Facing Opposition: Strength Through Prayer and Unity
Devotional
Sermon Summary
Bible Study Guide
Sermon Clips
### Quotes for Outreach
1. "So we should be careful to not allow our own anger to allow us to say things or to do things that we regret or want to take back. Or that even could cause others to sin. Proverbs 15, 8 says that, A hot-tempered person stirs up conflict, but the one who is patient calms a quarrel. And this is a very long first point. What I'm basically trying to say is if we are not careful, we can find ourselves behaving like Sambalat. Angry and mad when things don't go our way. And even before we speak words, this, listen, even before we speak words, the seed of opposition can be planted in our hearts. And that can be carried out through our actions." [55:49]
2. "I don't know you from a can of paint. I don't know what you are going through. And it doesn't matter if I know, the Lord knows. And so I would say as we leave here, Nehemiah's, this entire situation, this entire back and forth, I would say really gives us three things that we can think about. First, I would say in certain ways, it calls us to, I would say this, calls us to dream big. Calls us to dream big. Remember, Nehemiah was not prompted by anyone. His heart was so moved because of the love that he had for the people who were exiled that he could not just stay up in his comfort as a cupbearer of the king." [01:19:14]
3. "So I say dream big. I'm not talking about materialism. I'm talking about dream big for God. What is the work that I can do that can glorify God? God has done so much. He has done so much for me. What can I do to glorify my God? What work can I do to give him praise? So I would say dream big. And I would also say as we dream big, though, as we have kingdom-like dreams, we can expect opposition. That even as we are pursuing God-glorifying dreams, we can expect opposition." [01:19:53]
4. "He says, look, as you're spread out into different pockets of work, when you feel alone, he says that you're not, even when you feel like you feel like you're too far to be seen, we feel like you're just, you're just on the other part of the wall. You can't be seen. He says that don't worry. As Sambalat heard the good report, you were here. Trumpet of hope. Don't worry. You might be around the corner. Can't be seen. You're in a dark place. Don't worry. He says there will be hope. And he said, listen for it. This is encouragement for us." [01:15:50]
### Quotes for Members
1. "So we recognize that there is spiritual opposition. It is real. It is real, but we don't need to be afraid. We don't need to be scared. Remember, we don't need to be afraid because even in this world, God has overcome the world. So even for Nehemiah, remember, at the beginning, he fasted. And Nehemiah wanted to be here. So he fasted. He fasted. He prayed and desired to do this for God's glory. And yet, still we need to recognize that even in that, when you decide to do something for the Lord, there will be opposition." [55:49]
2. "Nehemiah says that I'm praying to you, Lord, to stir up your vengeance, not because I need honor, Lord, not because I need to be recognized, Lord, but you, Lord, your name is being slandered. Your name is being threatened, Lord. They have cursed your name. Your word is being reviled. Your word is being scorned. Lord, you are being mocked. Lord, don't you care that you are being mocked? Nehemiah does not organize a head-to-head combat battle, but he actually brings his fears, he brings his words to God and prays for divine intervention." [01:10:36]
3. "So Nehemiah gives us our third point, really. He says that we should pray. We should find strength in God's promises. Pray find strength in God's promises. So I want to break down the content, though, of Nehemiah's prayer. This would be helpful for us, I think, as we go forward. Nehemiah's prayer, I would say right away, he prays what needs to be prayed. This is what he's praying. This is how it should be. He prays what needs to be prayed. He's specific in prayer. He's specific with the Lord. And he's not cute. He's not clever. Because he knows that God is big enough to handle whatever it is that he has." [01:06:13]
4. "So even though they were one people of God, they were united, they were together, the work that they were supposed to do called them to be spread out in different parts. It called them to be on the wall in different sections. So Nehemiah knows that even though they're spread out, they still have one goal in mind, which is to build the wall, right? So Nehemiah says that as he knows that as they go into different pockets and they're beginning to be spread out, there are moments when we get spread out that we believe, we start to think in our minds that we are alone. We know we're together, but we leave and we feel like we're alone." [01:14:24]
5. "He says, hear, O Lord, our God. He says, we are despised. He says, we are disliked. We are scorned by others. They look at us, Lord, as we're doing your work. They look at us as if we are doing wrong. They hurl insults toward us, Lord. Others have disgusted us, Lord. They have surrounded us with words and action. Lord, we are despised. We are rejected by society. Lord, we are living this life, Lord, but we are living, Lord, with fear. We are despised, Lord. Mistreatment is our future. We are despised." [01:07:35]
