Nehemiah 6: Living on Mission

Intro

What does it mean for us to be a missional church?

The difficulty in answering that question lies in how loaded the term “missional” has actually become in American Evangelicalism.

For some people in our church, the word “missional” is an entirely new term. They have never heard it, and are unfamiliar with how it works itself out in the life of a body of believers.

For others, the term is so overly used, that it doesn’t mean much of anything at all.

That anything and everything can be defined as missional but as one author says, “If everything is mission, nothing is mission.”

But it is crucial that we understand what it means for us to be a missional church because the mission of the church is foundational to its identity.

If a church fails to study God’s Word

accurately discern what its mission is,

or just as important actively live for that mission,

Then it will be unable to call itself a biblical church.

As we continue our study in Nehemiah by looking at , we are going to see what it means for us to be a missional people, that is, a people who live for the mission that Jesus has given us to do.

And as Nehemiah faithfully caries out the mission the Lord gave him to accomplish, he will show us an example of what it looks like for the people of God to faithfully carry out the mission of the church.

So what is the mission of the church?

One could make the argument that to understand the mission of the church that you don’t need to look any further than the Westminster Catechism which says we are called to glorify God and enjoy him forever.

But before we look at how we are to live on mission, we must first define what living on mission actually means.

Still others might argue that the mission of the church is to love God and love our neighbor because Jesus himself said these are the two greatest commandments.

At the fundamental level, the term mission implies two things:

Being sent

Being given a task.

So, when we ask, what is the mission of the church, we are asking, “What is the specific task or purpose the church is sent into the world to accomplish?”

In answering this question, we will see what it means to be a missional church because to live on mission is to live our lives in line with the purpose God has given us.

What Does It Mean to Live on Mission?

To live on mission is to live in line with the God given mission of the Church.

Nehemiah told us in 2:12 that God had placed it in his heart to lead God’s people rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.

But the mission Nehemiah was sent to do was bigger than just a reconstruction project.

Nehemiah was sent to Jerusalem to help God’s people rebuild the walls so that they could once again be a holy nation. To live according to God’s law and to be a light to the nations who were in darkness.

To proclaim to the world that God had not abandoned humanity in their sin against him, but that he was on a mission to save sinners through the promised Messiah.

The king-priest who would come and make atonement for sin and lead God’s people in faithfulness for all eternity.

So what does Nehemiah’s mission have to do with the church?

Our God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

The mission of God throughout the Old Testament is the same mission of God in the New.

Ever since the Fall where humanity sinned against God, God has been on a mission to save sinners and remove the effects of sin from his creation.

This is the Mission of God.

So what is the mission of the church?

So what is the mission of the Church?

One could make the argument that to understand the mission of the Church that you don’t need to look any further than the Westminster Catechism which says we are called to glorify God and enjoy him forever.

Still others might argue that the mission of the church is to love God and love our neighbor because Jesus himself said these are the two greatest commandments.

At the fundamental level, the term mission implies two things:

Being sent

Being given a task.

So, when we ask, what is the mission of the church, we are asking, “What is the specific task or purpose the church is sent into the world to accomplish?”

Jesus clearly told his disciples their purpose before he ascended to heaven.

All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.

In saying All authority has been given to me, Jesus invites his people to see him as the King of kings and Lord of lords. As the one worthy of all our worship and life. He is inviting us to treasure him above everything else.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .

Jesus said, “Go therefore,” that is we are a sent people.

Then he says, “Make disciples.” Discipleship is our purpose. And this has two parts.

First, we are to go out into the world and to share the gospel with the lost so that they can repent and be baptized.

This is where people come to faith in Christ.

But discipleship is not just limited to making converts. Jesus says that we are to teach them to observe everything he has commanded us.

This is where people grow in godliness as they die to their sin every day.

So the mission the church is given is a mission of discipleship.

Our mission is to treasure Jesus more than anything else in our life and because we love Jesus for what he has done for us in his life, death and resurrection...

