We have been traveling through Nehemiah and observed his leadership as he has guided clearing the rubble, rebuilding the wall, and hanging the gates of the city. His strategic planning in building and executing the warfare necessary to defeat the taunts of the enemy results in the mission being accomplished in just fifty-two days. Despite the relatively small size of the city, that is a remarkable achievement with the level of demoralization the inhabitants of the city were experiencing as well as the lack of any modern equipment to eliminate the rubble, rebuild the walls and hang the timbers hewn to make the new city gates.

Nehemiah turns over the management of the city to, Hanani, a relative, and Hananiah, the marshal of the viceregal court that Nehemiah had maintained in Jerusalem. Nehemiah was aware of the character of these men, their high religious principles, and their patriotic spirit so he had confidence these men could be trusted to watch over the city.

This gives us another picture of Nehemiah’s godly leadership. He discerned those who were equipped to lead in his stead as he likely was preparing to return to Susa. He recognized the work of God’s Kingdom was great and his plans needed to include those who would follow him to carry on. His wisdom here is quite evident. It also shows as he makes recommendations about when the gates should be opened. He sees the importance of appointing sentinels that would also guard each of their houses as the gates would be barred at sunset as a point of safely securing the city from any enemies that would seek to harm them.

Additionally, he also seeks to get an accurate registry of the exiles who had returned. This was key if they were to identify those who were called from the tribe of Levi to be priests and lead the people in their covenant relationship with Him. He worked with Ezra to ascertain the conflicting records.

What was the count of people in the city? 42,360 were counted and beyond that, 7,337 male and female servants.

If we were to stop here, we would miss how godly this leader we find in the Old Testament really was. His greater mission was now ahead of him and that would be to rebuild the people of the city and the faith that had been also broken down.

Now all the people gather in the rebuilt square in front of the Water Gate for the celebration for the feast of the seventh month. This was the gate where everyone in the city would exit to get the closest source of water. Pause for a moment to consider the place they have assembled. There were other gates in the city that had been repaired and hung, but they came to the Water Gate.

Throughout the Bible water has symbolized God’s Word.

They come to this location for Ezra to read the Law. Nehemiah recognized the walls and gates of the city would not be enough to sustain these exiles unless they knew the foundation of the beliefs their faith was built upon. This foundation needed to be built and secured now that they had physical foundations in place. Some of these exiles had long since lost the truth of God.

Ezra gets up on a platform so all can see and hear as he opens the book to read the Law. This reading had been a requirement that had been neglected during their captivity. The Bible tells us that he read from daybreak until noon. (For many of us today, it can seem that to be in church for an hour or so on a Sunday is a lot.) What would it be like for us today to have our pastor read from the Bible from sunrise until lunchtime?

Ezra needed the help of the Levites so they could understand what he was reading. The people responded by lifting their hands and bowing down and weeping. Now they saw their sin clearly and were convicted.

I am guessing this could have turned into a long period of sorrow and lament, but Nehemiah as governor steps in and forbids them from responding with weeping and tells them not to weep and mourn. He then gives them the following direction:

“Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

Nehemiah 8:10 (NIV)

That might seem a paradox, but Nehemiah wanted them to celebrate the words of the Law they had just heard and to enter the celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles. What we see is the next day the heads of families, the Levites, and priests all come to Ezra to hear and study the words of the Law. It is through this study they come to know how the Feast of Tabernacles is to be celebrated and so they go about gathering branches and boughs to make booths for themselves as the Law has said and Ezra reads from the book of the Law for seven straight days.

Nehemiah understood the significance and crucial place the Word had in the lives of God’s people. Through Nehemiah we have observed that a godly leader prays, acts, faces opposition, and cares. Today we add one more characteristic of a godly leader.

What we see challenges us to consider if these qualities characterize us. It can be easy to look at something and say it is not our area or gifting, but these qualities are the evidence of godly character, not about gifting.

A godly leader turns people to God’s Word! That Word is what brings life!

Through the long 900-mile trek from Susa to Jerusalem and surveying of the broken-down walls of the city, Nehemiah has been stalwart in his mission to restore the walls of the city to protect the few residents left there. Only his consistent prayers exceed his skill in assessing the task ahead and the strategy for dividing the people in teams to do the work. They remind us of what he sees as foundational to complete his mission. They are even more important when the workers are taunted and discouraged by the story’s two major antagonists, Tobiah and Sanballat, who seek to tear apart Nehemiah’s character and reputation when they fail to deter the workers.

So far, we have seen three key things about Nehemiah’s leadership:

•   A godly leader prays
•   A godly leader acts
•   A godly leader faces opposition             

Nehemiah sees there is more to be done than rebuild the walls. In the absence of godly leadership and the taunts of their enemies, the Jews who were there were not unified or for one another. The difficult conditions for the largely poor people who were trying to have hope for the land of their fathers was worsened by the lack of good harvests to provide food for themselves or revenue from selling their excess. And in addition to the lack of good resources of any kind, they were still expected to pay taxes to the Persian government. That challenge provided opportunity for those who were richer to see the possibility for gain for themselves.

To comply with the relentless demands of the taxes by the Persians, the poorest among them had no choice but to give up or give over whatever lands and homes they had to their richer Jewish brothers to get the needed money for their taxes. They were even forced to sell their children as slaves to those who should have been helping them—members of their own culture and faith.

It can be easy for us to be critical of how these people were responding to one another, but perhaps we should be cautious and consider how we as believers treat one another in the body of Christ today. We may not need to turn over lands and houses or sell our children as slaves, but do we show support and care for those among us who are struggling in any and all ways?  We are called to not only pray for such people, but also to act in kindness and show care for them.

