A GREAT BIG PRAYER, Nehemiah 1:5-11, Part 1

A Great Big God

Nehemiah 1:5, "And I said, "I beseech Thee, O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who preserves the covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments."

Most of us have prayed many, many prayers, but I’m sure amongst those hundreds or thousands of prayers there are some that stand out in your memory. Perhaps it was your first prayer, carried forth to the throne of God by the Spirit, for salvation from sin. Or, maybe it was some subsequent prayer where you asked God to intervene in your life is some specific manner. We have before us one of the great prayers of Scripture. In fact, in looking at this prayer of Nehemiah, I’ve entitled my message “A Great Big Prayer.” It is one of the great prayers in all of Scripture...

A prayer that literally spans the continents.
A prayer that spans 100s of years and many generations of time.
A prayer that moves God to move the heart of a king.
A prayer that begins a work that will affect the lives of thousands of Jews and the history of a nation.
A Revival Prayer - And we see the result of it in the rest of the story that is laid out for us in the book of Nehemiah.
A Model Prayer - ACTS. All the elements of a model prayer are found here in Nehemiah’s prayer: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication.

Nehemiah's prayer was a great big prayer to a great big God. According to the ACTS model prayer should begin with adoration of God. And, of course, we see this order to things in other prayers as well. The disciple’s prayer begins, “Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name.” In the book of Acts, the threatened congregation prayed together, “O Lord, it is You who made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and all that is in them.” The Psalms, which are for the most part prayers to God, overflow with praise to God for who He is and thanksgiving for what He has done.

Prayer is an activity of worship and worship is, by definition, acknowledging the worth--the glory--of God. As an activity of worship it is imperative that we think rightly about God. We need to think about who we are praying to. We need to see Him and think about Him according to the truth that is revealed about Him in the Scriptures. Near Easter time one of our church members shared with me that he had seen an interview with a couple who were speaking to the power of prayer. They were testifying to how prayer had improved their marriage relationship and were encouraging others to make prayer a priority. Only problem is that they said that it didn’t matter at all who you prayed to, and in fact they simply prayed to themselves. Now there may be some earthbound benefit to that kind of prayer, but it doesn’t have anything to do with the power, love, and wisdom of our creator God.

Nehemiah spoke to God by name in his prayer--Jehovah Elohim. Jehovah, Yahweh, was the name by which God revealed Himself to Moses, “I am that I am” (Exod. 3:14). It is a name that spoke to God’s unique relationship with the nation of Israel, but more than that “Yahweh” is a name that speaks to God as the “self-existent” and “eternal” God of the universe. He has always been and He will always be. He is the unchanging God. Though our circumstances may change, He never changes. Elohim is a term that is used of God, of false gods, and even of men. It is the plural of the Hebrew, “El,” leaving room for the truth that is ultimately revealed--that God is a triune God. The term has built into it the thought of power and strength. And we are reminded that God is the omnipotent God. “Nothing is too difficult for Him.” And as believers we need to remind ourselves in our prayers that because He is omnipotent, “He is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think” (Eph. 3:20).

He is the God “of heaven.” Jesus taught His disciples to pray, “Our Father who art in heaven.” The God to whom we pray is in a transcendant place. He is not a god made of wood or stone. He is not of this world. He is far above it.

He is the great and awesome God. The term “great” is a particular Hebrew term which means “to be great or strong or powerful or important.” The same term was used by David when he declared of God, “You are great, O Lord God; for there is none like You, and there is no God besides You, according to all that we have heard with our ears” (2 Sam. 7:22). He is an “awesome” God. The term is translated “terrible” in the KJV and means “to inspire reverence or godly fear or awe.” I like how Webster’s puts it, “Submissive and admiring fear inspired by authority or power.” In the Gospel accounts it tells us how Jesus rebuked the win and hushed the sea to calm the storm. When the disciples saw it “They became very much afraid and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?” (Mark 4:41). His power inspired in them a reverent fear. They were awestruck by Him.

And we need to remember who it is that we are praying to. He is the powerful creator of all things who merely spoke creation into existence. He is the God who raised Jesus Christ from the dead. He is the God who “is able to do far more abundantly beyone all that we ask or think.” As the song puts it, “Our God is an awesome God He reigns in heaven above, with wisdom, power, and love, our God is an awesome God.”

