Sermon Tone Analysis

Intro:

Nehemi 4:7-9

James

Science confirms the presence of an Almighty God.

God has given man the ability to study and to learn of HIM in many aspects of what we experience or can experience with our senses.

And even if you cannot recognize the science around you, you do not know what you have until it is gone.

Has anyone ever lost electricity in your home?

You might say, Oh no, what about the ice cream in the refrigerator, I mean what about the kids food for dinner.

Has anyone ever gone without the air conditioner?

I grew up in a small church that had a gas heater.

On cold days, my dad would have to get to the the church early enough so that it would be warm enough for church.

Oh but when the propane ran out or when my dad did not get to church early enough, oh how I missed the heater and subsequently valued its importance.

One time in church I stood too close to the heater and found out that my jacket was made of plastic.

I knew we were poor, but after that incident I knew why my jacket did not work so well.

Some of us do not realize the value of heat and cold, unless we need one or the other.

If you put a pot of water on the stove to boil, but have no heat, all you have is a pot of water.

When it comes to heat, science has identified several specific quantities and one very important quality is something called the boiling point.

The freezing and boiling point are dependent on several factors.

It can get very complicated and I am not pretending to understand the nuances of boiling and freezing points, nor am I a physicist, but I can say with some certainty that boiling an freezing points are different for different substances and change as a result atmospheric pressure and surrounding vapor pressure.

Water is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's streams, lakes, and oceans, and the fluids of most living organisms.

It is vital for all known forms of life, even though it provides no calories or organic nutrients.

At higher elevations, where the atmospheric pressure is much lower, the boiling point is also lower.

Water’s boiling point at sea level is 212 F or 100 C. That is the the exact temperature necessary to kill bacteria and germs.

To put this in perspective, the water heater in your home comes standard at 140 degrees F, but it is recommended that you set your water heater to 120 degrees for safety reasons.

At 110 to 112 degrees, it will take at least twenty-five minutes before that water can cause any skin injury.

212 is the boiling point of water.

So, did you know that 211 degrees is also extremely hot.

So what is the difference between 211 and 212. 1 degree.

At 211 degrees, water is hot.

At 212 degrees, it boils.

And with boiling water comes steam.

And with steam you can power a train.

Applying just one extra degree of temperature to water means the difference between something that is simply very hot and something that generates enough force to power a large machine.

This message of just one more degree strikes a cord spiritually.

It reminds me not to quit too soon.

The bible says, the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Fervent: dālaḳ; ἐκτενής, ektenḗs, ζέω, zéō): “Fervent” (from Lat fervēre, “to boil” [Walker, W. L. (1915).

Fervent.

In J. Orr, J. L. Nuelsen, E. Y. Mullins, & M. O.

Evans (Eds.),

The International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia (Vol.

1–5, p. 1107).

Chicago: The Howard-Severance Company.]

Walker, W. L. (1915).

Fervent.

In J. Orr, J. L. Nuelsen, E. Y. Mullins, & M. O.

Evans (Eds.),

The International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia (Vol.

1–5, p. 1107).

Chicago: The Howard-Severance Company.

I might be only one step or one degree or one more prayer meeting or one more church service from healing in my body, one degree from deliverance from addiction, from peace in my home, from receiving the gift of the Holy ghost, from seeing my family saved, from seeing my coworkers saved, from seeing my children saved, from seeing a breakthough in my worship, breakthrough when i praise, from seeing my church have revival.

The difference of ONE degree is indescribeable!!!

So church keep praying, and keep working, keep fighting, keep trying!

You just might be one degree away from your miracle!!!

Nehemiah:

The story of Nehemia -

God promised to bless Israel if they obeyed his commands and to curse them if they did not.

Despite this knowledge, Israel chose to disobey, worshiping foreign gods and intermarrying with other people.

Unfortunately this led to captivities by the Assyrians in 722 BC, Babylonians 586 BC and the Medo-Persians 539 BC.

Nehemiah was not just a random person.

Nehemiah was a Jewish Governor and cup bearer under King Artaxerxes I.

God will use whomever is obedient.

In , Nehemiah inquired about the Jews that were left in captivity and was given the report that they were in great affliction ().

, When he heard the report, he sat down and wept and mourned certain days, and FASTED and prayed before the God of heaven.

At the notice of a bad report, the first thing Nehemiah turned to was His God.

Church, when we are made aware of a bad or sad report, the first place we must go to is to JESUS!

So Nehemiah prayed, .

It is a beautiful prayer.

He calls on the true God, “I beseech the, O Lord God of heaven…Let thine ear now be attentive...”

You can describe the prayer of Nehemiah as effectual and fervent.

Because he then put his prayer and his faith in action.

Nehemiah as the cup bearer sought permission, from the King to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the walls.

Not only did the king grant him permission, he also provided safe passage and the tools and equipment to rebuild. .

Nehemiah was given permission in 455 B.C. to return to Jerusalem to build the walls that had been destroyed by captivity and neglect.

Nehemiah was feeling great and chapter 2 of Nehemiah seems to be almost joyous, until you get to verse 10 of Nehemiah Chapter 2.

Sanballat and Tobiah were not just sad, grieved means deeply disturbed.

They did not like what they were seeing, they did not like what they were hearing.

They did not like that Nehemiah was being blessed.

How many of you know a Sanballat or a Tobiah in this church?

There will always be those that do not like that you are being blessed.

They don’t like it when you are healed, they don’t like it when God blesses you with a new car, they don’t like it when God blesses you with a new job, they don’t like it when you are starting to be used more in leadership in the church.

“Oh she is a Sunday school teacher, but do you know what she used to be?” Oh you know who you are.

Some of us can be quick to judge and quick to dismiss.

Careful with the Sanballat and Tobiah spirit.

Sanballat and Tobiah represent those outside the church family.

Brother/Sister don’t become weary of the Sanballat or Tobiah in your life, hold on to the promises and provision of the Lord.

Keep praying, keep working, keep teaching Sunday school, keep witnessing to your family, keep being involved in church, keep coming to church, keep praying for your lost son, daughter, husband, wife, keep helping your pastor, keep blessing the pastors family, keep loving the people that don’t love you back.

You might think your boss is the Devil on Earth, keep praying!

Neh 2:12

So Nehemiah came to the walls and inspected them.

He did covert nighttime inspections.

He devised a great plan.

He even reported to the people how God had been good to Him and how the King had treated him.

If you read verse 18 you get the feeling that Sanballat and Tobiah and Geshem are a distant past.

Neh 2:18

Everyone was encouraged and ready to start the rebuilding process.

BUT!!!

Not only did the enemy not like what they heard, they started to laugh and ridicule.

Just when you think that your naysayers have been quieted, just when you think you have arrived to a place in God, just when you think that there is peace in your home…Sanballat, and tobiah and Geshem show up.

But I love the Boldness of Nehemiah for in verse , he says, “The God of heaven, he will prosper us; therefore we his servants will arise and build: but ye have no portion, nor right, nor memorial in Jerusalem.