WEBVTT 00:00:08.739 --> 00:00:12.939 Thank you so much. Choir, quartet, how exciting. 00:00:13.000 --> 00:00:19.640 What a great number, huh? Steve, I think you're 00:00:19.640 --> 00:00:21.460 right. We touched all the bases today. If you 00:00:21.460 --> 00:00:26.000 didn't hear your style of music today, don't 00:00:26.000 --> 00:00:30.539 let me know about it. Well, today we're going 00:00:30.539 --> 00:00:34.179 to talk about somebody who faced mountains, and 00:00:34.179 --> 00:00:37.289 maybe you do too. We're going to turn in the 00:00:37.289 --> 00:00:39.570 book of Nehemiah and continue on the series of 00:00:39.570 --> 00:00:43.490 living on the edge today with obstacles or we 00:00:43.490 --> 00:00:47.170 might say with mountains. Do you ever feel like 00:00:47.170 --> 00:00:50.990 you're in deep trouble and you don't know what 00:00:50.990 --> 00:00:53.549 to do about it? Well, you might want to take 00:00:53.549 --> 00:00:56.929 the advice that's on the screen right now. Look 00:00:56.929 --> 00:01:08.670 at it closely. Sometimes trouble comes to you 00:01:08.670 --> 00:01:11.090 and to me because of our own foolishness and 00:01:11.090 --> 00:01:14.890 sometimes it comes because of what we've done 00:01:14.890 --> 00:01:18.510 right. The greatest adventure that you can have 00:01:18.510 --> 00:01:22.189 is to live on the edge with God, to do things 00:01:22.189 --> 00:01:26.810 right. To do that, you have to make choices in 00:01:26.810 --> 00:01:29.709 your life. You have to leave behind the soft 00:01:29.709 --> 00:01:33.769 cushions of your comfort zone and stand at the 00:01:33.769 --> 00:01:39.060 precipice of risk. not careless or foolish risk, 00:01:39.900 --> 00:01:44.700 but faith -filled risk, the kind of risk that 00:01:44.700 --> 00:01:48.439 believes that God exists and that He rewards 00:01:48.439 --> 00:01:52.980 those who earnestly seek Him. That's the edge 00:01:52.980 --> 00:01:57.400 of life where you and I will gain God's approval. 00:01:59.099 --> 00:02:01.980 Some imagine that when you take a step like that, 00:02:02.079 --> 00:02:06.200 it will result in painless, unchallenged progress. 00:02:07.239 --> 00:02:11.219 They imagine that. They think that since it's 00:02:11.219 --> 00:02:13.900 God's vision that they've responded to and they're 00:02:13.900 --> 00:02:17.639 stepping on the edge for Christ's sake, everything 00:02:17.639 --> 00:02:21.060 from that point of decision is now going to be 00:02:21.060 --> 00:02:27.340 smooth and effortless. One word for you. Hello? 00:02:29.460 --> 00:02:32.580 The lights may be on, but is anybody at home? 00:02:33.580 --> 00:02:35.900 You see, it just doesn't work that way. That's 00:02:35.900 --> 00:02:41.219 not the biblical view of reality. In fact, the 00:02:41.219 --> 00:02:44.060 Bible tells us that any God -given task in your 00:02:44.060 --> 00:02:49.800 life will be ferociously opposed. Why is that? 00:02:51.620 --> 00:02:55.180 Well, Peter says it this way. Your enemy, the 00:02:55.180 --> 00:02:58.900 devil, prowls around like a roaring lion looking 00:02:58.900 --> 00:03:04.719 for someone to devour. Resist him. standing firm 00:03:04.719 --> 00:03:07.520 in the faith because you know that your brothers 00:03:07.520 --> 00:03:09.520 throughout the world are undergoing the same 00:03:09.520 --> 00:03:12.659 kind of sufferings. Peter is saying to you and 00:03:12.659 --> 00:03:15.979 me that life is a battleground, not a playground. 00:03:17.460 --> 00:03:21.580 Now because when you and I step to the edge of 00:03:21.580 --> 00:03:25.340 our lives and we are then ferociously opposed, 00:03:25.919 --> 00:03:31.960 we must be strong. We must stand. Firm in the 00:03:31.960 --> 00:03:36.740 faith as Peter has told us. Paul continues saying 00:03:36.740 --> 00:03:40.020 the same thing. Finally be strong in the Lord 00:03:40.020 --> 00:03:43.259 and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor 00:03:43.259 --> 00:03:46.300 of God so that you can take your stand against 00:03:46.300 --> 00:03:49.740 the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not 00:03:49.740 --> 00:03:52.659 against flesh and blood but against the rulers. 00:03:53.000 --> 00:03:55.979 against the authorities, against the powers of 00:03:55.979 --> 00:03:59.819 this dark world, and against the spiritual forces 00:03:59.819 --> 00:04:06.080 of evil in the heavenly realms. Nehemiah lived 00:04:06.080 --> 00:04:13.020 on the edge, and it brought him opposition. Nehemiah 00:04:13.020 --> 00:04:17.319 had to deal with stuff, just like you and I have 00:04:17.319 --> 00:04:20.660 to deal with stuff in life when we're going to 00:04:20.660 --> 00:04:25.040 live for God. By looking at the text in Nehemiah 00:04:25.040 --> 00:04:28.660 today, I want us to see some of the weapons that 00:04:28.660 --> 00:04:33.139 are commonly used by our enemy, the devil, to 00:04:33.139 --> 00:04:38.180 thwart, to disrupt, to discourage you in the 00:04:38.180 --> 00:04:43.139 work that God has called you to do. The first 00:04:43.139 --> 00:04:45.540 weapon that was used against Nehemiah and is 00:04:45.540 --> 00:04:50.620 sometimes used against you is ridicule, ridicule. 