1 00:00:00,520 --> 00:00:05,440 I've titled our sermon this morning Have faith in God when 2 00:00:05,440 --> 00:00:09,600 Facing opposition. A lot of things in life have a 3 00:00:09,600 --> 00:00:14,200 very good start, but sometimes a very hard journey. 4 00:00:14,600 --> 00:00:18,160 For instance, a young couple gets married as a very good 5 00:00:18,160 --> 00:00:20,960 start. They are happy, they're in love, 6 00:00:21,080 --> 00:00:23,360 everything is good. But then as life moves on, 7 00:00:23,360 --> 00:00:26,320 there's difficulties because there's opposition and it 8 00:00:26,320 --> 00:00:28,320 becomes challenging. It can be a lot of things in 9 00:00:28,320 --> 00:00:32,119 life, could be a job starts great, all is all, all is good. 10 00:00:32,439 --> 00:00:34,880 But then as time goes on, there's all kinds of challenges 11 00:00:34,880 --> 00:00:37,800 that come with it. In our sermon series this 12 00:00:37,800 --> 00:00:40,840 morning, we're continuing in the story of Nehemiah. 13 00:00:41,440 --> 00:00:44,160 We've seen in the in the previous sermons how he lived in 14 00:00:44,160 --> 00:00:48,160 Babylon and he hears news about Jerusalem. 15 00:00:48,520 --> 00:00:51,920 It's broken down, the walls are broken, the gates are burned, 16 00:00:52,200 --> 00:00:54,000 and he's struggling with that whole thing. 17 00:00:54,000 --> 00:00:55,600 It becomes a burden on his heart. 18 00:00:55,880 --> 00:00:59,800 He agonizes, he prays, God lays on his heart to actually go and 19 00:00:59,800 --> 00:01:02,400 do it, to make to condense the story. 20 00:01:02,640 --> 00:01:06,160 He ends up going to Jerusalem. He takes on this huge task of 21 00:01:06,160 --> 00:01:09,880 rebuilding the wall and to bring security and stability back to 22 00:01:09,880 --> 00:01:13,720 the city of Jerusalem. And there's a lot of help. 23 00:01:13,720 --> 00:01:18,280 The people are very united. They are very on board, but then 24 00:01:18,280 --> 00:01:20,480 there's all kinds of challenges that come up. 25 00:01:20,480 --> 00:01:24,120 They've had a great start, but a good start does not mean it's 26 00:01:24,120 --> 00:01:25,680 always going to be good and last. 27 00:01:25,680 --> 00:01:28,360 Nehemiah, last Sunday, we saw how Nehemiah did a great job at 28 00:01:28,360 --> 00:01:30,800 organizing the building project and how it moved forward at a 29 00:01:30,800 --> 00:01:35,360 rapid pace, How his leadership and his dedication and the unity 30 00:01:35,360 --> 00:01:37,800 of the people brought forth good results from their labor. 31 00:01:38,160 --> 00:01:40,160 They were committed. Most of them were helpful if you 32 00:01:40,160 --> 00:01:42,760 weren't, but it was not all good. 33 00:01:43,320 --> 00:01:47,240 Serious opposition rose up to threaten the work and the lives 34 00:01:47,240 --> 00:01:49,560 of the workers. And in a few minutes we want to 35 00:01:49,560 --> 00:01:52,480 turn again to Nehemiah and look at how he responded to the 36 00:01:52,480 --> 00:01:54,600 opposition that was directed towards him. 37 00:01:55,920 --> 00:01:59,280 But before we turn to Nehemiah and look at the opposition he 38 00:01:59,280 --> 00:02:02,200 and his people faced and how they responded, I want to 39 00:02:02,200 --> 00:02:05,480 briefly point out in another story of Scripture how this kind 40 00:02:05,480 --> 00:02:08,759 of stuff unfolds and how it develops and how it happens. 41 00:02:09,840 --> 00:02:12,400 This whole idea of opposition in the Bible is very common. 42 00:02:12,440 --> 00:02:16,840 There's a lot of it. Opposition is a form of control 43 00:02:18,280 --> 00:02:20,240 and we find opposition in all areas of life. 44 00:02:20,480 --> 00:02:21,960 People do it right from childhood on. 45 00:02:21,960 --> 00:02:24,920 Children oppose their parents and and husband and wife oppose 46 00:02:24,920 --> 00:02:26,600 each other. There's all kinds of opposition 47 00:02:26,600 --> 00:02:29,840 everywhere. And when 2 forces meet and they 48 00:02:29,840 --> 00:02:34,320 can't come to an agreement, there's a victor and a loser and 49 00:02:34,600 --> 00:02:36,640 on it goes. It can be long lasting, can be 50 00:02:36,640 --> 00:02:39,480 deadly. In the Bible, there's a story of 51 00:02:39,480 --> 00:02:41,880 two brothers, Cain and Abel, sons of Adam and Eve. 52 00:02:42,360 --> 00:02:44,880 They grew up together into adulthood and each had their own 53 00:02:44,880 --> 00:02:50,040 way of making a living. We find one was a farmer, he 54 00:02:50,040 --> 00:02:53,240 raised crops. Cain, the older one, the younger 55 00:02:53,240 --> 00:02:56,720 brother was Abel. And he, he had, he had flocks of 56 00:02:56,720 --> 00:03:00,240 sheep, sheep and goats maybe. And one day they both decided 57 00:03:00,240 --> 00:03:04,120 we're going to bring an offering to God from the flock, Abel from 58 00:03:04,120 --> 00:03:06,320 the flock and came from his produce. 59 00:03:07,560 --> 00:03:09,840 And it says that they both bought an offering, but God did 60 00:03:09,840 --> 00:03:13,920 not look favorably at on Cain's offering, but he favored Abel's 61 00:03:13,920 --> 00:03:17,640 offering. And here Cain had a problem and 62 00:03:17,640 --> 00:03:21,120 he was angry towards God that God would not accept his 63 00:03:21,120 --> 00:03:23,360 offering. God was not favorable toward his 64 00:03:23,360 --> 00:03:24,840 offering. So Cain had a bad attitude. 65 00:03:25,040 --> 00:03:29,600 God spoke to Cain and said, is it right for you and, and Cain, 66 00:03:29,640 --> 00:03:31,440 he said to Cain, sin is at your heart store. 67 00:03:31,440 --> 00:03:34,880 You must have mastery over it. Cain did not choose to change 68 00:03:34,880 --> 00:03:36,520 his attitude. He did not choose to repent. 69 00:03:36,880 --> 00:03:40,760 But in his mind his problem was his brother. 70 00:03:40,800 --> 00:03:43,200 If he could get rid of his brother, his problem would be 71 00:03:43,200 --> 00:03:45,720 gone. Actually, it was God who we had 72 00:03:45,720 --> 00:03:49,000 a problem with, but He took it out on Abel because Abel was the 73 00:03:49,000 --> 00:03:51,440 one who got favored. If could get rid of Cain, Abel, 74 00:03:51,560 --> 00:03:53,640 then that would be gone. And so he figured he would get 75 00:03:53,640 --> 00:03:54,920 rid of Abel. And he did. 76 00:03:55,600 --> 00:04:00,000 And God held him accountable. Abel was gone, but God held Cain 77 00:04:00,000 --> 00:04:04,560 responsible for what he did. You see, Cain's security, his 78 00:04:04,560 --> 00:04:10,040 sense of well-being, his view of life revolved around himself at 79 00:04:10,040 --> 00:04:13,120 the expense of others, in this case his brother Abel. 80 00:04:13,400 --> 00:04:17,519 Abel had to be eliminated. So why am I telling this kind of 81 00:04:17,519 --> 00:04:19,320 a story? As an introduction to the story 82 00:04:19,320 --> 00:04:21,519 of Nehemiah and the opposition that Nehemiah faced? 