Rebuild Neh. 6:1-14: Nah Pastor Jerome Gay Jr.

Transcription

1 Rebuild Neh. 6:1-14: Nah Pastor Jerome Gay Jr. Announcements: GO Campaign - $111 if you are single and $222 per month if you are married in addition to your normal giving. So far, we ve raised $4500 (show GO Campaign image Winston provided). March and April training, will be on Bible Study Methods on March 22 nd. Epic Easter sign-ups/ Wordless book, shorter times (tablets). Dedication of Isaac Emmanuel Dunston. Recap: o Nehemiah 1-5 o Umbrella/Broken people exist to break others. One of the most significant lessons that I ve learned in my short time here on this Earth is the power of no. It wasn t something that came naturally because like many, I wrestled with people pleasing, but over time, I ve come to learn that exercising my no was directly connected to the significance of my calling or purpose. In other words, when you understand the significance of time and effort and you have a sense of being called to something greater, you ll begin to say no to people, opportunities and distractions that don t correlate with the work you re called to. Today, I want to encourage you to stand firm even if standing firm requires you to exercise your no to people it may be harder to do that towards. You and I reject based on regard, it easier to say no to people we don t hold at a high regard, but what about when it s someone whom you think should be in your corner? What about when it s someone whom you think you can trust? Nehemiah is going give us some options for opposition and his greatest one can be encapsulated in three simple letters N-A-H, nah. This is what he tells his opponents, but it s not what Nehemiah says that s significant, it s why he says it. With that in mind, here s our thought tattoo for today: Thought Tattoo Standing firm for God, starts with standing firm in God. Nehemiah shows us how to deal with overt and covert opposition, but the source of his strength isn t his dislike for his enemies, it s his love for God and the presence of God. Nehemiah told King Artaxerxes how the good hand of God was upon him (Neh. 2:8). You and I can t stand firm apart from trust in His power, belief in His promises and dependency upon His presence. When God is our foundation, we can confidently stand firm in the face of what appears like insurmountable odds. Neh. 6:1-2 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 1

2 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. Take Note When God calls you be prepared for overt and covert opposition. At this point of Nehemiah s journey, the walls are rebuilt and the breaches have been closed. As a result, his enemies see a window of opportunity closing and feel the need to attempt to stop progress again. When you answer God s call, not everyone is excited to see your progression and some will go as far as to find other weaknesses to exploit and if they can t find one, they will make-up one, which we will soon see in the text. Remember the breaches were areas of vulnerability in the walls and now those areas have been closed, some people are upset when areas of vulnerability can no longer be exploited (relationship and moving on). Even though the verbal threats and physical threats didn t work, Sanballat and Tobiah haven t quit trying to distract Nehemiah and stop the progress God s work through His people. This time they re going to attempt to assassinate Nehemiah s character and Nehemiah isn t having it. He knows by their previous attempts and the content of their conversation that they intend to do him harm, in fact, he says it plainly in verse 2. In verse 1 he flat out called them enemies, enemies of God will always be opposed to His work through you in some form. You and I have to have an unwavering commitment to God s plan, Nehemiah isn t rejoicing yet, the doors in the gates haven t been set-up and there s more work to do and you can t allow people to drag you away from the mission. I m going to do something that I used to make fun of pastors doing when I heard this story, but as a pastor now, I can t resist, pastoral corniness; Nehemiah said Oh no to going to Ono. Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem want to meet Nehemiah in the plain of Ono. Ono is a town Benjamite town built by Shemed (1 Chr 8:12). 1 It was seven miles away southeast of Joppa, which is about thirty miles northwest of Jerusalem. Sometimes the goal of the enemy isn t overt disobedience in the form of debauchery, sometimes it s a subtle distraction from what God has told you to do (one inch off coarse for 30-miles/ it s just one Sunday / I m just going to hear what he has to say, nothing will happen /being busy isn t being important). The other thing that I don t want you to miss is that they wanted to meet with Nehemiah away from his community, they wanted him to leave another line of defense. Remember, you need the God of the people and the people of God. How often have you been thrown off coarse because you gave your ear to your enemies rather than the community of faith? Neh. 6:3-9 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. 5 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 1 Walter A. Elwell and Barry J. Beitzel, Ono, Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1988),

3 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. 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. Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem were consistent in their attempts, but Nehemiah was more insistent in his refusal to be distracted. Here are some tips for handling overt and covert opposition. o Ignore the invitation (Neh. 6:2) Nehemiah heard the invitation, but didn t accept it. You don t need to accept an invitation just because one is given to you, even if the invitation seems pleasant, once you ve discerned that the person opposes God s calling on your life, gladly and boldly say, nah. Keep in mind that Nehemiah had hardcore evidence, I m not talking about a feeling about someone, but evidence they their opposing God and his plan for you. o Don t let your desire for peace, destroy your purpose (Neh. 6:3) Nehemiah wasn t a people pleaser or a slave to the acceptance of others. His reply in verse three is consistent with his purpose. He referred to them as enemies in verse one. Knowing this, he refused stop what he was doing for them. Oftentimes, people allow others to draw them into their drama because they want to be at peace with someone, who isn t at peace with God or themselves. If you re in Christ you re at peace with God, peace with everyone else may not happen. Romans 12:18 says, If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Paul understood human peace and reconciliation takes both parties involved. If you re at peace with God through Christ, you have all the peace you need. Your purpose must outweigh their version of peace (doing what they want you to do), because it s really not peace, its manipulation. Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem want to kill Nehemiah, they don t really want to be at peace with him. People will sometimes want to bring you down to them with to kill the vision or frustrate the purpose as the enemies in Ezra 4:4. It wasn t that Nehemiah couldn t come down, he refused to come down (people pleasing would ve been working and talking to his enemies) and you need to display the fortitude to refuse to play the games that some people want to play. o Be firm and consistent in your rejection (Neh. 6:4) they sent messengers five times and Nehemiah answered them the same way each time, he said, nah. Nah, I won t come down, nah, I won t meet with you and nah, I m not stopping. If your no isn t firm, you won t be taken seriously (TV show of guy who falls for people who hurt him). Remember, Nehemiah s firmness is rooted in his faith in God and not in any personal agenda. It may be personal for Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem, but it s about kingdom work for Nehemiah. 3

