Overcoming Satan's Subtle Schemes: Fear & Discouragement
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, - Overcoming Satan’s Subtle Schemes: Fear & Discouragement
Satisfaction of finished work - how about life well lived, production line, house, framing 3-4 days. Nehemiah - overcame opposition without - external threats, opposition within - real $$ problem - slavery/bitter taste in mouth - worked remarkable re-commitment to each other - generosity change community!
Eben-Ezer - through all struggle, up and down, hit these points - after a funeral, middle of a personal crisis, reach out to hurting members, support for Children of the Promise - look . Are you reaching points in your service to the Lord like that - feel God has done this, God is at work Sure struggle, suffering opposition - God is building something beautiful - my life, my service, my relationships -
But now critical point - and the enemy realizes it too - wall physically important - but Nehemiah - like Jesus Christ - not so concerned with this nice building as you and I being re-built into Living Cathedral made of people - enemy realizing this Nehemiah - building a people of the covenant -12 years as Governor! The enemy now throws his last ditch attempts to make sure only a spurt of building for the Lord, not a long term lifestyle! And if you are to servants of the Lord here, must learn to recognize the schemes the enemy is throwing your way and you must learn how to overcome them! Its especially in this 6th chapter that the Lord teaches us:
Overcome the enemies sly schemes to stop your God-directed service, by turning to the Lord`s Sovereign Sufficiency!
This is vitally important for every single person here because:
1. No one escapes Satan’s sinister schemes!
That there is a Great & Awesome God who is Good, made all things Good, active in this world/ your life. But that there is another -mutant twisted force, in our universe, fallen angel - who in this free world that God made - rebels and wants to take the whole creation with him in that rebellion.
A. You feel the darkness and deadness of how he decieves the world - with half truths and lies about who God is - Father of lies. Even in church comes as angel of light - master strategem - like right from the beginning - did God really say - I can judge for myself, I can be me own own god, I can live independent of God, rather than actively depending on him. I can settle for $5 worth of the gospel, enough to inspire me, but not to change me! If Satan keeps you drugged with half-truths, never really realize his activity in your life - likes to let sleeping dogs lie.
B. But deception of spiritually deadend people, not only method. For you who like the people of Jerusalem grow up in the covnenat community - tempts you in very obvious ways - Frontal Attacks of Temptation: You believe what the Bible says: “Lion seeking whom he may to devour” Even Jesus faced these early on: Please yourself = hedonism/materialism; parade yourself - wealth for selfish gain; prove yourself - don’t listen to what God says, His Son pleased with you - live life to win applause!.
How much more for us,must we be on guard - live spiritually dynamic and charged world! Not saying, demon behind every tree - but Satan - use the world’s thinking, sinful nature -the flesh, use the demonic minions - to pull you from God and His work! That’s the truth behind what God allowed Satan to do - in testing Job - Job didn’t know it!
C. But nothing makes Satan more angry - and stirs his rage as much as when, like Nehemiah, you are doing a great project for the Lord in your life. When all the deception, and the frontal attacks, fail. It is then that He unleashes his most subtle schemes as a last ditch attempt to take God’s servant out of commission and render him or her ineffective!
So while every human being comes under the deceptions and temptations of Satan;
2. Servants of the Lord must especially watch out for His CHANGING Subtle Schemes
Nehemiah and God’s people - everything in place, kind of like small groups, no gaps remaining, just last part of launch. No small feet, scaffolding lifting equipment - hugely important last steps of the gates of the city! And Satan launches three sublte attacks one after the other to stop God’s servatns!
Sanballat and Geshem sent to me, saying, “Come and let us meet together at Hakkephirim in the plain of Ono.” But they intended to do me harm.
First, S,T,Geshem,they scheme to get Nehemiah to stop the work of the Lord by Intrigue, Smoozing, Political Softball. Look at there message: v.2b. You need to understand that Ono is a days journey away - throw in the full day meeting - two travel days - distraction. But also need to know it is half way between Samaria/Jer in the middle of hostile territory - of Ashdod/Samaria. They are luring N away? Anything in your life doing that - not necessarily bad activity - but it is leaving the work of the Lord, duty undone! What from that survey is inordinate - moderation - sports, tv, facebook - use them or do they use you - are they helping you in Your life calling or hindering you!
But the scheming of the enemy is more dangerous than distraction. And that’s why I would call this a schmoozing scheme. This is like a concession speech on election day - Look know we haven’t always seen eye to eye - there was that attack thing, but Hey you win, you’re getting that wall done - Yup you’re a big shot now, why don’t we bigshots work out how we can help each other - If Nehemiah was currying the favour of bigshots - would have given up on His God given task - But for Nehemiah God and His job where big - and because of that people could not intimidate or buy him!
