The entire book of Nehemiah is a practical handbook for restoring the Glory of God to the church and the people. Many times, the church falls into a state of laxity, therefore becoming comfortable and losing the vision. When this happens, there must be a spiritual awakening or the people will remain in a backslidden state (to revert to moral wrongdoing or sin) as in the case of the Church of Laodicea.

“And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write: `These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God: I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot; I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew thee out of My mouth.” Revelation 3: 14-16.

To be lukewarm is to be comfortable and relaxed. If you run cold or hot water under your hand, it causes a reaction. You either freeze or burn your hand, then you withdrawal it. If the water is lukewarm, you just leave your hand in it and relax. If the church is cold or hot it will cause some kind of reaction, but if it is lukewarm, people just get comfortable and do nothing to fulfill the great Commission.

A spiritual awakening (to which we will refer to as a revival herein after) is an emerging or a coming to a keen awareness of the spiritual condition of one’s soul or the church as a whole. It is a reinvigoration of energy and strength. To bring back something that became dormant or simply died. It is to reinstate the freshness of life to, as in our case, the soul. Rev. Charles Finney states in his book, Lectures on Revivals of Religion: What is Revival? “A revival consists in the return of the Church from her backslidings and the conversion of sinners.” 

We will be analyzing the physical restoration of the city of Jerusalem and applying it to the spiritual element of church growth. It is during this rebuilding that we can comprehend and apply the systematic sequence employed to rebuild our own churches in the spiritual character.

Nehemiah was the royal cup bearer in the palace of the Persian King in the 20th year of Artaxerxes’ I rein. He was a Jew of the postexilic period and son of Hachaliah (Neh 1:1). He was the appointed governor of Judea by Artaxerxes I. He was an essential and trusted servant of the king. He had a comfortable job with a comfortable salary and a comfortable home. He was a godly man and could have lived there happily ever after. However, one day he received a visit from his brothers, after a brief conversation he made an interesting inquiry.

“The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in the palace at Shushan, that Hanani one of my brethren came, he and certain men of Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews who had escaped, who were left behind from the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem.” Nehemiah 1:1-2

Nehemiah had a heart for the restoration of Jerusalem.  He had a burden in his heart concerning the Jews who had escaped. His inquiry was proof that his concern was genuine. He could have left the issue alone and not asked his brothers anything, but he chose to follow his heart. 

The first step to revival is to have a burden in your heart concerning the status of the people.

His brothers informed him of the condition of those who were left from the captivity.

1. The remnant of the Jews are in the province.

2.  They are in great affliction.

3. They are in great reproach.

4. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down.

5. The gates are burned with fire.

“And they said unto me,” The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.” Nehemiah 1:3

This describes a perfect portrayal of the condition of a backslidden church. When the church is not living in the glorified state that God has intended for her to be in, it falls under the shape listed above.

1.  What is left of the church is spiritual captivity or imprisonment. The church is not free and therefore has fallen out of God's protective umbrella. When an inmate is in prison, he is confined to what the system says he can have, say or do. The inmate looses all the privileges of being a productive citizen. In the same manner, when the church is confined to the prison of Satan, she looses all the privileges of being a citizen of heaven. The devil has stolen their health, healing, prosperity and blessings.

2. To be in affliction - is to live in continuous suffering under the emotional strain of misery. The church in this state is of no use to itself and much less to anyone else. People who live in affliction usually spend most of their time complaining and self absorbed in their pain. God does not want His church to be in this condition.

3. To be in reproach - is disapproval with disappointment. When a person is in reproach he is accused of failure with constant reprimand. We cannot be witnesses of the Gospel in this status.

4. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down - The walls were in ruins since 586 BC. The wall of a city serves as a barrier of protection from the enemy. They are the means of defense. They are practically indestructible.  Without the walls there is no protection from enemy attack. The vulnerability is wide open for outside intrusion. We must always be hid in Christ in whom we have complete protection.

5. The gates were burned with fire. Gates open and close to let people and equipment in and out. Without spiritual gates in the church, people will not be able to come in and be saved or go out and be witnesses for Christ.

When Nehemiah heard of the condition of Jerusalem his reaction was the same one we should have when we learn of our church’s spiritual condition.

“And it came to pass when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven”  Nehemiah 1:4

1. He wept.

2. He mourned.

3. He fasted.

4. He prayed

He was in distress because he loved his people. It was that love that served as a motive for his inquiry. He did not have to inquire about his people but he chooses to. God’s people should embrace that same distress and sadness when they realize the church is backslidden. Nehemiah 1:5-7 says:

“..."I beseech thee, O LORD God of heaven, the great and fearsome God, who keepeth covenant and mercy for those who love Him and observe His commandments, let Thine ear now be attentive and Thine eyes open, that Thou mayest hear the prayer of Thy servant, which 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. We have dealt very corruptly against Thee, and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the judgments which Thou commanded Thy servant Moses.”