83 00:04:21,519 --> 00:04:25,120 Here's the reason. When a person's only way to 84 00:04:25,120 --> 00:04:28,040 advance, to rise, to become strong, to be in control, when 85 00:04:28,040 --> 00:04:33,000 all of that is based on how that person has to reduce others, 86 00:04:33,360 --> 00:04:36,800 control others, reject others, disenfranche others, that person 87 00:04:36,880 --> 00:04:38,680 or that society is headed for trouble. 88 00:04:39,480 --> 00:04:42,200 They may succeed for a while, but in the end it always catches 89 00:04:42,200 --> 00:04:44,280 up. Obviously Cain was self focused. 90 00:04:44,600 --> 00:04:47,400 He could not accept that his brother Abel was accepted, but 91 00:04:47,400 --> 00:04:49,200 he was not. Instead of saying what am I 92 00:04:49,200 --> 00:04:52,000 doing wrong to get accepted, he said I got to get rid of him. 93 00:04:53,120 --> 00:04:56,560 And so he took Abel's life. Some people only find their 94 00:04:56,560 --> 00:04:59,280 security in what they can take away from the other person. 95 00:04:59,960 --> 00:05:01,480 It comes in a lot of different forms. 96 00:05:02,560 --> 00:05:06,280 When someone feels threatened by you, they may attack you in a 97 00:05:06,280 --> 00:05:08,040 variety of ways. For instance, maybe your 98 00:05:08,040 --> 00:05:11,040 credibility, character, defamation, slander, you have 99 00:05:11,040 --> 00:05:12,080 it. It could be anything. 100 00:05:13,000 --> 00:05:15,440 They may see you have opportunities for success 101 00:05:15,440 --> 00:05:18,240 instead of supporting you, the scheme and plan and connive how 102 00:05:18,240 --> 00:05:21,760 they can take that away, crippling you to elevate 103 00:05:21,760 --> 00:05:24,560 themselves. They may see you succeeding in a 104 00:05:24,560 --> 00:05:28,800 certain way and can't take it. And so we've got to sabotage 105 00:05:28,800 --> 00:05:33,200 this. It's a painful place to be when 106 00:05:33,200 --> 00:05:35,240 a person is doing their best, living at their calling, and 107 00:05:35,240 --> 00:05:36,880 someone comes along, wants to destroy that. 108 00:05:36,880 --> 00:05:40,280 That's what Nehemiah faced. When Nehemiah started to build 109 00:05:40,280 --> 00:05:43,120 the wall, rebuild the wall, there were strong oppositions. 110 00:05:43,320 --> 00:05:45,560 There were people who were bent and destroying and eliminating 111 00:05:45,560 --> 00:05:47,200 this whole project and him as well. 112 00:05:48,240 --> 00:05:50,800 This morning we will see how Nehemiah was used by God to 113 00:05:50,800 --> 00:05:53,920 rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Not because there was so much 114 00:05:53,920 --> 00:05:57,080 support all around, No, the king supported him, the king 115 00:05:57,080 --> 00:05:59,880 sponsored it. But in the area there was 116 00:05:59,880 --> 00:06:02,480 communities around who had no use for Nehemiah and actually 117 00:06:02,480 --> 00:06:06,600 wanted it stopped rebuilding the wall with the resource they had 118 00:06:06,600 --> 00:06:09,640 and the limitations they faced. The project in itself was 119 00:06:09,640 --> 00:06:10,880 daunting. It was huge. 120 00:06:11,400 --> 00:06:13,560 But the physical part was not so much the real issue. 121 00:06:13,560 --> 00:06:15,720 The bigger part was the opposition they would face from 122 00:06:15,720 --> 00:06:17,680 some local communities in the area. 123 00:06:18,720 --> 00:06:21,240 What's interesting about Nehemiah is that he never wants 124 00:06:21,240 --> 00:06:24,440 so much as wavered. His was resolute. 125 00:06:25,160 --> 00:06:27,080 He was determined and he was strong. 126 00:06:28,800 --> 00:06:31,120 And he didn't wait to rebuild the wall until, OK, let's see if 127 00:06:31,120 --> 00:06:33,200 we can get the community on board and let's see if they 128 00:06:33,200 --> 00:06:36,000 agree with us. Maybe we can live side by side. 129 00:06:36,000 --> 00:06:38,160 And no, this is what he'd been called to do. 130 00:06:38,160 --> 00:06:41,000 The city of Jerusalem, King, the Arctic circus has has given the 131 00:06:41,000 --> 00:06:42,600 go ahead. We're going to rebuild the wall. 132 00:06:44,320 --> 00:06:46,520 But that did not exempt him from opposition. 133 00:06:46,520 --> 00:06:49,000 So this morning let's read together Nehemiah chapter 4. 134 00:06:49,000 --> 00:06:50,480 I'll read it out of the new King James. 135 00:06:50,480 --> 00:06:54,880 Nehemiah chapter 4. But it so happened that when 136 00:06:54,960 --> 00:06:58,080 Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, that he was 137 00:06:58,080 --> 00:07:00,040 furious and very indignant and mocked the Jews. 138 00:07:00,680 --> 00:07:03,240 He spoke before his brethren in the army of Sumeria and said, 139 00:07:03,240 --> 00:07:05,240 What are these feeble Jews doing? 140 00:07:05,240 --> 00:07:08,120 Will they fortify themselves? Will this offer sacrifices? 141 00:07:08,280 --> 00:07:11,160 Will they complete it in a day? Will they revive the stones from 142 00:07:11,160 --> 00:07:13,000 the heaps of rubbish stones that are burnt? 143 00:07:13,560 --> 00:07:16,320 Now Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him and said, Whatever 144 00:07:16,320 --> 00:07:19,360 they build, even if a fox goes up on it, he will break down 145 00:07:19,360 --> 00:07:23,640 their Stonewall. Here, O God, our God, he praised 146 00:07:23,640 --> 00:07:27,040 Nehemiah, for we are despised. Turn their reproach on their own 147 00:07:27,040 --> 00:07:29,280 heads and give them as plunder to a land of captivity. 