baldtheologian Nehemiah: When Fear collides with Faith

Strength Through Opposition

nehemiah wall_final

If we never have resistance, we never become stronger. 

Have you heard the saying “Whatever doesn’t kill me only makes me stronger” (or some variant)? I have. Sometimes I wonder why folks say that in the midst of a trial or some type of tribulation. Sometimes I wonder if they think they’re being profound. They sure don’t seem to care much about what I’m going through. Perhaps you have heard the same thing in similar circumstances and felt the same as I. But you know what? I’m wrong in my feelings.

 

The truth of the matter is that trials and tribulations enter our lives because God chooses them to enter our lives for the purpose of refining us and strengthening us (James 1). If we never have resistance, we never become stronger. But when we face resistance with the right attitude and meet it head-on, strength for our journey of faith is increased and God is glorified.

 

We just saw what discouragement can do to us through the example of Nehemiah and his builders. They were fatigued, frustrated and fearful. But did they stay there? Or did they find the result of the resistance to doing God’s was better – much better – than their initial reactions. Let’s take a look and see.

When our enemies heard that it was known to us, and that God had frustrated their plan, then all of us returned to the wall, each one to his work. From that day on, half of my servants carried on the work while half of them held the spears, the shields, the bows and the breastplates; and the captains were behind the whole house of Judah. Those who were rebuilding the wall and those who carried burdens took their load with one hand doing the work and the other holding a weapon. As for the builders, each wore his sword girded at his side as he built, while the trumpeter stood near me. I said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “The work is great and extensive, and we are separated on the wall far from one another. At whatever place you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us.”

So we carried on the work with half of them holding spears from dawn until the stars appeared. At that time I also said to the people, “Let each man with his servant spend the night within Jerusalem so that they may be a guard for us by night and a laborer by day.” So neither I, my brothers, my servants, nor the men of the guard who followed me, none of us removed our clothes, each took his weapon even to the water. Nehemiah 4:15-23 NASB

 

Resilient

The first way we are strengthened by opposition is that opposition makes us resilient.

When our enemies heard that it was known to us, and that God had frustrated their plan, then all of us returned to the wall, each one to his work. Nehemiah 4:15 NASB

Notice the progression here in verse 15. There enemies heard that their plans had been revealed to the builders and that God had frustrated their plan. The result was that the workers – all of them – returned to work on the wall. While the builders were initially frustrated at their circumstances, their circumstances made them resilient enough to bounce back – with faith and reliance on God – and continue the work they had been called to accomplish.

Nehemiah didn’t give lectures to the workers. He didn’t try to guilt the workers into returning to work. Nehemiah simply reminded the people that God was for them, not against them. That God had brought them to this point not to break them but to build them. God was making them into a resilient bunch!

How are you doing in being resilient in spite of opposition? I know this is an area where I struggle quite a bit. Sometimes I just want to hide when opposition to my serving God occurs. Does that ever happen to you? When it does, remember this lesson from Nehemiah –

God is for you, not against you. Bounce back and get back to building your wall.

 

Rethink and Reorganize

Another way we are strengthened by opposition is by the opposition making us rethink and reorganize our priorities. 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.

Nehemiah had to rethink his strategy for building the wall. Before this opposition, Nehemiah had organized the builders in teams and everyone built their portion of the wall. Now that there was some serious opposition rearing its ugly head, Nehemiah revisited that strategy. He had to think anew – rethink – the best way to accomplish this task in light of changing circumstances. We shouldn’t let this get lost on us. When our circumstances change and we are opposed by the enemies of God, we need to rethink our strategy. We need to be flexible enough to change how we are going about doing God’s work. So Nehemiah thought and came to a conclusion: if the enemies were going to attack they would most likely do so at the weakest places. So Nehemiah put guards at all the vulnerable spots. This served two purposes – it discouraged the enemy and it encouraged the people because it dealt with their fear.

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? In your job? Church? Walk with God? If so, don’t bail out! Rethink your problem, reorganize your thoughts and keep moving toward the goal to which God has called you.

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.

 

Remain

Now let’s back up and look at this passage as a whole. Do you see what I see? The workers did not flee. They remained at the worksite, they remained building the wall. That is the final thing I think we can glean from this passage in Nehemiah. When opposition comes (and it will), remain where God has called you.

