The Voices of Opposition
The Good Work • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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I love archery but for some reason this year, in the midst of moving and learning and growing I havent taken the time to practice shooting.
can be sure as soon as you begin the good work, doing what God has asked you to do. As soon as you begin to take steps of faith. Real ones. The enemy of our souls puts a target on your back.
as our kids are studying the armor of god… let us be reminded as well…
because satan doesn’t take a break in his archery shooting
Doubt & Ridicule
Doubt & Ridicule
1 When Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became angry and was greatly incensed. He ridiculed the Jews, 2 and in the presence of his associates and the army of Samaria, he said, “What are those feeble Jews doing? Will they restore their wall? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they finish in a day? Can they bring the stones back to life from those heaps of rubble—burned as they are?” 3 Tobiah the Ammonite, who was at his side, said, “What they are building—even a fox climbing up on it would break down their wall of stones!”
Questioned their purpose, their plan, their timing, their motivation and even their building materials. And not only where they questioned about it, the began to get mocked and insulted, ridiculed about who they were, what they were doing and why they were doing it.
Insulting - feeble jews, what are they even doing?
Mocked, Ridiculed, Insulted...
Satan will do everything in his power to get your to question God’s work. To begin to doubt God, doubt God’s calling, God’s plan and God’s methods.
Jesus said we should not be surprised when people insult us...
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Temptation to read the bible as if we are always the good guys…But if we are not careful…we might find that we ourselves are the Sanballats and Tobias’ in the story. If we are not careful, we can find ourselves mocking what God is up to and questioning peoples motives.
Dealing with Ridicule
Dealing with Ridicule
4 Hear us, our God, for we are despised. Turn their insults back on their own heads. Give them over as plunder in a land of captivity. 5 Do not cover up their guilt or blot out their sins from your sight, for they have thrown insults in the face of the builders. 6 So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height, for the people worked with all their heart.
Nehemiah prayed about it. He took the personal insults and handed them over to his personal God to deal with.
Pray about it. Take the pain to your Father in heaven. He can deal with it. But then put your hand back on the plow. Get back to work.
Remember who the true adversary is...
11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.
12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
Never allow ridicule to stop your ministry, take it to Jesus in prayer and keep on working.
Threat of Assault
Threat of Assault
7 But when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites and the people of Ashdod heard that the repairs to Jerusalem’s walls had gone ahead and that the gaps were being closed, they were very angry. 8 They all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and stir up trouble against it.
Dealing with Assault
Dealing with Assault
9 But we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat.
Prayer and Preparation.
Nehemiah The Soldier Builders (Chap. 4)
Prayer without watchfulness is hypocrisy; watchfulness without prayer is presumption.
First reaction again was to take to the threat to God.
How many times is that our first reaction. Someone threatens us physically, threatening assault and our first reaction is prayer?
We prayed to our God. It wasn’t just a prayer to some God…no it was a prayer to the personal God. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The prayer to the God of Moses and Elijah. The prayer to the God of Nehemiah and Ezra. The prayer to our Heavenly Father. Our God.
And then they set a watch…they posted a guard…now this is tricky reading in the NIV, because Nehemiah wasn’t saying…we appointed one guy to guard us day and night. No he set up a guard watch…a rotation of guys who were the guard.
Nehemiah didn’t just say, ok we need some volunteers…no. He went and found the men who would be willing and able to fill that position.
Set a watch, day and night...
The devil will not give you notice when he is going to tempt you; he likes to take men by surprise; therefore, set a watch day and night.
A song of ascents. 1 I lift up my eyes to the mountains— where does my help come from? 2 My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. 3 He will not let your foot slip— he who watches over you will not slumber; 4 indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. 5 The Lord watches over you— the Lord is your shade at your right hand; 6 the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. 7 The Lord will keep you from all harm— he will watch over your life; 8 the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.
This is the reason that many churches today have security teams. Yes we are going to pray and trust that God is our provider and protector, but he has also given us tools and equipped certain people to notice danger. To keep watch and protect the flock.
Discouragement & Fear
Discouragement & Fear
Discouragement-
Discouragement-
If the enemy cannot defeat you with opposition of threats, he will try to discourage you in your work.
10 Meanwhile, the people in Judah said, “The strength of the laborers is giving out, and there is so much rubble that we cannot rebuild the wall.”
Fear
Fear
11 Also our enemies said, “Before they know it or see us, we will be right there among them and will kill them and put an end to the work.” 12 Then the Jews who lived near them came and told us ten times over, “Wherever you turn, they will attack us.”
Dealing with Discouragement and Fear
Dealing with Discouragement and Fear
13 Therefore I stationed some of the people behind the lowest points of the wall at the exposed places, posting them by families, with their swords, spears and bows. 14 After I looked things over, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “Don’t be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your families, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes.”
Remember the Lord
Remember what God has spoken and claim his promises.
no weapon forged against you will prevail,
and you will refute every tongue that accuses you.
This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord,
and this is their vindication from me,”
declares the Lord.
Continuing in the Work when we know our enemy is out there...
Continuing in the Work when we know our enemy is out there...
Preparedness- Be ready in season and out.
With one hand they held their sword with the other they worked.
Put on the armor of God.
11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Work with the Word of God in one hand and the purpose of God in the other.
Be ready to come to the aid of our brothers and sisters.
19 Then I said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “The work is extensive and spread out, and we are widely separated from each other along the wall. 20 Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, join us there. Our God will fight for us!”