Rev. Seth Yi
Newberry Reformed Presbyterian Church Sermons
(9/8/24) Nehemiah 5:14-19 – God-Fearing Servant Leadership
Our Scripture reading taken from Nehemiah chapter 5 begins at verse 14 to verse 19. You can follow along in the pew Bibles on page 401 as well as in the large print 471. Let us give heed to the reading of God's holy word. 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 art exerts 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 on the people and took from them for their daily rations, forty shekels of silver. Even their servants loarded 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 ten days all, if for this, I did not demand the food allowance of the governor because the service was too heavy on this people. However, for my good, oh my God, all that I have done for this people. Here in the reading of God's holy word, the grass withers and the flowers fade, but the Word of our God endures forever. Amen. So we can surmise pretty readily that what we have in these verses at the end of chapter five clearly took place, at least in terms of his description, far beyond what we read and what we looked at last week in the first thirteen verses. That was a very particular time period as we noted when there was a great knee that arose even during the time when the construction of the wall was taking place. But this seems to be more of a reflection that Nehemiah has taken after all has been done and even probably after his service as governor of Judah. We know, for example, that he had actually had a second stint of governorship that he mentions later on in chapter 13. And so this is something of a memoir that Nehemiah writes down in terms of his service while he was governor for over 13 years if we include what's here and that other stint not knowing exactly how something of his leadership, how he sought to be God's man for God's people at a very particular time. And in particular in this passage, we see his contrast to the other governors. We're not told exactly who, there may be some reference to that in the extra biblical text. But Nehemiah goes to great lengths to make a clear distinction as to how he ruled versus those who ruled before him. And in particular to the effect and how he sought to help the people, God especially, with all the burdens that they were having to bear during that time. And it goes to show us how Nehemiah was not only a man in a time of crisis who was gifted in leadership, who had great foresight, wisdom clearly from the Lord, but also a man who was characterized in this way, one who was generous, who was compassionate, who was thoughtful about those people whom God had appointed for him to lead. And so this passage, at the first reading you may think it almost sounds boastful on the part of Nehemiah. He's going on about how good and gracious he was to his people, and even ending this passage by saying, "Remember, me, O God, in terms of all the good works that I have done." And that may be a bit unusual for us to read, especially knowing the kind of person Nehemiah was, who didn't seek to bring accolades upon himself. And yet what we have to always remember of course about Scripture, the Holy Scripture, is that the Spirit of God is ultimately the author. And whatever is recorded, whatever is given to us in the Scriptures are for our instruction. Now this may not be as obvious, but there are many passages throughout Scripture. And in fact, if you read even the apostle Paul, you'll find passages where he goes on to describe not only the sufferings that he endured at the hands of those who sought to take his life, but even some of his accolades or his accomplishments that the Lord had done through him. And it's not again there simply to lift up a man, but it's given to us to realize that the Lord works through people. Even though God can clearly do things supernaturally, he doesn't need us, he doesn't need a single man, but he ordinarily, in his operations here on the earth, uses willing servants. You and me and how we give ourselves to the purposes of God, and Nehemiah is no different. We have seen time and time again his close walk with the Lord, how he committed his life and prayer before he acted. And it has been evident that the Lord has honored Nehemiah and his subjection to God's presence and his power in his life. And ultimately, and I would say this is true of the Bible overall, if there is any good, if there is any virtue that you see in any individual, whether it be David or even Samson, it is all a pointer, of course, to Christ. Humans are flawed. They have as many vices as virtue at times in Scripture, but one thing that is absolutely certain that we know of is that in Christ we see the perfect second Adam. We see the champion that God has appointed and the one who does all things well. And so if there is any good that we can take from Nehemiah and his character, it is ultimately as Paul even says, "Follow me as I follow Christ." And that is true for anybody else in our life. If you see anything worth modeling or imitating, it is all directed towards the person and work of Christ. And this is clearly what we find here with Nehemiah. It is a reminder to us of what the Lord did in a servant who gave himself wholly to the work of the Lord. And he contrasts, as I said, his governance and his rule in