Title: “Getting to Work” Script: Neh. 4
Type: Series Where: GNBC Feb. 1, 2015
Intro: Are you familiar with Murphy’s Law? The original “Murphy” was an engineer who conducted an experiment to test human acceleration tolerances. Unfortunately for him, he installed 16 motion sensors the wrong way, leading to the now famous quotation, “If anything can go wrong, it will.” I guess the corollary is also true: “If anything can’t go wrong, it will anyway.” As we come to Nehemiah 4, everything seems to be going wrong all at once. In chapter one we looked at how Nehemiah prayed, in chapter two we saw how God moved him from the prosperity of Persia to the desolation of Jerusalem. Chapt. 3, we were introduced to the wall workers and discovered that in kingdom work, no one can do everything, but everyone can do something. But when we come to chapter 4, things start to get more complicated for Nehemiah. Mr. Murphy shows up and reminds Nehemiah that when everything seems to be going well, you’ve obviously overlooked something!
Prop: In Neh. 4 we’ll notice 4 exhortations that will help us work for the Lord!
BG: 1. Ezra had come 13 yrs. prior to Nehemiah. Came to rebuild temple. Neh. Came for defense
2.Chap.3 shows us who built wall. Might think went up w/o a snag. Nope. Never the case!
3.
Prop: Looking at Neh.4 we’ll notice 4 exhortations so as to work for the Lord!
I. God’s People Must be Prepared for Opposition. Vv. 1-3,4-5
A. God’s people need to expect derision from those who oppose their work.
1. Nehemiah records the negative response of those who did not want to see this work succeed.
a. We read in the v. 1 that Sanballat the Horonite hears that the work is progressing and becomes furious and angry and mocks the Jews while attempting to encourage other enemies to oppose and oppress. Listen to the insults: “Can they finish in a day?” (No stamina or strength or resources.) “Can they revive the stones?” (Limestone – when burned with fire became brittle and no integrity and crumble.) Another “jackal”, Tobiah the Ammonite begins to ridicule: “If a fox would jump up on the wall it would fall down.” (No strength and integrity of design.)
b. Illust: You know what this reminds me of? The old playground bullies who have been bullying a kid for a few years. Always gonna make themselves feel better by making someone else into their verbal or physical punching bag. But you know what, every dog has his/her day! Here the Jews, after decades of decay and defeat, are going to have theirs! It’s like the kid who has been bullied and then starts hanging out with Chuck Norris and then one day the bullies come around again and whammy!
2. You see, the Jews of that Region had allowed themselves to be immobilized by these Bullies.
a. v.2 – The people are immobilized by these harsh words and the corresponding fear. Notice, there was no attack. There was no actual physical violence. Problem was that this was the behavior these Jews had learned. If you look at this way, it had been about 150 years since Babylon had destroyed Jerusalem in 586 BC and taken away the wealthiest members of the community. It had been 13 years since Ezra had returned to rebuild the temple. Yet still, the matter or the city’s defense had not been taken up. Made easy targets for everyone wanting to keep them down.
b. Friend, possibly you are here today, immobilized by fear. Maybe it is the past. Maybe it is hurtful words. Maybe it is a habit you cannot seem to gain any victory over. Maybe you are being held hostage from experiencing your potential and success because you are still being made to feel inferior or inadequate or unable. Dear one, turn to Jesus Christ! He loves you. He died for you! He can provide for you! He can can forgive your past and give you a bright, new future! “If any man is in Christ he is a new creature, behold the old is gone, the new is come.” (II Cor. 5:17)
B. The Results of Listening to Such Derision was that Nehemiah had Demoralized Workers.
1. Nehemiah had to address the emotional demoralization that the people faced.
a. Emotionally, the people with who Nehemiah was working were discouraged. What does “discouraged” mean? To be deprived of courage, to be disheartened, to lose confidence or enthusiasm.” These Jews were discouraged. Lost all hope. Lost all momentum and enthusiasm. Needed a new leader to come in and turn the mindset. In the Church today, many faithful workers are completely demoralized. The rate of pastor resignations for depression is absolutely staggering today. May be workers in the church. Part of why we took surveys. Where are you serving and where would you LIKE to serve.
b. Illust: As a kid I remember watching the 1976 movie, “The Bad News Bears”. First of a trilogy of films takes an unflinching look at the underbelly of little league baseball in Southern California. Former minor leaguer Morris Buttermaker (Walter Matthau) is a lazy, beer swilling swimming pool cleaner who takes money to coach the Bears, a bunch of disheveled misfits who have virtually no baseball talent. Realizing his dilemma, Coach Buttermaker brings aboard girl pitching ace Amanda Whurlizer (Tatum O’Neal), the daughter of a former girlfriend, and Kelly Leak, a motorcycle punk who happens to be the best player around. A transformation takes place in the mindset of the team as the once down and out Bear end up brimming with confidence and make it to the championship game!
