Here's Pastor Alan Wright with today's blessing, a biblical faith-filled vision for your life. I bless you to be Manasseh-like, like the name that means forgotten troubles. No matter what voices of shame have hellishly plagued you, no matter how persistent the inward gnawing guilt. There is, according to Paul in Romans 8, no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. In Christ, you're fully, forever forgiven.
The Lord remembers your sin no more, Jeremiah prophesied. He has removed your trespasses from you as far as the east is from the west, the psalmist said. Christ has paid for your sin in full.
So God in His righteousness will never require your payment for a debt. That is already been cleared. Pastor, author, and Bible teacher Alan Wright. There's a relationship between. the extent to which we ask God and that which we receive.
The writer of Hebrews says you have not because you ask not. And when you do ask, it's more out of selfish motivations. Jesus said, ask and you will receive. There's nothing that's impossible to God. That's Pastor Alan Wright.
Welcome to another message of good news that will help you see your life in a whole new light. I'm Daniel Britt. Excited for you to hear the teaching today in the series Nehemiah, Dreamer, Builder, Warrior, as presented at Renolda Church in North Carolina. If you're not able to stay with us throughout the entire program, I want to make sure you know how to get our special resource right now. For a limited time, this can be yours for your donation to Allen Wright Ministries.
As you listen to today's message, go deeper as we send you today's special offer. Contact us at pastorallen.org. That's pastorallen.org. Or call 877-544-4860. Again, by phone, 877-544-4860.
More on this later in the program, but now let's get started with today's teaching. Here. is Pastor Alan Wright. Mm.
Okay, are you ready for some good news? You've got a big God.
So you might as well ask him big things. You do him an honor. when you make big petitions. of the creator of the ends of the earth. We're in Nehemiah.
Many years ago, early in our marriage, I think we were married three years, we were living in Atlanta. I was a seminarian on a budget. And it was Christmas time, and we went to the fancy mall in Atlanta. To do a little shopping, and I told Ann I wanted to get her some stocking stuffers. And it was actually a ploy to go over to what at the time was my favorite mall store, the Gadgets.
on display at Brookstone. You know, Brookstone, where they have the giant massaging chairs that you can sit in. and act like you're actually thinking about buying one. And every manner of unusual little gadget, and I loved all that stuff. But I said, Maybe we could go in there.
Maybe I could find you a couple little odds and then little stocking stuffers.
So we go into. Brookstone first, and as I walked in, they handed me a little card. A little promotional. It said we got.
some potential discounts for you today. Put the card down in my pocket. Great. We shopped around in there for a while. I went over and I looked at the three and five thousand dollar telescopes.
I always kind of dreamt of having one of those big telescopes. That you could go and look at the stars and the moon and see the planets. And that would just be fascinating, I thought. I looked at those. And then I went over, of course, and got in the chair.
And like they really thought some 20-something seminarian was going to be buying one of those chairs, but you know, I did that. I looked, I even discovered that there was a gadget. I couldn't believe it. But they had somebody had invented a gadget that is an electric device that would place the golf ball on the tee for you. And are you kidding me?
Looked around at all of that. As Ann was wandering around, I said, Babe, did you find anything for a stocking stuffer? She said, only one thing, and she pointed it out. It was a silver-handled. Faux silver handled, faux chrome handled a hairbrush.
I said, all right, baby. I said, you go. I'm going to shop around a little bit. I'll come catch up to you at the department store. In about 30 minutes.
And so I tinkered around with all the gadgets in the store. wondering what it would be like to own some of those wonderful toys and things in there. And I went over and get the hairbrush and y'all. It was $35.
Now this is a long time ago, and did I mention I was a seminarian on a budget? I was like, I'm not getting my wife a $35 hairbrush. Could get those at Walmart for $7. I'm sorry, I'm not doing that.
So I got some.
socks or something. I got a couple of little nothings for a few dollars. And I went up to the cash register to pay. And they said, do you have your little card for your promotional discount? I said, uh you see, yeah, I got something here.
It's one of the little cards, had a little gray circle for a scratch-off thing on there. They said, give that to us and we will scratch it off. And you might have 5, 10, 15% off your purchase today. I was like, well, every penny helps, you know. I gave them the card and the lady scratched it off.
