WEBVTT 00:00:00.200 --> 00:00:04.820 Well, and teenage years begin at about 10. You 00:00:04.820 --> 00:00:07.620 know that, don't you? I mean, we don't call it 00:00:07.620 --> 00:00:10.939 teens, but the pressures and the temptations 00:00:10.939 --> 00:00:14.560 are lowering all the time because of the sad 00:00:14.560 --> 00:00:17.620 collapse of our culture. And so parents, I hope 00:00:17.620 --> 00:00:19.239 that you'll be a part of that thing on Wednesday 00:00:19.239 --> 00:00:22.579 night. We're gonna get right to the word of God 00:00:22.579 --> 00:00:25.179 this morning. Try to catch up some time here. 00:00:25.460 --> 00:00:28.100 Nehemiah, please, in your Bible, the second chapter 00:00:28.100 --> 00:00:34.829 of Nehemiah. My wife and I visited the National 00:00:34.829 --> 00:00:38.329 Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati 00:00:38.329 --> 00:00:42.409 a few weeks ago when we were in that city. This 00:00:42.409 --> 00:00:45.570 particular museum tells the story of slavery 00:00:45.570 --> 00:00:50.090 in the United States and it recounts the history 00:00:50.090 --> 00:00:56.469 of the slave escape route that was known as the 00:00:56.469 --> 00:01:00.280 Underground Railroad. Slaves that were able to 00:01:00.280 --> 00:01:05.079 escape their plantations in the south would migrate 00:01:05.079 --> 00:01:08.640 northward during the night, hide during the day, 00:01:09.280 --> 00:01:12.000 cross the Ohio River, and then up through Ohio, 00:01:12.140 --> 00:01:15.599 eventually get to Canada where they had freedom. 00:01:16.819 --> 00:01:19.180 Along the route of this railway, there were men 00:01:19.180 --> 00:01:22.120 and women and families who risked their lives 00:01:22.120 --> 00:01:27.480 to protect the slaves who were on this railroad. 00:01:27.959 --> 00:01:32.099 They provided safe places, not unlike people 00:01:32.099 --> 00:01:35.439 who provided safe places for the Jews in World 00:01:35.439 --> 00:01:39.459 War II in the time of Hitler. They provided these 00:01:39.459 --> 00:01:42.439 safe places during the day, and then they guided 00:01:42.439 --> 00:01:45.599 the slaves at night from point to point. These 00:01:45.599 --> 00:01:50.180 brave people, the ancestors perhaps of some of 00:01:50.180 --> 00:01:55.840 us, lived on the very edge. It was a perilous 00:01:55.840 --> 00:02:00.319 thing to do. what they did. Their lives and their 00:02:00.319 --> 00:02:04.439 livelihoods were absolutely on the line for a 00:02:04.439 --> 00:02:08.939 cause that was right. It reminded me that God 00:02:08.939 --> 00:02:14.580 calls all of us also, out of the protected comfort 00:02:14.580 --> 00:02:21.840 zones of our lives, to live on the edge. It is 00:02:21.840 --> 00:02:26.419 on the edge where He lives. and where he will 00:02:26.419 --> 00:02:31.099 meet you and me. It is on the edge where you 00:02:31.099 --> 00:02:34.520 risk yourself, where you abandon yourself to 00:02:34.520 --> 00:02:39.479 God, that you can really grow to know him, where 00:02:39.479 --> 00:02:42.139 you will find the most meaningful life, in fact, 00:02:42.280 --> 00:02:45.240 that you can possibly experience in this world. 00:02:46.639 --> 00:02:49.960 Jesus said to those who were listening to him, 00:02:50.419 --> 00:02:54.919 follow me. and I will make you fishers of men." 00:02:54.919 --> 00:02:58.620 What did he mean by that? He was saying to them, 00:02:58.759 --> 00:03:03.819 abandon what you're doing. Leave behind what 00:03:03.819 --> 00:03:06.520 you're living for, those things that you think 00:03:06.520 --> 00:03:11.319 make you secure and happy. And he led those disciples 00:03:11.319 --> 00:03:18.159 to the very edge. He led the way himself. Our 00:03:18.159 --> 00:03:20.860 tendency 2 ,000 years later, their spiritual 00:03:20.860 --> 00:03:25.509 descendants, is to want to play it safe. We don't 00:03:25.509 --> 00:03:30.430 want to risk, that is to get too radical with 00:03:30.430 --> 00:03:33.349 our faith. We don't want to cut off things or 00:03:33.349 --> 00:03:36.810 people or lifestyle that make us comfortable. 00:03:38.250 --> 00:03:41.509 If we're honest, some of us may not be that sure 00:03:41.509 --> 00:03:45.349 that Jesus is truly that relevant to our lives. 00:03:48.419 --> 00:03:53.379 He's a priority for sure in our lives. He's made 00:03:53.379 --> 00:03:59.939 the cut. He's made the list. But he's not at 00:03:59.939 --> 00:04:03.919 the top of the list. You're not gonna risk for 00:04:03.919 --> 00:04:05.800 something or someone who's not at the top of 00:04:05.800 --> 00:04:10.879 the list. Others of us quietly fear that God 00:04:10.879 --> 00:04:14.400 may not come through if we venture out there 00:04:14.400 --> 00:04:19.069 too far. We can get ourselves into a predicament, 00:04:19.089 --> 00:04:23.810 we fear, that we can't control, and God may not 00:04:23.810 --> 00:04:28.949 show up, and then what will we do? And so we 00:04:28.949 --> 00:04:32.930 build in these safety zones in our lives, in 00:04:32.930 --> 00:04:37.329 our spiritual walk. We're not unique in that 00:04:37.329 --> 00:04:40.730 way. People who've come before us struggled with 00:04:40.730 --> 00:04:44.649 the same issue. Take Moses as an example. As 00:04:44.649 --> 00:04:47.699 a young man, that seemed to happen to him, but 00:04:47.699 --> 00:04:51.740 40 years later when he was called by God to go 00:04:51.740 --> 00:04:56.120 back to Egypt, he didn't want