When Opposition Arises

Please turn to Nehemiah chapter 4. We’re in a series of six sermons from the book of Nehemiah concerning accomplishing God’s vision for Monaghan Baptist Church. Over these last several weeks we’ve talked about the type of church that I believe God is leading us to be. We’ve talked about how we exist to Magnify God, Multiply Disciples, and Mobilize for Missions. We’ve talked about the necessity of constant prayer, so we will always know where God is working and how He wants us to join Him in that work. As I have told you these past several weeks, I truly believe the Lord has His hand on Monaghan Baptist Church. And He has a vision for us that is so great that we will only accomplish it with His power and by Him leading the way.

But there is something we cannot forget. Satan is always lurking around and waiting for the opportunity to rise up and cause all sorts of havoc in an attempt to use our sinful natures against us and stop us from participating in what God wants to do. I want to make something very clear this morning. I believe that Satan is real. I believe Satan was once an Angel of the Lord but, at some point in time, he disobeyed God and was thrown out of Heaven. The Bible says he roams the earth looking to devour people, and I believe that is true. I believe demons exist to carry out the purposes of their evil master. I believe that when Jesus returns, Satan and everyone who commits themselves to him, will be cast into the lake of fire and be forever separated from the Almighty. Until that time, though, he is out to destroy all that God is doing and it bring him joy whenever he accomplishes his goals.

Satan was pleased when Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian army destroyed the walls around Jerusalem. He was pleased because the home of God’s chosen people had been destroyed. He was pleased because he believed that it humiliated and shamed God to see the city of His chosen people lay in ruins.

Satan was pleased when he believed Monaghan Baptist Church was not going to survive. It pleased him to cause many of you to suffer and mourn the possibility that this church was going to have to close its doors. It pleased him to think that he’d succeeded in humiliating God.

Satan was angry when God sent Nehemiah to lead the rebuilding of the wall. It infuriated him to watch Nehemiah lead the people to overcome all the opposition he sent their way by relying upon the Lord.

Satan was angry when God sent Dr. Rob White to Monaghan Baptist Church to lead you to begin the process of revitalization. And I promise you this, Satan is still angry at what he’s witnessing right now and he is not going to give up trying to disrupt what the Lord is doing here. Satan does not want Monaghan Baptist Church to succeed. I’m not talking about Monaghan Baptist Church the building, I am talking about Monaghan Baptist Church the people. He does not want to see us become a vibrant and healthy church that is reaching the lost with the Good news of Jesus Christ.

Whenever God is working and we move to join Him in that work Satan is going to oppose us. The Apostle Paul encountered this many times during his missionary journeys. In 1 Corinthians 16:5-9 he tells the Corinthians that he plans to come and visit them soon. But in verse 8 he says that he need to “remain in Ephesus until Pentecost, for a great and effective door has opened for me, and there are many opponents.” —1 Corinthians 6:8-9 Paul saw the hand of God moving and knew he had an opportunity to reach more people with the Gospel. But he also recognized that he was going to face opposition.

Whenever I am preparing a sermon, I like to go back and listen to or read a sermon that a pastor I respect preached on the same verses. Sometimes I read a sermon from Charles Spurgeon, sometimes I listen to or watch John Piper, other times it’s current pastors like Matt Chandler or David Platt. This past week, I read sermon the late Adrian Rogers, Pastor at Bellevue Church in Tennessee preached back in 2005. In his opening, Pastor Rogers says this about facing opposition when we are doing the Lord’s work. He says, “There’s no cheap way. There’s no easy way. There’s no lazy way. And, when you try to do something for God — endeavor to let God use you — you’re going to meet satanic opposition.” —Adrian Rogers

There are many words the Bible uses to describe Satan. He is known as Lucifer, the Devil, Tempter, Ruler of Demons, Beelzebul— “lord of dung”, the Evil One, Enemy, Liar, Father of Lies, Murderer, Ruler of this World, God of this age, Adversary, the Angel of the Abyss, Dragon, Deceiver, Accuser of God’s people, Serpent, and more.

In Ephesians 6:11, Paul says that all Christians should “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.” —Ephesians 6:11 There are some translations that say, “the wiles of the devil.” The word wiles in the Greek is meth-o-dia. It’s where we get our word method from. The point is this, Satan uses deceitful and evil methods to attack God’s people, especially when we are doing what God wants us to do.

Therefore, it is vital for us to recognize from the beginning that Satan is going to attack Monaghan Baptist Church. So, our goal this morning is to prepare for those attacks so we will know them when we see them and we’ll know how to respond.

READ Nehemiah 4:1-15

I. Satan Will Mock Us (4:1-3)

We are first introduced to Sanballat and Tobiah in Nehemiah 2:10. In that verse Nehemiah tells us that “when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite servant heard...” about the wall being rebuilt, “it displeased them greatly that someone had come to seek the welfare of the people of Israel.”