00:04:50.750 --> 00:04:54.589 Look in chapter 2 and verse 19, when Sanballat 00:04:54.589 --> 00:04:58.790 the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official, and 00:04:58.790 --> 00:05:01.990 Gesham the Arab heard about it, that they're 00:05:01.990 --> 00:05:05.370 rebuilding the walls, they mocked and ridiculed 00:05:05.370 --> 00:05:11.110 us. What is this you are doing? They asked. Are 00:05:11.110 --> 00:05:16.209 you rebelling against the king? It continues, 00:05:16.269 --> 00:05:21.959 chapter 4 verse 1. Are you able to see okay? 00:05:22.060 --> 00:05:26.480 Is it too dark in here for you to read? Some 00:05:26.480 --> 00:05:28.379 of you say fine, others of you, I notice we have 00:05:28.379 --> 00:05:31.660 some lights out, so if you can't read, just lift 00:05:31.660 --> 00:05:33.279 your hand, we'll turn the lights up a little 00:05:33.279 --> 00:05:37.839 bit. Chapter four, verse one. When Sanballat 00:05:37.839 --> 00:05:41.420 heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became 00:05:41.420 --> 00:05:45.079 angry and was greatly incensed. He ridiculed 00:05:45.079 --> 00:05:48.250 the Jews. And in the presence of his associates 00:05:48.250 --> 00:05:51.949 in the army of Samaria, he said, what are those 00:05:51.949 --> 00:05:57.009 feeble Jews doing? Will they restore their wall? 00:05:57.689 --> 00:06:01.370 Will they offer sacrifices? Will they finish 00:06:01.370 --> 00:06:06.149 in a day? Can they bring the stones back to life 00:06:06.149 --> 00:06:10.829 from those heaps of rubble burned as they are? 00:06:11.889 --> 00:06:16.060 Notice the ridicule here. Charles Simon Simmons 00:06:16.060 --> 00:06:20.439 said, ridicule is the first and last argument 00:06:20.439 --> 00:06:24.459 of fools. It's commonly used, isn't it? We hear 00:06:24.459 --> 00:06:29.540 it a lot today. Perhaps because it is such, it 00:06:29.540 --> 00:06:32.199 seems the weapon of choice, especially among 00:06:32.199 --> 00:06:35.759 the leftists in our country. From politicians 00:06:35.759 --> 00:06:40.100 to late night talk shows to entertainers, ridicule 00:06:40.100 --> 00:06:44.350 is the weapon of choice. Now it is one thing 00:06:44.350 --> 00:06:48.689 to disagree thoughtfully and to bring a reasonable, 00:06:49.209 --> 00:06:52.350 intellectual argument for your position. But 00:06:52.350 --> 00:06:54.790 because the left in this country is absolutely 00:06:54.790 --> 00:06:58.970 bankrupt of such arguments, it resorts to mockery 00:06:58.970 --> 00:07:01.410 and derision. I've never seen anything like it 00:07:01.410 --> 00:07:04.790 in my lifetime. Now derision and mockery have 00:07:04.790 --> 00:07:08.980 been used in the past, to be sure. In fact, 150 00:07:08.980 --> 00:07:11.480 years ago, it was worse, believe it or not, in 00:07:11.480 --> 00:07:15.279 politics than it is today. But in my lifetime, 00:07:15.379 --> 00:07:19.899 I've never seen so much ridicule being used against 00:07:19.899 --> 00:07:23.540 leaders in our nation, and especially against 00:07:23.540 --> 00:07:28.560 our president. In the last five years, he has 00:07:28.560 --> 00:07:31.620 faced an amount of ridicule that would make most 00:07:31.620 --> 00:07:35.240 men cringe and crawl back into a place of safety. 00:07:35.529 --> 00:07:39.449 I admire him for pressing ahead. Ridicule is 00:07:39.449 --> 00:07:42.350 not a new tactic, though. Don't think it. Don't 00:07:42.350 --> 00:07:47.990 think it. James Bernadeli, writing a review of 00:07:47.990 --> 00:07:53.290 Patrice Lacan's 1996 French movie Ridicule, describes 00:07:53.290 --> 00:07:59.089 ridicule in these words. He says, the pen, or 00:07:59.089 --> 00:08:03.129 rather the word, is truly mightier than the sword. 00:08:03.600 --> 00:08:07.120 In late 18th century France before the advent 00:08:07.120 --> 00:08:11.399 of the guillotine, wit was used as often for 00:08:11.399 --> 00:08:14.579 pain and humiliation as it was for pleasure. 00:08:15.339 --> 00:08:18.420 Those who had mastered the art of ridicule could, 00:08:18.420 --> 00:08:22.860 with one turn of a phrase, strip a less adept 00:08:22.860 --> 00:08:27.519 opponent of pride and position. The humor in 00:08:27.519 --> 00:08:29.620 ridicule, he's talking about the movie, such 00:08:29.620 --> 00:08:35.000 as it is, is exceptionally savage. Laconte and 00:08:35.000 --> 00:08:37.379 screenwriter Remy Waterhouse have not designed 00:08:37.379 --> 00:08:41.559 this film to offer inconsequential laughs, as 00:08:41.559 --> 00:08:45.159 in another film they had. There's calculated 00:08:45.159 --> 00:08:50.679 malice behind each barbed riposte. But while 00:08:50.679 --> 00:08:53.600 nearly every comic aspect of ridicule is mean 00:08:53.600 --> 00:08:56.940 -spirited, it's difficult not to appreciate the 00:08:56.940 --> 00:08:59.279 intelligence behind the most vicious strikes. 