This sermon was prepared for the
8th, but a terrible flood came through our community on that day, so we didn't
have church and began to work to help to clean up. The actual date
the the sermon was preached the 15th.
Have you ever wondered what
makes a champion tick? What made
the great inventor Thomas Edison continue to work so hard at inventing? What
made Noah to build the greatest boat of his time?
What made Michael Jordan play so good?
Why did Rocky keep on fighting until he beat Apollo Creed?
What made Sister Theresa care so much?
What makes Billy Graham keep on preaching?
What is it that gave the soldiers of so many wars the willingness to
lay their life on the line? What
made Jesus to give his life on the cross?
It’s their heart.
The heart is the center of a person.
It is the area of your life through which all of our actions,
attitudes, and affections must pass. The
shape and size doesn’t seem to make the difference, but it is what is in the
heart that counts. You have heard
it been said to not loose heart, take heart, have a heart, take it to heart,
hard hearted, faint hearted, lion hearted, and big hearted.
All of these clichés show the importance of a heart to the life of the
individual. Without the right
heart life seems to loose some of it’s zest.
But, with the right heart a person can soar to new heights.
Let’s look into the heart of one of God’s champions.
Nehemiah was a captive in a foreign land. He had been serving in the Shushan palace as cupbearer to the
king. One day he got word
concerning his fellow countrymen who were suffering back home. What happened next reveals why Nehemiah became one of God’s
champions.
Scripture
Text: Nehemiah
1
1 These
are the memoirs of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah.
In
late autumn of the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes’ reign,
I was at the fortress of Susa. 2 Hanani, one of
my brothers, came to visit me with some other men who had just arrived from
Judah. I asked them about the Jews who had survived the captivity and about
how things were going in Jerusalem. 3They said to me, “Things are
not going well for those who returned to the province of Judah. They are in
great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem has been torn down, and the
gates have been burned.”
4 When
I heard this, I sat down and wept. In fact, for days I mourned, fasted, and
prayed to the God of heaven. 5 Then I said, “O Lord,
God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps his covenant of unfailing
love with those who love him and obey his commands, 6listen to my
prayer! Look down and see me praying night and day for your people Israel. I
confess that we have sinned against you. Yes, even my own family and I have
sinned! 7We have sinned terribly by not obeying the commands, laws,
and regulations that you gave us through your servant Moses.
8“Please
remember what you told your servant Moses: ‘If you sin, I will scatter you
among the nations. 9But if you return to me and obey my commands,
even if you are exiled to the ends of the earth, I will bring you back to the
place I have chosen for my name to be honored.’
10“We
are your servants, the people you rescued by your great power and might. 11 O
Lord, please hear
my prayer! Listen to the prayers of those of us who delight in honoring you.
Please grant me success now as I go to ask the king for a great favor. Put it
into his heart to be kind to me.”
In those days I was the king’s cup-bearer.
The purpose of this message is to show what was in the
heart of Nehemiah and show how we can have the heart of a champion.
What kind of heart did Nehemiah have?
1.
Tender Heart (4
And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and
mourned [certain] days,) Nehemiah had a soft heart.
Softness of heart. Compassion
of heart for others. Not afraid
to cry for someone else’s trouble. Do
you care? How much?
How much did Nehemiah care? Apathy
often rules today when it comes to caring for others.
Champions care.
2.
Praying Heart (and
fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven,) Nehemiah had a praying
heart. He knows the desires of
God and he lines up with the Lord and confesses his sin and his desire to go
with God. He recognizes the power
of God, and he desires to have God in his life.
Do you and will you call out on the name of the Lord?
Prayer changes the person who will pray.
Champions pray.
3.
Lowly Heart: Nehemiah
had a lowly heart. He went to God
in confession of sin and acknowledgement of need.
Willing to admit your wrong. He
was willing to ask for the help of another.
You can’t do it on your own. He
was willing to change and to be the right person for the job.
He wasn’t proud but lowly. Thinks
of others and prays for them. Champions
aren’t proud.
4.
Courageous Heart: Nehemiah had a courageous heart.
A Champion has the courage to stand up when all others go
out. He had the courage to trust
God. Trusting isn’t as easy as
it looks. You have to depend
totally on the Lord. Especially
when things are going good as they were for Nehemiah. He had a cushy job in the king’s palace when he got the
news. It takes courage to step
out from a position of security to a place where you have never been to do the
will of the Lord. Champions
are courageous.
5.
Willing Heart: Nehemiah
had a willing heart. The champion
doesn’t say who will go for us, but he or she says, here I am send me.
Would you be willing to be more for the Lord?
Are you settled and happy with who you are now?
Then you will never be able to do more with the Lord.
Champions are willing.
6.
A Determined Heart: Nehemiah had a determined heart.
He was determined to do whatever it took to see that those walls
were rebuilt around the city of Jerusalem.
His countrymen were in danger. Champions
are determined.
To have the heart of a champion of God we need to have
a change of heart. Let God give
you a new heart. God wants you to
become his champion. Nehemiah was able to lead the people of the Lord to new heights as they
completed the wall surrounding the city of Jerusalem. What is it that the Lord wants you to accomplish?
Do you have the heart for it? Maybe
you need some heart surgery today? Let
the Lord change your heart.
Are
you ready to put your faith in action? This
week a flood has devastated our county. Now
we have been given a great opportunity to help those who have walls that have
been torn down. Will you become
one of God’s champions? All
those who will dedicate themselves to the work will be asked to stand and pray
together. Will you go?