Also in Nehemiah 2, after Nehemiah casts the vision for rebuilding the wall to the Jews and gains their support, Nehemiah records in verse 19 that “when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite servant and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they jeered at us and despised us...”

Now, as we come to chapter 4, the rebuilding of the all is well under way and once again Sanballat and Tobiah are mocking the Jews.

Read Verses 1-3 Again

For the second time Nehemiah says that Sanballat, Tobiah, and others “jeered” the Jews. In other words, they are mocking them. They are ridiculing them. They are making fun of them.

A. They Are Called Pathetic

In verse 2, Nehemiah records that Sanballat, in the presence of many others, called the Jews “feeble.” Essentially, Sanballat is saying the Jews are weak and puny. “What are these weak people doing trying to rebuild a wall that lies in ruins? You don’t have the capabilities of taking on a task such as this.”

The enemies of the Jews laughed at them and mocked them because they saw them as inferior and insignificant people.

British Pastor and Author, Alan Redpath is quoted as saying, “The world judges everything by size, by headlines, by imposing plans, by vast advertisements; and it pours contempt upon the feeble little flock of the people of God. “You, with your feeble prayer meetings. You, with your silly little plan of getting people converted one by one. How can you possibly stand alongside our great economic programs in which a whole world can be revolutionized in a few years? You have no intellect; you are out of date; you have no money; you have no status. You feeble little lot!”—Alan Redpath

B. Their Enemies Mocked the Futility of the Task

Sanballat’s ridicule continues in verse 2 as he asks, “Will they restore it for themselves?…Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, and burned ones a that?” Tobiah mocks them in verse 3 saying, “Yes, what they are building—if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall.!”

Their enemies mocked them and laughed at them saying, “Look at these Jews. They are wasting their time trying to accomplish such a frivolous act. Do they really think they can rebuild this wall by themselves? Do they really believe they’ll ever finish this work? Their work is so poor that if a small animal sits on one of the walls it is going to crash down.”

C. They’re Mocked For Their Faith

Sanballat makes fun of their faith by saying, “Will they sacrifice?” Or, “What, are they going to worship their God when this work is done?”

Listen, people who do not believe in Jesus Christ and do not understand what it means to serve Him out of love and devotion, cannot understand why we Christians do what we do. They can’t comprehend why anyone would work so hard to do what the outside world labels as dumb or worthless. They mock us because we pray to a God that they cannot see. They tells us we are unintelligent because we give money in the name of a God who they don’t believe exists.

Journalist Rex Murphy wrote in a 2011 article, “To be a serious Christian in modern Western culture is to be the favoured easy target of every progressive thinker and every half-witted comedian. It is to have your sensibilities and your deepest beliefs on perpetual call for taunts, mockery and desecration. At a time when all progressives preach full volume for inclusivity and sensitivity, for the utmost care in speech when speaking of others with differing views or hues, Christians, as Christians, are under a constant hail of abuse and disregard. There is nothing too low or too vulgar.” —Rex Murphy

Whenever we are working for the Lord, Satan will use the words of our enemies to attack our faith and attempt to get us to stop what we’re doing.

Even Jesus was made fun of for doing God’s work. Mark records in chapter 5 that after Jesus raised a little girl from the dead, the rulers “laughed at him.” Luke records that the Roman soldiers “who were holding Jesus in custody were mocking him as they beat him. They also blindfolded him and kept asking him, ‘Prophesy! Who is it that struck you?’ And they said many other things against him, blaspheming him.” —Luke 22:63 Later, when Jesus was on the cross, Luke says “the rulers scoffed at him, saying ‘He saved others; let him save himself, if is the Christ of God, his Chosen one!’ The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine and saying, ‘If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself.’” —Luke 23:35-37

Here’s the point, Satan will use those who do not know the Lord to mock those who are following His will and fulfilling His purposes. He did it to Jesus and he will use others to do it to us.

Former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura once labeled Christianity “a sham and a crutch for the weak-minded people who need strength in numbers.” —Gov. Jesse Ventura

Joy Behar, one of the host on ABC’s the View said this about Mike Pence, “It’s one thing to talk to Jesus. It’s another thing when Jesus talks to you. That’s called mental illness” (Feb. 2017). I should note that the audience applauded her comments.

Over the years, Tim Tebow has been mocked and ridiculed for his stance on sexual purity before marriage and his pro-life messages.

We must be prepared for Satan to attempt to intimidate us into ceasing our work for the Lord by using the words of our enemies to try and shame us.

And when that doesn’t work, he formulates a new plan.

Read Nehemiah 4:10-12

D. They Are Physically Threatened

The Jews did not give in to the taunts of Sanballat and his buddies. Instead, they continued in their work. This, according to the verses we just read, infuriated Sanballat and his friends even more. Now, their anger causes their attacks to escalate. So, they devise a plan to cause a great disturbance by attacking Jerusalem.

