Nehemiah

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Nehemiah

• A Man of Strength
• Chapter 2

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Review

• A man of concern
• Sorrow
• Supplication
• Sacrifice
• Now we will look at his strength of character

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Fear

• Neh 22
• He was afraid of making a request of the king
• But he did not let fear stop him
• Fear makes it hard to do the right thing
• Afraid to be unpopular so we give in to peer
  pressure
• Afraid of rejection so we dont talk about Christ
• Afraid of losing friends so we dont correct the
  sinning brother

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Fear

• 2 Tim 17
• timidity or fearfulness
• In Greek deilia carries the idea of being a
  coward
• We are not to have the spirit of cowards
• 1 Jn 418
• To accomplish the work of God we need to overcome
  our fears as Nehemiah did

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Enemies of the work

• Neh 23-10
• Sanballat governor of Samaria
• Tobiah governor of Ammon (across the Jordan)
• Hated the Israelites and would do anything to
  stop the work

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Enemies of the work

• Today, there are also enemies of the work
• Jer 616 Some dont want to walk in Gods way
• Jude 3
• We will have to contend earnestly for the faith
• 1 Tim 612
• fight the good fight
• take hold of eternal life
• Are we willing to fight against those who oppose
  Gods word and work?

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Surveying the work

• Neh 211-16
• He appraised the damage
• Then prepared a list of materials and skills
  needed to complete the work
• All wise workmen plan first

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Surveying the work

• We must prepare for the work of God
• Prov 1316
• A wise man first acquires knowledge
• Lk 1428-30
• To do Gods work we need
• To investigate and appraise
• To consider our resources and abilities
• To plan the work from start to finish

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Countering reproach

• Neh 217-18
• reproach being a shame or disgrace
• As long as Jerusalem was in shambles, then Gods
  people were a disgrace and shame to God
• To fight the shame, Gods people needed to work
  and Nehemiah included himself in the problem and
  solution

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Countering reproach

• We can be a disgrace if we allow the church and
  members to be broken down
• If we dont live godly lives (Jas 127)
• If the church becomes worldly (1 Tim 315)
• If the church becomes divided (Rom 1617-18)
• Like Nehemiah, we need to counter shame by
  working and encouraging others to work
• 1 Cor 1558

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Opposition to the work

• Neh 219-20
• Enemies used 3 methods to oppose the work
• Mocked us ridicule
• Despised us contempt
• Are you rebelling? false charges
• Nehemiahs response
• God will be with us Who can stop Him?
• We will arise and build We wont be intimidated
• This isnt your concern Gods work is for Gods
  people

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Opposition to the work

• Today some say,
• We cant do it
• You arent capable of doing it?
• If you try to do it, Ill . (some threat)
• Our answers are the same as Nehemiahs
• God is on our side (Rom 831)
• We wont be intimidated (1 Pet 314-15)
• There is work to do (Jn 435)

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In doing the work of the Lord

• We must
• Overcome fear
• Realize we will have opposition
• Prepare for and plan our efforts
• Remove shame
• Overcome opposition

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