� *RCCG SUNDAY SCHOOL* �
STUDENT'S MANUAL

LESSON THIRTY-SIX

_SUNDAY, 6TH MAY 2018_

*TOPIC: NEHEMIAH*

*MEMORY VERSE:* _"’Remember me, O my God, concerning this, and wipe not out my good deedd that I have done for the house of my God, and for the offices thereof"_
- Nehemiah 13:14

*BIBLE PASSAGE: Nehemiah 2:1-8*
1 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."

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, 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, 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.

*INTRODUCTION:*
Nehemiah, the son of Hachaliah, was born in Babylon during the captivity (Nehamiah 1:1). He was, according to some, of the race of the priests; according to others, of the royal family of Judah and apparently a stepson of Queen Esther. He sustained the office of cupbearer to the Persian king Artazerzes Longimanus. Touched with the calamitous state of the colony of Jews, which had formerly returned to Jerusalem, he besought the king of Persia to permit him to go to Jerusalem and aid in rebuilding it. He directed his attention chiefly to rebuilding the walls of the city. He remained in Judea for thirteen years as governor, carrying out many reforms, notwithstanding much opposition that he encountered (Nehemiah 13:11). Probably, he remained at his post as Governor till his death (about B.C.413) in a good old age.

*LESSON OUTLINES*
1. Character and achievements
2. Lessons from his life

*CHARACTER. AND ACHIEVEMENTS*
Nehemiah was a man of prayer, patriotism, action, bravery and constancy. He always viewed prayer as a first action rather than a last resort (Nehemiah 1:4-11, 2:4, 4:4-5,9). He was persistent, with great faith in God and His ability to do anything he was asked (Philippians 3:14).
He went to Jerusalem where the city wall was broken down, and with a single minded purpose persevered until the wall of Jerusalem was rebuilt (Nehemiah 6:15). The rebuilding of the wall enabled Jerusalem to become a fortified city once again, nearly a century and a half after its destruction in 586BC. After the wall was rebuilt, Nehemiah and Ezra called the people to prayer and the public reading of the law (Nehemiah 8:1-3,.
He was one of the first to sign his name to a covenant agreement among the people regarding walking in God's law (Nehemiah 9:38). He wrote the book of Nehemiah (430-431 BC).

*LESSONS FROM HIS LIFE*
1. Prayer should always precede any endeavour (James 5:17-18).
2. God is always willing to help (Psalm 46:1).
3. Persistence combined with faith can accomplish great things. Jesus Himself exhorted persistency with His parable of the persistent widow and the judge (Luke 18:1-.
4. Be single-minded in all that you do for God, and in all that you desire from God (Luke 9:62, James 1:5-.
5. God remembers and rewards good work (Nehemiah 13:14, 1Corinthians 15:58, Revelations 22:11-12).

*CONCLUSION:*
Nehemiah had an unrelenting zeal to rebuild the broken wall of Jerusalem. In spite of the opposition from Sanballat and others, he achieved his goal. What passion do you have for the things of God?

*QUESTIONS*
1. Desrcibe the man, Nehemiah.
2. What lesson can you learn from his life-style?