The God Who Fights for Us as We Face Opposition

If you have a Bible—and I hope you or somebody around you does that you can look on with—let me invite you to open with me to Nehemiah 4. Feel free to use the table of contents if you need to. And as you’re turning, I want to welcome you, as well as you who are online who are physically unable to be with us today. It’s good to come together around God’s Word. If you’re visiting, we are really glad you’re here. You are welcome here anytime. 

Have you ever done what was right, but as a result of doing so, life got harder for you, not easier, specifically in your efforts to follow God’s Word and God’s Spirit with faith? Have you ever faced opposition to your faith or discouragement in your faith? Have you ever been slandered or accused? Have rumors ever spread about you? Have people ever worked against you, including people who were once friendly to you? If you’ve answered yes to any of these questions, I have good news for you—you’re in good company with God’s people throughout the Bible, and ultimately with Jesus himself. If you will keep your focus on God amidst these challenges, he will turn it all for your good. 

Or, if you’ve never experienced challenges like this, I have what you might think is bad news for you—your time is coming. As you follow God with faith in this world and you do all he calls you to do, challenges to your faith are coming and opposition is inevitable. But I would share the same good news with you. If you will keep your focus on God, he will use all these things for your good in ways far beyond what you can imagine. I want to show you this straight from God’s Word in Nehemiah 4. 

Last week we looked at how God’s people began rebuilding the walls around Jerusalem—God’s people with different gifts, from different backgrounds, doing the work God had called them to do to glorify him. Yet as soon as you turn the page to Nehemiah 4, watch what happens. Let’s read the whole chapter, starting in verse one:

1 Now when Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, he was angry and greatly enraged, and he jeered at the Jews. 2 And he said in the presence of his brothers and of the army of Samaria, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore it for themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish up in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, and burned ones at that?” 3 Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, “Yes, what they are building—if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall!” 4 Hear, O our God, for we are despised. Turn back their taunt on their own heads and give them up to be plundered in a land where they are captives. 5 Do not cover their guilt, and let not their sin be blotted out from your sight, for they have provoked you to anger in the presence of the builders.

6 So we built the wall. And all the wall was joined together to half its height, for the people had a mind to work.

7 But when Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabs and the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the repairing of the walls of Jerusalem was going forward and that the breaches were beginning to be closed, they were very angry. 8 And they all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and to cause confusion in it. 9 And we prayed to our God and set a guard as a protection against them day and night.

10 In Judah it was said, “The strength of those who bear the burdens is failing. There is too much rubble. By ourselves we will not be able to rebuild the wall.” 11 And our enemies said, “They will not know or see till we come among them and kill them and stop the work.” 12 At that time the Jews who lived near them came from all directions and said to us ten times, “You must return to us.” 13 So in the lowest parts of the space behind the wall, in open places, I stationed the people by their clans, with their swords, their spears, and their bows. 14 And I looked and arose and said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.”

15 When our enemies heard that it was known to us and that God had frustrated their plan, we all returned to the wall, each to his work. 16 From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail. And the leaders stood behind the whole house of Judah, 17 who were building on the wall. Those who carried burdens were loaded in such a way that each labored on the work with one hand and held his weapon with the other. 18 And each of the builders had his sword strapped at his side while he built. The man who sounded the trumpet was beside me. 19 And I said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “The work is great and widely spread, and we are separated on the wall, far from one another. 20 In the place where you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us.”

21 So we labored at the work, and half of them held the spears from the break of dawn until the stars came out. 22 I also said to the people at that time, “Let every man and his servant pass the night within Jerusalem, that they may be a guard for us by night and may labor by day.” 23 So neither I nor my brothers nor my servants nor the men of the guard who followed me, none of us took off our clothes; each kept his weapon at his right hand.

All right, let’s get the picture. There are three main antagonists here to Nehemiah and the work that God’s people are doing. Nehemiah actually introduced them to us at the end of Nehemiah 2:19. Before the work even started, Nehemiah told us, “When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite servant and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they jeered at us and despised us and said, ‘What is this thing that you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?’” 

Let’s look at a little background on these three guys. 

• Sanballat was likely the governor of Samaria at this point. 
• Tobiah was either governor of Ammon or was jockeying for that position.
• Geshem may have been the most powerful of them all as a leader of the Arabian tribes that controlled Moab and Edom. 

