Pressing on Despite Discouragement

Lord, we just In your presence right now, we, we're so blessed to be able to partner with the McCulloughs in the ministry that they have been engaged in over these past 5 years and even prior to then, Lord, and, it's evident that you have led them to, Indonesia, The counsel that they have sought. with their local church in Atlanta, with the leadership here at Cornerstone, and also, representatives at Foothill Bible Church and Upland, They have been very careful and methodical in making this decision, and it has all the earmarks of your leading.

and they have stepped out in faith, Lord. but we also know that you are in control and, we just submit, this visa situation to you, Lord, and ask that you, if it be in your good providence that you, have this be granted.

speedily. that they might be able to embark on this, new phase of Of their ministry and of their journey and be able to do the exciting work of working alongside of the Browns and And others there, Lord, in getting the truth of the gospel out to The different people groups that are represented in Indonesia. Just hearing from Cecilia, in that video, Lord, and just the, the excitement on her face and in her voice, she anticipates. a gospel wildfire.

How thrilling that would be, Lord, and from things that Steven, has shared, with us, both in this presentation and one on one, Lord, the, the needs there are great and the hunger is great and people are coming up to them, even as we just saw in the video and just asking, hey, take me through the Bible, do a Bible study with me. There's a hunger, Lord, for the truth. to know a different way, a better way than the oppressive way. A false teaching.

and so we not only ask, Lord, that you would expedite their journey to Indonesia, that they would be able to engage in this ministry. but we ask Lord that you would raise up others to join them, even raising up some from within our own church body who in the months and years to come could join them, and that this gospel wildfire in Indonesia could, could really take off and as these videos, and the media gets in through people's cell phones throughout Indonesia. That's great, Lord, but just as Christ came from heaven to earth, We know that the gospel is incarnational and you want people there who can be a living embodiment of the truth of the gospel, the grace of the gospel, and to declare the gospel and to train up those who are coming to faith in Jesus.

So do a million things, Lord, a million things.

Only you can, and we just entrust all of these things to you. Lord, as we take a little bit of time this morning to open up your word and to listen to you, we ask that you would perform miracles of listening. In our hearts and in our ears and that you would perform miracles in me and help me to do justice to, to your word and that it would speak encouragement and hope to your precious people for whom you have shed the blood of your precious Son. It is such a blessing for me, Lord, to be a pastor of this great flock and to be able to serve these precious souls that Jesus shed his blood for, how valuable each one of them are.

And what a blessing it is for me this morning to be their servant. And so help me in serving them. And we ask these things in the name of Jesus, and all God's people said, Amen. Well, let me invite you to turn in your Bibles to Nehemiah 4.

Nehemiah. Chapter 4, we're gonna be looking at verses 1 through 6. let me start with a question. How many of you would say that you are, battling with, discouragement right now in your life on one level or another?

Just raise your hand. OK. that's many of us in this room and hopefully the message today will provide some perspective, for you. If you want to give a title to this message, it would be Pressing on.

Despite discouragement, pressing on despite discouragement. I was reading, this week a story from JA Clark about a man who was court martialed and sentenced to a year in prison for being a discourager. it was during the Boer War, B O E R, and it was at the siege of Ladysmith. And the fortunes of the city and the garrison of soldiers hung in the balance, and there was a particular man who would come out from the town and he would walk along where the soldiers were and he would speak discouraging words to the soldiers that were on duty.

He struck no physical blow for the enemy. He fired no shots. At the soldiers with a rifle, he just spoke discouraging words at a very critical time. In the days that followed, he was tried by a military court and sentenced to a year in prison.

And in the court martial, it was deemed to be a crime to speak a discouraging word to soldiers in an hour, such as it was, and he was sentenced to prison for it. In Nehemiah chapter 4, which I think I had you guys turn to in verses 1 through 4, we see some people, the enemies of God, speaking. Discouraging words to the people of God who were engaged in the task of building the walls of Jerusalem. This is a critical time, and Nehemiah, in response to those who were speaking these discouraging words, does something worse than court martialing them.