to. In those 40 00:04:56.120 --> 00:04:58.120 years, he had learned some things, but he had 00:04:58.120 --> 00:05:03.579 also built in a comfort zone. You say, but I'm 00:05:03.579 --> 00:05:08.300 not Moses. I'm just little old me. I don't have 00:05:08.300 --> 00:05:12.240 the same calling that Moses had or that much 00:05:12.240 --> 00:05:15.949 to offer. Well, the fact is that you may not 00:05:15.949 --> 00:05:20.389 be a patriarch or a giant of the faith. Few of 00:05:20.389 --> 00:05:24.089 us are, as a matter of fact. You may even see 00:05:24.089 --> 00:05:26.790 yourself as insignificant in the grand scheme 00:05:26.790 --> 00:05:30.290 of things as something that or someone that is 00:05:30.290 --> 00:05:36.149 inconsequential. But listen to the truth. No 00:05:36.149 --> 00:05:42.930 one is insignificant to God. No one. Eight years 00:05:42.930 --> 00:05:46.670 ago, Kaidman's Call produced an album called 00:05:46.670 --> 00:05:50.610 Intimate. On the album was a song called Bus 00:05:50.610 --> 00:05:55.189 Driver. Bus Driver, it was written by Derek Webb. 00:05:57.050 --> 00:06:01.850 In the song, the bus driver ponders his place 00:06:01.850 --> 00:06:06.730 in life. I am a bus driver and it's four in the 00:06:06.730 --> 00:06:10.670 morning and I'm pressing out of my clothes beside 00:06:10.670 --> 00:06:16.230 my bed. 14 years, been on the job, and with many 00:06:16.230 --> 00:06:19.949 miles behind, still I'm up at 3 .30 to make sure 00:06:19.949 --> 00:06:23.769 I'm there on time. My car gets me along just 00:06:23.769 --> 00:06:28.029 fine to and from the station, but my castle is 00:06:28.029 --> 00:06:32.730 this Houston Metro bus. My first stop is Ashbury, 00:06:33.449 --> 00:06:36.430 and the sign's been gone for years, but all the 00:06:36.430 --> 00:06:39.430 same, the people wait, because they know that 00:06:39.430 --> 00:06:43.730 I'll be there. What would you say if I told you 00:06:43.730 --> 00:06:48.209 I won't be by today? And he goes on in the song 00:06:48.209 --> 00:06:51.269 to ponder his place in the lives of the people 00:06:51.269 --> 00:06:56.970 that ride his bus every day. And he concludes 00:06:56.970 --> 00:07:00.149 that his life is not inconsequential, that it's 00:07:00.149 --> 00:07:03.449 important in the lives of those people. And I 00:07:03.449 --> 00:07:06.790 want you to know that you are a person of consequence 00:07:06.790 --> 00:07:11.870 in the lives of the people around you. No one 00:07:11.870 --> 00:07:15.889 is insignificant with God. You, a homemaker, 00:07:16.089 --> 00:07:20.389 a business person, a teacher, an engineer, a 00:07:20.389 --> 00:07:23.629 manager, a server, a secretary, or a bus driver. 00:07:24.889 --> 00:07:28.149 Your life belongs to God if you're a follower 00:07:28.149 --> 00:07:32.889 of Jesus Christ. And He gives you significance. 00:07:33.750 --> 00:07:37.910 He gives you significance. And He has a calling 00:07:37.910 --> 00:07:42.980 in your life. He wants to birth in you a dream 00:07:42.980 --> 00:07:49.379 of something that only he can do through you. 00:07:51.060 --> 00:07:56.560 It's something bigger than you are. He desires 00:07:56.560 --> 00:08:00.879 to develop in you a vision or a purpose that 00:08:00.879 --> 00:08:05.959 calls you, like Nehemiah, to live on the edge. 00:08:06.269 --> 00:08:10.069 and to experience Him in new ways in your life. 00:08:13.110 --> 00:08:19.350 I have a young friend whose name is Josh. I've 00:08:19.350 --> 00:08:23.670 known Josh for more than 30 years. His family 00:08:23.670 --> 00:08:27.790 attended our church that I pastored in Kentucky. 00:08:29.949 --> 00:08:32.269 Josh has grown up now, he's about 30 years of 00:08:32.269 --> 00:08:36.429 age. He went to the University of Kentucky. He 00:08:36.429 --> 00:08:40.629 was the guy who was the mascot at the University 00:08:40.629 --> 00:08:45.149 of Kentucky, full of energy and enthusiasm. I 00:08:45.149 --> 00:08:48.809 caught him one time at a UK game on television. 00:08:49.169 --> 00:08:52.690 He was painted totally in blue. That's just the 00:08:52.690 --> 00:08:56.090 kind of a guy Josh is. After he graduated from 00:08:56.090 --> 00:08:59.110 UK with a master's degree, he went to work for 00:08:59.110 --> 00:09:04.370 Synergy in Cincinnati. I got an email from him 00:09:04.370 --> 00:09:07.610 that directed me to his blog. And so I went to 00:09:07.610 --> 00:09:09.889 his blog and I began to read what God is doing 00:09:09.889 --> 00:09:13.149 in his life. And this was the last note on his 00:09:13.149 --> 00:09:17.610 blog written a week ago. Well, today was my last 00:09:17.610 --> 00:09:21.250 day of work at Synergy. A lot of people have 00:09:21.250 --> 00:09:23.610 asked me how I can leave such a good job and 00:09:23.610 --> 00:09:27.809 a nice home for something so insecure. It boils 00:09:27.809 --> 00:09:31.159 down to this. In life, I believe you should do 00:09:31.159 --> 00:09:35.519 whatever you are most passionate about. People 00:09:35.519 --> 00:09:39.120 sometimes tell me things like, if I could do 00:09:39.120 --> 00:09:43.200 anything, I would start a restaurant. A guy the 00:09:43.200 --> 00:09:45.340 other day told me he wanted to be a bounty hunter. 00:09:46.419 --> 00:09:49.200 He spends his days sitting in a cube, dreaming 00:09:49.200 --> 00:09:54.299 about chasing down bad guys. I used to sit and 00:09:54.299 --> 00:09:58.500 think, if I could do anything, I would be a missionary. 