And she froze and looked at that car and And somebody came and stood next to her, and they started whispering to each other. They said, excuse us, we need to call the manager. I'm like, what could I have done wrong? All I did was hand him. A manager came out.
And I heard the manager say, well, I heard there was one of these. They said, congratulations, sir. We Didn't know for sure there was one, but they turned it around and mine said 100%. off of your purchase. I said, what does that mean?
They said. Your stuff's free. And I was like Woohoo! I am a winner. And then, out of the corner of my eye, the gleam of the chrome-handled hairbrush glistened.
And I thought, I've got $12 worth of stuff. And I said, Do I pay tax or anything? They said, No, it's yours. They put it in a bag, and I walked out with my pocket. Paltry Stocking stuffers, as I went past the telescopes, The chairs that massage you.
and even the electric golf ball tea setter upper. And the hairbrush. And I walked out thinking I could have had it all. I could have own Brookstone. I could have been walking out of here with a truckload of stuff, and I got nothing hardly at all.
Imagine how hard it was to tell that story to my wife. On the one hand, I would say, I'm a winner. On the other hand, I felt like a loser because I didn't ask for enough. I didn't request enough. I didn't, I was too cheap to get enough stuff up there to make something of it.
We're in Nehemiah. And what we're going to see in today's chapter is Nehemiah asking. Big. and receiving big. And there's a relationship.
Between the extent to which we ask God. and the that which we receive. The writer of Hebrews says you have not because you ask not. And when you do ask, it's more out of selfish motivations. Jesus said, ask and you will receive.
There's nothing that's impossible to God. That's Alan Wright. and we'll have more teaching in a moment from today's important series. Ever wonder why little children wish they didn't have to go to bed and adults look forward to it? Ever notice how children see mealtime as an intrusion in the midst of a fun day, but adults see mealtime as the most fun part of the day?
What happened on the path to adulthood that robbed us of the simple freedom and wonder on display in a child's heart? If you've ever longed to be a child again, here's good news. You can. When Jesus told his disciples that the greatest in the kingdom were the little children, he was pointing to a huge spiritual truth. The abundant life is on display in the simple faith of little children.
When you make your generous gift this month, we'll send you Alan Wright's timeless book, A Childlike Heart, as our way of saying thanks for your partnership. Call or visit us online today to make your gift and get your copy of A Childlike Heart. The freedom and wonder of childhood awaits you.
Now we are in our final days of offering this special product. This broadcast is only possible because of listener financial support. When you give today, we will send you today's special offer. We are happy to send this to you as our thanks from Allan Wright Ministries. Call us at eight seven seven five four four forty eight sixty.
That's eight seven seven five four four forty eight sixty. Or come to our website, pastorallen.org. Today's teaching now continues. Here once again is Alan Wright. And I remember my story of Brookstone and the the the 100% off as I was thinking about how Much God has purchased for us in Christ.
To be a Christian really means Jesus paid it all and we paid zero. Uh And what he secured for us through his cross and resurrection. Is to put us into relationship with Him. Where there is no impediment between us and God because of our sin. Because we are wholly clean in His eyes.
and we are fully adopted as His. And Paul even goes so far to say, we've been blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ. The writer of Hebrews says, come to the throne of grace boldly in your time of need. And I want to therefore talk to you from Nehemiah 2 about The delight of God and the power in us doing so when we ask big. Because there's nothing that's impossible to God.
So, I want to just take us through this text in Nehemiah chapter 2. And then I want to just look at what is it that Might hinder us from asking big things of God and expecting big things. And why was Nehemiah so daring? to ask as he did.
So if you'll remember, if you've been with us, you'll remember this is a story that is set post-exile. This is after the people of God have been deported under Babylonian rule when Jerusalem was sacked in 586 BC. And every almost everybody's deported to Babylon, and some of them got to stay behind, some got spread around, some, but. Jerusalem, the temple, the walls, the city was destroyed. And then Cyrus of Persia came through and by God's appointment, this pagan king becomes the tool of God to return people to Jerusalem.
