Be Ready At All Times

Well, we finished our series on the gifts of the Spirit last week, after taking two weeks to close it out. And we aren’t going to jump right into a new series this week. I felt to take a week and focus on something that, if you’re reading along with our bible reading plan you read this past week.

If you’re not reading along with our bible reading plan, I can’t encourage you enough to do so. If you don’t grab the papers, which are available on the table in the lobby, you can always go on our website and grab it there.

But this morning we are going to read from the book of / / Nehemiah, from the story of Nehemiah - his life, his mission and what he went through that we can pull from for our lives in the here and now.

There’s no denying that the times we live in are a bit tumultuous. And it doesn’t seem to matter what you believe, where you stand on certain issues, what you are willing to fight for, everyone at the moment feels like they are under attack from someone else. Doesn’t matter who you are, someone doesn’t see eye to eye with you.

But, what is troubling, at least to us as Christians, as bible believing followers of Jesus, is that there seems to be an increasing emphasis to have God play less of a role in society, to have scriptural truth play less of a role in society, to have Christian morals and values play less of a role in society.

Now, this is not going to be a message about how to fight people, but you certainly can’t live life right now ignorant to the fact that there is a fight going on. There are two things that can be detrimental to our lives. Fighting battles we aren’t supposed to. And burying our head in the sand when things are going on around us that we should be paying attention to.

And this is the reality of our time - things are not always going the way we see they should, and there is always more going on than meets the eye. And after spending 10 weeks listening to Paul and Peter on the gifts of the Spirit, including things like discernment, let’s start by laying a foundation of how they see warfare when it comes to being a Christian, and then we’ll go back and look at what Nehemiah went through that we can use as an encouragement in our current state of life.

First, Peter says in 1 Peter 5:8-9, / / Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same king of suffering you are.

Stay alert. He doesn’t hold back on what this is. You have a great enemy, the devil. He’s not disguising this. Now, if you grew up in church that might seem like it’s not that controversial of a topic. But, more than 40% of Americans don’t believe the devil even exists, but is just a symbol of evil. That’s shocking.

Here’s what we preach here at this church. We believe in God, we also believe there is a devil. Isaiah the prophet wrote in Isaiah 14:12-15, / / How you are fallen from heaven, O shining star, son of the morning! You have been thrown down to the earth, you who destroyed the nations of the world. For you said to yourself, ‘I will ascend to heaven and set my throne above God’s stars. I will preside on the mountain of the gods far away in the north. I will climb to the highest heavens and be like the Most High.’ Instead, you will be brought down to the place of the dead, down to its lowest depths.

When Jesus sent out 72 of his disciples to go minister to people, when they came back and told Jesus all they had been able to do, even saying that the demons had listened to them. And Jesus said, in Luke 10:18, / / “Yes, I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightening!”

We live in a tension of good and evil. Paul says in Ephesians 6:10-12, / / Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

So, we have a tension that we live in.

We know that God is victorious, right?

Jesus didn’t leave anything left to be done when he went up on that cross, died, was buried and then rose again, and then later sent the Holy Spirit to the body of Christ as they started this thing called the church. There’s nothing left to be done in regards to the power of God being displayed.

We also know that Satan can not win.

Satan will not win.

Satan is not all powerful or all knowing or all encompassing. He is a created being just like you and I are created beings. He is not an eternal force equal to God and we’ll find out which one wins in the end. This is not a story of good vs. evil that we don’t know the outcome of.

And God doesn’t just win in the end, he already has.

Jesus said in John 16:33, / / “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”

He did not say, I will overcome. He said, I HAVE overcome.

The word there means to carry off the victory, come off victorious. To completely, without question, conquer.

1 John 5:5 says, / / And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God.

And yet we know that Paul and Peter both, along with Jesus understood that there is this tension we live in. Jesus says in John 10:10 / / The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give [you] a rich and satisfying life.

We live in this tension.

We have victory. Yet we suffer attack.

We are victorious. Yet we struggle.

We are sons and daughters of the most High God, and yet sometimes we feel alone and backed against the wall and like we have nothing left to give.

