways, and there, and there were those who said, we have borrowed money for the king's tax on our fields and of the vineyards. And so they're, they're paying their taxes with borrowed money. That's not a good idea.
And what happens next is absolutely crazy, because what happens when people get truly desperate, when they've sold everything they have and they've borrowed against everything else that they have, what do they do? It's beyond imaginable to me, but they started selling their children into slavery. And not to the outside world, but to the Jewish brothers and sisters. And so verse 5, now our flesh is as the flesh of our brothers, our children are as their children, yet we are forcing our sons and our daughters to be slaves, and some of our daughters have already been enslaved, but it is not in our power to help it, for other men have our fields and our vineyards. What can mark desperation more than putting your own children into slavery? And what's the worst part of all of this is that it's not some foreign nation that is oppressing the, the brothers and sisters in Jerusalem, but it is their own Jewish brothers and sisters, their own nobles and officials that are using the power and wealth that they have to serve themselves. They've set up a financial system where the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.
Now, how does Nehemiah respond? This outcry comes to Nehemiah in verse 6, he says, I was very angry when I heard their outcry and these words. So I took counsel with myself. Now this verse has been a little convicting for me this week, and it's because just this idea that Nehemiah saw injustices and he felt angry. And I have to confess that I often lack feelings when I see injustices around me. Some of you have a lot of feelings about injustices. I feel like all my feeling sensors have been like overstimulated by just way too much input. And so, because I see everything around the world's full of oppression and injustice, sometimes I just don't feel anything about those things. And this was convicting again. I, I had to pray and say, Lord, help me to feel again. Help me to feel compassion. And anger when people are being taken advantage of.
Nehemiah saw these injustices, and he was not numb to the suffering. So what did he do? Did he go and, and cause a big scene? Well, not immediately. First it says, he took counsel with himself. What does it mean to take counsel with yourself? It means he reflected. It means he thought about it. It means he sat down, and he meditated on the problems that the people were having. And he really wanted to get to the heart of it. And I think that as Nehemiah took counsel with himself, I think he did get to the heart of it. I think he realized what was going on. His question that he was asking was this, how can our own people treat one another like this? I would expect it from someone else, but how can our people do this to one another?
Nehemiah realizes that there is something far deeper at play than just a systematic issue that needs a better policy. The people, they do have a systematic issue, but it's a systemic issue that is rooted in a heart issue. It's not just a policy problem, it is a people problem. This whole chapter hinges on this idea. The fear of the Lord. Whole chapter hinges on who people are based upon if they fear the Lord or if they don't fear the Lord. The nobles and officials, they lacked fear of the Lord.
And so after Nehemiah takes counsel with himself, he gathers all the nobles and officials together, and he confronts them, and he says, verse 9, so I said, the thing that you are doing is not good. Sometimes you just need someone to look you in the eyes and be like, that's bad. Ought you not to walk in the fear of our God to prevent the taunts of the nations, our enemies? He says, the way you are walking does not reflect someone who knows God. And he calls them to repentance, and here's the amazing part of this passage, they repent. They say, we'll do it. OK, we'll stop it. He, he doesn't just call them to stop doing the unjust practices. He actually calls them to give back the fields. He calls them to give back the children, to give back the money, to stop taking advantage of their power and their wealth, to better themselves, and instead use it to better the society. That's what he calls them to do. And so they do it, they follow what he has to say. The nobles and the officials, they follow.
Now, now, here's the second half of the passage. And the second half of the passage, if you look in your Bible, you should have a label starting in verse 14 that says, that it's a break. It's almost a new story, but it's not a new story whatsoever. It's the counterpart to the first story. And this part is labeled in your Bibles as Nehemiah's generosity. Nehemiah's generosity. After Nehemiah takes takes care of the nobles and officials, we get this example of what it looks like for someone who does have wealth, who does have power, but who also has the fear of the Lord. And we get this example, verse 15, Nehemiah is discussing the way that he lives his life, and it says this, the former governors who were before me laid heavy burdens on the people and took from them for their daily ration, 40 shekels of silver. That's a tax. They were taxing. The, his, the former governors. Now Nehemiah is a new governor, and even their servants lorded it over the people. But I did not do so. Why? Because of the fear of the Lord.
