CAN’T WE COMPROMISE?

36-3571

TEXT – NEHEMIAH 6:1-9

INTRODUCTION:

  1. Few places in Scripture offer a clearer demonstration of how Satan works in trying to sidetrack the people of God when they are doing a good work. His early attacks had come in the form of threats and ridicule. But these efforts had failed to stop the Israelites in Jerusalem from building the wall as God was calling on them to build it.
  2. Satan along with all his demons work constantly to somehow discourage us in our efforts to do good, to serve God in the world in a way that will open people’s hearts to God’s will.
  3. Satan knows it isn’t necessary to turn us completely away God or make atheist out of us. All he needs to do is discourage us enough in our work for God that we stop serving, stop working in his kingdom.
  4. If he is able to frustrate us, or cause us to loose our enthusiasm for serving the Lord, it won’t matter that we believe in the Lord, because he will have neutered us to the degree our witness will be ineffective. But if his attacks and threats don’t stop us from serving, worshiping and listening to the Lord’s message he has another offer to make.

DISCUSSION:

  1. IN THE PLAINS OF ONO.
  2. Word reached Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem the Arab and the rest of the enemies of the Jews that Nehemiah and the Jews had rebuilt the wall and there were no gaps left, except for the fact the doors in the gates hadn’t been set.
  3. They sent word to Nehemiah, “Come, and let us meet together in one of the villages on the plain of Ono.”
  4. They were scheming to harm Nehemiah while promising a meeting just to visit.
  5. Nehemiah sent messengers to them with this reply: “I am carrying on a great project and cannot go down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and go down to you?”
  6. They sent the same message to him four times and each time he sent back the same answer.
  7. Notice how persistent Satan is in his efforts to get Nehemiah to come out for the meeting.
  8. It is powerful when any of us can feel secure in our work for God to the degree we can declare; “We are doing a great work for God.”
  9. When we are sure we are doing a great work for God Satan’s offers and threats lose their power.
  10. Any work done with our best effort is a great work. Illustration of Matthew 25:31-46
  11. THE UNSEALED LETTER. VS. 5-9
  12. On the fifth attempt Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem sent an unsealed letter.
  13. It said, “It is reported among the nations – and Geshem says it is true – that you and the Jews are plotting to revolt and therefore you are building the wall. Moreover, according to these reports you are about to become their king and have even appointed prophets to make this proclamation about you in Jerusalem: ‘There is a king in Judah!’ Now this report will get back to the king; so come, let us meet together.”
  14. Have you ever met Geshem?
  15. The report was going around among the nations.
  16. Geshem was declaring that it was true.
  17. Notice the threat, “The king will find out about this”
  18. The gossip is this is all about a revolt against the king and you, Nehemiah wanting to be the king over Judah.
  19. This is a tremendous illustration of gossip and how it works.
  20. It doesn’t matter whether it is true or not.
  21. It is the affect it will have that is the threat.
  22. When you spread the gossip no matter whether there is an ounce of truth or not, it will be believed by some.
  23. How should a person or a church react when they are the subjects of gossip? Most of us at some point will be in that place. Nehemiah gives us a tremendous example.
  24. He sent this reply: “Nothing like what you are saying is happening; you are just making it up out of your head.”
  25. He pointed to the motive for the gossip. “They were all trying to frighten us, thinking, ‘their hands will get too weak for the work and it will not be completed.”
  26. Nehemiah prayed, “Now strengthen my hands.”
  27. WHEN FRIENDS ARE ENEMIES.
  28. When compromise didn’t work and the gossip train didn’t go anywhere these enemies of the Lord and His people tried another tactic.
  29. They chose people who were supposed to be Nehemiah’s friends to come along side of him and warn him of the supreme danger of the enemies coming in secretly to kill him. The plea was “Let us meet in the house of God, inside the temple and let us close the temple doors because men are coming to kill you – by night they are coming to kill you.”
  30. Look at verse 14 when Nehemiah prayed about the whole matter. “Remember Tobiah and Sanballat, my God, because of what they have done; remember also the prophet Noadiah and how she and the rest of the prophets have been trying to intimidate me.”
  31. They had tried threats and gossip and pleaded for compromise, but none of it had slowed the work at all.
  32. Now they were getting the very people that should have been standing with Nehemiah to come out against him and plead with him to meet with the enemy.
  33. In verse 11 it gives Nehemiah’s answer to the people, “Should a man like me run away? Or should someone like me go into the temple to save his life? I will not go! I realized that God had not sent him, but that he had prophesied against me because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him. He had been hired to intimidate me so that I would commit a sin by doing this, and then they would give me a bad name to discredit me.”
  34. I feel certain all of these friends thought they were doing Nehemiah and the Israelites a favor. They would save his life and feel good about it. But whether they realized it or not they had become tools of the devil.
  35. Just because someone is a friend or a servant of God doesn’t mean his or heradvice is good.
  36. Even when it is a loved one advising us to act in a particular way we must examine it to see if it is the right thing to do.
  37. Their motives for making the request may be valid and the advice may be intended to be good for all.
  38. But it may be from the devil all along.
  39. These were prophets of God that were supposed to be in tune to Him. But they bought into the message of Tobiah and Sanballat. They became a hindrance to God’s people.
  40. Everyone needs to be careful whom we are listening to. Prove them. Put them to the test of God’s word.
  41. CONCLUSION:
  42. In Verse 15 a great conclusion is drawn. “So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days.”
  43. Verse 16 continues, “When all our enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were afraid and lost their self-confidence, because they realized that this work had been done with the help of our God.”
  44. One of the best
  45. to see if we have allowed Satan to hinder our work and service to God is to see how much of the work I’ve continued to do even after Satan has attacked.
  46. If the work is lagging behind because too many of us have listened to Satan’s prophets we can know we are being influenced by him.
  47. We continue his work as others try to get in the way but never slow down so the walls of God can be established and the gates all closed.