Hello, and thanks for stopping by for today's Destined for Victory with Pastor Paul Shepard. Coming up next, we move ahead in our teaching series, God is a Finisher, with Pastor Paul's message, Wisdom for People Under Construction. You know, Destined for Victory could not survive without the prayers and donations of friends like you. You are the lifeblood of this media ministry, and we're so grateful for all you've done. But as you may know, charitable giving decreases sharply during the busy summer months, and our faith can be challenged as a result.
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You can also mail your gift to Destined for Victory, post office box 1767, Fremont, California, 94538. God wants the areas of our lives that are broken down, that are messed up, that are dysfunctional. He wants them dealt with. And the onus is going to be on us to respond. to what God is showing us.
If you are a believer in Christ, you are under construction and God is the master builder. Once He saves you by His grace through faith, He wants to help you get your life firmly entrenched in His Word and His way. It's a little bit like building a wall to protect your mind, heart, and spirit. Today, on Destined for Victory, featuring Pastor Paul Shepard, we'll take you to the book of Nehemiah to show you what the process looks like and the role your prayer life plays in it.
So here's today's Destined for Victory message: wisdom for people under construction.
Now, as we wrap up this entire series looking at our lives as a construction project, where God said, I began it and I'm going to complete it. As we wrap it up, I want to give you four points of wisdom. Of wisdom for people under construction. Since we're under construction, since we are God's construction project, what are some points of wisdom that will help us sort of tie together this entire series? Four points of wisdom, and I want to borrow them from the book of Nehemiah.
At some point, I'll preach an entire series from the book of Nehemiah. It's such a rich, wonderful episode in the life of Old Testament Israel, which has many lessons for New Testament, for the New Testament church. And so, when you get a chance, you want to read the book of Nehemiah. But I want to just grab a few highlights. When God brings us out of our dysfunction, brings us out of our sin, brings us out of our confusion, brings us out of unforgiveness, brings us out of whatever it is we've been struggling with.
Now we need to get our lives firmly situated. And it's like building the wall of Jerusalem for your own personal life.
So I want to just give you four points to tie together this thought of what to expect as God continues and completes. Completes the work he has done in our lives. Four simple points. Here's number one: expect revelation. Expect revelation.
Since God is up to something in our lives, he is going to be revealing things to you as you go along.
So expect revelation. Expect God to say, okay, for the next several months, you and I are going to be working on this part of our lives. God will reveal to you, God will show you that He is after some specific things in your life, and you can expect Him. To speak to you. In Nehemiah chapter 1, that's what happened to this man who was the cupbearer of the king.
He saw the Jews coming back from exile and he heard their complaints and saw their tears as they looked and saw, well, we're free now, we're no longer prisoner in a foreign country, but we come home to a place in disarray. Our wall is torn down. In Bible times, if a city didn't have a wall, it could be easily and quickly attacked. And so they came back and they said, what's the point of being free when you don't have anything that fortifies and strengthens and protects you? And Nehemiah heard people questioning that.
And they said to him in verse 3 of Nehemiah chapter 1: Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall is broken down, its gates have been burned with fire.
Now, watch Nehemiah's response. When I heard these things, I sat down and wept for some days. I mourned and fasted. And prayed before God, and then he begins to pray. And his prayer runs from verses five.
Down through 11, where he ends it, O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this, your servant, and the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. Give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of the king. For he was the king's cupbearer. Here's what was happening: Nehemiah said, I now see that God wants me to do something about this torn-down wall. And you and I, as we sit under the word of God, we see that God wants the areas of our lives that are broken down, that are messed up, that are dysfunctional.
He wants them dealt with. And the onus is going to be on us to respond to what God is showing us. And so when the Lord gives you revelation, when He shows you, you know, you can't keep living like this, you can't keep making decisions like this, you can't keep your life in disarray in this area. This is not my plan for you. I want you to have a better life.
I want you to have a more fulfilling life. I want you to live. In holiness, I want you to live in freedom from bondage. When God gives you that revelation, with revelation comes responsibility. You know, it's almost kind of dangerous when God starts dealing with you.
What He's trying to do is bless you, but the danger is you're now responsible. See, a lot of times when you don't know better, you don't do better. But what God does in the construction project is, He makes sure you start knowing better. How many know some things about the will of God that you didn't know five years ago? All right, how many know some things you didn't know one year ago?
See, that means God's dealing with you. In fact, if I kept going down, some hands would still be going up.
Some of us know something this week that we didn't know this time last week. About the will of God for our lives.
Some of us didn't know about forgiveness the way we learned about it just in the last week or so.
So God is constantly revealing to you, revealing to you. Listen, when God reveals to you what's wrong, don't get discouraged by that. When God convicts you, don't get discouraged by that because He wouldn't convict you if He didn't love you. He wouldn't convict you if he didn't want you to grow and become a better, stronger person than you are right now. And so know that with revelation comes responsibility.
When God shows me, okay, the wall's broken down, it's burned, it's torn, then comes the responsibility. And Nehemiah responded to the revelation that God wanted him to do something about it through fasting and prayer. And then he prayed and said, Lord, if I'm going to be the one who helps the people rebuild the wall, I'm going to need permission from my boss, the king. I'm going to need a leave of absence. And that's going to have to be a God thing.
