Reading Nehemiah Chapter 4

HAVE YOU A SANBALLAT OR TOBIAH IN YOUR LIFE?

When you start a work for God, you will suffer persecution and opposition.

We have already met them in Chapter 2,  the three opponents of Nehemiah and here they come again.

Opposition will come in varying ways, but it will come. Once a work of God starts, you can bet your life, that the devil will use people to oppose you.

Nehemiah and the people had started the great work of building the wall, and these two men, who had oppressed the Jews, they had the whole of Jerusalem under their power.  They had the run of the city, they came and went and did everything that they wanted to, trampling on God’s people, they knew that if the walls were built, their access to the city would be blocked.

Discouragement is the great enemy of Christian work,  The people who were building the wall, could of seen the stones piled one upon another and become discouraged, after all, they were not professional wall builders, they were just ordinary people.

Let’s see the tactics of the enemy and how Nehemiah deals with them.

The first reaction of the opponents of the work is always anger, but it is clothed in a variety of guises, these two men are angry, but before they show fierce anger, they clothe their anger in words of:

Personal Mockery

These men who had the run of Jerusalem for many years, thought that they could come and go as they pleased, they were in for a shock.

How often do we have to face up to this, the mocking words of the enemy.

First of all, they use words like feeble, the devil casts doubt into our minds.

Are you really able to do this?

Look at you all, your so feeble.

Can you lift all those heavy stones.

Can you hear those mocking words?

Ever heard these words? I have many times.

When those kind of mocking words come from the enemy, what can we do and say?

I CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST WHO STRENGTHENS ME.. AMEN

Personal mockery won’t stop there, it goes like this, look at the size of this work, do you really think you will complete it? 

And even if you do finish the work you are doing for God, it will collapse, if a little adversity happens, it will completely fail. We have all heard these words, so what should we do about it.

They prayed

They knew they were despised and hated, so they prayed that God would deal with them, so often we react and try to sort out the situation ourselves,, they let the Lord handle it, and they went back to building the wall.

The wall was being built, the breaches in the wall were being closed up and this made the enemies of the people even more furious, so instead of mockery, they made a show of force.

Opposition to God’s work is often seen in numbers, if they mobilise enough people, they can surely persuade these Christians to back down. Let’s take the full force of all our armies, surely, they will realise they have no chance.

The answer is prayer and watchfulness, the enemy is very sly, it says they conspired against them.

Internal issues can come to the fore, the people were very tired by this point, this was back breaking work, that many of them were not used to, the stones were harder and harder to dig out, they had to be dragged upwards and there was much rubbish to move, discouragement from within is a great obstacle to building any work for God.

Again, what is the answer to this, Nehemiah was one of the great organisers of the bible, he was after all, the cupbearer to the king, he was like the prime minister and God had placed him in this role, he had a very organised and clear mind, God had given him a plan.

He organised the people,  he firstly reminded them, and this is something we need to remember, that God is great and that he is with us. verse 14. We also need to remember that we as a people of God are to be unified and to fight for each other, we are in this together. verses 14-15

They then returned to the work on the wall, some built the wall and some held the weapons, does that remind you of Moses and Joshua in Exodus 17? Joshua fought, Moses prayed. Look at verse 16, half of them worked, half held the spears, this is how it is in the church, some can’t get involved physically in the work because of illness etc, but they can hold the spear of someone who is.

Whose spear are you holding?

Spurgeon had a very famous magazine called the sword and the trowel, this title is taken from Nehemiah. 

Every person, who is building has  his sword by his side, as we build the work of God, we must have the word of God by our side.. amen. This is the source of our strength and comfort.

Nehemiah was watching, he was an attentive leader, he was watching out for danger, if he saw danger, then he ordered the trumpet player to play loudly, we must  always be ready to sound the alarm, many of God’s people are taken unaware because the trumpet player remains silent Isaiah 62:6

Opposition and discouragement will come sometimes, because we are spilt off from each other, some of the work on the wall, the workers became isolated and they got separated from one another. This can certainly happen in churches, where one work in the church is isolated from all the others, the answer is that if we see others struggling, we help them, we don’t think, well I’ve finished my part of the wall, I don’t need to do anymore, no go and help those who are struggling to complete their area.

