Question of the day: Today is Pathfinder Sabbath, as a child were you in pathfinders and if so share a memory of being in the club? If you weren't in Pathfinders, were you in any other club?
Good morning class. This morning we will be continueing in Nehemiah. Remember last week we spoke about helping the poor and how important that is. Important enought to potentially derail the entire project that was so important.
Today we are going to read the 6th chapter of Nehemiah.
Please read the enitre chapter.
Further Opposition to the Rebuilding
6 When word came to Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem the Arab and the rest of our enemies that I had rebuilt the wall and not a gap was left in it—though up to that time I had not set the doors in the gates— 2 Sanballat and Geshem sent me this message: “Come, let us meet together in one of the villages[a] on the plain of Ono.”
But they were scheming to harm me; 3 so I sent messengers to them with this reply: “I am carrying on a great project and cannot go down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and go down to you?” 4 Four times they sent me the same message, and each time I gave them the same answer.
5 Then, the fifth time, Sanballat sent his aide to me with the same message, and in his hand was an unsealed letter 6 in which was written:
“It is reported among the nations—and Geshem[b] says it is true—that you and the Jews are plotting to revolt, and therefore you are building the wall. Moreover, according to these reports you are about to become their king 7 and have even appointed prophets to make this proclamation about you in Jerusalem: ‘There is a king in Judah!’ Now this report will get back to the king; so come, let us meet together.”
8 I sent him this reply: “Nothing like what you are saying is happening; you are just making it up out of your head.”
9 They were all trying to frighten us, thinking, “Their hands will get too weak for the work, and it will not be completed.”
But I prayed, “Now strengthen my hands.”
10 One day I went to the house of Shemaiah son of Delaiah, the son of Mehetabel, who was shut in at his home. He said, “Let us meet in the house of God, inside the temple, and let us close the temple doors, because men are coming to kill you—by night they are coming to kill you.”
11 But I said, “Should a man like me run away? Or should someone like me go into the temple to save his life? I will not go!” 12 I realized that God had not sent him, but that he had prophesied against me because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him. 13 He had been hired to intimidate me so that I would commit a sin by doing this, and then they would give me a bad name to discredit me.
14 Remember Tobiah and Sanballat, my God, because of what they have done; remember also the prophet Noadiah and how she and the rest of the prophets have been trying to intimidate me. 15 So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days.
Opposition to the Completed Wall
16 When all our enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were afraid and lost their self-confidence, because they realized that this work had been done with the help of our God.
17 Also, in those days the nobles of Judah were sending many letters to Tobiah, and replies from Tobiah kept coming to them. 18 For many in Judah were under oath to him, since he was son-in-law to Shekaniah son of Arah, and his son Jehohanan had married the daughter of Meshullam son of Berekiah. 19 Moreover, they kept reporting to me his good deeds and then telling him what I said. And Tobiah sent letters to intimidate me.
Nehemiah has been a leader under fire. Things are working against him. A couple weeks ago it was people litterally attacking those who were working on the wall. Then it was all the needs of those working with him. Now another type of struggle. One that perhaps happens more often for us. It is attacks veiled as help.
Can you relate to that?
We don't often pick up swords or even guns and attack each other in the church. If you are visiting, we actually have NEVER done that! LOL!
Have you ever had people offer to help you that were actually trying to get you to either change what you are doing or stop all together?
How does Nehemiah handle the attempts to get him away from the work?
First thing I noticed was that he was wise. He saw through what they were trying to do.
How do we make sure we have the wisdom to know what is happening, without living a life of being paranoid?
What are some things we can do to have the wisdom needed to be that discerning?
Second, Nehemiah answers them directly! He doesn't ignore it and just not show up. He answers them with a now and states his purpose.
Being direct, facing those who are trying to distract and stop us from doing God's work is super important!
Third, He is percistant! They keep coming at him and he keeps anwering them with the same answer.
Percistance, how important is this when working on a project like this, or even just in our walk with God?
Nehemiah realizes exactly what they are thinking... what they are trying to do and he prayers for exactly the opposite.
What does it say the opposition was thinking?
What does Nehemiah pray for?
I challenge you this next week to be specific in your prayers! Don't just pray that God helps you with your life, or with what you are doing, but get specific. Ask for specifics!
He prays and the Lord provides and the wall is done in 52 days!
52 days is remarkable. Nope it is a miracle!
So what happens after the wall was completed?
It causes FEAR.
FEAR because it is so remarkable!
They knew it had to be only the power of God and that scared them!
I know that whatever it is that we are working on! Whatever our calling, God desires for us to be so intuned with Him, so following Him that when people experience or watch what is happening they will KNOW, only by the grace of God is that possible!
A long time ago when the design committee met to pick the finishes for the church, we met with an interiror designer and had our first meeting. She warned that this would take a long time because we had a lot to do so not to be discouraged if we didn't get much done in the first meeting. We had prayer together, and in a matter of a couple hours without any arguing or ugly words we had picked every finish for the entire church. The pain, the toilet particions... EVERYTHING! The designer exclaimed to me when everyone had gone, that she was blown away. She had never experienced that with anyother church EVER! She exclaimed that we all had such strong opinions, and at times differing opinions, and yet we with grace talked through it and got it done in record time!
Why?
God and only God?
This chapter also ends with the all popular "letter" being sent. This was so many years ago, and yet it is what many still try to do today, intimidate by sending letters. We critisize by sending letters! We complain and can be very ugly, when sending letters. Still to this day critical and even hateful emails and letters come all too often to the leadership at the conference.
What about the way some of us use social media?
Do we hide behind the keys?
What is Nehemiahs reaction?
Haha, trick question! We don't know, it doesn't say!
What are our takeaways from todays passage?
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