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Ezra 1:1-4
1 Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying,
2 Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, The Lord God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and he hath charged me to build him an house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah.
3 Who is there among you of all his people? his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of the Lord God of Israel, (he is the God,) which is in Jerusalem.
4 And whosoever remaineth in any place where he sojourneth, let the men of his place help him with silver, and with gold, and with goods, and with beasts, beside the freewill offering for the house of God that is in Jerusalem.
Nehemiah 2:1-6
1 And it came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before him: and I took up the wine, and gave it unto the king. Now I had not been beforetime sad in his presence.
2 Wherefore the king said unto me, Why is thy countenance sad, seeing thou art not sick? this is nothing else but sorrow of heart. Then I was very sore afraid,
3 And said unto the king, Let the king live for ever: why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers' sepulchres, lieth waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire?
4 Then the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request? So I prayed to the God of heaven.
5 And I said unto the king, If it please the king, and if thy servant have found favour in thy sight, that thou wouldest send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers' sepulchres, that I may build it.
6 And the king said unto me, (the queen also sitting by him,) For how long shall thy journey be? and when wilt thou return? So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time.
The people of Israel were granted permission by the king of Persia, Cyrus to rebuild the temple in the book of Ezra. But while they were rebuilding the temple and living in tents, they had no protection from outside invaders. So God called Nehemiah to lead the effort to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Nehemiah and the people of Israel worked tirelessly to get the walls built. They did face opposition, however. The people of the land, led by Sanballat and Tobiah, tried to stop Israel from rebuilding the capital city of the once powerful nation. But Nehemiah was not fazed at all. In Nehemiah chapter 2:20, he told those who opposed Israel, "The God of heaven, He will prosper us; therefore we His servants will arise and build: but ye have no portion, nor right, nor memorial in Jerusalem." It looked like Israel was not going to get this wall done at all at one point. But with God's help, they built an enormous wall, one that surrounded the entire city of Jerusalem, in just 52 days! Nehemiah 6:15-16 says, "So the wall was finished in the twenty and fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty and two days. And it came to pass, that when all our enemies heard thereof, and all the heathen that were about us saw these things, they were much cast down in their own eyes: for they perceived that this work was wrought of our God."
I see Jesus and we who have been saved symbolically throughout both of these books. When the people of Israel were taken in captivity, their home and the walls surrounding it were destroyed. When Adam and Eve sinned, our "home" of fellowship with God that was surrounded by the walls of his protection was destroyed. And yet, God was merciful and sent someone who could help us rebuild the walls and restore our relationship with Him. And Jesus can do what may seem impossible: change the lives of sinners and build a relationship as strong as the walls of Jerusalem were when they were completed. And when He is building that fellowship, Satan gets angry. He tries many things to get us to stop following Christ. Several of these things that Satan uses were also used by the occupants of Canaan against Israel.
One device that is used is ridicule. In Nehemiah 4:1, Sanballat hears that the wall is being built. And when he does, he begins to openly mock the children of Israel. His companion Tobiah does likewise. And through all of this, the people prayed to God to help them. When we are ridiculed, we must do the same. We must turn to God in prayer.
A second device that is used is the threat of attack. Now the attacks used then and now may be different. In those days, Israel was threatened by and army. In some countries today this is the case. But in our America, many of the threats are merely peer pressure. The people of Israel set watchmen to warn of any attacks that could come their way. In our lives, we must watch out for any attacks of Satan, whether they be peer pressure, or some other form of temptation that he may throw our way.
A third and final device used by Satan and the Canaanites is that of discouragement. Life may not seem to be going our way. It certainly was not working out for Israel at that time. But they had a reliance on God that was further strengthened through the trials that they had already faced. It is times like our trials that we can learn to rely on God and not become discouraged. It is when this happens that we can grow as Christians and change the world.
Nehemiah, Ezra, and the children of Israel rebuilt the city walls within 52 days. God is working to rebuild our lives throughout our lifetime. It is our job to build it up through prayer and the reading of the Bible as He works in us.
Next Sunday we will be looking at Christ in the book of Esther as our Advocate. Until next time, God bless!
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