Tips for Teaching This Week’s Session of The Gospel Project for Adults

Listen to this week’s leader training podcast with Y Bonesteele, team leader for The Gospel Project for Adults, for a summary and guidance in leading your group.

This week’s additional resources for study and preparation:

• Sermon Manuscript: “The Kind of Prayer God Answers” by H. B. Charles Jr.
• Commentary: “Commentary on Nehemiah 6” by Matthew Henry
• Sermon: “The Importance of Hinge Moments” by Alex Kennedy

Transcript of Leader Training Podcast:

Hi, this is Y Bonesteele, team leader of The Gospel Project for Adults. Welcome to another Leader Training podcast. Today we are in Unit 18, Session 1, The Wall Rebuilt. With the core passage of: Nehemiah 1:5-11; 6:2-9,15-16; and with the key concept of: God restores His people when they repent so that the world would know He is God.

The Israelites had finished building the temple; and in the meantime, back in Persia, God saved the Israelites there through orchestrating events around Esther and Mordecai. Back in Jerusalem, the temple was finished, but the city and walls were still in ruins which left the Israelites vulnerable. Nehemiah was still in exile at the time, a cupbearer to the king. The Gospel Project Commentary on page 112 tells us, “The name Nehemiah means ‘the Lord comforts.’ That is not just a coincidence. In ancient times, people’s names spoke to their purpose or destiny. Thus, Nehemiah’s presence among the people reminds us that God comforts His people even in discipline. That is good news for dependent and often desperate people. Israel needed comfort, and God sent them Nehemiah.” So in exile, Nehemiah heard word about horrible conditions of Jerusalem and its walls; and he mourned. He fasted and prayed the prayer in our first passage.

He started with acknowledging God’s character: “Lord, the God of the heavens, the great and awe-inspiring God who keeps his gracious covenant with those who love him and keep his commands” in verse 5. Acknowledging who God is in prayer reminds us that He is able to do all and is for His people; He is a covenant-keeper. Then Nehemiah asked: “let your eyes be open and your ears be attentive to hear your servant’s prayer that I now pray to you day and night for your servants, the Israelites.” Nehemiah pleaded to God for His people. It shows his humble heart and a genuine care for the Israelites. He then confesses sin: “I confess the sins we have committed against you. Both I and my father’s family have sinned. 7 We have acted corruptly toward you and have not kept the commands, statutes, and ordinances you gave your servant Moses.” He recognized that sin had led them to exile. He didn’t blame God. He acknowledged the sin of the people. But he also recognized God’s words of the covenant, that if they sinned, God would scatter them. But if they returned to obedience, He would bring them back, in verses 8 and 9. In verse 11 then, Nehemiah presented his request: to give him success as he approached the king to ask him to let him go help rebuild the city.

When have you faced consequences for your sin, and how did the Lord lead you back to Him? The group may have different answers here, but the truth is that God will discipline us when we sin. This is true for individuals and for groups and churches and God’s people as a whole. We see this throughout the Bible in both Old and New Testament.  When we sin, when we live with hatred or with apathy toward others, not care for the well-being of our neighbors, not worshiping God alone, when we don’t resist evil and call evil for what it is, we are not being a light and are not being the hands and feet of Jesus as we are called. So when we, as an individual, or as a church, sin in these ways, God will discipline us, to call us back toward Him, to call us back to being the people of God that we are meant to be.

King Artaxerxes gave Nehemiah permission to return. God works in miraculous ways, even through people who don’t believe in Him, for His purposes. You can scan the QR code on page 110 to see a chart of how God used nonbelievers for His purposes through other incidents in Scripture. So King Artaxerxes helped Nehemiah go back with an entourage, but not everyone was excited. In 2:10, we see Sanballat and Tobias, certain government officials, were not fans. Chapter 3 then goes through the various aspects of repairing the wall and the details of those who helped. Chapter 4 then shows continued opposition from Sanballat and Tobias as they mocked the workers and launched attacks as well. Nehemiah helped strengthen the people with weapons as they worked and protected each other. Chapter 5, however, reveals how turmoil within the Israelites themselves caused more problems. Wealthy Jews were exploiting the poor and so Nehemiah called for economic justice, canceling debts and restoring land. From there though, opposition continued as their enemies tried to use deception to stop the rebuilding. This leads us to our second set of verses in chapter 6.

Sanballat was at it again. Geshem, an Arab, that was part of Sanballat’s gang were out to get Nehemiah. They plotted an ambush for Nehemiah, telling him to come to them, but he saw right through it. So he responded he couldn’t come because there was much to be done. Four times, they tried and four times, he declined. The fifth time, Sanballat and Geshem tried to get Nehemiah to come to them by misinformation and false accusations. They accused Nehemiah of rebelling, that he wanted to rebuild the wall so that he could become king, setting up prophets to call himself king, and they were going to tell the king all about it. Nehemiah stood his ground. His response gives us a good example of how to respond to misinformation or false accusations. His message was short and sweet. Simply, “There is nothing to these rumors you are spreading; you are inventing them in your own mind,” in verse 8 of chapter 6. And he went on with working, asking God to “strengthen [his] hands” in verse 9. In the missing verses, 10-14, we find that Sanballat and his group tried one last time to get to Nehemiah by hiring out prophets to intimidate him, namely, to try to get Nehemiah to hide inside the temple to protect himself. But not being a priest, Nehemiah knew it was just a plan to discredit him. Nehemiah then was diligent in finishing the wall in verse 15, and the wall was completed. Despite the odds, despite the opposition from their enemies, and despite the injustices within their own group, God worked through Nehemiah’s life to finish the wall. And let’s remember, it wasn’t just a wall. It was a symbol of God’s protection for His people, a symbol of restoration to a people who repented and were coming back to Him. And thus, when all the surrounding enemies heard of this, they “were intimidated and lost their confidence, they realized that this task had been accomplished by our God.”

