Nehemiah, the Re-builder

So here's Nehemiah, still in Babylonian, serving as cup-bearer to the king, Artaxerxes, the Persian ruler.  A. notices how downcase Nehemiah is and asks for the reason.  N. tells him and requests permission to return to Jerusalem, "where my fathers are buried, so that I can rebuild it."

Nehemiah clearly has a burden from God to restore the city of Jerusalem and to bring peace to his "family," his people who are still scrabbling for subsistence there and who are still vulnerable to the attacks of their enemies.  The king gives him all the resources he needs and tells him to go do what is in his heart. 

Nehemiah travels to Jerusalem, but does not tell anyone what is in his heart.  At night, under cover of darkness, he sets out to survey the damage.  He gathers a small group of people -- not telling the officials of his plan -- and slowly begins the process of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem.  At first, he is ridiculed and mocked for daring to think he could achieve his plan.  But little by little, the people take hope and begin to help.  Sanballat, one of the Samaritan officials (just north of Jerusalem) said this in the presence of his associates and the army of Samaria:

What are those feeble Jews doing?  Will they restore their wall?  Will they offer sacrifices?  Will they finish in a day? Can they bring the stones back to life from those heaps of rubble--burned as they are?

But Nehemiah kept encouraging the people to pray and to put their trust in God:  So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height, for the people worked with all their heart.  Then the attacks became more than verbal, so some of the people had to stand with swords in hand while the others continued building.  The story is worth reading, but here's why I started it:

The name "Nehemiah" is from the same Hebrew root as "Noah," meaning "Comfort."  Our English word comfort comes from the Latin: with strength.  The current usage does not communicate its original meaning, but instead communicates more softness than strength.  Going back to its origin helps us to understand the story. 

When Noah was born, his father said, "He will bring us comfort from the painful toil of our hands caused by the ground the Lord has cursed."  Both Noah and Nehemiah were Comforters and Sources of Refuge from pain and destruction in their time.    Both were builders and preservers of life.

Jesus called the Holy Spirit "The Comforter."  Like Nehemiah, the Holy Spirit broods over the broken-down walls of our personalities, the places where we are vulnerable to attack, the groveling life we lead.  He wants to rebuild the broken-down walls of our life, so He secretly, under cover of night, without telling anyone, surveys the damage, gathers the people and resources He needs to succor us, and begins the work.  Immediately, as our heads lift and confidence begins to build in us, we come under attack:

Who do you think you are?  You....?   What do you think you can do?  Why are you even trying?

Like the people of Jerusalem listening to their enemies, we become discouraged, thinking the voices of those around us are right.  There is no use trying; we never succeeded in the past; we will fail again.

But the Holy Spirit calls those in the church to take up swords (connected to the Word of God in the N.T.) in our defense and quietly encourages us, bringing to our side people who can help us.  He is not discouraged; He knows exactly what needs to happen, and He is directing the work. 

The Comforter is rebuilding the weak and defenseless areas of our personalities.  He knows what He is doing.  Nehemiah brought the work of rebuilding Jerusalem to completion.  Let us trust ourselves and our families to the powerful and watchful care of the Holy Spirit, the Comforter!