Nehemiah had observed the wealthier citizens were abusing the poorest of those living in Jerusalem. As a result, the rich were getting richer, and the poor were getting poorer.

Not only does Nehemiah notice this, once again he acts. He sees a wrong and sets about to call the people into account for their choices and behaviors. His challenge to them shows how effective accountability can be in pulling back those who are sinning from their decisions. He demonstrates godly leadership and how do those he challenges respond?

“We will give it back…and we will not demand anything more from them. We will do as you say.” Neh. 5:12

Having heard their pledge, Nehemiah does not stop there. He was probably aware they had been behaving this way for a long time so he adds an additional admonition. He shakes the folds of his own robe that would have had little pockets in it where personal things could be saved. He tells those who have pledged to stop their abusive behavior that God would shake them out of his pockets if they did not follow through on their pledge.

What we now add to the list of qualities evident in a godly leader is this: a godly leader cares.

And it is not merely a passive caring. He doesn’t simply hug them, pat them, and pray for these people, he confronts those who are harming them. He was in charge and he could have expected and received privileges of any number of kinds from these people and taken advantage of his position, but Nehemiah did the exact opposite. He was a humble servant-leader who took no honor or privilege for himself.

What a powerful picture of Christlikeness we see here in the midst of the Old Testament in the person of Nehemiah!

How easy it can be for power to seduce the best of leaders in our churches or government who started as servant-leaders, but then accepted accolades and privileges that set them above and apart from the people they are to serve.

To remain godly and humble as a leader requires those around the leader to love that leader enough to have the courage to confront him or her when evidences of abuse of power begin to appear. Accountability with love is how we all grow and mature in our character. It is also how we demonstrate we are Christ’s.

A godly leader cares and it shows!

With a plan and a purpose, a vision and a hope, Nehemiah has challenged and exhorted the people living in Jerusalem to clear the rubble of their broken down city and begin to rebuild. The work area has been divided in sections and assignments given. The timber has been supplied by the favor of the king for whom Nehemiah had been a faithful cupbearer. It was not going to be easy, but now these people who had already lived within the shame and intimidation of their situation now face insults and shouts of contempt from two key individuals: Tobiah and Sanballat.

I can’t help but wonder if these two had not been bullies all along for the people living there. If that was true, the arrival of Nehemiah had been the first threat to the power structure that existed in that place after the majority of the Jews had been taken away into exile.

Bible scholars point to the likelihood that these were two men of the Samaritan community and Samaritans had always been at odds with the Jews. They would have come from what was the Northern Kingdom of Israel and were comprised of a mix of Jewish and pagan ancestry. Even though they worshipped Yahweh, their worship was not mainstream Judaism. Their temple was on Mt. Gerazim instead of Mt. Zion in Jerusalem. Some authors suggest that Sanballat was a Moabite and Tobiah an Ammonite.

Whatever their origin, they had no desire to see Nehemiah’s plans prosper. Even though Nehemiah would certainly not have laid out his plans to them, they were aware of his purpose to rebuild. Tobiah’s wife had apparently been a Jewess and therefore he knew about the commitment of the Jews to their holy site and God’s covenant with them.

Imagine you are one of those tasked with and trying to rebuild the city walls. It’s hard work that will be done by hand. Then you hear the taunts, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore their wall? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they finish in a day? Can they bring stones back to life from those heaps of rubble—burned as they are?” It wasn’t pretty!

Even so, they continued and each day the opposition to their efforts increased. So what does Nehemiah do in response? He prays. By now we have little doubt about the source of Nehemiah’s faith and confidence. In any and all situations, his first response is prayer. I wish I could say that is always my first response, my first step of an action plan.

It may not be unusual for a believer to decide to pray, but too often we can pray and then never consider if we may be called to also act as well. Nehemiah knew that. He consistently shows he is a man of prayer AND action.

As he considers the situation and the discouragement of the citizens of Jerusalem rebuilding, he also posts guards. He strategically has half the men working while the other half are equipped with spears, shields, bows, and armor.

Talk about brothers having your back in a bad situation—Nehemiah had the right combination as he exhorted the people not to be afraid. He gave them unseen and seen support.

How much stronger the body of Christ might be if we used the same principles and strategies Nehemiah used!

How do we support one another in challenging times? Do we say we will pray or even do so on the spot and then simply walk away or do we offer prayer and then some step of action as well? For the person in grief, do we pray and offer a meal or babysitting? For the person with a job loss, do we pray and also put gas in his or her car to be able to keep looking for work?

Nehemiah was an exemplary leader and when he stepped up his game, so did his opponents who had been insulting and discouraging the people of the city. This time the attacks were on him as they sought to slander and intimidate him.

The attacks of the enemy can and do hit at anyone and everyone, but the point of the spear will always be directed at the leader. If the leader can be discredited and manipulated, then the people will become disorganized, confused, and ineffective. When that happens, victory is assured for the enemy.

The apostle Paul understood that well as a leader. It is no wonder that in his second letter to Timothy, he offers this principle:

“You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. ² And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others.”

2 Timothy 2: 1-2 (NIV)

A quick check of Bible verses on this topic will point to other verses that set out the same principle.

It can be so much easier to complain, condemn, and criticize a leader, whether he or she is a pastor, ministry leader, than it is to pray for him or her. And the passages on this topic don’t stop there. It includes those who govern us—mayors, governors, and the president. I don’t see that happening very often either.

Often it is only in the worst of times when tragedy has struck that we set aside our differences and come together to pray as we realize we are incapable of resolving the tragic. Should we not do so before a tragedy strikes?

Opposition should not surprise us. Jesus suffered opposition and we are called to follow Him, represent Him until He returns.

Be clear on this: A godly leader will face opposition.