We go and share the gospel and call people to repent and put their faith in Christ too so that their sins can be forgiven, and then help them to grow in godliness and follow Jesus in every area of their life.

If this is the church’s mission, then what does it mean to be a missional church?

To put it simply, a missional church is a church that is on mission.

To put it simply, a missional church is a church that is on mission.

This means that we are intentional to live our lives for the glory of God and reach others with the gospel.

To live on mission is for us to be aware of what God is doing in the world and to join him in his work of proclaiming the gospel.

And our call to live a life that is on Mission with God is rooted in the fact that God himself is a missionary.

As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.

As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.

God sent his Son in the world to seek and save the lost.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .

If the aim of the Christian life is to grow to be more like Christ, then at some point we are going to have to live as a missionary like Christ did.

And I don’t mean you have to go to China or Africa to do so.

God calls you to live as a missionary right here right now. To be a light to the world in your family, in your workplace, in our city.

To leverage your life for the gospel however you can.

This is what it means to live on mission.

Nehemiah?

Now what does all of this have to do with the book of Nehemiah?

Remember the mission the Lord had sent Nehemiah to do.

Now what does all of this have to do with the book of Nehemiah?

Remember the mission the Lord had sent Nehemiah to do.

Nehemiah told us in 2:12 that God had placed it in his heart to lead God’s people rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.

But the mission Nehemiah was sent to do was bigger than just a reconstruction project.

Nehemiah was sent to Jerusalem to help God’s people rebuild the walls so that they could once again be a holy nation. To live according to God’s law and to be a light to the nations who were in darkness.

To proclaim to the world that God had not abandoned humanity in their sin against him, but that he was on a mission to save sinners through the promised Messiah.

The king-priest who would come and make atonement for sin and lead God’s people in faithfulness for all eternity.

So what does Nehemiah’s mission have to do with the church?

So what does Nehemiah’s mission have to do with the church?

So what does Nehemiah’s mission have to do with the church?

So what does Nehemiah’s mission have to do with the church?

Our God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Our God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

The mission of God throughout the Old Testament is the same mission of God in the New.

The mission of God throughout the Old Testament is the same mission of God in the New.

Ever since the Fall where humanity sinned against God, God has been on a mission to save sinners and remove the effects of sin from his creation.

Ever since the Fall where humanity sinned against God, God has been on a mission to save sinners and remove the effects of sin from his creation.

This is the Mission of God.

This is the Mission of God.

The people of God in Nehemiah had the same mission that God has given his church.

In Nehemiah they were building the wall to be God’s people to bear witness that God was going to send his Messiah to save sinners.

The people of God in Nehemiah had the same mission that God has given his church: to be his people and proclaim the good news that God saves sinners through the life, death, and resurrection of the Messiah, Jesus Christ.

And today, we are the people of God called to proclaim the good news that God has sent his Messiah and he saves sinners through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

But here is the temptation that every church and every Christian faces. We can become easily distracted.

Therefore, as we study , Nehemiah will shows us how the church can stay committed to the Mission the Lord has given us as we live on mission for the Lord’s Kingdom.

We can forget that our lives are meant to be lived for something bigger than getting through each week.

Even something bigger than just going to church on Sundays.

We shrink our lives down to the size of our own personal kingdoms all while forgetting that...

Our lives are meant to be lived on mission for the Kingdom of God.

But as we study , Nehemiah will shows us how the church can stay committed to the Mission the Lord has given us to do as we live on mission for the Lord’s Kingdom.

If the church is going to live on mission, they must first...

Focus on the Mission

2 Now when Sanballat and Tobiah and Geshem the Arab and the rest of our enemies heard that I had built the wall and that there was no breach left in it (although up to that time I had not set up the doors in the gates), 2 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.

The enemies of Nehemiah who had been opposing God’s Kingdom at every term now see their time is running short.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .

