Temerity or Timidity

“Remember this good deed, O my God, and do not forget all that I have faithful done for the Temple of my God and its services.” (Nehemiah 13:14)

Food For Thought… What kind of pray-er are you? Are you shy, reluctant and timid? Or do you walk right into God’s presence, honestly poor out your heart and audaciously present your requests? Do you ever feel selfish when you pray…that you ask God for too much for yourself…that you’re too focused on obtaining personal blessings from the Lord? Or do you boldly request divine attention and favor as a reward for your efforts in serving God?

Nehemiah was a bold pray-er! He was an audacious, forward, brutally honest and fully expectant man when he was on his knees before God. Look up the word “temerity” in the dictionary and you’ll find a picture of Nehemiah.

Read Nehemiah 13. This man, who was the governor of Judah, who led the rebuilding of Jerusalem’s walls, who led the nation in a revival of the worship of God, was not reluctant, nor ashamed to remind God of what he had done on the Lord’s behalf, and request Divine favor for his faithful efforts. Three different times Nehemiah prayed, “Lord, remember what I have done; don’t forget this good deed; remember the stuff that I have had to put up with in doing what you’ve called me to do!” (vv. 14, 22b, 30)

What was the basis for his boldness before God? Obviously, Nehemiah was confident in the character God. But Nehemiah also knew how diligent he had been in serving God and fulfilling a calling that was challenging to say the least. Read through this chapter. Nehemiah had gone through a lot to keep the people of God pure in their devotion to God and in the practice of their worship. In a sense, Nehemiah was pastoring these people, and as sometimes is the case, there was a period of time that Nehemiah the governor-rebuilder-revivalist-pastor had to be the discipliner-in-chief as well.

Notice, in Nehemiah’s own words, some of the things he had to do and say:

Verse 8: “I became upset and through all of Tobiah’s belongings out of the room”— (Tobiah was a foreigner who had opposed Nehemiah’s efforts from day one, and now had been given his own private suite in the Temple by one of the priests)

Verse 9: “I demanded the rooms be purified…”

Verse 11: “I immediately confronted the leaders and demanded” why they had been neglecting the Temple.

Verse 15: “I rebuked [the merchants] for selling their produce on the Sabbath.”

Verse 17: “I confronted the nobles of Judah” for profaning the Sabbath.

Verse 21: “I spoke sharply to [the merchants who didn’t get the message the first time, and said] ‘if you do that again, I’ll have you arrested.’”

Verse 22: “I commanded the Levites to purify themselves and guard the gates in order to preserve the holiness of the Sabbath.”

Verse 25: “I called down curses on them. I beat them and pulled out their hair [for allowing their children to marry idol-worshipping foreigners].

Verse 30: “So I purged everything…”

And then he says, “remember this in my favor, O my God.” (v. 31b).

Nehemiah had a difficult job, and he carried it out with passion and vigor. In today’s world, he would have been fired, sent to rehab, and blackballed from ever working again. There’s a good chance he would have been sued for “hate speech” and spent jail time for meanness. But Nehemiah cared more about what God had called him to do more than what people thought of him. He knew the purity of God’s people and their propriety of their worship was more important than anything, so he fought for that with ruthlessness and abandon.

As a result, he wasn’t shy about reminding God of the challenges he’d faced and the good that he’d done. Nor was he reluctant to request that God now repay him for his faithfulness.

You know, I think that was okay with God. I think God kind of likes it when his children exercise that kind of temerity. I don’t know if you’re accustomed to praying that way, but I would encourage it. Now again, Nehemiah’s boldness was based upon his faithfulness, so don’t forget that. But God had given Nehemiah, and he has given us a standing invitation to come before him with those kinds of audacious requests—and he will answer them! Hebrews 4:14-16 reminds us,

“Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

Later on, the writer says in Hebrews 10:19-22,

“And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. By his death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place. And since we have a great High Priest who rules over God’s house, let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him.”

If you are not praying big, hairy, audacious prayers—start! Begin today. Jesus had made a way for you to come right in to the throne room of your Father and ask! He’s there too…Jesus is your high priest, representing your case before Father God. You are there on credit from Jesus—you’re standing in his righteousness.

So be faithful, serve diligently, develop some temerity….but by all means, ask boldly and expect greatly!

Prayer… Father God, I come before you in Jesus’ name and ask that every blessing in the treasury of heaven that has my name on it be released to me. Whatever is in your will, I want it. I don’t want to leave any blessing in heaven that you would have released to me on this earth if only I would have asked. So I ask—boldly. Remember me…don’t forget what I have done in your name…and bless me. I ask not in my own authority or righteousness, but on the authority of your Word and in the righteousness of my Savior and upon the promises that you have made. Amen!

One More Thing… Prayer is not overcoming God’s reluctance but accessing God’s willingness.