As soon as he learned the condition of the remnant, he took positive action. It is only through the genuine repenting of the heart and soul that revival can occur.  Nehemiah claimed the promise of God and became an intercessor on behalf of the people of Israel. He began his prayer with praise. He made prayer and asked God to soften the king’s heart and allow him to find grace in his eyes.

He made confession on behalf of the Israelites for the sin of complacency. Even though he was not in captivity, he allowed it by sitting back and not doing anything. Allowing the sin is just as bad as committing the actual sin. In his confession he was explicit as to the sin. This included:

A. We have sinned against thee; both I and my father’s house have sinned.

B. We have dealt very corruptly against thee.

C. We have not kept thy commandments.

D. We have not kept thy statutes.

E.  We have not kept thy judgments.

Be specific when confessing your sins to God. That way, when He restores the church he will specifically meet the needs.

It is like an architect constructing a building. He draws a blueprint and list specific measurements, altitudes, and planes before the commission is actually started.  In the same manner, the church leader who has a burden for the revival of the church must list individual prayer requests according to the vision God has given him.

We have established so far that the King’s royal cupbearer, Nehemiah, had a burden in his heart because the walls of Jerusalem were broken down and the people were in great affliction. We saw how he made a choice to inquire about the people’s condition and how he interceded on behalf of the Israelites. We studied his response to the distressing news he received.  He was sorrowful. He was not able to hide his sorrow even in the presence of the King.

“And it came to pass in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before him; and I took up the wine and gave it unto the king. Now I had not before been sad in his presence. Therefore the king said unto me, "Why is thy countenance sad, seeing thou art not sick? This is nothing else but sorrow of heart." Then I was very sore afraid.” Nehemiah 2:1-2

Cupbearers were important and trusted servants of kings. They were close advisors to the king, and their responsibilities included preventing the king from being poisoned, whether accidentally, or as part of an assassination. For a cupbearer to be sorrowful in the king’s presence was a serious matter. Often times it could be considered high treason for the king’s life depended on the cupbearer. That is why Nehemiah was sorely afraid when questioned by the king. After four months Nehemiah spoke with the King. He entered through the door of opportunity God was opening for him and responded in the following manner:

“And said unto the king, "Let the king live for ever. Why should not my countenance be sad when the city, the place of my fathers' sepulchers, lieth waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire?”  Nehemiah 2:3

Remember that he had been praying and fasting for when this time arrived. His plan commence with prayer. God had touched the king’s heart and the timing was essential. We must recall that there is a time and place for everything, and we must wait on God’s timing to complete His will. Think of it like an engine in a vehicle. In order for it to run smoothly the timing must be correct. The piston number 1 has to be at top dead center with the crankshaft and camshaft gear at the correct degrees. If it is not lined up correctly, the timing will be off and the engine will not start. If it does start it will backfire and run badly.

God operates in the same fashion. He has a plan and will execute it in the right timing. If we try and rush it or do it in our time it can backfire and not work properly.

 Not only did Nehemiah inform the king of the situation but requested a leave of absence in order to take care of the state of affairs concerning his people.

“Then the king said unto me, "For what dost thou make request?" So I prayed to the God of heaven. And I said unto the king, "If it please the king, and if thy servant have found favor in thy sight, that thou wouldest send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers' sepulchers, that I may build it." And the king said unto me (the queen also sitting by him), "For how long shall thy journey be? And when wilt thou return?" So it pleased the king to send me, and I set him a time. “ Nehemiah 2:4-6

He had a plan and God was on his side. There is no specific time on how long Nehemiah’s leave of absence request was. We do know that to rebuild the walls of a city is not done over night. He also asked for political favors and privilege letters for travel and free timber. He had found grace before the king because he was an honest man who’d prayed his battle before Almighty God who turned circumstance and opportunity into a promotion.

“Moreover I said unto the king, "If it please the king, let letters be given me to the governors beyond the river, that they may convey me over until I come into Judah, also a letter unto Asaph the keeper of the king's forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the palace which appertained to the house, and for the wall of the city and for the house that I shall enter into." And the king granted me, according to the good hand of my God upon me.” Nehemiah 2:7-8.

God’s grace was so amazing that the king sent Nehemiah with the Persian Calvary Officers and horsemen to Judah to carry out God’s work.

“Then I came to the governors beyond the river, and gave them the king's letters. Now the king had sent captains of the army and horsemen with me.” Nehemiah 2:9

Herein lays the power of prayer. God is able to work the impossible through his servants who want to do His will. Prayer is a powerful medium and cannot be substituted with anything. It is a must if one is to have a relationship with God. This cupbearer had found grace in the sight of God and the king because of the power of prayer. The long and difficult journey that Nehemiah was about to begin would transform the history of Israel for ever.

So far we have added to our study that Nehemiah prayed and fasted and waited for the perfect opportunity in God’s timing to make his request known. We also have established that he took the circumstance and turned it into opportunity by waiting on God, so he received a promotion.  As we become prayer intercessors for our church, we must wait on God’s time to execute the plan. Now we shall see how to begin the work set before us.