When I was a pastor of a small church, there were times where I just wanted to flee. I just wanted out. Why? The opposition had planted a Sanballat and Tobiah in our congregation. They stirred up trouble and discouragement. It was difficult to be sure to get in the pulpit each week knowing – KNOWING – that I was going to be criticized for how I preached that morning or how I failed to do something according to the expectations of the enemies of God’s work. But I remained. It wasn’t comfortable. It wasn’t fun. I focused myself on what God had called me to do and not my circumstances. God eventually peeled the veneer off my Sanballat and Tobiah. He revealed them for who they are. Now it took the death of the church I pastored for that to happen. But is was a worthwhile price to pay for others to be warned about these folks and their unrepentant divisiveness.

 

Remember and Redouble

Are you experiencing opposition in your service to God? Perhaps it is from a friend as it was in my case. Maybe your government is acting against you. Maybe it someone else. Whomever is opposing your work, remind yourself that they are opposing God, not you. If they hate you, they hate you because of your relationship with Jesus Christ. Let the haters hate. Let them say what they want. Redouble your effort to be resilient in your response, rethink and reorganize your priorities and method of doing your work and remain at the task God has given you.

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord. I Corinthians 15:58 NASB

 
baldtheologian Nehemiah: When Fear collides with Faith

Discouragement in the Ranks

nehemiah wall_final

 

Our Savior, when confronted with difficult tasks never gave up. He did not give in to fear. He never once stopped because of opposition. The Apostles never did either. Neither did the early martyrs of the church. And neither should we.

But we prayed to our God, and because of them we set up a guard against them day and night.

Thus in Judah it was said,

“The strength of the burden bearers is failing,
Yet there is much rubbish;
And we ourselves are unable
To rebuild the wall.”

Our enemies said, “They will not know or see until we come among them, kill them and put a stop to the work.” When the Jews who lived near them came and told us ten times, “They will come up against us from every place where you may turn,” then I stationed men in the lowest parts of the space behind the wall, the exposed places, and I stationed the people in families with their swords, spears and bows. When I saw their fear, I rose and spoke to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people: “Do not be afraid of them; remember the Lord who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives and your houses.” Nehemiah 4:9-14 NASB

 

So the opponents of God’s work in Jerusalem are angry. They were so mad that they conspired together to come and fight the Jews. These guys were ticked off and were willing to kill. Wow. What was their response to all this? They prayed.

But we prayed to our God, and because of them we set up a guard against them day and night.

They prayed and they took action. These guys took positive actions after they prayed. How often, when we are threatened by God’s opponents, do we pray first and then take action? We need to work on that, don’t we.

There are at least three things that cause discouragement in the ranks. These three are Fatigue, Frustration and Fear. When these three happen together the effect they have on discouraging God’s work is amplified. Lets take a look at what happened in Nehemiah’s situation and how we can apply that to ours.

How do you feel after a really difficult task? Are you fulfilled? Excited? Tired? Yeah, tired. Me too. Now think of being in the middle of a difficult task and feeling the same way. You look around and realize that there is still much work to be done. Do you suddenly feel more tired than before? Me too. Let’s take a look at the fatigue that had set in and how it affected the workers on the wall.

Fatigue

Verse 10 reads,  “Thus in Judah it was said, ‘The strength of the burden bearers is failing…'” Simply put, the workers were tired. They were hitting it hard and needed some rest. The phrase “giving out” carries with it the idea of “staggering, tottering, and stumbling.” These guys were tired with a capital “T”. And this is a major issue.

Whenever you or someone else is physically tired and drained, discouragement at the slightest problem comes quite easily. Why were they fatigued? Take a look back at verse 6:

So we built the wall and the whole wall was joined together to half its height

That is quite a bit of lifting and placing heavy stones on a wall. We’d be fatigues and drained as well. Imagine the amount of work and energy required to achieve this goal. They had every reason to be tired.

Perhaps a contribution to their discouragement was that they were just halfway done. Their job remained unfinished and they were receiving threats and persecution on every side. They were pretty much done. They wanted to quit.

