Loving The Work
Notes
Transcript
Handout
TEXT: Neh. 2:4-5
Then the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request? So I prayed to the God of heaven. And I said unto the king, If it please the king, and if thy servant have found favour in thy sight, that thou wouldest send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers’ sepulchres, that I may build it.
THESIS: Showing that we genuinely love God starts with having a love (desire) to do and see the work (will) of God being done.
INTRODUCTION:
A survey was given to a select group of people, and their ages ranged from 13-22, of what career you would not want.
1. One hundred people were asked, and the results were not shocking.
a. 50% said they would not want to be in any work field, such as a janitor, maid/housekeeper, garbageman, or street cleaner.
b. 30% said they would not want to work in any customer service Job.
c. 20% said they would not want to work in any manual or factory work field.
2. Then the question was asked why; they all said it was beneath them and wanted to do what they loved.
3. “Do something you love, and you will never work a day in your life” is easy to quote until what we love contradicts what we want.
a. Lk. 6:46: Sermon on the Plain.
“And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?”
b. John 14:15: Jesus said.
“If ye love me, keep my commandments.”
c. 1 John 5:3: John said.
“For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.”
DISCUSSION:
I. READINESS TO DO THE WORK.
A. Nehemiah was not a prophet of God, and he was a Jew, meaning he was one of God’s chosen people.
1. The two points here are what?
a. (1) because God’s chosen people today are the Christians.
b. (2) because it does not matter what title someone wears; all play an essential part in the kingdom of God.
2. When Paul wrote to the Corinthians, he made this point (1 Cor. 12).
a. What was the Context? _______________________
b. What was Paul telling them? ___________________
3.Nehemiah had genuine love from God and his people.
a. This is pointed out in Nehemiah 1 when Hanani and others were captured and met Nehemiah; he asked about the Jews and Jerusalem (Neh. 1:1-2).
b. On receiving the news, Nehemiah wept, mourned, prayed/praised God, and repented for himself and the people (Neh. 1:4-11).
c. The charter that is on display is one that we all should be willing to have.
B. Nehemiah, after humbling himself before God and hearing about the state of Jerusalem, makes a request (Neh. 2:11-12).
1. “If it please the king, and if thy servant have found favour in thy sight, that thou wouldest send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers’ sepulchres, that I may build it.”
a. Now, what is interesting about this request is that Artaxerxes had sent Rehum and Shimshai to stop the rebuilding of Jerusalem (Ezra 4:8-23).
b. Then, the king granted the request.
2. It all started with a Readiness on Nehemiah’s part to do what God would have to be done.
a. We know it was God’s will because of what he records.
1.) “I arose in the night, I and some few men with me; neither told I any man what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem.” (Neh. 2:12).
2.) Notice that it does not say God made him do it; God did not force Nehemiah to act.
b. Nehemiah wanted to work for God, and when he had the opportunity, he took it.
3. A part of loving God is loving what God loves and caring for what God provides.
4. It also includes being ready to do whatever God would have us to do.
II. WILLINGNESS TO COMPLETE THE WORK.
A. Nehemiah was ready to do the work and greatly desired to see the work completed.
1. We can make an application here alone, but I want you to see what he does.
a. The first thing is that he does is, motivates those with him, to work with him, not for him, not do what he says, but side by side.
b. We compared the Christians to the Jews, we ought to be doing the same thing: listen to what he says.
1.) Seeing Jerusalem's state caused them to be grieved and distressed, and Nehemiah motivated them (Neh. 2:17).
2.) “Then I told them of the hand of God which was good upon me; as also the king’s words that he had spoken unto me…”
3.) After seeing Jerusalem's fallen state and the people's discouragement, Nehemiah encourages them; now listen to what is said.
4.) “Let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for this good work.”
2. Nehemiah encourages them.
2.) Sanballat and his cohorts hear what Nehemiah is doing and mock him.
3.) Scripture
b. How does Nehemiah replies, “answered I them, and said unto them, The God of heaven, he will prosper us; therefore we his servants will arise and build.”
B. They kept building (Neh. 3).
1. Sanballat was relentless in his pursuit to stop Nehemiah’s work.
a. Nehemiah 4:1-6: Sanballat mocked the Jews and even prayed to their god for the Jews’ failure.
b. Nehemiah 4:7-8: Sanballat and the others conspired against the Jews.
c. Nehemiah 5: Nehemiah had to deal with his people complaining on top of Sanballat’s plotting.
2. To say Nehemiah was not under a lot of stress would be an understatement.
a. If we put ourselves in Nehemiah’s position, what might we think?
b. Let’s bring this into perspective: Nehemiah did not be out there working.
c. He did not have to continue the work that he was doing.
C. It is incredible how updated the Bible is because he could have quit.
1. How many people have that same option today and do quit?
2. How many in this room can relate to what Nehemiah is going through?
a. Notice he labored to ensure the work was done right, with everything going on.
b. He prayed and continued to press forward in the difficulty.
III. REJOICING AT THE END.
A. Everything Nehemiah demonstrates is everything that Christ, one way or another, encourages us to practice.
1. Nehemiah was ready to do what was needed.
a. As a servant to man, he obeyed that man and found favor.
b. As a servant to God, he did when he was given an opportunity to obey God.
c. Paul wrote that Christians should have the same mind (Titus 2:9-10).
2. Nehemiah was willing to see the work, he started and completed.
a. Jesus says to the church at Smyrna, “Be faithful unto death.”
b. Because it is known that it is not how you start the race, but how it is how you finish.
B. Nehemiah started this work faithfully.
1. He did not let the negativity around him determine what good he would do.
a. He did not let Sanballat sway what he was going to do.
b. Sanballat tries many things, even paying men to prophecy lies.
c. Nehemiah 6:5-14.
2. Nehemiah focused on doing God’s will, and because of that determination, the walls of Jerusalem were completed in 52 days.
3. Moreover, Nehemiah 12:43 is the dedication of the wall, and all were celebrating because, through all of the hardship, they saw what they had accomplished together.
a. Image Nehemiah's rejoicing, (1) knowing that he did this for God.
b. (2) knowing that he endured from start to finish and loving the opportunity to have this victory.
CONCLUSION:
1. Nehemiah did not show God that he loved him by simply saying that he does, but he has shown it by:
a. A readiness to do God’s will.
b. A willingness to see God’s will done.
c. A happiness when the work was completed, knowing it was done right for God.
2. I would submit to you that a Christian shows his love to God the exact same way.
a. A readiness, a willingness, and rejoicing that it is complete.
b. Maybe you are here today and you was ready to do God’s will but do not know where to begin.
