Sunday Setup – Nehemiah 6

[music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [music] Hey, cross church. Welcome to the Sunday setup. This is a time each week that we gather digitally together to prepare our hearts for the words that God has for us in order to prepare our hearts to dive into God's word and to let it propel us this next week into how he would live our lives. Today we are looking at Nehemiah chapter 6 as we continue on in our series. in in Nehemiah chapter 6 as they're continuing on in this building project with seeing the end near um that they have been working on throughout this story. We pick up in verse one and we'll go just in a little bit to the first couple verses of chapter 7 as well. But it reads like this. When Sandbalot, Tobaya, Gisham, the Aram, and the rest of our enemies heard that I had rebuilt the wall and there was no gap left in it. Though at the time I had not installed the doors in the city gates, Sand Ballot and Gisham sent me a [music] message. Come, let's meet together in the village of Ono of the Ono Valley. They were planning to harm me. So I sent messengers them saying, "I am doing important work and cannot come down. Why should the work seize while I leave it and go down to you?" Four times they sent me the same proposal. And I gave them the same reply. Sand Ballot sent me the same message a fifth time by his aid who had an open letter in his hand. And it was written, it is reported among the nations and Gisham agrees that you and the Jews plan to rebel. This is the reason you are building the wall. According to these reports, you are to become their king and have even set up the prophets in Jerusalem to proclaim on your behalf. There is a king in Judah. These rumors will be heard by the king. So come, let's confer together. Then I replied to him, there is nothing to these rumors you [music] are spreading. You are inventing them in your own mind. For they will all they were all trying to intimidate us saying they will drop their hands from the work and it will never be finished. But now my God strengthen my hands. I went to the house of Shemiah son of Delia son of Mahabel who was restricted to his house. He said let's meet at the house of God inside the temple. Let's shut the temple doors because they're coming to kill you. They're coming to kill you tonight. But I said should a man like me run away? How can someone live like me, enter the temple and live? I will not go. I realized that God had not sent him because of the prophecy he spoke against me. Tobiiah and Sand Ballot had hired him. He was hired so that I would be intimidated so do as he suggested sin and get a bad reputation in order that they could discredit me. My God, remember Tobi and Sandbell for what they have done and also the prophetus Noadiah and the other prophets who wanted to intimidate me. Verse 15. The wall was completed in 52 days. And on the 25th day of the month of Alul. When all our enemies heard this, all the surrounding nations were intimidated, and they lost their confidence. For they realized that this task had been accomplished by our God. During those days, the nobles of Judah sent many letters to Tobias, and Tobaya's letters came to them. For many in Judah were bound by oath to him since he was a son-in-law of Sheckchham, son of Ara, and his son of Jehoan, and married the daughter of Mashulam, son of Baraki. These nobles kept mentioning Tobaya's good deeds to me, and they reported my words to him, and Tobaya sent letters to intimidate me. Chapter 7:1, this part is so great because it ties into this narrative in chapter 6. It says, "When the walls had been rebuilt and I had the doors installed, the gatekeepers, singers, and Levites were appointed. Then I put my brother Haniah in charge of Jerusalem along with Haniah, commander of the fortress, because he was a faithful man who feared God more than the most." I said to them, "Do not open the gates of Jerusalem until the sun is hot. And let the doors be shut and securely fastened while the guards are in duty. Station the citizens of Jerusalem as guards, some at their post and some at their home." And the city was large and spacious, but there were few people in it, and no houses had been built yet. Then my God put it into my mind. And we're going to stop right there and reflect on this passage that all of this has been building. And we're only halfway through the book of this huge construction project, this huge vision that is starting to come to reality of these walls being built that had been laid to waste for 150 years. And as he's doing it, there's at this home stretch a [music] as Nehemiah is starting to finish this project, there is so much opposition that comes. And as all this opposition comes, Nehemiah [music] stands firm. But you just see some of the ways that he describes it and some of the ways he constantly points to God. And in verse 16, I just love this. This is our first prayer prompt that will guide this. It says, "This task had been accomplished by God." I want to start us off with just a word of praise as we look forward to this week. Is God you have accomplished blank. Just think of some of the things God has accomplished uh in creation, God has accomplished throughout history, but God has also accomplished in your personal life is God, you have accomplished blank. Pray those prayers [music] to our God. [music] [music] >> [music] [music] >> Heat. Heat. [music] >> [music] [music] [music] >> God, you have accomplished so much. So much that we don't even realize. But you tell us some of your accomplishments through accomplishments through your word. You built these walls. You restored Israel in this time. God, you would bring an ultimate restoration to your people through your savior, through yourself [music] in Jesus Christ. God, you accomplished a defeating sin. God, you accomplish uh one day completely renewing all creation to what it was originally intended to be. God, every great thing that is accomplished in our world is only accomplished through you and because of you. And God, we celebrate what you accomplish. But God, we also realize how we are to be a part of that and how we are to do your work that is guided by you. In verse 9, Nehemiah as he's continuing to push forward despite the intimidations, despite the opposition, despite people constantly pushing back, he says this, "But now my God, strengthen my hands." God accomplishes the projects in our life. God accomplishes the vision that we cannot achieve on our own. But God also uses us as vessels to help make those a reality. And he does it through ways like this. And sometimes we need to pray to be that vessel. And we need to pray for God to strengthen [music] us. So in this second prayer prompt as we think about and we worship God for the ways that he has accomplished [music] things. And the second one we ask of how he can use us. And this prayer prompt is simple. It's just God strengthen me too. [music] God strengthen me to keep going and keep pushing even though I'm tired. God strengthen me to share my faith. God strengthen me to love my neighbors. God strengthen me to fight for my marriage. God strengthen me to raise my kids. Pray those prayers to our God. God strengthen me too. [music] [music] [music] >> [music] [music] [music] >> God, strengthen me to just trust your plan, to be faithful in executing the will that you have for my life, God, just keep pushing through when when I'm tired, God, when I'm anxious, when I'm stressed, when I'm overwhelmed, God, just strengthen my hands to keep moving forward, um to keep living honorably, to keep seeking you and and making sure my character is strong in you rather than is just dependent on my own ability. God's strength in my hands to ultimately make Jesus known to make you known in a great way that I can't do on my own but that you can do working through us. God just as we look at cross church strengthen us to be bold and as we embark in the vision of this new year that uh we not shy away. We not say things are too much or too hard or too big of a dream, but God, we just run [music] towards the path that you have laid before us. And God, we run towards achieving the vision that you have shown us of pushing back the darkness in our world. God, strengthen us to make Jesus known [music] in the communities around us. God, we thank you for all that you have accomplished. God, we thank you that you use us and strengthen [music] us to do your work. And we lift all this up in Jesus holy name. Amen. Hey, thank you for joining us today. We will see you this Sunday as we dive in to Nehemiah [music] chapter 6. Have a good one. [music] [music] >> [music] [music] >> today.