00:09:59.539 --> 00:10:03.519 Well, here is a news flash. You can do anything. 00:10:05.059 --> 00:10:07.139 If that is what you're passionate about, go out 00:10:07.139 --> 00:10:09.399 and do it. If you want to go back to school, 00:10:09.399 --> 00:10:12.259 do it. If you need to sell your big house and 00:10:12.259 --> 00:10:15.480 put up some money, do it. Quit wasting your time 00:10:15.480 --> 00:10:17.620 and start pursuing whatever it is that you have 00:10:17.620 --> 00:10:21.159 a passion about. My life has been radically changed 00:10:21.159 --> 00:10:24.960 by Jesus Christ. I have been blessed beyond measure, 00:10:24.980 --> 00:10:27.559 he writes. And I want to share that blessing 00:10:27.559 --> 00:10:29.679 with other people. I have a passion for telling 00:10:29.679 --> 00:10:33.240 people how Jesus can change their life. That 00:10:33.240 --> 00:10:36.879 is why I'm leaving my great job. That is why 00:10:36.879 --> 00:10:40.179 I'm going to Mexico. That is why I'm leaving 00:10:40.179 --> 00:10:43.259 behind everything I know and stepping out of 00:10:43.259 --> 00:10:48.059 my comfort zone. I am pursuing my passion. And 00:10:48.059 --> 00:10:51.240 if you want to be satisfied, that is what you 00:10:51.240 --> 00:10:56.929 will do too. Lead on, Josh. That's exactly what 00:10:56.929 --> 00:11:01.750 I'm talking about today. Living on the edge of 00:11:01.750 --> 00:11:06.289 your vision and your resources. God wants to 00:11:06.289 --> 00:11:08.190 develop a purpose in your life and it may be 00:11:08.190 --> 00:11:11.149 a lifelong objective like it seems to be in Josh's 00:11:11.149 --> 00:11:16.870 life. Something that will be totally out of your 00:11:16.870 --> 00:11:22.009 thinking culturally and job -wise. But God is 00:11:22.009 --> 00:11:24.500 calling you to this lifelong vision. in order 00:11:24.500 --> 00:11:28.840 to advance his kingdom. But for many others of 00:11:28.840 --> 00:11:31.120 us, God's calling may be just a piece of our 00:11:31.120 --> 00:11:36.919 lives. It may be for an hour a week, or for two 00:11:36.919 --> 00:11:43.580 weeks out of the year. It may mean taking you 00:11:43.580 --> 00:11:47.539 out of your normal frame of living into something 00:11:47.539 --> 00:11:53.509 else for a while. There may be somebody here 00:11:53.509 --> 00:11:55.350 this morning that God is laying in your heart 00:11:55.350 --> 00:11:58.710 the vision of going down south and helping on 00:11:58.710 --> 00:12:03.330 a work team with the hurricane devastated areas. 00:12:04.450 --> 00:12:06.389 If you're interested in that, by the way, City 00:12:06.389 --> 00:12:08.710 Team has a wonderful ministry going on down there. 00:12:08.750 --> 00:12:14.649 They have a four -phase response to the devastation. 00:12:15.269 --> 00:12:17.789 They're going to be at it for six to 12 months. 00:12:18.710 --> 00:12:22.799 They need money. They need bodies, volunteers, 00:12:23.299 --> 00:12:25.440 they need supplies. You can find out about it 00:12:25.440 --> 00:12:28.000 on the website that I have in my column in the 00:12:28.000 --> 00:12:31.220 worship folder today. Maybe that's what God's 00:12:31.220 --> 00:12:33.320 doing. That's not a lifelong thing, but it's 00:12:33.320 --> 00:12:35.899 a piece of your life, and it's out of your frame 00:12:35.899 --> 00:12:39.500 of reference. Perhaps God is calling you and 00:12:39.500 --> 00:12:43.299 giving you a vision to help create in this church 00:12:43.299 --> 00:12:48.679 an exciting life community. A mid -sized group, 00:12:48.700 --> 00:12:53.080 and you wanna be a part of a team of people who 00:12:53.080 --> 00:12:57.080 are going to develop a little church within the 00:12:57.080 --> 00:13:02.220 big church. A group of people, maybe 15 or 30 00:13:02.220 --> 00:13:07.679 or 40 or 60 people, as it would grow, who really 00:13:07.679 --> 00:13:10.480 care for one another and connect with one another. 00:13:12.379 --> 00:13:15.110 Maybe that's what God's calling you to do. You 00:13:15.110 --> 00:13:16.990 hadn't thought about it before, but there's this 00:13:16.990 --> 00:13:19.789 vision that God is birthing in your heart. Or 00:13:19.789 --> 00:13:21.490 maybe it's on the other end of the spectrum in 00:13:21.490 --> 00:13:25.750 a small group, and you want to be a leader of 00:13:25.750 --> 00:13:28.669 a small group and find out how to do that. Or 00:13:28.669 --> 00:13:32.090 it could be that you have seen the children of 00:13:32.090 --> 00:13:34.149 this church as they go out each week to Sunday 00:13:34.149 --> 00:13:38.110 school or to Power Zone, and you say to yourself, 00:13:38.330 --> 00:13:41.889 I wish, oh, I would just love to be involved 00:13:41.889 --> 00:13:46.009 in teaching children. in being in their lives 00:13:46.009 --> 00:13:48.350 and God's giving you a vision for the impact 00:13:48.350 --> 00:13:51.110 you can have in the life of a child or a group 00:13:51.110 --> 00:13:57.230 of children. Do it. If that's God's vision in 00:13:57.230 --> 00:13:58.950 your life, it's just a piece of your life, but 00:13:58.950 --> 00:14:02.809 do it. Perhaps God is calling you to make some 00:14:02.809 --> 00:14:06.110 friends for heaven's sake and to reach out to 00:14:06.110 --> 00:14:08.970 your neighbors in some fun ways, some new ways. 00:14:09.340 --> 00:14:12.039 that will stretch you. It's a vision you hadn't 00:14:12.039 --> 00:14:14.139 thought about before, but God is giving you this 