So here’s the picture the Bible gives us of these guys as they worked against God’s people. These three men were characterized by losing power and waning influence. If you look all the way back to Ezra 4, a similar group of leaders conspired to get the Persian king, Artaxerxes, to stop the building of the temple in Jerusalem and it worked. With their power and influence, they persuaded the king to stop the work, at least temporarily. But this time Nehemiah came with letters from Artaxerxes, saying the Jewish people had authority to rebuild these walls, which meant that the people opposing this work, who used to have power and influence, didn’t have it anymore, which led them to make baseless accusations and add exaggerating claims. They sort of did in chapter two by saying Nehemiah and the people were rebelling against the king, when Nehemiah actually had papers from the king. By chapter four they’re saying, “It’s impossible for the stones in these walls to even be rebuilt and what they’re rebuilding wouldn’t stand up if a fox walked on it.” 

You don’t ever see these men sitting down with Nehemiah to understand what and on whose authority he was doing these things, or actually looking at the work they were doing and considering why they were doing it. Instead, they just lobbed attacks from the outside. Then when those didn’t work, that led to escalating actions and increasing anger. When one tactic didn’t work, they tried another one, and another one, and another. It’s like they were looking for every angle they could find to attack Nehemiah and the work God was calling his people to do.

The more the tactics didn’t work, the angrier they got. Verse seven says they were very angry, which leads to verse eight: “They all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and to cause confusion in it.” So then they were gathering up others to increase the attacks, gathering others to increase confusion. To support their cause they enlisted the Ammonites and the Ashdodites—not just people outside. We’re going to look at this more in a few weeks. Let me show you Nehemiah 6:17-19: “Moreover, in those days the nobles of Judah”—inside God’s people, “sent many letters to Tobiah, and Tobiah’s letters came to them. For many in Judah were bound by oath to him” —Tobiah—“because he was the son-in-law…” and he goes on to describe his relationship familywise. Then it says in verse 19,  “Also they spoke of his good deeds in my presence and reported my words to him. And Tobiah sent letters to make me afraid.” So you see people inside God’s people working with those outside God’s people to oppose Nehemiah and this work, almost like it was their noble duty to uphold the status quo from the past and keep this new work from happening. 

Yet in all of this, don’t miss the point. The real enemy was not Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem or anyone else, inside or outside. The real enemy was the same enemy who since the beginning of the Bible—and in every single generation up to today—is actually opposing the people of God who are working for the glory of God. The real enemy was and is today Satan himself. 

This is why the Bible says this in Ephesians 6:12, “We do not wrestle against flesh and blood” —against Tobiahs and Ammonites and Geshems— “but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” Do you know what Satan’s name means? It means adversary. Do you know what the devil means? It means the slanderer. 

The Bible calls Satan our adversary, the devil, the slanderer, the deceiver, who is actively working at all times through every possible avenue to destroy the people of God doing the work of God. Satan may use this kind of picture in your life, or he may use a million other pictures in opposition to your faith. Just think right now of any ways you are facing challenges in your faith or opposition to the good work God has called you to do for his glory. The word of Nehemiah 4 for all of us is do not be surprised when you are doing the work God calls you to do in his Word.

I phrase that very intentionally, because doubtless some people in this opposition group thought, and almost certainly claimed, that they were doing God’s work, when in actuality their tactics were clearly not in line with God’s Word. But this is the reality. Whenever we are doing work God has called us to do, according to his Word, do not be surprised when people question, accuse, slander and/or ridicule you. We’ve seen this over the last couple weeks, working in all the ways God is calling us to glorify him in our lives, in our marriages, in our families, in our schools and  workplaces. We’ve seen this in working to spread the gospel, to do justice and love mercy, in making disciples of the next generation and all the nations.

Sanballat asked five questions in Nehemiah 4:2 that leads to Tobiah’s ridicule about a fox breaking these walls in verse three. “What are these feeble Jews doing?” Who do they think they are, these incompetent rebels? It’s like name calling. This is what Satan does. Revelation 12 calls him the accuser of God’s people. His name means slanderer, so don’t be surprised when you do the work God calls you to do in his Word and groups conspire against you. A common enemy can make fast friends, as different groups come together to oppose this work. Satan wants people conspiring from all sides against the work of God. And don’t be surprised when rumors spread that threaten you. 

