August 4, 2024: Message: God’s Plan God’s Way | Scripture: Nehemiah 2:11-16 | Speaker: Pastor Stephen Choy
Worship Songs: My Heart Is Filled With Thankfulness | Give Me Jesus | I Will Trust My Savior, Jesus
Full Manuscript
Introduction
If able, please stand as I read to you from Nehemiah 2:11-16. TWoL: 11 So I went to Jerusalem and was there three days. 12 Then I arose in the night, I and a few men with me. And I told no one what my God had put into my heart to do for Jerusalem. There was no animal with me but the one on which I rode. 13 I went out by night by the Valley Gate to the Dragon Spring and to the Dung Gate, and I inspected the walls of Jerusalem that were broken down and its gates that had been destroyed by fire. 14 Then I went on to the Fountain Gate and to the King’s Pool, but there was no room for the animal that was under me to pass. 15 Then I went up in the night by the valley and inspected the wall, and I turned back and entered by the Valley Gate, and so returned. 16 And the officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing, and I had not yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, and the rest who were to do the work.
Every Tuesday afternoon or evening, most of you in this room receive an email from me, which often begins with a few remarks or a short prayer for your weeks. Then, it’ll be followed with what passage we’ll dive into that Sunday, and I’ll conclude that paragraph by asking you to read that passage—to consider it—to pray upon it—to apply it. Have you ever wondered why I do this?
I think I’ve said it before in other contexts, but I tell you to immerse yourself in the text even before our Sunday gathering because you will only get out of something what you put into it. If you come into service cold in the passage, even if it’s a good passage, and even if I preach you a good sermon, it’s very likely that you’ll return to that coldness within minutes after leaving service. But if you come in thirsting, desiring, hoping for what you see in that passage, then one of two things will happen—you’ll either leave here satisfied because the Spirit through my preaching or through your understanding has hit on that thirst, OR you’ll leave questioning critically: why didn’t Pastor Stephen see this in the text?
And here’s the thing, I want either reaction to be happening in our midst. I want you to have weeks where you’re simply set aflame with the confidence that has come from your preparation and that has resulted in your full confidence as you step out into the world equipped with the Spirit and Word of God in your pocket. And if that’s not happening, then I want you coming at me: “why did you say this and not this?” Or I want you asking each other, “why do you think Stephen went here and not here in the text?”
You will only get out of something what you put into it. You will only find satisfaction in that which you’ve properly prepared—in that which you’ve been properly prepared. This is the truth that we see here in our text—that Nehemiah—and we who attempt to follow in his footsteps—must be properly prepared to do the work of the Lord for he deserves our best, and we ought to desire to receive his delight. If he is our joy—if his hand is upon us to help us—if we desire his glory, then let’s make sure to always put our best foot forward. Prepare properly for the work of the Lord, and do this, firstly, by taking your time.
1) Take Your Time
We left off last week with Nehemiah finally confronting Artaxerxes, and it’s in that instance where Nehemiah musters the courage to ask to be sent back to Jerusalem and help rebuild the wall. He does this having a good theological foundation, and, moving in that theological foundation, he prays to God for his help and his guidance in the execution of that plan. Artaxerxes, surprisingly, not only allows Nehemiah, his trusted cupbearer, to go, but the king furnishes Nehemiah with two letters—one preventing Israel’s enemies from getting in Nehemiah’s way, and one that permits Nehemiah to use Persian resources to complete the job. This is the extent of God’s sovereign hand and help over all that has transpired thus far.
One might even say that God allowed Artaxerxes to order the initial destruction of the wall so that we might receive Nehemiah’s testimony of courage, faithfulness, and redemption for his people in the face of overwhelming adversity. If this sounds very much like the gospel—like how sin is permitted to exist in the world so that God might send his Son to be the glorious means of our salvation—it’s on purpose. As Nehemiah approaches the king of Persia to save God’s people, so too does our Christ approach our heavenly Father to accomplish a greater salvation through the cross for our transgressions and shame.
Yet, before the salvation actually takes place—before the building of the wall and before the cross—both Nehemiah and Christ take time to prepare. Jesus walked thirty-three years preparing. Nehemiah goes to Jerusalem, and the first thing he does isn’t jump into the work. No, our passage begins, “So, I went to Jerusalem and was there three days.” Why does he wait three days? Well, there are a few reasons. Firstly, he’s just traveled roughly a thousand miles from Susa to Jerusalem. The trip, itself, would have taken at least a month to complete. So, it makes sense for him to take a few days to sit still and recuperate.