How do we overcome opposition and discouragement,

The answer is unity, we are all together, Nehemiah insisted that the people live in Jerusalem, that they were all together.

Unity is strength, the early church is Acts 2:42-47, did all things together, they had all things in common. A church that lives together, loves together, serves together and worships together is one that is blessed by God, this is probably why there are 50 ONE ANOTHERS IN THE NT.

So the next time, your own personal Sanballat and Tobiah come and start mocking and conspiring against you, what do you do?

You don’t fight against them, you can’t. You pray asking the Lord to deal with them and then you get back to work.

You encourage each other when the work gets tough, there will be times when they will conspire against you.

You will stand in the gap for the builders, you will literally hold their spear, you will pray for them.

Opposition will come, but it must be met by these things.:

PRAYER

WATCHFULNESS

ORGANISTATION OF RESOURCES AND MANPOWER

UNITY

HOLDING EACH OTHER UP IN PRAYER (HOLDING THE SPEAR)

COMMUNITY

GIRDED WITH THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT

All these things will help us, but these two things, we need to remember and it’s this

REMEMBER THE ONE TRUE GOD, WHO IS GREAT WILL FIGHT FOR US

IF GOD IS FOR US, WHO CAN BE AGAINST US ROMANS 8:31

Sanballat and Tobiah didn’t give up, they came back with new and more devious methods, but again they were met with the same shield of response and that is prayer and God’s word.

We will study that in a future study, but I pray that you will have a mind to work for God’s glorious kingdom and that you will not be distracted or disturbed by the insults of the enemy.

We serve a living saviour and with his help, we will build the wall.

Amen

God bless you

Keith

READING CHAPTERS 2 AND 3

LET US ARISE AND BUILD

Much of the church today is broken down, so we need men who can inspire their fellow believers to build up the broken down walls, men like Nehemiah, who had a commission from the King to build up the wall.

We have a commission from the King to build also, ours comes from the King of Kings.

In verse 17-20 of chapter, you can feel the passion of this man, he is not only in distress, but he is determined to complete this work.

Hearing a man speak like this, would be inspiring, he speaks not only of himself, but of God, the good hand of our God is open us. These people had not moved in years, but suddenly they have been moved by Nehemiah, they were inspired.

We need more people like Nehemiah who are able to say Let us arise and build, he is virtually saying, let’s build guys.. God is on our side, we can do this.

These people who opposed him and God’s work, were dismissed as fools, they have no part in this work, so often we are scared of the enemy, but Nehemiah stated the facts that God would help them and they were not wanted. We need to have the Can -do attitude of Nehemiah and not be scared of the enemy, too often we bow to outside pressures.

Chapter 3, looks like a long list of names, but it isn’t . Each family and group of people, had a specific part of the wall they had to build, likewise in the church, we all have specific areas of service, no one has a more important role, your role is valuable and has to be used in conjunction with everyone else.

The high priest, set the example, it is up to the leaders in the church to be the first to serve, as a leader you are not above your master, if he washed the disciples feet, then you should be willing to do the most menial task in the church, even if that means cleaning the toilets.

But in verse 5, we have the nobles or should they be called snobs, they were the rich people, but they were not willing to put their necks on the line, they were prepared to sit back and let others do the work.

Are you a noble, someone, who wont put their necks the work of the Lord. They are prepared to come to church and sing the songs and listen to the sermons, but as soon, as any work has to be done in the church, they are first out of the door.

God speaks to us through Nehemiah, through his drive and passion, he speaks to us to join him in this great work of building the wall, he calls us to reject the criticism of our opponents and to arise and build.

LET US ARISE AND BUILD.

Are you ready to join me and others in building the wall, through service and prayer.

Who is on the Lord’s side, Moses said in Exodus 32:26, if you are, let us not sit back but let us arise and build.