148 00:07:29,560 --> 00:07:32,040 Do not cover their iniquity, and do not let their sin be blotted 149 00:07:32,040 --> 00:07:35,640 out from before you, for they have provoked you to anger 150 00:07:35,640 --> 00:07:38,480 before the builders. So we built the wall, and the 151 00:07:38,480 --> 00:07:41,320 entire wall was joined together up to half its height, for the 152 00:07:41,320 --> 00:07:45,160 people had a mind to work. Now it happened when Sanballat 153 00:07:45,160 --> 00:07:48,040 Tobiah and the Arabs and the Ammonites and the ashrides heard 154 00:07:48,040 --> 00:07:50,600 that the walls of Jerusalem were being restored and the gaps were 155 00:07:50,600 --> 00:07:54,040 beginning to be closed. They became very angry and all 156 00:07:54,040 --> 00:07:56,800 of them conspired to attack together, to come and attack 157 00:07:56,800 --> 00:08:00,360 Jerusalem and create confusion. Nevertheless, we made our prayer 158 00:08:00,360 --> 00:08:03,520 to God, and because of them we set a watch against them day and 159 00:08:03,520 --> 00:08:05,520 night. Then Judah said the strength of 160 00:08:05,520 --> 00:08:07,480 the laborers is failing, and there's so much rubbish that 161 00:08:07,480 --> 00:08:10,760 we're not able to build a wall. And our adversary said they will 162 00:08:10,760 --> 00:08:13,240 neither know nor see anything until we come into their midst 163 00:08:13,240 --> 00:08:14,960 and kill them and cause the work to cease. 164 00:08:15,520 --> 00:08:18,320 So it was when the Jews who dwelt near them came. 165 00:08:18,320 --> 00:08:21,320 They told us 10 times, from whatever place you turn, they 166 00:08:21,320 --> 00:08:24,160 will be upon us. Therefore, I position men behind 167 00:08:24,160 --> 00:08:26,200 the lower parts of the wall. At the openings. 168 00:08:26,440 --> 00:08:28,800 I set the people according to their families, with their 169 00:08:28,800 --> 00:08:30,400 swords, their Spears and their bows. 170 00:08:30,720 --> 00:08:32,840 And I looked in a rose and said to the nobles, to the leaders, 171 00:08:32,840 --> 00:08:35,120 and to the rest of the people, do not be afraid of them. 172 00:08:35,120 --> 00:08:37,200 Remember the Lord great and awesome, and fight for your 173 00:08:37,200 --> 00:08:39,280 brethren, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your 174 00:08:39,280 --> 00:08:41,600 houses. And it happened when our enemies 175 00:08:41,600 --> 00:08:44,480 heard that it was known to that to us, and that God had brought 176 00:08:44,480 --> 00:08:46,960 their plot to nothing, that all of us returned to the wall, 177 00:08:47,160 --> 00:08:50,520 everyone to His work. So it was from that time on that 178 00:08:50,520 --> 00:08:52,920 half of my servants worked at the construction, while the 179 00:08:52,920 --> 00:08:55,360 other half held the Spears, the shores, the bows, and wore 180 00:08:55,360 --> 00:08:58,280 armour, and the leaders were behind all the House of Judah. 181 00:08:58,760 --> 00:09:01,440 Those who built on the wall and those who carried burdens loaded 182 00:09:01,440 --> 00:09:04,040 themselves so that with one hand they worked at construction and 183 00:09:04,040 --> 00:09:06,920 with the other held a weapon. Every one of the builders had 184 00:09:06,920 --> 00:09:09,600 his sword girded at his side as he built, and the one who 185 00:09:09,600 --> 00:09:11,400 sounded the trumpet was beside me. 186 00:09:11,960 --> 00:09:14,240 Then I said to the nobles, the rulers, and the rest of the 187 00:09:14,240 --> 00:09:16,800 people. The work is great and extensive, 188 00:09:16,840 --> 00:09:19,120 and we are separated far from one another on the wall. 189 00:09:19,640 --> 00:09:22,000 Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet rally to us there 190 00:09:22,000 --> 00:09:25,360 our God will fight for us. So we labored in the work, and 191 00:09:25,360 --> 00:09:27,920 half of the men held the Spears from Daybreak until the stars 192 00:09:27,920 --> 00:09:29,880 appeared. At the same time I also said to 193 00:09:29,880 --> 00:09:32,280 the people that each man and his servant stay at night in 194 00:09:32,280 --> 00:09:35,520 Jerusalem, that they may be our guard by day by night, and the 195 00:09:35,520 --> 00:09:38,920 working party by day. So neither I, my brethren, my 196 00:09:38,920 --> 00:09:41,280 servants, nor the men of the guard who followed me, took off 197 00:09:41,280 --> 00:09:43,960 their clothes, except that everyone took them off for 198 00:09:43,960 --> 00:09:50,000 washing. What a story of courage, 199 00:09:50,160 --> 00:09:53,640 strength, resolve, determination despite a fierce opposition. 200 00:09:54,040 --> 00:09:58,760 So what are we seeing here? Have faith in God when facing 201 00:09:59,200 --> 00:10:01,720 opposition. Nehemiah had his hands full with 202 00:10:01,720 --> 00:10:04,240 the building project. He was like he didn't need that 203 00:10:04,240 --> 00:10:07,400 on the side. The building project itself was 204 00:10:07,400 --> 00:10:10,560 challenging enough, never mind the opposition from the 205 00:10:10,560 --> 00:10:13,040 community. So he had actually do some, 206 00:10:13,040 --> 00:10:15,920 quite some multitasking there, keep things moving on the 207 00:10:15,920 --> 00:10:18,560 building project and then to fend off or make sure the enemy 208 00:10:18,560 --> 00:10:19,640 wouldn't come and over take them. 209 00:10:20,120 --> 00:10:23,040 The Sambalot and his his guys. Sambalot was the governor of 210 00:10:23,040 --> 00:10:27,960 Samaria and he did not see that this is his best interest of the 211 00:10:27,960 --> 00:10:30,000 city of Jerusalem. He was governing the district of 212 00:10:30,000 --> 00:10:32,080 Samaria while someone else was governing the district of 213 00:10:32,080 --> 00:10:33,680 Jerusalem. And he felt threatened by this 214 00:10:33,680 --> 00:10:35,520 project that was happening not that far away from his 215 00:10:35,520 --> 00:10:37,800 territory. Commentators say it was about a 216 00:10:37,800 --> 00:10:39,480 50 kilometer difference between the two. 217 00:10:39,480 --> 00:10:41,600 Here's a chart that gives a little bit of perspective there. 218 00:10:42,160 --> 00:10:45,640 So the dotted line is where they came from Babylon up north and 219 00:10:45,640 --> 00:10:48,960 then to the to the West and down South past Damascus and then 220 00:10:48,960 --> 00:10:51,080 Samaria and Jerusalem. Samaria and Jerusalem are right 221 00:10:51,080 --> 00:10:53,800 neighbors each other. And those routes were trade 222 00:10:53,800 --> 00:10:55,480 routes. They're from Egypt up to Babylon 223 00:10:55,480 --> 00:10:57,960 were trade routes. And so commentators suggest that 224 00:10:58,120 --> 00:11:01,000 it was really a question of how's it going to affect my 225 00:11:01,000 --> 00:11:02,760 economy if that city gets built up again? 226 00:11:02,760 --> 00:11:05,080 And so Sambalot, he did not want that. 227 00:11:05,520 --> 00:11:07,600 Of course, King Arctic Circus had mandated it. 228 00:11:07,720 --> 00:11:09,880 He'd give him the go ahead, but he was going to try to do his 229 00:11:09,880 --> 00:11:13,280 best to stop it. Sambadat looked at the success 230 00:11:13,280 --> 00:11:14,920 of Jerusalem as a threat to Samaria. 