1815. The Danger of Discouragement

And I hope that as we spend Mondays together in chapel in the book of Nehemiah, that you will find not just another book of the Bible or not just a narrative story or not just a historical piece. I hope you won't just find some guy's journal with how he managed his time period and the problems that he faced. I hope that you will find primarily a source of God's wisdom for living. I hope that there you will find a friend, that as Nehemiah has presented to us through kind of the memoirs that we read, that you will find that you're resonating with this man's heart. I hope that you will find there some practical advice in contemplating, okay, Nehemiah, why did you do things the way that you did? Why did you take the time that you took? Or why did you have that conversation the way you had it?

Why did you position people in building the way that you did? I hope you'll find some really, really practical advice that you can apply to your life. But more than that, I hope that God will shape our hearts around the big priorities that as we read this book become very obvious in the life of Nehemiah. This is very much, if you will, in our language, a personal diary. It is a journal.

It is a set of memoirs. But what I hope you'll see is beyond all of that, that this is literature that is inspired by God as part of our Bible that he intends to impact our lives. And so as we study this book together, we are going to be uncovering the working of God in the heart of his servant as he is used by God to make a difference in people's lives, both individually and corporately.

And from that we can draw applications about how we can live effectively for God in our own setting. Let's enjoy studying Nehemiah together. Welcome to The Daily Platform, a radio program featuring chapel messages from Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina. Today, Dr. Benson is continuing the chapel series titled Nehemiah Life on Mission. Today's sermon is from chapter four, and Alan will be preaching The Danger of Discouragement. Take your Bibles and turn to Nehemiah chapter four. Nehemiah chapter four.

I want to read the first few verses. Nehemiah chapter four and verse one, but it came to pass that when Sanballat heard that we builded the wall he was wroth and took great indignation and mocked the Jews. He spake before his brother in the army of Samaria and said, What do these feeble Jews? Will they fortify themselves? Will they sacrifice?

Will they make an end in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned? Now, Tobiah the Ammonite was by him and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall break down their stone wall. Here, O our God, for we are despised, and turn their reproach upon their own head and give them for a prey in the land of captivity, and cover not their iniquity and let not their sin be blotted out from before thee, for they have provoked thee to anger before the builders. So built we the wall, and all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof, for the people had a mind to work. But it came to pass when Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabians and the Ammonites and the Ashtodites heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up and that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth and conspired all of them together to come and fight against Jerusalem and to hinder it. Nevertheless, we made our prayer unto our God and set a watch against them day and night because of them.

Watch the next three verses because you'll see three responses. And Judah said, The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed and there is much rubbish so that we are not able to build the wall. Verse 11, And our adversaries said, They shall not know neither see till we come in the midst among them and slay them and cause the work to cease. Verse 12, And it came to pass that when the Jews which dwelt by them came, they said unto us ten times from all places when she shall return unto us, they will be upon you. Today I want to come to this section of the book and I want us to think about the danger of discouragement. And that comes at a unique place, a place that I call the middle. Look at chapter 4 and verse 6 says, So built we the wall and all the wall was joined together unto the, what is the next word?

You can say it. I'm listening. Half, that's right. Everybody say half. Half, that's right.

Unto the half thereof. They're halfway done. They're in the middle. There's jeopardy in the middle. You see, well begun is half done.

People are at the midway point. There's danger in being halfway done. Why? Because you have as much to do as you've already done. Only now you're tired.

I think the timing of this is really interesting. How many of you just had midterms? Yeah. The wall is half done. And there's as much to do as you've already done.

Only now how many of you are tired? Yeah. There's danger in the middle. One author said the middle is a valley of mediocrity. Only half done. And you've done a lot and maybe you've been enthused by how you got it done.

And yet if that's as far as you go, the best is mediocre. I want you to see as we find Nehemiah and the builders in Jerusalem at this point in the book, I think it's really key for us to understand what happens to them, how they're thinking and how they respond. Because if we're going to successfully live life on mission, at some point you have to go through the middle. And learning how to deal with the middle, which by the way I think might be the longest part of the journey. The middle of a flight is the longest part of the journey and it happens between takeoff and landing.

All the rest of it's in the middle. And so it might actually be the longest part of the journey. And if that is true, it may be God's greatest workshop for how He forms Himself and His servants.