But let me just add this before we get into the story of Nehemia. Even though it may look bleak sometimes, like there’s less of us and more against us, let me assure you, there are still plenty of people following and worshipping Jesus. This past week we were in Tampa and we went to a concert on Thursday night, but it was one part concert and a whole lot of parts of all of us crying and connecting with the presence of God as 11,000 people, packed into an arean and worshipped God along with Brandon Lake and Phil Whickam. We sing a lot of their songs here in this church, so we were well versed and ready! And so was everyone else. I was looking around at one point and thought, “Man, you can tell this is all church folk because not a single person is sitting down. They’re all standing with hands up!”

Sure, there were lights and video and all kinds of cool things, but the adoration of Jesus and the presence of God was palpable. God was in the arena that night.

But what it said to me was, we are not alone. And those moments do us good. I can only assume you’re all here in part because you prefer a smaller church than a mega church - and I’m grateful, not because you’re bodies in seats, but because I truly love each of you and love the community we are seeing built here, I believe it is valuable, important and each of you have a vital role to fill as we are all learning what it means to be the body of Christ. But let me tell you something, a large gathering of believers, sometimes, is exactly what you need. I didn’t just connect with God on Thursday night, I felt encouraged and uplifted by the fact that so many were there to worship. I felt encouraged by the body at large. I really did.

So, as we are looking at this today I want you to also be encouraged.

Just like Paul said in Romans 12, this is what we just went through for so many weeks, right, When we get together, I want to encourage you in your faith, but I also want to be encouraged by yours!

And standing in that arena, worshipping God with 11,000 people, I was encouraged in my faith. I really truly was. And so this morning, I want to relay that to you. I want to encourage you in the faith. Yes, were are in a fight.

Yes, there is a battle raging all around us.

But you are not alone.

And you are not weak.

And your God has not left the building, has not left the earth, is not watching it all go on without an interest or a care.

He is with us, He is for us and He is moving, even if we can’t always see it.

So, this morning let’s read from the book of / / Nehemiah.

The story of Nehemiah is amazing. Again, if you’re not reading along with us in the Bible Reading Plan, I encourage you to do so. But let me give you a bit of a backdrop.

Nehemiah is in exile. Like All of Israel. The nation is no more. Israel as a country has come to an end. And this happened over time.

In about 720 BC, the nation of Israel has already long split into two. The Northern kingdom of Israel, and the southern kingdom of Judah. And the Assyrians come in and conquer Israel, the northern kingdom, and take the land and they take people captive, putting other people to live in the land.

200 years later the Babylonians conquer the city of Jerusalem, which is the capital of the southern kingdom of Judah, and destroy the temple and take most of the people back to Babylon. Not 100% of people were taken captive, but the land is no longer theirs, nothing happened that the kings of Babylon didn’t allow.

The book of Nehemiah starts by saying, / / In late autumn, in the month of Kislev, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes’ reign, I was at the fortress of Susa. Hanani, one of my brothers, came to visit me with some other men who had just arrived from Judah. I asked them about the Jews who had returned there from captivity and about how things were going in Jerusalem. (Nehemiah 1:1-2)

So, this is about the year 445-455, the 20th year of King Artaxerxes’ reign.

Some of the exiled people of Judah have been able to return home, some have not. Nehemiah is still in Susa, more than 900 miles away from Jerusalem, in what is now current day Iran, just north of the Persian Gulf. That’s about the distance from here to Richmond, VA…

Well, the report is not good. The walls around the city of Jerusalem are completely torn down, the gates ripped off, burned and destroyed by fire.

The news of this just absolutely devastates Nehemiah. He falls on his face before God, crying out, asking that God hear him in the midst of Israel’s sin of not obeying the commands, decrees and regulations that they had received through Moses.

Remember, the promise to Israel was, “Keep the commands and you will always have this land, and you will always flourish, and I will always be with you.”

But as we’ve been reading the Old Testament, the story of Israel, they did not do that at all. Most of the Kings of Israel and a lot of the kings of Judah, it simply says, “And they did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and followed the detestable practices of their neighboring nations, setting up alters and idols to false gods”. Some kings went as far as sacrificing their own children to these false gods.