Because this king had no. Real reason to let Nehemiah take a leave of absence from serving him. to go build the wall of a city the king could care less about. But When God is at work. God will touch people who wouldn't normally see it as advantageous to blessing you.
He'll touch them and he will give you favor. One of the things I want you to believe God for is favor. Because when you get favor favor sometimes is better than money Oh, I'm not telling you what I think. I'm telling you what I've experienced. Favor is better than money.
When God gives you favor with the right people about the right things, a door that had been shut tight will fly open. I'll never forget years ago when we wanted to build our first building here in the Bay Area, and we had found this little warehouse in East Menlo Park, and we wanted to build that out, but it was a warehouse, it was in a warehouse district, and so we would have needed a conditional use permit from the city.
Well, when we first approached the city, the Planning Commission flat out said, No, we're not going to let you turn that into a church. And we said, Lord, we believe this is the door you're opening. The price was real good. The lease that they gave us was downright cheap. And we said, Oh, Lord, this has got to be you.
So you need to open this door and bless us to be able to get this conditional use permit. And we went through the process, and they were saying, No, no, no, no.
Well, we were having a little prayer meeting with some brothers and sisters at Menlo Park Presbyterian Church back in those days. And I think once a month, a bunch of us would get together on Saturday morning, some folk from that church and some from our church, and we would just pray together and were building relationships and what have you. And one morning we were praying about the need for this conditional use permit. And one brother from that church in the prayer meeting said, You know what? One of the members of our church used to be the mayor of this town.
He said, while we were praying, I thought, you know, I need to go tell him about this church that we are partnering with and tell him that they need a conditional use permit, and the hearing is coming up, and all they've heard to this point is no. And they're going to make their final plea in this hearing. And he said, I'm going to go to him and see what he can do. And we said, all right, we just prayed about it and left the prayer meeting and went on about our business.
Well, the hearing night came, the hearing in front of the Planning Commission to say yay or nay to this conditional use permit that we needed. And then walked this gentleman. An ex-mayor of that city. And so when the time came for a little testimony and what have you, I had my little speech prepared and what have you was ready to do my due diligence. But either before or after I spoke, I don't remember, this gentleman put up his hand, walked to the mic, And he said, You all know me.
And everybody, all the planning commission did know him, used to be the mayor. And he said a couple of things. He said, Listen, this church is doing a good work. They're in a community that's very much in need of a positive church that will help them and serve them and meet their needs. And they have concern for the poor.
And he just laid out a few things. He said, There's no reason in the world why you all shouldn't give them that use permit. And he turned around and sat down. We'll be right back with more of today's Destin for Victory message: Don't Go Away. Listen to this broadcast on demand at pastorpaul.net.
And while you're there, be on the lookout for some of the best Christian resources on the market, including books and videos that feature the teaching and preaching ministry of Pastor Paul Shepard. It's found at pastorpaul.net. God promises to give wisdom to all who ask, so when you ask for it, expect to get it.
Now let's listen closely to the second half of today's message: wisdom for people under construction. The vote came. And it was, I forget how many members it was, but whatever it was, it was a number, and then zero for the nay votes. Unanimous Over one act of favor. In a prayer meeting that was prompted by a revelation in a prayer meeting.
All you need is one word from God. All you need is one, sometimes it doesn't even have to be a whole sentence, just a thought. God gives you the right thought, and it'll change some area of your life.
So expect Revelation Because God Is up to something in your life. Number two, expect partnership. Expect partnership. Yeah.
Now Here's what I want you to know as we wrap up this series. God is up to something in your life, and He's going to complete what He started, but the building project that is your life requires that you walk. and work with others. It requires that you walk and work with others. In other words, the building project that is your life.
is not a do-it-yourself project. There are some things you can do alone in your life, and you ought to. There are some decisions you can make alone, and you ought to.
Sometimes it's just here's the right decision to make, make it. But there are some things in everyone's life that cannot be done alone.
So God brings us into partnership With others.
Now, what happened in Nehemiah's case? The Lord gave him favor with the king. The king granted him this leave of absence that he needed. And the king, not only did he grant him leave of absence, but he granted him materials. He let him go to the king's forest and get the wood so that they could use that for part of the construction project.
I mean, God just flung the door open for Nehemiah. And he knew that he was going to be able to get this work done if he had the right partnership.
So, in chapter 2. of Nehemiah. Verse 11 of chapter 2 says, I went to Jerusalem, and after staying there three days, I set out during the night. With a few men, I had not told anyone what the Lord had put in my heart to do for Jerusalem. There were no mounts with me except the one I was riding on.
And he goes on, just talk about this particular evening. And then he says, in verse 17. I said to the people as they walked around and sort of examined things, I said, You see the trouble we are in. Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace.
Verse 18, I also told them the gracious hand of my God upon me and what the king had said to me. They replied, Let us start rebuilding.
So they began. This good work. You see what happened? Nehemiah, after he got the favor of the king and he knew God was really going to bless him to be able to take this leave and do the project, he knew I can't do this alone. I can do the will of God, but I can't do it alone.