God bless you

KK

NEHEMIAH 2

17 Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in, how Jerusalem lies in ruins with its gates burned. Come, let us build the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer suffer derision.” 18 And I told them of the hand of my God that had been upon me for good, and also of the words that the king had spoken to me. And they said, “Let us rise up and build.” So, they strengthened their hands for the good work. 

THE CAN-DO-MAN

Times were bad in Jerusalem. The walls were broken down; Nehemiah had returned and he was a man on a mission. He inspects the walls, and is eager to do something. He is not going to be put off by Tobiah and his friends and some of the people who were compromising.

In verse 18, we have two very penetrating statements, Nehemiah told them that the Hand of the Lord had been upon him, this is so important, Nehemiah came but he came in God’s power, remember what Jesus said in John 15, without me, ye can do nothing. Nehemiah was a man, we are mere men, can we be can-do Christians, yes, but only in God’s power. To do any work for God, the hand of the Lord has to be with you

Also, he told them of the words that the king had spoken to him, He had the king’s promise, so do we. Promises such as Hebrews 13:5, Matthew 28:16-20 and Acts 1:8. Again, when we do a work for God, we rely and stand on the promises of God, sure we can be can-do Christians, but only through God’s power and holding on to God’s promises 

It only takes one man/woman who has a passion to fan the flames of revival in a city or neighborhood. Nehemiah was a can-do-man. He saw the state of the walls and was determined that the walls must be re-built.

Nehemiah is an inspiring person; he said the encouraging words God had said to him and he inspired others.  But also, he saw the state of the walls, and saw that the Jews were being laughed at and held in derision, this made his blood boil, so to speak.

Does the state of the church today make you take action?  When you see the walls of the church broken down, what is your reaction?  Do you care or do you have the reaction of Nehemiah?

There are too many can’t-do people in the church today; you can’t do this, you may upset our neighbors, you can’t speak out the truths of God’s word, it might rock the boat in society. One of my favorite sermons is  “Preaching Outside the Pulpit,” by Todd Friel. It encourages pastors and their church members to get out and open air preach. Some maybe can’t, but others can, but won’t. Most Christian evangelism is not done on Sunday, BUT during the week by Christians living their lives and going to the world in love. Jesus said GO, yet so many can’t-go Christians are in our churches. We need to rebuild the walls in our schools, communities and towns/cities, so let’s get out and share the gospel. There will be people in our churches that will say, you can’t do that.

In my home town in the UK, every Saturday morning, there is a small group of seven or eight dedicated believers who share the gospel week after week, but where are the others?  They are there when there is some Christian event and will gladly come to church and give God one morning per week. But they are can’t-do Christians… “Oh I can’t do that! What would people think of me?”  Answer: They would call you a fool for Christ

It is time to arise and rebuild the walls, so that the church is not held in derision anymore.  It is time to be like Nehemiah and to be a can-do Christian and inspire and encourage others.  Are you a can-do Christian or a can’t-do Christian?  Or even worse, are you a won’t do Christian?

God bless you,

KK

Reading Nehemiah Chapter 1

1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hacaliah.

Now it happened in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Susa the citadel, 2 that Hanani, one of my brothers, came with certain men from Judah. And I asked them concerning the Jews who escaped, who had survived the exile, and concerning Jerusalem. 3 And they said to me, “The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire.”

Nehemiah’s Prayer

4 As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. 5 And I said, “O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, 6 let your ear be attentive and your eyes open, to hear the prayer of your servant that I now pray before you day and night for the people of Israel your servants, confessing the sins of the people of Israel, which we have sinned against you. Even I and my father’s house have sinned. 7 We have acted very corruptly against you and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, and the rules that you commanded your servant Moses. 8 Remember the word that you commanded your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples, 9 but if you return to me and keep my commandments and do them, though your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of heaven, from there I will gather them and bring them to the place that I have chosen, to make my name dwell there.’ 10 They are your servants and your people, whom you have redeemed by your great power and by your strong hand. 11 O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants who delight to fear your name, and give success to your servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.”