The wall was now built but there were still open places where the doors and the gates would go.

If there was any hope for Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem were going to have at stopping Nehemiah so that they could hold on to their power and their kingdoms, then it was now or never.

They knew once Nehemiah completed the gates and the doors, the only way to conquer the Jews would be by actually mounting a seige against Jerusalem.

This would put them in a pickle with the King of the Persian Empire, Artaxerxes, because if they mounted open war on Nehemiah and the Jews, Artaxerxes would make open war on them because he is the one that told Nehemiah to go and build the walls and even gave him the supplies to do so.

So these enemies devise a plan. They send to asking him to meet them at a village on the plain of Ono.

And Nehemiah responds by saying “Oh no. I’m not going to go there.” Because he knew it was not out of the goodness of their hearts they were wanting to see him.

Sanballat was a leader of Samaria to the North of Jerusalem and the plain of Ono bordered his region.

For Nehemiah to go there it would have taken him about a day’s journey away from Jerusalem near his enemies.

He wisely saw this as a rouse where his enemies would take him away from the mission God had given him to do and kill him.

Because the enemies thought if they could kill Nehemiah before the wall was complete, they could intimidate the people of Israel into stopping their work for God’s kingdom and take power once again.

Knowing this, Nehemiah says...

But they intended to do me harm. 3 And I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?” 4 And they sent to me four times in this way, and I answered them in the same manner.

3 And I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?” 4 And they sent to me four times in this way, and I answered them in the same manner.

These enemies repeated their invitation four times showing their desperation to see the work stop.

And each time Nehemiah answered and said, “I can’t come down. I’m too busy working on what God gave me to do so I’m going to keep working on it.”

Nothing was going to take Nehemiah’s focus away from the great work he was doing. He had a clear focus and purpose and he was going to accomplish it no matter what.

Do you have this same kind of focus in your own life on what God has called you to do when your enemies come knocking?

Do you know that Satan is your enemy? That your sinful flesh is your enemy?

Just like Nehemiah, your enemies are wanting to lure to you to a vulnerable place in order to destroy you and distract you from the mission of God.

If you are in Christ, then you are free from Satan and your sin because you are purchased with the blood of Jesus.

However, if Satan can tempt you to sin in such a way that you begin living in the flesh and willfully participating in your sin, then he can take you out of the Mission of God.

He can lull you to sleep or distract you from the purpose that God has saved you for. To get you to live for yourself instead of living wholeheartedly for the Lord and his Kingdom.

If God’s people are going to live on mission, they must not be drawn by invitations from their enemies to go down and give into their sin and stop living for the kingdom of God.

Nehemiah understood that the work he was called to do was so significant that he had no time for petty distractions.

Do you give into petty temptations opting to live for something that is beneath you in whatever sin tempts you?

Then take a lesson from Nehemiah in verse 3. Answer your temptations saying “I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?”

Why should you stop living for the Kingdom? Why should you stop living to honor God with every area of your life in hopes that you can bear witness to the lost about his gospel, to go down and indulge in your petty sins.

Christ died so that you would no longer indulge in your sin trying to build your personal kingdom that gratifies every desire of your life through sin and idolatry.

Christ died so that you could live for him and join him in his mission to save sinners.

May we not become easily distracted from the life and work God has called us to but remain focused on Christ’s Kingdom and keep the main thing the main thing because every Christian has been given a great work just like Nehemiah.

And immediately Satan and his servants want to sow doubt into your mind to keep you out of the mission field.

He wants you to believe the lie that you are not set apart for a great work. That you are insignificant in the Kingdom of God and that only pastors or missionaries are the ones who are actually able live on mission in a way that truly matters.

So often Christians look at discipleship and gauge its success using the lens of the world. We think that the work we do for the mission of the gospel is only significant if it builds a huge following or influences a lot of people.

However, the work Nehemiah was doing in rebuilding the walls was not great because the world thought it was significant.

