♪ theme music ♪
(Stephanie) Welcome to Hope Sabbath School,
an in-depth, interactive study
of the Word of God.
We're glad you joined us today
as we continue a series of studies
on Ezra and Nehemiah.
And today our topic is,
Violating the Spirit of the Law.
I'm glad you joined us.
And welcome to the team here in the studio.
Have you been learning a lot
through Ezra and Nehemiah?
(Team) Yes.
(Stephanie) A lot of practical things that we can learn
from our studies with them.
And we're always excited to hear from you,
our Hope Sabbath School members
all over the world.
And today we have an email from Brazil,
This is Clayton; and Clayton says,
from Brazil, "Hey, Pastor Derek!
I'm Clayton from Amazon, Brazil.
I watch the program every week.
I feel like I'm part
of the Hope Sabbath School family."
Amen, because you are part
of the Hope Sabbath School family.
"I really like the program
because I learn a lot
about the love of Christ." Amen.
And that's what our prayer is, isn't it,
that this is not just a show,
but it is spreading the love of Jesus.
He writes, "Hugs in Christ Jesus, Hallelujah." Amen.
And we know that that is Pastor Derek's
favorite Hebrew word, right?
Our next email is from Franco in Argentina
and Franco writes, "God bless you.
I have known your program recently, and I love it.
I watch the program to learn English,
and I am also a Sabbath School teacher.
You teach me to work
with my students on Saturdays; thank you."
Wow. By the way, Franco,
you can also download our outline
by going to hopetv.org/hopess,
and you'll find our outline
that we actually use in our class
in our study today
as well as the sheet music
for the Scripture song.
Our next one is from a donor
in South Carolina.
That is in the United States of America.
And this donor writes,
"As the Lord has recently blessed me,
I am looking forward to contributing
to the far-reaching ministries of Hope Channel."
Is Hope Channel a far-reaching ministry?
(Team) Amen.
(Stephanie) It is, over 150 countries, right,
and this individual says, "Please find
my first contribution enclosed.
We have started...," now catch this.
It wasn't just, "I'm going to contribute,"
but watch what they say, "We have started
a Hope Sabbath School class
in my church," Amen?
(Team) Amen.
(Stephanie) "And in a short period of time,
it has grown to ten
regularly attending members."
(Team) Amen.
(Stephanie) Is that awesome or what?
And lastly, "I will continue praying
for the Hope Channel ministries."
Well, thank you for, not only your donation
to this donor-supported ministry,
but also for your prayers
and taking what you're learning
and sharing it with those
in your sphere of influence.
Our next email is from Canada,
and this is Marion.
I really enjoyed reading this email
when I read it.
"Yesterday, a visitor came to our church.
I was blessed to sit with her
and get a little acquainted.
I found out she had been attending
a neighboring church for a few weeks.
I could tell the lesson
was a little overwhelming for her;
thankfully I had the Hope Sabbath School app on my phone,
so I was able to point her to that.
I pray that she will be a new member
for Hope Sabbath School.
I have been listening
and enjoy watching for many years.
Thank you for the wonderful work you are doing."
By the way, if you're wondering
how you can get that Hope Channel app,
just go to Google Play
or to your App Store,
and you'll find it there.
You can download that on your smartphone.
All right, and our last one
is from a student, a student in Turkey.
And [Ayuen] writes, "Best greetings to you
in the name of our Lord Jesus." Amen.
(Team) Amen.
(Stephanie) Shall we wave
to that student there in Turkey?
"I'm a South Sudanese student
studying in Turkey,
and I do watch your programs,
and I use them for my own fellowship
because there is no church
in the city where I live.
Nevertheless, Christ is our Anchor.
'Praise Him in the heights.'"
Christ is our Anchor, isn't He?
And "Praise Him in the heights"
reminds me of the Scripture song
that we sang in a previous series of studies,
and, of course, we have a Scripture song
in this series as well,
and it's taken from Psalm, chapter 25.
We'd like to have you join us as we sing
that Scripture song, "To You, O Lord."
♪ music ♪
(Stephanie) Amen!
And this is a perfect song for what we've been learning
in Ezra and Nehemiah.
When they came up to a challenge,
what did they do? They prayed.
They trusted in the Lord.
So, as we begin our study,
let's bow our heads
and ask the Holy Spirit to be with us.
Dear Heavenly Father,
Lord, thank You so much for Your Word
and for the lessons
that we can learn from it.
Lord, teach us today
that when we walk away, we will know
that we have spent time with You.
In Jesus' name. Amen.
(Team) Amen.
(Stephanie) Our study today
is on Violating the Spirit of the Law,
and we're in Nehemiah.
When you think of the spirit of the law,
what comes to your mind? Jason.