Have you ever felt this way? Have you ever been so tired of doing what God has called you to do that you’re ready to just stop? I have. In the midst of trying and discouraging times, losing the focus of our labor is easy to do. When we forget that we work for God’s glory and not ours discouragement is not far behind. Take time to take a break from your work. Take time to recharge.

 

Frustration

Another contributor to discouragement is frustration. Verse ten continues by stating

…Yet there is much rubbish…

So not only do they see the half finished wall, but they also see the enormous amount of rubble lying around. There were broken rocks, dirt and other assorted debris. I can imagine it looks as messy as one of my children’s rooms!

When things are so messy we can sometimes lose sight of the job before us. What we can forget amid the frustration of the moment that, like these folks, in the process of working toward our goal the mess will as a result get tidied up. In Hebrews the author challenges us to strip off anything that would hinder us from running this race of life well. Our goal, like the goal of building the wall, must remain in the forefront. We need not be frustrated by the debris all around us. We also don’t need to keep the unnecessary impediments that we carry with us.

Whatever is entangling you – be it television, the internet or something else – and tripping you up, discard it and refocus your effort on doing the task that God has called you to do.

Fear

The enemies of the Lord’s work had struck fear in the hearts of God’s people and they felt like giving up.

Our enemies said, “They will not know or see until we come among them, kill them and put a stop to the work.” When the Jews who lived near them came and told us ten times, “They will come up against us from every place where you may turn,” then I stationed men in the lowest parts of the space behind the wall, the exposed places, and I stationed the people in families with their swords, spears and bows.

The workers had set their minds on what the enemies had said. And the enemies did not just say they would do harm – they marshaled an army against them. These workers were intimidated. They were fearful. And the fear they felt led to their discouragement.

Notice who grew fearful first:

When the Jews who lived near them came and told us ten times, “They will come up against us from every place where you may turn,”

The Jews who lived nearest to the threat from the opposition grew fearful first. Being on the front line of any conflict has its costs. Fear is one of those costs. While it is normal to fear aggression, being disabled by that fear is not an option for us.

Are you on the front lines? Are you fearful of what the enemy has pledged to do to you? There are plenty of threats to biblical Christianity. We are routinely tarred with the charge of being ignorant, stupid, intolerant or some other insult. Stopping our work for the Lord is easy. We stop and the insults and intimidation stops. But, in the words of Buzz Lightyear, we should “Never give up. Never surrender!”

Our Savior, when confronted with difficult tasks never gave up. He did not give in to fear. He never once stopped because of opposition. The Apostles never did either. Neither did the early martyrs of the church. And neither should we.

Our task in life is to glorify God, not win a popularity contest with those who hate God. We glorify God by living out His word and completing the task placed before us. Our society is a mess. The rubble is all around us. We look around and the enemies seem to be winning. Their words try to discourage us and humiliate our actions. They threaten. They demean. The work of standing for Christ looks like it can not be accomplished. It looks too hard. We seem too tired. The enemies appear too numerous. Rebuilding seems just too hard…

Can someone hand me another rock?

 

baldtheologian Nehemiah: When Fear collides with Faith

Standing on Faith

nehemiah wall_final

 

Someone once said that the real test of a leader is how that person faces crisis and reacts to opposition. 

What was your reaction when you were leading a work that God had led you to do and you were opposed? I’m not talking about being passively opposed but actively opposed. How did you react? Could you have done better? I know I could have done better any number of times.  We’ll discover in today’s section how Nehemiah reacted to the opposition he faced and how we can apply that to our lives.

 

Hear, O our God, how we are despised! Return their reproach on their own heads and give them up for plunder in a land of captivity. Do not forgive their iniquity and let not their sin be blotted out before You, for they have demoralized the builders. So we built the wall and the whole wall was joined together to half its height, for the people had a mind to work. Now when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the repair of the walls of Jerusalem went on, and that the breaches began to be closed, they were very angry. All of them conspired together to come and fight against Jerusalem and to cause a disturbance in it. Nehemiah 4:4-8 NASB

 

The opposition to what Nehemiah was doing was coming fast and furiously. Tobiah and Sanballat were trying to discourage, insult, and intimidate the workers by any means necessary. These folks used used ridicule (vv. 1-6) as well as armed resistance (v.8) to oppose the work. Another translation of the Hebrew word rendered “wealthy” (v. 2) is “army.” I like that better considering the context. It is in this context we need to consider the intent and content of Nehemiah’s prayer.