Ask a question about this sermon
1. "So we should be careful to not allow our own anger to allow us to say things or to do things that we regret or want to take back. Or that even could cause others to sin. Proverbs 15, 8 says that, A hot-tempered person stirs up conflict, but the one who is patient calms a quarrel. And this is a very long first point. What I'm basically trying to say is if we are not careful, we can find ourselves behaving like Sambalat. Angry and mad when things don't go our way. And even before we speak words, this, listen, even before we speak words, the seed of opposition can be planted in our hearts. And that can be carried out through our actions." [55:49]
2. "I don't know you from a can of paint. I don't know what you are going through. And it doesn't matter if I know, the Lord knows. And so I would say as we leave here, Nehemiah's, this entire situation, this entire back and forth, I would say really gives us three things that we can think about. First, I would say in certain ways, it calls us to, I would say this, calls us to dream big. Calls us to dream big. Remember, Nehemiah was not prompted by anyone. His heart was so moved because of the love that he had for the people who were exiled that he could not just stay up in his comfort as a cupbearer of the king." [01:19:14]
3. "So I say dream big. I'm not talking about materialism. I'm talking about dream big for God. What is the work that I can do that can glorify God? God has done so much. He has done so much for me. What can I do to glorify my God? What work can I do to give him praise? So I would say dream big. And I would also say as we dream big, though, as we have kingdom-like dreams, we can expect opposition. That even as we are pursuing God-glorifying dreams, we can expect opposition." [01:19:53]
4. "He says, look, as you're spread out into different pockets of work, when you feel alone, he says that you're not, even when you feel like you feel like you're too far to be seen, we feel like you're just, you're just on the other part of the wall. You can't be seen. He says that don't worry. As Sambalat heard the good report, you were here. Trumpet of hope. Don't worry. You might be around the corner. Can't be seen. You're in a dark place. Don't worry. He says there will be hope. And he said, listen for it. This is encouragement for us." [01:15:50]
### Quotes for Members
1. "So we recognize that there is spiritual opposition. It is real. It is real, but we don't need to be afraid. We don't need to be scared. Remember, we don't need to be afraid because even in this world, God has overcome the world. So even for Nehemiah, remember, at the beginning, he fasted. And Nehemiah wanted to be here. So he fasted. He fasted. He prayed and desired to do this for God's glory. And yet, still we need to recognize that even in that, when you decide to do something for the Lord, there will be opposition." [55:49]
2. "Nehemiah says that I'm praying to you, Lord, to stir up your vengeance, not because I need honor, Lord, not because I need to be recognized, Lord, but you, Lord, your name is being slandered. Your name is being threatened, Lord. They have cursed your name. Your word is being reviled. Your word is being scorned. Lord, you are being mocked. Lord, don't you care that you are being mocked? Nehemiah does not organize a head-to-head combat battle, but he actually brings his fears, he brings his words to God and prays for divine intervention." [01:10:36]
3. "So Nehemiah gives us our third point, really. He says that we should pray. We should find strength in God's promises. Pray find strength in God's promises. So I want to break down the content, though, of Nehemiah's prayer. This would be helpful for us, I think, as we go forward. Nehemiah's prayer, I would say right away, he prays what needs to be prayed. This is what he's praying. This is how it should be. He prays what needs to be prayed. He's specific in prayer. He's specific with the Lord. And he's not cute. He's not clever. Because he knows that God is big enough to handle whatever it is that he has." [01:06:13]
4. "So even though they were one people of God, they were united, they were together, the work that they were supposed to do called them to be spread out in different parts. It called them to be on the wall in different sections. So Nehemiah knows that even though they're spread out, they still have one goal in mind, which is to build the wall, right? So Nehemiah says that as he knows that as they go into different pockets and they're beginning to be spread out, there are moments when we get spread out that we believe, we start to think in our minds that we are alone. We know we're together, but we leave and we feel like we're alone." [01:14:24]
5. "He says, hear, O Lord, our God. He says, we are despised. He says, we are disliked. We are scorned by others. They look at us, Lord, as we're doing your work. They look at us as if we are doing wrong. They hurl insults toward us, Lord. Others have disgusted us, Lord. They have surrounded us with words and action. Lord, we are despised. We are rejected by society. Lord, we are living this life, Lord, but we are living, Lord, with fear. We are despised, Lord. Mistreatment is our future. We are despised." [01:07:35]
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