Day 145 - Nehemiah 1-7

ONE-YEAR JOURNEY OF THE BIBLE
Day 145 - Nehemiah 1-7 (Principles of Godly Leadership)
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"And they said to me, "The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire." 
So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven. ...O Lord, I pray, please let Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant, and to the prayer of Your servants who desire to fear Your name; and let Your servant prosper this day, I pray, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man." For I was the king's cupbearer."  (Nehemiah 1:3-4, 11)

Nehemiah was a model of a godly leader.  When he learned about the dismal condition of Jerusalem, he did not brush aside the problem of his native land like many people do, but sprang into action to do something.  Anyone wanting to become a godly leader needs to learn the following principles of leadership that Nehemiah employed in carrying out his vision to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem which represented not only its national security but its spiritual condition as well:

He mourned before God in fasting and prayer (chapter 1).   

The first thing that Nehemiah did after he heard of the problem in Jerusalem was to humble himself before God in fasting and prayer.  In the last post, we saw how Ezra the priest did exactly the same thing when he needed to lead a large group of Jews returning to Jerusalem from Babylon.  Anyone who wants to be godly leader must begin all undertakings for God in fasting and prayer.

He prepared himself in order to carry out his vision (chapter 2:1-9).

Nehemiah risked his own life in coming before the king's presence as a cupbearer with a sad disposition and by asking the king's permission to go to Jerusalem to rebuild its walls.  But God was with Nehemiah.  Not only was he not killed by the king, all of his request with regards to his plans to rebuild Jerusalem were granted him including all the resources he needed.

He surveyed the scope of the word needed in order to fulfill his vision (chapter 2:11-16).

Without telling anybody what was in his mind to do, Nehemiah arose in the night and went all around Jerusalem in order to survey the work that was needed to be done.  Leaders must thoroughly know the full extent of the work to be completed in order to fulfill his vision.  Leaders must be willing to pay the price of fulfilling his vision before he asks others to join him in the journey. 

He challenged the people he needed to help him fulfill his vision (chapter 2:17-18).

After fasting and praying and making all the necessary preparations in order to fulfill his vision, it was time for Nehemiah to cast his vision to others who can help him in its fulfillment.  No great work had been done through the work of a single person.  All great work on earth were done through the united effort of many people led by one leader who had the vision of what he wanted accomplished. 

He refused to allow external opposition to kill his vision.

Israel never ceased to have enemies who will stop at nothing in order to thrwart their welfare and even completely annihilate them as a people.  Nehemiah's time was no different.  Evil men who did not have the welfare of the Jews in mind wanted to kill Nehemiah's vision to rebuild Jerusalem.  But Nehemiah refused to allow them to stop the work God had called him to do.  He sought God's help and he equipped his people for battle.  The result was that the wall was swiftly finished and the people's faith in God was restored as well.  

He rebuked internal oppression that threatened to kill his vision (chapter 5:1-13).

Besides external opposition, every leader must also deal with internal problems with the people he leads.  In Nehemiah's case, the internal problem came in the way of oppression by the rulers towards their fellow Jews.  Those rulers charged usury and enslaved the less fortunate among the people.  Nehemiah rebuked the guilty for their oppressive crime and because God was behind him, the people listened and acknowledged their error and made right with the people they oppressed.