"WE HAVE A JOB TO DO!"

NEHEMIAH 2:9-18

Nehemiah had taken his life into his hands when he went sadly into the presence of king Artaxerxes. But the peril was worth it in light of the task in which Nehemiah was about to engage. In about 586 BC, Judah had been carried into Babylon and into captivity; the Temple had been razed and the walls of Jerusalem torn down and its gates burned. By now, about 444 BC, the Temple had been rebuilt but the walls were still in ruins and the people who lived in Jerusalem were the object of reproach of their neighbors. So when news of their sad condition came to Nehemiah, he prayed and fasted and wept. Four months later he approached the king with his request. Nehemiah had a job to do and wanted to get it done. He wasn't trying to raise a ruckus or create a revolution. He just wanted to get a job done. So it was with Florine Thornhill, a 73 year old lady. She had no intention of causing a stir. She was one ordinary woman with an extraordinarily simple desire. She just wanted to do something small to make her block better. For years she had walked her neighborhood with blinders on, stepping past the decaying homes, drug deals and derelicts. One Sunday in 1979 on her way to church choir she passed an unconscious woman in the overgrowth of a nearby lot. Thornhill assumed it was a drug addict and walked on but she couldn't dismiss the woman from her mind. What, she found herself wondering, would Jesus have her do? So she turned back home and got her son to help her get the woman to safety. Thornhill never learned the woman's name or why she was unconscious, but the encounter opened her eyes to the sadness and poverty she had spent so much time blocking out. The mother of nine, including one child with mental disabilities, decided to do what she could to help. In that she was a lot like Nehemiah. Let's look at the text and see what he did when he got to Jerusalem.

1. HE ASSESSED THE PROBLEM: VV11-14:
1. Why did he spend this time in inspecting the ruins and so secretly?
1. So his knowledge was accurate and first-hand; heretofore it was hearsay.
2. So he would know just what was needed when he asked people to take on the task.
3. So he wouldn't stir up a hornet's nest before he knew what was to be done.
2. He assessed the problem and determined that what had to happen before Jerusalem would have identity, security and dignity was the rebuilding of the walls.
3. Unless you have lived in a cave and have avoided all sorts of news media, you must be aware that America has a problem.  This country is in big trouble. As we consider our great nation, what is the problem? What do we discover that needs fixing? What walls have been torn down? What needs rebuilding?
1. The traditional family based on Judeo-Christian standards.
2. Morality and virtue.
3. The work ethic with a day's labor for a day's pay.
4. Honesty, integrity and truth.
5. A sense of personal responsibility, accountability and duty.
6. Commitment to Christ and His church to the point of cross bearing.
4. Nehemiah knew well the problem, and God grant us all seeing eyes, hearing ears, open hearts to be aware of all the problems that surround each of us daily.

2. HE DEFINED THE PURPOSE: V17:
1. For them: Rebuild the walls so the reproach would come to an end.
2. The church has a purpose, too. Actually, I think we could define 5 basic functions, or purposes, of a healthy church; we've spent weeks on this in Sunday School and I give it to you briefly: What is the purpose of the church? In Acts 2:41-47 we see what the early church did:
1. Evangelism: V41 "So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and there were added that day about three thousand souls."
2. Discipleship: V42 "And they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching ..."
3. Fellowship: V42 "and to fellowship, ..."
4. Ministry: V45 "and they began selling their property and possessions, and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need."
5. Worship: VV46, 47 "... they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God, ..."
3. God help each of us to find a way in our own lives to accomplish each of those purposes: sharing our faith, learning more about His Word, having genuine oneness with others, sharing in their needs and glorifying God.
4. Let me illustrate the need for a clear purpose. A man bought a new hunting dog. Eager to see how he would perform, he took him out one day, hoping to track down big game. No sooner had they gotten into the woods than the animal picked up the trail of a bear. Excitedly the hunter followed close behind. Then suddenly the dog stopped, sniffed the ground, and headed in a different direction. He had caught the smell of a deer that had crossed the path of the bear. A few moments later he halted again, this time captivated by the scent of a rabbit that had crossed the path of the deer. And so, on and on it went until finally the breathless hunter caught up with his dog, only to find him barking triumphantly down the hole of a field mouse. Many new Christians start out with the high resolve of keeping the Savior first in their lives. But it isn't long before their whole attention is diverted to things of temporal importance. Define your purpose.. (NavPress Illustrator).

3. HE MOTIVATED THE PEOPLE: VV17, 18:
1. He called them to a specific action and purpose: Build the walls so the people's reproach would end. As a result of his challenge, they put their hands to the work!
2. Jesus Christ has called His church to activity. He desires that His church put their hands to His work. As John Wesley put it, "Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can."
3. With that in mind, in Jesus'Name, let me urge you, challenge you, exhort you, appeal to you, motivate you:
1. Find a need and meet it: maybe it's finances, or transportation, or repair work.
2. Find a hurt and heal it: there are those in bereavement, and marital discord, and loneliness.
3. Find a void and fill it: there are children with no male role model, there are shut-ins with empty hours.
4. Find a burden and lift it: there are the sick and imprisoned and abused and guilty and depressed.
5. Find a challenge and face it: learn to play the key-board, sing a special, make a call.
6. Find a task and perform it: There is always a need for Sunday School and Childrens' Church teachers, and youth sponsors, and bus drivers, and lawn mowers, and weed-pullers and painters, and on and on.
4. Put your hand to the work. Don't just "go" to church, "be" the church! Live and work and minister as the Body of Christ on the job, at school, in the neighborhood, at home and wherever you may be. Even in small ways, put your hand to the work.

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