Nehemiah 5:14-19: A Godly Leader

Nehemiah 5:14-19: A Godly Leader

Please turn with me in your Bible to Nehemiah 5. If you’re using one of the Story Bibles we provide, that’s on page 322. We’ve been going passage by passage through the book of Nehemiah, following the text wherever it goes. And this morning, it takes us to Nehemiah 5:14-19. Nehemiah 5:14-19:

14 Moreover, from the time that I was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year to the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes the king, twelve years, neither I nor my brothers ate the food allowance of the governor. 15 The former governors who were before me laid heavy burdens on the people and took from them for their daily ration forty shekels of silver. Even their servants lorded it over the people. But I did not do so, because of the fear of God. 16 I also persevered in the work on this wall, and we acquired no land, and all my servants were gathered there for the work. 17 Moreover, there were at my table 150 men, Jews and officials, besides those who came to us from the nations that were around us. 18 Now what was prepared at my expense for each day was one ox and six choice sheep and birds, and every ten days all kinds of wine in abundance. Yet for all this I did not demand the food allowance of the governor, because the service was too heavy on this people. 19 Remember for my good, O my God, all that I have done for this people. 

I don’t think it would be an overstatement to say that the health and progress of a church rises and falls on godly leadership. Godly leadership is what makes the difference between a church that is what God wants it to be and a church that’s not what God wants it to be. Even just looking back on my life individually and my own spiritual growth, I can tell you that the men who have made the biggest impact on me didn’t necessarily have exceptional giftedness or charisma. They were simply godly men who spent time with me. I remember one guy in particular, a guy named Dustin Rife, who served as my church’s youth pastor for a couple of years while I was in high school. I honestly don’t think I can remember one sermon Dustin preached or one small group lesson he taught. But I remember this: he was a godly man, devoted to the Lord, devoted to prayer, and his way of life is what made a lasting impact on me. So it’s nearly impossible to overstate the importance of godly leadership. I’ve heard it said of pastors that their life is the most important sermon they’ll ever preach, and that certainly seems to be true. And as we look at this passage of Scripture here in Nehemiah 5, I believe it becomes clear that Nehemiah was that kind of a leader. That’s actually the main idea we see here. Nehemiah was a godly leader. And there are two characteristics Nehemiah displays here that make him a godly leader. We’ll examine both of these in detail. Number one, Nehemiah maintained a humble fear of God. And number two, Nehemiah sacrificed for the sake of God’s mission.

Nehemiah Maintained a Humble Fear of God 

So first, Nehemiah maintained a humble fear of God. Look again with me at verses 14-15: 14 Moreover, from the time that I was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year to the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes the king, twelve years, neither I nor my brothers ate the food allowance of the governor. 15 The former governors who were before me laid heavy burdens on the people and took from them for their daily ration forty shekels of silver. Even their servants lorded it over the people. But I did not do so, because of the fear of God. So typically, a regional governor would enjoy some significant perks that went along with his privileged position. Verse 14 identifies one of those perks as the “food allowance of the governor.” Basically, the governor would have his subjects provide whatever food he needed—food both for him and for the numerous others who ate at his table, usually dozens or even hundreds. So this food allowance would be a lot higher than your typical family grocery bill. We’re talking about food for a lot of people. And along with receiving that food allowance, Nehemiah writes in verse 15, “The former governors who were before me laid heavy burdens on the people and took from them for their daily ration forty shekels of silver.” So governors would typically tax their subjects excessively in order to make themselves rich. And they would do this because they were arrogant, ultimately. Verse 15 records that “even their servants lorded it over the people.” So these rulers and even their high-ranking servants had an inflated view of themselves and thought they deserved a life of excessive luxury, and so that’s why they had no problem enjoying that kind of life by walking on the backs of those under them.  

But…that’s not how Nehemiah behaved as governor. Not only did Nehemiah refuse to levy excessive taxes on the people, he even declined the customary and very legitimate food allotment for the governor. And at the end of verse 15, he explains why he behaved the way he did—especially with regard to his refusal to levy excessive taxes and lord his position over the people. He says, “But I did not do so, because of the fear of God.” That’s what kept Nehemiah from acting like a typical governor—“the fear of God.” In other words, he feared God too much to abuse his power or take advantage of the people under him. Now unfortunately, all too often, leaders today don’t have a fear of God. Too often, they’re like the governors who preceded Nehemiah and have an inflated view of themselves. And so, many times, they don’t hesitate to use every bit of power and influence they possess make themselves rich and to exalt themselves—usually at the expense of others. If they’re a business leader, those “others” might be the people under them, or if they’re a political leader, the “others” might be their constituents or the population in general. But regardless of what kind of a leader we’re talking about, many of them won’t hesitate to walk on the backs of others in order to exalt themselves. To state it bluntly, both their egos and their greed are almost limitless. That’s the way it seems the majority of leaders in our fallen world naturally behave, to one degree or another. 

