Rebuilding Kingdom Economy: The Marketplace Perspective
Dr. Cecilia Sharedah Jackson
Synopsis "Rebuilding Kingdom Economy: The Marketplace Perspective"
Although there are other Biblical patterns for building Kingdom economy, we will be looking at the Biblical prototype from the book of Nehemiah. Before we examine the plan Nehemiah used for re-building, we will look at the background of the book of Nehemiah with respect to those days and how we are to look at rebuilding the economy of the Kingdom of God today. From a chronological perspective, Nehemiah is the last of the historical books of the Bible. As far as the Jewish nation is concerned, the Old Testament progresses differently at that point with regard to their history. Seventy years after 2nd Chronicles the book of Ezra carries the story of the seventy years of captivity being over and a remnant, residue, or leftover group of Jews return to the land of Israel. Ezra's return happened about seventy-five years after Zerubbabel's return. Nehemiah then returned approximately fifteen years after Ezra's return. The seventy weeks of Daniel begin the book of Nehemiah. Some believe Nehemiah wrote the signature book "Nehemiah". It is believed that if Ezra were the writer, he copied from Nehemiah's journals. At any rate, the same writer wrote both books. In the Hebrew canon the two books were one. Ezra was a priest so the emphasis in the book of Ezra was on re-building the Temple therefore the view is from the religious perspective of the return of Jews to Jerusalem. The words were written from the perspective of a priest, a religious leader. On the other hand, Nehemiah was a layman, a person who does not belong to clergy. He was a businessman. He held a prestigious position in the court of the Persian King, Artaxerxes but his heart was bonded to God's people and God's plan of action for Jerusalem. So Nehemiah's approach was from a business perspective and also a political perspective, but it was for the purpose of the Kingdom of God. A vision must be crafted and embraced by believers globally who have a mind to see economic re-construction in every area of society: religious, social, political, economic and otherwise. When systems are aligned with God's Word, a great shift takes place and we, the church and the Kingdom of God move to a position of economic security, strength and health rather than insecurity, weakness and frailty. This text gives an expository pattern from the Biblical approach of Nehemiah who embraced the opportunity to re-build the economy of Jerusalem. The word "economy" is surrounded by and paralleled with terms like budget, costs, savings, financial prudence, wealth, financial systems, markets, nations, money and material strength. It is no easy word to define, but in simplest form when we speak of a nation's economy, it is the wealth and resources of a country or a region. It is especially with respect to the production and consumption of goods and services. It is the system of trade and industry by which the wealth of a country is made and sustained. Therefore when we speak of rebuilding the economy of the global Kingdom of God, we are talking about the herculean task of rebuilding the entire system that causes the Kingdom of God to stand and survive and its citizens to live peaceful, healthy, and victorious lives in a hostile world and at the same time mingle with that world for the purpose of expanding the Kingdom of God. There are certain foundational undertakings that must be done to shift to the conviction of dominion Kingdom economy and we find a pattern several places in the Bible, but this text is an exposition of the pattern seen in the Nehemiah experience. We recommend reviewing this introduction over several times until there is clear understanding of the magnitude of the mission of rebuilding the economy of the Kingdom of God across the globe.