00:09:00.519 --> 00:09:03.259 Now do you see some of the words that are used 00:09:03.259 --> 00:09:07.080 there to describe this movie? That's what ridicule 00:09:07.080 --> 00:09:12.580 as an art and a science is all about. It's wit 00:09:12.580 --> 00:09:18.620 that is used for pain. It's intended to humiliate 00:09:18.620 --> 00:09:26.299 the object of it. The turn of a phrase can strip 00:09:26.299 --> 00:09:29.840 an opponent of pride and position. It can be 00:09:29.840 --> 00:09:35.320 exceptionally savage. There's calculated malice 00:09:35.320 --> 00:09:40.100 behind each of the barbed comments. That's why 00:09:40.100 --> 00:09:43.639 perhaps ridicule might be spelled ridicule, cruel, 00:09:45.220 --> 00:09:47.960 because you see ridicule is a dagger that is 00:09:47.960 --> 00:09:53.139 cloaked in a pillow of humor, using laughter 00:09:53.139 --> 00:09:57.779 to humiliate and destroy someone else. In First 00:09:57.779 --> 00:10:00.220 Corinthians, Paul tells us that the gospel of 00:10:00.220 --> 00:10:04.500 the crucified Messiah was ridiculed by the Gentiles. 00:10:05.539 --> 00:10:08.580 To them it was absolute foolishness to think 00:10:08.580 --> 00:10:14.320 that a savior would die on a cross. It's illustrated 00:10:14.320 --> 00:10:17.399 in a piece of Roman graffiti which comes from 00:10:17.399 --> 00:10:21.970 the second century A .D. This was found on Palatine 00:10:21.970 --> 00:10:26.029 Hill, and it shows Christ being crucified, only 00:10:26.029 --> 00:10:28.610 his head has been replaced with the head of a 00:10:28.610 --> 00:10:33.509 donkey. Before the cross stands another person 00:10:33.509 --> 00:10:36.590 with his arm upraised in worship and written 00:10:36.590 --> 00:10:42.250 underneath, in Greek are these words, Alexomenas 00:10:42.250 --> 00:10:47.529 worships his God. To the creator of this piece 00:10:47.529 --> 00:10:51.080 of second century graffiti, To worship Christ 00:10:51.080 --> 00:10:57.220 was to worship a donkey. Today you and I face 00:10:57.220 --> 00:11:00.899 similar kinds of ridicule. A piece of modern 00:11:00.899 --> 00:11:06.100 art places the crucifix in a jar of urine and 00:11:06.100 --> 00:11:09.240 it's applauded by the elite in the art world. 00:11:11.320 --> 00:11:14.679 There is a stereotypical depiction of Christians 00:11:14.679 --> 00:11:19.600 in entertainment as bumbling and ignorant. and 00:11:19.600 --> 00:11:28.100 obscurantists. The media has bias and it slants 00:11:28.100 --> 00:11:32.919 its stories subtly against those who are believers 00:11:32.919 --> 00:11:37.379 in Jesus Christ. We see the same bias in what 00:11:37.379 --> 00:11:40.200 is presented publicly in the media regarding 00:11:40.200 --> 00:11:44.840 intelligent design, where some states and school 00:11:44.840 --> 00:11:50.320 districts have said that intelligent design should 00:11:50.320 --> 00:11:53.279 be taught equally as a theory with Darwin's theory 00:11:53.279 --> 00:12:00.120 of evolution. That very idea is ridiculed mercilessly 00:12:00.120 --> 00:12:04.320 in the press. And this last week we've had a 00:12:04.320 --> 00:12:08.779 Supreme Court nominee who horrors of horrors 00:12:08.779 --> 00:12:11.639 believes that the Bible should be interpreted 00:12:11.639 --> 00:12:15.669 literally. While you would think that the world 00:12:15.669 --> 00:12:18.929 is coming to an end, that such a narrow -minded 00:12:18.929 --> 00:12:21.789 person would be considered for the Supreme Court, 00:12:22.610 --> 00:12:27.009 this is how ridicule works. It is a very common 00:12:27.009 --> 00:12:31.230 tool of the enemy. Nehemiah faced it almost immediately 00:12:31.230 --> 00:12:36.009 when he went to work, and so do you. If you take 00:12:36.009 --> 00:12:38.950 a stand for Jesus Christ that isn't politically 00:12:38.950 --> 00:12:43.679 correct, or if you determine not to defile yourself 00:12:43.679 --> 00:12:47.759 with the same activities as your peers in school, 00:12:47.759 --> 00:12:51.940 or if you step to the edge of your life in obeying 00:12:51.940 --> 00:12:55.700 God, the enemy is going to come at you and he's 00:12:55.700 --> 00:12:58.320 going to come at you from unsuspected places 00:12:58.320 --> 00:13:02.740 and sometimes with ridicule. It can come from 00:13:02.740 --> 00:13:07.360 family members. It can come from parents. It 00:13:07.360 --> 00:13:10.860 can come from people at work. It can come from 00:13:10.860 --> 00:13:15.279 fellow students. They will make fun of you, seeking 00:13:15.279 --> 00:13:20.820 to humiliate you. How do you remain strong in 00:13:20.820 --> 00:13:25.480 the face of ridicule? Follow Nehemiah's example. 