Sermon Central
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Doing What God Has Called You To Do Series
Contributed by Shine Thomas on Mar 18, 2020 (message contributor)
Summary: The boundaries that God set for our existence is redefined by man. In the midst of such a world today, God is calling us to build the walls. Furthermore, God is looking for people who can stand in the gap and live for God’s purposes.
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Do what God has called you to do. God has a great plan for each of us.
Today, I want to talk to you about a wall builder called Nehemiah. He is in the palace of the Persian king serving as a cup-bearer. His brother came to visit him and informs Nehemiah that the city of Jerusalem is destroyed and its walls remain in ruins.
1 The words of Nehemiah son of Hakaliah: In the month of Kislev in the twentieth year, while I was in the citadel of Susa, 2 Hanani, one of my brothers, came from Judah with some other men, and I questioned them about the Jewish remnant that had survived the exile, and also about Jerusalem. 3 They said to me, “Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire.” 4 When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.
What follows is a wonderful prayer of Nehemiah which we saw last week.
1 In the month of Nisan in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was brought for him, I took the wine and gave it to the king. I had not been sad in his presence before, 2 so the king asked me, “Why does your face look so sad when you are not ill? This can be nothing but sadness of heart.” I was very much afraid, 3but I said to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should my face not look sad when the city where my ancestors are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?”
4 The king said to me, “What is it you want?” Then I prayed to the God of heaven, 5 and I answered the king, “If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my ancestors are buried so that I can rebuild it.” 6 Then the king, with the queen sitting beside him, asked me, “How long will your journey take, and when will you get back?” It pleased the king to send me; so I set a time.
If you take a look around, you can see various demolished walls. The very moral walls of our society lie in a crucial state. There is adultery in our society. Live-in relationships and gay relationships are on the rise. Do you know that countries around the world are trying to legalize these things?
As a pastor, I have heard many people telling me, “Pastor, God has called me for so and so ministry and I have a burden for this. This is my calling and I want to do this for the Lord.
However, I am not sure how to begin this whole process.”
Doing What God Has Called You To Do
We are going to see from Nehemiah’s life how he did what God had called him to do.
Let us go back to around 440 years before Christ. We have a man who is in a palace in Persia. He meets his brother who comes to visit him. He asks his brother, “How is the city of Jerusalem?” The brother said, “The city is in ruins, the walls are broken.” They had hope in the security of Jerusalem, that it will be untouched by enemies. They thought Jerusalem would be protected where the temple of the Lord stood.
15“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! 16 See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me.
The wall was a symbol of God’s protection upon Jerusalem. But the rulers of Israel led them away from God. After David, the three kings were wicked in a row. Solomon, Rehoboam, and Jeroboam. The leaders led them astray one after the other.
In any civilization and culture, when you see a city in moral decay, look towards the leadership and see what kind of leadership they have, what has brought us to this point where adultery is okay, drugs are available everywhere.
Nehemiah sees the broken walls as the sin that has been committed by his leaders. How does Nehemiah deal with it?
1. Realize You Have A Responsibility
Nehemiah realizes responsibility is required. There is a role to play. Nehemiah believed he could have a part.