comparison to those who followed him. We find in these first few verses the first indication explicitly that he was the governor who had been appointed by Artaxerxes. He had served, at least again, in his first term, 12 years, and later on he will serve another unknown period of time. But during that service he makes note of the fact that he did not, along with those who would come along with him, that is probably what he means by my brother. It is not literally, I don't think meaning in terms of physical brother, but those who were close to him who had served with him in Sousa and who had made the voyage to Jerusalem to Judah. He says, "Neither I nor my brothers ate the food allowance of the governor." So clearly this was something that Nehemiah as the governor and those who were with him had right to do. It was expected that in a sense the people would be, quote, "tax" to provide for the service of the government official of the kingdom that had been established by Artaxerxes. And yet, not just during that moment of crisis that we looked at in verses 1 through 13, but all throughout Nehemiah's service he did not take advantage of what was expected. He didn't claim the rights that would have been easily expected of those who had ruled. And so we find here, again, a principle of biblical leadership. And that is when God calls men to leave, it is not primarily about privilege and knowing that with it comes certain authorities that are given, but it is about sacrifice. Servant leadership is not simply taking advantage of those who are under one's rule, but it is seeking to build up those whom God has assigned to that task. And of course, there's no better example, again, as I've already mentioned, than of Jesus, Jesus who came leaving behind every privilege beyond our imagination. There's no human person of privilege who can compare themselves to what Jesus forsook in coming and simply taking upon humanity. That is a level of dissension and humiliation that none of us, no man, could ever understand. And yet it wasn't just there that Jesus stopped. It wasn't just becoming man where Jesus showed his willingness to be humbled and to serve. But rather, he said very clearly, I came to serve and not to be served and ultimately to give his life as a ransom for many. Jesus knew that his service wouldn't just be not taking the privileges that were granted to him as God, but to the point of suffering an unjust death, a toning death on our behalf. And even as Jesus was prepared to undergo that suffering, you recall on the night, prior to his betrayal, he washed his disciples' feet where no one else in that room was willing to stoop so low. And Jesus said to them, "For I have given you an example that you also should do just as I have done to you." Now, of course, Jesus was talking specifically in that moment to his disciples, but I think the principle applies broadly as well for anyone who would seek to be a leader of God's people. It is a place of lowering oneself, humbling oneself by the power and the grace of God that through such leadership they may build and lift others up. And so, Nehemiah willingly abstained from this position and power for personal advantage that he might be used of the Lord for something far greater and in particular to help those who are in need. So there's an interesting principle here that sometimes we, I think as Christians and especially as Americans, struggle with, and that is the whole notion of rights. We have certain inalienable rights, rightly so based upon the Constitution, and we have rights to some degree as believers that are given to us in the Holy Scriptures. How do we understand our rights in relationship to service? Paul gives us some principles, I think, that our health is not directly related, but I think it does teach us about this whole notion of rights that sometimes we grab onto so tightly. He writes several times, for example, in 1 Corinthians chapter 6, all things are lawful for me. Now, here Paul is talking about his relationship to the Old Testament law, so it's not an exact parallel, but I think he does teach us an overarching principle, but not all things are helpful. So there's some key words he uses about how we are to relate to rights or privileges that we may hold. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be dominated by anything. And then later on in chapter 10 of 1 Corinthians he also writes, all things are lawful, but not all things are helpful. All things are lawful, but not all things build up. So over those several verses he uses the notion of what is lawful, but he counters it with what? The first one is helpful. How does it help to hold onto our rights or to certain parts of the law? Or rather, will it cause you to be somehow dominated? Do you be ruled in such a way that it limits your service as well as building up? That obviously is a view to others. How can your observance or your obligation to hold onto your rights, how will that build up others within the body of Christ and Paul is, of course, talking here within the context, the larger context of the people of God. This is not an overarching principle that relates to civil authorities and matters of that, but in the body of Christ are we willing to give up or to refrain from possessing or acting upon, quote, our rights, restraints, the