In fact, the world would’ve said that what Nehemiah did in his old job was actually the great work. I mean he was the cup bearer to the most powerful man in the world.

The world would’ve said that the work Nehemiah left to go do in Jerusalem didn’t matter at all. Who cared if the walls of some broken down city got rebuilt?

But it was a great work because God’s name, his glory was at stake in Jerusalem.

Are you living your life to do the great work of the mission?

If you are doing what God has called you in the task of making disciples with your life, you might not be doing something that the world thinks is significant.

You aren’t even doing something that can be measured like Nehemiah building the walls.

But if you are a Christian, following Jesus and focusing on the mission he has given us, to treasure Christ and make disciples, then God’s name and God’s glory is at stake in your life right now.

Whether you are called to vocational ministry, the vendor world, a teacher, or a stay-at-home mom, the point is less about what we are actually doing, and more about who we are doing it for.

If you are treasuring Christ and asking “How can I live for something bigger than myself?” In every area of life as you seek for opportunities to live on mission making disciples, then you are doing a great work.

What made Nehemiah’s work great was not stacking rocks around a city. It was his dedication to God’s name, God’s promises, and God’s people that made his life count for something.

Our work is to be the same thing. We are to live with a dedication to God’s name, God’s Word, and God’s people as we proclaim the gospel from the pulpit, to the dinner table to anywhere in between so that more people might know Christ.

Christians must wake up from their slumber. They must see the great need in the world for the gospel and start engaging in the great work the Lord has given us to do by focusing on the mission God has entrusted to us.

As Jesus said, But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap. 35 For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. 36 But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.

But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap. 35 For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. 36 But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.

May we be a church that stays awake. That does not become distracted with the cares of this life but stays focused on the mission to make disciples knowing that Jesus is coming soon and the time of repentance will soon be over.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .

May we focus on the mission.

Persevere in the Mission

7 In the same way Sanballat for the fifth time sent his servant to me with an open letter in his hand. 6 In it was written, “It is reported among the nations, and Geshem also says it, that you and the Jews intend to rebel; that is why you are building the wall. And according to these reports you wish to become their king. 7 And you have also set up prophets to proclaim concerning you in Jerusalem, ‘There is a king in Judah.’ And now the king will hear of these reports. So now come and let us take counsel together.”

When Sanballat sees that Nehemiah refuses to leave the work God had given him even after four requests to do so, Sanballat sends to him a fifth time and this time with an open letter.

Sending an open letter was significant because it ensured that the rumors Sanballat was spreading would good out and become public.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .

Sanballat ups the stakes trying to strike fear in the people by putting doubt in their mind that if the king heard these things and then believed them, he would surely come and destroy all the people in order to make an example of them to anyone who might think about rebelling against Persia.

And there was some truth behind this rumor. It was no secret that the hope of the Jews was the restoration of the kingdom of Israel with a King from the line of David who would rule over all nations as the King of kings and Lord of lords.

They were looking forward to Jesus

What was happening here was Sanballat was trying to get the people of God to back off their mission. To stop building the walls and to give up on what God had given them to do.

In the same way, the Church can be tempted to tone down, soften, or back away from a clear proclamation of the gospel in both word and action.

Jesus said You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .

What he is saying is that we not only proclaim that Jesus has the power to save with our words, but that we must also live it out so that the world can see the gospel’s power in how it transforms our own lives.

And when facing opposition to the mission, Christians can be tempted to shut up about the gospel or even to start living in a ways that are more acceptable to the world in order to be accepted by the world.

To grow lax in our holiness to the point where the people of God live lives that are indistinguishable from those of the world.

But that’s not how Nehemiah responded to this challenge.

8 Then I sent to him, saying, “No such things as you say have been done, for you are inventing them out of your own mind.” 9 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.

Nehemiah replies back and says, “That’s not true. You are making it all up. It is a figment of your imagination.”

Because he knew that Sanballat was trying to get them to give up on the mission.