So, when they are conquered and end up being dragged away into exile, are we at all surprised?

The prophets tried again and again to warn them and bring them back to God’s way, but they did not listen.

So Nehemiah is on his face and prays in Nehemiah 1:8, “Please remember what you told your servant Moses: ‘If you are unfaithful to me, I will scatter you among the nations. [ok, that’s what’s happened] But if you return to me and obey my commands and live by them, then even if you are exiled to the ends of the earth, I will bring you back to the place I have chosen for my name to be honored.’

The people you rescued by your great power and strong hand are your servants. O Lord, please hear my prayer! Listen to the prayers of those of us who delight in honoring you. Please grant me success today by making the king favorable to me. Put it into his heart to be kind to me.’”

In those days I was the king’s cup-bearer.

A couple thins I want to note here.

First, Nehemiah is in exile, in Susa, but he’s not in prison, he’s the cup-bearer to King Artaxerxes. Read the Old Testament. When Israel is in trouble, there is usually someone who is faithful to God and as a result finds themselves in a position to help the people of God.

Moses raised in the house of Pharoah in Egypt.

Joseph in the palace of Egypt.

Esther in the palace of the Persian king Xerxes.

Nehemiah in the palace of the Babylonian king Artaxerxes.

My first and probably biggest point this morning is this:

It does not matter how dark the world may seem. It does not matter how defeated the people of God might look. / / If there are those who will be faithful to God, God can work miracles through them!

But it takes someone willing to be faithful to God. Think of the impact you could have in this time, yes, in the midst of great darkness, and yes, in the face of world leaders, not Christian leaders, but world leaders. Leaders of business, leaders of finance, leaders in the political realm. You could be the voice that changes everything.

But it starts in prayer!

Point 1 for this morning.

/ / 1. Nehemiah Prayed.

He prayed for the people of Israel. He prayed the word of God. He prayed for the salvation of his people and his nation.

So, he’s the cup bearer, and he’s been praying, asking God to make a way for him to make a difference in the lives of the people of Israel, but also, in the nation. He was heartbroken when he heard that Jerusalem was destroyed and that the temple lay in ruins.

So, his prayer life is a prepared life. He’s waiting and looking for an opportunity. And it comes.

One day as he’s bringing a glass of wine to the king, Artaxerxes notices that Nehemiah is sad, and he’s not usually sad. He says to Nehemiah, “What’s up? You look sad but you don’t look sick, that’s not usual, you must be troubled.”

Now, this is a hidden point. Because it’s not expressly written, but it’s there, bright and shining if you’re looking for it.

/ / 2. Nehemiah served well.

Nehemiah was a good servant. He was a faithful servant. Not just to God, but to King Artaxerxes. Listen, you don’t end up the King’s cup bearer unless you are really good at your job and you don’t STAY the king’s cup bearer unless you do that job faithfully and well.

The King doesn’t want some depressed cup bearer in his face all the time. Nehemiah has done his job so well, and been so faithful in the sight of the king that this one morning he shows up looking sad the King not only takes notice, but he cares enough to ask if he’s ok!

And what is this? This is the open door he’s been praying for!

Listen, you might think your job is just a job. You might think you’re working for a company that is just here to serve your financial needs until you can retire, but let me tell you, if you are faithful and do your job well, no matter what level of influence you think you have, you have more influence than you think!

You have the ability to bring something that no one else can. The direction and leading of the Holy Spirit to what you do so that when the time comes you can speak to situations that need to be spoken to.

But you will NOT have a voice if you are not faithful and good.

Trust me. If you sit and complain about your job and complain about life and what’s happening around you, when the time comes for someone to need a word of God they will not look to you.

But, if you are faithful. If you work well. And if you are faithful to GOD in your life and in your own time AND at your workplace, when the time comes, not only will they look to you, but God will speak and work through you. I guarantee it. But you have to be like Nehemiah.

Point 1. Nehemiah prayed. He was faithful to God.

Point 2. Nehemiah served well. He did a good job.

Point / / 3. Nehemiah spoke up.