Interestingly, I’ve even seen that kind of behavior in children. One of my children—I won’t say which one—has a bit of a bossy personality. He likes to be in charge and tell people what to do, and we frequently have to remind him that he can’t just boss other kids around. So one afternoon he was by himself in his room during what was supposed to be naptime, and we overheard him talking. And as we listened more to what he was saying, it turned out that he was actually bossing around his stuffed animals. He was giving them a very strict lecture about the importance of doing something. I forget what exactly it was, but he was really giving them a good talking to. And I thought to myself, “That is one power-hungry little man. We won’t let him boss around other kids so he has to resort to bossing around his stuffed animals.” In the words of verse 15, I think we could definitely put that in the category of a ruler lording his authority and lording his power over others. And again, that’s a tendency I believe we see in the majority of leaders in our world, to one degree or another. They’re all about themselves. 

But the Bible introduces a radically new style of leadership that we might call “servant leadership.” This is a way of leading and a mentality toward leading that I just don’t think we see outside of cultures that have been shaped by the Bible. And here in this passage, Nehemiah is a very clear example of a servant leader. Because of his “fear of God,” Nehemiah uses his position as leader to serve people rather than use people. Not surprisingly, Jesus also has a few things to say about servant leadership. In Matthew 20, we read how two of his disciples named James and John try to secure high-ranking positions in his kingdom. Basically, they think Jesus has come to overthrow the Roman empire and establish an earthly kingdom of his own, and so they want to make sure they’re given the highest positions in that kingdom, regardless of what they have to do or who they have to shove out of the way in order to obtain those positions. And things get interesting when the other ten of Jesus’ closest disciples discover what James and John are trying to do. The text says, in verses 24-27, 24 And when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers. 25 But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 26 It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever would be first among you must be your slave. In other words, true greatness comes not through trying to exalt yourself but rather through serving the people around you. 

So think about your life. If you have significant leadership responsibilities, does your style of leading demonstrate the mentality of a servant? Does it demonstrate a true concern for your employees or the people under your care? And also, even if you’re not someone who would typically be viewed as a leader, I can almost guarantee you have some kind of power and influence in some areas of life. So are you using that power and influence to serve the people around you? That’s what Nehemiah did as he was walking in the fear of God. 

Nehemiah Sacrificed for the Sake of God’s Mission 

Then also, not only did Nehemiah maintain a humble fear of God, he also sacrificed for the sake of God’s mission. That’s our second point and a second characteristic that marked Nehemiah as a godly leader. Nehemiah sacrificed for the sake of God’s mission. In verses 16-18 we read, 16 I also persevered in the work on this wall, and we acquired no land, and all my servants were gathered there for the work. 17 Moreover, there were at my table 150 men, Jews and officials, besides those who came to us from the nations that were around us. 18 Now what was prepared at my expense for each day was one ox and six choice sheep and birds, and every ten days all kinds of wine in abundance. Yet for all this I did not demand the food allowance of the governor, because the service was too heavy on this people. So again, we read how Nehemiah refused to take the customary food allowance for the governor even though he had 150 men to feed from the Jews and officials plus an unspecified number of others who were present from the surrounding nations. One commentator estimates that Nehemiah was responsible for feeding 600 people every day—because in ancient cultures, that kind of lavish hospitality was just something that was expected from high ranking leaders. Yet in spite of having so many mouths to feed, Nehemiah refuses to take the governor’s food allowance and instead uses his own money to feed all those people every day for twelve years. Each day, he says in verse 18, it takes “one ox and six choice sheep and birds.” You don’t have to be very good at math figure out that Nehemiah must have been extremely wealthy to be able to do that. And yet, he didn’t hoard his wealth but made significant sacrifices for the sake of the mission—which, as you may remember from previous weeks, was rebuilding the wall. God had called him to rebuild Jerusalem’s wall, and that’s why he was making these sacrifices. 

And just like God had given Nehemiah a mission, he’s also given us a mission—the mission of spreading the gospel and making disciples. That’s what he calls us to do. That’s why we’re here. And God first calls leaders to sacrifice for sake of that mission, as we see exemplified here in Nehemiah 5—but not just leaders. God actually calls every Christian to a life of substantial commitment and even sacrifice as we seek to make Jesus famous. I love the way John Piper describes it. He calls it “a wartime lifestyle.” Listen to what he writes: “The Queen Mary, lying in repose at the harbor at Long Beach, California, is a fascinating museum of the past. Used both as a luxury liner in peacetime and a troop transport during the Second World War, its present status as a museum the length of three football fields affords a stunning contrast between the lifestyles appropriate in peace and war. On one side of a partition you see the dining room reconstructed to depict the peacetime table setting that was appropriate to the wealthy patrons of high culture for whom a dazzling array of knives and forks and spoons held no mysteries. On the other side of the partition the evidences of wartime austerities are in sharp contrast. One metal tray with indentations replaces fifteen plates and saucers. Bunks, not just double but eight tiers high, explain why the peace-time [capacity] of 3000 gave way to 15,000 people on board in wartime. How repugnant to the peacetime masters this transformation must have been! To do it took a national emergency, of course. The survival of a nation depended on it.” 