He actually prays an imprecatory prayer against them. And assigns them over to the judgment of God. The reason Because they spoke discouraging words that demoralized the people of Judah from doing what it was that God had called them to do. If you learn nothing from the passage this morning other than this, learn that it is a serious sin.

To demoralize the people of God, Nehemiah and the people of Judah, as we have seen as we've been going through Ezra and Nehemiah looking at different passages, had given themselves to the task of rebuilding the walls around the city of Jerusalem. These walls had been laid waste about a century and a half earlier by the Babylonians, but God has led Nehemiah to return. From Persia to Jerusalem and to lead the effort of rebuilding these walls around the city of Jerusalem, and he and the people are engaged in that task and they're making wonderful progress, but sure enough in Nehemiah 4.

We find them experiencing withering, discouraging criticism from the enemies of God, and we know from the text that the criticisms and the statements that were made by the enemies of God, had the effect of demoralizing the Jews who were involved in this task.

In fact, in verse 5 of Nehemiah 4, Nehemiah describes the effect of their discouragement upon the people of God. He says they have demoralized the builders. Some translations like the English Standard Version, which some of you have translates this expression in this way, they have provoked you to anger in the presence of the builders. The only hang up with that translation is that the word you is not in the Hebrew text.

The idea more literally is they have paraded their provocations before the builders. Or they have put vexation before the builders or I like what the new international version does it translates this phrase this way they have thrown insults in the face of the builders, whichever way you literally choose to translate this expression, the result is the same. These enemies of God by the words that they had spoken. Had demoralized the builders of the wall around the city of Jerusalem, causing them great vexation and provocation of spirit.

The efforts of these discouragers that we see in Nehemiah 4 left the Jews saying, and you see this in verse 10. The strength of the burden bearers is failing, yet there is much rubbish, and we ourselves are unable to rebuild the wall. So it was getting into the people of Judah and discouraging them. This statement that you see on the screen became so frequently spoken that it became something of a proverbial expression.

Associated with this point in Judah's history. We also know from Nehemiah chapter 6 verse 10 that the goal of the enemies of Judah was to say and to do things so that the Jews would become discouraged with the work. And that the work would not be done. You guys know this is true.

by experience that few things are more sapping to the strength than discouragement, right? Charles Spurgeon, the great preacher, many years ago who himself struggled with bouts of deep depression, said it this way, discouragement creeps over my heart and makes me go with heaviness to my work. It is dreadfully weakening. This is why the Jews say in verse 10, our strength is failing and we're unable to rebuild the wall.

When you're discouraged, every burden is heavier, every task is bigger, every problem is more complicated, every obstacle is more intimidating. We don't have a huge amount of time, this morning, but what I want to do with the time that we have is to look at verses 1 through 4 of Nehemiah 4 and observe 6 discouraging criticisms of the enemies of God. And the 1st 5 of these, are stated in the form of questions. And then the last one is expressed in the form of a statement.

And as we look at these 6, we're not gonna spend a lot of time on each, but as we look at each of these 6 discouraging criticisms. I think we'll be able to recognize the spirit of each one of them in our own lives. Solomon says life and death are in the power of the tongue, and the enemies of God do everything they can with their tongues to breathe death into the people of Judah and into the project that they were engaging in of rebuilding these walls. Here's the first of the criticisms, and it's stated in the form of a question.

What are these feeble Jews doing? What are these feeble Jews doing? let's begin reading in verse one. Now, it came about that when Sambalot heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became furious and very angry, and he mocked the Jews.

And he spoke in the presence of his brothers and the wealthy men of Samaria, and he said, What are these feeble Jews doing? This is a question that is both patronizing and condescending. It's designed to make the Jews look and to feel ridiculous in doing what they're doing. These enemies of God are observing the fact that the Jews were weak and powerless and that they had taken on a task that was larger.