As the efforts to stop this work escalate, they start threatening to attack and kill God’s people in verse 11, which leads in verse 12 to these villagers running into Jerusalem to tell them ten times, “You must return to us.” One commentator says the expression “ten times” is like Nehemiah saying, “If they told us once, they told us a thousand times, all the threats against us.” Which, you’ll notice, they didn’t just say to Nehemiah—they told “us.” So word is spreading everywhere among God’s people.

This then leads to the last picture. Don’t be surprised when, after all these things, discouragement grows within you. In Nehemiah 4 the people begin to wonder, “Are we feeble? Can we do this?” Verse ten says, “In Judah it was said, ‘The strength of those who bear the burdens is failing. There is too much rubble. By ourselves we will not be able to rebuild the wall.’” Maybe we can’t. Maybe we shouldn’t. Now they’re threatening to kill us. Is it worth it? Should we stop? Which is exactly what Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem and others wanted to happen, but also what Satan wanted to happen all along. The devil did not want the walls around the city of Jerusalem to be rebuilt and the people of God in them to be restored. 

I don’t know how all of this has played out, or will play out, in your life, but I do know this: the same adversary, Satan, is actively at work in your life. I saw this a couple Friday nights ago in our prayer gathering when we basically took a survey and the overwhelming majority of people who came into the room that night came in discouraged in some way in their lives. It was so eye-opening. I look out across this room and other rooms where we’re gathered today, and I realize that most of you are discouraged about something in your life or in your faith right now. Don’t be surprised by this. Discouragement is what Satan wants in your life. He does not want you to follow God with faith and courage. He does not want you to thrive in your relationship with God. He doesn’t want you to lead anybody else into relationship with God. He wants to destroy your life. He wants to destroy your marriage. He wants to destroy your family. He wants to destroy your future. He wants to destroy you and the lives of all the people around you, in your home, in this church, in our city, far from this city, among the next generation, among the nations. He wants to keep you and me from doing all the good work God is calling you and me to do for his great glory. 

Notice, God’s people did not face this opposition when they were sitting back in the status quo with the rubble of Jerusalem’s walls around them. They only faced this opposition when they stepped out and did the work God called them to do. Mark it down. The devil wants you to sit back and settle for status quo in your faith. Go to church. Live like the world. Coast your way to heaven. That’s the devil’s plan for your life as a Christian. Instead, rise up, start to build your life and your family and your work on the Word of God. Follow the call of God to spread the gospel, make disciples, do justice and show mercy to those in need, live every day for the glory of God in your school, in your workplace, in this church, in this city, among the nations. Yes, you will be met with the forces of hell. The devil and all his demons will do everything they can to discourage you in every facet of your life to keep you from doing the work God is calling you to do. 

So what do you do? How do you press on with the opposition to your faith coming from all sides? Here’s how Nehemiah and the people of God in Nehemiah 4 pressed on—in the same ways that God throughout his Word calls us to press on.

1. Pray firstly and continually.

I love verse four. Right after all these questions, this ridiculing taunt from Tobiah, Nehemiah doesn’t even say, “I prayed.” He doesn’t say, “So I sought the Lord.” Instead, he just starts praying. So Sanballat gives him five different questions and Tobiah mocks. Then Nehemiah prays in verse four: “Hear, O our God…” 

Do you see this? Nehemiah did not engage Sanballat or Tobiah in their questions, accusations, slander or ridicule. Instead, he immediately turned to God and prayed. This is where we must start, first and foremost, then continue, above everything else. When the plots escalate in verse eight, what does verse nine say? “And we prayed to our God.” And notice how he prays. He prays for God’s help for his servants and for God’s justice for his enemies. 

We don’t have time today to do a whole theology of prayer along these lines, but it is right to pray for God’s help as we do the work God calls us to do, and it is right to pray for God’s justice on those who oppose his work. We see both of these prayers throughout the Bible. At the same time, those are not the only prayers we see throughout the Bible, because we also see prayers for God’s mercy toward his enemies. Jesus said on the cross, “Father, forgive these people who are mocking and crucifying me for they know not what they do.”