4 o Don t let your enemy re-write your story (Neh. 6:8) they sent a long letter with accusations questioning Nehemiah motives, but Nehemiah knew that this rebuilding project was nothing, but a move of God. They made several claims that were easily refutable by his knowledge and his experiences: a. They claimed he wanted to rebel (Neh. 6:6), but he wanted to rebuild (Neh. 2:7-8). b. They claimed that he wanted to become king (Neh. 6:6), but he want wanted people to worship the King of Kings (Neh. 1:11). c. They claimed that he wants to usurp the king s authority (Neh. 6:7), but he s been given permission by King Artaxerxes to lead the rebuilding project (Neh. 2:8). Nehemiah refused to allow his enemies to write his story. Paul said it this way: Romans 14:16 So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil. Here s are things to do to prevent from allowing others to write or narrate your story: 1. Examine the credibility of the source they said it is reported among the nations and Geshem (Neh. 6:6) in the letter they sent to Nehemiah to discourage him, Geshem is one of his enemies, so he s not credible. Don t give your enemies credibility by considering claims that are clearly false. If they have a track record of shadiness and there have been no signs of genuine repentance, their still shady. Remember forgiveness involves and acknowledge of wrongdoing. 2. Examine your motives first they questioned his motives, but he s already been fasting and praying before he started, so God has been able to deal with any vanity that may have been there. When God shows you something, remember he ll validate it by His word and His people. Nehemiah repented to God (Neh. 1:6), asked for God s presence and power to lead the project (Neh. 1:11), received the king s permission (Neh. 2:8) and he had the support of the people (Neh. 2:18). Before you move ask God to reveal vain motives and he will, this way you will go into seeking God s glory and not a name for yourself, since Nehemiah did this, it was easy to refute the claims of his enemies. 3. Embrace your experiences Nehemiah was able to confidently say that you re making this stuff up. Why? He knew his story and he knew his experiences and he wasn t going allow them to change his experiences for their own selfish plans. Don t let someone interpret your experiences for you when it s clear that they re against you ( you re only doing that because ). o Admit, Ask, Apply (Neh. 6:9) I would imagine that at some point Nehemiah was tired. This shows us that there will always be something on this side of heaven to address. All rest here is temporary, in heaven, we ll experience eternal rest, but while we re here there s work to do and people to address. After refuting their claims Nehemiah did three things to reveal the source of his strength 1. He admitted his weakness. 2. He asked for strength. 4

5 3. He applied the word. Neh. 6: 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. o Believe what they show you over what they say (Neh. 6:10-11) Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem have now tried another way to get Nehemiah. They got someone spiritual. They got a prophet named Shemaiah and Nehemiah knew this guy, but even he couldn t be trusted. Remember the opposition will be overt (open) and covert (hidden). Covert opposition usually hurts the most because it involves people you know and people you trust, as hard as it is, I ve learned to thank God for showing me that this person isn t for me or for Him. We know Nehemiah knows him because he entered his house, remember he wouldn t even come down for Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem, but he enters this guys house. The prophet tells Nehemiah a false prophecy (don t believe everything spoken over you). Shemaiah told Nehemiah two things: 1) Hide in the temple and 2) retreat for some people were going to kill him (Neh. 6:10). Nehemiah knew that he was a false prophet because Nehemiah knew his word. This is why when we started this series I encouraged you to not only read your word, but to study it. Nehemiah knew 1) that he wasn t supposed to run from the battle. Don t forget in Neh. 4:20, Nehemiah said these famous words, our God will fight for us. God did not call Nehemiah to retreat, he told him to fight. This takes discernment and knowledge of your word, there are instances where God told people to run, like in the prophet Elijah s case, but this was not Nehemiah s story, he was called to fight. 2) Nehemiah knew that he wasn t supposed to enter the temple based on Num. 3:10 and 18:7, that only a priest could enter certain parts of the temple and live. Knowing his word literally saved his life and it ll save yours, because of the God of the word. When someone shows you that they re against you, regardless of what they say, believe what they show you (he s a dog, stop going back/they re not your boys, stop going back). Here s what I ve learned about overt and covert opposition, people who lack integrity tell on themselves. In verse 7 of the letter they sent Nehemiah they made an accusation saying that Nehemiah, set up prophets to proclaim concerning you in Jerusalem, There is a king in Judah. In other words, they were saying the 5

6 Nehemiah was using a prophet for selfish gain, but we read in verse 12 that it was Sanballat and Tobiah that hired a false prophet. People want to re-write your story, because they don t like their own. In other words, people will sometime accuse you of things that they do to get you off course, don t let them. In verses 1-14, we have a false prophet, references to a king and the inference of a priest. Jesus is o The fulfilment of prophecy that the Old Testament declares. o The King who dies and defeats death for his children. o Our high priest that gives us access to God by faith. If you re at peace with God through Christ you have all the peace you need. If anyone attempts to distract you from His plan for your life, boldly and confidently say, nah! 6