The people of Israel returned from their captivity in Babylon and rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem that were lying in charred rubble. God had a work He wanted to do and He found a leader in Nehemiah, who left the cushiest job ever to do something that was very difficult. He went from royalty to rubble because he felt led by the Lord to go help his fellow Jews rebuild. He wasn’t a construction guy but he left his comfort zone to obey the Lord. In Nehemiah chapter 6 the task was finished after just 52 days. How did he do it? Simple answer: he kept his eye on the goal, and he did it in spite of the opposition.
Practical Principles
- Don’t get sidetracked. Stay focused. After the wall was built, Nehemiah’s enemies sent a message for him to meet them. Nehemiah, realizing they were plotting to harm him, says, “I’m not coming down from this wall. I’m not going to hang out with you guys. I’m not going to talk with you guys. I’m busy.” Sometimes it’s choosing the urgent over the important, choosing the good over what’s best, or choosing the short term over the long term that breaks our focus. Nehemiah did not break his focus.
- Satan hits hardest at the beginning and at the end. There was great opposition when the Jewish people started to build the wall and now there’s great opposition directed at Nehemiah when the wall is finished, as they’re getting ready to hang the doors. Jesus also faced heavy opposition in the beginning of His ministry when Satan tempted Him in the wilderness, and at the end of His ministry as he was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane.
- Take care of your character; God will take care of your reputation. In other words, take care of your personal integrity. Sanballat sent a letter to Nehemiah challenging his personal integrity. Verse 5 says, “There is a rumor among the surrounding nations, and Geshem tells me it is true, that you and the Jews are planning to rebel and that is why you are building the wall . . . and you plan to be their king” (nlt). They were accusing Nehemiah of the very thing they were guilty of, in effect projecting their sin on Nehemiah. But Nehemiah continued working.
- When we come under attack, we need to pray. Nehemiah’s responds in verse 8 was, “Nothing like what you are saying is happening; you are just making it up out of your head” (niv). Nehemiah knows that they are making it up and he does not dignify it even for a moment, because their accusations were not true. So he prayed, and he said in verse 9, “O God, strengthen my hands” (nkjv), working with even more determination.
- We need to finish the work God has called us to do. In verse 3, Nehemiah “sent messengers to them, saying, ‘I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down. Why should the work cease while I leave it and go down to you?’” (nkjv). Nehemiah would not leave the work that God called him to do. He was not going to meet his enemies in the valley, or in the temple. He basically tells them, “I’m not going anywhere because I’m doing a great work for God.” Nehemiah was not only hard working, but he was very discerning and he understood what his enemies were trying to do.
Relevant Reminders
- It’s not always the sinful things that can break our focus and get us sidetracked from doing the things that God has called us to do.
- Satan is persistent and wants to discredit God’s followers. He will attack you at the beginning as well as at the end of your ministry.
- If you are serving the Lord, no matter what you are doing, it’s a great work for God.
Applicable Actions
Nehemiah was asked to come down from the wall and he wouldn’t do it. When Jesus was hanging on the cross, they said, “Come down from that cross; if you’re really the son of God, prove it.” Fact is, if He had come down from that cross He couldn’t have saved them. So He stayed on the cross and died for their sins and for ours. He paid the price for those sins and then rose again from the dead. Now He’s alive and ready to come into your life. He stands at the door of your heart. He knocks and says that if you’ll hear His voice and open the door, He’ll come in.