benefit or limits what others within the body might be able to enjoy? And I think Paul is very clear here, especially for those who are in leadership, it's not about rights or what we possess, but it is often about what we give away. Our strength is found in the grace of God who became weak, who became poor for us. And there's no way to see this better than in Nehemiah's life and his governorship while others who had preceded him as it says laid a heavy burden, even with what was lawful, he willingly sacrificed and chose to remove those burdens upon the people of God. And it wasn't just, again, within that fifty-sew number of days where they were heavily involved in building the wall, but this was all throughout his twelve years of service. And the key, of course, as we come to verse 15 is that last little sentence, "But I did not do so." He did not act out of his rights or privilege because why of the fear of God? Nehemiah was a man who not only submitted himself to Art of Xerxes, but more importantly, he yielded his rights and his privileges to the fear of God. Now, this word "fear of God," I don't think means simply this sense of emotional intrapidation coming before holy and righteous God, that is true, but it speaks more to Nehemiah's reverence of God as his ultimate judge. Nehemiah did not submit himself to the whims of Art of Xerxes, or even the judgments of other rulers, or even the people. Nehemiah looked at himself as one who would have to ultimately give an account of all his deeds, of all his thoughts and even his words before God, Almighty. He feared God as the ultimate judge, and everything that he sought to do was under that conscious awareness that his position, his privilege, even as the governor was only to advance God's ultimate end. Now, what we may sometimes forget as we read through Nehemiah is that Nehemiah was not a religious leader per se. I mean, we know that Ezra was a priest, and there were priests, as we've seen already, who were very much involved in the work even of the wall. Nehemiah was a civil authority. He was one even under the plan of God and in the working of God's purposes for his people. He was a civil authority, if you will, and Paul writes very forthrightly even regarding civil authorities. For example, in Romans 13, he says, "There is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God, governors, presidents, congressional officers, everyone who has been given some measure of civic authority derived their position from God, whether they're a believer or not. God's authority is over all." Paul goes on to say in Romans 13, "For he is God's servant for your good." The authorities are ministers of God. Since the last time he thought of a public official, a politician, as a minister of God, with every one of those individuals will have to stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For the appointment and the institution that God had given them, even in their unbelieving service to those who are under their authority. And yet for Nehemai, he was conscious of this appointment that God had given to him, and the authority that was derived from the Lord. And yet his standard by which he would judge men would not be what was codified by Persian or ancient laws, but it would be the righteous standard of God. He honored God's judgment over against all the other dictates of men. But more than that, I think what you find in Nehemai's service to the Lord and ultimately to God's people during this time is that Nehemai valued what was eternal over what was temporal. I think we find this exemplified in, for example, Moses. We read in Hebrews, chapter 11, "By faith Moses, when he was grown up," you remember he grew up under the blessing, the riches of Pharaoh's household, "refused to be called a son of Pharaoh's daughter, why, choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin," Nehemai could have lived luxuriously. He could have had the best foods, the best wines any day he wanted. Rather it goes on to saying Hebrews, "He that is Moses considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt." Fleeting pleasures are indeed esteemed by some, but for those as the author of Hebrews says, "For he was looking to the reward," now some of us may think, "Well, what reward was Moses looking to?" The great pearl and the treasure that Nehemai and Moses both looked to. Yes, they could have enjoyed the things of this war for a time, but to delight in something that was everlasting, and even the rewards of heaven were of much greater worth and value to both Moses and Nehemai and I believe to any leader that God has called to serve his people. Nehemai of fear God is because of his fear of God that he understood what it meant to reflect the character of God. Nehemai wasn't acting out of just some generosity, some philanthropy that was innate in human nature. Because Nehemai of fear God, he knew that God is the champion of justice, of mercy, and of compassion. You can read all throughout the law and see very clearly how God looked after the needy, the poor, the orphan, the widows, that God's people were to demonstrate generosity amongst themselves as a reflection of God's character. And so Nehemai chose not to lord it over those who he had all the rights to do so. It's not by accident, of course, as we read in the earlier