(Jason) I think of the principles,
the ideas behind it,
because when you have a law, you have
like, a set of rules and regulations,
and someone could keep those very specifically,
but the spirit is kind of the motive behind it,
the principle, the bigger picture, if you will.
(Stephanie) The motive, I like
that word, "motive," the intent. Ranela?
(Ranela) Yeah, I just think
it's the real value of the law,
the underlying meaning,
as Jason was saying.
It's what gives it its value,
is the spirit of the law.
(Stephanie) Very good. Evelyn.
(Evelyn) Well, spirit of the law
makes me think that the law has life,
that it's tangible;
it's something that's living.
(Stephanie) I like that. Very good.
We want to take a look
at a challenge in Nehemiah, chapter 5.
We'll look at verses 1 through 5 to start,
and, Jonathan, if you would start our lesson,
Nehemiah, verses 1 through 5 in chapter 5.
And I'd like you to think
about some of the challenges
that the Jewish exiles are facing,
particularly because of the famine, all right?
Jonathan, would you read that for us?
(Jonathan) All right, I'll be reading
from the New International Version:
(Stephanie) So, what are they facing
as a result of the famine?
(Jonathan) Slavery.
(Stephanie) Yes, how about lack of food, hunger? Gary.
(Gary) Indebtedness?
(Stephanie) Yes, slavery,
being in debt. Puia.
(Puia) A broken community,
the rich taking advantage over the poor.
(Stephanie) Broken community, yes. Anything else?
(Jonathan) Selfishness.
(Stephanie) Selfishness is running rampant, isn't it?
Did you want to say something, Jason?
(Jason) They're also facing political difficulties
because there is some kind of tax
they need to pay the king or something.
And, considering the situation,
if they have issues with the king,
the little bit they have
might be destroyed.
If you look at the history here,
they've already had Jerusalem destroyed before,
so there's a lot of fear
about just basic security.
(Stephanie) I'm glad you brought that up
because there are some heavy taxes
that are being laid on these folks.
Does anyone know how much tax each year
was required of them
by the Persian government? Travis.
(Travis) Everyone on the opposite side of the river
was taxed 350 talents of silver.
(Stephanie) All right, so which king
was taxing the people this?
(Travis) The Persian king?
(Stephanie) The Persian king, that's right.
Now, if it was just the government, right,
that's one thing, but we see,
that, as we read through this narrative,
it's not just the outside
that's causing the heaviness
and the weight on the poor.
Let's look at Nehemiah, chapter 5,
and look at verse 7.
Jason, if you would read that for us,
Nehemiah, chapter 5, verse 7.
How were the local nobles and the rulers
making this oppression
even heavier on the people? Jason?
(Jason) I'll be reading
from the New King James Version,
Nehemiah, chapter 5, verse 7:
(Stephanie) What is the problem here?
What did Jason's Bible say?
"Usury," okay, so, usury,
that is kind of an older language
that is being used there.
If we were to put that
into today's terminology,
what would that be?
Interest, absolutely.
So, letting someone borrow money at a charge.
So, they lend you 10 dollars,
and they expect to get 12 back, right?
Why do you think that was such a problem?
(Nancy) These people were in real need.
There was a famine;
their families were starving;
And instead of helping them,
they're trying to take advantage of them.
(Stephanie) But legally they
could have done that, right?
I mean, to charge interest,
can't you legally do that?
(Nancy) It's the spirit of the law
that's most important.
(Stephanie) Ah, okay.
(Nancy) Their intention was
to squeeze them instead of helping them.
(Stephanie) All right. Go ahead, Jonathan.
(Jonathan) In the Law of Moses,
it said not to charge
your fellow Israelites any interest
because they were your family, essentially.
(Stephanie) Thank you. Actually, let's go
to some of those verses.
We'll take a look at Exodus 22:25-27,
and, Pedro, if you would read
that passage for us.
We're looking to see what the counsel is
that Moses has given
regarding interest, okay?
(Pedro) I'll be reading
from the New King James Version, Exodus 22:25-27:
(Stephanie) So, what was the counsel given?
(Pedro) Not to charge taxes.
(Stephanie) Not to charge interest.
That's right. Nicole?
(Nicole) ...not to take advantage of someone.
If someone's in need, you shouldn't be taking advantage
of them because you can.
That's what I get from this passage.
(Stephanie) Ranela.
(Ranela) I just thought
that sentence there is really interesting.
It says, "If you ever take
your neighbor’s garment as a pledge,
you shall return it to him before the sun goes down.
For that is his only covering,
it is his garment for his skin."
It's almost trying to evoke
that compassion inside of the reader.
"That's his only covering;
why are you taking it away?"
(Stephanie) Thank you,
thank you for bringing that out. Travis.