So instead of giving way to fear and shrinking back, Nehemiah prays, But now, O God, strengthen my hands.

Prayer is a constant emphasis for Nehemiah.

He Knew that the only way the mission was going to be accomplished was if God was working in him to strengthen his hands for the work.

In the same way, when making disciples seems too large, too demanding, too difficult, too impossible, we must pray that God would work in us for his Kingdom, to give us boldness to bear witness to the gospel and then get back to work.

To persevere in the mission even when it gets difficult. To live for the gospel wholeheartedly in every area of our life so that we can grow in our discipleship and help others do the same even when the world pushes back.

But its not enough to just focus on the mission and persevere in it. We also must...

Keep the Faith of the Mission

1 Now when I went into the house of Shemaiah the son of Delaiah, son of Mehetabel, who was confined to his home, he said, “Let us meet together in the house of God, within the temple. Let us close the doors of the temple, for they are coming to kill you. They are coming to kill you by night.” 11 But I said, “Should such a man as I run away? And what man such as I could go into the temple and live? I will not go in.”

Here Nehemiah goes to the house of a man named Shemaiah who was evidently a well known prophet in Judah.

Now when I went into the house of Shemaiah the son of Delaiah, son of Mehetabel, who was confined to his home, he said, “Let us meet together in the house of God, within the temple. Let us close the doors of the temple, for they are coming to kill you. They are coming to kill you by night.” 11 But I said, “Should such a man as I run away? And what man such as I could go into the temple and live? I will not go in.” 12 And I understood and saw that God had not sent him, but he had pronounced the prophecy against me because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him. 13 For this purpose he was hired, that I should be afraid and act in this way and sin, and so they could give me a bad name in order to taunt me. 14 Remember Tobiah and Sanballat, O my God, according to these things that they did, and also the prophetess Noadiah and the rest of the prophets who wanted to make me afraid.

The Bible doesn’t tell us much about this man other than Nehemiah goes to his house and Shemaiah tells Nehemiah, they they should go and hide in the temple because Nehemiah’s enemies are going to come to kill him.

But Nehemiah knew the Law of God. If anyone but a priest entered into the temple, they would be put to death for disrespecting God’s holiness.

12 And I understood and saw that God had not sent him, but he had pronounced the prophecy against me because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him. 13 For this purpose he was hired, that I should be afraid and act in this way and sin, and so they could give me a bad name in order to taunt me. 14 Remember Tobiah and Sanballat, O my God, according to these things that they did, and also the prophetess Noadiah and the rest of the prophets who wanted to make me afraid.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .

Sanballat and Tobiah hired Shemaiah thinking to themselves, if we can’t kill Nehemiah ourselves, then maybe we can make his as good as dead so this work on the wall will stop.”

Nehemiah says they were trying to make him afraid and in so doing, make Nehemiah sin against the Lord by entering the temple.

If he entered the temple like the enemies wanted him to it would have been a disgrace, and halted the mission entirely.

Either the people of Israel would’ve killed him as they should because he disobeyed God’s law, in which case Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem get exactly what they want.

Or it would’ve discredited Nehemiah from leading God’s people in the mission and would have divided the people on what to do about Nehemiah, and this division would’ve led to a loss of focus on the mission where again the enemies win.

But Nehemiah doesn’t give into fear, instead he keeps the faith.

He remains faithful to the Lord above all else even if it meant risking his life.

The temptation Nehemiah faced from the enemies was one of pragmatism.

Nehemiah knew he was called to lead the people to rebuild the walls.

He was told that his enemies were going to sneak into the city and murder him at night.

And a possible way to save himself and preserve the mission God have given him was to lock himself in the temple for safety.

However, Nehemiah knew that accomplishing God’s mission can only be done God’s way.

Church’s today are so tempted to do what works in the name of making disciples as opposed to what is actually biblical.

They will sacrifice true discipleship for what get’s butts in the seats.

