The Hand of God Was Upon Me - ANB W3, D6 - 3.23.13

Saturday, March 23                                                 The Hand of God Was Upon Me

Nehemiah 2.1-8

This episode in the life of Nehemiah should not come as any surprise to us. We have seen as we have studied through Ezra the agency that the kings of Persia played in God’s plan of restoring Israel. Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, let us look at how this develops in the text. As we discussed yesterday, Nehemiah is the cupbearer for King Artaxerxes I of Persia. Here, he is bringing forth the royal grail for the king’s good pleasure, perhaps in the midst of a great feast. We do not know much about the typical demeanor of Nehemiah, but it is clear that his outward action was altered, probably due to the weight of his prayer and petition before God. How could a man seeking to serve God be satisfied in a great feast when the symbol of the presence of God was not in its proper place? Artaxerxes inquires of Nehemiah, and this is his general response.

Notice if you will what Nehemiah does in the presence of the king. He is asked about the meaning of his sadness and what he wanted Artaxerxes to do about it, but before he answers, he prays (v. 4). Nehemiah understood completely who was really in control of the situation and takes time to pray about it. It is safe to say that Nehemiah’s response to Artaxerxes was also his prayer. There is nothing to indicate otherwise, even with the words he uses. Nehemiah appeals to God as king and to himself as servant in the matter. He then asks if God would grant him favor in returning to Jerusalem to rebuild the city. Nehemiah understood the importance of the physical city of Jerusalem in the covenant of God to the people of Israel. He understood its significance and after confessing his sin (ch. 1), he desires to be God’s instrument of work. Just because he verbalized his request to Artaxerxes has no bearing on the condition of his heart or to where his allegiances truly lay. The truth of the matter is that God uses people everyday to accomplish His tasks. Nehemiah’s personhood was no different than that of Artaxerxes, so it would be counterintuitive to think that God would use Nehemiah and not Artaxerxes. At the end of the day, we are all sinners, but God’s tasks are not limited by our sin. God chooses to grant our requests at His discretion based upon the motive of our heart. Nehemiah asked purely out of a desire to see the name of God glorified.

Because of the humility exemplified in Nehemiah’s request, God moved Artaxerxes’ heart to grant favor on Nehemiah. Do not misunderstand this point. Nehemiah was a nobody in the royal court. His job was to drink poison because he was viewed as expendable, so for Artaxerxes to be inclined to hear and grant his request to leave and build a city was an act of God in his own life. Further, Nehemiah makes requests similar to what Cyrus and Darius had granted years before in their provision of materials and money for the work. And notice Nehemiah’s response: “And the king granted them to me because the good hand of my God was upon me” (v.8).

When was the last time that you got on your face before God and requested that He use you? When was the last time that you sought Him with humility, leaving all of your achievements and qualifications behind, and called yourself God’s servant and requested His work? This is the attitude Hopewell needs in our new beginning. We need men and women who lay everything else aside and get on their face before God and request His provision. We need men and women who do not try to accomplish things on their own or by their own merit, but completely yield themselves to God. When we do, we see that God places His hand upon us and guides us. He recognizes that our motives are for His glory and causes more glory to be drawn unto His name. Whether it is a new building, a new method of doing church, or personal revival, God grants us favor when we honestly seek to do His work in His way.

Prayer:

Dear God, please forgive me for my pride. I have not counted myself as one of Your servants, but I have tried to be the foremost in my church, asserting my ways over Yours. Grant me humility that I might do Your work. Please grant me the ability to do as I am called by You.