Going into OT

Certain athletes are famous for what they’ve done in crunch time. Michael Jordan in basketball. David Ortiz on the baseball diamond. Tom Brady on the football field. Each of them built their legends in overtime. And If a game goes into OT, they are even more dangerous. These dudes may be clutch, but have you ever scene God when the game is on the line? He’s spectacular in OT. And by OT, I mean the Old Testament. Here in Nehemiah 9:7-37, we see God’s OT highlight reel. God’s people have just reviewed His top performances in the first books of the Bible (Neh 8:1-8, 13, 18; 9:3). A couple things standout. He’s unbelievably good. They are consistently bad. Yeah, God is especially awesome when going into OT.

Before the clocks runs out in regulation, let’s recap how we got here. The scene is Jerusalem in the year 445 BC. The governor is a man named Nehemiah. Over the past five months, he’s led the Jewish people in rebuilding the city walls that the Babylonian army knocked down 141 years before. You might be surprised to find out that late last year Nehemiah was working as a humble cupbearer for King Artaxerxes of Persia (Neh 1:1, 11). Everything changed when God broke his heart with breaking news about the broken walls of Jerusalem (Neh 1:2-11). The LORD proves that He’s got His hands on the project by orchestrating the entire situation in order to make it happen (Neh 2:8, 18). That includes getting the pagan king to not only give him the extended time off and bankrolling the entire project (Neh 2:2-8). 

Once Nehemiah makes the 1,000 mile trip from Susa to Jerusalem, the situation is even worse than he realized. The walls were rubble and the gates charred (Neh 2:13-15). The city is basically a ghost town (Neh 7:4). Local thugs named Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem continually terrorize the rebuilding project (Neh 2:10, 19; 4:1-3, 7-8; 6:1-19). And if that’s not bad enough, God’s people are a total train wreck. They’re in debt up to their eyeballs to fellow Jews (Neh 5:1-5). To make matters even worse, they’ve disobeyed God’s direct command and hooked up with local pagan hotties (Neh 9:2).

I don’t know about you, but if I were in Nehemiah’s sandals I probably would have packed up my camel and headed back to Persia. But he knew this was not about him but God. The LORD laid this on his heart (Neh 2:13). The governor is a man of continual prayer (Neh 1:4-11; 2:4; 4:4-5, 9; 6:9, 14). Day after day, Nehemiah reminds the people of their situation may be awful but their God is awesome (4:14, 20; 5:9, 15; 6:16). Despite incredible distraction, the governor made one thing clear, “I am doing a great work and cannot come down” (Neh 6:3). But this was about more than a construction project. God is also rebuilding the broken and rebellious hearts of His people. He uses Nehemiah’s sidekick Ezra to do just that. The Big E just happens to be the best Bible teacher on the planet (Ez 7:6, 10). He repeatedly reads from the first five books of the Old Testament to remind folks of just how incredibly good their God is (Neh 8:1-18; 9:3).

It’s at this point that Ezra leads God’s people in praising the LORD for all He’s done. They start back at the very beginning of OT with His Creation of the entire universe (Neh 9:6). Then they walk through the pages of what seminary folks like to call the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible. They praise Him for blessing Abraham and his descendants (v7-8). They praise Him coming to the rescue of His people in Egypt (v9-12). They praise Him for giving them rules to live by (v13-14). They praise Him for giving them food, drink, and clothing for 40 years (v15, 20-21). They praise Him for handing them a huge chunk of prime real estate called the Promised Land (v22-24). If you’re a grammar nerd like me, check out the action verbs Nehemiah uses to describe all that God has done…

“You have made” (v6)

“You preserve” (v6)

“the God who chose…and brought” (v7)

“You found…and made…to give” (v8)

“You have kept” (v8)

“You saw…and heard” (v9)

“(You) performed…You knew” (v10)

“You divided…You cast” (v11)

“You led” (v12)

“You came down…and spoke…and gave” (v13)

“You made known…and commanded” (v14)

“You gave…and brought…You told…You had sworn” (v15)

“You performed” (v17)

“You are…ready to forgive…abounding in love…did not forsake” (v17)

“(You) did not forsake…lead” (v18)

“You gave…and gave” (v20)

“You sustained…they lacked nothing” (v21)

“You gave…and allotted” (v22)

“You multiplied…and You brought…You had told” (v23)

“You subdued…and gave” (v24)

“(You) warned” (v26)
“You gave…You heard…You gave…saved them” (v27)

“You abandoned…You heard…You delivered” (v28)

“You warned…turn them back” (v29)

“You bore…and warned them…You gave” (v30)

“You did not make an end of them or forsake them” (v31)

“God who keeps covenant” (v32)

“You have been righteous…You have dealt faithfully” (v33)  

“You gave” (v34)

“You gave…You set before them” (v35)

“You gave” (v36)

“You have set” (v37)

Wow! God has been VERY busy working for the good of His people all throughout history!! And what verb shows up consistently here in OT? That would be “give” or “gave.” If you’re counting, that would be one dozen times in 30 verses. Our gracious God is a Giver. Over and over and over, He gives. His blessing. His love. His Son. His salvation. Don’t make the mistake of thinking there’s an Old Testament God of wrath and law and a New Testament God of love and grace. He’s the same God in both. Don’t miss the fact that His grace flows like a fire hydrant in the OT.

Well surely God’s people are up to something in response to His goodness. Oh, they’re up to something alright. 

“They and our fathers acted presumptuously” (v16)

“(They) stiffened their necks and did not obey” (v16)

“They refused to obey and were not mindful” (v17)

“They stiffened their neck and appointed a leader” (v17)

“They made for themselves a golden calf” (v18)

“(They) committed great blasphemies” (v18)

“They were disobedient and rebelled” (v26)

“(They) cast Your law behind their back” (v26)

“(They) killed Your prophets” (v26)

“They committed great blasphemies” (v26)

“They did evil again” (v28)

“They acted presumptuously and did not obey” (v29)

“(They) sinned…and they turned a stubborn shoulder” (v29)  

“(They) stiffened their neck and would not obey” (v29)

“They would not give ear” (v30)

“We have acted wickedly” (v33)

“(We) have not kept Your law or paid attention” (v34)

“They did not serve You or turn from their wicked works” (v35)

As they praise God for His incredible goodness, their history of sin becomes glaringly obvious. Despite our repeated rebellion and ingratitude, the LORD never, ever stops loving us. His grace is NOT dependent on our performance. Will life go better when we obey and do what He says? Absolutely! But there’s nothing we can do to earn His love. 

God shines in crunch time. When we turn our backs on Him and are completely unlovable, He’s at His best. When the going gets tough, our Savior gets going. He shines when the game’s on the line. If you think He’s great in the New Testament, check out the front of your Bible. He’s awesome in OT.