Leaders and Disappointments (Part Two)

Yesterday we saw in Nehemiah 13 the first of two causes for Israel’s spiritual collapse following Nehemiah’s revival. There is a third cause, and it is one that very real in our generation as well:

3) The adoption of the values of the culture

Nehemiah 12 describes the joyous celebration of the completed Jerusalem wall. It was a spiritual service with a devoted choir and instrumentalists who glorified God and included a reading of the Word. But in the absence of their leader Nehemiah, who had returned to Persia, the people’s spiritual life began to decline. Nehemiah returned to Jerusalem to discover that biblical standards had been set aside. He was greeted with disobedience, ungodliness, and materialism. Revival fires have gone out to be replaced with a worldly coldness.

The Scope of the Collapse

Only a short time earlier, the people had lined up waiting to place their seal, which was equivalent to signing their names, on a covenant with God that indicated their intention to be obedient (Neh.10). It was an all-encompassing document that included the various aspects of their lives: domestic, commercial, agricultural, social, and religious. We are not certain about the length of Nehemiah’s stay in Persia, but we do know that it was long enough for him to come home to a backslidden people. The temple was defiled (13:4-5), the Levites’ support was missing (v.10), and the Sabbath had been violated (v.15). Missionaries who return after a lengthy furlough and pastors who visit a former parish are often dismayed over the spiritual collapse of a ministry they’ve led! Nehemiah was not only appalled, but he did something about it! We’ll see that tomorrow…