# Sunday Setup – Nehemiah 13

Sermon transcript from Cross Church Surprise.
Series: Sunday Setup
Date: February 19, 2026
Watch: https://crosschurchcares.com/surprise/episodes/sunday-setup-nehemiah-13

## Summary

What does it mean to truly live a life that honors God? As we wrap up our journey through Nehemiah, we’ll explore the challenges of faithfulness and the importance of being remembered by God. Are we prioritizing what truly matters? Let’s dive in together!

## Transcript

Hey, Cross Church. Welcome to the Sunday 
 setup. This is our time each week where 
 we digitally gather together across our 
 platforms to prepare our hearts uh to 
 hear God's word this weekend. And we 
 start doing this by praying through a 
 piece of scripture. And this Sunday, we 
 actually wrapping up our series through 
 the book of Nehemiah. And we're come to 
 the very last chapter in this book in 
 Nehemiah chapter 13. And it's just been 
 an incredible journey just following 
 this amazing leader that God has moved 
 through Nehemiah as he's had a vision 
 for what God wants to do as he's led 
 people to do that. As they finished a 
 project, then he shifted his focus to 
 the people and how God's hand continues 
 just to move through this. And Nehemiah 
 chapter 13 uh ends probably how we 
 wouldn't have written it. It ends how 
 history actually played out. It's not a 
 fairy tale ending. It's not every 
 perfect thing is wrapped up, but it 
 brings closure to the story of how God 
 used this man. And this is a pretty 
 dense chapter, and we're going to read 
 this whole thing and then have a couple 
 prayer prompts through it. But here's 
 how it starts in Nehemiah 13:1. It says 
 this, "At that time, the book of Moses 
 was read publicly to the people. The 
 command was found written in it that no 
 Ammonite or Moabitete should ever enter 
 the assembly of God because they did not 
 meet the Israelites with food and water. 
 Instead, they hired Balam against them 
 to curse him. But our God turned the 
 curse into a blessing. When they had 
 heard the law, they separated all of 
 those of mixed descent from Israel. Now, 
 before this, the priest Eleesab had put 
 in charge of the had been put in charge 
 of the store rooms of the house of our 
 God. He was a relative of Tobaya and had 
 prepared a large room for him where they 
 had previously stored the grain 
 offerings, the frankincense, the 
 articles, and the tent of grain, new 
 wine, and fresh oil prescribed for the 
 Levite singers and gatekeepers along 
 with the contributions for the priests. 
 While all this was happening, I being 
 Nehemiah was not in Jerusalem because I 
 had returned to King Art Xerxes of 
 Babylon in the 13th year of his reign. 
 It was only later that I asked the king 
 for a leave of absence so I could return 
 to Jerusalem. And when I returned, I 
 discovered the evil that Eliashab had 
 done on behalf of Tobiia providing him a 
 room in the courts of God's house. I was 
 greatly dispos displeased and I threw 
 out all of Tobaya's household 
 possessions out of the room. I ordered 
 that the rooms be purified and had the 
 articles of the house of God restored 
 there along with the grain offering and 
 frankincense. I also found out that 
 because the portions for the Levites had 
 not been given, each of the Levites and 
 the singers performing the service had 
 gone back to his own field. Therefore, I 
 rebuked the officials, asking, "Why has 
 the house of God been neglected?" 
 I gathered the Levites and singers and 
 stationed them at their posts. Then all 
 Judah brought a tenth of the grain, the 
 new wine, and the fresh oil into the 
 storehouses. I appointed as treasurers 
 over the storehouses the priests Shelam, 
 the scribes Zadok, and Padiah the 
 Levites. uh with Hanan, son of Zakur, 
 son of Mthi to assist them because they 
 were considered trustworthy. They 
 responsible for the distribution to 
 their colleagues. Remember me for this, 
 my God, and don't erase the deeds of my 
 faithful love that I have done for the 
 house of my God and for its services. At 
 that time, I saw people in Judah 
 treading wine presses on the Sabbath. 
 They were also bringing in stores of 
 grain and loading them on donkeys along 
 with wine, grapes, and figs. All kinds 
 of goods were being brought to Jerusalem 
 on the Sabbath day. So I warned them 
 against selling on food on that day. The 
 Tyrans living there were importing fish 
 and all kinds of merchandise and selling 
 them on the Sabbath to the people of 
 Judah and Jerusalem. I rebuked the 
 nobles of Judah. And I said to them, 
 "What is this evil that you are doing 
 profaining the Sabbath day? Didn't your 
 ancestors do the same so that our God 
 brought all this disaster on us and on 
 the city? And now you are rekindling his 
 anger against Israel by profaining the 
 Sabbath. When shadows began to fall on 
 the city gates of Jerusalem just before 
 the Sabbath, I gave orders that the city 
 gates be closed and not opened until 
 again until after the Sabbath. I posted 
 some men at the gates that no goods 
 could enter the Sabbath day. Once or 
 twice the merchants and those who sell 
 all kind of goods camped outside 
 Jerusalem, but I warned them, "Why are 
 you camping in front of the wall? If you 
 do it again, I'll use force against 
 you." After that, they did not come 
 again on the Sabbath. Then I instruct 
 the Levites to purify themselves and 
 purify the guards and and guard the city 
 gates in order to keep the Sabbath day 
 holy. Remember me for this also my God 
 and look on me with compassion according 
 to the abundance of your faithful love. 
 In those days, I also saw Jews who had 
 married women from Asod and Aman and 
 Moab. Half their children spoke the 