2. While addressing the emotional demoralization Nehemiah also had to beware of the real and present physical dangers his people faced.
a. Illust: In many parts of the world today the Church is facing great tribulation. Last week over 100 churches were burned to the ground in the nation of Niger (Not Nigeria!), alone. 100! By Muslim radicals! The Christian population of Aleppo, Syria, a community that has had a Christian witness for 2000 years was all but eliminated last year. 100’s of churches have been torched in Nigeria and Sudan, Christian workers have been targeted in Cameroon, why? Because they are hated by radical Muslims. Notice Nehemiah’s prayer in v. 5. I know we would like to pray that type of prayer today, however, let me remind us what Jesus taught.
b. Nehemiah knew Today, we do not pray that our enemies will suffer. Jesus taught us to forgive our enemies (Matthew 5:44). And we should pray that they will trust Jesus. But Nehemiah was in a different situation. Previously, God had told the *Jews to oppose their enemies (Deuteronomy 7:1-2). At that time, God was using the *Jews for his purposes. These enemies had become so evil that they could not avoid a terrible punishment (Genesis 15:16). And God gave their land to the *Jews. Nehemiah lived long after these events. And his enemies were not the same enemies that God was punishing in the past. So Nehemiah did not actually try to fight his enemies. Instead, he trusted God. Nehemiah was confident that he was doing God’s work. So Nehemiah asked God to defend his (God’s) own work.
C. Applic:
II. God’s People Must Be Challenged to Work. Vv. 6-8
A. Nehemiah’s Leadership Helps the People to change their Mindset.
1. Motivation Multiplied the People’s Success.
a. Nehemiah exuded and inspired confidence and courage in those who followed. The results were that the work was restarted and multiplied due to a spiritualized synergy of the people getting in step with one another and more importantly, with what God wanted to do in and through them.
b. v.6 – (Read). Amazing verse. A demoralized and depressed people gain a new confidence in God and themselves and begin to work! The walls, the defenses of Israel begin to go up! That which had been left undone was undertaken anew and with zeal! Dear one, “Today is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.” (Ps, 118:24) The people needed to choose a new mindset! An attitude of rejoicing had to replace the mindset of rejection!
2. Good Leaders Realize Importance of Trying to Change the Mindset of the People they lead.
a. Illust: Early 1942, WWII, the British 8th Army was a discouraged and depleted force, barely hanging onto its position in N. Africa. A series of commanding generals had come and gone, including Auchinleck, Richie, Cunnigham, Alexander and Gott. Facing one of the most brilliant tactical minds in Rommel. As a result of Gott’s death in a plane accident, Bernard Montgomery was called upon to oversee the force. Immediately Montgomery began to regroup and rebuild the 8th Army while instilling confidence and discipline in troops. Said he was changing the “atmosphere” of the Army. Outcome was the victorious 2nd Battle of El Alamein, whereby pushed the Axis out of Libyan and all way to Tunisia which ultimately led to the Axis surrender in N. Africa in 1943. Montgomery was a deliberate planner who demanded discipline and excellence and got it from his troops.
b. What was the result of the changed mindset of the people Nehemiah led? The results! The walls of Jerusalem had been broken down for the better part of 150 years. A feeble attempt had been made to strengthen the city 13 years before, but still vulnerable and open to attacks of the enemy. But now, Nehemiah, a godly man who exuded confidence and leadership inspires the people and guess what the results are? IN 52 DAYS THE WALLS ARE REBUILT!
B. With a change of Attitude Came a change in the Circumstances & Situation Jerusalem faced.
1. Read v. 6 again. What was the result? V.7 – “The breaches began to be closed.” Let that sink in. The holes, the weak places in the walls, the areas of vulnerability and defenseless openings were being closed! Strength was coming to a place that had only known weakness. The people under Nehemiah’s leadership began to experience success and security because they chose to work and trust God in spite of the enemy opposition. Read v. 7 – What is the response of Sanhballat, Tobiah, and the Arabs, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites hear? They are furious!