So he found a few men and he didn't give them upfront information. He said, Would y'all come with me? We're going to do a little night tour. I want to show you some things. And he took a few people.
Now, I want to stop at this few point.
Some of us have got to learn. That this is a season of pruning relationships. It's not a season of being conceited or stuck up or throwing off on people or acting like you're suddenly too good for folks. But I promise you, as you move through the process of God building what He wants to build in your life, there are some people who can't go with you into that season. They just can't do it.
They're not called to do it. They don't feel it in their hearts. There are some issues there. And rather than you try to drag everybody from your past into your present and into your future, you're going to have to get the grace to love them. Love them, pray for them, wish them well, be available if ever there's a need they have that you can meet.
But you cannot drag everybody into this season of your life. And the more you try to drag them, the more you're going to bog down your own project. And so look at Nehemiah. He found a few people.
Some of us are used to having the approval and the roar of a large crowd, and this is a season where God's not giving you a crowd. This is a season where you're going to tell some folks what God is speaking to you about and what He's doing in your heart, and they look at you like, what's your problem? And nothing is more frustrated than you being excited about what God is doing. and you're talking to somebody. Who couldn't care less?
So what you got to do is learn to love everybody. Support them, wish them well, pray for them. If you can, do good, do good for them, but don't try to bring them through the door of the new season of your life. And so God will prune. people.
From your life. And folk you used to count on, and folk who always said, if you need me, call me, no matter where you are, no matter how far. Just call my name, I'll be there in a hurry. On that, you can depend and never worry. No wind, no rain.
No, winter's cold. Can stop me, baby, if you're my goal. Course said, Ain't no mountain high enough, ain't no valley low enough, ain't no river wide enough to keep me. And If you haven't done it, keep on living, you're gonna find that some folk who used to sing ain't no mountain high enough about you. They have changed their tune.
You bring that song up to them now, they don't even know the song you're talking about. What changed? The season changed. And they said, I have that river too much. I ain't going over.
Don't sweat it. Because God will raise up. The right people. Who comes along and sing the new song that God is birthing in your life? Expect partners.
And you've got to be part of that. You've got to open your heart. You've got to open your life. You've got to be willing to share with people: here's where I am. Here's what God is saying to me.
Here's the project. You've got to walk them around the wall of your life and say, Here's where it's messed up. Look how jacked up that is. And you have to walk them around. These people weren't going to know about the project until they saw for themselves what the need was.
A lot of Christians have got to get out of secret living. I said it earlier in the series. We've got to open our lives, the worst of our lives, the embarrassing parts of our lives, the humiliating parts of our lives. You don't expose them to experience humiliation, you expose them so folks can say, let us. Yeah yeah.
Build, let us pray, let us grow, let us talk, let us believe God for this. And God will raise up the right people, but you have to be willing to open up your life. You got to swing open those closets that have skeletons in them. And you've got to let God bring people into your life who can deal with that.
Some of us have never let the folks in our lives mature in love.
Some folk have a love that's based on ignorance. They love you 'cause they don't know you. But God will raise up people Who will love you better? as they get to know you. Because their love won't be based on fantasy.
It will be based on reality. They say you're jacked up in this area, but I love you. You got some real issues, but I love you. And I will walk with you. And the reason why they can walk with you is because they got their own stuff.
When they get your house together, they say, now come on, walk with me over to my house. Because we have some things we need to deal with. And you got to remember, it's just like what happens at an airport. If you've ever seen, I have at times in all my years of flying, I have seen somebody leaving an area for good. And back in the days, before all this security, you know, back in the day, your folk used to be able to go all the way to the gate with you.
You all remember those days? And sometimes I have seen back in the day families crying and what have you as they're sending somebody off, and there's great tears and what have you, because this is goodbye. But they're getting on the same plane I'm getting on. And we take off and we go somewhere new and we land. And guess what?
For all the tears of sorrow. at the one airport. At the other airport, there are tears of joy. There's hugging and joy as that person gets off the plane, and whoever they're going to embraces them and says, Come on, we'll go get your luggage for you. Come on, we got the car running.
We're going somewhere. I come to tell you, you might have to say some painful goodbyes on the one end, but God has some happy hellos on the other end. When God continues to work in your life after salvation, expect revelation and expect partnership. We'll pick it up right here tomorrow as we move ahead in our series, God is a Finisher. Thanks so much for being here today for Pastor Paul Shepard's message, Wisdom for People Under Construction.
To find out more about Destined for Victory's mission and purpose, or about the special gift reserved for you when you give generously today, please come see us at pastorpaul.net. That's pastorpaul.net.
Some people prophesy what they want to happen in your life. You're not going to get off drugs. You're not going to get free from alcohol. You're not going to get out of debt. You're not going to make your marriage work.
They are prophesying. You gotta learn, just like you gotta learn to receive godly prophecy, you gotta learn to reject prophet lies. That's tomorrow in our continuing Destined for Victory message: Wisdom for People Under Construction. Until then, remember, he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion. In Christ, you are destined for victory.
