Nehemiah 1 RIGHT PLACE - RIGHT TIME The book of Nehemiah is an autobiography for the most part as the Spirit of God moved this man to give us, not only a historical account of events, but also principles of leadership. A man in comfortable circumstances with a very important work in the king's palace, still had his heart in the right place. He knew his Jewish heritage was important and he knew that whatever his circumstances were personally, he was bound by birth to the people of God. Likely he had never been to Jerusalem and had only heard of the first group of exiles who had returned to Jerusalem before his time. The group who went with Ezra fifty years later would have been contemporaries of his, so his interest in their success would have been personal. Then after twelve years his brother and some others with him came to Babylon with news about the state of things with God's people in Jerusalem.
Our interest in the work of the Lord wherever it is in our day is an important part of our lives because those engaged in spiritual enterprise all over the world are our brothers and sisters. We may not know many of the thousands of laborers in the great harvest field of the world, but we can have a part in the work by prayer and practical participation by financial support. The prayer meetings of a local assembly of God's people and the reports from mission fields stirs our interest and hearts. An assembly that prays for and supports missionary work and Gospel efforts will be a healthy assembly. When we know a bit about a work in some far-off field, we will always want to know more and how the work is progressing.
Nehemiah would have known about the group who went with Ezra and his interest in that work and its success was genuinely heart-felt. It was in the month of Chisleu (December) at the king's winter palace where his brother and those with him gave a report of the sad state of affairs among the Jews in Jerusalem and the disorganized and unprotected city that was at the mercy of all those around them. Likely there was some resentment from those idolatrous women and children, and their pagan families against the Jewish men who had put them away. A city without walls is defenseless and vulnerable to attacks from without. Separation without defined barriers is open to any opposition that is louder and stronger. God's people need to know there is an "in and out" to a scripturally gathered assembly. They also need to know the scriptural basis for the separation, the reasons for, and the results of separation.
Even though Nehemiah served in high places and had a high position, he knew the uniqueness of the Jews and the need to maintain that uniqueness in the world. He was seriously concerned about the people and also the place. People are obviously more important than things. Without people the house of God and the fields ripe to harvest are valueless. God desires His people to be with Him and involved with Him in their lives. "Gather My saints together unto Me; those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice." The unity and security of God's people is essential to the public testimony of God's grace and saving power to the world around us. The exiles were in trouble and the disgrace and reproach that the few who were left were enduring was the cause of Nehemiah's great sorrow.
For some reason there was only a remnant of exiles left and they were in danger because of the defenseless city. The wall building project started by Ezra had been forcibly stopped. The rebuilding of the temple was a good thing, but the need of holiness in day to day living of God's people that allowed the temple worship, had to be real to the people. What we are and what we do in daily living affects what our worship and service for God is like. Forms and rituals are not what constitutes worship. If our testimony before the world as citizens is lost, our assembly testimony is of no value. The first step of separation is "unto" the Lord. When we have gathered unto Him there will be separation from the world. There will be a distinctness that makes people of the world uncomfortable because it exposes sin.
Both the walls and gates were destroyed in Jerusalem. There was nothing that defined that place. There was no place at the gate where judges met to make public decisions that kept order among the people. People came and went without any restrictions or reservations. There was no seat of authority and no distinction between the people of God and everyone else. Isolation is quite different from separation. Isolation removes us from any interaction with people and cuts us off from any way to carry out the calling and commission we have been given by our Lord. Separation simply means we are maintaining a uniqueness of life and walk that is consistent with the holy calling we have been given. The distinctiveness of holiness has to do with the way we live rather than where we are. We live by faith so the grace of God can be seen both in our personal lives as believers in Christ, and in our church life as those who are gathered to Christ alone and in His name alone.