231 00:11:15,520 --> 00:11:19,160 He didn't like it, and he had to do something to disrupt it. 232 00:11:20,680 --> 00:11:24,840 And we read in verse one and two how he mocked, he ridiculed the 233 00:11:24,840 --> 00:11:31,400 Jews and his his sidekick there as well to buy the Ammonite. 234 00:11:32,240 --> 00:11:34,200 If a fox goes up on it, he'll break down their wall. 235 00:11:34,200 --> 00:11:38,880 No, no, no, no respect, nothing. Stop the work, one commentator 236 00:11:38,880 --> 00:11:41,400 wrote these words. He wrote Sambalot was a man of 237 00:11:41,400 --> 00:11:44,200 this kind that he was not content with doing his very best 238 00:11:44,200 --> 00:11:45,880 to make Samaria both prosperous and powerful. 239 00:11:46,040 --> 00:11:49,120 He must also do his very best to keep Jerusalem downtrodden and 240 00:11:49,120 --> 00:11:51,000 destroyed. Some people are not happy if 241 00:11:51,000 --> 00:11:53,600 they're OK. I'm only happy if they're not 242 00:11:53,600 --> 00:11:55,880 OK. Somebody else cannot be OK. 243 00:11:56,040 --> 00:11:57,800 I want to be OK. They can't be OK. 244 00:11:57,800 --> 00:12:00,160 They should not be OK. That's what's going on here. 245 00:12:01,200 --> 00:12:03,360 And yet the Jews had a right to exist that everybody else did. 246 00:12:04,280 --> 00:12:07,880 But he wanted them to remain downtrodden in subjection and 247 00:12:08,200 --> 00:12:13,640 under his control. What a person is angry at or 248 00:12:13,640 --> 00:12:16,080 angry about, that's a good indicator of what's inside. 249 00:12:17,280 --> 00:12:19,480 We could ask this question. Would Sand Balat have been mad 250 00:12:19,480 --> 00:12:21,680 or angry if Nehemiah had come from Babylon straight to him and 251 00:12:21,680 --> 00:12:24,520 said, OK, Mr. Sand Balat, I know you're governing Syria. 252 00:12:24,520 --> 00:12:26,680 So what can we do together? How can we cooperate? 253 00:12:26,680 --> 00:12:28,920 How can we make a treaty? How can we work together? 254 00:12:28,960 --> 00:12:30,760 I'll serve under you. Maybe it would have been a 255 00:12:30,760 --> 00:12:32,560 different story, but that was not the mandate. 256 00:12:32,840 --> 00:12:37,800 He was jealous, angry and afraid that this Nehemiah was going to 257 00:12:37,800 --> 00:12:42,840 be a competition to him. People who are jealous, angry, 258 00:12:42,840 --> 00:12:46,360 and afraid are dangerous people, dangerous character qualities. 259 00:12:47,440 --> 00:12:50,240 If you mix that together, it's very, very unstable, may blow up 260 00:12:50,280 --> 00:12:52,640 one person. Put it this way, when anger and 261 00:12:52,640 --> 00:12:56,160 jealousy are mixed with power, they create a storm that can 262 00:12:56,160 --> 00:12:59,160 destroy everything in its path, including the one who wields it. 263 00:12:59,960 --> 00:13:03,000 Sandblock clearly demonstrated his character, gathered his 264 00:13:03,000 --> 00:13:05,120 army, updated them. What are these guys doing, these 265 00:13:05,120 --> 00:13:05,800 people? Jews. 266 00:13:06,400 --> 00:13:09,000 His friend, his friend and ally, Tobiah the Ammonite joined him, 267 00:13:09,040 --> 00:13:14,120 and then the other guys as well. If you're doing something for 268 00:13:14,120 --> 00:13:17,160 the betterment of your community and it's perceived as a threat 269 00:13:17,160 --> 00:13:19,560 by your culture, you will have opposition. 270 00:13:20,480 --> 00:13:23,320 Sambalot did not want to see Jerusalem become successful as 271 00:13:23,320 --> 00:13:25,160 it had been many decades earlier. 272 00:13:25,520 --> 00:13:28,160 He needed to see Jerusalem in the state it was now. 273 00:13:28,360 --> 00:13:32,480 He needed Jerusalem broken down and dejected and discouraged, 274 00:13:33,680 --> 00:13:35,000 and he wanted to keep it that way. 275 00:13:37,040 --> 00:13:39,040 Some people, when they see someone else have success, it 276 00:13:39,040 --> 00:13:41,520 bothers them. They don't have they don't have 277 00:13:41,520 --> 00:13:43,000 peace if someone else has a good. 278 00:13:43,880 --> 00:13:46,560 They can only have peace if you call it peace as long as someone 279 00:13:46,560 --> 00:13:49,120 else does not have it. As soon as life becomes better 280 00:13:49,120 --> 00:13:50,880 for the other, their peace is gone. 281 00:13:52,320 --> 00:13:54,520 It has been said that some people think it this way. 282 00:13:54,960 --> 00:13:56,440 It ain't right if it ain't wrong. 283 00:13:57,680 --> 00:14:01,680 And his mind, Jerusalem had to be wrong for he for him to have 284 00:14:01,680 --> 00:14:03,840 a good time. He could only accept the 285 00:14:03,840 --> 00:14:05,880 Jerusalem that was broken down, not one that was built up and 286 00:14:05,880 --> 00:14:09,000 repaired. People reveal their character 287 00:14:09,160 --> 00:14:11,720 when they devalue what another is doing in order to evaluate, 288 00:14:12,080 --> 00:14:15,280 elevate themselves. It's interesting how some people 289 00:14:15,280 --> 00:14:17,520 can only make themselves look good by criticizing and knocking 290 00:14:17,520 --> 00:14:18,920 down anybody every else around them. 291 00:14:20,840 --> 00:14:24,200 We need to expect that the world will not be our friend in this 292 00:14:24,360 --> 00:14:26,560 in our lives. We need to expect the world will 293 00:14:26,560 --> 00:14:30,120 do what it can to throw us down. The story in the Bible of 294 00:14:30,120 --> 00:14:33,640 Daniel, as many of you know, he made it to the top, the top 295 00:14:33,640 --> 00:14:35,880 administrator under King Darius in Babylon. 296 00:14:36,640 --> 00:14:39,560 A bunch of other administrators were alongside with him and King 297 00:14:39,560 --> 00:14:41,320 elevated him. They got jealous and decided 298 00:14:41,320 --> 00:14:44,440 Daniel has to go. Daniel stayed true in his walk 299 00:14:44,440 --> 00:14:46,960 with God and he had to face the lions for his obedience to God. 300 00:14:46,960 --> 00:14:50,720 But in the end, God spared him and it was the jealous 301 00:14:50,720 --> 00:14:53,040 administrators who then had to experience what they had planned 302 00:14:53,040 --> 00:14:55,320 for Daniel. Sambalot and his people would 303 00:14:55,320 --> 00:14:58,840 fail and Nehemiah would succeed. Daniel succeeded and the 304 00:14:58,840 --> 00:15:01,560 administrators failed. Nehemiah was in many ways 305 00:15:01,560 --> 00:15:03,240 similar to Daniel. He had a strong character. 