(Travis) I just think this is amazing what God is doing
because He's trying to let us know, like,
"We're family," and, you know,
even as Hope Sabbath School,
we're a family globally, right?
And when we are all in the family of God,
we are to share with each other.
We're to look out for one another.
We're to have each others' back,
so to speak, you know?
And that's what God
has always intended for His family,
for His community,
that we look out for one another.
(Stephanie) Yes, to extend
the graciousness and the love, right,
that He had for us.
And isn't that what He says
at the end of verse 27?
That passage says that, "When they cry,
I will hear," why?
"Because I am gracious,"
and He is gracious to everyone.
So it's a matter of, "Do I pass on
that same love and compassion?"
I like that word; thank you
for bringing that out.
Let's turn over to Leviticus 25,
and we'll look at verses 35 to 38.
And, Puia, if you would read that for us.
We're still looking at Moses' counsel
on the charging of interest.
(Puia) Sure, and I'll be reading
from the New King James Version,
Leviticus, chapter 25, verses 35 through 38:
(Stephanie) All right, there is a lot
we can learn from that passage.
Just start sharing with me
what you see. Pedro.
(Pedro) First of all, I see here
that whatever we have
doesn't belong to us.
God is pointing out, "You were slaves
before I came into your life.
So, why are you taking advantage
of those that I gave freedom to?"
(Stephanie) And you're referring
to verse 38 where it says,
"I brought you forth
out of the land of Egypt."
So they weren't vacationing
in Egypt, were they?
No, they had been taken captive,
and they were there in Egypt, right?
Not by their own choosing.
Very good, thank you.
(Jonathan) I have a question.
I thought it was just for Israelites,
but here it says, "Help them
as you would a foreigner and a stranger."
So it almost sounds like they were
supposed to have that same compassion,
at least, for others...
They're not supposed
to just protect the Israelites.
They're supposed to have
compassion for everyone.
(Stephanie) And don't you think
that it's kind of premised by the poor,
those who have become poor? Jason.
(Jason) Yes, I was going to say
the clear situation here
is what is the need.
So, if you have a wealthy person,
and it almost seems like
it doesn't make a difference
whether it's a foreigner or not,
if it's a person who can afford
to pay interest or "usury,"
then that's okay, but the key thing here
is not to put someone in poverty,
not to give them an extra burden
than what the person
would be able to handle.
(Stephanie) Thank you. Pedro.
(Pedro) Yes, when we look into this concept,
it's an unselfish concept that God
is trying to teach us
because why would I take advantage
of someone to the point
of making them slaves
so I can take more advantage of them?
Because that's basically the reality at that time.
I'm going to make sure
I make them so poor
that they are going to have
to give themselves to me
so I can become more rich.
God's saying, "No, no, no.
I'm giving to you,
so you should give to others."
(Stephanie) Is it possible
that even though there are folks
that have less in monetary possessions
or possessions in its entirety,
that there are others that are poor
who have many possessions?
And I believe that the Lord
wants us to remember
that we've all been poor.
We were all in bondage,
and God brought us out of that.
"I've had mercy upon you.
My mercy is everlasting.
Now I want you to extend that mercy
to those who are in need." Travis.
(Travis) I don't remember
the verse in the Bible,
but I remember reading a verse
where it says that if you
owe money to somebody,
that you're a slave to the lender.
So, here He's saying,
"You were once slaves; I took you out.
Don't make poor people slaves as well,"
because if we're exacting
and taking things from them,
in a sense we're making them a slave to us.
And so I think He's saying,
"Do unto others the same
as I've done to you."
(Stephanie) Yes, thank you
for bringing that out. Puia.
(Puia) On the previous point that you made,
what I find fascinating
is that throughout the Scripture,
if we study God's invitation to us
to act righteously and to do justly,
He always mentions the fact,
or, you know, most of the time,
lets us know that our reason
should be based on the fact
that He has given us the example.
He, God, has given us the best gift,
and He has shown us the love.
And so our reason is based on Him.
So, as His children, we are to learn
and copy and imitate what God has done,
to help the poor and the needy.
(Stephanie) By the way, what a privilege.
It's a privilege and an opportunity.
Let's continue; there's one more verse
I'd like us to look at
with regard to Moses' counsel on interest,
and that is in Deuteronomy,
chapter 23, verses 19 and 20.
And, Evelyn, would you
be able to read that for us?
Again, we're looking at the counsel
on charging interest on loans.
(Evelyn) I will be reading Deuteronomy,
chapter 23, verses 19 and 20,
from the New King James Version, and it says:
(Stephanie) All right, what do you learn there?
(Heide) Well, there's a clear distinction
between the foreigner
and one of your brethren,
which we were a little confused about before.
(Stephanie) We just needed some extra verses
to balance it out, right?