00:13:25.539 --> 00:13:29.919 Look in chapter four and verse four. After the 00:13:29.919 --> 00:13:32.399 ridicule of the previous verses, he says, hear 00:13:32.399 --> 00:13:38.220 us, O our God, for we are despised. Turn their 00:13:38.220 --> 00:13:42.159 insults back on their own heads. Give them over 00:13:42.159 --> 00:13:45.460 as plunder in the land of captivity. Do not cover 00:13:45.460 --> 00:13:48.259 up their guilt or blot out their sins from our 00:13:48.259 --> 00:13:51.059 sight, for they have thrown insults in the face 00:13:51.059 --> 00:13:55.159 of the builders." What did he do? Nehemiah gave 00:13:55.159 --> 00:13:59.019 the insults to God, and he says, God, you deal 00:13:59.019 --> 00:14:02.820 with it. And he has some suggestions here as 00:14:02.820 --> 00:14:07.960 to how God might deal with it. That's what you 00:14:07.960 --> 00:14:11.620 and I can do as well when we are mocked and ridiculed 00:14:11.620 --> 00:14:15.120 for the name of Christ. We ought not to mock 00:14:15.120 --> 00:14:18.159 and ridicule back, but rather we ought to give 00:14:18.159 --> 00:14:20.340 the insults to God and let him deal with it. 00:14:20.379 --> 00:14:22.799 Believe me, God can deal with it a whole lot 00:14:22.799 --> 00:14:28.840 better than you and I can. There's not only ridicule 00:14:28.840 --> 00:14:31.700 the devil's arsenal. There's a second that we 00:14:31.700 --> 00:14:35.000 see that takes shape against Nehemiah. It is 00:14:35.000 --> 00:14:38.610 force. If ridicule doesn't work, if words don't 00:14:38.610 --> 00:14:42.309 work, then there will be force and intimidation 00:14:42.309 --> 00:14:48.509 in chapter four and verse seven. When Sanballat, 00:14:48.629 --> 00:14:54.389 Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the men 00:14:54.389 --> 00:14:57.769 of Ashdod heard that the repairs to Jerusalem's 00:14:57.769 --> 00:15:00.850 walls had gone ahead and the gaps were being 00:15:00.850 --> 00:15:04.559 closed, they were very angry. They all plotted 00:15:04.559 --> 00:15:07.220 together to come and fight against Jerusalem 00:15:07.220 --> 00:15:10.480 and stir up trouble against it. Do you notice 00:15:10.480 --> 00:15:16.279 that? In Nehemiah's time, even natural enemies 00:15:16.279 --> 00:15:21.200 became friends to oppose him. There was this 00:15:21.200 --> 00:15:25.700 strange alliance of people. The ridicule and 00:15:25.700 --> 00:15:29.399 the disdain did not discourage the workers, and 00:15:29.399 --> 00:15:34.009 so Satan... roared like a lion by coalescing 00:15:34.009 --> 00:15:37.590 some enemies to bring an intimidating threat 00:15:37.590 --> 00:15:42.409 against Nehemiah and the workers. He will not 00:15:42.409 --> 00:15:46.750 be easily put off this enemy of yours. You as 00:15:46.750 --> 00:15:50.230 one of the people of God face increasing persecution 00:15:50.230 --> 00:15:54.710 in our world today. We see it coming through 00:15:54.710 --> 00:16:00.240 judicial actions and through legislative decisions 00:16:00.240 --> 00:16:05.639 through the fiat of despots and all kinds of 00:16:05.639 --> 00:16:12.440 subtle coercion in the workplace to stand down, 00:16:13.799 --> 00:16:19.720 to back off your convictions. What did Nehemiah 00:16:19.720 --> 00:16:23.539 do in the face of force? Well, he goes on to 00:16:23.539 --> 00:16:28.720 say in our text, verse nine, but we prayed. to 00:16:28.720 --> 00:16:33.299 our God and posted a guard day and night to meet 00:16:33.299 --> 00:16:36.460 this threat. There's an example for you as to 00:16:36.460 --> 00:16:40.679 what to do. First of all, pray. When you are 00:16:40.679 --> 00:16:42.820 intimidated, when you are threatened with some 00:16:42.820 --> 00:16:46.620 action, when there is a force that has gathered 00:16:46.620 --> 00:16:50.340 against you, commit it to God, first of all. 00:16:50.799 --> 00:16:54.019 But Nehemiah also takes a practical action. He 00:16:54.019 --> 00:16:56.659 posts a guard. And sometimes there are practical 00:16:56.659 --> 00:17:00.879 actions that you and I need to take in the form 00:17:00.879 --> 00:17:05.240 of legal action ourselves. Or doing whatever 00:17:05.240 --> 00:17:08.720 we practically can to defend ourselves in the 00:17:08.720 --> 00:17:14.859 face of the force that gathers against us. But 00:17:14.859 --> 00:17:18.319 the devil didn't stop with this. Nehemiah countered 00:17:18.319 --> 00:17:22.730 the weapon. And so the devil tried another tact. 00:17:24.170 --> 00:17:26.609 In verse 10 it says, meanwhile the people in 00:17:26.609 --> 00:17:30.869 Judah said, the strength of the laborers is giving 00:17:30.869 --> 00:17:35.549 out and there is so much rubble that we cannot 00:17:35.549 --> 00:17:39.309 rebuild the wall. Also our enemies said, before 00:17:39.309 --> 00:17:41.970 they know it or see us, we will be right there 00:17:41.970 --> 00:17:44.769 among them and we'll kill them. and put an end 00:17:44.769 --> 00:17:47.470 to the work. Then the Jews who lived near them 00:17:47.470 --> 00:17:51.329 came and told us 10 times over, wherever you 00:17:51.329 --> 00:17:54.630 turn, they will attack us. What's happening here? 00:17:55.329 --> 00:18:00.130 Discouragement. Discouragement, one of the favorite 00:18:00.130 --> 00:18:04.609 tools of the devil. One author said, every great 00:18:04.609 --> 00:18:07.970 work, every great accomplishment has been brought 00:18:07.970 --> 00:18:10.809 into manifestation through holding to the vision. 