Than themselves, a task that was beyond the scope of their natural abilities. They were way over their heads and out of their league in trying to rebuild the walls around Jerusalem. They had bitten off more than they could chew. They were feeble and weak and small compared to the immensity and the scope of the task that they had set themselves to.

engaging in. The truth is, the people of God at this time in their history were weak and feeble due to their past sins as a people and God's chastisement upon them. They had been taken from their land. They had been brought into captivity in Babylon for 70+ years.

Some of them had returned to Jerusalem and Judah. Right now in their history, they are small in number compared to what they once were because not all of them have returned. The walls that they're rebuilding would never have needed to even be rebuilt if the Jews had not rebelled against God in the first place. The work itself of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem is necessary because of their past failures, the torn down.

And the burned condition of the wall is what it is because of their past sin. This is the damage that the Jews brought upon themselves because of their past sin and their history. The Jews could have looked at the broken down condition of the wall and said, This is what we deserve for our sins. But they didn't do that.

They believed in a God of mercy, a God who would help them in rebuilding the walls around Jerusalem that had been torn down as a result of their sin. But what? They were feeble. They were fewer in number than before.

They were still technically under the rule of the Persian Empire. The wall that they're building now would not be what it once was, and they themselves were not what they once were as a people. But they have seized this task of rebuilding the walls, and in so doing they've taken on a task that is bigger than themselves and their enemies are all too happy to point this out. What are these feeble Jews doing?

Do they think they can actually take on a task of this size and succeed? The enemies of God here are sincerely hoping that the Jews would hear their derision and look at themselves in the mirror. And see their own feebleness and say, wow, yeah, they're right. We didn't realize how feeble we really were.

We really have no business taking on a project this huge, how foolish we've been. Why don't we just quit. This task and do something that is more in line with our feeble abilities. Let's content ourselves with doing only feeble things that match up with our feeble abilities.

That's what the enemies of God were hoping that they would think and that's what the enemy of God, Satan hopes that you will think as well today. The truth is you and I are feeble in and of ourselves, and when the devil wishes. To call us feeble and weak, just a tip for you all and for myself, do not resist that label. we should embrace the label of feeble and weak because we know that the power of Christ rests upon and shows itself through weakness.

Amen. We are feeble in and of ourselves to do anything that God has called us to do. That's why Jesus says in John 15:5, apart from me, you can do nothing. Absolutely nothing.

This is why Paul with the ministry that he was engaging in, he says in 2 Corinthians 2:16, who is adequate for these things? In and of ourselves, we don't have the strength to do anything that God has called us to do. And so when we hear this criticism from the enemies of God or from Satan himself, or from our own hearts, we should do as Paul does. We should embrace our weakness.

We should say, what, you're right. I am feeble in and of myself. I am weak, I won't deny that, but the power of Christ encamps upon weakness and shows itself there. When I am weak, And yet resting in Christ, that's when and that's where I am strongest.

What are you feeble Jews doing? That's the first criticism. The second criticism is, can they restore the walls and fortify themselves? This is an expression in the Hebrew text that's a little bit difficult to translate the word that the new American standard translates as restore can mean to restore, to repair, or to fortify.

let's put all of those ideas together. Their question is, will these feeble Jews take This broken wall and repair it and use it for their own fortification or for their own protection. Do they actually think that they can succeed in restoring these walls and being able to fortify themselves thereby? Do they think that they can protect themselves by building up these walls?

Why do they need protection anyway from us? What are they saying about us that they would build these walls of fortification around themselves? What do they need protection from us for? They're insulted.

The enemies of God are by what they observed the Jews doing in fortifying themselves, restoring, rebuilding the walls in this way. Notice that they're deriding them for rebuilding, restoring the broken walls. This is the way the devil works in our lives. He works hard to get you defeated.

To get you to do damage and break things down. Perhaps your marriage or some other relationship and then once defeated. He wants you to leave that brokenness alone and never even attempt to rebuild or restore that broken thing. And when you do seek to rebuild and restore that broken thing, what you've torn down maybe by your sin and your failure, the devil says, what are you, oh feeble soul doing?