(Heide) Yeah, but we see
that we should not charge
interest, again, to your brethren.
(Stephanie) All right. Pedro?
(Pedro) I see here a very important value
because he's saying here
you can charge interest to a foreigner,
but still we're coming back
to the principle of not exploitation.
You know, if we look at the society we live in,
we sometimes need that interest,
but the goal of using interest
is not for benefit of the person
who is giving the money
and receiving the interest on it.
It's for the person
who is using that money for them to grow.
So, if you look at the perspective of interest,
it's not a bad thing if you don't
use it for the wrong reason.
(Stephanie) And I believe
that takes us back to that first passage
that we read in Exodus 22
where Jonathan had read
about it being those folks who are poor,
in either case, whether they're
your brother or not,
you would not exploit them.
So, here's my question to you then:
Why is it so common to see people
exploiting those who are in need?
Is it happening today?
(Team) Yes.
(Stephanie) Do we see that
when natural disasters happen in our world
and those who are right in the middle of a disaster
are being taken advantage of?
All right, so I have many hands, Gary,
and then Jonathan and Puia, all right.
(Gary) So, kind of getting back
to the verse in Deuteronomy,
the last part of that verse says,
"that the Lord your God may bless you
in all to which you set your hand."
And to the question that you just asked,
it seems that we don't,
or people don't understand
that there is a blessing there
without getting something material.
They want to help, but the question
at the end of the day is,
"What's in it for me?"
instead of a self-sacrificing love
that says, "There's a need; I want
to participate in aiding that need."
It's always coming back
to, "What's in it for me?"
And we need to ask God
to get that out of us in order to give
that self-sacrificing contribution.
(Stephanie) Amen. So Gary is saying
that there is a blessing in giving
without receiving something tangible, right?
Okay. Jonathan. Thank you.
(Jonathan) So, this last Saturday
I was going to a new place,
picking up some people
to take them to church,
and I was backing up,
and suddenly I heard this crunching sound.
(Stephanie) Oh, that doesn't sound good, does it?
(Jonathan) No, and so I look back.
Oh, there was a car there
that I didn't see.
So I get out, and I look at it,
and I was asking the guy,
"So, is this your car?"
And he's like, "I didn't see it; I didn't see it."
And he was like, "Don't worry about it; just disappear."
And on one hand, you're like,
that would be tempting,
like, get off Scot-free.
And I think in life, it's often, yeah,
it's things you can get away with.
If you can get away with it,
why go through the pain
of trying to help someone else
or trying to make sure
your actions don't hurt someone else
in a way that you don't...
You didn't plan to do it.
And so, yeah, I think it's tempting
in life to bend the rules in your favor.
(Stephanie) So, maybe we're saying
that the reason that there's
so much exploitation
of people who are weaker
is because they're weaker, and we can do it.
If we can get away with it, we will do it,
unless you're on the foundation
that Jonathan was saying,
and he has a relationship with God, right,
because we don't want
to exploit those. Puia.
(Puia) Exactly. I think it's human nature at its finest.
It's just the way it is; it's our nature
because we are sinful by nature.
So, the moment we have the opportunity
to take advantage of others,
I think everyone, unless our hearts
are changed by God,
that's just the human nature
playing its courses out.
(Stephanie) So, sometimes people
are tempted to exploit those individuals in a legal way.
But Matthew, chapter 22,
and I'd like us to go there,
Matthew, chapter 22, and we'll see
who has that that could read for me.
Malaina, would you read that for me?
Matthew, chapter 22, verses 37 and 39.
There are two great commandments that Jesus shares
that should be our guiding, like our compass,
on how to relate to others.
Do you have that, Malaina? All right.
(Malaina) I'll be reading
from the New King James Version,
Matthew 22, verses 37 through 39:
(Stephanie) So, if Jesus was here today,
and He saw the way
that the poor are being treated, or those
who are in an unfortunate situation,
how do you think He would respond?
Maybe that verse. Travis.
(Travis) I think He would bid you
to look at Him first,
because, as you see this laid out,
this is basically describing
the Ten Commandments.
This isn't a replacement
for the Ten Commandments.
This is just describing
what the Ten Commandments consist of:
love to God and love to others.
But you notice that He says love to God first,
because, as Puia mentioned,
we're sinful in and of ourselves.
And unless we have a connection with God,
we're actually incapable
of loving horizontally the way we should,
or loving the poor.
So we could say to people,
"You should like this person,"
or, "You should like that person,"
but unless we have
a living connection with Jesus,
we're incapable of that kind of love.
And so Jesus would say, "Follow Me,
look at Me, and love like I've loved."
(Stephanie) Amen. Pedro.
Thank you very much
because it's very important
to have the connection first
because when we experience the love of Jesus,
what's going to happen to us?