306 00:15:03,240 --> 00:15:06,280 He wouldn't bow to threats. So what's the best way forward 307 00:15:06,280 --> 00:15:08,520 in a case like this? When you're opposed your works 308 00:15:08,520 --> 00:15:11,200 belittled and ridiculed, mocked and downplayed, What then? 309 00:15:11,200 --> 00:15:12,560 How should you respond? Fight back. 310 00:15:12,560 --> 00:15:14,120 Let's go and attack them. Let's kill them. 311 00:15:14,640 --> 00:15:16,160 Let's let's eliminate them, right? 312 00:15:17,160 --> 00:15:20,360 Does that what Nehemiah does? How did Nehemiah respond to the 313 00:15:20,360 --> 00:15:22,240 opposition? What did he do? 314 00:15:22,640 --> 00:15:26,800 Well, let's keep going. Verse four and five, he says 315 00:15:26,840 --> 00:15:29,760 here, O God, for we're despised, Turn the reproach in their own 316 00:15:29,760 --> 00:15:31,440 heads. Give them as plunder to a land 317 00:15:31,440 --> 00:15:35,640 of captivity. Nehemiah prays, that's the first 318 00:15:35,640 --> 00:15:37,760 thing he engages in. Instead of lashing out towards 319 00:15:37,760 --> 00:15:41,440 them and and even engaging them, he goes to God in prayer, a very 320 00:15:41,440 --> 00:15:45,120 clear, decisive prayer. He calls out to God, tells God 321 00:15:45,120 --> 00:15:46,600 what's going on. Not that God needs to know 322 00:15:46,600 --> 00:15:48,200 what's going on. God knows what's going on. 323 00:15:48,440 --> 00:15:51,200 But for Nehemiah, he's, he needed to say this to God for 324 00:15:51,200 --> 00:15:52,800 his own sake. And the same holds true for you 325 00:15:52,800 --> 00:15:55,360 and I today. When we pray, we do not pray to 326 00:15:55,360 --> 00:15:56,800 inform God. He knows. 327 00:15:57,480 --> 00:15:59,840 We pray to get ourselves aligned with God. 328 00:16:00,080 --> 00:16:02,920 And when we're aligned with God, God can use us for the things he 329 00:16:02,920 --> 00:16:05,560 wants for us. God never told Nehemiah go to 330 00:16:05,560 --> 00:16:08,480 Jerusalem and then fight against the Samaritans or against the 331 00:16:09,320 --> 00:16:11,560 against Sambalot and his his gang never said that. 332 00:16:12,960 --> 00:16:15,680 And but Nehemiah prayed for protection from them and that 333 00:16:15,680 --> 00:16:18,320 God would do work justice. And the question we could ask, 334 00:16:18,400 --> 00:16:21,920 was it wrong for Nehemiah to pray for that kind of a justice? 335 00:16:23,160 --> 00:16:25,480 Nehemiah lived under the Old Covenant of the Old Testament. 336 00:16:26,240 --> 00:16:29,360 The Old Testament Exodus 21 is specifically is a clear outline 337 00:16:29,360 --> 00:16:34,000 of how people in that time were supposed to deal with violence 338 00:16:34,000 --> 00:16:37,680 and oppression and and warfare and so on and and whatever 339 00:16:37,720 --> 00:16:40,600 criminal events and so on. But under the new covenant Jesus 340 00:16:40,600 --> 00:16:42,840 model for us how to deal with those who hate us and oppose us. 341 00:16:43,080 --> 00:16:45,480 We're not given liberty to deal with them in our own discretion 342 00:16:45,480 --> 00:16:47,120 selfish ways. We're supposed to leave that to 343 00:16:47,120 --> 00:16:49,000 God. And this is not to say law 344 00:16:49,000 --> 00:16:51,320 enforcement is wrong. It's just that we as Christians 345 00:16:51,320 --> 00:16:54,720 have a different mandate in the Gospels and Nepal in his 346 00:16:54,720 --> 00:16:57,720 letters, he clearly specifies how do we respond to those who 347 00:16:57,720 --> 00:17:00,920 press us and hate us. We love them, we don't persecute 348 00:17:00,920 --> 00:17:03,240 them. And for Nehemiah, this is not 349 00:17:03,240 --> 00:17:09,200 primarily about the wall even it was about God's name and he was 350 00:17:09,200 --> 00:17:11,359 concerned about San Balat and his people were doing to the 351 00:17:11,359 --> 00:17:13,520 name of God. The key reason for his prayer in 352 00:17:13,520 --> 00:17:16,839 the end of the verse where it says they've provoked you, 353 00:17:16,839 --> 00:17:19,520 meaning God to anger. We need always to check our 354 00:17:19,520 --> 00:17:21,760 motives, the reasons why we're praying. 355 00:17:22,240 --> 00:17:24,560 And so we were called to build a wall in God's name. 356 00:17:25,240 --> 00:17:27,560 Does it bother us when God's name is mocked or when his work 357 00:17:27,560 --> 00:17:29,280 is threatened? And Nehemiah's day, God's work 358 00:17:29,280 --> 00:17:30,480 was threatened and he prayed about it. 359 00:17:31,320 --> 00:17:32,560 Again. Nehemiah did not go on the 360 00:17:32,560 --> 00:17:36,000 attack, try to kill them. He did weaponize his people, arm 361 00:17:36,000 --> 00:17:38,920 his people for defence. They stood guard, but not with 362 00:17:38,920 --> 00:17:41,120 the intent of wanting to cause pain and hurt. 363 00:17:41,800 --> 00:17:43,600 So Nehemiah and his people continued to build. 364 00:17:44,040 --> 00:17:46,080 They did not listen or pay attention to the threats of San 365 00:17:46,080 --> 00:17:47,880 Balat and his men. They kept focusing on the work. 366 00:17:49,080 --> 00:17:51,640 So where should our focus be? What should we focus on? 367 00:17:52,160 --> 00:17:56,160 Well, when opposed, keep faith and faith keep moving forward. 368 00:17:56,840 --> 00:17:58,360 We're sometimes told wait on the Lord. 369 00:17:58,360 --> 00:17:59,880 That's a good advice. Wait on the Lord. 370 00:18:00,320 --> 00:18:03,600 While that is true, we're not told to stop moving. 371 00:18:04,280 --> 00:18:08,440 It's interesting how often one threat can just have a crippling 372 00:18:08,440 --> 00:18:11,320 effect on a person. Nehemiah was not stopped by the 373 00:18:11,320 --> 00:18:13,160 taunting, the mocking, the ridiculing. 374 00:18:13,600 --> 00:18:16,080 He kept on working right through the threats as if they did not 375 00:18:16,080 --> 00:18:18,160 exist. They did exist, he responded, 376 00:18:18,320 --> 00:18:20,000 but he kept the working as if they didn't. 377 00:18:20,160 --> 00:18:22,800 And of course they impeded it somewhat, but he kept going. 378 00:18:23,120 --> 00:18:25,120 There's a story in the Bible that I want to quickly refer to, 379 00:18:25,120 --> 00:18:27,600 the story of Elijah, a prophet in Israel. 380 00:18:28,240 --> 00:18:30,480 And the nation of Israel was in such heavy idolatry. 381 00:18:30,480 --> 00:18:33,240 God said to Elijah, go and tell the king it's not going to 382 00:18:33,240 --> 00:18:35,440 reign, for till I say it will reign. 383 00:18:35,760 --> 00:18:40,280 And Elijah prophesied and the famine came. 384 00:18:40,280 --> 00:18:44,520 There was no rain. And finally, one day, Elijah has 385 00:18:44,520 --> 00:18:46,560 this contest with the prophets of Baal and said, we're going to 386 00:18:46,560 --> 00:18:48,240 have a sacrifice. You guys sacrifice, I'll 387 00:18:48,240 --> 00:18:49,880 sacrifice. And the God, the God who answers 388 00:18:49,880 --> 00:18:53,240 by fire is the real God. Can they have the sacrifice? 