00:14:14.139 --> 00:14:18.580 dream. Maybe it's making room in your family 00:14:18.580 --> 00:14:23.419 for a foster child. Or it's adopting a child 00:14:23.419 --> 00:14:30.799 from another culture. What are you seeing? What 00:14:30.799 --> 00:14:35.840 is the vision God is giving you? What are you 00:14:35.840 --> 00:14:40.769 feeling about it? What is God saying in your 00:14:40.769 --> 00:14:43.970 heart as you connect with him about that burden, 00:14:44.350 --> 00:14:49.590 that dream that is there? God loves to birth 00:14:49.590 --> 00:14:52.870 dreams in our hearts that are bigger than we 00:14:52.870 --> 00:14:56.649 can handle by ourselves. And it's only when we 00:14:56.649 --> 00:14:58.990 respond to those visions and step to the edge 00:14:58.990 --> 00:15:01.429 of the comfort zones of our life that we're really 00:15:01.429 --> 00:15:06.570 gonna know God. Vision happens when you deliberately 00:15:06.570 --> 00:15:10.960 step out of on the edge of your life, and you 00:15:10.960 --> 00:15:15.820 look out to see what God wants to show you, and 00:15:15.820 --> 00:15:19.720 you feel about that, how God feels about it, 00:15:19.820 --> 00:15:25.000 and then you ask him what you should do. God's 00:15:25.000 --> 00:15:29.360 blessings happen on the edge. When you abandon 00:15:29.360 --> 00:15:32.220 yourself to him and you experience him then in 00:15:32.220 --> 00:15:38.899 new ways, that's Nehemiah chapter one. What we're 00:15:38.899 --> 00:15:42.480 going to see today in Nehemiah chapter two is 00:15:42.480 --> 00:15:50.159 that God calls you God calls you to risk the 00:15:50.159 --> 00:15:56.340 resources he has given you God calls you to risk 00:15:56.340 --> 00:16:01.200 the resources he has given you I'm going to begin 00:16:01.200 --> 00:16:03.679 reading with the last statement of chapter one 00:16:03.679 --> 00:16:07.779 where Nehemiah says I was cupbearer to the king 00:16:08.649 --> 00:16:12.250 In the month of Nisan, in the 20th year King 00:16:12.250 --> 00:16:16.429 Artaxerxes, so by this he tells us that the time 00:16:16.429 --> 00:16:23.629 frame is March, April 444 BC, or 445 BC rather. 00:16:25.830 --> 00:16:28.230 He says, when wine was brought for him, I took 00:16:28.230 --> 00:16:31.830 the wine and gave it to the king. I had not been 00:16:31.830 --> 00:16:34.730 sad in his presence before, so the king asked 00:16:34.730 --> 00:16:39.110 me, why does your face look so sad? when you're 00:16:39.110 --> 00:16:43.110 not ill. This can be nothing but sadness of heart. 00:16:43.750 --> 00:16:47.350 I was very much afraid. But I said to the king, 00:16:47.470 --> 00:16:50.409 may the king live forever, why should my face 00:16:50.409 --> 00:16:54.269 not look sad when the city where my fathers are 00:16:54.269 --> 00:16:58.509 buried lies in ruins and its gates have been 00:16:58.509 --> 00:17:03.350 destroyed by fire? The king said to me, what 00:17:03.350 --> 00:17:07.990 is it you want? Remember, Nehemiah had received 00:17:07.990 --> 00:17:10.829 this burden from God for the city of Jerusalem. 00:17:13.549 --> 00:17:16.190 He heard about what the city was like. It was 00:17:16.190 --> 00:17:21.210 in ruins and the people were in disarray and 00:17:21.210 --> 00:17:26.309 oppressed. And he wept. He felt about that like 00:17:26.309 --> 00:17:30.130 God felt about it. And he turned to God and he 00:17:30.130 --> 00:17:33.089 prayed and he connected with God. and now God 00:17:33.089 --> 00:17:35.470 is leading him to the next step of living on 00:17:35.470 --> 00:17:38.349 the edge, and that is putting his own resources 00:17:38.349 --> 00:17:44.130 at risk in this vision. There are four life -changing 00:17:44.130 --> 00:17:46.990 observations that I want to make about the first 00:17:46.990 --> 00:17:51.250 nine verses of chapter two. The first observation 00:17:51.250 --> 00:17:57.430 is this. You are made by God with purpose. In 00:17:57.430 --> 00:18:00.809 other words, God has an assignment or a series 00:18:00.809 --> 00:18:04.849 of assignments. in mind for your life. Everything 00:18:04.849 --> 00:18:08.289 about who you are has been fashioned by God. 00:18:09.470 --> 00:18:13.690 Your parents and heritage were fashioned by God. 00:18:16.230 --> 00:18:21.869 Your appearance and personality, your abilities 00:18:21.869 --> 00:18:26.289 and skill set, your opportunities, your experiences, 00:18:26.769 --> 00:18:31.150 all of that is fashioned by God. Now, what do 00:18:31.150 --> 00:18:34.009 we learn about Nehemiah from the text? What is 00:18:34.009 --> 00:18:37.029 the background of his life? How had God fashioned 00:18:37.029 --> 00:18:40.809 Nehemiah? Well, we learned that he was the son 00:18:40.809 --> 00:18:45.130 of Hacaliah back in the first verse. His father's 00:18:45.130 --> 00:18:50.170 name means wait for the Lord. Nehemiah had learned 00:18:50.170 --> 00:18:56.390 that. They had given him his unusual name, the 00:18:56.390 --> 00:19:01.019 Lord Comforts. It is a name that is God -centered, 00:19:01.819 --> 00:19:06.299 and it shows his Jewish family heritage, and 00:19:06.299 --> 00:19:10.759 it focuses him every time he hears his name on 00:19:10.759 --> 00:19:15.700 God. Well, that's as much as we know about Nehemiah's 00:19:15.700 --> 00:19:18.720 growing up. We don't know if Nehemiah had a wife 00:19:18.720 --> 00:19:23.640 or family. The Septuagint, which is the Greek 00:19:23.640 --> 00:19:27.089 translation of the Hebrew Old