The king sees that Nehemiah is not his normal self, asks if everything is ok, and Nehemiah recognizes it for what it is, this is the moment he’s been praying for, this is the moment he’s been waiting for, and so he opens his mouth and shares what he has been waiting to share.

Here’s the thing. This is the king of Babylon and he is an exiled Israelite. This is not an easy ask. So, an unspoken point here. This takes guts.

I would ask first, how many of us are praying for opportunity to speak to leaders?

How many of us are actively, passionately, praying for opportunity to speak to those in positions of influence for the benefit of the people of God?

This was hitting me as I read it this past week...

So Nehemiah says to the king, “How can I not be sad when the city of my ancestors is destroyed and the temple of my God lies in ruins?”

The king responds, “How can I help?”

Point 4 this morning.

/ / 4. Nehemiah was prepared.

If you are praying for opportunity you need to know what you will do when that opportunity arises. Don’t just pray, “God, give me influence with important people.”… WHY do you want that influence? What’s the goal? What’s the plan when that influence comes?

I will be honest with you. In the past I have had people of influence and people with means ask me, “How can I help?” and I have NOT had the plan in place to say to them, “Here’s how you can help.” And the opportunity goes by because we did not put in front of the person who could do something, something to do.

I’ve also had times where I was prepared, and it opened incredible doors.

How much more could we do if we were both praying for opportunity, but when that opportunity came we had a plan AND the guts to share those plans?

So, Nehemiah steps out on a limb and says, “Well, I could use a whole tonne of lumber, and gold, and silver, and workers, oh, and give me a letter that I can show the local officials that this is all coming from you so that I can go home and rebuild the city and temple of my God.”

Nehemiah 2:8 says, / / And the king granted these requests, because the gracious hand of God was on me.

After all of this we’re finally at the part I want to talk about this morning - because that’s not the end of the story, that’s the beginning. It was NOT Easy for Nehemiah after this.

So, the question I want to ask, and the story we’ll read from Nehemiah is this:

/ / What happens when we face opposition?

See, Nehemiah had prayed, he had been faithful in his position, he had looked for opportunity and spoke up when that opportunity came. Now comes the part where he has to put all of that into practice and it’s at this point where he faces opposition from those around him that don’t want to see happen what he’s been given a heart for by God, and even permission from the king to do.

Scripture names three people in particular as being very upset about all of this.

Sanballet, Tobiah and Gesham. And these guys are not Jews, they are actually from groups that had been driven from the Promised Land hundreds of years ago. And these guys are now regional governors serving under the king of Persia. But in the absence of the Israelites, because they had been exiled, people had come back and moved back in, and in some cases Israel did not remove all of the people when they came into the land. So these guys are not friends of Israel, they are not friends of Nehemiah, and they are not happy he’s there. They ask in Nehemiah 2:19-20, / / “What are you doing? Are you rebelling against the king?” I replied, “The God of heaven will help us succeed. We, his servants, will start rebuilding this wall. But you have no share, legal right, or historic claim in Jerusalem.”

Chapter 3 of Nehemiah tells how Nehemiah gets the people of God in the city of Jerusalem to start rebuilding, and things seem to be going well. And then we get to chapter 4 where we are going to focus for a bit here.

We’ll read it and we’ll look at some things as we do.

Nehemiah 4:1-23.

/ / Sanballet was very angry when he learned we were rebuilding the wall. He flew into a rage and mocked the Jews, saying in front of his friends and the Samarian army officers. “What does this bunch of poor, feeble Jews think they’re doing? Do they think they can rebuild the wall in a single day by just offering a few sacrifices? Do they actually think they can make something of stones from a rubbish heap - and charred ones at that?”

Tobiah the Ammonite, who was standing beside him, remarked, “That stone wall would collapse if even a fox walked along the top of it!”

Ok, so we had a few points leading up to this:

/ / Nehemiah Prayed

/ / Nehemiah Served Well

/ / Nehemiah Spoke Up

/ / Nehemiah was Prepared

Those are the things that got him to this place of being able to do what God had really put in his heart to do. And so he’s here doing it. But now he’s faced with these guys who are threatening it all.

So, after the 4 points of preparation for what God wants to do, and you’ve started doing what God wants to do in and through you. We now have some points of faithfulness.