389 00:18:53,280 --> 00:18:55,560 The prophets of Baal, they sacrifice, Nothing happens. 390 00:18:55,920 --> 00:18:58,080 Elijah sacrifices and God answers by fire. 391 00:18:58,360 --> 00:19:01,320 Then he kills all the prophets of Baal and now it's a great 392 00:19:01,320 --> 00:19:03,960 victory. And he's so such a victorious 393 00:19:03,960 --> 00:19:06,400 event. Well, Jezebel, the queen hears 394 00:19:06,400 --> 00:19:08,280 about it and she said, I'm going to make you like one of those 395 00:19:08,280 --> 00:19:11,600 dead prophets. And then Elijah hits a low spot. 396 00:19:12,280 --> 00:19:16,120 He literally wanted to die. He was so weak, so tired, so 397 00:19:16,120 --> 00:19:18,400 exhausted. It was a journey God had had 398 00:19:18,400 --> 00:19:20,720 ordained for him, true, but he couldn't see his way through. 399 00:19:20,720 --> 00:19:23,000 He said, God just let me die. I'm no better than my 400 00:19:23,000 --> 00:19:24,320 forefathers. Nothing's working. 401 00:19:24,320 --> 00:19:27,320 Just just Take Me Home already. He didn't get to die. 402 00:19:27,320 --> 00:19:28,960 God didn't allow it, and his life continued. 403 00:19:28,960 --> 00:19:32,120 He had a fruitful ministry afterward, but that was not 404 00:19:32,120 --> 00:19:36,560 God's plan for Elijah. But so often people take that 405 00:19:36,560 --> 00:19:38,080 route. I'm just going to give up, just 406 00:19:38,080 --> 00:19:39,800 going to quit. I'm just going to lay it all 407 00:19:39,800 --> 00:19:41,480 down. Nehemiah never had that. 408 00:19:42,600 --> 00:19:45,440 Nehemiah kept right on going. That's what amazes me so much 409 00:19:45,440 --> 00:19:47,560 with this guy. It says in verse 6, let's look 410 00:19:47,560 --> 00:19:51,160 at it again. So we built the wall in spite of 411 00:19:51,160 --> 00:19:54,120 everything that went on, and the entire wall was joined together 412 00:19:54,120 --> 00:19:56,200 up to half its sight for the people who had a mind to work. 413 00:19:56,960 --> 00:20:00,320 He did say, oh our Oh dear, our enemies, they don't like us, 414 00:20:00,320 --> 00:20:01,960 they'll want us to stop. What do we do? 415 00:20:01,960 --> 00:20:04,960 What do we do? Chewing his nails, biting his 416 00:20:05,040 --> 00:20:07,960 nails, nothing like that. He kept right on going in spite 417 00:20:07,960 --> 00:20:10,240 of all the opposition. He says, so we built the wall, 418 00:20:10,240 --> 00:20:12,120 the workers did not stop. Instead of in spite of being 419 00:20:12,120 --> 00:20:15,680 mocked and ridiculed, someone has made the comments. 420 00:20:15,680 --> 00:20:17,680 Sticks and stones, we break my bones, but words will never hurt 421 00:20:17,680 --> 00:20:19,920 me. Words do hurt even though they 422 00:20:19,920 --> 00:20:21,760 weren't physically attacked. Words have power. 423 00:20:21,760 --> 00:20:25,120 And then Elijah was a was a victim of that and so can we be. 424 00:20:25,480 --> 00:20:28,240 So how did Nehemiah stand against the danger of attack? 425 00:20:28,520 --> 00:20:29,600 He didn't run. We know that. 426 00:20:29,720 --> 00:20:34,000 He stayed true to his task. And so stand guard against 427 00:20:34,000 --> 00:20:38,680 attacks on God's work. Stand guard in Modern Warfare, 428 00:20:38,680 --> 00:20:41,960 sometimes said to a regiment or a platoon of soldiers and army. 429 00:20:42,200 --> 00:20:44,720 No retreat. You have to hold your position 430 00:20:44,720 --> 00:20:46,680 to the last man. What that means is the soldiers 431 00:20:46,680 --> 00:20:49,240 not at liberty to retreat or abandoned his post if the 432 00:20:49,240 --> 00:20:52,040 fighting gets hot and severe, even to the cost of his life. 433 00:20:52,320 --> 00:20:55,560 And they do that. There's a similar parallel in 434 00:20:55,560 --> 00:20:58,400 discipleship. It's an all out call for all out 435 00:20:58,400 --> 00:21:00,360 commitment with no option for retreat. 436 00:21:00,680 --> 00:21:03,640 Anyone who decides to follow Jesus is essentially saying that 437 00:21:03,640 --> 00:21:07,920 for as long as I live, he's my number one, and in his honor I 438 00:21:07,920 --> 00:21:10,320 will take everything that comes. We say that at baptism. 439 00:21:10,800 --> 00:21:13,240 When we get baptized, we say we've said no to sin. 440 00:21:13,560 --> 00:21:15,880 We've crucified our sinful lives, we've taken up our cross. 441 00:21:15,880 --> 00:21:18,560 We're now dead to sin for the rest of our lives at the cost of 442 00:21:18,560 --> 00:21:20,120 our earthly lives. We will serve Jesus. 443 00:21:20,960 --> 00:21:23,520 It comes down to this. No matter what the cost, walking 444 00:21:23,520 --> 00:21:26,640 with Jesus, living for Jesus, it's not negotiable. 445 00:21:26,840 --> 00:21:32,080 The work must go on, and we find that when #7 now what happened 446 00:21:32,080 --> 00:21:34,560 when San Balat, Tabayan, the Arabs, the Ammonites and 447 00:21:34,560 --> 00:21:37,040 astronites heard the walls of Jerusalem were restored, the 448 00:21:37,040 --> 00:21:41,560 gaps were being closed. They became very angry, and all 449 00:21:41,560 --> 00:21:43,840 of them conspired together to come and attack Jerusalem and 450 00:21:43,840 --> 00:21:48,080 create confusion. Nevertheless, we made our prayer 451 00:21:48,080 --> 00:21:50,920 to God, our God, because of them. 452 00:21:51,000 --> 00:21:53,560 We set a watch against them. Day and night didn't stop 453 00:21:53,560 --> 00:21:55,360 building. They kept on going. 454 00:21:56,360 --> 00:21:59,280 Their mockery, ridiculing, wasn't having an effect on them. 455 00:22:00,000 --> 00:22:02,840 Instead of stopping the work, the wall just kept growing and 456 00:22:02,840 --> 00:22:07,120 they got very angry and they knew what was coming. 457 00:22:07,440 --> 00:22:10,440 If Jerusalem becomes strong, then they're not the top dog 458 00:22:10,440 --> 00:22:12,240 anymore. Let's look at verse 8. 459 00:22:12,240 --> 00:22:15,680 It says all of them conspired together to come and attack 460 00:22:15,680 --> 00:22:18,120 Jerusalem and create confusion. That was their motive. 461 00:22:18,120 --> 00:22:20,400 That was their objective. It's no different today. 462 00:22:22,960 --> 00:22:26,160 What is to be done in war? How should Nehemiah respond to 463 00:22:26,160 --> 00:22:27,680 this effort from the Samaritan governor? 