BUILDERS OF THE WALL HAVING A MIND TO WORK (Nehemiah 4:6) Introduction Nehemiah was a devout Jew, who, while in captivity, made e best of a bad situation and became e cup bearer (butler) to e Persian king, Artaxerxes. In e first chapter of e book at bears his name we see his great concern for his people (1:2-3). He learned from Hanani, one of e remnant in Jerusalem who had made his way to Shushan, at: The people were in great affliction and reproach; e wall of Jerusalem was broken down; e gates of e city were burnt down. Upon hearing is Nehemiah wept, mourned, fasted and prayed. What about us? How many of us today are as concerned about e condition of e church as he was e walls? What is your attitude? King Artaxerxes, seeing at his countenance had changed, inquired concerning his problem. Then, in response to his concerns, e Persian king not only let him go back to Jerusalem to rebuild e walls, but provided e material to do so (2:1-8). Considering e king s response, let me ask: Could it be at we often do not get ings done because we show too little concern? Is it possible at ere would be ample help if more understood e urgency of our work? As is e case wi most good works, ere were ose at did not want e walls rebuilt. Sanballet e Horonite, Tobiah e Ammonite and Geshem e Arabian were such people. They were grieved (mad) at someone was ere to help e remnant rebuild (2:10, 19). Thus ey set about to stop em, using every device at hand. Yet, in spite of eir enemies, and e many dangers, temptations and challenges, e people were successful in building e wall! They are a great example to us at in spite of Christianity s many enemies, victory can be won if we have a mind to work (4:6). We Should Learn from Nehemiah and e Wall Builders of e Need to Work Many Christians act as if ere is no work to do! Is it true at ere is noing to do? Of course not, and it will not be true until Satan quits,...walking about seeking who he may devour (1 Peter 5:8). And at s not going to happen until e end of time! This being e case, whose responsibility is it to get e church to recognize e need and us to get to work? Today it is primarily e elders responsibility; or in e congregations where ere are no elders, e men as a group are responsible. Unfortunately, in too many cases ey don t see e need to do much more an keep house, and us little is done on e battle front against Satan s advances. This should not be, and we can be assured at God will hold every man who is negligent in his duty accountable! Mark Them Which Walk So (Philippians 3:17) 24 Annual Mid-West Lectures Page 1 not to be sold. For information contact e 39 Street church of Christ, 15331 East 39 Street, Independence, MO 64055.
Builders of e Wall Having a Mind To Work (Nehemiah 4:6) This being e case, e leaders of e church must recognize e need, and en actually take e lead, as Nehemiah did. How do ey do so? 1. By educating emselves concerning e need: So I came to Jerusalem, and was ere ree days. And I arose in e night, I and some few men wi me; neier told I any man what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem: neier was ere any beast wi me, save e beast at I rode upon. And I went out by night by e gate of e valley, even before e dragon well, and to e dung port, and viewed e walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down, and e gates ereof were consumed wi fire. Then I went on to e gate of e fountain, and to e king's pool: but ere was no place for e beast at was under me to pass. Then went I up in e night by e brook, and viewed e wall, and turned back, and entered by e gate of e valley, and so returned (2:11-15). 2. By challenging e church to act, based upon e need: Then said I unto em, Ye see e distress at we are in, how Jerusalem lie waste, and e gates ereof are burned wi fire: come, and let us build up e wall of Jerusalem, at we be no more a reproach (2:17). 3) Doing so wi encouragement & auority: Then I told em of e hand of my God which was good upon me; as also e king s words at he had spoken unto me (2:18 a). Properly doing ese ings today will likely have e same effect as it did en. And ey said, Let us rise and build. So ey strengened eir hands for is good work (2:18 b). It needs to be clearly understood at alough every person is answerable to God when ey fail to do His work, ose He has put in e leadership position are doubly answerable! Therefore leaders, make sure you are not just keeping house! We Should Learn from Nehemiah and e Wall Builders, That We Can Know Who Our Enemies Are Nehemiah, and e people, had to recognize at Sanbalat, Tobiah, and Geshem were eir enemies. Yet, it is not always easy to tell, because enemies often act like friends at first. This is why Paul warned e elders in Ephesus, Take heed erefore unto yourselves, and to all e flock, over e which e Holy Ghost ha made you overseers, to feed e church of God, which he ha purchased wi his own blood. For I know is, at after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing e flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse ings, to draw away disciples after em. Therefore watch... (Acts 20:28-31). How can some,...of your own selves... arise to do harm to e church? Because ey act like friends, but aren t, or else are swayed by evil men to change from tru to error! Mark Them Which Walk So (Philippians 3:17) 24 Annual Mid-West Lectures Page 2 not to be sold. For information contact e 39 Street church of Christ, 15331 East 39 Street, Independence, MO 64055.