Do you think you can rebuild? What you've torn down. When you hear that guys, please know that that's the voice of Satan. It is never the voice of God.

You may have sinned, you may have failed, you may have created brokenness in your life and in your relationships, but by God's grace, you can rebuild, you can restore, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. There's a third criticism. And that is, can they offer sacrifices? We find that asked in verse 2.

By the way, verse 2, you can label Nehemiah 4:2, the most discouraging verse in the Bible. It really is. because it's full of discouraging questions and criticisms, it's not a verse that the Jews would have been thrilled to memorize, especially those that were building the wall. Can they offer sacrifices?

This is interesting that this would show up here and what they're saying as the Jews were building the walls around the city. The enemies of God know that the rebuilding of these walls had religious overtones. The purpose of the Jews in rebuilding these walls was to protect their religious practices that were centered in blood sacrifice. The enemies of God are saying, well they rebuild these walls so that they can offer blood sacrifices to their God.

This is a critique of the fact that Israel's religion and worship. Was centered in blood sacrifice to atone for sins. Whatever Satan's criticisms of God's people might be, you can know that ultimately at its core, Satan's real beef is always this blood sacrifice. Sub substitutionary atonement.

He hates that. This is the voice of Satan to the Jews of this day. So you think you can just offer sacrifices and everything is OK between you and your God? You think you can offer sacrifices and your sins will be atoned for and forgiven.

You think you're entitled to offer sacrifices after all you've done and everything is OK? The same message is spoken to us today. The devil comes to us and says, everything you do is centered in the blood sacrifice of one man, Jesus. You think you can have atonement for all that you have done simply by clinging to the bloody sacrifice of this one man 2000 years ago?

As a church, you're here in the city of Riverside, you're reaching out to people, you want to bring others into, your church. And your faith, do you really think that everyone else that you're seeking to reach out to can have their sins atoned for through the bloody sacrifice? Of one man Those who criticize the Christian faith because it is centered in the blood sacrifice of Jesus are a dime a dozen. Just read, read.

People hate this doctrine. just a few examples. Virginia Mollincott, who, by the way, graduated from Bob Jones University. and was a stylistic consultant for the new international version.

translation of the scriptures, said, I don't think we need a theory of atonement at all. I don't think we need folks hanging on crosses and blood dripping and weird stuff like that. She views the doctrine of atonement. To the death of Christ as oppressive.

Gandhi said, I can accept Jesus as a martyr. His death on the cross was a great example to the world, but that there was anything like a mysterious or miraculous virtue in it, my heart cannot accept. Professor Sir Alfred Eyer. Who died 3 decades ago, once wrote a newspaper article in which he suggested that among all of the religions of the world, Christianity was the worst.

His reason was because it is based on the doctrines of original sin and vicarious atonement, which are intellectually contemptible and morally outrageous. John Shelby Spong, the former Episcopalian bishop, Who has spoken much against Orthodox Christianity, said this gone is the doctrine which produced the concept of the substitutionary atonement of Christ, that strange vision of a God whose justice had to be served by punishing His Son with crucifixion instead of giving us our due.

In hell There are many others who would say similar types of things. Even in Paul's day, the Greeks viewed the doctrine of atonement to the death of Christ as foolishness.

And the Jews viewed it as blasphemous and scandalous, but Paul never backed down. He's like, he never said, oh my goodness, you guys don't like that. Well, let's Let's change things around a bit until we come up with something that you like. He never backed down.

In fact, he said to the Corinthians, he said, I determined to know nothing. I determined to act in your midst as if I knew nothing but Jesus Christ and Him crucified. I know it's a scandal. I know that the Gentiles think it's foolishness, but that is what I'm going to boast in, and that's what I'm going to preach.

He preached Jesus and Him crucified at the center of Paul's faith was the vicarious atonement. The bloody death of Christ for our sins, and this is the way we need to be. This needs to be at the center, and we should expect to be ridiculed for this. The bloody sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the Godman lies at the center of our faith.