And so. Cyrus allows people to go back under the Persian Empire. They are rebuilding, first under Ezra, a priest who helps rebuild the temple, and they start a rebuilding effort of the walls, but it's halted. And Nehemiah However, it happens, we're not told. Though a Hebrew exile, he has managed to become a servant of high standing in the Persian court under the new king, King Artaxerxes, and he's the cupbearer to the king.
Which meant that he would taste the wine, make sure it wasn't poison before the king, and he would be bringing. Food and beverage before the king, so he is having daily access. to the Persian King. though a lowly Hebrew servant. And he gets word from some Hebrew brothers that Though the work had started of rebuilding the walls, that it had been halted and the walls were in ruins.
and the city was left vulnerable, and the people were in shame. And it broke Nehemiah's heart. But it didn't just break his heart by feeling sad for his homeland. It grew in him. And it grew over time as he prayed and he mourned and he couldn't let go of it.
And what we saw is sort of the anatomy of the birth of a vision and a leader. Who has a call from God, and how different that is from mere ambition. towards selfish goals. And that vision in him led him towards an inclination to ask God for favor with King Artaxerxes. And we talked about living in the unmerited favor of God.
And now we come into chapter 2. where after all of his prayer, it's time. And Nehemiah is going to make the ask. the risky ask. to be the rebuilder.
Nehemiah 2 verse 1, In the month of Nisan, in the 20th year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, I took up the wine and gave it to the king.
Now I had not been sad in his presence, and the king said to me, Why is your face sad, seeing you are not sick? This is nothing but sadness of the heart, then I was very much afraid.
So this is like a memoir. And it's an honest memoir. And it starts by letting us know it's Nissan, which is comparable to roughly our April. It's in the spring. It lets us know it's been four months that have passed since Nehemiah got word about the disrepair of the Jerusalem walls.
He's been praying, he's been grieving. for four months. And this will be the first time That he allows the king to see his sadness. He's been phony and putting on a smile up until then. The famous ancient historian Herodotus.
Has reported that court attendants faced great danger if they appeared with sullen countenance before the king. The king didn't want anybody contributing to anything discouraging. And we don't know whether it was strategic, like Nehemiah said, okay, now after four months, it's time. I'm going to be honest with the king, or whether it was more of a Holy Spirit thing where he was just overcome, overcome, and he could no longer hide. I don't know.
But one thing for sure, it was risky. Verse 2 again, the king said, Why is your face sad? Seeing you're not sick.
So the king took. note of his countenance. And when He asked about it, Nehemiah, in that moment. He admits to us, to himself, that he was afraid. And we'll come back to this in a moment about this admission of his fear.
But This great ask and even this great fear, just note it well, it could be that it is accompanied at first by an honest fear. And courage is really action to do what's right, even if you are afraid. But interestingly, instead of answering the king's question, Nehemiah asks a question of his own. He said, Verse 3, let the king live forever, like long live the king, a term of respect. And then he asked the question.
The king says, Why are you sad? And then Nehemiah asks the question back: Why should I not my face be sad when the city, the place of my father's graves, lies in ruins and its gates have been destroyed by fire? It's an old tactic of Jewish teachers, rabbis' habits to answer a question with a question. Here's an old joke about a student that comes to his rabbi and says, Rabbi, why is it that so often you answer a question with a question? And the rabbi said, ah, what's so bad about a question?
29 times Jesus answered a question with a question. It's very interesting. I'll look at it sometime. Like, for example, in Luke chapter 6, one Sabbath, Jesus is going through the grain fields, and the disciples started picking.
Some heads of grain to rub them their hands and eat the kernels. And some of the Pharisees in Luke 6:2 asked, Why are you doing what's unlawful on the Sabbath? And Jesus answered them, Have you never read what David did? when his companions were hungry. I like the story of the disciples that are walking on the Emmaus road, and Jesus has been raised from the dead, but they don't know it.
And so they're very discouraged, and he's having this conversation, and they don't even know it's the risen Jesus. And one of them, Cleopas, said, Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do not know the things that have happened here in these days? And Jesus answered, What things? I mean, he was the things, you know.
So Nehemiah, either by strategy or by unction or by habit, he answers a question with a question. It means that he's not. On the defensive, but he's not on the offense either. He is redirecting the conversation. And doing so in a beautiful way.
