By the Authority of the King
October 8, 2023

Nehemiah 2:18

Introduction

Last week at the beginning of the service we shared with you the current state of our finances. It was not easy to do this, as it is a place of rawness for us right now, but we felt burdened by God to not just say we are family but to be family. As service came to an end you all rallied behind us, lifting us up in prayer. The encouragement of our church family lasted all week long. The week leading up to last Sunday was a hard one. We found ourselves wrestling emotionally and spiritually as we tried to keep our eyes on Jesus and not give into our flesh. However, after your prayer and encouragement, we felt stronger. Hope rose inside of us, and the Lord began to remind us of the vision He had given us for His church and this city. During times of financial unrest, it is easy to slow down and sometimes just to stop moving forward, but we feel God stirring fresh vision. We hear Him asking us to lean forward, and so today, we are going to share this with you because, just like we needed you last week, it will take all of us to do the work we believe God is calling us to do.

Today, we will be learning lessons from Nehemiah, as he felt God calling him to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. He knew he couldn’t do it alone. He first needed to be sent by the authority of the king. Secondly, he needed the help of his community, and then he needed to have a strategy established in prayer.

Lessons Through Nehemiah

• The story of Nehemiah:
1. Nehemiah learns of the condition of Jerusalem and its people. He responds by praying, fasting, and repenting (Neh. 1:6) on behalf of the people (Neh. 1).
2. Nehemiah was a cupbearer for the King of Persia (1:11). Through this role, the Lord provided him with the opportunity to share the vision to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. However, Nehemiah had to seize the opportunity to have the courage to speak up and ask for big things. He did, and the King gave his blessing, a letter of support, and sent with him officers and horsemen (2:1-10).
3. Nehemiah took time to consider the condition of the wall. He silently observed the situation around him (2:11-16). Once he was ready, he addressed the people, and the people responded with hope (2:17-18).
4. Nehemiah and those who committed to rebuilding the wall soon faced opposition, but Nehemiah’s eyes were focused on the favor God had given them rather than the opposition (Neh. 2:19-20). Then, they began to work together. For the work of the Lord to be accomplished, they would have to work side by side (Neh. 3).
5. As they built, the opposition continued to build. They began to fight against the Jews (Neh. 4:1-8). This resulted in more prayer but also discouragement and fear (Neh. 4:9-12). Nehemiah responded (Neh. 4:13-14).
6. Nehemiah created a strategy to rebuild the wall and protect them from opposition (Neh. 4:16-23).
7. The wall was completed (Neh. 6:15-16).
• Four steps of action:
1. When faced with problems and situations impacting us and our community, our first response should be to pray, fast, and repent.
2. When God provides the opportunity, we must step out in courage and be willing to ask for the help of those who hold the resources.
3. We must focus on God’s call, not the opposition.
4. We need to work and pray. There is much work to be done, and we must do it with a sword in our hands (Eph 6:11-18).

A Vision to Rebuild

• Seattle has had two very significant spiritual awakenings.
• The first was in the 1930s when Aimee Semple McPherson (founder of Foursquare) led a revival meeting at the Seattle Convention Center. Seattle Foursquare was birthed from one of these revival meetings 86 years ago.
• The second was the charismatic spiritual renewal that took place at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in the 1960s under Dennis Bennet.
• The two great movements remind us that there is heritage and a history of God’s move in our city. Many churches feel this same urging of the Spirit to press in and seek what He has for the PNW.
• We are in a very strategic place in the city with a blessing of land, a stone’s throw from Aurora and a few miles from Green Lake, the historic Greenwood area, and within reach of the Northgate center. This positions us at the center of much activity.
• Additionally, Seattle Foursquare is at one of the highest points in Seattle (a beacon of light in our city), and we have a stream that flows from our parking lot (Piper’s Creek). From our church flows living water.
• What is our Vision?

Preparing Through Discipleship

• We are commanded to make disciples and we are told what this looks like in the Matthew 28:19-21, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely, I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
• As a church if we are going to open our hands so that God can do a mighty work in and through us, we must get serious about discipleship. This means we must step into the process of becoming disciples and making disciples.
• This first starts with a heart posture. Nehemiah 2:18 says that the jews response to the call was, “Let us arise and build.” So, they put their hands to good work. This meant that they had to choose to keep their eyes on God, even when opposition came. Even when fear arose in their hearts, even as they worked with one hand and held a sword in the other.
• Acts 2:42-47 is a response to the great commission.
When we devote ourselves to God, we:
1. Understand and live out God’s Word.
2. We eat, fellowship, and care in community.
3. We pray, worship, and praise God together.
4. We find favor with and salvation for those around us.

Conclusion

  1. As we enter this next season of ministry at SFC, will we ask God for His authority to take back the land that He once delivered to us (Seattle). It has been a land that has been stripped of its once rich history. Will we ready ourselves, through discipleship and prayer to receive the blessing that God has for us here in the city? We believe just like Nehemiah God can use us to rebuild his people and this city to become all that He has desired for us to be. But this will first start with us. Will each of us be willing to work together to see the Kingdom of heaven here on Earth? Let’s take our trowel (Discipleship) and weapon (Prayer) and get to work. “Let us arise and rebuild!”

Discussion Questions

  1. As you think about the story of Nehemiah, what lessons are you personally taking away?
  2. We identified four ways we devote ourselves to God. Out of these four things, which do you feel you are being successful at, and which do you feel a need to grow in?
  3. What is your need for discipleship, and what are you going to do about it?