The Reforms by Nehemiah Part 2

The Reforms by Nehemiah – Part Two Nehemiah 13:15 – 31

Compromise # 4: The Israelites neglected to obey God’s command concerning the Sabbath – Nehemiah 13:15 – 22

·         Nehemiah’s rebuke of the people

·         Nehemiah rebuked the spiritual leaders for allowing the Sabbath to be neglected

Reform # 4: Nehemiah demanded of the priests and people to reinstitute the Sabbath observance

·         Nehemiah took action with the Israelites

·         Nehemiah took action with the Gentiles

Application: In what area (s) of your life are you not fully compliant with God’s Word?

Compromise # 5: The Israelites neglected to maintain purity in their marriages – Nehemiah 13:23 – 31

·         Nehemiah rebuked the Jews for marrying Gentiles

·         Nehemiah rebuked the Jews for raising their children in the ways of the world Reform # 5: Nehemiah rebuked the priests and people and removed the Gentiles

·         Nehemiah took action to remove the Gentiles in the marriage relationships

·         Nehemiah took action to remove the Gentiles who intermarried within the spiritual leaders.

Application: If we examine our hearts, where have we let the world’s way of thinking creep into our lives?

How to Avoid the Sinkhole of Sin

1.    Learn from others consequences of sin from the Bible and current life examples – I Corinthians 10:1 – 6 

2. Lean strongly on the Holy Spirit to give you the ability to obey God’s Word – John 14:15 – 18     

3. Live daily with God’s thoughts in mind by spending time with the Father – 2 Peter 3:18     

4. Learn to recognize sin and call it by its right name – I John 1:8-10

5.    Live with the realization that you can go far with sin but you can’t go long – Galatians 6:7; Numbers 32:23; Hebrews 11:24 – 25

6.    Live with the thought of the judgment seat of Christ – 2 Corinthians 5:10

7.    Love that there is always a way back to the Father – Luke 15:11-32

Key Thought: How can you and I stay _______________________ with God and others to seek holiness in our lives.

Questions to Ponder this Week

1.    What area (s) of your life do you need to be more disciplined in to fully obey?

2.    How will you tighten up some areas of your life to avoid the slow erosion of sin in your life?

3.    How can you share with someone this week who may be struggling with an area of sin on how you may help them to overcome and obey?