He is the God who preserves the covenant. The term “preserves” comes from a Hebrew term which means “to keep, guard, keep watch and ward, protect, save life.” It is translated “keepeth” in the KJV. This term is best appreciated by way of contrast. Israel was not faithful to do their part of the covenant. They did not keep watch over it. They didn’t care about it, they forgot about it, they disobeyed it, they failed. But not God. Despite their disobedience, He did His part. He remained faithful, and is to this day, faithful to the promises that He made regarding Israel. He is a faithful God. He is faithful to do what He has promised to do. That is most helpful in our prayers to remember. In the midst of his great trial, when he had witnessed the destruction of Jerusalem, the prophet Jeremiah cried out, “This I recall to mind, therefore I have hope. The Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, For His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; Great is Your Faithfulness.” (Lam. 3:21-23).

He is a God who preserves the covenant and lovingkindness. The term lovingkindness is the Hebrew “chesed.” According to Nehemiah 9:17 God is “abounding in lovingkindness.” The term is a term that is full of meaning and used repeatedly of God in His relationship with Israel in the OT. The term is sometimes translated “mercy” or “steadfast love,” but it best understood as the culmination of three different virtues--strength, steadfastness, and love. Lovingkindness is God’s steadfast commitment to bestow favor on His people. It includes the concept of mercy, which is spoken to in 9:17 and which Nehemiah no doubt was thinking about in his prayer.

So what we see here in these few verses is worship. Nehemiah thinking about God according to the revealed truth about God and praying accordingly. So we should be encouraged to pray to God that way. God is eternal, omnipotent, great, awesome, faithful, merciful--our prayers need to measure up to the nature and character of God.

A. W. Tozer, “O Lord God Almighty, not the God of the philosophers and the wise but the God of the prophets and apostles; and better than all, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, may I express Thee unblamed? They that know Thee not may call upon Thee as other than Thou art, and so worship not Thee but a creature of their own fancy; therefore, enlighten our minds that we may know Thee as Thou art, so that we may perfectly love Thee and worship Thee. In the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Nehemiah’s prayer was a great big prayer because it was prayed to a great big God. And He is such a God to you today. Only you stand, believer in Christ, in a privileged position to draw near with confidence to the throne of grace with your prayer needs. “Thou art coming to a King; Large petitions with thee bring.”

Pastor Jerry Conklin

ARE YOU FIGHTING?

“Fighting” is a word most often used in Christian churches to describe conflicts between brothers and sisters in Christ that cause divisions and strife among God’s people. In most circumstances in which the word is used it relates to something negative happening in the body of Christ. But I suggest that it is one of the most important words for the believer to consider and perhaps one of the greatest truths missing in the Church today.

In Acts 20:24 the Apostle Paul is recorded as having said “But I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself, so that I may finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God.” Near the end of his life Paul wrote to Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:7 and said “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith.” Webster’s defines fighting as follows; to contend in battle, to put forth a determined effort, to struggle to endure. Are you fighting the good fight?

In Colossians 4:14 the Apostle Paul wrote “Luke, the beloved physician, sends you his greetings, and also Demas.” In Philemon 1:23-24 he wrote “Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you, as do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, Luke, my fellow workers.” In the closing of these two letters Paul mentions a few of the men he is serving alongside with in the ministry. In the Philemon passage he calls them his “fellow workers”. These are undoubtedly men he has prayed with, wept with, preached the gospel with, taught the word with, broke bread with, counseled others with and perhaps even shared a jail cell with.