2. Friends, just as the enemies of the people of God in the time of Nehemiah were furious when the breaches of the walls of Jerusalem were rebuilt, so is the enemy of the people of God today! Satan is furious when the Christ’s Church is harmonious, unified, and working towards a specific goal. Illust: Let me ask you, what could we accomplish as a church if half of the congregation “Had a mind to work!” I pray that this is going to be a good year at Good News. We are excited about our youth! MOZ! Apples of Gold and Women’s Ministry! New Beginnings is Changing lives! This year we are going to completely revamp our CC area! We have a dynamic individual who wants to kick off an active “Over 55 yrs. old” ministry “Antiques Roadshow”??!! We will be restarting home groups the first of March. Taking a team to Poland! But to do this WE NEED YOUR HELP! That is why been running the surveys. Need you to have ownership and desire to come alongside of what God is wanting to do in our midst.
C. Applic: The Enemy of Your and My Soul wants Weak and Defeated Christians today.
III. God’s People Must Be Strengthen and Encouraged in the Midst of the Work. Vv.9-13
A. Nehemiah Recognized that the Strength of the People Was Waning.
1. Illust: It is important to take time to sharpen the axe! Once upon a time there were two men who lived in the same forest and decided to have a contest chopping wood. The first man was in good physical shape and very muscular. The second man was in good shape but smaller in statute and wiry. They would chop wood all day and at the end of the day compare to see who had chopped the most wood. The first man laughed to himself that there was no way this wiry little man would beat him and so they began the contest. Every 45 minutes the second smaller man would take a break and seems to just wonder off somewhere. The first man laughed again to himself and said "Yep there's no way this wiry little man is going to beat me." This happens several times during the day. At the end of the day the two men compare their piles of chopped wood and unbelievably enough the wiry little man has chopped twice as much wood as the more physically fit man. He says "I don't understand. First I'm twice your size and twice your strength! On top of that every 45 minutes you rolled off and took a break or a nap or something. You must have cheated!" The smaller man says "I don't cheat. It was easy to beat you because every 45 minutes when you thought I was taking a break, I was out back sharpening my ax."
2. v.10 Tells us that the strength of the workers began to wane. Unable to keep going on in their own strength. The task was just too great for their own strength! It was at that point that the people did what they needed to do and what we need to be reminded to do in our own lives when the tasks and problems of life get too big: The people sought the Lord’s face and prayed! Comes a point in every individual’s life where he or she comes to a place where realize “own strength is waning”! Come to an end of ourselves and our abilities and our wisdom and our talent and realize the need to call upon the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ! We call on Christ for peace, for strength, for security, but most importantly, we call upon the Name of the Lord for Salvation! Romans 10:13 tells us: for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
B. Workers were Stationed so as to Secure the Exposed Places.
1. Nehemiah Employs a Plan to Ensure the Worker’s Security. vv. 12 – Jews that lived nearest to these trouble makers repeatedly came to tell Nehemiah that they were going to attack. Certainly this helped to sap their strength both physically and emotionally. Nehemiah stations armed men in the breaks and breaches of the wall in order to provide protection and security and boost confidence of the workers.
2. Let me say this, part of being a church is looking out for one another. GNBC does fairly well. If you are in this congregation there is going to be accountability. We expect you to have a ministry in the body and to belong and to participate. I want everyone here today to consider what area of service/ministry you want to be involved in for the upcoming year. Some people have been working in areas for years and need a rest. Can you help? Can you stand guard to help protect them? Are you willing to say: “I’ll lend you a hand with that task!” Many of you have in your ministry surveys. Do you know what the secret to growing into a consistent Christian who is a faithful member of a church body? Consistently go to worship and consistently be a part of one other aspect of the congregation’s ministry. When do that people put down roots and become faithful.
C. Applic: Be encouraged or encourage others as you work for the Lord!
IV. God’s People Must Address the Fears they Face. Vv. 14-18
A. Nehemiah Addresses the Fear that Was Keeping the Project from Being Finished.
1. The People became frightened and were about to leave the task unfinished.
a. Illust: I love that scene in The Return of the King, wherein the Steward of Gondor sees the invading Orc army and shouts to his soldiers: “Flee for your lives!” The insanity is only stopped after Gandalf whacks the steward and barks at the panicking soldiers and says: “To your posts! You are soldiers of Gondor, now fight!” There was a real reason to be fearful. Massive, invading army. However, it is no reason to excuse wrong behavior. Stand and fight.
b. In the book, Scared to Life, Douglas Rumford cites a study that shows why we shouldn’t let fear rule our lives (Marriage Partnership, Vol. 12, no. 2):60% of our fears are totally unfounded
20% are already behind us 10% are so petty they don’t make any difference 5% are real, but we can’t do anything about them 5% are real, and we can do something about them.