At the same time, Jesus specifically denounces religious people who persist in their self-righteous rebellion against God. So yes, it’s right to pray for God’s justice and for God’s mercy on those who are opposing his work, trusting that in the end his justice will reign as his work will be accomplished. 

This leads to the second action Nehemiah and others take here in Nehemiah 4.

2. Fear God, not people.

Throughout his Word, God calls all of us to fear God, not people, even when physical attacks are threatened and God’s people start to get worried. Did you catch verse 14? “And I looked and arose and said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, ‘Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord…’”

 I love that line. I picture Nehemiah saying, “Guys, I’ve heard what Sanballat and Tobiah said, but just remember the Lord, Yahweh, ‘…who is great and awesome…’ Iin other words, God is much bigger than Sanballat and Tobiah. And for that matter, God is much bigger than all the Ammonites and the Ashdodites put together. Remember him because he’s fighting for us. Then Nehemiah gives them instructions in verse 20 about where to gather for battle: “In the place where you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us.” When you realize God is fighting for you, you realize you don’t have anything to be afraid of. This is so important. 

At that same prayer gathering two Friday nights ago, the majority of the room said, “We’re living in fear of something.” We went around the room and just called out things people were afraid of in their life: the future, the unknown, other people, other people’s perception of them, relationships falling apart, losing a job, growing old, dying. The list just kept going. As I listened, I was so struck by all the different angles that Satan will come at you and me to tempt us to fear. 

So just think for a moment and be honest.  The way we did these surveys was so helpful that everybody just put down what they wanted without anybody else knowing, then we called it out. So just think about what fear you have in your life. Is there any fear at all you have in your life? Just picture it right now. With that picture mind, hear the word of God to us today, “Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome…” Remember your Lord, who is for you in such a way that you can be free from all fear. Whatever you have in your mind is not bigger than the Lord. Jesus said the same thing to his disciples in Matthew 10:16 and 28 when he sent them out. He said, “I’m sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves… Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.” Jesus just said, “Don’t fear those who can kill you. The worst thing that could happen to you is you die.” 

Is that encouraging when you’re about to go out? “The worst thing that can happen is you’re going to be killed.” How is that encouraging? The only way that’s encouraging is if you know the One who has conquered death.  Verse 28 continues, “Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” Hear this from God. Of all the challenges and opposition to God’s words in and through your life that may come your way, fear God, not people.

Remember, the Lord is your judge, not other people. The Lord is your defender. no matter what they say, he has the final word. The Lord is your deliverer; he will bring you through. The Lord is your provider; he will give you everything you need in every moment you need it. The Lord is your protector; you can trust in him. 

So fear God, not them. Fear God, not the devil. Remember, the devil may be a lion on the prowl, looking to devour, but he is a lion on a leash. He’s a defeated foe and he knows his end is near. He cannot ultimately stop the work of God’s people for God’s glory.

3. Stay on guard.

The third action that Nehemiah and others took that God calls us to take throughout his Word is to stay on guard. Stay on guard. Nehemiah 4:9 says, “We prayed to our God and set a guard as a protection against them day and night.” So it’s not just pray, fear God and do nothing. No, Nehemiah set a guard. As the chapter unfolds from here, people are stationed at critical points with weapons. The last two verses of the chapter describe how people stayed through the night within Jerusalem as guards. As they were guarding, they kept their clothes and weapons ready for battle at all times. 

This picture is so good. It’s exactly what God specifically calls us to in the New Testament in 1 Peter 5:8-9: “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith.” Be on guard in your faith. Picture it. Just like every one of God’s people on those walls, we can never let our guard down in the work God calls us to do in his Word. 

For example, if people are accusing you, slandering you, spreading rumors about you or doing any number of things sinning against you, how tempting it is to  let your guard down and sin in the way you respond, either in words, actions,  thoughts or desires. Personally, I have felt this temptation many times and too many times have given in to it. 

I’ve been so helped by something that Tim Keller wrote, the former pastor of Redeemer Church in New York City who is now with the Lord. I’ve read and reread this many times and want to share it with you. It’s a long quote, but I think it will help you. 

Several people have asked me, “How do you deal with harsh criticism?” In each case, the enquirer had felt stunned by what they felt were unfair attacks on him or her. In this internet age, anyone can have their views censored unfairly by people they don’t even know. So what do you do when that happens? Here’s the gist of the counsel I give when people ask me about this. For years I’ve been guided by a letter by John Newton.