Now I was cupbearer to the king.

NEHEMIAH THE MAN OF PRAYER

Nehemiah is such an interesting character; he was a Jew in exile and he had reached one of the highest positions in the court of Persia, he was a trusted advisor and confidant of the king.

He probably knew that people had gone back to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple, they had now returned, one being his own brother or a very close relative. Although he was a high-ranking court official, he was intimately interested in what was going on in Jerusalem.

Let us learn some things from the prayer of Nehemiah:

His prayer was passionate

Look how it starts, as soon as he heard, he sat down and wept. He was an emotional guy; he was a passionate guy. What are you passionate about? We have a generation of believers, who are passionate about anything other than the things of God. They are passionate about their sports team, their jobs, their cars or some other idol; they have. If you heard like Nehemiah, the news that he heard, what would be your reaction? In today’s church, it would be seen as emotional over reaction, what would make you weep?

Does the news that millions are going to hell every day make you weep?

Does the news that your country and community is in moral decline make you weep?

Does the news that your church and indeed yourself have lost its first love, make you weep?

The walls are broken down around your family, church, community and country, does that make you weep?

He gave God his proper place. Verse 5

What did he call God?

He gave proper recognition to God, when we approach God in prayer, he is not some distant deity, neither is he our buddy, he is what Nehemiah calls Him

“O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God 

Before he petitioned God, he praised God Verse 5

Nehemiah praised God because God was and is a covenant keeping, loving, all powerful, faithful and awesome God. Next time you come before God, with your long list of requests, spend time praising Him for all that he is and all that he has done for you.

His prayer was persistent verse 6

Notice he prayed day and night, Jesus said in Luke 18:1 we had to pray and not lose heart and Paul in 1 Thess 5 said Pray without ceasing. Nehemiah prayed often and sought God on this matter, he told no one the situation, but God. Before he went to his pastor or friends, he went to his God. 

He knew his place in God’s plan verse 6

The prayer of your servant.

Jesus said we are unprofitable servants at best. How often we come to God in pride, thinking we are something, when indeed we are nothing.  He was the cupbearer to the king, but to God, he was and is a humble servant, just like you and me

He prayed for his people verse 6

His prayer was focused on the children of Israel, he could have prayed and I’m sure he was praying for Persia, but his focus was on his own people. May we all focus on all own people, whether we are British, Chinese, German or Nigerian.

His prayer was penitent and personal verses 6 and 7

Nehemiah realised what had caused this, sin. He did not hide from this. He realised that he was not excluded from blame. Nehemiah realised that he was part of the problem, he had been in Babylon, but he didn’t absolve himself of blame.

The situation in the UK is very bad, sin is rampant, although I am thousands of miles away, I cannot absolve myself of blame.

He reminded God of the promise he had made with the people, not that God needed to be reminded verse 8-10

God’s promises are sure and steadfast, if God said then it will come to pass. God had said that if the children of Israel followed him, then blessing would happen, if they didn’t, then failure would happen. 

He praised God for his great power verse 10

It was God who redeemed the people and it would be God, who would now help them. The Children of Israel had gone after other God’s, but there only hope is and always will be in God. We need to remember that only God is able to do anything to help us, like the Baals on Mt Carmel, all other God’s are dead . Our God is alive and all powerful.

He prayed for God’s protection verse 11

Nehemiah was a trusted advisor to the king, but his trust was in God and him alone. He prayed for favour with this man; he knew who was in control.

God answered Nehemiah’s prayer, because he came humbly to God, he came with a broken and contrite spirit. Nothing in his prayer was in pride, he came as a penitent sinner, he came with a reverence to God. God requires us to come to him acknowledging who he is, the one all-powerful God who is awesome in majesty and glory.

So often, I come to God and just have a shopping list of requests, but like Nehemiah, we need to spend time worshipping God and then we can tell God all our needs.