Builders of e Wall Having a Mind To Work (Nehemiah 4:6) Our enemies are e same as Nehemiah s were, just wi different names, who use e same tactics in eir efforts to stop us from doing e Lord s work. Their tactics were, and our enemies tactics are (among oer ings): 1. Laughing, and acting as if we are wrong or misinformed, and have no auority:...ey laughed us to scorn, and despised us, and said, What is is ing at ye do? Will ye rebel against e king? (2:19). 2. Mocking: to treat wi contempt or ridicule: DERIDE (W ebster), wi e hope of getting em to faint from eir labor; [4:1-2], What do ese feeble Jews? ey can t succeed; Will ey fortify emselves? it s impossible; Will ey make sacrifice? how paetic for em to try; Will ey make an end in a day? They are foolish to ink ey can rebuilt e wall at all; Will ey revive e stones out of e heaps of e rubbish which are burned? There job is noing but a dream. 3. Ridicule: to make fun of; a deliberate often malicious belittling (W ebster). Even at which ey build, if a fox go up, he shall even break down eir stone wall (4:3). Were Sanbalat s words really for e ears of Tobiah? No, ey were for e builders of e wall. You see, a fox is a very small and light animal. Thus, if e builders could be convinced eir work was no stronger an at ey would quit building! Thankfully Nehemiah was wise enough not to listen, and he challenged e people to not listen as well. He en prayed at God would turn eir enemies wishes on eir own heads (4:4-5). So built we e wall; and all e wall was joined togeer unto e half ereof: for e people had a mind to work (4:6). They had e mind to work BECAUSE ey recognized who eir enemies were and us would not listen to em! 4. Conspiracy & reats: W hen eir words would not stop e work, eir enemies reatened to fight. W hen ey, (7)...heard at e walls of Jerusalem were made up, and at e breaches began to be stopped, en ey were very wro, (8) And conspired all of em togeer to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it (4:7-8). Surely, such posturing would stop e work, or at least hinder it until e people would get tired and go home, or so ey must have ought. Thankfully, recognizing e need to continue e work Nehemiah nor e people were unduly affected. They were wise enough not allow e reat of battle to stop em. Yet, ey did not ignore it altogeer. They prayed for God s protection, AND, ey...set a watch against em day and night... (4:9). The enemy en sent rumors among e people, saying, They shall not know, neier see, till we come in e midst among em, and slay em, and cause e work to cease (4:12). How many times has e Lord s work stopped because of workers listening to, and us being affected by, such reats and us becoming afraid? That is exactly what e words were intended to do; to cause e workers to loose heart, inking emselves foolish. Sadly, too often eir ploy works! W e learn from Nehemiah and e people, who had a mind to work, at we don t have to be effected by such foolish words. 5. Trickery by compromise: trickery = e practice of crafty underhanded ingenuity to deceive or cheat ; compromise = settlement of differences by arbitration or by consent reached by Mark Them Which Walk So (Philippians 3:17) 24 Annual Mid-West Lectures Page 3 not to be sold. For information contact e 39 Street church of Christ, 15331 East 39 Street, Independence, MO 64055.