John Shelby Sponk and wish it to be gone. But it's not gone. It's there at the center and it's a rock, a rock of a fence for people like him to trip over and to stumble to their eternal spiritual ruin, but it's also there. As the path to eternal life for those who are humble enough to look to this savior dying upon a cross in utter shame.

And to say that is the savior for me. That is my only way to heaven. All who come to the cross and believe in Jesus will through him find eternal life. There's a 4th question that they ask by way of seeking to demoralize the people of God, and that is, can they finish in a day?

Can they finish in a day? The enemies of God have observed that the people of Judah seem to be working with urgency, seeking to get the building done by a particular deadline. What's the hurry? They're asking.

What's the urgency ultimately is what they're getting at. What's bothering them is the sense of urgency that the Jews are laboring with. If they had been working on the wall but merely piddling around at it, the enemies of God probably would not have been bothered. The devil does not mind you and I doing God's work.

As long as we putz around. About it. If the Jews had gotten together and offered some classes on stone restoration and wall building. The enemies of God probably would have been fine.

With that. If every once in a while, the people of Judah had students in these classes at the end of the 13 weeks. Place a stone on the wall. The enemies of God probably would have been OK with that.

The problem is they're observing that the people of Judah are actually rebuilding the walls like they actually want to get it done. As soon as possible. And they react against this. Can they finish in a day?

The truth is the Jews could not finish in a day, and that wasn't their intent. In fact, if you read on in Nehemiah, it took them 52 days to complete this task. But even though they couldn't finish in a single day and they knew they couldn't, they wanted to make sure that they got done in every single day, everything that God wanted them to accomplish. The same is true for us.

God has called us to do so many things that could never be accomplished in a day. You cannot, parents, raise your children in a day. You can't build a great marriage in a day. You can't restore a broken marriage in a day.

You can't rebuild trust in a day. You can't disciple someone to maturity in a day. You can't win every soul to Christ in a day. You can't become perfectly mature in holiness and sanctification in a day.

And what, that's OK. But God does have a plan for what he wants you and me to accomplish in every day towards all of those ends. And by His grace, you can get done every day, what it is that he wants you to get done in that day. Can they finish in a day?

And then the final question in verse two, can they revive stones from ruins? Can they revive stones from ruins? Can they revive the stones from the dusty rubble, even the burned ones? This is an interesting question.

The word revive literally means bring to life. Can they bring to life the stones from the dusty rubble? Can they resurrect the stones from the dusty rubble, even the burned ones? What's amazing to the enemies of God here watching the Jews is the fact that the Jews were picking up the shattered stones, the burned stones, and using them as material to compose the new wall that they are building.

To the enemies of God, it looks like they're sorting through the trash and they're using garbage as the building material for their wall. These are dead stones in their opinion. They're broken, they're burned, they're worthless, and yet these Jews are sorting through the rubble of yesterday's defeat. And they're grabbing hold of the burnt remnants of yesterday's defeat.

And they're washing them off and fitting them and shaping them and using them to compose the new wall that they are building. And the enemies of God are asking, can they bring to life these stones from the dusty rubble, even the burned ones. What they're doing is these enemies of God are calling into question the materials that the Jews are using to compose the wall that they're building. It's interesting to note that we see a similar expression in the New Testament.

Literally the question of the enemies of God here is, can they enliven the stones? Can they enliven? The stones. In 1 Peter chapter 2, verse 5, Peter speaks of you and I as living stones.

And he talks about how we come to Christ. In chapter one, as we come to Christ and believe in him, we experience a resurrection. We are brought to life by him according to First Peter chapter one. And as we come to Christ, who is the living resurrected stone and we attach ourselves to Him, we become alive.

He brings us to life. Prior to that, we were rubble. You and I were broken. We were burned, we were ruined.

No one would have looked at us at that point and said, wow, this person looks like they would be a great stone in the temple of God. We were dead stones, and yet when we came to Christ, he made us living stones and what? He's building us together into a spiritual house, a holy temple to the Lord. I can imagine Satan.