464 00:22:29,160 --> 00:22:32,760 He didn't go out and fight. He armed his workers, but not to 465 00:22:32,760 --> 00:22:35,080 stop building the wall. And sure, it was slowed down 466 00:22:35,080 --> 00:22:38,280 somewhat, but they kept on going and said they made their prayers 467 00:22:38,280 --> 00:22:40,640 to God. They were continuing and ongoing 468 00:22:40,640 --> 00:22:43,200 challenges. And there was other issues. 469 00:22:43,480 --> 00:22:46,600 The strength, the strength of the laborers was failing. 470 00:22:46,600 --> 00:22:47,800 There's so much rubbish and so on. 471 00:22:47,800 --> 00:22:50,320 The adversaries say they will. They won't see, they won't know 472 00:22:50,320 --> 00:22:53,440 who will come and destroy them. It was a much greater task than 473 00:22:53,440 --> 00:22:54,840 we can see from our vantage point. 474 00:22:54,840 --> 00:22:56,480 It was humanly impossible, so to speak. 475 00:22:56,880 --> 00:22:58,600 They didn't have a trained army necessarily. 476 00:22:58,600 --> 00:23:01,480 They needed support. So what does Nehemiah do? 477 00:23:01,640 --> 00:23:05,560 He equips them, he says. So it was when the Jews who 478 00:23:05,560 --> 00:23:07,800 dwelt near them, they came and told us 10 times from whatever 479 00:23:07,800 --> 00:23:09,040 place you turn there will be upon us. 480 00:23:09,040 --> 00:23:12,000 He said, therefore I position men, we're thirteen, behind the 481 00:23:12,000 --> 00:23:15,480 lower parts of the wall, and he positioned these men there, 482 00:23:15,720 --> 00:23:18,680 armed them with swords and weapons, and reminded them, 483 00:23:18,680 --> 00:23:20,640 don't be afraid, the Lord will fight for you. 484 00:23:21,920 --> 00:23:23,960 They've been told 10 times you'll be attacked. 485 00:23:24,720 --> 00:23:26,640 But Nehemiah takes charge. He's a good leader. 486 00:23:26,640 --> 00:23:29,400 He's a true leader, and he invites the people to follow him 487 00:23:29,400 --> 00:23:32,360 and encourages people to stand strong and fight for their 488 00:23:32,360 --> 00:23:34,760 families. And you know what the enemies 489 00:23:34,760 --> 00:23:35,520 lost. That happened. 490 00:23:35,520 --> 00:23:38,400 When our enemies heard that, it was known to us that God had 491 00:23:38,400 --> 00:23:41,080 brought their plot to nothing. Then all of us returned to the 492 00:23:41,080 --> 00:23:45,160 wall, everyone to his work. All that scheming and planning 493 00:23:45,160 --> 00:23:47,760 and talking that those enemies did, nothing worked. 494 00:23:48,240 --> 00:23:51,000 It tells us they, these workers, they held a weapon in one hand, 495 00:23:51,000 --> 00:23:53,040 work with the other. So it slowed them down but 496 00:23:53,040 --> 00:23:58,240 didn't stop them. It says they had, every one of 497 00:23:58,240 --> 00:24:01,440 the builders had a sword girded as a side as he built. 498 00:24:01,440 --> 00:24:03,320 And the one who sounded the trumpet was beside me, meaning 499 00:24:03,320 --> 00:24:05,560 Nehemiah. So the odds against which these 500 00:24:05,560 --> 00:24:09,360 leaders work were huge. These workers were doing 2 jobs, 501 00:24:09,360 --> 00:24:10,920 actually guarding. That's a job. 502 00:24:11,280 --> 00:24:13,080 And they were working. And the war alarm sound could, 503 00:24:13,080 --> 00:24:15,160 could sound any time. So they, they, they were not, 504 00:24:15,160 --> 00:24:16,800 you know, OK, we'll get ready when it happens. 505 00:24:16,920 --> 00:24:18,440 They had to be ready if it happened. 506 00:24:19,160 --> 00:24:22,240 So the labor in the work, half of the men held Spears from 507 00:24:22,240 --> 00:24:23,640 Daybreak till the stars appeared. 508 00:24:24,160 --> 00:24:27,280 And Nehemiah instructed them, stay in Jerusalem at night, be 509 00:24:27,280 --> 00:24:29,400 on your guard and work during the day. 510 00:24:29,400 --> 00:24:31,000 So they did night shift and day shift. 511 00:24:31,000 --> 00:24:34,160 He says we didn't even take our clothes off except to wash them. 512 00:24:35,920 --> 00:24:37,440 We're not immune from all of this. 513 00:24:37,720 --> 00:24:39,880 Spiritually, the parallel is the same. 514 00:24:40,200 --> 00:24:42,400 Our work may slow down because of attacks in our position that 515 00:24:42,400 --> 00:24:44,720 comes our way, but that's something we can't control. 516 00:24:44,720 --> 00:24:47,120 So we must be watchful, we must be ready, we must be in guard 517 00:24:47,320 --> 00:24:49,760 whether we're in bed at night, whether we're out about during 518 00:24:49,760 --> 00:24:52,040 the day, We're at work every all the time. 519 00:24:52,880 --> 00:24:57,080 In Ephesians, the apostle Paul told the the the readers, this 520 00:24:57,080 --> 00:25:00,920 Church of Ephesus to be guard, to guard themselves with the 521 00:25:00,920 --> 00:25:03,080 armor of God. He says in verse 10, Ephesians 522 00:25:03,080 --> 00:25:05,320 6, verse 10. Finally, my brethren, be strong 523 00:25:05,320 --> 00:25:07,120 in the Lord, in the power of his might. 524 00:25:07,120 --> 00:25:09,640 Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand 525 00:25:09,640 --> 00:25:13,800 against the Wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against 526 00:25:13,800 --> 00:25:17,760 flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, 527 00:25:17,760 --> 00:25:20,360 against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against 528 00:25:20,360 --> 00:25:22,520 spiritual host of wickedness in the heavenly places. 529 00:25:22,960 --> 00:25:25,080 Therefore take up the whole armour of God, that you may be 530 00:25:25,080 --> 00:25:28,160 able to withstand the evil day. And having done all to stand, 531 00:25:29,640 --> 00:25:32,280 we'll be opposed. We are being opposed. 532 00:25:32,920 --> 00:25:35,880 Opposition's going on. So how do we stand? 533 00:25:36,080 --> 00:25:41,560 This is, how are we dressed? Are we ready when the alarm 534 00:25:41,560 --> 00:25:43,040 sounds? That's not, that's not the time 535 00:25:43,040 --> 00:25:45,200 to get ready. That's the time to be ready. 536 00:25:46,320 --> 00:25:48,800 We must not allow evil to derail us from our call. 537 00:25:49,680 --> 00:25:53,480 We must not allow evil to discourage us in our work for 538 00:25:53,480 --> 00:25:55,040 God. When we're opposed, it's not 539 00:25:55,040 --> 00:25:57,720 really us who's being opposed, it's God who's being opposed. 540 00:25:58,440 --> 00:26:01,680 We're the vessels, and God wants to use us, use us for His 541 00:26:01,680 --> 00:26:03,720 Kingdom. So what opposition do you and I 542 00:26:03,720 --> 00:26:07,040 have to deal with today? We will and we do place 543 00:26:07,040 --> 00:26:09,480 ourselves under someone or something. 