What are some ways Christians can respond confidently and graciously to intimidation or false accusations? We can speak in truth and love with simplicity, denying any false claims but not needing to argue more. Truth will come to light. We don’t need to put down those causing the intimidation and accusations, we just need to speak truth and the facts.

How can you be faithful to God’s call in this season, even if someone or something opposes you? Do like Nehemiah and ask God for strength. Keep at it. Keep persevering in the good works God has called us to. If God has called us to do it, He will help us accomplish and finish what is needed.

Though we can learn about prayer and about perseverance in opposition through Nehemiah, we also learn the larger story, the story of redemption and restoration for God’s people. As the Gospel Connection states, “Restoring and returning the Israelites back to Jerusalem reflects God’s heart in wanting to be with His people. God also is in the work of restoration in our lives today as we choose to repent and believe in His Son, Jesus Christ. And when we sin and repent, He restores our fellowship with Him.

On to the Group Experience, as people arrive, have them write on a board their favorite renovation or restoration shows or websites or social media pages. Ask, “Why do you like this content?” Reasons might include you like the creativity; you like old things restored to new; you like learning new skills; among other answers.

Go through the Context and transition into the Recap, asking, “Which verses impacted you the most in your personal preparation this week?” Highlight Nehemiah’s prayer and his response to opposition when following God’s call. Then transition focusing on God’s desire for restoration for His people.

Onto the Group Activity, recreate the chart on page 115 of your Leader Guide on a board. You can fill in the whole chart as a group as instructed or feel free to break up into two groups and have one fill in the Israelites column and the other the Peter column. Filling out the chart of the first column, answers for How They Sinned may include: “we have acted corruptly toward you and have not kept the commands, statutes, and ordinances you gave your servant Moses” in verse 7. They “acted corruptly” and they did not keep God’s commands. In other words, they were “unfaithful” (v. 8). How They Reacted: Nehemiah took responsibility for himself first—” both I and my father’s family have sinned” in verse 6. And in verse 7, he was specific of their sin. They confessed. And they relied on God’s words, His promises, to restore them. In How God Restored Them, we see that God allowed them to rebuild the temple and rebuild the city walls, even through opposition and internal conflict. Ask the Analyze questions with the answers given on page 115. Discuss together and then read the verses in John about Peter. Fill in the chart for Peter. How He Sinned: Peter denied Jesus three times in chapter 18. How He Reacted: After Jesus appeared to him at the lake while fishing, Jesus asked him three times if Peter loved Him. Peter was able to respond yes, even as he grieved, knowing he had denied Jesus before. But how did Jesus restore him? Jesus gave him the instructions to feed His sheep. Jesus gave Peter the instructions to take care of the flock, the church. He was reinstating Peter, showing forgiveness and telling him of the leadership he would take on. “What glimpse of Peter’s future do verses 18-19 offer?” Death would be in Peter’s future; death for following Jesus. “Based on what you know about Peter’s story in the New Testament, how did Peter’s repentance and restoration bring God glory?” Peter would continue being an effective apostle and evangelist, sharing the gospel and bringing people to Christ, baptizing them, obeying the Great Commission.

Debrief with: “How does Nehemiah’s prayer and the rebuilding of Jerusalem’s wall reveal God’s character and commitment to restore His people?” The Jews were in exile for 70 years. It would have been easy to give up hope. But God’s words remain true. He would not leave them in exile forever.  But the people needed to come back to Him, come back to obedience and worship of Him. And because they did and were repentant, God restored them, and restored Jerusalem, a symbol of their home and the place where God resides. “How might repenting from sin and turning to Jesus bring honor and glory to Him?” When we repent and turn to Jesus, our lives get turned around for the better. Maybe not immediately but true repentance results in changed lives. And when our lives are changed for the better, God gets the glory.

Summarize and tackle the Head question if time is limited: “Why is it important that we turn to God before acting or reacting to troubling events? Nehemiah mourned the news he found out about the returned exiles and Jerusalem. But he immediately turned to God. When we turn to God first, it steadies us. It gives us peace and perspective. We know God is in control. When we react in our own strength, it may lead to overreaction, despair, or sin. We need the strength and peace of God to always balance us and keep us on the right path.

Cover Next Steps as options for more application during the week. End with prayer requests and praises and if time permits, end praying through Psalm 41:11-13, “11 By this I know that you delight in me: my enemy does not shout in triumph over me. 12 You supported me because of my integrity and set me in your presence forever. 13 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Amen and amen.”

Hey, thanks for joining me on another Leader Training podcast. Write me at [email protected] and hope you have a great group time!