Taunting Christ as he saw Christ sorting through the trash heap that was us. Sorting through the dead stones that was us, the pile of burned rubble that was us, and I imagine Satan saying to Christ, can you revive these stones from the dusty rubble, even the burned ones? And I can hear Jesus saying, yes I can. Yes, I will.

And that's what he is doing, has done and is doing in our lives. think about it, guys. Who did God choose to be living stones in the church of Jesus Christ? First Corinthians 1.

God didn't choose the mighty, he didn't choose the strong, he didn't choose the wise and the noble, but God chose the weak things of the world and the foolish and the things that are not to confound the things that are mighty and strong, and he builds us together into the church that the gates of hell cannot prevail against. And when Christ is done, Building his church, and you and I are seen in all of our glory as we have been glorified in Him, we will be a dazzling spectacle.

Can they revive these stones from the dusty rubble? I'm so grateful that Christ revived us from the dusty rubble that was our lives.

There's a final criticism that we observe here, and this is found in verse 3. And this is not a question, it's a statement. It says now Tobia the Ammonite was near him, and he said even what they're building, if a fox should jump on it, he would break their stone wall down. He's critiquing the product of the effort of the Jews.

He's looking at the progress they've made. He's looking at the part of the wall that they've completed, and he's saying this is weak sauce. This wall is so feeble, it wouldn't stop a fox. In fact, if a fox merely jumped on it, this wall would come crashing down.

He's saying to the Jews, you will soon have nothing to show for all of your labor. What you're spending all of your energy on is not going to last. It won't endure. You're wasting away your lives working on this enterprise that will not endure.

The devil talks this way to you. And to me, does he not? He says, why work on rebuilding the walls of brokenness in your life? It won't last.

That progress you're making in that area of besetting sin. It's not gonna last. The work you're doing in the ministry that you're involved in, it's not gonna last. The difference you think you're making in people's lives, it's not gonna last.

Ministering to build up the Church of Jesus Christ, it's not gonna last. Why waste your life on such things? Why would you? want to waste your life on missions.

You're so gifted. Why waste your life on missions? Your children are so promising and gifted. Why?

Why let them waste their lives on missions and serving the cause of Christ around the world. The devil tries to discourage us in this and in many other ways. We need to know, guys, that anything that you and I do that is in service to the body of Christ and whatever shape or form that it may come is something that will last for all of eternity. One of the things I learned growing up in a Christian home.

is that the Church of Jesus Christ is the only earthly institution that will last forever. Every Little League program will one day cease to exist. The NBA and the PGA and the MLB. And the NFL even will one day cease to exist.

But after all of that and every corporation and all other human institutions crumble, the Church of Jesus Christ will stand and it will last forever. The church may not be impressive in the eyes of the world today compared to many other institutions, but it will endure and it will prove eternal and it will outlive all other institutions. And therefore, if you want to give your life to something that matters and that will really last. Give your life to building up the body of Christ, which is the church.

Which is you And your brothers and sisters here at Cornerstone, and it's winning souls to Christ and building up the church in that way. It's being a blessing and encouragement to your brothers and sisters in Christ. It's investing in other people and discipling them to obey all things that Christ has commanded. There's nothing better that you can do with your time.

Nothing better. Eric Alexander, several years ago, spoke at the 350 year anniversary of the Westminster Confession of Faith held at Westminster Abbey in London. And I think it was like a year before or at least months before he visited that area, Westminster Abbey, and there, there was scaffolding everywhere. And he's like looking around and he couldn't really appreciate the beauty of Westminster Abbey because there was scaffolding everywhere.

But when he showed up for this anniversary celebration that he had been asked to speak at, all the scaffolding was down. And he was blown away by the beauty of the architecture of Westminster Abbey. And it inspired him to speak these words. Listen to what he says.

What is the really important thing that is happening in the world of our generation? What are the really significant events taking place? What is the most important thing? Where do you need to look in the modern world to see the most significant event from a divine perspective?

Where is the focus of God's activity in history? His answer. The most significant thing happening in history is the calling, redeeming, and perfecting of the people of God. God is building the Church of Jesus Christ, and the rest of history is simply a stage that God erects for that purpose.