Nehemiah is the assigned governor of Jerusalem. He had every right to take a tax. In fact, that every governor would do that. They would take a tax. You would get taxed back then and today, at national level, state level, you know, area level and local level. And Nehemiah, he is the state level leader, and yet he doesn't take his tax. Instead, he lives a very generous life. It says that he pays for 150 men to sit at his table. That means he's paying them out of his own pocket. That they're sitting in the, in his banquet hall, he's giving feasts for them, he's paying for them. He's a very wealthy man, but he's not taking advantage of his wealth to just become more wealthy. He wants what's best for the, the society. And beyond that, it says that he's generous even with foreigners. As they come, he gives them food, he cares for them, he protects them.
And so when you look at this passage, you have a dichotomy. You have the nobles and officials who use their wealth and their power. To gain for themselves. And you have Nehemiah, who uses his wealth and and power. To sacrifice and to serve others. You have the nobles and officials who lack the fear of the Lord. You have Nehemiah, who fears the Lord. And so this whole passage, as you see, it hinges on the idea of the fear of the Lord. And so what is it? What is it? I mean, the, the first reading of Fear of the Lord, if you hear that, it feels like you're afraid that God is gonna get you. That if I do the wrong thing, I fear God, and so I'm gonna do the right thing.
But friends, that is not what the Bible's talking about, when it's talking about the fear of the Lord. To have the fear of the Lord is not the same thing as to be afraid of God. So many misunderstandings about who God is and what the Old Testament is about is right from this. It's that we don't understand what it means to fear the Lord. A book I'll recommend, this is from one of my favorite authors named Michael Reeves. If you can, if you can tell, it looks like Gentle and Lowly, it's from the same series as Gentle and Lowly, which means it might have some of the same juju as Gentle and Lowly does. that's good juju, as I would say. I love Gentle and Lowly. We give it out. We have a million copies at the office. I'd love to give you one if you're ever there, but this one's called Rejoice and Tremble: The Surprising Good News of the Fear of the Lord. Michael Reeves also authored Delighting in the Trinity, which is also one of my favorite books.
And so this one kinda bridges the gap. It's, it's one of the top books I would recommend. I don't hold up books very often, and, and recommend them to you, but this is one that I would recommend to you. And he really dives deep into what it means to have a fear of the Lord. According to Reeves. The fear of the Lord Is the response of someone who sees God. And all of his holiness, his glory, his power, his omnipotence, his omniscience, and also his mercy, his kindness, and his love. That is what it means to fear the Lord, that you see him as he is, and it leaves you weak at the knees. It gives you a trembling fear because you have encountered true divinity. Reeves defines the fear of the Lord as this, the right response to God's full orbed revelation of Himself and all of his grace and glory. Professor John Murray says that the fear of God is the soul of godliness. You don't obey God because you're afraid of what he might do. The fear of the Lord means that you've experienced who God is, that you've encountered the God who is great and mighty, and you've seen that He is kind as well, and merciful and loving, and you draw near to Him and being near to that God gives you the same desires to be merciful and kind and loving.
Look, I'll just give you one example. I could do this all day with different examples from the Old Testament. I had to narrow it down. One example of how it's not about being afraid of God. Psalm 112:1. Praise the Lord. Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in his commandments. Now, how are you gonna delight in the commandments of a God who you are terrified of? You don't delight in commandments of people that you're terrified of. The fear of the Lord means that it's someone who understands and has encountered who God truly is. And it is a joy. It is a delight, it is a pleasure to obey his commandments, because we know that they are for our good. And we know that he loves us.
What sets Nehemiah apart from the nobles and officials? The nobles and officials have money and power, so does Nehemiah have a lot of money and power. It's not the power that corrupts between these two, but the power and wealth reveal what is at the foundational level of their hearts. For Nehemiah, the foundational level of his heart was the fear of the Lord. And for the nobles and officials, the foundational level of their heart was fear of themselves. Worship of themselves, not worship of God. A lack of fear of the Lord.
Now, it would not be good enough for me to simply say, now, church, go be good people. Don't be like the officials and the, and the nobles, but be like Nehemiah. Be generous and kind. That, that wouldn't work. We all know we're supposed to be nice and generous. That's codified into every fable, every story that we've ever seen. That you're supposed to be a nice person. We know that. But yet, even though every person knows that deep down in their heart, that they're supposed to be nice and generous and kind, because we're made in the image of God, it's wired into who we are. We know that yet. Oppression continues. Injustice is rampant. The world is full of suffering at the hands of other people.
