HSS_2019_Q4_EP05

♪ 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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