Four times this subtle scheme comes - and each time with resolution v.3 “I am carrying on a great project and cannot go down. Why should the work stop?” What is it in your life that sense work - devotions as family; teaching God’s children here, work of mercy -, speaking for justice for enslaved, poverty - Yes, tempting to curry favour of world- But God’s called me to a great work!
How this world without a moral foundation, needs you and I with our wills stealed with conviction, and our hearts full of compassion - to take an uncompriomising stand for the Lord - pro-life, ethenaisia, lifestyle choices - in regard to alcohol -
S,T,G of the world may ridicule us as uptight - press on with conviction and compassion to do the work of the Lord1!
Second. But look what happens next: v.5
In the same way Sanballat for the fifth time sent his servant to me with an open letter in his hand.
Then the fifth time - Satan mixes it up, throws a curve ball, pulls another device out of the tool shed. If currying the world’s favour won’t work. Nothing works so well as panic and discouragement. We could call this the dirty politics. You have probably faced this - anyone ever spread a distorted version of the truth about you - a rumour? That’s the significance of this open/unsealed letter - Not only a rumour - but a veiled threat! Listen you don’t get in line with us, I’m going to send the King this letter. Probably already sent! All your neighbours, they’re going to read this too! Now how do you respond to false rumours? What are you options: PANIC - has he sent it, better do what he says, better find out. Retaliation - I’m going to write an open letter about you three slime-balls. Oh yeah they’re going to know the truth about people like you who write open letters! Uncontroled rage that stirs the controversy isn’t it!
hen the fifth time - Satan mixes it up, throws a curve ball, pulls another device out of the tool shed. If currying the world’s favour won’t work. Nothing works so well as panic and discouragement. We could call this the dirty politics. You have probably faced this - anyone ever spread a distorted version of the truth about you - a rumour? That’s the significance of this open/unsealed letter - Not only a rumour - but a veiled threat! Listen you don’t get in line with us, I’m going to send the King this letter. Probably already sent! All your neighbours, they’re going to read this too! Now how do you respond to false rumours? What are you options: PANIC - has he sent it, better do what he says, better find out. Retaliation - I’m going to write an open letter about you three slime-balls. Oh yeah they’re going to know the truth about people like you who write open letters! Uncontroled rage that stirs the controversy isn’t it!
What does Nehemiah do:
A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
Better a patient man than a warrior, a man who controls his temper than one who takes a city.
He doesn’t waste his emotional energy on lies does he. He can’t control what the three stooges do. He doesn’t try to. He leaves that in God’s hands!
Like Jesus isn’t he - who absorbed all the falsehoods in silence at his trial. Pray for yourself when this happens. There is a time to say what’s engraved for generrations on a castle wall: They say, What do the say; let them say!” Leading to what Jesus says: “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.
Wow, Jesus even tells us to pray for those who persecute and lies about us!
So Nehemiah, only does two things: he denied the rumour sharply and matter of factly sending a brief reply to the source, Sanballat. But its the second thing he did that makes all the difference in overcoming the schemes of Satan.
3. Overcome these Subtle Schemes with Precious Remedy of Prayer
To understand why you must use the remedy of prayer, you must first understand the one goal of Satan’s various subtle attacks. It’s actually a theme throughout the whole of Nehemiah. It’s a word repeated 4 x, intimidate, frighten, - word FEAR. They were all trying to frighten us, thinking, “Their hands will get too weak for the work, and it will not be completed.”
For they all wanted to frighten us, thinking, “Their hands will drop from the work, and it will not be done.” But now, O God, strengthen my hands.
Do you get that? The enemies goal is ultimately to shake you off the work God’s called you to do and the relationship you have with God in it. Satan wants to fill your heart with fear. Like the TV show Fear Factor, tailored made to make you freeze, stop give up. Revealing question to ask on another - what are you afraid of, worry about, couldn’t stand if it happened? Makes you uptight? Some its fear of not being popular not having others approval, others fear of failing never try anything new; Never done it that way before; fear of - Got to realize these fears terrorize your life! Satan is trying to discourage your hands! That’s where fear of the heart leads, discouragement of the hands! Devil’s Yardsale!
But what is the gospel: Perfect love casts out fear! Jesus Christ the Son of God conquerors the source of our worst fears - sin, death, hell, conflict, rejection wreck our lives - In Christ forgiveness, resurrection, His rule over comiong kingdom - no need to fear!
Nehemiah, I believe caught a glimpse of this promise in
Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees. Say to those who have an anxious heart, “Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you.”