To put this in context, Newton was an 18th century pastor who wrote the hymn “Amazing Grace” and is known for his work to abolish the slave trade in England. Keller goes on to write:

The biggest danger of receiving criticism is not to your reputation, but to your heart. You feel the injustice of it. You feel sorry for yourself and it tempts you to despise, not only the critic, but the entire group of people from which they come. “Those people,” you mutter under your breath. All this can make you prouder over time. Newton writes, “Whatever makes us trust in ourselves, that we are comparatively wise or good, so as to treat those with contempt who do not subscribe to our doctrines or follow our party, is a proof and fruit of a self-righteous spirit within us.” So how can you avoid this temptation? 

First, you should look to see if there’s a kernel of truth in even the most exaggerated and unfair broadside. There is usually such a kernel when the criticism comes from friends. There’s also such truth when the disapproval comes from people who actually know you. So even if the censure is partly or even largely mistaken, look for what you may have indeed done wrong.

Perhaps you’ve simply acted or spoken in a way that was not circumspect. Maybe the critic is partly right for the wrong reasons. Nevertheless, identify your own shortcomings. Repent in your own heart before the Lord for what you can and let that humble you. It will then be possible to learn from the criticism and to think graciously toward the critic, even if you have to disagree with what he or she has said. If the criticism comes from someone who doesn’t know you at all, it is possible that the criticism is completely unwarranted and profoundly mistaken. 

I’m often pilloried, not only for views I do have, but even more for views and motives that I do not hold at all. When that happens, it’s even easier to fall into a smugness and to perhaps be tempted to laugh at how mistaken your critics are. “Pathetic,” you may be tempted to say. Don’t do it. Even if there’s not the slightest kernel of truth in what the critic says, you should not mock them in your thoughts. 

First, remind yourself of examples of your own mistakes, foolishness and cluelessness in the past, times in which you really got something wrong. 

Then second, pray for the critic, that he or she grows in grace. Newton talks about it like this:

 If you account your critic a believer, though greatly mistaken on the subject of debate between you, the words of David to Joab concerning Absalom are very applicable: “Deal gently with him for my sake.” The Lord loves him and bears with him, therefore, you must not despise him or treat him harshly. The Lord bears with you likewise and expects that you should show tenderness to others from a sense of the much forgiveness you need yourself. In a little while you will meet in heaven. He will then be dearer to you than the nearest friend you have upon earth is to you now. Anticipate that period in your thoughts and though you may find it necessary to oppose his errors, view him personally as a kindred soul with whom you are to be happy in Christ forever.

Whatever you do, do anything you can to avoid feeling smug and superior to the critic. Even if you say to yourself you’re just shrugging it off and you’re not going to respond to the criticism, you can nonetheless conduct a full defense and refutation in the courtroom of your mind in which you triumphantly prove how awful and despicable your opponents are. But that’s a spiritual trap. 

Newton’s remarks about this are very convicting. The best of men are apt to be pleased with representations that hold up our adversaries to ridicule and by consequence flatter our own superior judgments. Controversies, for the most part, are so managed as to indulge, rather than to repress, this wrong disposition. I hope your performance will savor of a spirit of true humility and be a means of promoting it in others. 

This is just one example, and it’s part of the cultural waters we swim in, to not approach either criticism, differences or disagreements with humility and  honor. Be on guard. Just because our culture speaks one way does not mean we speak that way. Just because our culture lobs and accuses and ridicules does not mean that we as the people of God do these things, even in our own minds. May the Spirit of Christ cause us to show a spirit of true humility. Be on guard.

