Lesson 2 Aligning With the Promises of God Revision from Last Week What is the difference between spiritual faith and natural faith and the differences between hope and faith? Do you have a testimony about how you changed your prayer during the last week. Has it made a difference?

Outcome of Lesson You will understand how to position your faith in everyday circumstances.

Introduction Although not as well known as many others, Nehemiah is a great example of what happens when we align our faith with the promises of God. His faith demonstrated a very deep dependence on God which was reflected by his frequent prayers to Him.

The Prophet Jeremiah Reveals the Promise of God The prophet Jeremiah warned God’s people of the catastrophe that would fall upon them because of their idolatry and sin. Jerusalem fell, and many of its people were exiled to Babylonia. During the reign of Judah’s last king, Zedekiah, Jeremiah wrote a letter to those already taken into captivity. In Jeremiah 29, the “LORD Almighty” says to the people ​ whom He allowed Nebuchadnezzar to take away as prisoners, ” to “settle down” and get on with life, as His punishment would run its course. ​ God also reveals His will​ to restore them back to their land and into relationship with Him. Read: Jeremiah 29:10-14 10 This is what the LORD says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then ​ you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you​ . 13 You will seek me and find me ​ when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,’ declares the LORD, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.”

This plan of God to restore His people is revealed through the ​ Books ​ of Ezra​ , Nehemiah and ​ Esther​ , all focus on the same period of Israel’s history under Persian rule when the former Kingdom of Judah became the Persian Province of Judaea. Mountain Movers Lesson 2 Aligning with the promises of God 

 

Nehemiah’s Prayer Nehemiah heard from his brother Hanani who came from Judah that those who had returned to Jerusalem from exile were in “great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire.” Hearing this, Nehemiah sat down and wept, mourned, fasted and prayed. Read: Nehemiah 1:5-11 5 O LORD, God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and obey his commands, 6 let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear ​ the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night ​ for your servants, the people of Israel. I ​ confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father’s house, have committed against you. 7 We have acted very wickedly toward you. ​ We have not obeyed ​ the commands, decrees and laws you gave your servant Moses. 8 Remember the instruction you gave your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations, 9 but if you return to me and obey my commands, then even if your exiled people are at the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen as a dwelling for my Name.’ 10 They are your servants and your people, whom you redeemed by your great strength and your mighty hand. 11 O Lord, ​ let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name​ . Give your servant success today by granting him favour in the presence of this man. Now ​ I​ was cupbearer to the king.

In this prayer, Nehemiah lined up with the Word and the will of God, he acknowledged the conditions of the covenant and promise of God, and by repenting, he set things right with God.

Restoring God’s People Read: Nehemiah 2:1-8 And it came to pass in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, that I took the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had never been sad in his presence before. 2 Therefore the king said to me, “Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing but sorrow of heart.” So I became dreadfully afraid, 3 and said to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should my face not be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs,lies waste, and its gates are burned with fire?” 4 Then the king said to me, “What do you request?” So I prayed to the God of heaven. 5 And I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, I ask that you send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ tombs, that I may rebuild it.”

Mountain Movers Lesson 2 Aligning with the promises of God 

  6 Then the king said to me (the queen also sitting beside him), “How long will your journey be? And when will you return?” So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time. 7 Furthermore I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let letters be given to me for the governors of the region beyond the River,[​ a​ ] that they must permit me to pass through till I come to Judah, 8 and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he must give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel which pertains to the temple,[​ b​ ] for the city wall, and for the house that I will occupy.” And the king granted them to me according to the good ​ hand of my God upon me.

Q: Knowing it was God’s plan to restore His people to Jerusalem, how did God move in the hearts of the Persian kings to make sure this happened? A: ​ The Scriptures tell us that the LORD ​ “moved the heart” ​ or “put into the heart” ​ of these kings to rebuild the altar, the temple, the city and the walls of Jerusalem, they sent money and materials for sacrifice and offerings, they sent leaders to rebuild, govern, and re-institute religious ordinances, teaching, worship and law in the temple. Q: Also part of God’s plan was to embolden His people to stand up in faith, by what means did they know this? ​ (review Jeremiah 29:10-14) A: ​ God tells his people through the prophet Jeremiah that ​ “you will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart”​ . He also says ​ “you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.” ​ When they did this, they knew that the ​ “hand of God was upon” ​ them. By this means they were bold, their faith made them expectant, they believed they would receive what they asked for. Through these events we see God’s will in His promise unfolding - bringing people back from captivity, restoring God’s house and His priesthood, and building security to protect His people. Each faithful person had the “hand of God upon” them.