It's going to transform
our lives completely. Pedro.
(Pedro) I think there's a good story here
because it connects with the second part
because "love others as yourself,"
and I think when we look into this verse,
we always forget to look
at the word "yourself,"
because if we don't love God,
and God hasn't transformed you,
you're going to be like the person
that Jonathan encountered,
"Just don't worry about it,"
because selfishness says,
"Well, I love myself more.
I love that person, too,"
but then we'll say,
"It's okay; don't worry about it."
But if I have God in my life,
He changes me; I will love others
as myself in Christ.
(Stephanie) Exemplify the love
that you've experienced from Jesus.
Now, let's take a look
at Nehemiah's response,
and that is in the same chapter,
chapter 5 of Nehemiah,
and we're looking at verses 6 through 9.
And, Nancy, would you read that for us?
And as Nancy's reading verses 6 through 9,
I'd like us to think
about Nehemiah's reaction
to what was taking place there.
(Nancy) Okay, and I'm reading
from the New King James Version:
(Stephanie) What was Nehemiah's response? First response?
(Team) Anger.
(Stephanie) Anger. Does that surprise you? No. Why? Gary?
(Gary) I was going to say
it kind of reminded me of the story
with Jesus in the temple,
and they were exchanging money,
taking advantage of the folks there
that were there to sacrifice,
and He was angry.
(Stephanie) Jason.
(Jason) I was going to say,
a little bit, though, in some ways it could surprise
because we sometimes have this concept
that, if you're angry, you're doing wrong.
And so it is interesting to see
a man of God be described as angry.
It shows us that there may be something
more at play here than just what is on the surface level.
(Nancy) Righteous indignation.
(Stephanie) Righteous indignation.
Thank you. Heide.
(Heide) It also reminded me
of when Moses became angry
with the Egyptian that was beating
one of his fellow Israelites.
It's a different type of anger.
If someone is being taken advantage of,
someone's maybe being used or abused,
and I'm not going to stand for it.
As a son of God or a daughter of God,
I should actually do something about this.
(Stephanie) So, standing up for someone
who can't stand up for themselves, maybe.
All right, I'd like us to look now
at the solution that Nehemiah proposed.
And we'll look at the second half
of verse 10, and 11, in chapter 5.
Would you read that for us, Pedro?
(Pedro) I'll be reading
from the New King James Version,
Nehemiah 5, verses 10 and 11:
(Stephanie) What is his recommendation
for a solution? Malaina.
(Malaina) He's telling them
to return their land back to them,
and he's also saying, "Everything
that you've charged them,
you need to give that back as well."
(Stephanie) Very good.
(Pedro) Well, we see the first action
he does is he puts his money on the line.
He says, "I lent money and grains."
He said, "I've been providing."
We can see that Nehemiah has done many...
He has these provisions from the king,
and he has many things to offer,
so he's leader there.
He says, "I'm taking charge here.
This is not going to happen on my watch."
(Stephanie) All right. Jonathan.
(Jonathan) It's almost like he's
creating a Year of Jubilee.
I mean, because every seven years
they would have this return
of the things you've lent,
and every 50 years every slave would come back.
So, it's kind of, he's saying, like,
"Okay, we need to just create one
because we haven't had one for a while.
So we need one now."
(Stephanie) And the interest
that was being charged
was done unjustly, right?
Okay, Nancy, I believe you were next.
(Nancy) Well, Pedro said
what I was going to say, which was
basically he's putting his own wallet on the table.
Like, "This is what I'm doing.
We need to do the same."
(Stephanie) And I think,
as we read down through,
we'll realize that Nehemiah
was not charging interest.
He was not a part of that problem.
But he does indicate here
that he was giving food
and things of that nature.
(Travis) Well, Nehemiah's life
was a living example
of, "Seek ye first the Kingdom of God
and His righteousness,
and all these things
will be added unto you."
He understood this, and so that wasn't
necessarily his wallet.
That was, he understood, "What I get
is a gift from God,
and we need to share with each other
and be brothers and sisters."
And he was leading by example.
True leaders lead by example.
(Stephanie) Very good. All right, Ranela,
and then we'll go to Nicole, and then we'll move on.
(Ranela) It was interesting
because when you're reading
what he's asking them to restore,
I mean, these are just things
for their basic necessities of everyday life
to even be able to continue.
They needed their vineyards
so they could continue living.
They needed their land, their houses,
and food, you know, wine and oil.
And so it's just interesting
when you see how they had
taken advantage of these people
and the spirit behind it.
I mean, these people
couldn't even survive,
and so he was asking them,
"Restore it all; restore
at least their basic necessities
to be able to move forward and live."
(Stephanie) And thank you, Ranela,
for bringing us back to the concept
of compassion, right, having compassion.