chapters, that Nehemai was indeed blessed by the Lord. There's no way Nehemai could have done what he did in this passage if he wasn't wealthy. If he didn't have the blessings that God had brought about in his life, and yet despite that wealth and possession, he used it, again, not for personal gain or comfort, but for the kingdom of God. And he did not allow those things to become an idol, which Paul described earlier, as I said, to be mastered, to become so chained to temporal pleasure. But rather, Nehemai saw that God's purpose in preparing him, in enriching him for this time and for this place was for the advancement of the kingdom of God. We read in verses 16 through 18, just the level of commitment that Nehemai had. It wasn't just a matter of not receiving or taking advantage of what was rightly his, but look what we read in verse 16. I also persevered in the work on this wall. I take that mean literally he had picked up a hammer or whatever other tool, or even a wheelbarrow, and you saw Nehemai working on his portion of the wall as it was the case for everyone else. He was not too good to get his hands dirty. Not only did he lead by his compassion and grace, but he literally led by his example. He did the work himself, and he had his servants, those again, like his brothers that we read earlier, who also participated in the work throughout the process. Nehemai gave as much of his own body and soul and sweat to this project that he expected others to do. Along with that, we read in verse 17, he still had to serve as the governor, and that responsibility entailed being a host and providing for various dignitaries who had come through Jerusalem. He says, "There were at my table 150 men, Jews and officials, to the point where they were being provided for at his table, and who paid for all of that? It wasn't from the taxes, it wasn't from what he was apportioned as the governor, but I suspect he gave that purely out of his own possession and wealth." And we read that clearly. Now what was prepared at my expense for each day was one ox and six toy sheep, and for ten days all kinds of wine and abundance. There's no way of getting around it. Nehemai was indeed blessed from a temporal perspective to be the provided level of food and entertainment that we see him describing, and yet, for all of this, I did not demand the food allowance of the governor because the service was too heavy on this people. Nehemai realized that even after the finishing up of the wall, which again lasted fifty-two or so days, there was still a famine that was taking place throughout the land. Many of these farmers and workers had to leave their work in order to give themselves to the building of the wall, and so they weren't going to recover right away. This was going to be a long, arduous process for people to sort of get back on their feet. And so even if it wasn't for those moment of crisis that we read earlier, Nehemai realized his governorship for all those years would have to require building the people back up to where they could once again be self-sufficient. And so we have a picture of not only compassion that is evident in Nehemai, but truly of grace. Grace is one of those concepts that we find so often in Scripture that we almost lose sight of what it entails. Grace may be free indeed for the one who receives it, but it is never free for the one who gives it. And that is clearly the case of Nehemai here. He was gracious, but it meant that he would have to go without that it would cost him of his own personal wealth and possession. But again, Nehemai demonstrates what it means to reflect the character of God. God's grace is so abundant, and it is so important that at times we are prone and tempted to become presumptuous upon God's grace. God lavishes us in such extraordinary ways that we think that it is what God is expected to do on a daily, in a regular basis. So let me just give you this nugget. If you go to the Lord and prayer regularly and instead of immediately rushing to your wants, your petitions, your desires, do as the psalmist says to number your blessings. Open your prayers by not only acknowledging who God is, but thank Him for all your gifts that you do not, that I do not deserve. And then one of those most precious gifts, of course, is His forgiveness, a price that costs the very death of His Son. And that's the kind of communion that will, I think, guard us from presumption of God's grace, of just how abundantly He gives to us when we do not deserve. And so that we do not cheapen His grace and truly realize just how amazing God's grace is for us. And Nehemiah shows that, does he not? He is a gracious leader. He doesn't use His authority and His position of power to simply take advantage of those who are under Him, but He lovingly sacrifices so that people are willing. And give themselves to His leadership. Because in the end, Nehemiah seeks the betterment of all. Verse 19 is a bit odd because it's, as many scholars think, it's a very summary prayer that Nehemiah may have offered up maybe multiple times throughout this whole process as he was governing, again, over 12 years. And he says in verse 19, "Remember for My good, O My God, all that I have done for this people." Again, you sort of read that like, well, Nehemiah, you're a bit boastful here and even presumptuous