The plan almost works. It’s believed that Sanballat led a force out of Samaria and surrounded the northern portion of Jerusalem, while Tobiah and the Ammonites surrounded the eastern side of the city. The Arabs, most likely led by Gesham, surrounded the southern part of Jerusalem and the (Ash-dod-ites) surrounded the southwestern portion. When this occured, the people in the region began saying, “The strength of those who bear the burdens is failing. There is too much rubble. By ourselves we will not be able to rebuild the wall.” And when the people who lived in and near Jerusalem saw the city being surrounded, Nehemiah says they came and called on the workers to leave and go home.

Ultimately, Sanballat and his friends are using fear tactics to try and stop the work. What this says to us today is that whenever Satan cannot stop God’s servants from doing God’s work with mocking and ridicule, then he will resort to fear. He will use everything in his wicked arsenal to stop God’s people from working.

Folks, we need to understand that we are dealing with a great enemy who will stop at nothing to cause us to stop doing God’s work. He will use every tactic he at his disposal to try and thwart God’s plans, even if it means taking life. Satan was using Sanballat and his friends’ anger to his advantage by convincing them that carrying out a terrorist act against the Jews was the only way to stop the wall from being built. Look again at verse 11. Nehemiah says, “And our enemies said, ‘They will not know or see till we come among them and kill them and stop the work.’” That is a terrorist act. A sneak attack that the Jews will not see coming. Satan was and is willing to commit whatever act necessary to try and discourage the people of God from carrying out the work of God. Not only will Satan use any tactic necessary, but he will use unwitting people to accomplish his goals.

Jesus warns us in John 16:2, “the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God.”

Satan loves to create confusion and chaos to the point where Christians are being killed by people who believe they are doing the work of the Lord. And what Jesus warned about came true. Satan used the Apostle Paul, before he was saved, to kill Christians and Paul was convinced he was doing the work of God.

So, what are we supposed to do when opposition arises while we are carrying out God’s purposes?

1. Remember the Lord

Read 4:14

English Standard Version Chapter 4

14 And I looked and arose and said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.”

When opposition arises, we too must remember that God is more powerful and mightier than anything that Satan can throw at us. We must remember that God placed Monaghan Baptist Church here, in this spot, so we can fight for the souls of people who are in danger of dying and going to hell because they don’t know Jesus. That is the work He expects us to do and we can never forget that no matter how much opposition Satan brings our way.

We must remember that the Lord will always accomplish whatever He desires.

Read Isaiah 46:8-10

English Standard Version Chapter 46

“Remember this and stand firm,

recall it to mind, you transgressors,

9  remember the former things of old;

for I am God, and there is no other;

I am God, and there is none like me,

10  declaring the end from the beginning

and from ancient times things not yet done,

saying, ‘My counsel shall stand,

and I will accomplish all my purpose,’

2. We Must Pray

Both times Sanballat and his friends try to stop the Jews from working, Nehemiah leads the Jews to pray.

Read Nehemiah 4:4-5

Read Nehemiah 4:9

Nehemiah had so much faith in God and in what God had called them to do, that he knew he could pray for God’s protection and he would receive it. Notice in verse 6 where right after Nehemiah records his prayer, it says, “So we built the wall.” In the face of their opposition, they prayed and they continued to work. That is faithfulness. That is trusting in God’s protection.

Check out verse 15. Nehemiah says, “When our enemies heard that it was know to us and that God had frustrated their plan, we all returned to the wall, each to his work.”

We go to the Lord in prayer, we can count on his protection because He is a faithful God who always keeps His promises.

Read Numbers 23:19

The Lexham English Bible Chapter 23

God is not a man, that he should lie,

nor a son of humankind,

that he should change his mind.

Has he said, and will he not do it?

And has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?

Read 2 Thess. 3:3

“ But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.”

Some time ago, National Geographic ran an article about the Alaskan bull moose. The males of the species battle for dominance during the fall breeding season, literally going head-to-head with antlers crunching together as they collide. Often the antlers, their only weapon are broken. That ensures defeat. The heftiest moose, with the largest and strongest antlers, triumphs. Therefore, the battle fought in the fall is really won during the summer, when the moose eat continually. The one that consumes the best diet for growing antlers and gaining weight will be the heavyweight in the fight. Those that eat inadequately sport weaker antlers and less bulk.

As we go about working toward fulfilling God’s vision for Monaghan Baptist Church we must understand that spiritual battles await. Satan will choose a season to attack.

Will we be victorious, or will we fall? Much depends on what we do now--before the wars begin. Remembering God’s promises, Constant Prayer, and Enduring faith are best developed before they're needed. Let’s start preparing for battle today, before the enemy attacks.