2. Sometimes we need to reorganize our priorities when we are facing our fears.
a. In verse 13 Nehemiah said, “Therefore I stationed some of the people behind the lowest point of the wall at the exposed places, posting them by families, with their So Nehemiah put guards at all the vulnerable spots. Nehemiah had already organized the people in chapter 3 and they had finished half of their task. Now, however, a new situation had come about that required a change in organization. If the enemies were going to attack they would most likely do so at the weakest places. This served two purposes ¬ it discouraged the enemy and it encouraged the people because it dealt with their fear.
b. When we’re discouraged, one of the things we can do is to reorganize our priorities. You can look at your life. You can adopt a change in approach instead of becoming so discouraged that you quit. Do you have a problem in your marriage? If so, don’t bail on your spouse! Change your approach. Adopt a new attitude. Get some help. Do you have a problem in your job? Don’t give up! Change your priorities. Do you have a problem in your walk with God? Don’t stop following Jesus! Reorganize your schedule so you can meet with Him on a regular basis. Plug into a small group. Don’t be overcome by discouragement. Do something about it! In verse 16 the workers reorganized again by dividing responsibilities ¬ half worked and the other half kept watch. Those who worked used one hand for pushing the wheelbarrow, and with the other hand, they carried a weapon. And, they worked together as a team.
B.Be Intent to Build But Be Prepared for Battle.
1. Our ability to Battle Through Difficult times is Based on the Person of God.
a. After looking everything over and sensing the discouragement within his team, Nehemiah rallied his troops in verse 14: “…Don’t be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome…” Nehemiah knew, even in the face of opposition, that the success of the wall was wholly dependent upon God who inspired its beginning. Verse 10 was true ¬ the people could not rebuild the wall on their own. They needed to remember God and what He had promised. I don’t know about you, but it’s easy for me to forget God when things are tough. I need to be reminded that He is always there for me. How do you remember the Lord? By remembering that He will always be there for you. We’re to remember that He is great and awesome. God is more than able to deal with your discouragement.
b. Notice, Nehemiah addresses the people and their fear and lets them know they are all in the same boat together, “US”. In the world it is always “Us vs. Them”, but in the Church it is always “US”. No divisions in the body of Christ. Nehemiah leads the people and tells them that they need to pull together and get back to work, even if tired, even if fearful.
2.So, when you’re down, turn your attention from your discouragement to the One who is able to do something about it. God has been faithful to you in the past. He is faithful to you today. And He has promised to be faithful to you in the future. Remember the Lord. Remember His promises. Remember His goodness. Remember His power. Our God is great and awesome! Remember Him. The people complained about all the rubble in verse 10. Question. Wasn’t the rubble there in the beginning? Of course it was. The difference was that when they started the project they were focused on God and His character. Now, they had become rubble-gazers. Friend, if you focus on all the junk in your life, and in the lives of others, you will become discouraged. Let’s determine to be God-gazers instead of rubble-gazers, OK? Illust: Same is true of your and my view of the church. If we are focusing on serving God and His people won’t allow little things to become major issues in our lives. If, however, start focusing on the rubble…look out!
C. Applic: At the time it was completed in 1937, the Golden Gate Bridge was the longest suspension bridge in the world. During the first phase of the project 23 men fell to their deaths in the icy water. Murphy’s laws were in evidence! Things were going from bad to worse because there were very few safety devices. And so, when it was halfway completed, they decided to take another look and make some changes. Do you know what they did? They reorganized and built the largest net ever made, and attached it under the area where the men were working. Was it worth the cost and the time it took to do this? Ask the ten men who fell into it without being injured! Not only did it save those ten lives, I’m told that the work was completed in three-fourths the time because the workers no longer lived in fear of falling. Friends, God’s great net of security spans this globe. No matter where we live. No matter what we’ve done. No matter how discouraged we’ve been. He’s stretched out His everlasting arms beneath us. As a result, we can live and work freely and without fear, knowing that we are protected, safe and secure