544 00:26:10,280 --> 00:26:12,480 Cain allowed himself to be controlled by his anger towards 545 00:26:12,480 --> 00:26:14,480 God and toward his brother and brought him to ruin. 546 00:26:15,120 --> 00:26:17,400 Daniel in the Bible stood strong in the face of opposition and 547 00:26:17,400 --> 00:26:20,840 reaped a great reward. Nehemiah had a huge task before 548 00:26:20,840 --> 00:26:21,920 him. To rebuild the temple, to 549 00:26:21,920 --> 00:26:24,240 rebuild the wall, had a lot of different people working for him 550 00:26:24,240 --> 00:26:26,680 under his leadership. It was a daunting task, but he 551 00:26:26,680 --> 00:26:29,400 remains steadfast and achieved a very big milestone of victory in 552 00:26:29,400 --> 00:26:31,920 his life. And so when Nehemiah and his 553 00:26:31,920 --> 00:26:33,720 people in this project got mocked, ridiculed, they just 554 00:26:33,720 --> 00:26:36,720 kept going. What does it take to discourage 555 00:26:36,720 --> 00:26:40,440 you and I who are the sandbulots in our lives? 556 00:26:41,560 --> 00:26:44,240 Nehemiah remained close to God in his faith, and he prayed in 557 00:26:44,240 --> 00:26:46,040 confidence and trust. He made adjustments in the 558 00:26:46,040 --> 00:26:48,200 program, armed. His work has kept on building. 559 00:26:48,920 --> 00:26:51,120 One thing was clear with Nehemiah, he would not allow any 560 00:26:51,120 --> 00:26:53,320 opposition to interfere with his calling or his work. 561 00:26:54,080 --> 00:26:56,840 He was faithful to his call. He was not a man who quit. 562 00:26:57,240 --> 00:26:59,200 No matter what opposition he faced, he overcame every 563 00:26:59,200 --> 00:27:01,600 obstacle. Nehemiah believed. 564 00:27:01,640 --> 00:27:05,360 Nehemiah lived what he believed. No mount could distract him or 565 00:27:05,360 --> 00:27:07,440 derail him. We must think about this for 566 00:27:07,440 --> 00:27:09,960 ourselves. If God would call you and I to a 567 00:27:09,960 --> 00:27:12,680 task such as he gave Nehemiah, how well would we do? 568 00:27:12,960 --> 00:27:15,760 How far would we get? Too often well meaning people 569 00:27:15,760 --> 00:27:17,560 promised to just over pray about it. 570 00:27:18,160 --> 00:27:20,440 We'll pray about it and that's it. 571 00:27:21,640 --> 00:27:24,520 But then nothing happens. I want to read short in the 572 00:27:24,520 --> 00:27:26,880 piece I read from Jay Vernon McGee. 573 00:27:26,880 --> 00:27:28,400 Some of you know him from years back. 574 00:27:28,400 --> 00:27:31,480 He wrote the following. He says when I was a pastor, I 575 00:27:31,480 --> 00:27:34,080 asked a man to do something. He said, well, I'll pray about 576 00:27:34,080 --> 00:27:35,760 it. He said, wait a minute, if 577 00:27:35,760 --> 00:27:39,160 that's your way of saying no to me, say it right now to my face 578 00:27:39,320 --> 00:27:40,600 and I'll find someone else to do it. 579 00:27:41,200 --> 00:27:42,760 I don't think you need to pray about this matter. 580 00:27:43,000 --> 00:27:44,440 Either you will or you won't. Which is it? 581 00:27:44,880 --> 00:27:46,240 To tell the truth, he wouldn't do it. 582 00:27:46,560 --> 00:27:49,240 He was just putting me off and our conversation enabled me to 583 00:27:49,240 --> 00:27:51,840 find someone else for the job. There are many people today who 584 00:27:51,840 --> 00:27:56,040 simply mouth pious platitudes, McGee continues. 585 00:27:56,040 --> 00:27:58,680 He says Nehemiah could could have uttered a pious platitude. 586 00:27:58,840 --> 00:28:00,520 You guys said we're trusting the Lord. 587 00:28:00,600 --> 00:28:02,120 We won't do anything in other ways. 588 00:28:02,120 --> 00:28:03,800 We'll just wait till it gets easier. 589 00:28:03,920 --> 00:28:06,640 Less opposition. That's the easy way out. 590 00:28:07,040 --> 00:28:08,400 That's what many people do today. 591 00:28:08,920 --> 00:28:10,160 They said they're trusting the Lord. 592 00:28:11,160 --> 00:28:12,560 No evidence. What are they doing? 593 00:28:13,080 --> 00:28:14,800 If you really trust the Lord, you'll do something. 594 00:28:15,400 --> 00:28:18,080 Nehemiah knew the enemy is plotting to come against him. 595 00:28:18,480 --> 00:28:20,040 They were opposing him, so he said a watch. 596 00:28:20,720 --> 00:28:22,000 That's what God expected him to do. 597 00:28:22,000 --> 00:28:25,160 Of course we should pray, yes, and do a lot of it. 598 00:28:26,120 --> 00:28:29,080 But our prayers need actions behind them, actions by us, you 599 00:28:29,080 --> 00:28:32,480 and I. So what does this matter for you 600 00:28:32,480 --> 00:28:35,800 and I today? Opposition will come, no 601 00:28:35,800 --> 00:28:38,120 question. The reality is not will it come 602 00:28:38,240 --> 00:28:40,520 this, what will we do when it comes? 603 00:28:40,920 --> 00:28:45,000 So let's live as Nehemiah did. Let's not be like Cane or we got 604 00:28:45,000 --> 00:28:47,520 to kill the opposition, really extend a lot less. 605 00:28:47,520 --> 00:28:51,200 So we got to get rid of this these or even get discouraged 606 00:28:51,200 --> 00:28:53,320 like Elijah did. Oh, I'm just going to quit. 607 00:28:53,320 --> 00:28:56,400 I'm just going to quit. Rather be like Nehemiah, be like 608 00:28:56,400 --> 00:28:59,240 Daniel, allow God's Spirit to work on our hearts and heat his 609 00:28:59,240 --> 00:29:02,080 call. We want our lives to be holy, 610 00:29:02,520 --> 00:29:05,160 dedicated, committed in spite of all opposition to this 611 00:29:05,160 --> 00:29:09,320 faithfully, freely, and with integrity and devotion. 612 00:29:09,520 --> 00:29:11,160 Follow our God. Let's pray. 613 00:29:14,560 --> 00:29:18,800 Thank you Lord, for the book of Nehemiah and the work that you 614 00:29:18,800 --> 00:29:21,760 did through him in this world. We can read of his experience 615 00:29:21,760 --> 00:29:23,960 today and see how you were with him and how you guided him. 616 00:29:24,680 --> 00:29:27,800 Lord, I pray that we would be sold out to You as Nehemiah was. 617 00:29:28,240 --> 00:29:30,960 We be on fire with Your love, living out Your gospel in our 618 00:29:30,960 --> 00:29:33,840 community so others may see you in our lives as Nehemiah did. 619 00:29:34,280 --> 00:29:37,040 We ask, Lord, that Your Spirit will continue to draw us, equip 620 00:29:37,040 --> 00:29:39,000 us to faithfully walk with You at all times. 621 00:29:39,280 --> 00:29:41,680 We thank you, Lord Jesus, we pray in your name, Amen.