Instead of asking, “What does God’s Word say our church should look like?” they ask “What kind of church does our customer want?”

Now I’m not saying we shouldn’t seek to meet people where they are and engage them, but what typically happens when the faith of the mission becomes secondary, then you end up chasing an entirely different mission.

It stops being about people’s lives being changed by the gospel and instead becomes a movement to get the biggest numbers, the biggest following, the biggest budget all under the guise of gospel ministry

We see this in churches that affirm LGBTQ lifestyles in order to be accepted by the culture.

Their mentality is one of pragmatism instead of faith.

They think if the world sees us as loving and accepting we will grow.

Or Churches that soften the call of the gospel to come and die to ourselves. Churches that live for a pragmatic mission will say things like, you can be a Christian and still blank.

Still have sex with your boyfriend or girlfriend.

Still look at pornography.

Still be disrespectful to your husband or domineering over your wife.

Still lie or cheat on your taxes.

Still be a lazy employee or a jerk of a boss

Still live for yourself with a little Jesus on the side, because, hey, God forgives anyway.

In order to keep the faith of the mission, Christians must reject pragmatism, and do the hard work of making true disciples, not just cleaned up unbelievers.

When attraction becomes the primary mission for a church, then that will use whatever means necessary to get people into the doors even if its not Christ.

Because here is the scary thing when we soften the faith to make Christianity more attractive to the world.

We are inviting people to follow Jesus as long as he is attractive to them.

The moment suffering comes, or Jesus doesn’t answer their prayers just the right way, they abandon the faith, most likely for good because they can say, “I tried that Jesus thing. It didn’t work.”

An important principle we must remember as we engage in the mission of God with our lives is: What you win people with is what you win them to.

What if, in our efforts to make Jesus more attractive to others, we actually frustrate their ability to actually treasure him?

What if we are communicating a gospel that says look what Jesus can do for you, all these blessings you can have, instead of a gospel that says look what Jesus has done for you.

Look how Jesus came and lived a sinless life on your behalf.

How he went to the cross and died under the wrath of God even while you were his enemy because of your sin.

How he rose again three days later by the power of the Spirit who will live in you and give you the gift of eternal life if you repent of your sin and believe in Jesus.

We can gain a large following with attractive calls to nominal Christianity that doesn’t cost anyone anything to follow Jesus, but if this is how we carry out the Mission Christ gave us, who does that say we are really treasuring?

Are we treasuring the success of this world, or are we seeking to build disciples who go deeper in their faith than one inch.

We must keep the faith of the mission. And all while we must do so trusting that...

Trust God Will Accomplish the Mission

So the wall was finished on the twenty-fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty-two days. 16 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.

They started the work in august and finished it in October.

Within 6 months of hearing the report from his brother in Susa, Nehemiah had finished his mission, and says that the enemies of God were afraid because they saw that the work was accomplished with the help of God himself.

God is intimately tied to the mission he has given to his people and he will carry it through

Let me encourage you not to underestimate what God can accomplish through you and through this church if we serve him and persevere in his mission.

May we be a church who does things that can only be accomplished because God is helping us.

We don’t want to live our lives for something that the world can explain away by ordinary human effort.

Where the world says, “Well anyone with those finances, market savvy, and resources could pull that off.”

No. May we be a church that is so committed to the mission of God in our personal lives with our families and friends and workplaces

and our corporate life as a body of believers seeking to train pastors and church planters

that the world looks at our gospel efforts and says, “Only God could do that. Only God could take all those people and help them to love and serve one another and live their lives for something bigger than themselves.

And even though we know that God will accomplish his mission to save sinners, we are not promised that it is always going to be rosy.

17 Moreover, in those days the nobles of Judah sent many letters to Tobiah, and Tobiah’s letters came to them. 18 For many in Judah were bound by oath to him, because he was the son-in-law of Shecaniah the son of Arah: and his son Jehohanan had taken the daughter of Meshullam the son of Berechiah as his wife. 19 Also they spoke of his good deeds in my presence and reported my words to him. And Tobiah sent letters to make me afraid.