All right, Nicole.
(Nicole) Actually Ranela said it.
I was thinking about the concept of restoration,
and he's preaching them to restore.
And I think Christ tells us
He wants to restore us.
And so Nehemiah is just reflecting
who Christ is and saying,
"Restore these individuals
to where they need to be."
So, she took my word.
(Stephanie) So he puts out this recommendation.
What is the response that we see?
Let's look at verse 12,
and, Heide, would you read that for us?
Nehemiah, chapter 5, verse 12,
and let's listen for two things:
How they responded and why he
requested that they have the priest come,
and they take an oath
for what they said they would do.
(Heide) I'll be reading
from the New King James Version, and it says:
(Stephanie) Okay, so what was their initial response,
the nobles and the rulers?
(Stephanie, Team) "We'll do it."
(Stephanie) "No problem; we'll do it."
Why do you think Nehemiah
had them take an oath,
bring the priest to them,
and take an oath there
to commit to do what they said
they were going to do? Anyone. Travis and then Gary.
(Travis) I think that the nobles
and the leaders were
really willing to do it,
but I think there's
an accountability measure.
So, by reading from the Law of Moses,
I mean, going back into the Torah
and reading the counsel then,
it reiterates to them
that, "This is something
that God has asked us to do,
and this promise isn't just to me; it's to God."
(Stephanie) All right. Gary.
(Gary) It's funny, because now someone
who is also powerful is saying,
"Look, this is wrong;
this is what we need to do."
And they just comply, right?
But Nehemiah knows
the spirit may be willing,
but the flesh is weak.
"Let's reiterate it and make it...
Let's put it back in the realm
that it needs to be.
It's not just a financial transaction.
This is really a spiritual problem.
So let's call the priests."
(Stephanie) And have them make an oath.
Are there any verses in the Bible
that you can think of
that might shed some light
on the purpose of taking an oath?
If you can't think of one,
I'll put that out there, all right?
Let's look at Numbers 30, verse 2,
Numbers, chapter 30, verse 2, and, Ranela,
if you would read that for us.
And then Deuteronomy 23:21-23,
and, Evelyn, if you would read that one for us.
And, Ranela, do you have that? Okay.
(Ranela) Numbers 30 and verse 2,
and I'll be reading
from the New King James Version; it says:
(Stephanie) All right,
and Deuteronomy 23, Evelyn.
(Evelyn) Deuteronomy, chapter 23,
verses 21 to 23, I'll be reading
from the New King James Version:
(Stephanie) All right, thank you.
Let's look at one other passage,
and that's Ecclesiastes,
chapter 5, verses 4 and 5.
And we're looking at, maybe, some reasons
why that oath was taken,
to get some more insight on that.
Puia, are you ready
to share with us from that verse?
(Puia) Sure, and I'll be reading
from the New King James Version:
(Stephanie) All right, so what are
some principles here that we've learned
in those three passages? Travis.
(Travis) So, in the context here,
it's talking about pay,
but pay is just honoring what you've said.
As Christians, we're supposed
to be a living influence
or a living light like Jesus was.
We're supposed to be living examples.
And so, when people look at us,
and we say we're going to do something,
we need to follow through with that.
And when we tell someone,
"Hey, this is the way it's going to be,
and they look at us as a Christian,
we need to be honest to our word
because that shows our character,
and it shows our connection with Jesus.
(Stephanie) Matthew 5...
Thank you for bringing that out, Travis,
because Matthew 5, it talks
about letting your yes be yes
and your no be no.
Very good, thank you
for sharing. Jonathan.
(Jonathan) Just to the same point,
that's a little scary.
I mean, we're called to stand by our word to some degree.
I mean, like, if you say
you're going to do something,
and especially if you make a vow,
then you should stick by it
even if it starts becoming more painful
than you originally thought.
(Stephanie) "You should stick by it,
even if it becomes more painful than you thought."
Now that's an interesting concept,
but isn't it true?
The Bible is saying
that if you vowed a vow,
if you don't fulfill that,
what does it call that?
(Team) A sin.
(Stephanie) It calls it a sin; it does.
What did Puia read?
It's better not to vow at all
then to vow and not do it. Yes, Nancy.
(Nancy) It reminds me of the story
of Ananias and Sapphira, actually, when they were...
I don't know if they actually made a vow.
I know it was at least a promise,
but they didn't keep it.
I mean, they said they were
going to give all, and then they just gave some.
But they said that they had given all.
And that didn't end well.
(Stephanie) Yes, that is very true. Gary.
(Gary) I was going to share,
on, you know, our own time, read Psalm 15,
and it's essentially a snapshot
of the character of those
who will dwell with the Lord.