00:18:11.109 --> 00:18:14.529 And often just before the big achievement comes 00:18:14.529 --> 00:18:19.990 apparent failure and discouragement. Discouragement 00:18:19.990 --> 00:18:23.430 is a great tool that the devil values very highly. 00:18:25.130 --> 00:18:28.430 In World War II, there was discouragement upon 00:18:28.430 --> 00:18:32.589 Britain because of the fierce attacks that came 00:18:32.589 --> 00:18:37.730 from the Nazis. But because one man was courageous 00:18:37.730 --> 00:18:41.210 and stood, the nation stood. And as you know, 00:18:41.509 --> 00:18:43.289 if you're a student of history, his name was 00:18:43.289 --> 00:18:49.430 Winston Churchill. As early as 1942, Winston 00:18:49.430 --> 00:18:52.670 Churchill returned to Harrow College to speak 00:18:52.670 --> 00:18:56.250 on an occasion. The war had just broken out not 00:18:56.250 --> 00:19:01.130 long before this, a couple of years. Churchill 00:19:01.130 --> 00:19:05.750 had been to the same college a year before. And 00:19:05.750 --> 00:19:09.329 now he comes back to speak again. The months 00:19:09.329 --> 00:19:13.130 in between his two speeches had seen catastrophic 00:19:13.130 --> 00:19:17.390 events in the war, including the attack on Pearl 00:19:17.390 --> 00:19:21.329 Harbor, so that now the United States was engaged 00:19:21.329 --> 00:19:23.970 with Britain in fighting their common enemies. 00:19:24.910 --> 00:19:29.170 It was in this speech at a difficult time of 00:19:29.170 --> 00:19:32.069 World War II when Churchill made the following 00:19:32.069 --> 00:19:35.170 comments to the students who were gathered before 00:19:35.170 --> 00:19:39.319 him. You cannot tell from appearances how things 00:19:39.319 --> 00:19:44.740 will go. Sometimes imagination makes things out 00:19:44.740 --> 00:19:48.519 far worse than they are. Yet without imagination 00:19:48.519 --> 00:19:52.700 not much can be done. Those people who are imaginative 00:19:52.700 --> 00:19:56.660 see many more dangers than perhaps exist. Certainly 00:19:56.660 --> 00:19:59.579 many more then will happen, but then they must 00:19:59.579 --> 00:20:03.259 also pray to be given that extra courage to carry 00:20:03.259 --> 00:20:07.299 this far -reaching imagination. But for everyone, 00:20:07.500 --> 00:20:11.099 surely what we have gone through in this period, 00:20:11.880 --> 00:20:14.720 surely from this period of 10 months, this is 00:20:14.720 --> 00:20:20.519 the lesson. Never give in. Never give in. Never, 00:20:20.660 --> 00:20:26.259 never, never, never. In nothing, great or small, 00:20:26.799 --> 00:20:33.480 large or petty, never give in. Except to convictions 00:20:33.480 --> 00:20:39.220 of honor. and good sense. And so this man stood, 00:20:39.460 --> 00:20:43.920 and because he stood, a nation stood. How did 00:20:43.920 --> 00:20:46.920 Nehemiah respond in the face of discouragement? 00:20:48.180 --> 00:20:50.500 Well, we notice that he addressed the fear by 00:20:50.500 --> 00:20:54.619 posting a guard so the people would not be afraid, 00:20:54.660 --> 00:20:57.400 and then he stood up and he gave the workers 00:20:57.400 --> 00:21:02.140 two reminders that we find in verse 14. He says 00:21:02.140 --> 00:21:09.269 to them, Don't be afraid of them He says remember 00:21:09.269 --> 00:21:15.309 the Lord who is great and awesome and Fight for 00:21:15.309 --> 00:21:18.009 your brothers your sons and your daughters your 00:21:18.009 --> 00:21:23.109 wives and your homes Two reminders in the face 00:21:23.109 --> 00:21:26.309 of discouragement number one the Lord is great 00:21:26.309 --> 00:21:30.930 and awesome Yes, indeed the threats may be very 00:21:30.930 --> 00:21:36.029 real The rubble may be piled deep around you 00:21:36.029 --> 00:21:38.990 in your life right now, and you feel like giving 00:21:38.990 --> 00:21:43.950 up. May I remind you, as Nehemiah reminded the 00:21:43.950 --> 00:21:47.390 people of God in that day, the Lord is great 00:21:47.390 --> 00:21:50.589 and awesome. He's bigger than that pile of rubble 00:21:50.589 --> 00:21:54.069 that you're trying to deal with. The Lord is 00:21:54.069 --> 00:21:57.369 great and awesome. Take your eyes off of the 00:21:57.369 --> 00:22:01.329 rubble and put them on your God. But then Nehemiah 00:22:01.329 --> 00:22:06.890 also says, remember this too, the end is worth 00:22:06.890 --> 00:22:12.329 the fight. He says, if you don't fight at this 00:22:12.329 --> 00:22:15.890 point, remember what you're going to lose. The 00:22:15.890 --> 00:22:20.089 people you love and your very homes will be destroyed. 00:22:22.369 --> 00:22:25.190 When you and I are discouraged, sometimes it's 00:22:25.190 --> 00:22:27.509 good for us also to look at the alternative. 