Discussion Question - What would be the “good life” for you?  

Clip from Schindler’s List

Discussion Questions - What were the driving values of Oskar Schindler?  What was the cost of his efforts?

Read Nehemiah 5

The cost of impact on Nehemiah

Financial

V. 8 – Buying back Jewish brothers who were sold to the nations as slaves

V.14 – declined the governor’s food allowance that would have been a burden

V. 17 – fed 150 people daily out of his own pocket

Emotional/Spiritual - Conflict - V. 1-11

Physical threats in chapter 4

If you are going to make an impact for the kingdom, it will cost you something.

Isaiah 58:6-12 - The NIV says – “spend yourself” on the hungry.

The Deaths of the Apostles

PERSONAL STORY - Cost of having a large family

When we want to make an impact in someone’s life it is going to cost us something:

Financial

Emotional

Relational

Spiritual

Luke 9:23 – If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.

Conclusion

Begin to ask God…What is He asking you to give to see impact in people’s lives?

The beautiful thing is that when we pick up His cross, not only will it cost us something, but through our life God will be glorified in your life to all around you.

The heart of the Nehemiah Series - Jer. 29:7

Nehemiah 2:1-9

The king opened up the checkbook to Nehemiah and before answering, Nehemiah prayed.  Then he reached for the sky and it was granted to him.  What are some of the audacious asks that you have for God?  Ask Big, he can handle it.

Nehemiah 2:11-16

Nehemiah assesses the wall.  He sees for the first time for himself how run down the walls really are and what a huge undertaking this is going to be.  There is a reason why the walls had yet to be rebuilt, it was quite a daunting task.  Over a mile long, 4 ft. thick, 20 ft. high.  It was going to take a lot.  What in your life needs assessing?  Take some time this week to assess where you are at with God personally, how the local community is, and assess the needs of the global community.  How can you be specific in your prayers?  Ask the God os restoration to rebuild the walls of your heart, the heart of your local community, and the heart of the world.

Nehemiah 2:17, 18 - Nehemiah calls the people to this great audacious task and says that God is behind it.

Nehemiah 2:19-20

Opposition arrises from the South, the North, and the East.  In an attempt to disuade Nehemiah from rebuilding the walls, the opposition begins with words.  Instead of trying to outwit them himself, Nehemiah swimply placed his faith in His God to grant them success.  Are you feeling opposed by anyone?  1 Peter 5:8-9 says that the devil is constantly on the search to take people out when given the chance.  Whenever we look to follow Jesus, we need to know that there will be opposition, however, we also need to have the Faith of Nehemiah to say, regardless of how big the task, how great the opposition, our God will grant us success.

Nehemiah  1

This new Series is entitled All Together because it is a study not only of the book of Nehemiah, but also about how we as a community can work together with our Lord to change our local community here and ultimately the world.  Jer. 29:7 says “seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile.  Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.”  We are called to impact our community.  The place to being is on our knees in prayer to seek the peace and prosperity for our community here in Bothell.

Background on Nehemiah

Nebuchadnezzar became king of Babylon in 605 BC and soon after he invaded Judah and after Judah was under the rule for three years they rebelled.  Several years later in response Neb. captured anything of value from Jerusalem including roughly 10,000 of the leaders of Jerusalem (Read 2 Kings 24:10-14).  Can you imagine what it would look like if the Greater Seattle area was robbed of all of it’s treasures and 10,000 leaders?  Following this there were three returns to Jerusalem by the exiles.  The first was by Zerubbabel  in 538 BC.  They rebuilt the temple during this time.  Persia had taken over Babylon and had agreed to let their be a return of exiles.  The second party returned with Ezra about 80 years later.  The third wave came back with Nehemiah in 445 BC.  This is where they rebuild the walls and gates as documented in the book of Nehemiah.

Nehemiah 1:1-4

Nehemiah’s Response

Brokenness

Nehemiah is completely broken over the news of the plight of the people in Jerusalem.  His reaction is beautiful.  The Lord struck his heart in such a way that he was broken on behalf of the people of his community.  Are you broken by the plight of our community?  I know that we have not been invaded by some earthly enemy, but haven’t we watched our community become overrun by the enemy of our God?  Haven’t we seen our community fall victim to the trappings of the world, been seduced by the evil one, we have seen our families fall apart, we have seen marriages ripped apart, we have seen the rise of crime, drug use, pronogrpahic addictions rip through our communities, and the desire for bigger, better, and never enough self love is everywhere.  Does your heart break for our community?  Do you want to see your community healed?  Then we need to do the same thing that we find Nehemiah doing, we need to pray.

Prayer

Nehemiah’s first response to this devastating news was to pray.  Read Neh. 1:5-11.  2 Chronicles 7:14 says “if my people who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”

There are some keys found in Nehemiah’s prayer and in the instructed prayer of 2 Chron.

1.        Worship in humility – we need to understand that it is not us that are going to make the difference, it is going to be God, therefore like Nehemiah, we need to exalt His name.

2.       Confession.  Secondly we need to confess our own sin and the sin of our community on behalf of our community and come to God in repentance.  Nehemiah expresses this beautifully as he confesses the sins of his people.

3.       Seek His face – As we listen for His voice, as we do His will, then the Lord will heal our community.

Conclusion

Does your heart break for our community?  Let’s decide tonight to pray for our community, to pray like Nehemiah and to own up to our own sin and to own up to the sin on behalf of our community.  We have been a community who has placed many gods before the ONE TRUE GOD, we have destroyed the family, we have stolen, we have abused, we have committed adultery, we have committed murder, we have coveted our neighbor’s things, we have been self seeking in our workplace, in our families, all over.  We need to repent and turn back toward our God.  Lord, please forgive our community of our trespasses against you and heal our land.