to think about all that I have done. But think about Nehemiah's journey that we saw at the very beginning, how the Lord clearly impressed upon Nehemiah that this was a calling, maybe not a religious calling per se, but a calling that entailed leading God's people for a very particular and unique cause. And this was in a sense the remnant of God's people during a very critical period in God's redemptive history. No doubt it would be through this settlement that the Messiah himself would eventually come forth. And so even though Nehemiah had no understanding of the full scope of God's redemptive plan, he undoubtedly, as we've seen through the times of prayer, God's providence and leading that was evident in his life, this wasn't just his work that he was called to do and that even art exerts ease had given his appointment, but this was ultimately the hand of God. And so when Nehemiah says here, remember for my good, it is as much Nehemiah saying to the Lord, you promised, you are the God who keeps covenant. And for the good, not just of Nehemiah himself, but as we see, the good of the people that Nehemiah has been called to lead, Nehemiah's prayer is something of an invocation to God to continue to reveal his covenant faithfulness throughout his life. Now we would have to be very cautious in our prayers in whatever adventure or activity that we are engaged in to be so certain that it is clearly of the Lord. But I think we can say with utmost confidence that that was clearly the case for Nehemiah. The Nehemiah that we see in the chapters preceding this was one who knew that this was directly from the hand of the Lord and the work, the calling that Nehemiah was given by God to accomplish this would require not just his own skills and his abilities to accomplish it, but more importantly, the hand of God. And that's where this word "remember" is so significant, as Aaron pointed out this morning at Sunday school, remembering is not simply a mental activity for God. It is God engaging. It is God working through the promises that he has made. And so as Nehemiah calls out to God, "Remember for my good, oh my God," Nehemiah is saying you, Lord, have promised you, Lord, must be faithful. And I say that with that certainty, God has to be faithful because he can be no other. And it's one of those prayers that we may sometimes almost be fearful to pray. How can we go before God with that level of boldness to say, "Remember for my good, oh my God," but we have none other than the Lord Jesus who not only did everything according to God's will, but who ultimately went to the cross confident that God the Father would keep his promise. And in fact, he would raise him from the dead. And so this fear of God is what we see here in terms of Nehemiah's very prayer that God would not only fulfill, but God would be pleased to use his servant. We may struggle at times to think that God, as Nehemiah calls out here, that he will remember for my good, as if it almost implies some sort of reward that God is going to do something beyond, in a sense, what we see being clearly displayed throughout Nehemiah's life. And that is the favor of God in his leadership in terms of what he has done. At times we almost are fearful to think that God delights to give rewards, that it's sufficient that he has promised his eternal life, that we will enjoy heaven for all of eternity. But as Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 3, God is super abundant in his grace, in that when we serve the Lord faithfully, by his power, by the Holy Spirit, God will also give eternal rewards for his servants. We know that's clearly the case, as Jesus spoke, even to his own disciples about their judgment over cities, and as we saw in Revelation, what that ultimately symbolized, their position of authority, and that will also be true for all of God's servants and his people. If we find ourselves at times challenged and we need a motivation, if you will, to serve the Lord, it's not at all wrong. It almost may seem wrong to think that serving God, looking forward to his heavenly reward, is somehow a less than virtuous motivation. But I would argue, no, God promises it. All you're doing is claiming the promises of God. And if we need something beyond the virtue of mere service to honor the Lord, God holds out for us, eternal blessings. Just as Moses was willing to forego the temple pleasures, he looked forward to the reward. Yes, Christ. But I can't help but think that Moses will have all sorts of other rewards for eternity. This service, those forty years of laboring on behalf of God's people, and for the Lord will have eternal investment and return. There is no such thing, therefore, as Christians, what we may describe as, quote, sacrifice. Whatever we give up, or whatever we're willing to exchange, is really nothing more than an investment. It's what it is. You put aside temporal, limited value for now, and it will return everlasting eternal rewards. That ought to be a motivation. And it is not at all what we may think as being less than Godly, because it is God Himself who gives us those very promises. And so as we come before the Lord's table, the very promise of Christ is held out to us, would we want anything less than Christ Himself? And when He gives of Himself, He comes with blessings that overflow.