Testament, done 00:19:27.089 --> 00:19:31.490 about 250 years before Jesus, suggests that he 00:19:31.490 --> 00:19:36.190 was a eunuch. Now that wouldn't be a lifelong 00:19:36.190 --> 00:19:39.730 goal of mine, I don't know about you. It probably 00:19:39.730 --> 00:19:42.049 wasn't his either, but that's how God fashioned 00:19:42.049 --> 00:19:46.329 his life. God allowed that perhaps to happen 00:19:46.329 --> 00:19:51.730 to Nehemiah so that he could be in the role that 00:19:51.730 --> 00:19:55.609 he needed to be in for God's purpose. My point 00:19:55.609 --> 00:19:57.869 is, whatever he looked like, whatever his family 00:19:57.869 --> 00:20:01.410 situation may have been, Nehemiah had been fashioned 00:20:01.410 --> 00:20:04.569 for this moment, just as Esther was fashioned 00:20:04.569 --> 00:20:08.109 for the moment in the book about her. You've 00:20:08.109 --> 00:20:12.410 come to the kingdom, said her uncle, for a time 00:20:12.410 --> 00:20:17.210 such as this. Nehemiah had been prepared for 00:20:17.210 --> 00:20:23.289 this moment. Who are you? What are the circumstances 00:20:23.289 --> 00:20:28.740 of your life? What are the fingerprints of God 00:20:28.740 --> 00:20:32.259 in your life? What are the ways in which you 00:20:32.259 --> 00:20:36.259 are different, which you are unique? Because 00:20:36.259 --> 00:20:38.519 it is in those things in particular that God 00:20:38.519 --> 00:20:43.839 designs you to be you. You are intended for something 00:20:43.839 --> 00:20:46.779 bigger than yourself, for a task that is God 00:20:46.779 --> 00:20:50.460 -sized. He's fashioned you for it, as He fashioned 00:20:50.460 --> 00:20:54.380 Nehemiah for this moment. Second observation 00:20:54.380 --> 00:20:58.019 is this. You are resourced by God for the task. 00:20:59.460 --> 00:21:01.759 Here's a basic lesson in life, that God never 00:21:01.759 --> 00:21:05.519 calls to a task without providing what is needed 00:21:05.519 --> 00:21:10.079 to accomplish it. He did with Moses. We won't 00:21:10.079 --> 00:21:12.240 take time this morning to go back and read Exodus 00:21:12.240 --> 00:21:15.700 chapters three and four, where Moses is called 00:21:15.700 --> 00:21:18.099 by God and he responds, but it's a tentative 00:21:18.099 --> 00:21:21.400 response, and he feels that he doesn't have what 00:21:21.400 --> 00:21:25.220 it takes. And he tries to get away from God's 00:21:25.220 --> 00:21:28.859 purpose. And finally, God shuts him up and he 00:21:28.859 --> 00:21:32.119 says, I've made you just the way you are. I will 00:21:32.119 --> 00:21:39.539 be with you. God will be with you. He has given 00:21:39.539 --> 00:21:44.440 you the resources that you have. He has given 00:21:44.440 --> 00:21:48.180 you the physical and mental capacity that you 00:21:48.180 --> 00:21:51.440 have. the relationships that are in your life. 00:21:51.460 --> 00:21:55.579 He's given you your income or the inherited wealth 00:21:55.579 --> 00:21:59.960 that you have. He has provided for you the job 00:21:59.960 --> 00:22:02.200 where you work or that position of influence 00:22:02.200 --> 00:22:05.980 that you have in the community. It is God who 00:22:05.980 --> 00:22:08.839 has given you your ability or the skill that 00:22:08.839 --> 00:22:11.420 you have. It is God who has placed in you as 00:22:11.420 --> 00:22:15.680 his followers spiritual gifts. God fashioned 00:22:15.680 --> 00:22:19.940 your personality in a particular way. and God 00:22:19.940 --> 00:22:23.220 gives you your time. That's one way in which 00:22:23.220 --> 00:22:25.420 we're all equal. He gives all of us 24 hours 00:22:25.420 --> 00:22:30.640 a day. All of these resources of your life may 00:22:30.640 --> 00:22:36.559 be put at risk by God's calling. If you will 00:22:36.559 --> 00:22:39.339 live on the edge, you must be willing to risk 00:22:39.339 --> 00:22:43.920 those resources. Now in Nehemiah's case, he was 00:22:43.920 --> 00:22:47.730 the cupbearer of the king. Now, he was a Jew 00:22:47.730 --> 00:22:51.730 in that position. Isn't that interesting? It 00:22:51.730 --> 00:22:54.069 reminds us of Daniel, who lived perhaps 100 years 00:22:54.069 --> 00:22:59.190 before this and more, and who was in a high position 00:22:59.190 --> 00:23:03.549 in a Gentile government. And here we have a Jew 00:23:03.549 --> 00:23:08.990 who is the cup bearer to Artaxerxes I of Persia. 00:23:09.950 --> 00:23:13.670 He was trusted. The king had great confidence 00:23:13.670 --> 00:23:17.480 in any man who was his cup bearer. He tasted 00:23:17.480 --> 00:23:21.140 the king's wine and his food before he ate it 00:23:21.140 --> 00:23:26.099 to be sure that it was not poisoned. He was responsible 00:23:26.099 --> 00:23:28.700 for the safety of the king and the queen, so 00:23:28.700 --> 00:23:30.720 in that sense we might say that Nehemiah was 00:23:30.720 --> 00:23:33.380 the head of the secret service of our exerxes 00:23:33.380 --> 00:23:37.299 the first. The most powerful man in all of the 00:23:37.299 --> 00:23:40.539 world, and here's Nehemiah protecting his life, 00:23:40.660 --> 00:23:43.960 and now he has been in his reign some 20 years. 