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 Building with GOOD Stones 

   "Nehemiah's name means 'comfort'
and he is a picture of any Christian today
who wants to be loyal to God and  
His Word in spite of opposition of all kinds.
He was marked by prayer and dependence on God."

Theme song: 
"Building every day"

We are building every day,
actions are the stones we lay!
I am building a house on 
the rock or the sand,
But it's only the house on 
the rock that will stand!

Thought: I am building a house on the rock or the sand,
But it's only the house on the rock that will stand!"

Theme verse:   

"Thou therefore endure hardness
as a good soldier of Jesus Christ."
II Tim. 2:3

Folks made fun of Nehemiah and he had all kinds of opposition from within and without but remember what he did!  He listened to none of it but kept looking to the Lord to see him through!

Some would say Nehemiah had a tough time just like some athletes say, "Its tough playing football or competing in some other sport and it takes absolute dedication to win the game."

It takes absolute dedication to win in Christian 
warfare, too.

"The Word of god is able to build you up..."

Day 1

  God keeps His Promise 
God MAKES HIS PLANS
Nehemiah. 1 and 2

MEMORY VERSES:

  I Kings 8:56

"There hath not failed one word of all His
good promise, which He promised by the hand of Moses, His servant." 

   Philippians 1:6

"Being confident of this very thing, that
He which hath begun a good work in you will
perform it until the day of Jesus Christ."

To see a larger picture of the
thumbnails (tiny pictures)  in "Building With Nehemiah, 
click on the thumbnail.  You might like to print 
the larger picture and color it. That would be
fun, I think!  Miss Sarah

Did you ever have someone make a promise to you?  Did they keep it?  That's the part that really counts, isn't it?  There is one person who always keeps His promises, no matter what happens; that one is the Lord Jesus.  I'm going to tell you how God kept His promise to His own chosen people and how He will keep His promise to you if you will put your faith and trust in Him.

Many, many years ago there lived in Ur of the Chaldees a man by the name of Abram.  This man was different from all the other people in the land for he had faith in the one true and living God instead of idols of wood and stone.  Because of this, God made Abram some very wonderful promises.  Among them was one which I want you to remember.  In Genesis 12:2a He says, "I will make of thee a great nation."  Did God keep His promise to Abram?  Yes, He did!  From the family of Abram God formed the "nation of Israel", otherwise called "The Jewish Nation."  

God gave to Israel a set of rules called the Ten Commandments.  He told them they would them they would have great blessing if they obeyed these rules but if they did not they would be punished.  The people promised to keep all the words which God had spoken.  But in a very short time they broke the very first commandment which says, "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." 

 As a result the Lord allowed the Assyrian army to come down upon His people and overcome them.  Three times they were invaded.  First, a few of the people were taken captive and carried down to Assyria.  The next time King Nebuchadnezzar came and robbed the Temple and the king's palace, carrying away ten thousand people.  Last of all the city of Jerusalem was burned and the wonderful wall which surrounded the city was broken down and destroyed.

They did not mix in with the people of Assyria but remained a separate nation.  And so it has been even until today.  The Jewish people have never lost their identity.  This is all because God promised Abram back in the Ur of Chaldees that He would make of him a great nation.  God always keeps His promise.

After several years Babylon was overcome by the Persian army and Cyrus became king.  This man was kind to the Jews and even gave some of them permission to return to their homeland.  The next king was Xerxes and then Artaxerxes took the throne.  This last king really helped God's people.  He allowed Zerubbabel to lead 200,000 Jews back to Jerusalem and later Ezra, a descendant of Aaron the High Priest, led another company back.  Some of these people rebuilt the Temple and restored the worship.

Among those remaining with King Artaxerxes was a young Jew by the name of Nehemiah.  This young man had gained a place of high honor in the king's court for he was cupbearer to the king.

One day as Nehemiah was going about his work in Shushan at the palace, there came into the court his brother Hanani and some other men from the land of Judah.  Of course Nehemiah was delighted to see them and began at once to ask about Jerusalem and the Jews who had gone back to rebuild the temple.