What is going on here is that Nehemiah says in those days, that whole time the wall was being built, some of the wealthy elite were actually working with Tobiah. Tobiah the Ammonite servant, the enemy of Nehemiah and the Jewish people.

Why? Nehemiah says that many were bound by oath to him because he had used his marriage to a Jewish woman to get in good with some of these wealthy men.

Perhaps it was for commercial reasons. That some of these wealthy nobles weren’t entirely for Nehemiah’s plan to isolate Jerusalem to be a holy nation and light to the gentiles because they saw to much opportunity to do business with the surrounding nations and get rich.

All while this was going on, Nehemiah had people in his own city that were working against him.

And this shows us that we can trust that God will accomplish the mission through his church even if it looks like a total mess.

Sometimes, when we look out at the culture that is growing more and more hostile to Christianity and other churches, and I use that name very loosely, that have forsaken the faith and seem to be making it harder for biblical churches to make disciples, it is easy to get discouraged.

However, just like the wall was completed in 52 days, in what seemed like a miracle, God is able to do far more than we think or ask and he promises in -11Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

God will accomplish his mission to save sinners and glorify his name, and the glory of the church is that we are invited to join him in that work.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Application

The hope for this entire sermon is for you to see how God has invited you to join him in his mission to save sinners.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .

To see that there is something more glorious than surviving your life week in and week out.

That you have been invited to spend your life living for the Kingdom of Christ and to invite others into that kingdom through sharing the gospel with the people the Lord has placed in your life.

The church and Christians lose their purpose when they lose focus on the mission, give up on the mission, or try to live for the mission in their own way.

Nehemiah showed us what it looks like to join God in his work to save sinners by remaining focused on what God had given him to do, persevering when it became difficult, remained faithful to the Lord and rejected pragmatism to continue living for the mission all while trusting that God was working in him for his purposes.

Our call as a church is to live with that same focus on what God is doing in our world and to join him in his work.

To obey Jesus and go into the world making disciples of every person as the Lord allows.

To see how Jesus has sent every one of us into the world as a missionary and to engage our life in that purpose.

So, by way of application for you I only have one question I want you to wrestle with. Not just for today, but everyday of your life so that you can live on mission for the Lord.

And that question is How am I living for something bigger than myself?

How am I using my life for the Kingdom?

How is God inviting me to live on mission with him and to see people’s lives changed with the gospel?

Let’s Pray

Father God, thank you for sending your son.

Jesus thank you for living as a missionary for us. For proclaiming the good news that you were going to die for our sins and rise again three days later to give us eternal life.

Holy Spirit, will you convict us to keep our eyes focused on the mission Jesus has given us to do.

To se our lives as redeemed for a purpose. To invite more people into your kingdom.

Keep us from being short sighted and only living for ourselves.

Will you also help us treasure you more than anything else so that we might have the power to put our sin to death and pursue the great work you have given us to do.

Lord God, will you also help us to persevere when living on mission gets hard.

As the world pushes back and demands that we keep our faith to ourselves, will you give us boldness just like the saints in and will you add to our number day by day

Not only new Christians, but Christians desiring to grow in their discipleship to you.

And God will you help us as a church to remain faithful to your gospel.

To reject pragmatism in favor of true gospel ministry

To trust the fruit of our ministry in your hands and to faithfully live on mission for your kingdom.

Finally Lord, thank you that you are a God that saves.

Thank you that you promise to return to us and redeem this world to remove the brokenness of our sin from all creation.

God will you please help our church to bear fruit. Will you save people through our ministry for your name.

Ultimately God, we want to be a church that lives for your glory. Show us how and empower us by your Spirit to live on mission for you.

We ask all this in Jesus’ name. Amen

Scripture Reading

After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go. 2 And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. 3 Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves.