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Prayer for the Nation (Neh. 1)

2013.07.14P. Mike Lee

Nehemiah's prayer for his nation moves from concern for its people's suffering, through confession of sin, confidence in God's promises, to a committed willingness to act, and the same burden is asked of us today.

Nehemiah's concern for the people's suffering (1-4)

Nehemiah was in Susa when his brother Hanani came from Judah and told him that the remnant in Jerusalem was in great trouble and shame, that the wall was broken down and its gates burned. Nehemiah sat down, wept, mourned for days, and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven. The speaker notes that people rarely share deep burdens in a casual greeting, so Hanani's report shows how much it weighed on him, and Nehemiah's reaction shows that he truly loved his people. Nehemiah cared about a city he had never seen because it was his home, his country, and his nation. We are called to ask whether we feel the same concern for the divorced, the starving, the imprisoned for their faith, and those dying without knowing Christ.

Confessing sin as one of the people (5-7)

Nehemiah addressed the great and awesome God who keeps covenant and steadfast love, and he confessed the sins of Israel. He included himself and his father's house with the words "we" and "all of us," showing that he took his people's sin as his own. He also said that they had sinned against God, not only that they had done wrong, and this reflects the relationship God has with his people. When we confess sin, we should name not only the wrong but also the One we have sinned against.

Confidence in God's promises (8-10)

Nehemiah prayed based on God's word to Moses, that if the people returned to him and kept his commandments, God would gather them from the farthest places to the place he had chosen. Nehemiah had studied and memorized Scripture, and he held on to God's promises even though more than a hundred years had passed. The speaker compares this to memorizing the number of the person most important to us, and says that knowing the promises of God deepens prayer. As 1 John 5:14 says, we can pray with confidence when we ask according to his will.

Commitment to get involved (11)

Nehemiah's prayer moved from concern to confession to confidence and then to commitment, and his prayer became action. He called the Persian king Artaxerxes "this man," recognizing that the Lord of history, not the king, makes the final decisions. Nehemiah served as cupbearer, a high-ranking position that gave him close access to the king, and God used that position to bring about change. Nehemiah had a comfortable life, yet he chose to step up for people who were sitting in ruins. The same is true for us in our own positions, whether as teachers, housewives, students, or bus drivers.

Praying for the nations, including North Korea

The speaker says that God chose this passage for the mission team going to the nations and reminded him of North Korea. At a prayer meeting at the border between North and South Korea two weeks earlier, he felt like Nehemiah, who had never been to North Korea but who prays for his brothers and sisters there as long as he lives. We have food, clothes, families, and freedom, and we should not waste them by living only for today. We should pray for those who lack freedom, for the Muslim nations, and for the nations in need of Christ, such as Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, and North Korea. God wants to raise up Nehemiahs in this church today.

Apply to Life

  • Let us listen to the troubles of the people around us, especially our families, and not turn away from their pain.
  • Let us confess our sins as our own and name the One against whom we have sinned.
  • Let us memorize God's promises in his word and pray with confidence in them.
  • Let us use the position where God has placed us, whatever it is, for the changes he wants to bring.
  • Let us pray for our brothers and sisters in North Korea and for the nations that need Christ, and let us not sit on our hands.

This summary was made automatically from the sermon's captions and may differ from the sermon.

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