/ / 1. You will get pushback

I’m sorry if you think it’s all going to go cherry for you everyday. And I wish it was. And I love when a thing comes together and there’s no issues along the way. And that DOES happen sometimes. I’ve had it happen on multiple occasions. But the reality is, we live in a world where evil exists. We live in a world where, like we started, Paul and Peter and Jesus all tell us the devil will TRY to mess things up, going as far as killing, stealing and destroying, right? Prowling around like a lion, looking for someone to devour. That’s some pretty strong wording.

Paul says our wrestle is not against flesh and blood, but agains principalities, powers, rulers in unseen realms. That sounds like some pretty big stuff.

So, behind Sanballat, Tobiah and Gershem is an enemy we don’t see pushing his way into things.

Jesus says clearly in John 16:33, / / Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows.

Do not live ignorant of the enemy or his tactics to trip you up. You will get pushback. Especially when you are doing the work of God for the Kingdom of God.

Now, I don’t fully subscribe to the notion of “Greater levels, greater devils.” ok, I don’t automatically expect backlash when I experience breakthrough, but I also am learning more and more to be aware of the tactics of the enemy. When we experience something great. When we experience what we would consider a win, and something does happen that tries to rob us of that, how do we react? What do we do?

It’s not about how we live in perfect times. It’s about what we do when the going gets tough.

So, these guys are mocking Nehemiah, he is experiencing push back. What does He do?

vs. 4, / / Then I prayed, “Hear us, our God, for we are being mocked. May their scoffing fall back on their own heads, and may they themselves become captives in a foreign land! Do not ignore their guilt. Do not blot out their sins, for they have provoked you to anger here in front of the builders.”

At last the wall was completed to have its height around the entire city, for the people had worked with enthusiasm.

/ / 2. Nehemiah Prayed

OK, do you see this. In the preparation points this was point #1, Nehemiah Prayed.

In being faithful, this is point #2. Nehemiah Prayed.

When you experience push back, backlash, trouble around the corner, the first thing you need to do is pray. Turn to God. For 2 reasons.

First - acknowledge God in all you do.

The bible is full of this encouragement.

Proverbs says The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge. In all your ways commit to the Lord and he will make your paths straight.

1 Thessalonians 5:17 says, / / Pray without ceasing.

James 5:13, / / Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray!

Ephesians 6:18, / / Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.

Pray. pray, pray, pray.

Jesus said in Luke 21:34-36, talking about the end times, dark times, times of trouble, / / “Watch out! Don’t let your hearts be dulled by carousing and drunkeness, and by the worries of this life. Don’t let that day catch you unaware, like a trap. For that day will come upon everyone living on the earth. Keep alert at all times. And pray that you might be strong enough to escape these coming horrors and stand before the Son of Man.”

When the world seems to turn on you. Pray...

When the enemy pushes back. Pray...

When you feel mocked or persecuted or slandered. PRAY...

vs 7, / / But when Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabs, Ammonites, and Ashdodites heard that the work was going ahead and that the gaps in the wall of Jerusalem were being repaired, they were furious. They all made plans to come and fight against Jerusalem and throw us into confusion. But we prayed to our God and guarded the city day and night to protect ourselves.

Then the people of Judah began to complain, “The workers are getting tired, and there is so much rubble to be moved. We will never be able to build the wall by ourselves.”

Meanwhile, our enemies were saying, “Before they know what’s happening, we will swoop down on them and kill them and end their work.”

The Jews who lived near the enemy came and told us again and again, “They will come from all directions and attack us!”

So, Nehemiah had prayed, and yet, things seem to be getting worse? Why?

/ / 3. The enemy will try harder

Don’t expect the enemy to give up after his first attempt.

There may be pushback even when you’ve prayed.

There may be step 1, 2, 3 and beyond of the enemy trying to ruin the plan of God in and through your life.

Look at what happens in the midst of that. They all made plans to come and fight against Jerusalem and throw us into confusion. But we prayed to our God!

Do not stop praying.

/ / 4. Your friends might give up

You may have absolute resolve. That does not mean everyone else will.

