In Nehemiah 4, Pastor Mark shows that all ministries, if they’re doing the will of God, will have enemies of various types and forms. As a lesson for leaders, we also see in Nehemiah 4 that your pain tolerance will ultimately determine your leadership lid.
How can you build your life and protect it from your enemies?: Nehemiah 4
CONVERSATION: ? Want to never being maligned & attacked again?
- Have nothing. 2. Say nothing. 3. Do nothing.
Ministries have enemies (Nehemiah 4)
Spiritual warfare – God for you. Satan against you.
- Legal Battle: unholy alliances – surrounded every side
4:7 “Sanballat & Tobiah & the Arabs & the Ammonites & the Ashdodites”
-Tobiah – likely married believer (a Judas) = FAMILY ENEMY!
= Religious Freedom
- PR Battle: public mockery
4:1-3 “Sanballat…jeered…in the presence of his brothers & of the army of Samaria, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore it for themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish up in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, & burned ones at that?” Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, “Yes, what they are building—if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall!”
3.Security Battle: threats
4:11 “kill them”
- Leadership Battle
- governance wars – started in Heaven & never end until King Jesus returns
Platform -1500’s someone on a raised platform speaking to crowed (preacher/politician)
-2 ways to get a following
- + Have a platform & use it for a message
- – Attack person w/ platform, & hope they pull you on platform = “save them”
-War is over the Word (remnant to revival)
-Ministries have enemies (Jesus did, mobs, Judas, Anti-Christs)
= Security A. Physical B. Digital C. Spiritual (prayer)
You will have “enemies” (8 times in Nehemiah)
- Insecure people – threatened by success
- Jealous people – covet success
- Enemies – conflicting agenda
- Entitled people – demand control
- Inflexible people – oppose change
- Demonic people – attack anyone doing good for God
- Unrepentant people – attack truth they despise (bitter)
Anger
-4:1 Sanballat “angry…greatly enraged”
-4:7 “they were greatly angry”
Fear
-2:2 Nehemiah “I was very much afraid”
-4:14 Nehemiah to people “Do not be afraid…”
-6:13,19 “[Shemaiah] was hired, that I should be afraid &… sin, so they could give me a bad name in order to taunt me…& Tobiah sent letters to make me afraid
= Praying – getting it off you before it gets in you. 1 of 9 prayers
-4:4-5 Hear, O our God, for we are despised. Turn back their taunt on their own heads and give them up to be plundered in a land where they are captives. Do not cover their guilt, & let not their sin be blotted out from your sight, for they have provoked you to anger in the presence of the builders.
-Nehemiah prays 1. Blessing God’s people 2. Judgement of enemies
-God answers & people overcome fear (4:6)
Godly men bless women and children (Nehemiah 4:13-14)
4:13-14 I stationed the people by their clans, w/their swords, their spears, and their bows…and said to the nobles & to the officials & to 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 homes.”
- “Do not be afraid”
- “Remember the Lord”
- “Fight”
-Fathers and sons posted guard near their home 24-hrs day & trumpet (4:10-12)
Your pain tolerance determines your leadership lid
2:10 Sanballat & Tobiah “displeased…greatly”
2:19 Sanballat & Tobian “they jeered at us”
4:1 Sanballat “jeered” publicly (mob method)
4:3 Tobiah joins the public jeering & early mob
4:7 Sanballat, Tobiah, Arabs, Ammonites, & Ashdodites “plotted together…to fight…and cause confusion”
4:10 In Judah it was said, “The strength of those who bear the burdens is failing…”
4:11 “kill them and stop the work”
4:12 [believers] “came from all directions & said to us ten times, “You must return to us.”
=A murderous spirit. =1. No retreat. 2. No negotiaton. (EVIL PEOPLE)
JESUS – Most Pain. Greatest Influence. ++
The Sword and the Trowel (Nehemiah 4:15-23)
Spurgeon’s magazine 1865
Sword
- 2 ways to get something 1. Build it 2. Steal it
- Build something? =protect it (house, fence, front door, security system, dog, gun)
“our enemies”, “half held the spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail”; “each labored on the work w/one hand & held his weapon w/the other” “each of the builders had his sword strapped to his side”;
Sometimes God fights, so sometimes it’s godly to fight
4:15 “our enemies”…God had frustrated their plan”
4:20 “our God will fight for us”
=Believers should not attack believers
Trowel
“we all returned to the wall, each to his work”;
“worked on construction”; “we labored at the work”
- JESUS said “I will build my church”
- We join him. In the end it’s all worth it – revival (gov’t, $, culture)
CLOSING PRAYER
Rebuilding Home Video
October 15-16 Commitment Weekend