Rebuilding Home: 13 Days in NehemiahSýnishorn

How can you build your life and protect it from your enemies?

Some years ago, I was driving with a well-known Christian pastor whose life has been one of incredible highs and lows. He has seen God show up and do the most supernatural and incredible things, as well as seen Satan show up and do the most demonic and despicable things. Having endured far more public attacks and critiques than I ever will, he piqued my curiosity by asking me if I would like to know the secret to never being publicly maligned again. He then told me that the key to never being attacked, critiqued, or opposed was to 1. say nothing, 2. do nothing, and 3. have nothing.

His words were both sobering and clarifying. If you want to stand for something, own something, or do something, you have to pay for something. The more you hope to have, the more you have to give. Nehemiah has a God-given vision, military covering, and financial backing from the king. He moved from the city of Susa to Jerusalem and has the support of a small but growing group of people who trust him to lead them. Like every spiritual war, enemies show up seeking to break everything Nehemiah and the people are trying to build. From the first day Nehemiah arrived in town, some hated the man, his message, and his mission (2:10). What began as the equivalent of critics on blogs and social media escalates into a dangerous mob that never goes away so long as Nehemiah obeys the Lord instead of the mob.

Satan and others will be against you whenever God is for you. When God places His hand upon you, Satan and others will certainly raise their fist against you. When God provides for you, Satan and others will certainly try and steal it from you. When you share your vision, Satan and others will certainly mock you with derision.

Regarding the motives for undermining a work of God, people become opponents for a variety of reasons.

1. Insecure people are threatened by the success of a leader/organization.

2. Jealous people covet the success of a leader/organization.

3. Enemies have an agenda that conflicts with the mission of a leader/organization.

4. Entitled people demand control over a leader/organization.

5. Inflexible people oppose change and attack any leader/organization promoting change.

6. Demonic people attack anything and anyone that is doing good for God.

7. Unrepentant people attack a leader/organization that has told them the truth that they despise.

Nehemiah 4 is a case study in leading people through slander, attack, and lies to stay on message and mission. At some point, every church, ministry, business, or other organization seeking to do good will have to endure a beating to continue in their blessing.

Opposition begins on the psychological level with mockery and ridicule before the work even begins and gets very personal to discourage the people (4:1-3). Today, the internet only multiplies this misery. The anti-movement had two visible leaders, not unlike two barrels on a gun (2:10). Sanballat was a powerful governor from a nearby town who cared only about his power, pleasure, and profit. Like Judas, Tobiah likely married into a Jewish family to deceive God’s people. People like Tobiah are confusing because they say they are believers and then oppose God’s vision and attack God’s leaders.

Nehemiah wisely chooses not to engage the critics because if you engage, you will enrage (4:4-5). Nehemiah would not stoke a fire of conflict and enemies to distract him from his God-given mission. Rather than bottling up his frustration or lashing out in anger at his critics, Nehemiah runs to God in prayer continually. First, he prays for the blessing of God’s people. Second, he prays for the judgment of their enemies who are ultimately fighting against God Himself.

God heard and answered Nehemiah’s prayer very quickly. The people overcame their fear to push forward together with unified resolve (4:6). Rather than wasting energy on critics and lies, the people invested their energy in their mission.

Seeing the resolve and success of God’s people, the opponents (led by Sanballat and Tobiah) recruited more enemies to the fight, assembling a coalition of troublemakers and agitators (4:7-8). Sadly, unholy alliances often form around the sole purpose of opposing a leader and their mission. They surrounded the entire city with Sanballat and the Samaritans to the north, Tobiah and the Ammonites to the East, Geshem (2:19) and the Arabs to the south, and the men of Ashdod from the Philistine city to the west. This was a threat of simultaneous war from every side.

Rather than responding to critics or wasting time in pointless negotiations, Nehemiah called the people to prayer. He also appointed security detail to remain on the constant lookout for attacks. This would have comforted God’s people and warned their enemies. Because we fight on both the spiritual and physical levels, they both prayed and posted a guard (4:9).

Despite the rather benign response of prayer and defensive security, the enemies began making death threats against believers as things were quickly escalating and threatening to end in a bloody conflict. Nehemiah had to be stressed. Even believers who were for the project became gripped with the fear that they would be attacked simply for being associated with Nehemiah. To make matters worse, people were weary from the work and possibly needed to defend themselves and their families (4:10-12).

In response to escalating threats and danger, Nehemiah posted entire families at various points of vulnerability along the wall. Nehemiah was placing a heavy burden upon the fathers and their sons to protect their families, as what was really at stake was more than just a city or a church. Still, the legacy of men and their families is to have a future as worshippers of God (4:13-14).

A hero outside of Scripture is the great preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-92). His magazine, The Sword and Trowel, started in 1865, taking its name from Nehemiah 4. Anything we build with God (e.g., spiritual life, marriage, children, business, ministry) requires work, as typified in the bricklayers' trowel. Since enemies love to break what we build, we must also have a sword in our other hand to defend it. In light of these powerful images, two important questions are worthy of our consideration:

1. Trowel: What has God burdened you to build? (A spiritual life? Marriage? Children? Business? Ministry?)

2. Sword: How can you best defend what you are building?