00:23:45.180 --> 00:23:48.099 As the cup bearer, as the head of the Secret 00:23:48.099 --> 00:23:51.819 Service for Arctic Xerxes, he had direct access 00:23:51.819 --> 00:23:55.940 to the king. Not very many people in all the 00:23:55.940 --> 00:24:01.680 world had that. It was privileged. It was rare. 00:24:03.279 --> 00:24:06.180 And so it seems to me that his primary resource 00:24:06.180 --> 00:24:11.700 is his position of influence. It was the job 00:24:11.700 --> 00:24:20.099 that he had. and he had to risk it. God places 00:24:20.099 --> 00:24:26.519 resources into your hands also. Not to be comfortable, 00:24:27.720 --> 00:24:32.559 not for self aggrandizement, not to play it safe, 00:24:33.779 --> 00:24:37.720 not to retire into disengagement with his work, 00:24:39.099 --> 00:24:41.640 but he has placed whatever resources you have 00:24:41.640 --> 00:24:47.059 into your hands to use. in his calling, in his 00:24:47.059 --> 00:24:51.900 vision that he is placing upon you. When God 00:24:51.900 --> 00:24:57.599 gives you a vision, look also for what he's given 00:24:57.599 --> 00:25:03.700 you to get started. Look around and see what 00:25:03.700 --> 00:25:06.700 resources God has provided for you that you might 00:25:06.700 --> 00:25:12.160 carry out the vision and use them. And if in 00:25:12.160 --> 00:25:17.009 fact you don't have the resource, to get started 00:25:17.009 --> 00:25:19.990 toward the vision, then perhaps you need to go 00:25:19.990 --> 00:25:22.509 back and see if you really understood the vision. 00:25:23.809 --> 00:25:27.230 Because you are resourced by God for the tasks 00:25:27.230 --> 00:25:31.130 that he brings into your life. Observation number 00:25:31.130 --> 00:25:35.910 three. You are called to live on the edge with 00:25:35.910 --> 00:25:41.880 God by faith. The resources that you have, your 00:25:41.880 --> 00:25:44.480 position, your influence, your skills, your abilities, 00:25:44.680 --> 00:25:48.759 your money, your wealth, none of those things 00:25:48.759 --> 00:25:55.660 dare become the end in your life. They are given 00:25:55.660 --> 00:26:02.259 to you as means to the end, which is God's purpose 00:26:02.259 --> 00:26:06.559 for you. And if you're going to realize that 00:26:06.559 --> 00:26:09.420 purpose, you must go right to the edge of your 00:26:09.420 --> 00:26:14.960 life and risk those resources, what God has given 00:26:14.960 --> 00:26:19.779 you, and trust Him in doing it. Don't allow yourself 00:26:19.779 --> 00:26:22.980 to build a comfort zone around yourself with 00:26:22.980 --> 00:26:27.599 those resources, but make them available to God 00:26:27.599 --> 00:26:30.859 and to His purpose. To realize a vision, you 00:26:30.859 --> 00:26:33.619 will face risk that will stretch your faith. 00:26:34.089 --> 00:26:39.069 You must. Nehemiah used his position and his 00:26:39.069 --> 00:26:42.130 influence with the king, and it was a huge risk. 00:26:43.029 --> 00:26:46.910 It required a great step of faith on the part 00:26:46.910 --> 00:26:50.930 of Nehemiah. He was in the king's presence and 00:26:50.930 --> 00:26:57.869 he looked sad. That was a no -no. No one was 00:26:57.869 --> 00:27:00.470 ever to be in the presence of the king and the 00:27:00.470 --> 00:27:04.259 queen. and be anything less than absolutely happy 00:27:04.259 --> 00:27:11.539 and joyful and humorous. But Nehemiah had a sad 00:27:11.539 --> 00:27:15.619 heart and countenance, a huge risk that could 00:27:15.619 --> 00:27:21.059 have cost his life. The king noticed and responds, 00:27:23.039 --> 00:27:25.740 and Nehemiah shares with him what's on his heavy 00:27:25.740 --> 00:27:28.880 heart, and the king says, how can I help you? 00:27:29.130 --> 00:27:32.589 And notice it says, then I prayed to the God 00:27:32.589 --> 00:27:35.410 of heaven. Now he had prayed before this, folks, 00:27:35.710 --> 00:27:38.069 but he takes a moment right now to breathe out 00:27:38.069 --> 00:27:41.970 this prayer, oh God, help me now. Help me now. 00:27:43.170 --> 00:27:45.630 And he says, I answered the king, if it pleases 00:27:45.630 --> 00:27:47.690 the king, and if your servant has found favor 00:27:47.690 --> 00:27:52.029 in your sight, let him send me to the city in 00:27:52.029 --> 00:27:54.190 Judah where my fathers are buried so that I can 00:27:54.190 --> 00:27:57.650 rebuild it. And the king with the queen sitting 00:27:57.650 --> 00:28:00.269 beside him asked me, How long will your journey 00:28:00.269 --> 00:28:03.309 take and when will you get back? In other words, 00:28:03.329 --> 00:28:06.809 he said, go. How long will you be gone, Nehemiah? 00:28:06.849 --> 00:28:09.430 When are you gonna come back to me? It pleased 00:28:09.430 --> 00:28:14.009 the king to send me. So I set a time. Do you 00:28:14.009 --> 00:28:18.130 see how he risked here? And he acknowledges that 00:28:18.130 --> 00:28:23.450 he was afraid in verse two. I was very much afraid. 00:28:24.670 --> 00:28:29.680 Whenever you risk yourself. Whenever you move 00:28:29.680 --> 00:28:31.700 to the edge of your life, you're going to be 00:28:31.700 --> 00:28:35.440 afraid, because that may be new territory for 00:28:35.440 --> 00:28:38.759 you. Some of us have never lived on the edge. 00:28:40.900 --> 00:28:45.980 Nehemiah was afraid, but he prayed, and God gave 00:28:45.980 --> 00:28:48.119 him courage. You see, courage is not the absence 00:28:48.119 --> 00:28:52.980 of fear. It's the power to overcome fear. GK 00:28:52.980 --> 00:28:55.619 Chesterson wrote about courage. He said, courage 00:28:55.619 --> 00:28:58.980 is almost a contradiction in terms. It means 00:28:58.980 --> 00:29:04.460 a strong desire to live taking the form of a 00:29:04.460 --> 00:29:08.700 readiness to die. Then he quotes Jesus. He that 00:29:08.700 --> 00:29:10.980 will lose his life the same shall save it is 00:29:10.980 --> 00:29:13.420 not a piece of mysticism for saints and heroes. 