Let us come in humble repentance to our Great and all-powerful God, who alone can answer our prayers. His ear is always attentive to our prayers, if we came to God in the way Nehemiah did.

God bless you

KK

NEHEMIAH

GOD’S MAN

The Salvation Army was founded by a Methodist Preacher by the name of William Booth.  Its mission was to share the message of repentance and salvation through Jesus Christ alone.  Booth sent many people all over England burdened to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  He sent two women Kate and Mary Jackson to Leeds to oversee a mission there.  They laboured in Leeds for a couple of years and nothing happened.  These young ladies toiled every day giving all they had without any return.  Then one day they wrote to William Booth, “Would you kindly move us to another station?  We’re so tired and disheartened.  We’ve tried everything that we’ve been taught to do.  Please move us to another location”

Booth sent a telegram back with two words written: “Try tears!”

Those two sisters began to pray and travail for souls and they finally experienced real revival.  Kate and Mary did just as General Booth said, and God moved mightily.  The Leeds Salvation Army church soon became the largest outside of London.

William Booth was a man like Nehemiah who knew the power of prayer.  He also knew the power of tears; he had unlocked the missing link in today’s church.  We preach, we share, we have events, but something is missing, he knew the truth of Psalm 126:

5 Those who sow in tears

    shall reap with shouts of joy!

6 He who goes out weeping,

    bearing the seed for sowing,

shall come home with shouts of joy,

    bringing his sheaves with him.

We sow, and we do not reap.  I wonder why?  All through the Bible, we have people who wept and cried openly, for whatever reason: Jeremiah, David, Paul, Peter, and Jesus Himself.

I want to focus on the man Nehemiah.  He was an amazing man!  He was a man of power, a man of prayer; I love Nehemiah.  If you are building a work for God, this is a “how to book”, but it starts with tears and it starts with power.

Nehemiah was a unique man.  Let me say some things about him.  It says he was the kings’ cupbearer, but he was much more than that; he was one of the kings’ inner circle, a trusted friend.  Look at chapter 2.  He had the ear of the king, and the king notices his manner and wanted to know how long he would be away.

Let’s see Nehemiah’s reaction was to the news coming from Jerusalem:

He was interested in the work vs. 2

He could have kept doing his job for the king…  after all Jerusalem wasn’t his problem.  But his heart was still in his homeland.  I suppose it’s a bit like me.  Although I am far away from the UK, my heart and my prayers are still there for my beloved homeland.  It’s like Paul in Romans 9:1-4.  He’s the apostle to the gentiles, but his heart still yearns for his own people.  How interested are you in God’s work?  Not just in your own church, but do you know what’s going on around the world and how God is working?

He made an immediate response vs. 4

It says as soon as he heard these words; these words obviously struck a chord deep within him.  So often when we hear something, we put our response off.  Nehemiah didn’t just hear these words, but he acted immediately.  In a race, the athlete’s reaction time to the starter’s gun is all important.  Let me ask you Christian: What’s your reaction time like?  When something comes to your attention or needs to get done, how long does it take you to get involved?

He had incredible passion for prayer vs. 4 c/f Ezra 9

Both Ezra and Nehemiah were people who knew their God and were able to pray fervently and effectively  See also Daniel 11:32. We go to prayer meetings and we have private prayer, but do we pray like these guys did?  You and me think we pray, but we don’t really pray?  Do we weep, do we mourn for days on end?  No wonder Nehemiah had not only the king’s favour, but also more importantly God’s… and now you can understand why.

He interceded for Israel vs. 5-6

To stand in the gap means to intercede like Moses did in Exodus 17 when Joshua fought Amalek, the children of Israel at Jerusalem who were either unable or unwilling to pray for themselves, so Nehemiah took on that responsibility.  He took it on and prayed passionately and fervently.  How is your intercession for your fellow believers?  Who are you standing in the gap for?

He implicated himself in Israel’s sin vs. 6-7

He didn’t absolve himself from the sin of the people of Israel.  He didn’t say, “Well I’ve been here, so you can’t blame me!”  He blames himself for being part of the problem!  Judah had rebelled and he had rebelled also.  He didn’t put himself on a pedestal, but he admitted his sin.