Requesting that Timothy come to him soon, in 2 Timothy 4:10, Paul told him “for Demas, having loved this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica; Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia.” Yes, Demas had deserted Paul. Approximately seven years after writing Colossians and Philemon where Demas is mentioned among Epaphras, Mark, Aristarchus and Luke as one of Paul’s “fellow workers”, Paul finds himself painfully informing Timothy that Demas has deserted him. I believe it was with sadness that Paul wrote those words to Timothy. We are not told exactly when this took place but we are given the reason for the desertion. Love for the world. Many years later the Apostle John would write “Do not love the world nor the things in the world”. In Titus 2:12 Paul spoke of the necessity “to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age” and in James 1:27 we read “Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”

Among several others, we find the following admonitions in scripture: Galatians 5:1 “keep standing firm”; Colossians 3:1 “keep seeking the things above”; 1Thessalonians 5:21 “hold fast to that which is good”; 1 Peter 1:13 “keep sober in spirit”; Hebrews 12:2 “fixing our eyes on Jesus”; 1 Corinthians 16:13 “stand firm in the faith”; Philippians 3:16 “let us keep living by the same standard to which we have attained”; Hebrews 12:1 “run with endurance”; 2 Timothy 2:4 “No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life”.

Somewhere along the way Demas stopped standing firm, stopped holding on, stopped denying worldly desires, stopped seeking the things above, he stopped being serious minded, took his eyes off of Christ, entangled himself in the affairs of everyday life, loved the things of the world and stopped fighting the good fight of faith. Over the years, Demas has been joined by countless brothers and sisters of the faith. Perhaps God is reminding many today of the need to fight.

We must first realize that there is a fight to be fought. We need a desire to be counted amongst the coworkers, the fighters of the good fight, and finishers of the course. May we cringe at the thought of being described as a deserter. It is a fight requiring discipline so we must look to the Lord and His word and remind one another that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.

Yes Christians, fight! Fight the good fight of faith. Fight in His strength and according to His ways. Jude 1:24 says that He “is able to keep you from stumbling”. As instructed in Hebrews 3:13 let us encourage one another day after day. One day we may have the great privilege to say “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith”. Praise the Lord! To Him be the glory! Because of Him, this fight is one that is worth fighting.

Greg Engebretson

CHRYSOSTOM ON THE POWER OF PRAYER

"The potency of prayer hath subdued the strength of fire; it hath bridled the rage of lions, hushed anarchy to rest, extinguished wars, appealed the elements, expelled demons, bursts the chains of death, expanded the gates of heaven, assuaged diseases, repelled frauds, rescued cities from destruction, stayed the sun in its course, and arrested the progress of the thunderbolt. Prayer is an all-sufficient panoply, a treasure undiminished, a mine which is never exhausted, a sky unobscured by clouds, a heaven unruffled by the storm. It is the root, the fountain, the mother of a thousand blessings."

SOUTHERN VIEW CHAPEL ARTICLE ON ROBERT SCHULLER

Check out this link: http://www.svchapel.org/Resources/Articles/read_articles.asp?ID=144

BUILDING REPAIR UPDATE

I just received an update on our building repair status. Apparently the two engineers and the building codes department have made progress in their discussions and have arrived at some consensus as to the required repairs, etc. Please pray that the engineering plans will be prepared in a timely manner, and that the repairs can be done such that the church will not incur any costs not covered by insurance. We have been working on plans to make other improvements, not covered by insurance. These would include a church kitchen remodel and improvements to the sanctuary seating. lighting, and sound. These costs will be to the church. We have established a fund to help pay for these costs. Any donations to this fund should be designated to the (LCBC 50th Anniversary Building Fund).

Pastor Jerry

WHAT ARE WE PRAYING FOR?

How often do we pray and what are we praying for? Our prayer lives may not be what God would have them to be but His word is clear that prayer should be a regular part of our new life in Christ. Romans 12:12 calls us to be “devoted to prayer” while Colossians echoes the same admonition by saying “devote yourselves to prayer”. In 1 Thessalonians 5:17 the Apostle Paul instructed the believers to “pray without ceasing”. So prayer is something to be devoted, dedicated, or loyal to and therefore should be considered vital in the life of the believer. Before going any further we should acknowledge that without a devotion to the One whose name we pray in, we will not be devoted to the practice of prayer. The believer who is walking in the Spirit will find this devotion to prayer as he or she seeks intimacy with the Savior.