00:29:14.920 --> 00:29:17.799 The paradox is the whole principle of courage. 00:29:19.900 --> 00:29:22.279 A soldier surrounded by enemies, if he's to cut 00:29:22.279 --> 00:29:24.559 his way out, needs to combine a strong desire 00:29:24.559 --> 00:29:26.720 for living with a strange carelessness about 00:29:26.720 --> 00:29:30.660 dying. He must not merely cling to life, for 00:29:30.660 --> 00:29:33.559 then he would be a coward and would not escape. 00:29:34.420 --> 00:29:36.980 He must not merely wait for death, for then that 00:29:36.980 --> 00:29:40.359 would be suicide and he will not escape. He must 00:29:40.359 --> 00:29:44.839 seek his life in a spirit of furious indifference 00:29:44.839 --> 00:29:49.779 to it. He must desire life like water and yet 00:29:49.779 --> 00:29:55.359 drink death like wine. Reminds me of Paul on 00:29:55.359 --> 00:29:58.250 his way to Jerusalem. He had a vision. God laid 00:29:58.250 --> 00:30:01.009 it on his heart that he needed to take relief 00:30:01.009 --> 00:30:06.390 to the poor saints in Jerusalem. And he pressed 00:30:06.390 --> 00:30:08.829 to go there, and people warned him as he's traveling 00:30:08.829 --> 00:30:11.589 back, there's gonna be problems, Paul. You're 00:30:11.589 --> 00:30:14.789 gonna get in trouble. There's gonna be suffering 00:30:14.789 --> 00:30:18.029 ahead for you. And Paul said, I don't care what 00:30:18.029 --> 00:30:21.410 happens to my life. He said, the one thing I 00:30:21.410 --> 00:30:23.630 wanna do is to finish the course that God has 00:30:23.630 --> 00:30:28.960 set out for me. That's the spirit. It's not just 00:30:28.960 --> 00:30:31.819 Paul and Moses and Nehemiah, but it's you and 00:30:31.819 --> 00:30:34.240 me too who are called to live on the edge with 00:30:34.240 --> 00:30:38.680 God by faith. And finally, you are supplied by 00:30:38.680 --> 00:30:43.940 God for success. When you release to God what 00:30:43.940 --> 00:30:48.559 you have, what you have, He releases to you what 00:30:48.559 --> 00:30:53.519 you don't have. Nehemiah put it all on the line 00:30:53.519 --> 00:30:56.589 for the sake of the cause. And he says in verse 00:30:56.589 --> 00:30:58.849 seven, I said to him, if it pleases the king, 00:30:59.250 --> 00:31:02.490 may I have letters to the governors of Trans 00:31:02.490 --> 00:31:05.569 -Euphrates so that they will provide me safe 00:31:05.569 --> 00:31:08.809 conduct until I arrive in Judah? And may I have 00:31:08.809 --> 00:31:11.750 a letter to Asaph, keeper of the king's forest, 00:31:12.230 --> 00:31:14.809 so he will give me timber to make beams for the 00:31:14.809 --> 00:31:17.650 gates of the citadel by the temple and for the 00:31:17.650 --> 00:31:20.410 city wall and for the residence I will occupy? 00:31:21.249 --> 00:31:26.430 And because the gracious hand of my God was upon 00:31:26.430 --> 00:31:31.690 me, the king granted my requests. And so I went 00:31:31.690 --> 00:31:34.150 to the governors of Transufredes and gave them 00:31:34.150 --> 00:31:37.769 the king's letters. The king had also sent army 00:31:37.769 --> 00:31:42.410 officers and cavalry with me. You see, Nehemiah 00:31:42.410 --> 00:31:46.430 risked what God had given him. And when he dared 00:31:46.430 --> 00:31:48.970 step to the edge with that and give it to God, 00:31:49.269 --> 00:31:51.990 God said, This is my opportunity, and he came 00:31:51.990 --> 00:31:54.089 through and he gave Nehemiah everything that 00:31:54.089 --> 00:31:57.589 he needed, including a bodyguard to protect him 00:31:57.589 --> 00:32:03.490 on this long journey. You are supplied by God 00:32:03.490 --> 00:32:08.990 for success. When you make available to God what 00:32:08.990 --> 00:32:13.250 he has given you, you open the door to God's 00:32:13.250 --> 00:32:17.589 abundance in your life. And the converse is true 00:32:17.589 --> 00:32:21.619 also. If you hold back what God has given to 00:32:21.619 --> 00:32:24.299 you, you will not experience God's abundance. 00:32:27.920 --> 00:32:30.319 I want to challenge you to live on the edge with 00:32:30.319 --> 00:32:37.819 your resources. It's risky. It's risky. But there's 00:32:37.819 --> 00:32:41.299 no place in the world that is more secure than 00:32:41.299 --> 00:32:47.279 on the risky edge with God. J .I. Packer. great 00:32:47.279 --> 00:32:50.000 theologian in language that is very unaccustomed 00:32:50.000 --> 00:32:53.359 to him, says, it needs to be said loud and clear 00:32:53.359 --> 00:32:56.480 that in the kingdom of God, there ain't no comfort 00:32:56.480 --> 00:33:00.059 zone and never will be. Now that doesn't sound 00:33:00.059 --> 00:33:03.519 like a theologian, but that's what he said. In 00:33:03.519 --> 00:33:06.420 God's kingdom, he says, there ain't no comfort 00:33:06.420 --> 00:33:13.599 zone and there never will be. So if that's true, 00:33:14.640 --> 00:33:18.400 I have to ask myself as I sit in my comfort zone, 00:33:19.039 --> 00:33:24.900 how far am I from the kingdom of God? I would 00:33:24.900 --> 00:33:28.980 sum up what I pray as your response to this message 00:33:28.980 --> 00:33:34.559 in just a couple of phrases. What do you do with 00:33:34.559 --> 00:33:38.140 the resources that God has placed in your power? 