# 4  Nehemiah was a God-Fearing Leader 

What prevented him from doing what other governors did was the "fear of God". "But because I feared God, I did not act that way" (5:15). Every leader needs to have this biblical doctrine or biblical value to characterize his or her leadership. Fear of humans will bring a snare (Prov 29:25).

What does it mean to fear God? Negatively speaking, they will not abuse their positions, misuse or abuse powers or do things with hidden agendas for self-aggrandizement. Nor will they do anything that hurts, harms, exploits, mistreats others nor adopt a "superior than thou" attitude. 

Positively, God fearing leaders seek to do the right things and things rightly. They will seek to be faithful in their task, to honour and obey God's words, and live under the authority of Scripture with the aim of glorifying him. They   practise and live out kingdom values and have their priorities straightened out. They will speak out for under dogs and exercise courageous leadership in times of crises.

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Fearing God means to be "no respecter of people." That is why Nehemiah had the courage to confront the nobles and magistrates for holding their fellow Jews as pledges, “I rebuked them severely" (Neh 5:7). What are some of the implications of "fearing God"?

• The fear (reverence) of God is the beginning of wisdom " (cf. Prov 1:7, 9:10 and Psa 111:10). "Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding" (Prov 4:7; NIV).
• When we fear God we need not fear anything else (cf. Isa 8:12; Jer 1:8;  1:18-19 Ezek 2:6). "The remarkable thing about fearing God is that when you fear God, you fear nothing else, whereas if you do not fear God, you fear everything else" (Oswald Chambers).
• When we lead without fear or favour, the reward is blessings (2 Sam 23:3-4).
• God fearing leadership gets divine approval  and is "shepherds after God's own heart (see Jer 3:15).  The "fear of the LORD leads to life, bringing security and protection from harm" (Psa 19:23).
• God fearing leadership is liberating because it is not institutions, churches, councils  governments or individuals that  have the final say but  God will always have the last word. 

# 5  Nehemiah was a Trustworthy leader.

Nehemiah became an official wine taster because he was trusted by the king.  He built up that trust which he earned it for many years. In the Ancient Near East, a wine taster was also a king's confidante. Being trustworthy, he also won the King's favour who granted him an extended leave of absence and provided timber to build his house, an armed entourage of soldiers, and supplies to rebuild the city walls.

He did not abandon ship when faced with opposition and problems. Instead, he persevered to the end with the people.  By so doing he honoured his words,  kept faith with  the people and  proved himself a and trustworthy leader.  

# 6  Nehemiah was a Good Planner.

He was a good and careful planner (2:11-16). He used his  organizational and administrative skills towards achieving his objective. As a good organizer,  before formulating a detailed plan for the rebuilding project, he did his homework by surveying the situation and making an evaluation. His planning skills enabled him to give each group clearly defined roles and responsibilities. He did not anticipate all the problems that would arise but met them head on when they surfaced.    

In Nehemiah 2:17-20, we see him setting a goal and then motivating those in Jerusalem to work together to achieve it. As a good planner/organizer, Nehemiah a) knew how long the project would last (2:6); b) knew how to get there (3:7); c) knew what he would need to get the job done (2:8); and d) knew that God's hand was upon him (2:8).^[1] As the saying goes, "Those who fail to plan, plan to fail".  

The terrorists' attack was constant which could demoralize the people. So, he planned the following actions (4:10-15).

• He stationed guards at obvious weak points.
• He reminded workers to keep weapons close at hands and fight for God, their families, and the nation if attack came.
• He established duty rotations so that some stood guards while others  worked
• He even set up communication system where the man who sounded the trumpet stayed with Nehemiah although there was no evidence it was ever used. But to know it was there to sound a warning is reassuring. [2]   

He jotted down what's happening in his life and the community by keeping detailed records in a registry. He later used them as his database for his memoirs and in the rebuilding project narrative. The fact he could ask the king for resources from his forests in province near Jerusalem meant he knew about the various provinces and governors in Artaxerxes' empire.

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# 7  Nehemiah was a Courageous Leader.