We may hear of other people praying but in reality prayer is the unique privilege to those who have a personal relationship with God through faith in Christ. We can pray by ourselves or pray together with other believers. We have not been issued prayer cards that we must recite in order to be acknowledged and heard by our Lord. We have been given guidance in His word about prayer but there is an individual uniqueness for each person who has this privileged relationship with the Creator. Although we have not been given an inspired list of prayers to recite, God has seen fit to record some prayers in His word that we are able to look at and profit from. One such prayer is found in Colossians 1:9-12 which records one of the Apostle Paul’s prayers. Pastor Jerry has been teaching through this prayer during our bible study time on Wednesday nights and it has been an edifying time in the Word. I’m thankful God directed him to teach this lesson. I would like to share a few thoughts about the prayer as it relates to the crucial nature of our Christian life. In these four verses we find Paul praying the following for the believers in Colossae: (Again, found in Colossians 1:9-12).

“That you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding”
“That you may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord”
“To please Him in all respects”
“Bearing fruit in every good work”
“Increasing in the knowledge of God”
“Strengthened will all power, according to His glorious might”
“For the attaining of all steadfastness and patience”
“Joyously giving thanks to the Father”

As you can see, each truth builds upon the previous while all of them rest upon the foundation of our faith, the Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 4:7 says to “be of sound judgment and sober spirit for the purpose of prayer”. This prayer of the Apostle Paul’s is a great example of a prayer marked by sound judgment and a sober spirit. Let’s look briefly at the soundness and serious mindedness of the contents of the prayer by considering the life of a believer who is not experiencing growth in these specific areas.

A believer who lacks true knowledge of God and spiritual wisdom will find it difficult to discern the will of God in his or her life and will struggle greatly with understanding Him.
A believer who is walking in a manner that is unworthy of the Lord. His worthiness is the highest of standards but I think the believer can even address his weaknesses in a manner that is worthy of Him. When our walk is unworthy of Him, He is worthy of our repentance.
A believer who’s walk is described as displeasing to the Lord. I don’t believe this is a matter of perfection verses imperfection but is the description of one whose walk that would best be described as displeasing to Him. Again, He is pleased when we come to the throne of Grace, seeking forgiveness for the displeasing things in our life and His help to change.
A believer who is not bearing fruit in good works is not able to walk in the good works that He has prepared for us to walk in. This believer misses out on the joy and blessing of seeing the good works of the Lord. 1 Corinthians 3:9 says we are “God’s fellow workers”. He is not dependent upon us but He longs to work in and through us as He accomplished His will.
A believer who is not growing in their knowledge of God is missing out on perhaps the greatest opportunity afforded the believer in Christ. They are neglecting the privilege of knowing the Holy One, (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) better. All of us could know Him better. “That I may know Him” was part of Paul’s prayer found in Philippians 3:10. In 1 John 5:20 we read “And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true”.
A believer who is leaning on and walking in their own strength is weak. We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us but we are unable to do His will in our strength.
A believer who lacks steadfastness and patience will find they struggle with standing firm, holding on to truth and find themselves tossed to and fro. Unrest and anxiousness will occupy the place where God would have His peace and patience rule in their hearts.
A believer who is unable to give God the joyous thanks due Him will lack an appreciation for the many provisions and acts of grace and mercy that have their origin in Him.

So what are we praying for? It is the will of God that we pray and that the matters of prayer be considered seriously. It is part of the process of sanctification, of Christ being formed in us. It is one of God’s provisions for the believer to respond to the high calling of being an imitator of Him, as beloved children. So, with sound judgment and a sober spirit, with a devotion to you first Lord, help us to be devoted to your gift of prayer.

Greg Engebretson

UNITY AND TRUTH

"To remain divided is sinful! Did not our Lord pray, that they may be one, even as we are one"? (John 17:22). A chorus of ecumenical voices keep harping the unity tune. What they are saying is, "Christians of all doctrinal shades and beliefs must come together in one visible organization, regardless... Unite, unite!" Such teaching is false, reckless and dangerous. Truth alone must determine our alignments. Truth comes before unity. Unity without truth is hazardous. Our Lord's prayer in John 17 must be read in its full context. Look at verse 17: "Sanctify them through thy truth; thy word is truth." Only those sanctified through the Word can be one in Christ. To teach otherwise is to betray the Gospel."

Charles H. Spurgeon, The Essence of Separation, quoted in The Berean Call, July, 1992, p. 4.