And in verse 4 there's a little snippet, but it says:
"He who swears to his own hurt
and does not change," right,
because at the end of the day,
when you say what you're going to say,
and you are going to do it,
it's part of the third commandment,
bearing false witness.
So, who are you representing?
You're Jesus' representative, right?
So, if you believe
that you are representing Him,
if Jesus said something,
and we believe His words are His words
and what He said to us,
He's not going to change this.
So we should do likewise.
If we say we're going to do something,
then we're going to do it.
If we're not going to do something, don't do it.
(Stephanie) We're representing God.
We have to move on,
but I believe we had already
talked about the fact
that Nehemiah had some influence
over these individuals, right?
Otherwise, they wouldn't
have been so compliant.
At least the Scripture does not indicate
that they pushed back or did anything
that was other than complete compliance, all right?
So we would say that he was
a servant-leader who went
and did what he asked those who were,
I almost said reporting, but it's true,
those who were looking up to him
as being their leader.
Let's take a look at his example,
and we'll go back to verse 10
in the same chapter, Nehemiah,
chapter 5, verse 10,
and, Nicole, would you read that for us?
Nehemiah, chapter 5, verse 10.
And I'd like to have us think about this:
Was Nehemiah really a part
of the problem? Nicole.
(Nicole) Nehemiah 5, verse 10,
from the Christian Standard Bible says:
(Stephanie) Was he charging interest?
He seems to take on this responsibility
and this ownership.
Travis, can you talk to us about that?
(Travis) Well, something
about, Jesus didn't sin,
but He was baptized for us, you know.
Jesus died our death that we deserved.
There's something about servant- leadership.
Daniel, we see an example of him praying.
Daniel, when he was faced with opposition,
they said that they had to find something
between him and God
because they couldn't find anything
he was doing wrong.
So, Daniel was walking with God.
Yet, when he prayed
about this 70-year prophecy,
he said, "Lord, we've sinned against You."
He assumed the sins, so to speak,
in a sense, you know,
of his fellow brethren
and said, "Lord, this is what we've done."
(Stephanie) He took on that responsibility
of what it means to be a servant-leader,
a Christian leader.
Do we have another comment? All right, Nancy?
(Nancy) I don't think he was part of the...
I don't think he was
being unfair to them
because it says that he was angry.
His reaction was anger.
If he was part of that conspiracy to oppress,
he wouldn't have been angry.
(Stephanie) Exactly, and that
just leads us to our next passage.
And, Nancy, if you would be prepared
to read this passage for us.
We're going to look
at Nehemiah, chapter 5,
and look at verses 14 through 19.
And let's see what he had done
or attempted to do
in order to help the poor.
(Nancy) Okay, I'm reading
from the New King James Version:
Through 19, right?
(Stephanie) How did he
attempt to care for the poor?
What do you see in those verses? Jonathan.
(Jonathan) He went way beyond the thing
he was requesting for others.
He was unwilling to put any burden on people
just for the very principle of it,
and the fact that he was,
I mean, he was well off.
He could take of himself,
so he wanted to set the example
of acting out of compassion
and living that principle.
(Stephanie) Very good. Jason.
(Jason) He also avoided the demands
that the previous governors had had.
Previous leaders had required them
to give the governor extra supplies,
whether it was shekels or extra food.
But he did away with all of that, it seems.
(Stephanie) Pedro.
(Pedro) One thing I see here
that is very important
is that he recognized Who he fears.
He fears God; He said, "I fear God;
that's why I did it.
I know where my provision comes from."
And at the end he says here,
"Remember me, my God, for good,
according to all that I have done for this people,"
because he knew where the resources came from.
He knew that, "If we continue
with the bad behavior,
we will be deprived,"
because God says, "How can I bless you
if you cannot bless others?"
And that's why I believe the concept
of the letter of the law
is God is willing to give to us abundantly,
and even more than we can even imagine
if we're willing to share.
If we're just storing up,
that's, "Okay, you have enough.
He doesn't know what My spirit is, of giving."
And that's where we see the love of God.
God is willing to give,
and love is not something that you receive,
it's something that you give.
(Stephanie) And we lose a huge blessing
by withholding, don't we?
A huge blessing. Heide.
(Heide) I just see very simply
that he met their needs.
(Stephanie) He met their needs.
(Heide) It's simple; if you see a need,
and God has given you the ability
to help in some way, then help.
(Stephanie) Why do you think
he manifested such a generous spirit?
Because, let's be honest,
in the world that we live in today,
this is not the norm.
Can I say it that way?
It's not the norm.
Why did he manifest
such a spirit like that? Ranela?
(Ranela) Yeah, you know,
when you look all throughout the Bible,
it's hard to find things
that Nehemiah did wrong,
or, you know, if he was
ever in that place that they were in,
would he have so much compassion?