But, secondly, Nehemiah 2:9-10 tells us that they’ve just been confronted with these men named Sanballat and Tobiah who are not happy that someone has come seeking the welfare of the people of Israel, meaning Nehemiah knows not to rush into things. He doesn’t want to make these men angrier than they already are, especially before Nehemiah’s gotten to know the people who he’ll be working with.
This leads, thirdly, to the fact that Nehemiah is likely in Israel and Jerusalem for the first-time, which means he’s meeting people for the first time, establishing himself as their new leader, and he wants them to know about his love for them and, more importantly, his desire to please their God with them. He takes time to establish himself, fortify his position, and engage with their needs. He knows the task that he’s been sent for is urgent—because every task given to us by the Lord is urgent—three days is not long, but he is shrewd to use these three days to do what he can without antagonizing Israel’s enemies.
Still, perhaps, the less obvious thing to us is the fourth reason, in that, Nehemiah likely waits three days before doing very much simply because he desires to take some time to worship his God. From Nehemiah 1:1-2:10, this cupbearer has been through a whirlwind of experiences and emotions. He’s gone from hearing devastating news, to four months of crying, praying, and fasting, to confessing all of his sorrows to the king of Persia who could’ve killed him before hearing his confession, to being granted permission to go and to receive the resources to do it, to putting together a company capable for the travel, to meeting Sanballat and Tobiah, to entering into the city of God.
And let’s not miss this fact, Nehemiah has entered into the city of God. Do you know that feeling? I remember the first time I walked into St. Peter’s Basilica. I’d seen pictures of it. I’d read books about it. I’d watched movies filmed inside of it. But none of that prepared me for when I stepped into it in person. I remember being overwhelmed and astounded. The ceilings so high that it seemed they reached to the heavens. The art so masterful and the gold so pristine that my eyes didn’t know where to look. I’m not Roman Catholic, but I could have spent weeks in there worshipping, extolling, exclaiming the excellencies of him that this place was meant to reflect. The feeling of history was so immense and unreal to me that I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, and I’m pretty sure I was doing both those things simultaneously in that moment.
This is what I imagine Nehemiah is feeling as he steps into the streets where David and Solomon rejoiced—where the ark of the covenant was once housed—where Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel had prophesied about the coming Messiah—where the glory of God once descended and filled the whole land with his radiance. This was the place where kings and queens from other lands would come and see the goodness of the God of heaven and the marvels that he’d accomplished for his people. And Nehemiah knew that it was to be the place where God promised to do even more for them.
Nehemiah was finally here. He could finally see, taste, smell, touch, and hear it. And he had arrived not by accident but because the hand of God was upon him. So, I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that for three days, Nehemiah worshipped his God—that God might be this gracious and majestic—this sovereign in wisdom and power. Before Nehemiah did anything else—before he took up the mantle as governor of Jerusalem—before he made any mention about a wall or the plight of his people, he stops to rest and to take some time to enjoy the One whose hand was upon him.
And this is so profoundly important for us because we’re constantly bombarded with two particular temptations: (1) it’s to love the world, our money, our status, our influence, our jobs, our accomplishments, our ambition, our comfort and privileges, our opinions, our so-called blessings so much that God and our worship of him become an afterthought—we’re lead to believe our time belongs to us, OR (2) we, who call ourselves Christians, emphasize the message of “not wasting this life” with such zeal that we forget that, perhaps, the greatest imperative in the Bible for us—the way we become holy—the first way we’re called not to waste this life—isn’t to focus on our works, first, but on our rest—on our abiding fellowship with God—that we might be in this place with him and he with us.
Nehemiah begins verse 2:11 not with the flurry of responsibilities he’s given but with a reminder that God wants us—wholly us—before he wants anything that we think we can do. We cannot serve God if we are not first with God. We cannot be satisfied in God if we do not, above all things, desire God.
It’s only when we see that he’s freely given his favour—when he’s freely lavished upon us his love—that we become satisfied—that we become able to serve as those who are free, happy, and hopeful in our service. When was the last time you found rest in the Lord before your service? When was the last time you came to church to actually worship and satiate your heart’s greatest desires in the omnipotent, holy God of the universe?
Nehemiah, here, wants to remind us that the first thing we need to serve the Lord—to be satisfied in him—is to grasp how he has already served you—how his hand is already upon you. Don’t waste your life by rushing into what God’s given you to do before taking your time to know and be with your God. Taking your time in Scripture. Taking your time in prayer. Taking your time in killing sin. Taking your time in going to and loving your church.