00:22:28.109 --> 00:22:31.529 If we give up here in midstream, what's going 00:22:31.529 --> 00:22:35.009 to be the result of it? And we will usually find 00:22:35.009 --> 00:22:40.130 that that end makes the fight, even with discouragement, 00:22:40.390 --> 00:22:43.910 worthwhile. I hope that our government can remember 00:22:43.910 --> 00:22:46.250 that as we get pressure from the leftists of 00:22:46.250 --> 00:22:49.069 this country to withdraw immediately from Iraq. 00:22:51.139 --> 00:22:53.259 Whether or not you agree that we ought to be 00:22:53.259 --> 00:22:55.680 there, the fact is we are there and there is 00:22:55.680 --> 00:22:58.420 a fight and we had better finish it to the end, 00:22:59.880 --> 00:23:02.119 or the end is going to be far worse than we could 00:23:02.119 --> 00:23:14.359 ever imagine. The consequences are just too great 00:23:14.359 --> 00:23:17.680 to give up. It's worth pressing on. That was 00:23:17.680 --> 00:23:21.220 true in World War II. It's true in our nation's 00:23:21.220 --> 00:23:23.880 history right now and, my friend, it is true 00:23:23.880 --> 00:23:27.539 in your life. It is true in your life. Do not 00:23:27.539 --> 00:23:31.640 give in to discouragement. But the devil didn't 00:23:31.640 --> 00:23:34.099 stop there. He is piling it on, isn't he? He 00:23:34.099 --> 00:23:37.059 knows how to do that very, very well. For next 00:23:37.059 --> 00:23:40.680 he comes up with a plan of discord. It's in chapter 00:23:40.680 --> 00:23:43.799 five. You see, if the devil can't succeed from 00:23:43.799 --> 00:23:47.160 the outside in your life, he'll open up an offensive 00:23:47.160 --> 00:23:50.940 from the inside. The inside of your team, the 00:23:50.940 --> 00:23:54.119 inside of your congregation, the inside of your 00:23:54.119 --> 00:23:59.200 nation. The truth is that discord is one of his 00:23:59.200 --> 00:24:04.099 most effective tactics. If he can get you, as 00:24:04.099 --> 00:24:08.619 a child of God, distracted by fighting with somebody 00:24:08.619 --> 00:24:13.619 else, His work is 90 % done. He'll go sit down 00:24:13.619 --> 00:24:16.900 in the easy chair and watch you slug it out and 00:24:16.900 --> 00:24:21.680 enjoy the fight. The devil loves discord among 00:24:21.680 --> 00:24:25.440 the people of God. The outcry in chapter five 00:24:25.440 --> 00:24:28.400 surrounded a basic unfairness that was taking 00:24:28.400 --> 00:24:31.839 place. It's somewhat similar to the early church 00:24:31.839 --> 00:24:35.079 in Acts chapter six, the first dissension that 00:24:35.079 --> 00:24:38.410 occurred in the church. The poor were being oppressed 00:24:38.410 --> 00:24:45.269 by a wealthy few. The point here is this. The 00:24:45.269 --> 00:24:49.789 devil was trying to distract Nehemiah and the 00:24:49.789 --> 00:24:53.710 builders from their work by this dissension, 00:24:54.210 --> 00:24:57.890 by the discord among the people. Nehemiah had 00:24:57.890 --> 00:25:00.109 a problem on his hands. How was he going to handle 00:25:00.109 --> 00:25:04.650 this? How do you be strong and deal with discord 00:25:04.650 --> 00:25:09.099 in your home? or discord in your workplace, or 00:25:09.099 --> 00:25:12.519 discord in your fellowship, discord in your group. 00:25:12.579 --> 00:25:15.160 How do you be strong and deal with that? Well 00:25:15.160 --> 00:25:18.480 the answer to it is simple, and yet sometimes 00:25:18.480 --> 00:25:23.759 complex. It is this, you be a part of the solution, 00:25:24.859 --> 00:25:29.900 not a part of the problem. You choose to be a 00:25:29.900 --> 00:25:35.539 part of the solution, and not the problem. In 00:25:35.539 --> 00:25:38.960 Nehemiah's case, he corrected the wrong that 00:25:38.960 --> 00:25:43.140 had been done against the poor. He was part of 00:25:43.140 --> 00:25:46.279 the solution in that he himself conducted himself 00:25:46.279 --> 00:25:52.140 with honor and integrity. And then he continued 00:25:52.140 --> 00:25:54.420 the work. He pressed right on ahead as verse 00:25:54.420 --> 00:26:00.200 16 tells us. I devoted myself to the work on 00:26:00.200 --> 00:26:04.660 this wall. All my men were assembled. there for 00:26:04.660 --> 00:26:08.319 the work we did not acquire any land, talking 00:26:08.319 --> 00:26:12.039 about the issue that had taken place. And so 00:26:12.039 --> 00:26:16.220 he pressed ahead. He dealt with the injustice 00:26:16.220 --> 00:26:19.940 and then he united his troops and he went on 00:26:19.940 --> 00:26:24.759 with the work. But the devil didn't stop there. 