The men shook their heads sorrowfully and said, "Things are not going well at all in the city of Jerusalem.  it is true the temple has been rebuilt but the walls of the city which Nebuchadnezzar and his soldiers tore down and burned many years ago have never been repaired.  They are still a mass of ruin and rubble.  It is a sad sight and a disgrace to the name of the Lord."  The men also told Nehemiah that the Jewish people who had returned were now every poor and greatly oppressed by the enemies surrounding them.

When Nehemiah heard these things he was very sad and sat down and began to cry as if his heart would break.  This tenderhearted young man loved his people, the Jews, and he loved the city of Jerusalem which had been a glory in the earth.  He knew that a city with broken walls was unprotected from the enemies around about and in great danger.  

As Nehemiah cried and thought upon these things the Lord stirred in his heart a desire to help his people and to restore the walls of the city of God.  But how could he go about such a thing as this?  He must first get permission from King Artaxerxes whom he was serving.  This young man did the wisest thing that any child of God can do; he fell down on his knees and began to talk to God in prayer.

 God knows the answer to every question and He has the solution to every problem.  He can even help a young man build a great wall, if his heart is right toward Him.  As Nehemiah began to pray he first confessed his sin and the sin of the people to God.  This is the place to begin, boys and girls, if we ever want God to bless and use us.  WE must be right in our heart life.

In Nehemiah 1:6 Nehemiah says, "I pray before thee now day and night for the children of Israel, thy servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee: both I and my father's house have sinned."  Nehemiah does not accuse everyone else but himself of doing wrong but he plainly says, "I have sinned."

In Romans 3:23 it says that "All have sinned and come short of the glory of God."  Romans 3:12b says, "There is none that doeth good, no not one."  This means that every one of us have done things that are wrong at one time or another.  Because Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden every one born into the world has the seed of sin in his heart.  

There is only one way to be cleansed from sin and that is by faith in Jesus Christ, God's only begotten Son, who gave His life on the cross of Calvary as a sacrifice for our sins.

After we receive the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior we learn that God has a plan for our life; and special work for each one of us to do.  As we yield to the Lord and keep in close touch with him through reading His Word and talking to Him in prayer, He will make plain to us His will.  This is exactly what happened to Nehemiah.  For four months after he received word about conditions in Jerusalem he prayed to God night and day, claiming God's promises and seeking to know His plan for him.

Artaxerxes and the queen sat upon their thrones.  Nehemiah stepped forward and served the king and queen.  But as his duties ended he turned aside.  "Why are you so sad, Nehemiah?" the king asked, " You are not sick, are you?" 

Nehemiah was frightened for he knew that it was very bad manners to appear before the king with a sorrowful face.  "Let the king live forever," he answered, "Why should not my face be sad when Jerusalem, the city where my father is buried and the place where Almighty God dwelt among His people, is laid waste and the walls thereof are broken down and burned?  My people are oppressed and burdened by the enemy and there is no one to deliver them."  King Artaxerxes was touched by these earnest words from Nehemiah and asked, "What can I do to help your people?"

 Quietly Nehemiah began to speak, "If it please the king and if I have found favor in your eyes, I ask that you send me to Jerusalem to re-build the walls of that great city."  No doubt the king was reluctant to part with his trustworthy servant but he said to him, "How long would you be gone?"  Nehemiah told him it would take some time to accomplish this great task and he would have to be away for many months.  But in spite of all this the Lord laid it upon the heart of the king to let his cupbearer go.

 King Artaxerxes gave Nehemiah a letter of recommendation to the rulers of Judah as well as a note to the keeper of his forest telling him to permit Nehemiah to cut down trees from the forest with which to build the gates of the city wall.  In Nehemiah 2:8 he said, "And the king granted me according to the good hand of my God upon me."  Yes, the good hand of God was indeed upon Nehemiah and we can see Him working out His plan in Nehemiah's life.  

He will do the same thing for each of you, boys and girls, as you put yourselves in His hands.

The king also gave Nehemiah a guard of soldiers and some horsemen to accompany him to Jerusalem.  It took them four months to make the long journey.  As they came to the rulers of the countries near Judah, Nehemiah showed them the letter from Artaxerxes.  These men were very displeased for they were not friendly toward the Jews in Jerusalem and did not want anyone to help them.

However, they did not dare hinder the man of God because of the king's letter so he traveled on and soon came to the Holy City.

Click NEXT below to
continue Day 1 of this exciting first story 
about Nehemiah!