4. Keep doing the work.

When all kinds of challenges and opposition come to your faith from all kinds of sides, ultimately it leads to this fourth action that Nehemiah and God’s people took, and that God clearly calls us to take throughout his Word: keep doing the work. I love Nehemiah 4:6. As Sanballat and Tobiah are accusing and ridiculing, the first thing Nehemiah does, as we’ve seen, is pray. Then right after we read his prayer, the next words are, “So we built the wall.” Boom. That’s it. Just keep building the wall. Do the work. “The wall was joined together to half its height, for the people had a mind to work.” I love that phrase

Which then leads to verse 15: “When our enemies heard that it was known to us and that God had frustrated their plan, we all returned to the wall, each to his work.” This work continues all the way to the end of the chapter. Look at verse 21: “So we labored at the work.” I love this. Stay focused on the work, just like they did. They never forgot; at the same time they were always at war. Stay focused on the work that God calls you to do in his Word. Stay focused on loving God supremely, loving others selflessly, according to his Word. In your singleness, in your marriage, in your parenting, in your school, in your workplace, in your retirement—stay focused on the work of spreading the gospel and making disciples of the next generation and of the nations. Stay focused on doing justice and showing mercy to those in need. Do not be discouraged by the enemy’s attempts to keep you from doing the work.

As you stay focused on the work, don’t forget you’re at war all the time. Picture your life, like God’s people on these walls, with a tool for building in one hand and a weapon for spiritual warfare, with the armor of God, Ephesians 6 says, in the other. The belt of truth, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, the sword of the Spirit, feet fitted with the gospel of peace, all with confidence in the God who, as you work for his glory according to his Word, will fight for you.

Did you notice Nehemiah’s language in verse 15? “God had frustrated their plans.” They’re working; God’s working. Remember how I mentioned at the beginning that there’s good news for you when you face opposition and challenges? Here’s the good news. You have a God who has power to frustrate plans. He’s been doing it throughout history and he will do it for his people who are doing his work. He will take evil and turn it for good.

Do you see this? By the end of chapter four—a chapter that’s full of opposition, threats and attacks—the people of God have greater faith in God, greater trust in God. They’ve seen God help them. They have greater confidence in God. They have freedom from fear and discouragement, as God has taken what the adversary intended for evil and he’s turned it for good. So write that down as we close, if not physically, at least in your heart: do not underestimate God’s ability to turn evil into good.

This is the gospel. God has taken our sin, the sin of the world. Think about the most evil act in all of human history: the crucifixion of the Son of God, God in the flesh. Yet God took that most evil act in all human history and turned it into the greatest news in the world for sinners like you and me. We can be forgiven of our sin because of Jesus’ death on the cross, which he turned into life three days later when he rose from the grave in victory over sin, death and Satan himself.

This is your God. This is the very foundation of your salvation, so you can trust in him. He’s not only risen from the dead; he is ascended to the right hand of the Father right now, where he has all authority in heaven and on earth. And he has given his supernatural Holy Spirit to live inside of you, so you can say every morning when you wake up, “I have the Holy Spirit inside of me. That means because God is for me, nothing I face today, nothing that would threaten discouragement or fear, can stand against me.” 

This is your life, Christian. This is your life in Christ. So hold fast to faith. Give your life to the work God calls you to do in his Word, day in and day out, trusting that even that which the adversary intends for evil, God will turn for good. What is God, by his Spirit, calling you to do with this word today? There are so many different directions this could go.

Maybe God is calling you to pray more intentionally, or even initially, as you face challenges and opposition. Maybe God is calling you to pray more holistic biblical prayers amidst those challenges, including prayer for your enemies. When was the last time you prayed sincerely and passionately for people who have hurt or are hurting you? 

At the same time, I would encourage you to ask: how are you discouraged or afraid right now? How is God speaking to your heart right now to trust in him, remember him, fear him, not them or anything else in the world? Are there any ways you’ve let your guard down in your life? Are there steps you need to take in order to be more on guard against any of the adversary’s schemes in your life? And finally, are you doing God’s work in your life, your family, your home, at your workplace? Are you sharing the gospel? Are you building up the body of Christ? Are you making disciples of the next generation or the nations? Is there anything that God is calling you to do, remembering that the adversary would love for you just to sit back in the status quo? What kind of work is God calling you into for his glory, knowing that challenges will come, but he will work for you every step of the way?

Observation: What does the passage say?

1) Read Nehemiah 4:1–23 aloud as a group. Let group members share observations. Try not to move into interpretation of the passage or application of what you read quite yet. Simply share what you observe.

• What words of opposition do God’s detractors use in verses 1–6 and how did Nehemiah respond?
• What actions did God’s detractors threaten in verses 7–14 and how did Nehemiah respond?
• How did the people work and how did God work in verses 15–23?
• How would you summarize Nehemiah 4:1–23?