Here’s where we need to employ all that we learned in the last series - we are encouraged to encourage. We must show up and encourage each other. Because we are all in a fight of our own. We all need encouragement. We all need someone to come along side us and say, “Keep going.”

This shows how important it is to support each other.

Because the reality is, sometimes it’s not our enemies who are telling us to quit, it’s our closest friends that don’t see what we see and they don’t know how to encourage when they don’t understand, so instead, they question, doubt and maybe even tell you to stop.

Has God told you he wants to do something in your life but people just don’t understand?

Has God told you that he will provide, but it just doesn’t look like it from the outside OR the inside?

Has God told you to do something that is hard, and it seems like all the voices, the good, the bad and the ugly all are telling you that it can’t be done?

It happens sometimes. And I would say it’s even harder when those close to us don’t understand. When those who are on our side begin to question what we’re doing, it can be absolutely devastating to our courage and fortitude.

Even corporately, or even in the context of greater things, the global church. There are those on the outside yelling and accusing the church, and then there are those on the inside saying, “Ya know what, we can’t fight this. And if you can’t beat them, join them.” And this is where we get what some might call “woke church”, or those who are not even just flirting with the current mainstream ideologies, but fully embracing and endorsing sin within the church.

Why? I would suggest it is because somewhere along the line the fight go too much for them and it was easier to listen to the voices of humanity or the enemy rather than listen to the voices of God.

It might seam easier to be friends with Sanballet, Tobiah and Gershem, but let me tell you, they do not have your best interest at heart!

And I don’t want to put anyone down, I’m not about that. But there are churches preaching straight up sin. Isaiah 5:20-21 warns us, / / What sorrow for those who say that evil is good and good is evil, that dark is light and light is dark, that bitter is sweet and sweet is bitter. What sorrow for those who are wise in their own eyes and think themselves so clever.

Paul warns his spiritual son in 2 Timothy 3:1-5, / / You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God. They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that.

And you might think, “oh ya, he’s talking about the world. sinners, right?”

I wish. vs 8 says who he’s talking about, / / These teachers oppose the truth… they have depraved minds and a counterfeit faith.

Paul warns Timothy in the next chapter, / / For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear. They will reject the truth and chase after myths. (2 Timothy 4:3-4)

Sometimes it is the voices that are closest to us that turn against us. And when that happens, it is so hard to keep going. Nehemiah now has his own people saying, “They will come from all directions and attack us!”

vs 13, / / So I placed armed guards behind the lowest parts of the wall in the exposed areas. I stationed the people to stand guard by families, armed with swords, spears, and bows.

Then as I looked over the situation, I called together the nobles and the rest of the people and said to them, “Don’t be afraid of the enemy! Remember the Lord, who is great and glorious, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes!”

When our enemies heard that we knew of their plans and that God had frustrated them, we all returned to our work on the wall.

But from then on, only half my men worked while the other half stood guard with spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail. The leaders stationed themselves behind the people of Judah who were building the wall. The laborers carried on their work with one hand supporting their load and one hand holding a weapon. All the builders had a sword belted to their side. The trumpeter stayed with me to sound the alarm.

Then I explained to the nobles and officials and all the people, “The work is very spread out, and we are widely separated from each other along the wall. When you hear the blast of the trumpet, rush to wherever it is sounding. Then our God will fight for us!”

We worked early and late, from sunrise to sunset. And half the men were always on guard. I also told everyone living outside the walls to stay in Jerusalem. That way they and their servants could help with guard duty at night and work during the day. During this time, none of us - not I, nor my relatives, nor my servants, nor the guards who were with me - ever took off our clothes. We carried our weapons with us at all times, even when we went for water.

Ok, so recognizing we will face opposition, from outside, and unfortunately sometimes from the inside, we have to come to a place of focus. What did Nehemiah do?

/ / 5. Rally the Troops

Nehemiah listened to the complaint of those inside the city. There are threats, so what does he do. He rallies the troops, he recognizes that yes, there are vulnerabilities, so we need to reinforce certain areas.

In every situation we will face this. What are the vulnerabilities? What are our shortcomings that we need help in reinforcing? Where do we lack, that we need to shift and cover?