Their slain shall be cast out, and the stench of their corpses shall rise; the mountains shall flow with their blood. All the host of heaven shall rot away, and the skies roll up like a scroll. All their host shall fall, as leaves fall from the vine, like leaves falling from the fig tree.
How often we need to be praying this prayer with each other - not just saying I’ll pray for you- but coming before the Lord together - this is the work - hands weakening - help us!
Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way; say to those with fearful hearts, “Be strong, do not fear; your God will come, he will come with vengeance; with divine retribution he will come to save you.”
How often we need to be praying this prayer with each other - not just saying I’ll pray for you- but coming before the Lord together - this is the work - hands weakening - help us!
Member of our congregation said it to me this week: The devil is at work in our homes. Attacking them. Do you know how few couples pray together, how many homes the Bible not opened together at the beginning or the end of the day. Our survey shows
Just like the story began - sees need, digs into word for 100 days - promise restore - prays the promise. Just like action began - grip of fear before the king - what did he do - he prayed - King’s heart opened to project! 10 times see Nehemiah carefully recording it: Prayer changes things, and there is no prospering in the Kingdom of God without prayer! So too here the help of the Lord is mediated through prayer!
In the third attack, religious compromise - the enemy wants to trick Nehemiah into fleeing to the temple - holy place of worship and break its sanctity flee and hole himself up away from God’s work! How sad an old friend, Shemaiah, becomes a new enemy. But prayer and spiritual discernment - thwarts the plan again! Nehemiah had cultivated that habit of praying whenever he faced fear, compromise, temptation! And God strengthened him to carry on great work of salvation!
Isn’t that what calls you to do: Put on the full armour of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes, - sword of the Spirit -armed with promises of God, shield of faith so you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one: Picture each thought of doubt, despair, unbelief, misbelief, self-pity, bitterness against God, malice against people - each a flaming arrow, with the Word and prayer - force field around you shield. And with that comes spiritual discernment of the people and times around him - Satan’s attacks are thwarted - and God through the work of the people get the mission done! Challenge you - name those fears, name those areas of attack, discouragement And name those areas where you feel God is calling you to work - heavy lifting, but your tempted to give up!
And pray with someone about it!
4. You will overcome as you realize that it is God who is at work within you!
Satan is bent on bringing destruction to marriages, nations, churches in this world. You know God’s plan his calling for your life - he longs to prevent you to attain that! But look what happens when claiming God’s promises, in prayer - courageously pushing forward in faith - look what happens: v.15
So the wall was finished on the twenty-fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty-two days.
So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days.
You’ve extinguished those flaming arrows, but now that project that you knnwo is God’s great work in n your life right now - having pushed forward you reach some points of completion!
And look carefully at the end of the next verses for how this can be the case here today in your life too! When all our enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were afraid and lost their self-confidence, because they realized that this work had been done with the help of our God.
And when all our enemies heard of it, all the nations around us were afraid and fell greatly in their own esteem, for they perceived that this work had been accomplished with the help of our God.
The wall was just a symbolic physical sing of God rebuilding his people - but the last half of the book becomes how the cathedral of God made of pepole, community of faith - who know joy and rest of Sabbath, who know the sanctity of true family, who follow the Lord - that community is now to be re-built!
And you who are in christ Jesus are all part of that - you can say: You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.
Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.
Picture that task God has called you to here - and realize Christ is in you to see it through to completion: DO you see it? says as you work out your salvation in that holy fear of God and with thanksgiving - you will find God at work in you, both to will and to act according to his good purpose!
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling,
Don’t you feel it sometimes. So important to look back and say, like in the OT - memorial stone - hitherto the Lord has helped us thus far! Funeral - feel it God was surrounding us - he or she finished the good fight of faith , endured to the end, this problem or challenge in our home, church family - look back see God’s mighty hand upon us - raise an Eben-ezer - celebrate it! Last spring - volunteers supper. Lord thank you - for those who you are working through - sending cards, visits, sharing the gospel - Just went through the most severe testing time - can imagine - You were there we are getting through!
Phillip Brooks put it this way: Do not pray for easy lives. Pray for stronger people. Don’t pray for tasks equal to your power. Pray for powers equal to your tasks!
Congregation, God is at work among us and so is the Devil. Much work lies ahead in this local and global re-building project - Satan is seeking to sideline you in fear and discouragement
But when we turn to God together in prayer - we can press on!
Overcome the enemies sly schemes to stop your God-directed service,
by prayerfully depending on the Lord`s Sovereign Sufficiency!
Then we will be able to say: This work, in my life, in God’s church, in God’s world has been done with the help of our God!