So do you see what Piper’s getting at? There’s a big difference between a peacetime lifestyle and a wartime lifestyle. In a wartime lifestyle, you instinctively make sacrifices you’d likely never make during a period of peace. And that’s the lifestyle God calls us to—because according to the Bible, there’s war going on right now. It’s a spiritual war against the devil for the souls of billions of people all around this world. That’s what’s at stake. During World War II, it was the survival of our nation at stake. But in this spiritual war, it’s the souls of billions. So if you’re a Christian, what kind of a lifestyle are you living—a peacetime lifestyle or a wartime lifestyle? Or maybe you could phrase the question like this: what are you doing without that you would otherwise have if it weren’t for our gospel mission? To be honest with you, I wouldn’t be driving that beat up 2003 Civic out there in the parking lot if it weren’t for our mission. What about you? What are you doing without that you would otherwise have if it weren’t for our gospel mission? Of course, I’m not saying you’re in sin if you drive a Lexus. We see in our text that Nehemiah did have and enjoy some luxuries. In verse 18, he records that “every ten days” he served “all kinds of wine in abundance.” So I’m not saying you can’t legitimately enjoy anything. But the point remains that when you recognize that we’re in the middle of a spiritual war, it’ll change the way you live and the way you handle what God’s entrusted to you.

Extended Conclusion: One Greater than Nehemiah

So those are two of the characteristics that marked Nehemiah as a godly leader. He maintained a humble fear of God by serving people rather than using them to exalt himself. And also, he sacrificed for the sake of God’s mission by refusing the food allowance typically given to the governor. But we would be missing out on some of the riches our text offers us if we were to stop the conversation at Nehemiah as a servant leader. Because the fact is that Nehemiah points forward to someone infinitely greater than himself. Four hundred years later, another servant leader would walk the streets of Jerusalem, and this servant leader would give to others a lot more than a few oxen and a few sheep. Think back with me to that conversation between Jesus and his disciples we looked at earlier—the conversation recorded in Matthew 20 where the disciples are fighting among themselves for a privileged position. Remember how Jesus responds to them? Beginning in verse 25: 25 But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 26 It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever would be first among you must be your slave.” And that’s where we stopped. But Jesus actually goes on to say in verse 28, 28 even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” So Jesus speaks of himself as the ultimate example of a leader who sacrifices his own well-being for the sake of other people. He “came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” That sentence is packed with things that should absolutely amaze us. 

First, just think about how amazing it is that Jesus “came”—the simple truth that he “came.” Consider that before he “came,” Jesus existed in heaven where he enjoyed perfect paradise. He enjoyed perfect fellowship with God the Father, unceasing praise from thousands upon thousands and perhaps even millions of angels, and all the other breathtaking delights of heaven that our minds in their present condition can’t even come close to imagining. That’s the kind of existence Jesus enjoyed. And yet, Jesus laid aside his heavenly privileges so he could come. The privileges Nehemiah gave up are nothing compared to the privileges Jesus gave up. Then, according the second part of that verse, he “came not to be served but to serve.” Of course, it would have been entirely appropriate if he had come to “be served.” After all, he’s God—he’s the Creator of this entire universe. Everything you see and touch and smell and hear—it all belongs to him! Yet, Jesus “came not to be served but to serve.” And here’s how he did that, in the last part of the verse: by “[giving] his life as a ransom for many.” That means when Jesus died on the cross, a very important transaction took place. Jesus’ life was functioning like a ransom payment. It was a payment that secured our freedom and forgiveness and salvation. Without that payment, you and I and everybody in this world would all be condemned to hell for our sinful rebellion against God. Because in and of ourselves, we have no hope of rescuing ourselves from God’s judgment. There’s nothing we can do. But Jesus died on the cross as our substitute, to pay the penalty we deserved, so that all of our sins could be washed away forever. And then Jesus resurrected from the dead as a sign of his decisive victory over sin and Satan and everything else that stood against us. He conquered it all. And the result is that we can share his victory as we put our trust in him. That involves turning away from everything in our lives that displeases God and looking to Jesus alone for rescue. 

So wherever you are this morning, spiritually speaking, I invite you to look to Jesus as the ultimate servant leader. Gaze upon his beauty, bask in the light of his splendor, and adore him as the one who laid aside his heavenly privileges for us—for our welfare and our salvation. I know we read Philippians 2 earlier in the service, but I’d like to read part of it again. Philippians 2:5-11: 5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.