This must be our first step in our preparation to serve and find our satisfaction in God. And as you prepare in this first step—as you turn your mind to God and the things of God, he, then, promises to help us in the second step by leading us to know our task.
2) Know Your Task
Nehemiah, as we’ve been made well aware in chapter 2:1-10, has been sent for a task. He’s been sent by both God and Artaxerxes—not to be confused as equal powers—to help Jerusalem rebuild its desecrated walls. But he knows that rest won’t be sufficient for the task. He is called to rest first, but as he familiarizes himself with the city, and as he acquaints himself with the people, he must come up with a plan for how to carry out that task. It’s not so simple as mere execution, and he’s not fatalistic, meaning even though he is clearly a believer that God is sovereign, his knowledge of God’s sovereignty does not “cripple him into [inaction], but [it motivates] him to act prudently and wisely.”
Here’s what we have to constantly remember about Nehemiah: his theology upholds his doxology—his knowledge of God’s sovereignty grounds his human activity and responsibility. It is because God is sovereign, and it’s because God’s hand is upon Nehemiah, giving him rest, upholding him, and, literally, bending the hearts and minds of kings and pagan nations to support him, that Nehemiah can act at all.
Here’s the side lesson for us: unless God is sovereign, we cannot do anything. Unless he declares it to be so, it would not be so. The entire cosmos moves and has its being at any given time because, as Colossians 1 tells us, God is keeping it, moving it, AND guiding each of those movements. This is the only basis for our confidence that anything we do matters—that we can have some effect: because unless God causes, there is no effect.
So, this is the ground—the reason—for everything we read from verses 12 to 20, (we’ll get to verses 17-20 two Sundays from now). But for this morning, I want to split up our remaining time between these two last headers, which really are two sides of the same coin. On the one side, it’s because of God’s sovereignty that we ought to prepare by knowing, intimately, the task set before us. Having rested—having been given the unction and power of God—we ought to put everything we have into knowing what we’re called to do.
This is precisely what Nehemiah does in verses 12-16. He is like the wise man in Proverbs 18:15: “An intelligent heart acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.” The wisdom from God is what leads him to doing exactly what he reads in Proverbs 24:27: “Prepare your work outside; get everything ready for yourself in the field, and after that build your house.”
Nehemiah takes his theological and biblical knowledge and goes out in the middle of the night, taking very few people with him—alerting no one outside of his party as to what he’s doing, and he circles half of the city to observe and record what damage has been done to it. In fact, it’s likely that as he’s observing, he’s trying to figure out how much manpower and resources they’ll need, how long the rebuilding might take, what parts of the wall are still useable in contrast to the parts that need to be further torn down to reestablish the foundation.
Yet, more than simply seeking to understand what needs to be rebuilt, I’m sure that Nehemiah’s also gauging how the walls were torn down in the first place. How did this iteration of what the Jews had built fall apart, and what kind of structure would they need for such a thing not to happen again? Because this wall needs to stay standing. It’s meant to protect, and it’s meant to be an identifier that these are the people of God—God will not put up walls around his people that are a poor reflection of his character.
In other words, Nehemiah desires to know not only the immensity of the project in rebuilding the wall, but he also seeks to discover how to overcome his enemy—both are his task. He desires to know what he’s getting into on every level. This is why he tells no one of his plans. He doesn’t want word getting out and having these other nations getting in his way, and he wants to be able to tell his people exactly what they might expect when the building begins both from their internal perspective as well as from the struggles that they’ll most certainly face externally.
This is how those who hold to a sovereign God are meant to prepare for the work that’s to be done. We’re not meant to simply rest and wait. No, we’re called to rest in God—find our strength in him—and then to do all we can to make sure that whatever it is he’s called us to do and be—whatever he is sovereignly moving us to do and be—that none of it is done in vain. We’re to prepare by knowing the fullness of the task to which we’ve been called.
This doesn’t simply mean doing whatever it takes to prepare for the internal things. It doesn’t mean only establishing the right programs, or finding all the right lessons, or hiring all the right teachers and pastors, thinking that if we have all these right things in place, nothing will go wrong. Rather, it also means equipping ourselves—preparing ourselves—for that which threatens us externally.
This is where churches so often fail. They become so good at running things and doing things on a practical level that they forget that the enemy comes for the walls and fortifications around the heart before he does anything to the rest of the body. We tend to treat sin too lightly, or worse than that, we tend to treat the devil and his temptations too lightly. We think of him as some mystical being—some unknowable force. But God calls us to know who and what we’re dealing with on an intimate level not by aligning ourselves with the devil, but by understanding and examining our hearts—by seeing what caused the walls to fall in the first place and doing everything in our power not to let it happen again.