Faith Hears - Aligning with the Word and Will of God God moved hearts to action. This action of faith, revealed the very promise of God. In the ​ Book of Daniel we learn Daniel understood from the Scriptures, “according to Jeremiah's prophecy”, that Jerusalem would be desolate for 70 years. Daniel pleaded with God “in prayer and petition” and humbled himself “in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes.” Daniel confesses the sin, shame, and unfaithfulness of the Israelites aligning with the Word and the will of God for Israel, which we see being fulfilled by Nehemiah at this point in history.

Mountain Movers Lesson 2 Aligning with the promises of God 

 

Daniel 9:17-19 “Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, O LORD, look with favour on your desolate sanctuary. Give ear, O God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy. O LORD, listen! O LORD, forgive! ​ O LORD, hear and act! ​ For your sake, O my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.”

Positioning himself in faith, Daniel receives an answer while still in prayer, Read: Daniel 9:22-23 He instructed me and said to me, “Daniel, I have now come to give you insight and understanding. ​ As soon as you began to pray, an answer was given​ , which I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed.”

God is always more ready to hear than we are to pray. God’s will is to help and assist us in any time of trouble, as he did with Daniel and the Israelites through Nehemiah. These situations illustrate that God was prompt to answer prayers almost before they were uttered. In this way, our will is in harmony with the will of God, and therefore our prayers the Lord will answer. Read: Romans 10:14-15, 17 How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? … Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.

Q: From a practical perspective how does faith come from hearing? A: ​ Faith is based on the Word of God. By hearing scripture, ​ people come into a knowledge of the Word. Just as Nehemiah recalled the prophecies of Jeremiah and Daniel and acted upon them - if we don’t know the promises of God we can’t believe or act on them. Q: From last week, can you remember what constituted a diet of faith? A​ :​ We need to speak scripture outloud ​ ● Hear it with our ears ● Visualize it ● And put it into action

Reflection Mountain Movers Lesson 2 Aligning with the promises of God 

 

Confessing in prayer that the nation forsook God, Nehemiah acknowledges His justice. Commitment follows when Nehemiah says, "O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. Give your servant success today…”. To do what? Nehemiah plans how to rebuild the walls, believing and thus fulfilling the word of God. Nehemiah asks God to move in the king's heart. This is how any return to God’s grace must begin. Invariably, there are factors over which we have no control, and God must arrange them - God seeks those who will seek His will and stand in the gap. Nehemiah is well aware of this, so Nehemiah prays about going to the king. Appearing before him, the king notes Nehemiah’s sadness and asks what he wants. Whenever we stand in the gap like Nehemiah to "arise and build," we need courage as Satan will oppose us when we turn back to God or try fulfill His will and purpose..

Conclusion In order to position ourselves in faith in everyday circumstances, we need to hear the will of God in our lives. In order to hear God’s will, and align ourselves with God’s Word, it is necessary that we read God’s Word, engage in prayer and act.

Lesson Feedback What did you learn from this lesson? Does your faith align and engage with the promises of God? What revelations have you received?

Practical Application On a personal level, keep a record of the prophetic words you receive and seek God’s will in all that you do. Respond in faith to the Word of God and align yourself with the will of God on a Kingdom level. In doing so we need to understand that there will be a cost, God is looking for a person who will stand in the gap.

Prayer Father thank you for your Word, the truth that affects our lives. We pray that we learn as Nehemiah did, to be courageous and confident in you. We repent of our sins and pray that we learn to hear your will in our lives, and align ourselves to respond in faith and stand in the gap when called. In Jesus’ name, Amen. Mountain Movers Lesson 2 Aligning with the promises of God