And why? And here's why. Because behavior, it doesn't flow from what we, from the mind, from what we know is right and wrong. It flows from the heart. And the heart is self-bent. This is at the heart of, of sin. It's at the very nature of what it means to be a sinful person. And God is always self-giving, but sin is our Bad reflection of God that is self-bent, which means that we act for selfish purposes. Sin is not just doing the wrong things. Sin is acting in only my own benefit. It's counter to who God is and what He has done for us. Because of the brokenness of the world and the presence of sin, we're all Ephesians 2, carrying out the desires of the flesh. We're driven by a self-interest. We're naturally selfish people. And Nehemiah is telling us that if you want to be a truly good person, it's not good enough just to change your outside. You have to be remade from the foundational level out. That you have, you can't just use your power and wealth differently, but you actually have to be changed, which is another way of saying that you need to be a person who has been changed from the inside out by a real encounter with a real God. If you have a heart that has encountered an all powerful God, who has seen that he is completely self-giving, you will be left changed by who that God is. It is my only hope. It is my only hope.
When I am walking around my house feeling impatient because I have 3 children, and that's chaos, and my only hope of being a nice person is that I've encountered God enough that I've drawn near to Him. It's not good enough for these kids who live with me, for me to be fake nice with them. I actually have to be remade by the gospel, and that's not just a one-time thing. I have to continually go to God and let him remake me.
Here Nehemiah again points us forward toward Jesus. As we've seen throughout this whole book, that this book's actually about Jesus, Nehemiah points us forward so beautifully. Nehemiah refused to take advantage of his position as governor, to demand to be lifted high, but instead he made himself a servant. He paid for his people to eat out of his own pocket. And he opened up his table to even those outside of the family of Israel. Jesus likewise refused to regard his equality with God as something to be exploited for his own advantage. Instead, he humbled himself. And took the form of a servant. He chose to humble himself to the point of the cross. And so let me ask you, what happens when the most powerful person in all of cre in all of the universe, beyond creation, when the most powerful person. Enters into creation. What does it look like? Would we all bow before him because of all of his power and his wealth? But we will. But the first time, we killed him because he did not come to wield his power for self benefit, that is not the way that our God is wired. And instead he came to wield his power in self sacrifice. Giving up his life for you and me, so that we might enjoy life with him in the Trinity for eternity to come. So that we might enjoy being drawn near to the kindness and loving of who our God is, and as we meet this God, we're changed from the inside out.
Jesus says that if you want to be great, if you want true power, if you want true wealth, what do you do? You have to become the slave of all. Listen to what the words of Jesus, which sound a lot like Nehemiah 5. You could almost take this as a summary of Nehemiah 5. Jesus, Mark chapter 10. Verse 42, and Jesus called them to him and said to them, you know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them. I mean, that's exactly what's happening in Nehemiah 5, right? And they're great ones exercise authority over them. Wealth and power. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant. And whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.
True wealth, true power. It's not found in using people to become greater. It's found in becoming the servant of all. That's what Jesus is teaching us. And so, as we conclude here, let me just give you a little bit of application, a few questions to ask yourself, because it's, it's too late if you get the power and wealth, and then the nature of your heart's exposed. It's not actually too late, you can still change, but why wait? Why don't you just go ahead. And see what's happening in your own heart first. Does your life reflect the self-giving love that we found in the Gospel?
Two questions, two places that reveal this, OK? Your power and your, your finances, your power and your wealth, how do you wield it? First, how, how you treat, how do you treat people with less power than you? That reflects who you are. Who has less power than you? That could be a variety of different answers. It could be people at work, your employees, your students, or people farther down the, the career ladder than what you are. Many of us, I've talked with you, I know you, I know the type of professions you're in. Academia is notorious for this, but so is everything else. Our professions are cutthroat. There is a trail of bodies that you've climbed over to get where you are, oftentimes. And I'm telling you, friends, as followers of Christ, you don't have to climb people to climb the career ladder. Don't do it, just refuse, you can't. That's not the way to greatness. It might be the way to a promotion, it's not the way to true greatness. Don't do it. You cannot participate in that.
At home, who has less power than you? A roommate, siblings, your children, aging parents, maybe even your own spouse. How do you use that power? Do you wield it for self-interest? My kids are gonna be, they, we should not let them listen to the sermon. They're gonna be like, no more chores, no more chores, and we have to tell them that's for your good, OK? And a little bit of mine,. How do you wield the power? Socially, the person who's awkward, who's unpopular. Or maybe, maybe the person who has less education than you, maybe the person who has a less good job than you, in a different field. How do you wield that power? Do you use it to lift them up? Or do you use it to make yourself feel a little bit better about where you are? How you treat the people with less power in your life reflects the true nature of your heart. It's a scary question.