The second thing he did was prepare them. He gave them swords, spears and arrows.

This right there, spending time in the word, in prayer, in worship, this is preparation. Hebrews 4:12 says, / / For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable.

Being prepared. Having what you need. The truth on your side.

/ / 6. Keep Your Focus

Next, he brings them back to center. vs 14 says that Nehemiah encouraged the people, reminding them of what they are fighting for, and reminding them of God and what He has done. “Remember the Lord...”

/ / 7. Keep Working

When the going gets tough, the tough get going!

When things get difficult, those with a strong character and resolve will become even more determined!

Don’t stop in the face of adversity. Double down.

And I would say in this time and space that we live in, the most important thing on that is to double down on the truth that you carry inside of you. Honestly. There is already, and even to a greater extent coming a time when the truth will be brutalized even more than it has been, and you have to know what you know and know what you stand for.

Listen very carefully.

We have to be armed with the truth so that we know what we are supposed to do when we come to moments of decision. The truth isn’t so we can argue with people better, it’s so our decisions can be informed and correct.

There are too many people who work to gain a minimum amount of truth simply to argue with others, rather than a maximum amount of truth so they can live a holy life before God1

Do you know the truth as given by God through scripture?

Do you rightly understand that scripture? Not just picking and choosing what you want from it.

And are you on task with the body of Christ?

/ / 8. Put People into Position

Nehemiah put the right people into the right positions and made sure no one was left out.

Everyone carried a sword. Everyone had a role.

This might as well be a commercial for our Encouraged to Encourage series. You have been given a spiritual gift that the rest of us need! You have skills we need.

Look at how Nehemiah describes it.

Some he put on guard.

Some he put to build.

Some he put behind the builders.

Some had a trumpet to warn to others.

He himself oversaw the work.

Everyone had a role and took it seriously.

/ / 9. Everyone for Everyone

vs 19, / / When you hear the blast of the trumpet, rush to wherever it is sounding.

If something were to happen, he would sound the alarm and y’all better come running!

Yes, we are all spread out, yes, we all have our own tasks, our own things to do, but when it comes down to it, we are in this together and need each other.

We are meant to come to each others aid.

The story of Nehemiah is our story.

We are on task, building the city of God. What I mean by that is we are doing God’s work. That’s what we are meant to be doing. And let’s face it. God’s work is under scrutiny, it’s under attack, it’s under the watchful eye of those who would try to tear it down.

No different than Nehemiah’s situation.

And just like Nehemiah, currently, as a church we have been given permission by the government officials to do that work. But there are those, in life and in government that would seek to undermine that, and to break that down.

These three guys who were against Nehemiah were governors who were willing to defy the written order of the king to ruin Nehemiah’s plans.

But that didn’t deter him, and it didn’t get him down. He worked the plan because he knew the plan was from God.

Prayer was central, Worship was central, Focus was on God and work was done.

Know what you’re about, know what you’re meant to do, and get doing it, both in your life and in this community.

And I’m not saying this as an us vs them message. That’s not what this is.

Nehemiah’s enemy was flesh-and-blood.

Paul says clearly our enemy is NOT flesh-and-blood. When we recognize that the work of God in this earth is to draw all of humanity to Him, then it can NOT be an us vs them mentality because them is meant to be US. So what happens if you spend all this time fighting humans and then they decide to follow Jesus along side you?

Because everyone is invited. Whether they have chosen to follow or not, the invitation is there and they can choose at any time. And it should be our prayer, as different as someone is, even being polar opposites to someone, do we desire for them to encounter the saving grace of Jesus Christ? And what happens when they do? How will we handle that?

Peter wrote in 2 Peter 3:9, / / The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.

Our work is not to save ourselves from the world.

Our work is not to protect ourselves from the world.

Our work is to live for God, do the work of God so that through that we have opportunity to shine brightly before Him, in the midst of pressure, threat of attack and discouragement.

One of the things that really stuck out to me in Nehemiah 4 is that the preparedness and resolve of following what GOD had said was what caused them to be successful. Keeping the main thing the main thing!

/ / Keep praying.

Keep working.

Keep the sword on your hip!