我來到耶路撒冷，就知道以利亞實為多比雅在神殿的院內預備屋子的那件惡事。 8 我甚惱怒，就把多比雅的一切家具從屋裡都拋出去， 9 吩咐人潔淨這屋子，遂將神殿的器皿和素祭、乳香又搬進去。
… and came to Jerusalem, and I then discovered the evil that Eliashib had done for Tobiah, preparing for him a chamber in the courts of the house of God. 8 And I was very angry, and I threw all the household furniture of Tobiah out of the chamber. 9 Then I gave orders, and they cleansed the chambers, and I brought back there the vessels of the house of God, with the grain offering and the frankincense.
尼希米記 Nehemiah 13:7-9
尼希米不僅是修建城牆者；他也是採取行動的領導者。當他意識到在他不在的情況下，祭司們在聖殿中為直接反對在牆上工作的亞捫人官員多比雅準備了一個大房間時，尼希米迅速採取行動清理了這個房間。隨後，他斥責猶太人中作惡的人，糾正他們的許多錯誤（如疏忽供養利未人、在安息日工作、與外邦人通婚），並潔淨上帝的子民使他們脫離罪惡。
敬虔的領袖必須謙卑而勇敢地面對罪惡。撒但一直在狡猾地解除教會和父親的武裝，宣傳對抗罪惡不是愛的錯誤思想。以致許多的教會以愛和包容的名義對罪保持沉默，或允許罪惡繼續存在。當我們犯罪時，我們“誇耀”上帝如何愛我們，但沒有人敢與罪人對質要他們離棄罪。然而，真愛勇於管教並敢面對罪惡。 （希伯來書12:6）如此才能為罪人和社區帶來上帝的祝福！
今天，我們的國家、我們的教會、我們的家庭迫切需要像尼希米這樣的領袖，他們不僅知道出了什麼問題，而且有勇氣面對罪惡，並採取行動。
Nehemiah was not only a wall builder; he was also a leader who took action. When he realized that in his absence the priests had prepared a large chamber in the temple for Tobiah, the Ammonite official who had directly opposed the work on the wall, Nehemiah acted swiftly to cleanse the chamber. He subsequently confronted the evildoers among the Jews, corrected their many wrongdoings (such as neglecting to provide for the Levites, working on the Sabbath, and marrying foreign wives), and generally purified God’s people from the evil in their midst.
Godly leaders must humbly but courageously confront sin. Satan has been craftily working to disarm churches and fathers by promulgating the thought that to confront sin is not loving. So many churches are silent, allowing sin to continue, all in the name of being loving and inclusive. We “boast” about how God forgives us when we sin but no one dares to confront sinners regarding the forsaking of their sins. Yet true love disciplines and dares to confront sin. (Hebrews 12:6) Doing so will bring God’s blessing to the sinner and to the community!
Today, our nation, our churches, our homes desperately need leaders, like Nehemiah, who not only know what has gone wrong but also have the courage to confront the sins and to act.