Courage is the willingness to do the right things and things rightly. He confronted the noblemen and magistrates for doing wrong (Neh 5:7). When encouraged to flee for his life by seeking refuge behind closed door to escape a death threat, he replied, “Should a man like me run away? Can a man like me go into the sanctuary to save his life? I will not go"(Neh 6:11).

Eliashib  ("God restores") was the high priest in the time of Nehemiah (12:10,22 and 3:1, 20-21,13:28 and perhaps in Ezra 10:6). Together with the other priests, he helped in the rebuilding of the eastern city wall (3:1). Later Eliashib  betrayed Nehemiah when the latter  "allied with  Tobiah" the Ammonite (13:4) and allowed that enemy of Nehemiah the use of a great chamber in the temple (13:5). One of his grandsons, a son of Joiada, married a daughter of Sanballat the Horonite and was for this was expelled from the community by Nehemiah

(13:28).^[3]

As a courageous a leader, he also acted as a change agent. A change agent is a catalyst who initiates movement and momentum. Nehemiah implemented some major changes when he encountered external opposition and internal problems. He made changes progressively.

# 8  Nehemiah was a Leader of Integrity

He demonstrated integrity in his financial dealings. With transparency, he asked the king for timber for his own house instead of using the names of other people to get what he wanted. On another occasion, a situation arose in the rebuilding project. The common folks were having financial difficulties because they could not make ends meet. They had to borrow loans from the rich who charged high interest rates. When Nehemiah came of it, he became angry with the rich Jews for exploiting the poorer Jews. He rebuked them and remedied the situation. Instead of exploiting the situation like some previous governors (e.g. Sanballat and his cronies in chapter 4, the Jewish nobles and rulers in chapter 5:6-13, and the Governors of Jerusalem before Nehemiah in chapter 5:15 all were motivated by self-interests), he himself modelled generosity with his resources.

He also demonstrated integrity in his personal dealing with the people who were involved in the rebuilding project as well as his enemies. As a result, the people respected him and listened to him. ^[4]Integrity or credibility is an important key to influence.  A leader has no right to ask others to do what he or she is unwilling to do (e.g. menial tasks like arranging chairs, buy food, clean toilet, and others). 

Men of Integrity

God give us men.  The time demands

Strong minds, great hearts

True faith and willing hands

Men whom the lust of office does not kill

Men whom the spoils of office cannot buy

Men who possess opinions and a will

Men who have honor, men who will not lie

Men who can stand before a demagogue

And damn his treacherous flatteries without winking

Tall men, sun-crowned men, who live above the fog

In public duty and private thinking (John G Holland).

# 9  Nehemiah was a Good Motivator. 

We see this in (2: 17, 18; cf. 1:44). He motivated a wide range of people - religious leaders, political leaders, merchants and common people. He understood the value of motivation and affirmation to influence others.  He used all three types of authority - "positional authority" (appointed by the king), “spiritual authority" (the gracious hand of God was upon me)  and "people authority" (let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem and rid ourselves of the disgrace) in motivating the people as pointed out by one commentator.

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In motivating the people to work, he also used prayer, persuasion, and partnership. In Nehemiah 3: 28 we are informed that each priest repaired the wall in front of his own house besides other sectors. This motivated them to build quickly and properly. Not only would they not waste time travelling to elsewhere to build the walls, they could defend their homes if attacked as well as make rebuilding a family effort. This would lead to high quality work and personal satisfaction. "If people believe in themselves it’s amazing what they can accomplish" (Sam Walton).

How Did Nehemiah Motivate the People? [5]

• He took initiative and met them where they were, in the rubble (2:11)
• He patiently did his homework on the need (2:12-15)
• He remained silent until he was prepared (2:16)
• He identified the need they all faced and embraced (2:17a)
• He provided a relevant solution to meet the need (2:17b)
• His vision included  divine support and government support (2:18)
• He took the heat of opposition and responded on behalf of the people (2:19- 20)
• He offered people God's perspective  on their situation (4:13,14)
• He developed a plan for facing adversity , staying united and making progress 4:16-23)
• He took a stand for justice, even when it didn't directly benefit him (5:6-13)

He incarnated a spirit of service, his motivation was other centered  (5:6-13).^[6]