Builders of e Wall Having a Mind To Work (Nehemiah 4:6) mutual concessions (W ebster). Their laughing, mocking, ridicule, and reats having failed, e enemy turned to trickery rough compromise. They first requested an audience wi Nehemiah, saying, Come, let us meet togeer in some one of e villages in e plain of O- no (6:3). He knew ey only wanted to do him mischief. Thus, he responded, I am doing a great work, so at I cannot come down: why should e work cease, while I leave it, and come down to you? (6:3). W hen at did not work, ey made false accusations and en said, Come now erefore, and let us take counsel togeer (6:7). It would seem at ey would recognize at he would not be tricked, but e enemies of God are usually persistent. Nehemiah, relying on tru and God, responded: To his enemy, There are no such ings done as ou sayest, but ou feignest em out of ine own heart (6:8). To God,...ey all made us afraid, saying, Their hands shall be weakened from e work, at it be not done. Now erefore, O God, strengen my hands (6:9). In bo cases he knew at ey only wanted to get him away from e people in order to do him mischief. So, let us learn e tru so at we will know what is untru, and us be able to recognize our enemies by what ey say and do! We Should Learn from Nehemiah and e Wall Builders, of e Need to Encourage & Challenge Oers to Join Us in Starting, Continuing, & Finishing e Needed Work One of e ways to challenge oers to work is to stand upon tru against e enemy, such as Nehemiah did in answering Sanballat s, Tobiah s and Geshem s charge at ey were rebelling against e king. Then answered I em, and said unto em, The God of heaven, he will prosper us; erefore we his servants will arise and build: but ye have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in Jerusalem (Nehemiah 2:20). Also, as he did when e enemy passed e rumor ten times, at,...from all places whence ye shall return unto us ey will be upon us (4:12). Did Nehemiah row up his hands in despair and quit? No! Instead, he got to work preparing defenses at protected em but still allowed e work to continue. Therefore set I in e lower places behind e wall, and on e higher places, I even set e people after eir families wi eir swords, eir spears, and eir bows. And I looked, and rose up, and said unto e nobles, and to e rulers, and to e rest of e people, Be not ye afraid of em: remember e Lord, which is great and terrible, and fight for your breren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses. And it came to pass, when our enemies heard at it was known unto us, and God had brought eir counsel to nought, at we returned all of us to e wall, every one unto his work. And it came to pass from at time for, at e half of my servants wrought in e work, and e oer half of em held bo e spears, e shields, and e bows, and e Habergeons; and e rulers were behind all e house of Judah. They which builded on e wall, and ey at bare burdens, wi ose at laded, every one wi one of his hands wrought in e work, and wi e oer hand held a weapon. For e builders, every one had his sword girded by his side, and so builded. And he at sounded e trumpet was by me (Nehemiah 4:13-18). Everyone, willing to sacrifice, did eir part in watching and building. Mark Them Which Walk So (Philippians 3:17) 24 Annual Mid-West Lectures Page 4 not to be sold. For information contact e 39 Street church of Christ, 15331 East 39 Street, Independence, MO 64055.
Builders of e Wall Having a Mind To Work (Nehemiah 4:6) So we laboured in e work: and half of em held e spears from e rising of e morning till e stars appeared. Likewise at e same time said I unto e people, Let every one wi his servant lodge wiin Jerusalem, at in e night ey may be a guard to us, and labour on e day. So neier I, nor my breren, nor my servants, nor e men of e guard which followed me, none of us put off our cloes, saving at every one put em off for washing (Nehemiah 4:13-18). Of great importance is at in each case Nehemiah reminded e people at eir auority and power to build e wall came from God! It is because of his faiful leadership, and eir knowledge at God was wi em, at...e people had a mind to work (4:6), and at...e wall was finished...in fifty and two days (6:15). W iout confidence in him, and fai in God s help, eir enemies would have surely stopped em! W e know is because many fail due to poor leadership and/or a lack of fai! Conclusion There surely are many more lessons we could glean from Nehemiah and e re-building of e walls in Jerusalem. Among em, ese lessons are vital to our success in faifully carrying out e Lord s work. Recognize e need to work and get busy working. Recognize who our enemies are, and don t be fooled or hindered by em. Encourage and challenge oers to not only start e work, but to continue in it until e task is completed. Sadly, many fail in eir task, and us souls are lost, because ey eier don t do e Lord s work at all, are overcome by e enemy or stop working prematurely. I pray at is not e case wi you or me! Works Cited Merriam-W ebster (2004) Merriam-Webster s Collegiate Dictionary, 11 edition, Springfield, Massachusetts, U. S. A. Mark Them Which Walk So (Philippians 3:17) 24 Annual Mid-West Lectures Page 5 not to be sold. For information contact e 39 Street church of Christ, 15331 East 39 Street, Independence, MO 64055.