Nehemiah’sprayer is considered an imprecatory prayer. By imprecatory it is meant that Nehemiah is asking God to intervene and do something about the situation as only He can do. Have you ever prayed this way? Nehemiah’s imprecatory prayer was more than likely based on God’s promise in Genesis 12:1-3 (emphasis added):

Now the Lord said to Abram,“Go forth from your country,and from your relatives and from your father’s house, to the land which I will show you; And I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing; And I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.” Genesis 12:1-3 NASB

 

Nehemiah’s first action after the opposition reared it’s ugly head was to pray.

This should be our first response to opposition to God’s work. The Church should always look to prayer as a first response rather than a last resort. But what about the content of Nehemiah’s prayer. Lets take a look at his prayer and learn from him.  Nehemiah prays that God would return their reproach on them and would not forgive their sins. Sounds pretty harsh, huh! The next phrase gives insight to what Nehemiah was referring: for they demoralized the builders. Nehemiah was requesting that their particular sin of opposing God’s work not be forgiven. Their sin was opposing God’s ordained work in Jerusalem.

Next, notice that Nehemiah doesn’t ask that God uses him for this task.

How often do we do that? How often do we pray instead, “God I know that vengeance is yours. I submit myself to you. I do request O Father, that though vengeance is Yours, that you will use your humble servant as your agent. I am more than willing!”  The earlier harsh language can be best understood if we understand that the work was divinely appointed. The opposition that Nehemiah experienced wasn’t against him and his workers. No, the opposition was against God Himself. This is why Nehemiah reacted the way He did.

My final observation here is that Nehemiah was seeking for God to take action, not for God’s people to take action.

God had already pronounced judgement against their enemies in Joshua 1. Essentially Nehemiah was praying for God to deliver His people from His enemies. There is nothing wrong with that type of prayer. We should never forget that.

Warren Wiersbe once said “God’s people sometimes have difficulty working together, but the people of the world have no problem uniting in opposition to the work of the Lord.”

In verses 7-8 we see the opposition resolved to defeat Nehemiah and his workers. The Ashdodites were added to the opposing army that now surrounded Jerusalem. Please understand this important point: the workers were surrounded on all points of the compass. This had to be intimidating to them. Sanballat and the Samaritans on the north, Ashdod on the west, Tobiah and the Ammonites on the east, and Geshem and the Arabs to the south. The workers were surrounded and lived in constant fear of being ambushed. This, naturally taken, is intimidating. But, in v. 6 we learn that despite the insults and intimidation, the workers joined together and built the wall to half its height.

Their heart was still in the work God had called them to perform.

So what are we to do? When God’s work is opposed by others in our society, our government, our friends, are we justified to pray “God I need a lightening bolt over there now. Go!”? I don’t think so. We know opposition will come. We need to be prudent in our response always relying on God’s promises. The workers had good reasons to fear for their safety and for the works God was doing. But what is interesting is Nehemiah’s response.

We have reason to fear for our safety and the future of our children. However we should not give in to these fears. God’s promises are not negated by the opposition of man.

Faith always trumps fear.

 

baldtheologian Nehemiah: When Fear collides with Faith

Standing Firm

nehemiah wall_final

The wall workers were initially excited. They began the work with great anticipation and joy. In fact, in v. 6 the workers were described as having a “heart” to work (translated “mind” by NASB and others) Everything was going well. The work was going on, the wall was going up. Progress – glorious progress – was being made. Then something happened.

Now it came about that when Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became furious and very angry and mocked the Jews. He spoke in the presence of his brothers and the wealthy men of Samaria and said, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Are they going to restore it for themselves? Can they offer sacrifices? Can they finish in a day? Can they revive the stones from the dusty rubble even the burned ones?” Now Tobiah the Ammonite was near him and he said, “Even what they are building—if a fox should jump on it, he would break their stone wall down!” Hear, O our God, how we are despised! Return their reproach on their own heads and give them up for plunder in a land of captivity. Do not forgive their iniquity and let not their sin be blotted out before You, for they have demoralized the builders. So we built the wall and the whole wall was joined together to half its height, for the people had a mind to work. Now when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the repair of the walls of Jerusalem went on, and that the breaches began to be closed, they were very angry. All of them conspired together to come and fight against Jerusalem and to cause a disturbance in it. Nehemiah 4:1-8 NASB