 language of Asad or the language of 
 other of the other peoples, but they 
 could not speak Hebrew. I rebuked them. 
 I cursed them. I beat some of their men 
 and I pulled out their hair. I forced 
 them to take an oath before God and 
 said, "You must not give your daughters 
 in marriage to their sons or take their 
 daughters as wives for your sons or 
 yourselves." Didn't King Solomon of 
 Israel sinned in matters like this? 
 There was not a king like him among many 
 nations. He was loved by his God and God 
 made him king over all Israel. Yet 
 foreign women drew him into sin. Why 
 then should we hear about you doing all 
 this evil and acting unfaithfully 
 against our God by marrying foreign 
 women? Even one of the sons of Jehod son 
 of the high priest Elisha had become a 
 son-in-law to Sandalot the Horonite. So 
 I drove him away from me. 
 Remember them my God for defiling the 
 priesthood as well as the covenant of 
 the priest from the Levites. So I 
 purified them from everything foreign 
 and I spine assigned specific duties to 
 each of the priests and Levites. I also 
 arranged for the donation of wood at the 
 appointed times and for the first 
 fruits. And the book of Nehemiah ends 
 with this phrase, remember me, my God, 
 with favor. 
 The book of Nehemiah doesn't really end 
 on a happy note. 
 a lot of the progress they had made as 
 they rebuilt walls, as they rebuilt 
 people, it starts becoming frayed and 
 undone in this time. And Nehemiah has a 
 step back in as a leader. But he uses 
 some of these phrases over and over 
 again of remember me, my God. And he 
 says, "My God, my God, my God." There 
 was this personal relationship he had 
 with him. And I want us to start our 
 time as we prepare our hearts for Sunday 
 and as we pray through this piece of 
 scripture is this first one just 
 thinking about that phrase my God of why 
 is our God my God and who is my God that 
 we worship that the pe that scripture 
 and the Bible tells us about and here's 
 our first prayer prompt really simple is 
 you are my God because you are my God 
 because you created everything uh you 
 You are my God because you saved me. You 
 are my God because you are loving, cuz 
 you are gracious. That you are my God 
 because. Pray those prayers to our God. 
 Heat. Heat. 
 You are my God because you are not a 
 false and distant God like our world 
 often follows. But what we see 
 throughout scripture and we've seen 
 throughout history is you are a 
 intentional God. You are a powerful God 
 and you are a personal God who comes and 
 who makes relationship with us through 
 your son Jesus Christ. And you are my 
 God because you've initiated a 
 relationship, God. You've paved a path 
 for us to restore ourselves despite our 
 sin back to you. and you are my God 
 because you Lord are all holy. 
 But God, it is not just enough to just 
 acknowledge you as God, but we also have 
 to be faithful in following you as our 
 God, as my personal God. And Nehemiah 
 continues and he ends the book with 
 remember me my God with favor. 
 Nehemiah lived a life trying to be in 
 the favor of God, to be faithful to what 
 God had called him to do, to live in 
 step with the vision God gave him, to 
 serve him even when he failed, even when 
 the people failed. Is he wanted a 
 favorable life for God? And as we 
 reflect on that, does our life always 
 look favorable towards God? Are we 
 following Jesus like we should? Are we 
 loving our neighbors like we should? Are 
 we displaying the fruits of the spirit 
 like we should? And as we reflect on why 
 our God is our God because he's all 
 powerful, all great, all loving, the 
 second prompt goes to our action step is 
 God, help me live a favorable life in 
 God, help me live a favorable life in 
 loving my neighbors when I'm frustrated. 
 God, help me live a favorable life in 
 putting my family above my work. God, 
 help me live a favorable life in 
 seeking your word instead of filling my 
 my schedule and things with social media 
 and stuff that doesn't matter. God, help 
 me live a favorable life in pray that 
 prayers to our God. 
 Heat. Heat. 
 Heat. Heat. 
 God, help us live favorable life to you 
 by, God, focusing on the things that 
 truly matter, by prioritizing our quiet 
 time, by seeking our church family, by 
 just living on mission for you rather 
 than caught up in the busyiness and the 
 stress and the anxiety of our world. 
 God, may as we wrap up this book and we 
 read of just this amazing example of 
 Nehemiah and how you your will was done 
 through his life, not because of him, 
 but because of your power and because of 
 just his service and faithfulness and 
 his willingness. and God that we can be 
 like Nehemiah and just be willing to be 
 used by you, willing for the work of 
 Christ to be facilitated through our 
 church. And God, just let us have this 
 mindset that we want to be remembered by 
 you with favor. that our lives will be 
 remembered as something that honors you 
 and not just remembered as someone who 
 worked hard for their own glory, that 
 sought their own needs, that filled 
 their own life with stuff they wanted, 
 but that we can truly have Jesusfilled 
 lives that are reflected to the world 
 around us. God, we thank you for your 
 word. God, we just thank you for this 
 time that we can pray together in many 
 different places. is. And Lord, we just 
 ask that you bring us together on Sunday 
 with our hearts prepared to hear your 
 word so that we can praise through it, 
 that we can pray through it, that we can 
 preach through it, and we can practice 
 it this next week. Lift all this up in 
 Jesus name. Amen. Hey, thank you for 
 joining us. We'll see you this Sunday. 
 Heat. Heat.