God is working in your life in the middle, but the middle is never easy. And so I want you to see that first of all there is tremendous power and encouragement. Look back at chapter 2 and verse 18. He lays out for them this challenge in verse 17. He tells them about the distress that they are in and yet Nehemiah says this, And then I told them of the hand of my God, which was good upon me, as also the king's words that he had spoken unto me. And they said, let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for this good work. There's tremendous power in encouragement. Let me say this to you. As we all find ourselves in the middle, purpose that you're going to be a tremendous source of strength to somebody by being in encouragement. This is a time to get proactive. The middle is a place to be intentionally encouraging.

Find something that you can encourage somebody in. Because when we're tired, our default tends to be discouragement. So notice then chapter 2 and verse 19. Because there's tremendous power in discouragement. When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the servant the Ammonite and Gisham the Arabian heard it, they laughed us to scorn.

And despised us and said, what is this thing that you do? Will you rebel against the king? There's tremendous power in discouragement. And one of the realities of life in a fallen world is that we are going to constantly face the danger of discouragement. And what I want us to see in chapter 4 and chapter 5 is that it comes in two forms. One, there will be discouragement that comes because of external conflict and challenges.

But I want us to see that later in chapter 5 the greater danger may be the discouragement that comes from internal conflict. So how we deal with adversity actually doesn't just say something about our character. It actually is formative for our character. You see, actions are our Christian stand. We do things and it's our stand, it's our testimony. But reactions are our Christian walk. How I react when something discouraging happens is actually really telling, not just to others but also to me. Because it gives me an opportunity to stop and say, okay, what's going on in my own heart?

If I'm reacting that way, maybe it's a workshop that says, you know what, I didn't see that coming and I didn't sense that kind of response coming. But I'm tired, I'm discouraged, I'm fighting and that happened and look what came out of me. You know what I need to do? I need to put truth in me if that's what's going on in my heart. I need to speak truth to my own heart and so the middle is a workshop, it's a place of learning. And if I'll be honest with and take the lens of Scripture to my own reactions in life and allow the Holy Spirit to teach me there, God in the middle will make me more like Christ. How many of you are sitting here today and you're going to be honest with yourself? Because I sit here in chapel this morning and it's just past midterm. I have to be honest, in my heart I find myself in the middle.

Yeah, that's kind of where I'm living. Just me? Great, well I'm going to preach to me this morning and you all can listen. It's the midpoint of the semester for me as well. November the 17th, so I'm in the sixth month of my current role, I'm halfway through my current role.

And there are challenges that come there. Am I actually doing a good job? Am I being successful? Do I remember what my goals are?

What should the goals be for the next half? Dude, I am tired. Friend, how did you get so ugly? Like these are the things that go through your mind when you look in the mirror.

Like I don't think that crease was there when I started this. I am so thankful for a book like Nehemiah because God doesn't shy away from reality. He doesn't shy away from reality in our lives either and we shouldn't. You know we always wish every day had its own parade, don't we? Yeah, end of the day parade, get the balloons, yada yada yada. But most days don't have parades, friends. We always wish that the everyday life of our event came with cheerleaders.

Yay, go Ellen. There often aren't cheerleaders. Unfortunately, too many of our brothers and sisters in Christ never think about the benefit of cheering for us. And so we live every day and it's hard and that day may or may not seem to have its own rewards.

And nobody's cheering and at the end of that day I'm really tired and I wonder did I get any further toward the goal today than I did yesterday. That's the middle. And all too often there are people who whether intentionally or unintentionally say things that just aren't kind.

Here it was very intentional. What did Nehemiah deal with? False accusations from his own workers, ridicule of the workers, a plot to attack the workers, physical exhaustion and threat of murder, economic crisis and then people displaying greed, an assassination plot. I hope any of you don't get that this semester.

Slander, plot to discredit. Tobiah moves into the temple storehouse and undoes everything that I've already accomplished. There's people that neglect the very purpose for which I came and they violate the Sabbath so that they actually are doing the opposite of the worship that was in my heart.

All that happens to Nehemiah. So let's look then quickly at some reasons for discouragement. Reasons for discouragement. Angry words. Angry words. There are some of you because your roommate didn't do their part in White Glove that shared some angry words. There are some of you that because your RA is on steroids about White Glove that you shared some angry words.