 

Have you ever led a ministry? Have you ever been in a ministry that received negative attention from others? If you have ever led anyone or any ministry, I’m guessing you have received criticism. Criticism goes with leadership – and especially when that leadership concerns kingdom work. In this section of Nehemiah, we’re going to see what happens when Nehemiah and his workers receive some taunts, verbal jabs and some veiled threats. Lets take a look at this and learn some important things about leadership and handling the discouragement that comes into our lives.

We need to understand a few things about discouragement. First, it is universal. No one is immune to discouragement. Every one of us has been discouraged at one time or another. Second, it can be recurring. Getting this disease of your soul does not impart immunity to it. If anything, when one contracts this, one can expect that it will occur again. Third, it is contagious. If you are discouraged, chances are that you are infecting others.

Here in Nehemiah, there are some verbal stones that are thrown at him and the workers on the wall. These verbal stones can – and usually does – cause discouragement. In fact, the type of these stones indicates to me they were intended to cause discouragement. Lets take a look at these verbal stones and how they affected the workers.

Stones being thrown 

Where God is at work, the enemy is also at work. Rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem was certainly no exception to this. When people take kingdom priorities seriously, Satan stirs up agitators to block the work of God. These enemies used two types of external forces.

verses 1-2: “Now it came about that when Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became furious and very angry and mocked the Jews.”

Rocks of Mocking

This is the third time in the book that we come across Sanballat, who was Nehemiah’s stiffest opposition. Every time we read about him he is standing against the work of God, rejecting and mocking everything that Nehemiah is trying to accomplish. This is nothing new. Satan often mocks those who do the work of God. Remember how the soldiers mocked Jesus when He was on the Cross? How about Goliath mocking David (and all Israel)? What about Satan (as personified by the snake) wryly mocking God in the garden? Satan mocks, that is what he does when he is confronted with folks serving God. Mocking is a powerful weapon too. Often the bravest person in the face of bullets flying past him in battle will fold oh-so-quickly when mocked.

Sanballat calls the workers feeble. The word used means miserable and withered.  Think of a person about to die. Think of a person who has lived long and lived hard. You know what I’m talking abut, right? Someone whose life is spent – one who is empty. That is what Sanballant called the workers. Now the evidence is that they were not feeble. They are building a rock wall with no construction equipment other than their hands, back and feet. This was his attack on their physical appearance. But it doesn’t stop there.

Rocks of Undermining

Sanballat then asks some mocking questions designed to impugn their character and intentions. They were also intended to undermine their confidence. The first question was Will they offer sacrifices? This is to undermine their confidence that what they are doing will be blessed by God and will result in the offering of sacrifices in the Temple. He moves on to ask Can they finish in a day? designed to attack their perseverance. You see, Sanballat knows if he can get them to focus on how long they have to go, they may never finish.

Then Sanballat asks Can they revive the stones from the dusty rubble even the burned ones? Sanballat attacks their building materials. It is as if he is saying Geez guys, your building material is old and decrepit. This will never stand. Why even try?

Sanballat’s friend Tobiah joins in v. 3 and says “Even what they are building—if a fox should jump on it, he would break their stone wall down!” Ouch! So now Tobiah joins and says their wall is so weak and decrepit that a little fox jumping on it would cause it to tumble. Tobiah was working hard to undermine their confidence. The workers were the punchline to these jokes. They were on the receiving end of these stones thrown at them by Sanballat and Tobiah. These stones hit there mark. And they undoubtedly hurt.

Has this ever happened to you? Have you engaged in kingdom work only to be criticized? Ridiculed? Mocked? Steel your resolve Christian, these things are to be expected when we engage in work that is ordained by God.

If the work we do meant nothing, then Satan would have no reason to attack and try to discourage us.

 

Take heart Christian if you have been attacked by those who oppose the work of God. Take heart that God has counted you trustworthy enough to undertake this type of work. Take heart because our labor for the Lord – doing what He has called us to do – is not useless, void, worthless or unrewarding. Stand firm and remember that He has prepared you for this.