00:26:25.819 --> 00:26:28.779 He had yet another tactic. It is one that is 00:26:28.779 --> 00:26:34.119 closest to his heart of all. It is the tactic 00:26:34.119 --> 00:26:42.420 of deceit. The devil is a liar and he loves to 00:26:42.420 --> 00:26:46.119 use lies. It's the essence of his character to 00:26:46.119 --> 00:26:50.539 be a liar. In Nehemiah's situation, there's a 00:26:50.539 --> 00:26:58.519 series of developments, deceptive attempts to 00:26:58.519 --> 00:27:02.019 distract or to frighten or discourage or discredit 00:27:02.170 --> 00:27:05.930 perhaps even to kill him. We don't have time 00:27:05.930 --> 00:27:08.269 this morning to read the narrative in detail 00:27:08.269 --> 00:27:12.309 in chapter six, verses one through 13, but you 00:27:12.309 --> 00:27:15.609 can read about it. There is this attempt to deceive 00:27:15.609 --> 00:27:18.930 him, to get him to come down to a certain location 00:27:18.930 --> 00:27:22.589 on the plain of Ono. Now, when they invited him 00:27:22.589 --> 00:27:24.849 to come to the plain of Ono, they made a tactical 00:27:24.849 --> 00:27:28.549 mistake, because they immediately planted in 00:27:28.549 --> 00:27:31.250 his mind the response that he should make, Ono. 00:27:31.599 --> 00:27:37.140 I'm not coming down. Oh no. Oh no to oh no. And 00:27:37.140 --> 00:27:38.920 so he didn't go down. He knew what they were 00:27:38.920 --> 00:27:41.579 up to. They wanted to do him harm. Other attempts 00:27:41.579 --> 00:27:44.680 here to deceive, even some of his own people. 00:27:46.619 --> 00:27:51.119 What is a strong response to deceit that you 00:27:51.119 --> 00:27:55.539 can have? Deceit that is used against you. Deceit 00:27:55.539 --> 00:27:59.039 that is used to try to distract you or to discredit. 00:27:59.289 --> 00:28:02.529 you in your life and your God -assigned task. 00:28:03.569 --> 00:28:06.630 Well, let's put it in two phrases. Number one, 00:28:07.569 --> 00:28:11.849 speak and act on the truth. That's what Nehemiah 00:28:11.849 --> 00:28:15.789 did. When lies were used against him, for example, 00:28:15.829 --> 00:28:18.369 in verse eight, he says, nothing like what you 00:28:18.369 --> 00:28:22.970 are saying is happening. He says that is not 00:28:22.970 --> 00:28:26.730 true. You're just making it up out of your head. 00:28:28.039 --> 00:28:32.960 You see, he uses the truth to defuse the lie. 00:28:33.059 --> 00:28:36.940 He speaks and he acts, as the text goes on, he 00:28:36.940 --> 00:28:40.960 acts on the truth. And then in verse 14, he does 00:28:40.960 --> 00:28:42.960 something else that's important for you and me 00:28:42.960 --> 00:28:46.240 to remember. He says, remember, he's praying 00:28:46.240 --> 00:28:50.160 now, he says, remember Tobiah and Sanballat, 00:28:50.359 --> 00:28:54.720 oh my God, because of what they have done. Remember 00:28:54.720 --> 00:28:58.630 also the prophetess Noadiah. and the rest of 00:28:58.630 --> 00:29:01.690 the prophets who have been trying to intimidate 00:29:01.690 --> 00:29:07.109 me. What does he do? Nehemiah lets God deal with 00:29:07.109 --> 00:29:13.990 the liars. He lets God deal with them. Nehemiah's 00:29:13.990 --> 00:29:18.809 example in this text challenges you and me to 00:29:18.809 --> 00:29:23.990 live on the edge. We have one life, only one. 00:29:24.769 --> 00:29:28.400 Let's not waste our lives. by sitting back in 00:29:28.400 --> 00:29:31.839 the comfort zone. Let's not allow ourselves to 00:29:31.839 --> 00:29:34.599 think that if we just take it easy and we don't 00:29:34.599 --> 00:29:36.660 press too much, if we don't live on the edge, 00:29:36.900 --> 00:29:39.259 we won't have any problems, because that's not 00:29:39.259 --> 00:29:43.640 true either. You will have problems. What set 00:29:43.640 --> 00:29:47.299 of problems do you want? Do you want the set 00:29:47.299 --> 00:29:49.559 that comes from taking it easy in your life and 00:29:49.559 --> 00:29:52.980 just kind of floating through it? or do you want 00:29:52.980 --> 00:29:55.039 the kind of problems that come because you're 00:29:55.039 --> 00:29:57.559 living on the edge for God and your life means 00:29:57.559 --> 00:30:02.099 something? Well, any thinking person, any child 00:30:02.099 --> 00:30:05.400 of God for sure will say, I want to live on the 00:30:05.400 --> 00:30:08.400 edge. And though there are problems with that, 00:30:08.440 --> 00:30:10.559 though there are obstacles, though the devil 00:30:10.559 --> 00:30:13.220 has weapons he will use against me, and we've 00:30:13.220 --> 00:30:17.420 looked at five of them today, I will stand on 00:30:17.420 --> 00:30:19.960 the edge with God rather than sit in my easy 00:30:19.960 --> 00:30:23.299 chair. Someone has said if you're not living 00:30:23.299 --> 00:30:26.480 on the edge, you're taking up too much room. 00:30:28.720 --> 00:30:30.619 When you're already living on the edge though 00:30:30.619 --> 00:30:32.920 and then you run into obstacles like these, when 00:30:32.920 --> 00:30:36.140 you're attacked for doing what you think is right, 00:30:36.880 --> 00:30:41.619 you may feel vulnerable and dispirited and overwhelmed. 00:30:42.240 --> 00:30:45.240 What I want to say to you today is this, be strong 00:30:45.240 --> 00:30:49.059 in the Lord as you courageously press ahead. 