And there are some of you that don't have an RA but your mom is worse than the RA's. The closest thing in Scripture to describe your room would be desert wanderings. Never stop to think about what the heart that is receiving your angry words might be like if they're living in the middle. That's what this is a call to. I believe in this chapter that that exactly is what Sambalat and Tobiah and Gisham the Arabian were doing. They knew there were people who were tired and they had mocked them and they were working and they were working in actual circumstances that seemed like they were impossible. In the midst of that they come with contempt.

Sambalat is angry. The word is to be hot. He's boiling and he's powerful.

He's a governor in Samaria in some sense and he's fearing the potential of what could happen if Jerusalem is being rebuilt. And so he comes with ridicule. There are some of us that have a PhD in sarcasm. Knowing exactly how to say just the right thing at the right moment that makes the people sit up like the hollow shell that remains of a dead insect in the spider's web, looking completely whole but being totally gutted. And somehow we think we're really good at that. And it actually destroys people.

Particularly in the middle. They belittled the character. Look at the five questions. What are these feeble Jews doing? Like do they have any clue how to build a wall? And so they turn this to an ad hominem attack. Who are they anyway? They've been here forever.

They've never done anything successful. Ever had a debate with somebody and you get into something and you don't know exactly how to win the debate so you say something really smart like, who do you think you are? I haven't thought about that in a while. Like what kind of a question is that? You know what you've done?

I'm going to move away from the substance of this conversation and I'm going to attack your character. They attack their ambitions. Will they restore their wall? Like, they actually think they can do this?

What a ridiculous idea. Mock their optimism. Will they offer sacrifices? Like do they actually think that they're going to do something good enough that actually is going to be pleasing to their God?

Where has he been the last 150 years? It poked holes in their enthusiasm. Will they finish in a day? And ultimately they underfind their confidence.

Can they bring stones back to life? Or in other words, you don't have a chance. You don't even have the right stuff to build with. And so they mocked them. Angry words brings discouragement. Intimidation brings discouragement. They follow up with some form of a show of force in verses 7 and 8.

We don't know if it was real or if it was a bluff, but at least they do saber rattling and they want to scare them to the point that they think, you know what, it's just not worth it. There are some of you who are sitting right now in the middle and you're tired and you've worked really hard and you don't think you've seen the reward for your efforts that you had hoped to see. And there's something that Satan wants to bring into your life that makes you say, I just don't think it's worth it. And that could be the words of a roommate. It could be someone you're interested in and thinking about dating and they take a left turn.

Yeah, you keep going that way. I'm out. It could be any number of things. It could be a message from home. And it hits your heart at a tender moment where you are tired and you say, I just don't think it's worth it. Weariness, verses 10 through 12. They're tired. Look at verse 10, and Judah said, the strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed and there's much rubbish.

That kind of sounds like white glove in the middle of a semester. Beware of weariness. Be careful of the decisions that you make when you're tired.

I tell people never make life changing decisions when you're discouraged, hungry or tired. Weariness is a source out of which discouragement can grow. That weariness sometimes looks like fatigue.

You're just really, really tired. Sometimes it is weariness that comes from frustration. You've tried and tried and tried and tried and it doesn't seem to be getting any better. But most of the time, true weariness comes from fear. I've done this and it's not working.

I've tried that and it's not working. I feared coming in if I could even do this and now I've had proof. I'm halfway through and I can't do this. And fears begin to mount. So as we close, let's look at responses to discouragement because I think you see some things here that are really, really important. And number one is this prayer. We see Nehemiah praying a shocking prayer. A prayer for deliverance and for vindication in verses four and five. And then we get in verse nine.

Nevertheless, we made our prayer unto our God and set a watch against them day and night because of them. And you will see throughout this book that in the challenges that Nehemiah faces, he always runs to his God. Discouragement that comes in the middle is a primary impetus for you to cry out to your God, God, I need your help. God, I need your perspective. God, I need your truth. God, I need you to do when I can. God, I need you to carry me. God, I need you to clear the way. God, I need you to clear my vision. God, whatever the challenge might be that you're facing in the middle, this is a time for heightened prayer.

I challenge you more than any other point in this semester as we walk in the middle. This is a time for you to pray for one another. Your DG's right now should become times of concerted prayer about real things.