Second, how you use your money reflects the true nature of your heart also. Nehemiah's generosity was fueled by understanding and experience with God. Do you have a generosity that's fueled by God? Some questions for you to ponder with your finances. Do you have a posture of generosity first? Do you give out of what the Lord's given you, or only after you funded everything you want? Are you generous to the church, to the poor, to friends? But not from the heart. Maybe you give simply because it's the right thing to do. Do you have enough margin? That you could help someone when an unexpected need arrives? Or are you spending as fast as it comes in? Maybe you can ask yourself, am I willing to spend money on people who can't give me anything back? Or does my lifestyle continually expand to consume whatever income I have?
If you find yourself lacking in any of those categories, as I do as well, know this, that Jesus loves to take people. Who have a selfish heart, and to transform them. And to people who are generous with their power and their wealth. He loves to do that. Case in point. Last story before we conclude here is, the best example of this is, is, is Zacchaeus. Zacchaeus was a wee little man. And Thank you. Let's do it again, let's do it again. Zacchaeus was a wee little man and. Yeah, thank you.
Once he meets Jesus, something changes in his heart. All Jesus says to him in the passage, he sees Zacchaeus up in that sycamore tree, and he says, Zacchaeus, tonight I'm going to your house, which is such a great kid story, but. Zacchaeus, he has Jesus into his home, and it changes something. But Luke chapter 19. He's Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, behold, Lord. The half of my goods I give to the poor, and if I've defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it four-fold. You see, Zacchaeus was a tax collector. He was in the same category as the nobles and the officials, taking advantage of other people. And here he is, he's got Jesus, and he's saying, if I've defrauded anyone, I'll restore it four-fold. They're gonna be a rich person. And Jesus said to him, today salvation has come into this house, since he also is the son of Abraham. For the son of man came to seek and to save the lost.
This is the heart of Christianity. It's all about meeting a God who gave up his life for you. He was generous with you, he wants to serve you, and you can experience his love. And he will change your heart so that you can reflect the love of Jesus. And so as we close, we're going to take a moment. To confess our sins to the Lord. And to be reminded of the good news of the gospel. We're gonna take a moment to consult with ourselves. I'm just gonna give you a moment of silence and then I'll lead us in a prayer that'll be on the screen where you speak the underlined portions with me. Let's pray and ask the Lord to reveal the unchecked parts of selfishness that continue to live and help us to live in accordance with what He has given to us. Would you pray with me?
Gracious God, we confess that we are often more concerned with ourselves than with others. You have given us power, money, influence, opportunities to serve, but we often use what we have for our own comfort, success, and security. We confess that we often put ourselves first. We can hold tightly to what you've given us. We often ignore the needs of others. Forgive us for our selfishness. Speak with me, forgive us for failing to fear you. Forgive us for loving your gifts more than we love you. Amen.
Church, hear the good news from Philippians chapter 2. Of who God is and how we are to be. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, it is yours in Christ Jesus. Who though he was emptied, and though he was in the form of God, he did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking the form of a servant. Being born in the likeness of men and being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore, God was high has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name. So the name of Jesus, every knee should bow in heaven and on earth, and under the earth. And every tongue confessed that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.
If you are in Christ this morning, know that your sins have been forgiven. You are loved by the one who gave himself. So receive his grace and rest in his love church and enjoy the freedom that comes with serving others. In just a moment, we're going to participate in a sacred meal. It reminds us that we're not judged upon what we've done, but what Christ has done for us. On the night that he was betrayed, he took a loaf of bread and he tore it, and he said, this is my body broken for you. And he took a cup and he said, this is my blood shed for you. Do this in remembrance of me. And so each week as a church, we come together to celebrate the Lord's meal, the Lord's supper, communion, Eucharist, whatever you might call it. The way that we, if you are a believer here this morning, we encourage you to come and receive and be reminded of what the Lord has done. Repent of your sins and come and receive what he has done for you. So, if you would, as we prepare our hearts to come to the Lord's table, would you stand, if you are able.
Father, as we come to this meal, we pray that you would remind us that you are enough for us. That we would never be able to sacrifice as you have, but God, show us your great sacrifice, show us your great love, help us to have a fear of the Lord, so that our lives might reflect the life of Christ on a deeper, more pro more profound level. God, as we come here, we pray for anyone who needs to make great changes in their lives. God, would you give them courage to do that? Would you give those courage to make small changes in their lives? To become a little less self-centered and a little more God-centered. We ask all of this in Christ's name, Amen.