But I think, at the end of the day,
no matter how good you are
or how bad you are,
we are all in a huge amount of debt
to Jesus Christ for what He's done for us.
And that alone, when we really allow that
to sink in to our everyday life,
it totally comes out in the way
that we treat other people.
And I'm totally preaching to myself here
because it's easy
to go about our everyday lives
and just live as if, you know,
"I'm pretty good."
But Nehemiah, in everything he did,
was so generous because he understood
the generosity of God towards him,
and, of course, as we said,
the spirit of the law
of compassion and love.
(Stephanie) Thank you so much.
And I'd like to, right there, take us
to Matthew, chapter 5,
verses 14 through 16.
Ranela, if you could read that for us.
You were talking about, it just happens.
Once we really experience
that love of Jesus,
then we have that same compassion.
It naturally flows out.
Matthew, chapter 5, verses 14 through 16.
(Ranela) I'll be reading
from the New King James Version,
Matthew, chapter 5, verses 14 through 16:
(Stephanie) So, why is our example so important?
(Heide) It gives glory to God.
(Stephanie) It gives glory to God, Heide.
(Team Member) It points people to Christ.
(Stephanie) It points people to Christ. Yes, Jonathan.
(Jonathan) We reflect God's character.
I mean, we have His name,
and so our actions cast light
on who God is, for good or evil.
(Stephanie) Yes, very true. Travis.
(Travis) Ranela had said something,
that we are in debt to God.
And it reminded me of the words of Paul,
"I'm a debtor to grace."
And so, that's a debt
that we can pay back
because the same grace
that Jesus has extended to us,
we can extend that to others.
And that's what we see Nehemiah doing.
(Stephanie) It's a debt that we cannot pay...
(Travis) We can be gracious.
(Stephanie) But we can extend
that same grace to someone else. Puia.
(Puia) I wonder how many people
have been turned away from Christianity
by looking at the lives
of the so-called people
who are professing themselves
to be Christians?
You know, a lot of people in the world
look at Christians and say,
"I don't see Christ in you."
And many people have been turned away.
It's such a sad reality.
So I think it's an important challenge
for us from this story,
that we need to live the life
of setting an example for others.
(Stephanie) Have you ever had
the opportunity to meet someone's need?
This is testimony time.
We just have a few minutes left in our study,
but a time when you were
able to meet someone's need,
and how did that impact your life? Pedro.
(Pedro) Giving is something
that, for me, is not an easy thing,
to just give money to others.
But I like to help people.
I'll use my skills; I feel
my money is my skills.
But there was one time
I had a friend that was
going through the same trials
of this case or this story here.
I resonate a lot with Nehemiah
because this person was
struggling with finance,
and this person's brother
was taking advantage by charging interest
while they were struggling
to meet needs in their house.
And I felt like Nehemiah,
very furious about what was happening
and said, "This needs to end; it needs to stop."
And I was blessed by God,
and God was able to help me
to help this person to provide them money,
I said, "Pay me as you're able;
I won't charge you, too,"
because I knew that God
has given this blessing.
And I was able to reach out
in a time of need,
and that person was able to recuperate
without having to stress
about the interest that was being charged.
(Stephanie) Very good. Another,
maybe a 15-second experience. Ranela?
(Ranela) Oh, no. Don't end on me
because this is actually the opposite.
I wanted to share and just be a little vulnerable
about how human all of us are.
Just this past week, I had an experience
where I wasn't generous,
and I caught myself.
I'm planning a trip right now,
and so I was at U-Haul.
And there was a worker that was there, not with U-Haul,
but several of them that were coming
and going up to me in my car.
And I was in a big rush,
and I was very, you know,
I didn't want to be bothered or anything.
I needed to get stuff done.
And it just shows you,
how, when we're in our own world,
sometimes we can not represent Jesus.
But as they were coming up,
I saw them in my peripheral vision.
I just went like this,
and I was like, "No, no!"
And immediately as I did that,
and I saw them go, "Ugh," and walk away,
and even though maybe they
experienced that many times,
I was just thinking, "Oh, my.
This person's older than me.
First of all, I disrespected them
by just putting my hand up.
And if they knew I was Christian,
they would be like, "Well, I don't want to follow God anymore..."
(Stephanie) Thank you, and that's the challenge,
that's the real challenge that we face.
We're challenged today with this study.
Let's pray and ask God to help us,
as Ranela has pointed out, to represent Him.
Dear Heavenly Father, Lord,
You have been so gracious to us.
I pray that You would help us
to be gracious to those
that we come in contact with.
Thank You for Your Word.
in Jesus' name. Amen.
(Team) Amen.
(Stephanie) Well, I don't know about you,
but we have another challenge.
We've learned the faithfulness of God,
and that He wants us
to share that faithfulness
with those around us.
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