Interpretation: What does the passage mean?

1) Read Ephesians 6:12 – Be Prayerful!

• What weapons do Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem use against God’s people?
• Who is at the root of opposition to God’s work and why is he there?

2) Read Nehemiah 4:14, 4:20, and Matthew 10:28 – Be Reverent!

• What impact did the taunts and impacts have on God’s people who were rebuilding the wall?
• What impact did Nehemiah’s godly leadership have on God’s people?

3) Read Nehemiah 4:9 and 1 Peter 5:8–9 – Be On Guard! 

• How did Nehemiah physically protect God’s people so they could work?
• How did Nehemiah spiritually protect God’s people so they could work?

4) Read Nehemiah 4:15 and 4:21 – Be Diligent! 

• How did God’s people work when they focused on the enemy?
• How did God’s people work when they relied upon God for everything they needed?

Application: How can we apply this passage to our lives?

1) Pray firstly and continually.

• What is the quality of your prayer life – How well are you in communion with God?
• How can your Church Group help you to grow closer to God through prayer?

2) Fear God, not people.

• What slings and arrows of people get to you and bother you?
• How is social, or other media driving a wedge into your life that takes you away from God?
• Where are you more concerned about what other people think than what God thinks?

• How can your Church Group pray that you would put God above yourself and other people?

3) Stay on guard.

• How often are you in the Word – How is God’s Word a primary source of protection for you?
• To whom can you turn to hold you accountable?
• What steps should you take to turn away from things that weaken your guard?
• How can your Church Group serve as a hedge of protection around you?

4) Keep doing the work.

• How diligently do you work for money and how diligently do you work for the Lord?
• How does your work show others that you are doing it for the Lord and persevering?
• How does your Church Group work to grow you in spiritual maturity?
• How is your Church Group doing the Lord’s work consistently?

Nehemiah 4:1–23 ESV

1 Now when Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, he was angry and greatly enraged, and he jeered at the Jews. 2 And he said in the presence of his brothers and of the army of Samaria, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore it for themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish up in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, and burned ones at that?” 3 Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, “Yes, what they are building—if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall!” 4 Hear, O our God, for we are despised. Turn back their taunt on their own heads and give them up to be plundered in a land where they are captives. 5 Do not cover their guilt, and let not their sin be blotted out from your sight, for they have provoked you to anger in the presence of the builders. 6 So we built the wall. And all the wall was joined together to half its height, for the people had a mind to work. 7 But when Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabs and the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the repairing of the walls of Jerusalem was going forward and that the breaches were beginning to be closed, they were very angry. 8 And they all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and to cause confusion in it. 9 And we prayed to our God and set a guard as a protection against them day and night. 10 In Judah it was said, “The strength of those who bear the burdens is failing. There is too much rubble. By ourselves we will not be able to rebuild the wall.” 11 And our enemies said, “They will not know or see till we come among them and kill them and stop the work.” 12 At that time the Jews who lived near them came from all directions and said to us ten times, “You must return to us.” 13 So in the lowest parts of the space behind the wall, in open places, I stationed the people by their clans, with their swords, their spears, and their bows. 14 And I looked and arose and said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.” 15 When our enemies heard that it was known to us and that God had frustrated their plan, we all returned to the wall, each to his work. 16 From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail. And the leaders stood behind the whole house of Judah, 17 who were building on the wall. Those who carried burdens were loaded in such a way that each labored on the work with one hand and held his weapon with the other. 18 And each of the builders had his sword strapped at his side while he built. The man who sounded the trumpet was beside me. 19 And I said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “The work is great and widely spread, and we are separated on the wall, far from one another. 20 In the place where you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us.” 21 So we labored at the work, and half of them held the spears from the break of dawn until the stars came out. 22 I also said to the people at that time, “Let every man and his servant pass the night within Jerusalem, that they may be a guard for us by night and may labor by day.” 23 So neither I nor my brothers nor my servants nor the men of the guard who followed me, none of us took off our clothes; each kept his weapon at his right hand.

Sermon Recap

To Do God’s Work in the Face of Opposition – “Don’t underestimate God’s ability to turn evil into good.”

1. Pray firstly and continually.
2. Fear God, not people.
3. Stay on guard.
4. Keep doing the work.