What are you facing? Not just, hey, pray for my test. Pray for me in light of my test. Pray for my heart. I'm going into this one and I feel fearful. I'm going into this one and I feel discouraged. I'm tired so my brain hasn't prepared the way.

This is a time to get real, young people. This is a time to pray and to get friends to rally around you. Second, perseverance. Don't quit. Discouragement wants you to quit. This is a time to say, my heart feels discouraged so it's not the time to quit. I will quit when I have clarity about what God is doing. When I know God is directing my steps to somewhere else, then is when I'll change course. But I'm not going to do it because I'm discouraged.

Perseverance. Verse 16 and verse 15. Nehemiah says all of us in verse 15 return to the wall. Verse 21, we carried on the work. But then I want you to see one other step and that is this. When discouragement comes and you're living in the middle, it is a time for planning.

Nehemiah has a plan, verse 13, and he carries it out in verses 16 through 20. He says we're going to do something different. I'm going to step up the watch. I'm going to be more careful than I normally am.

And then I'm going to take really intentional steps. You know what some of you need to do? It's time now for you to put into practice all of those study habits you told yourself you were going to have at the beginning of the semester and forgot about.

You know what? I don't need to go hang out in the den and tell myself that being with my friends is the best way to get ready for a test. I don't need to talk anymore about my ability in high school that I could sit and listen to the teacher and I got 80% of all that I needed to get. Because so far, halfway through has proved that isn't true at college. So get a plan.

And fourthly, positive reinforcement. Notice what Nehemiah says to the people. Verse 14, remember the Lord. It's time for you to speak truth to your own heart. It's time for you to speak truth to others in the middle and intentionally point them to Christ. Hey, God's at work in your life. If you're feeling pressure, if you're under stress, if you're being discouraged, understand this isn't just all Satan. God is at work in your life trying to refine you and make you more like Christ. Remember the Lord.

Turn to Him. And then secondly, ready for battle. These people get to the place that they work and they don't take their clothes off.

Now I don't know what all that means. But because they're so diligent in working and they're encouraging what God is doing because they're now focusing on the mission so that they live life on mission. They're actually going to protect each other, cover each other's back. They're going to carry a sword and a trowel and they're going to work.

Why? Because they reminded themselves what it is that God is doing. And that's what we need in the middle. Young people, don't quit. Father, thank you for your work in our lives. Thank you for the lessons of a life like Nehemiah's. Thank you, Lord, that you show us real life.

This is the challenge to the wall that was greater than the initial starting. And the middle is a difficult place. If there's someone here this morning that's discouraged, oh God, give them a word of encouragement today. Give them a friend that comes along beside them. Help somebody to be the voice of truth to them.

If they're under attack and feeling this conflict or people that are saying things, maybe intentionally or unintentionally, but they're hurtful. Oh God, I pray you'd comfort their heart and help them to remember the Lord. And help us all to ready for battle, having an action plan by which we can take the next step of living life on mission for your glory. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. You've been listening to a sermon preached by Dr. Alan Benson from the study series called Nehemiah Life on Mission.

My name is Wyatt Smith. I'm a senior here at Bob Jones University studying multimedia journalism. And I want to tell you a little about my experience here at BJU. I've been here a little over three years and I truly cannot say enough about the community here at BJU. Whether it has been in the halls of the dorms, in my incredible society, or even in the classroom, I have always felt a very strong sense of community around me that has aided in my growth as a person and as a Christian. BJU's commitment to academic excellence has also pushed me to discover and refine the skills and talents needed to succeed in life after school, such as communication, critical thinking, and problem solving.

My time in the classroom has allowed me to gain hands-on experience in my field of study, all while giving me the freedom to think creatively and build my skills. One aspect of BJU that I've really appreciated is that I've been continuously challenged to develop and grow my faith in Christ through the preaching of God's word and chapel and the daily discipleship of those in community around me. I have truly loved my time here at BJU and I hope others will be able to share the experience I have had. If you or someone you know is interested in an experience such as mine, I would encourage you to check us out online at our website bju.edu and follow us on Facebook and Instagram at bju.edu. For any further information, please feel free to give us a call at 800-252-6363. Thanks for listening and join us again next time as we study God's word together, featuring speakers from Chapel Services at Bob Jones University.