And in a wise way, Nehemiah doesn't even mention Jerusalem. He says: the place of my father's graves lies in ruins. And the reason this is so beautiful, strategic, or simply the unction of the Holy Spirit. Is that part of the risk that Nehemiah faced? was that King Artaxerxes had earlier Actually, issued a mandate that the work would stop in Jerusalem.
We're told all about this in Ezra chapter 4. Ezra and Nehemiah are really like one book, one story. And in Ezra chapter 4, we won't turn there for sake of time, but in Ezra chapter 4, there were opponents of the efforts of the rebuilding of the city. That had written to Artaxerxes and said, This people here are going to rebuild this city, and they'll probably not pay taxes, and they might rise up against you, and all of this. And so Artaxerxes, not knowing much about it, had made this statement and he said, the work must stop, basically, he said, until I study the matter further and give you an edict on this.
So he had mandated that the work stop, but he'd given this loophole that it might not stay that way. And it's a good thing that loophole was there, else he'd have probably had to abide by his own. Edict.
So, this is part of the risk that Nehemiah faced: he knew he's going to the very king who had stopped the work in Jerusalem.
So, when he goes to him, I'm just saying this is kind of a wise and beautiful thing. He first appeals to the heart connection of the king and he speaks of his homeland and of the place where my father's graves. and the city of my ancestors has been put to ruins. Pastor Alan Wright in our good news message, Asking Big, from the series on Nehemiah. Please stay with us.
Pastor Alan is back, joining me in the studio, sharing his parting good news thought for the day in just a moment. Unlock the power of blessing your life. Discover God's grace-filled vision for your life by signing up for Alan Wright's free daily blessing. If you want to fill your heart with grace and encouragement, get Alan Wright's daily blessing. It's free, and just a click away at pastoralen.org.
Ever wish you could be a child again? Ever long for the simpler days when your biggest financial worry was counting the money in the shoebox of the lemonade stand? Ever long for the more carefree times when you wish the long summer days would never end? If you've ever longed to be like a child again, author Alan Wright has some good news. You can.
Because Jesus commanded us to become like little children in order to enter the kingdom, it must be possible. When you make a gift this month, we'll send you a copy of the first book Alan Wright authored. It's called A Childlike Heart, and it will lead you once again into the freedom and wonder of childhood. If you long for fresh, childlike faith, Alan's book will help you find adventure and joy in your grown-up walk. And remember, when you make a gift, you're broadcasting the love of God to thousands of people every day.
Now we are in our final days of offering this special product. This broadcast is only possible because of listener financial support. When you give today, we will send you today's special offer. We are happy to send this to you as our thanks from Allan Wright Ministries. Call us at eight seven seven five four four forty eight sixty.
That's eight seven seven five four four forty eight sixty. or come to our website, pastorallen.org. Back here now with Pastor Alan Wright and our teaching, Asking Big. You mentioned with Nehemiah, by the way, you got him as builder, dreamer, and warrior.
So, does this one fall under the heading of dreamer? Dream big. Ask big. Big big. Ask big.
I think that. most surveys show as people get towards the end of their life, what would you do differently? And most people say I would take more risk. But I think with our walk with God, if there's something probably we look back and go, I wish maybe I'd asked bigger of God. He's a big God and I think asking big is at the heart of something that's delightful to God.
And this is a big, big ass that Nehemiah has of King Artaxerxes. It's a it's a bold and very big ask because it just wasn't really done. that you go into the presence of the king asked for this kind of favor, this kind of release. and this kind of blessing to go and essentially leave the service of the king in order to rebuild these walls. It's a It's a very big ask.
I think there's something of a great model in here. that Nehemiah got filled up with a sense of call. And that call put a burden in his heart of great compassion. And then out of that great compassion. He became convinced that God had called him to this, and therefore God must be going to provide for it.
and therefore he was asking big.
So it's not like just taking your flesh's desires and asking big, right? It's something more than that. And so we've got a lot to learn here about prayer. And and uh really answer the question why don't we ask bigger things of god and we're exploring all of that If you only caught part of today's teaching, not only can you listen again online, but also get a daily email devotional that matches today's teaching delivered right to your email inbox free. Find out more about these and other resources at pastorallen.org.
That's pastoralan.org. Today's good news message is a listener-supported production of Alan Wright Ministries.