00:30:49.390 --> 00:30:52.410 in the assignment that God has given you in your 00:30:52.410 --> 00:30:56.930 life. You get your vision from God when you move 00:30:56.930 --> 00:30:59.930 to the edge. You get your resources in play when 00:30:59.930 --> 00:31:02.769 you live on the edge. You have obstacles when 00:31:02.769 --> 00:31:05.190 you live on the edge, but be strong in the Lord 00:31:05.190 --> 00:31:10.529 and do not be afraid, but press on. Many of you 00:31:10.529 --> 00:31:13.869 know and respect and hear Dr. Charles Stanley. 00:31:14.670 --> 00:31:18.049 who is a pastor in Atlanta and is the speaker 00:31:18.049 --> 00:31:20.670 on the In Touch radio and television series. 00:31:22.430 --> 00:31:25.869 Dr. Stanley's father died early in his life. 00:31:26.690 --> 00:31:30.250 He had very little memory of him. But his grandfather 00:31:30.250 --> 00:31:32.809 had a tremendous impact upon him, and he tells 00:31:32.809 --> 00:31:37.609 about his grandfather in one of his books. His 00:31:37.609 --> 00:31:40.910 grandfather had a profound impact, especially 00:31:40.910 --> 00:31:44.940 during a week -long visit. that Stanley made 00:31:44.940 --> 00:31:47.980 to his grandfather's home when he was 16 years 00:31:47.980 --> 00:31:52.259 of age. He says, after my grandfather started 00:31:52.259 --> 00:31:55.660 to preach, he decided to buy a tent and begin 00:31:55.660 --> 00:32:00.660 preaching in it. The cost of the tent was $300, 00:32:01.880 --> 00:32:04.740 and he had no idea where he was going to get 00:32:04.740 --> 00:32:09.319 that much money. You see, his grandfather gave 00:32:09.319 --> 00:32:12.829 him the example of living on the edge. He knew 00:32:12.829 --> 00:32:16.329 that God had called him to do this. He ordered 00:32:16.329 --> 00:32:19.589 the tent, but he had no idea how the cost of 00:32:19.589 --> 00:32:25.190 that was going to be met. He had a vision while 00:32:25.190 --> 00:32:29.170 he was praying, and he saw a little house with 00:32:29.170 --> 00:32:33.869 a fence around it. He recognized it in his vision 00:32:33.869 --> 00:32:37.230 as a place he thought he had seen one time during 00:32:37.230 --> 00:32:41.329 a visit to a little town not far away. The next 00:32:41.329 --> 00:32:44.309 day, he went into that town and he walked up 00:32:44.309 --> 00:32:47.069 and down the streets until he found the house 00:32:47.069 --> 00:32:51.650 he had seen in the vision. At that point, he 00:32:51.650 --> 00:32:56.630 got scared. You see, the enemy came against him. 00:32:57.710 --> 00:33:01.289 He got scared. Still, he knew that God had something 00:33:01.289 --> 00:33:04.349 to do with it and so he finally got up his courage 00:33:04.349 --> 00:33:07.890 and he knocked on the door. A woman answered 00:33:07.890 --> 00:33:12.779 and said, why? Mr. Stanley, I've been wanting 00:33:12.779 --> 00:33:17.079 to talk to you. She invited him in, and after 00:33:17.079 --> 00:33:19.420 they had talked a few minutes, she excused herself 00:33:19.420 --> 00:33:23.140 and said, I've got something for you. She came 00:33:23.140 --> 00:33:25.680 back in the room and handed him a brown paper 00:33:25.680 --> 00:33:35.420 bag. In it were 300 $1 bills. She said, God told 00:33:35.420 --> 00:33:41.700 me to give this to you. And then Dr. Stanley 00:33:41.700 --> 00:33:45.559 concludes with this thought. I thought about 00:33:45.559 --> 00:33:48.920 that later and put that experience into these 00:33:48.920 --> 00:33:53.759 words. Words that he puts into the mouth of God. 00:33:53.900 --> 00:33:58.420 He says, you trust me and I'll provide all your 00:33:58.420 --> 00:34:03.900 needs. Don't look to anybody else. Look to me. 00:34:05.380 --> 00:34:07.440 Where are your eyes today? What's your vision? 00:34:08.840 --> 00:34:11.400 Are they on the problems, are they on the obstacles 00:34:11.400 --> 00:34:14.179 and the discouragement and what people are saying 00:34:14.179 --> 00:34:16.099 and all those other things the devil can throw 00:34:16.099 --> 00:34:19.940 in your way? Then put your eyes on Jesus and 00:34:19.940 --> 00:34:26.820 be strong in him. Let's bow together. Father, 00:34:26.820 --> 00:34:29.320 this morning there are some Christian soldiers 00:34:29.320 --> 00:34:31.900 who are here, some of your children who have 00:34:31.900 --> 00:34:35.139 stepped to the edge, some even in recent days 00:34:35.139 --> 00:34:37.519 and perhaps already they are feeling the wrath 00:34:37.519 --> 00:34:41.059 of the enemy. My prayer is that you will strengthen 00:34:41.059 --> 00:34:45.679 them, that they indeed would call upon you, that 00:34:45.679 --> 00:34:48.420 they would handle those obstacles like Nehemiah 00:34:48.420 --> 00:34:52.480 did, and as a result of it, they'll build the 00:34:52.480 --> 00:34:55.760 wall, they'll accomplish the task, they'll achieve 00:34:55.760 --> 00:34:58.880 the vision you've put in their hearts, and bless 00:34:58.880 --> 00:35:01.039 them, I pray, in the process, and may all of 00:35:01.039 --> 00:35:04.699 us keep our eyes upon you. It's in Jesus' name 00:35:04.699 --> 00:35:08.559 that I pray this. Amen. Amen.