"There is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God "
Romans 13:1
KINGS AND THE KING
Read It: Nehemiah 2:4-5
If there ever was anyone in a strategic position to make a dynamic impact for God, it was Nehemiah at the moment described in today's text. And what a job my man did. I like this account for a couple of reasons. God arranged the timing so perfectly that when Nehemiah let the king know what was on his heart, Artaxerxes was open to the suggestion-even though he had a little political ical problem with Jerusalem, as we learned yesterday. The second thing I like here is Nehemiah's prayer (v. 4). Now whom was he talking to? The King of Persia. And whom was he praying to? "The God of heaven." Nehemiah was dealing with two kings at the same time. One of the kings was in control of the Persian Empire, but the other King was and still is controlling heaven.
Nehemiah was getting ready to make a request that the earthly king do something about Jerusalem. But first he asked the heavenly King to do something about the earthly king. Nehemiah was asking God to intervene in the government He had established and that He controlled. Nehemiah understood that there is no dichotomy between politics and religion, despite our modern-day nonsense sense that they don't mix. Nehemiah realized there was a king, Artaxerxes, and then there was the King, the God of heaven. He was not going to deal with a king without dealing with the King. I've said this before, but it bears repeating. The purpose of government is to be a minister of God to judge evil and to reward good. The Bible says governmental authorities are God's servants, though they may be unsaved. But God did not place on government the responsibility for transforming forming culture so that it reflects His righteous standards. That's our job as God's people. Unless we are influencing government so that it has a divine standard by which to operate, government won't know which way to go. That is why you need Christian politicians, Christian lawyers, and Christian city council members. The reason most governments don't carry out God's agenda is because God's people are not influencing them. Think About It Are you trying to get something done through earthly "kings" without consulting the King? You need to think again, because it won't work.
No Comments