We so often pray, “God, take my sin away from me,” but when it comes to the actual fight—to the actual fleeing, the removal of temptations, the need for radical accountability and regular discipleship, the willingness to hear difficult admonishments without being overly defensive or condescending, we, typically as humans, and even more so as churches—we are really bad at this.
We expect God to fight our enemies for us, which he does. But we do very little to prepare and understand that God has given us his sovereign rest and guidance so that we might have the confidence, ourselves, to engage in the fight with him. We can’t do this if we’re unprepared—if we aren’t both building up our walls in here AND making sure that they’re able to withstand the coming assault from out there.
Both are needed. We need to prepare and know the task internally by building up our ministries and our theological focus. But we also need to prepare for the external by digging deep into our hearts—our desires—our sinful inclinations—and rooting them out so that, as the wall of our effort is put into place, the foundation is sufficient to withstand whatever the devil digs up. The mistake is thinking that the devil won’t find anything.
It reminds me of the central plot in The Lion King, where the kingdom revolves around these apex lions and their home. And Mufasa, the king, becomes too relaxed, too unprepared, too unsuspecting of his evil, ambitious brother who lusts after the king’s power, and who is using all his collective wit and cunning to gather up those who hate the king as much as he does. And it’s in his hatred of Mufasa that Scar, Mufasa’s brother, gathers up his recruits and tells them, “Be Prepared”—be prepared for what? For the death of the king.
The mistake is in thinking that our enemy is not doing everything he can to prepare and to attack when we’re least suspecting—when we think we’ve got it all down because we’ve developed our programs, our teaching, our helping of the needy and poor, our welcoming and hospitable culture. It’s a mistake to put our trust in those things the devil doesn’t necessarily seek to undo specifically. No, he usually goes for those spots where we’ve become too lazy or too assuming or too trusting of ourselves to prepare for possible attacks. He goes for the thing we think might never be attacked, like Scar threatening the life of his own nephew. He uses our greatest vulnerabilities to drag us into hell. The mistake is in underestimating how much the enemy hates us and our God, and the lengths to which he’ll go to destroy us and be our god.
3) Commit Your Heart
But the other side of the coin is this: the devil would likely succeed if we didn’t have Nehemiah showing us—leading us—in how we ought to prepare—in giving us a goal—in fixing our eyes on that which is most important. We, on the one hand, are called to know the task and to prepare ourselves for it, but we’re also to understand that our Nehemiah is never unprepared. He is never unsuspecting, and because that’s the case, when the task becomes overwhelming—because it will become overwhelming—the devil is too great of an opponent—even then, we can commit our lives, our selves, and our poor, defenseless hearts to our Nehemiah’s protection.
Why? Because our Nehemiah IS the sovereign God of the universe, and he knows exactly what the devil was and is doing. So sovereign is our God that when we were taking our time and resting, he was planning from eternity past to mete out his purposes of salvation in the present. So sovereign is our God that he knew the devil would come for us—that he was calling his minions to prepare, even before the devil called them to it. So sovereign is our God that he knew what it would cost to save us from the devil’s schemes.
So sovereign is our God that when the devil did come for us, our God did what we could never plan to do ourselves. He gave up his own Son to bear the excruciating penalty of our sin upon a cross. He prepared for our king to die.
And he does this—he plans on our behalf so that we might receive the glory and possess his fellowship, which we never deserved and which we, in our sin, had utterly abandoned. Our Nehemiah commits himself to the glory of his God—to the promise of our salvation and the establishment of his eternal kingdom—and by his death and resurrection, we’ve not only been brought into that salvation and that kingdom, but we’ve been made heirs to it—heirs to heaven—heirs to glory.
This is why we must prepare properly for the work of the Lord not only in taking our time or in knowing our task but because in doing so, we commit ourselves to drawing near to God in our hearts. It’s not only about accountability and discipleship. It’s not only about coming to church. It’s not only about preparing for the attack of the devil. It’s, above all things, about committing your heart—your desires—your attention—your focus—your trust and hope—your delight and joy to the God who has done and prepared everything for you. He calls us to know the task, but he shows us that he completes it as our great help and hope.
Should we not, then, offer him our absolute best? Is he not worthy of it because of what his Son has accomplished on our behalf? Let us endeavour to give it to him—to prepare ourselves properly and thoroughly for the work set before us by taking our time, knowing our task, and committing our hearts to the gospel by which we are ransomed from sin and preserved, by his grace, unto glory.
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