Rebuilding the Wall

Anybody around here experienced discouragement lately? Perhaps felt overwhelmed by some task you have to do... and you know you are not up to the job? Maybe just frustrated that God doesn't seem to answering your prayers and life just isn't quite going the way you'd hoped or expected? Well, maybe you can't relate, but I sure can! And the other day as I was reading through the book of Nehemiah in the One Year Bible, I discovered that Nehemiah and the Israelites surely could as well. Let me tell share a little bit about it.

Jerusalem was largely in ruins after the Babylonians came in, ruthlessly conquered and razed the city, deported most of the few surviving citizens, and leveled the walls and temple. Now, many years later, Nehemiah has received permission from the Persian King Artaxerxes to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the destroyed city and it’s walls.

When Nehemiah arrives in Jerusalem, the beleaguered little group of returning exiles begins rebuilding the wall--surely a massive and overwhelming undertaking. Without walls, however, the city was vulnerable to every enemy, and so these weak and paltry exiles had to begin the daunting task. Thus when Nehemiah challenges them, “...they said, ‘Let us rise up and build.’ So they strengthened their hands for the good work.” (Neh. 2:18)

Everybody has a part to play, and they all start working! Chapter 3 is a litany of verses like “The sons of Hassenaah built the Fish Gate. They laid its beams and set its door, its bolts, and its bars. And next to them Meremoth the son of Uriah, son of Hakkoz repaired. And next to them Meshullam the son of Berechiah, son of Meshezabel repaired. And next to them Zadok the son of Baana repaired...” (Neh.3:3-4) Priests, district rulers, goldsmiths, perfumers all worked side by side and repaired portions of the wall or the gates. What a group effort--and it took everyone doing their part and pitching in!

But here’s the part I really loved. Opposition came. Doesn’t it always?! Isn’t it so true that just when we get a real head of steam going and things seem to be chugging along, opposition slams right into us? Our child gets sick. Our schedule gets out of control. Our energy flags. Our confidence and faith wanes. And discouragement and despair overwhelm us.

I don’t know about you, but discouragement always proves to be some of the enemy’s most fertile and successful hunting ground in my life. I grow discouraged with some setback or failure or criticism, and then the enemy whispers “You can’t do this. Your prayers are no good. Who do you think you are? This will never succeed. You are too weak or unfaithful or undisciplined or disorganized or... (you fill in the blank) to ever do this or finish this or obey God’s Word in this.”

I’m preaching to myself here: IT IS A LIE FROM THE PIT OF HELL!! We need to preach ourselves the Word of God! “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” (Phil. 4:13) or “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” (Gal. 2:20) or “Let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.” (Gal. 6:9) or “Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart, all you who hope in the Lord.” (Ps.31:24) There are so many! We must go to His wonderful, rejuvenating, supernatural Word in these moments of despair and defeat and call on His Name and His might and His strength!

And that’s exactly what Nehemiah did! For you see, chapters 4 and 5 of Nehemiah recount the inevitable opposition that came as the wall slowly started to rise. Sanballat the Hornonite and Tobiah the Ammonite and Geshem the Arab got all worked up and did everything they could think of to discourage the people, deter the workers, and defeat any rebuilding efforts. Seriously, you need to read about it--they used sarcastic comments like “what they are rebuilding--if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall!” (4:3) This fearsome threesome issued threats, plotted evil, started ugly rumors, appealed to the Persian king to stop the rebuilding and on and on.

But the people kept working and the rebuilding continued. Do you know why? Listen to God’s Word: “And we prayed to our God and set a guard as a protection against them day and night.” (4:9)--Prayer and diligent, prayerful preparation. Nehemiah stationed people with swords and bows in various places--especially in vulnerable areas where there were open places still remaining in the walls.

And he exhorted them “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.” (4:14) I love that! God is calling us to fight for our children, our parents, our spouses, our friends, our neighbors, our culture! I can be so fearful, so terribly inadequate and weak. But it’s not about me! It’s about “the Lord, who is great and awesome!” It’s time to stop worrying about what I can do and focus on what He can and will do! It’s time to, in Paul’s words, forget “what lies behind” and start “straining forward to what lies ahead.” (Phil.3:13)

'Cause I can tell you right now: I will fail and falter and faint. I will disappoint and grow distracted and discouraged. But my Almighty God will not! Not now, not ever! And this is His work, not yours or mine. So we need to remember our great and awesome God, call upon Him constantly in prayer and in His Word, and then get to work doing whatever He has called us to do!

Let’s emulate Nehemiah and the wall builders and workers: “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. And each of the builders had his sword strapped at his side while he built.” (4:17-18) We need to strap on the weapons of prayer and faith and God’s Word and work! And trust, just as the people of Nehemiah’s day did that “ Our God will fight for us.” (4:20)

Strap on those weapons and get ready to build in whatever areas God is calling you. In your home. In your neighborhood. In your church. In your business. Fight for our families, for our friends, for our church families, for our city, for our culture! We will do it on our knees, in His Word and in the power of His Holy Spirit. All to His glory, all by His grace! And to God be the glory!