Church Abuse, Part 2
Nehemiah
3rd August 2013
This continues from our study of Ezra last week.
Nehemiah was a contemporary of Ezra. While the work of restoring Jerusalem was going on, Nehemiah was a servant of the King of Persia, living in Susa in modern-day Iran.
Nehemiah 1:1-4
The words of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah:
In the month of Kislev in the twentieth year, while I was in the
citadel of Susa,
Hanani, one of my brothers, came from Judah with some other men, and I questioned them about the Jewish
remnant that survived the exile, and also about Jerusalem.
They said to me, "Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and
disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire."
When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the
God of heaven.
God was moving Nehemiah's heart to go and help in the work of rebuilding. He prayed for God to move the king's heart to let him do so. Then:
Nehemiah 2:1-5
In the month of Nisan in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was brought for him, I took the
wine and gave it to the king. I had not been sad in his presence before;
so the king asked me, "Why does your face look so sad when you are not ill? This can be nothing but sadness
of heart."
I was very much afraid,
but I said to the king, "May the king live for ever! Why should my face not look sad when the city where my
fathers are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?"
The king said to me, "What is it you want?"
Then I prayed to the God of heaven,
and I answered the king, "If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favour in his sight, let him
send me to the city in Judah where my fathers are buried so that I can rebuild it."
Artaxerxes, king of Persia, let Nehemiah travel to Jerusalem to rebuild. He set to work, motivating and organizing the people to rebuild the walls and to defend the city. There was much discouragement and danger but, largely due to Nehemiah's commitment, wisdom and encouragement, they finished the job. There's no doubt that Nehemiah served God by leading the people with courage, skill and perseverance.
After this, Nehemiah had to leave Judea to return to Artaxerxes. When he returned to Jerusalem some time later, he instituted a number of reforms, which we can read about in Nehemiah 13:7-21. Sometimes he was a bit strident, a bit dictatorial; he threw a man's household goods out of his room, he threatened to "lay hands on" people (not in a good way) if they didn't do as they were told, and he congratulated himself in prayer for his own righteousness. Listen to this:
Nehemiah 13:14
Remember me for this, my God, and do not blot out what I have so faithfully done for the house of my God
and its services.
Nehemiah 13:22b
Remember me for this also, my God, and show mercy to me according to your great love.
Beware a leader who believes he's more holy than the rest of his church.
The decline from great leader and passionate, inspiring re-builder to brutal, self-important dictator had begun. It got worse:
Nehemiah 13:23-27
Moreover, in those days I saw men of Judah who had married women from Ashdod, Ammon and Moab.
Half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod or the language of one of the other peoples, and did not
know how to speak the language of Judah.
I rebuked them and called curses down on them. I beat some of the men and pulled out their hair. I made them
take an oath in God-s name and said: "You are not to give your daughters in marriage to their sons, nor are
you to take their daughters in marriage for your sons or for yourselves.
Was it not because of marriages like these that Solomon king of Israel sinned? Among the many nations there
was no king like him. He was loved by his God, and God made him king over all Israel, but even he was led
into sin by foreign women.
Must we hear now that you too are doing all this terrible wickedness and are being unfaithful to our God by
marrying foreign women?"
Some people actually believe that Nehemiah was right to behave like this. I think his actions were dreadful. How can a leader of God's people abuse those under his care?/p>
Nehemiah had returned to Jerusalem some time after Ezra's ruling that we read about last time - that all Jews who had married foreign wives must divorce them. He found that the people were still marrying foreign wives. And he lost his temper. He "rebuked them and called curses down on them." He "beat some of the men and pulled out their hair". He "made them take an oath in God-s name."
Church leaders will sometimes find that most of the people in the church ignore what they say. This can be frustrating. We can preach something over and over again, and find that the church is still not living out what we've taught them. Do we ever stop to think that maybe - as in this case - the people are right and we're mistaken? And even if we're right and they're wrong, that doesn't give us the right to abuse God's people.
When a leader feels that the people in his church aren't listening to him, he can get annoyed about it. When this happens, he should pray for humility and wisom. Nehemiah chose instead to rebuke them. And he chose to curse them. There is a place for church leaders to rebuke people occasionally (2 Timothy 4:2, Titus 1;13, Titus 2:15) but this should be done lovingly and carefully. But how can it ever be right for a leader of God's people to curse them? Church leaders should love and cherish those under their care, always seeking their good, never their harm.
Nehemiah beat some of the men and pulled out their hair. How far must a leader have fallen before he's willing to physically abuse the people they're supposed to care for?
And, perhaps the worst of all, Nehemiah made them take an oath in God-s name. Since he had to make them do this, it's clear that they didn't want to. They probably didn't believe the oath was right. And they were correct - Nehemiah was mistaken (as we saw last week). An oath that is taken under compulsion is not an oath at all; we can't be held responsible for saying something we were forcd to say. But to break an oath before God is a serious business. Nehemiah was using this as a means of controlling the people. Controlling God's people is not what a leader is for. We're called to be shepherds, not dictators.
Sadly, many church leaders who start out with the best of intentions find the pressure of leadership, and the pride of leadership, can cause their hearts to harden and their arrogance to develop. They hurt people who don't do what they want - spiritually, psychologically, financially or even physically. Happily, many others don't.
May I humbly remind other leaders that we're called to emulate Jesus Christ who said:
Matthew 11:28-30
-Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for
your souls.
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.-
My prayer for myself is that I will become increaingly gentle and humble in heart.
And, if you're a member of church whose leaders are willing to curse, beat or manipulate its members, then GET OUT. And seek healing for the abuse you've suffered.