He invoked God’s promises vs. 8-9

Remember back to Joshua 24, Deuteronomy 6 and 28, God said to the children of Israel, “You had a choice.  You can choose to serve Me or not, but here is what will happen if you don’t serve Me.”  Nehemiah reminds God of His promise.  Look at the promise at the end of verse 9; although the people were outcasts and scattered, God had promised to bring them back.  Remember if God promises something, He will always bring it to pass…  amen

He had an intimacy in prayer vs. 5-11

Nehemiah was a man of prayer and therefore a man of power.  We get a glimpse into his prayer life here in this prayer.  It is so intimate, so full of power; you ask how should we pray for God’s work?  His prayer is the blueprint.  Do we pray like this？?

He was instant in prayer ch1:4 and ch2:4

Paul says in 1 Thess 5:18 to pray without stopping or ceasing.  That doesn’t mean you pray 24/7, but that your first reaction to any given situation is like Nehemiah’s.  In Chapter 2:4, he was asked by the king, “What is your request?”  He could have said what he wanted, but before he spoke, he prayed.  If we prayed before we speak, how different the outcome would be.

He had a godly influence on those around him

Nehemiah was a trusted adviser to the king.  The king wanted to know in chapter 2 how long Nehemiah would be away for.  Why was he concerned about this?  Because he knew that Nehemiah gave good advice.  He was truly the salt and light in the court of the king.  Let me ask you… if you left your place of work or school for a period, how much would you be missed?  Look at verse 6 of chapter 2; it pleased the king to send me, what a testimony of Nehemiah’s character.

He had integrity

The king gave things into the hand of Nehemiah because he knew that he could be trusted.  He knew that he wasn’t going to run off and build another city somewhere else, Nehemiah was a man who could be trusted.  Can You?  The king granted him what he asked, for the good hand of the Lord was upon him, the hand of the Lord doesn’t bless those who can’t be trusted.

He inspected the damage and dealt with the main issue ch 2:11-16

Nehemiah is now in Jerusalem and one of the first things he does is to go and inspect the walls.  Before he can put anything right, he had to see what had to be done.  He was a reformer, who did reform Israel, but he saw the main problem and that was that the wall was broken down.  Look at his words in Chapter 2:17. Sometimes we need to address the main issue and leave the rest till later.

He inspired others ch 2:18

In vs. 18, he gives a rallying call to the workers.  These workers are totally demoralised.  They have given up building the wall, but here comes Nehemiah and he just totally inspires them to the point that they say, “Let’s build the wall!”  What an inspiration he was!  Do you inspire others by your actions and your words?

He ignored persecution ch 2:18-20

Sanballat and Tobiah are two of the nastiest characters in the whole Bible.  They were persistent through the whole book of Nehemiah.  Don’t they remind you or anyone?  Yes the devil.  These tactics they use are the ones he uses; from open ridicule, to discouragement, to seeking to plant corrupt officials within the Jewish people.  His reaction is, and look at the end of verse 20, our God is going to prosper and you two and I use these words carefully,  YOU CAN GO AWAY, YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO BE HERE.

Maybe next time we suffer ridicule and discouragement, you should tell the devil, to go away; he has no right to be here… amen.

This all happened because one man wept and took prayerful action.  He wept and prayed.

 We sow in tears and we reap in joy.

 The Lord wants you all to know this… you cannot reap without weeping.

 Before you can start to do a work for God, you have to weep over the state of man.

William Booth was asked what training he would give his officers.  He replied that he would hold them over the flames of hell to smell the torment of the unsaved.

Finally, we have the reason why all this happened.

God intervened!

At this point of history, he raised up a man like Nehemiah to rebuild the walls and to reform the people of Israel.  The walls of our Churches are as broken down as in Nehemiah’s day.  God is looking for men and women who he can use to rebuild and reform.

Are you that man or women?

 God bless you

KK