00:33:39.720 --> 00:33:42.539 The influence, the position, the abilities, the 00:33:42.539 --> 00:33:44.819 skill, the spiritual gift, the personality, the 00:33:44.819 --> 00:33:46.819 money, the wealth, whatever it is God has given 00:33:46.819 --> 00:33:50.759 you. What do you do with it? Answer. Don't hold 00:33:50.759 --> 00:33:57.880 back. Don't hold back. Give God your best. That's 00:33:57.880 --> 00:34:03.880 it. Don't hold back on anything. Give God your 00:34:03.880 --> 00:34:09.530 best. I have before me today a letter that was 00:34:09.530 --> 00:34:12.690 written by a Southern Baptist missionary to Iraq. 00:34:14.550 --> 00:34:19.670 Karen Watson grew up in Bakersfield. She served 00:34:19.670 --> 00:34:23.030 the Lord in a number of countries. Before she 00:34:23.030 --> 00:34:26.530 left for Iraq, she wrote a letter to her pastor 00:34:26.530 --> 00:34:29.530 and assistant pastor in her church, the Valley 00:34:29.530 --> 00:34:33.170 Baptist Church in Bakersfield. She sealed it 00:34:33.170 --> 00:34:35.070 and she said, don't open this unless something 00:34:35.070 --> 00:34:40.539 happens to me. The letter was dated March 7th, 00:34:40.599 --> 00:34:46.440 2003. One day, one week, and one year later, 00:34:47.599 --> 00:34:50.820 she was killed along with four other missionaries 00:34:50.820 --> 00:34:57.159 in a drive -by shooting in Mosul. They opened 00:34:57.159 --> 00:35:03.519 the letter. Dear Pastor Phil and Pastor Roger, 00:35:04.429 --> 00:35:06.710 You should only be opening this letter in the 00:35:06.710 --> 00:35:11.769 event of my death. When God calls, there are 00:35:11.769 --> 00:35:15.829 no regrets. I tried to share my heart with you 00:35:15.829 --> 00:35:18.050 as much as possible, my heart for the nations. 00:35:19.510 --> 00:35:24.409 I wasn't called to a place. I was called to Him. 00:35:26.309 --> 00:35:29.190 To obey was my objective. To suffer was expected. 00:35:29.769 --> 00:35:35.889 His glory my reward. One of the most important 00:35:35.889 --> 00:35:38.429 things to remember right now is to preserve the 00:35:38.429 --> 00:35:41.650 work. I'm writing this as if I'm still working 00:35:41.650 --> 00:35:45.849 with my people group. I thank you all so much 00:35:45.849 --> 00:35:49.449 for your prayers and support. Surely your reward 00:35:49.449 --> 00:35:53.309 in heaven will be great. Thank you for investing 00:35:53.309 --> 00:35:57.510 in my life and spiritual well -being. Keep sending 00:35:57.510 --> 00:36:00.909 missionaries out. Keep raising up fine young 00:36:00.909 --> 00:36:06.059 pastors. In regards to any service, keep it small 00:36:06.059 --> 00:36:11.139 and simple. Yes, simply just preach the gospel. 00:36:12.840 --> 00:36:16.179 Be bold and preach the life -saving, life -changing, 00:36:16.739 --> 00:36:21.000 forever eternal gospel. Give glory to our Father. 00:36:23.059 --> 00:36:27.719 And then she inserted a little poem. It's entitled 00:36:27.719 --> 00:36:33.820 The Missionary Heart. It says, Care more than 00:36:33.820 --> 00:36:39.579 some think it's wise. Risk more than some think 00:36:39.579 --> 00:36:44.219 is safe. Dream more than some think is practical. 00:36:45.559 --> 00:36:52.800 Expect more than some think is possible. She 00:36:52.800 --> 00:36:57.440 continues, I was called not to comfort or to 00:36:57.440 --> 00:37:03.829 success, but to obedience. There is no joy outside 00:37:03.829 --> 00:37:08.670 of knowing Jesus and serving him. I love you, 00:37:09.050 --> 00:37:19.469 too, and my church family. In his care, Salam, 00:37:20.789 --> 00:37:29.590 Karen. She risked it all. And she would say to 00:37:29.590 --> 00:37:39.099 you and me today, It was worth it. Let's pray 00:37:39.099 --> 00:37:46.239 Father we are so prone To build into our lives 00:37:46.239 --> 00:37:51.940 lots of space for comfort and pleasing ourselves 00:37:51.940 --> 00:37:55.780 For using the resources that you have put into 00:37:55.780 --> 00:38:02.800 our hands for toys and fun And for enjoying ourselves 00:38:02.800 --> 00:38:07.650 and meeting our needs and not being part of the 00:38:07.650 --> 00:38:12.750 kingdom. I pray that as we study Nehemiah, every 00:38:12.750 --> 00:38:15.349 one of us will learn to live on the edge and 00:38:15.349 --> 00:38:19.590 will make that commitment to do so. And with 00:38:19.590 --> 00:38:21.829 our heads bowed and our eyes closed right now 00:38:21.829 --> 00:38:24.309 and as the worship team comes to the platform, 00:38:24.869 --> 00:38:28.250 I want to ask you, where you're seated, just 00:38:28.250 --> 00:38:30.630 in the quietness of your heart, to say, Lord, 00:38:31.789 --> 00:38:36.760 teach me to live on the edge. Now that may be 00:38:36.760 --> 00:38:39.039 a great step of faith for you because you don't 00:38:39.039 --> 00:38:42.519 even know yet what that might mean. Or maybe 00:38:42.519 --> 00:38:45.539 God has already begun a burden in your heart 00:38:45.539 --> 00:38:48.739 and a vision is about to be birthed through your 00:38:48.739 --> 00:38:51.780 tears and your prayers. I don't know where you 00:38:51.780 --> 00:38:54.880 are in that process of vision, but this I know, 00:38:55.800 --> 00:39:00.699 that you will never experience God as he wants 00:39:00.699 --> 00:39:05.679 you to experience him. until you step onto the 00:39:05.679 --> 00:39:10.280 edge of your life with the resources that he's 00:39:10.280 --> 00:39:16.420 put into your hand. Don't hold back. Give God 00:39:16.420 --> 00:39:19.900 your best. Amen.