He is calling out a people, He is perfecting them, he's changing them. History's great climax comes when God brings down the curtain on this bankrupt world and the Lord Jesus arrives in his infinite glory. The rest of history is simply the scaffolding for the real work. There will come a day when God will pull down the scaffolding of world history, and do what he will be pointing to when he says to the whole of creation, there is my masterpiece?

He will be pointing to the church. Of Jesus Christ. And in the forefront of it all will be the Lord Jesus himself, who will come and say, here am I, and the children you have given me perfected in the beauty of holiness. We're so blessed to be a part of the church, and so blessed to be able to serve the body of Christ, the one earthly institution that will last forever.

Just in closing, guys, note how Nehemiah and the people respond to these criticisms. First of all, Nehemiah responds by praying. You could do a whole sermon on this. He says, Here, oh our God, how we are despised.

Return their reproach on their own heads and give them up for plunder in a land of captivity. Do not forgive their iniquity and let not their sin be blotted out before you, for they have demoralized the builders. There's a lot that could be said about that, that we don't have time for this morning. Here's one takeaway.

Don't demoralize the builders, OK? Some people act as if they have the gift of discouragement. the gift of demoralizing. And they, they're able to see, everyone else is seeing positive, they can see negative, and they, and then they can speak discouraging words.

All of us, I think, have that in us. But in Nehemiah's mind, it's, it is, it's a serious sin. To demoralize the people of God. Don't go there.

Don't, don't do that. But not only does he pray and hand that over to the Lord, but they build the wall. I love this. After such a discouraging barrage of questions and a statement designed to demoralize them.

Yes, it affected them. But what did they do? Verse 6, so we built a wall. And the whole wall was joined together to half its height for the people had a mind to work.

They had a mind to work, a mindset that could not be derailed by criticism and discouragement coming from the people of God. quick takeaways, guys. Number one, don't be a discourager of God's people. In fact, make it your ambition to be an encourager of the people of God.

Hebrews 3:13, be encouraging one another day after day. 1 Thessalonians 5:11, be continuously encouraging. One another and building up one another. I just, I just ask you, are you an encourager of your brothers and sisters in Christ or are you a discourager?

Husband, are you a discourager of your wife? Do your words leave her demoralized? Wife, would your husband say that you are his, you are, or that he is, wait a minute. Yeah Wife, would your husband say that you are his greatest encourager?

Dad, would your children say that you are an encourager of them? Or do you vex and exasperate them? And some of you young people are like, yeah, preach it, pastor. Young people, let me ask you.

When was the last time you went out of your way to encourage your parents? That's a ministry that you can embrace to be an encouragement to your parents. Another takeaway guys is just know that everyone around you is battling discouragement. Not everyone raised their hands at the beginning of the message this morning, but we're all, we're all hearing discouraging voices all the time.

Some of these come from our culture around us. They come from the world, they come from the flesh, they come from. The evil one himself, they come from the enemies of God. Sometimes those discouragements come from well-meaning Christians, just like Christ said, hey, I'm going to the cross, and Peter, a well-meaning Christian said, oh no, you're not.

This will never happen to you, and Jesus had to say, Get behind me, Satan. Some of these discouraging messages can come from our own hearts. Sometimes we're our own worst discourager. And sometimes they come from voices from our past that keep talking.

And won't go away. Listen, if you might say, man, yeah, that's me, that's me. what, that's also the person sitting next to you. That's everyone else in this room.

If we don't encourage one another. How will these voices be overcome? Let's be a church full of encouragers. And lastly, we should expect criticism.

And discouragement in the path of ministry, and the path of holiness. Just if you want to do God's work and God's way, You're putting yourself right on the path where you're gonna be attacked and discouragements are going to be spewed at you. When you hear them, pray as Nehemiah does, give them to God and keep building the wall. Keep building the wall.

Keep doing what God has called you to do. Do not grow weary in doing good. In due season, you will reap if you don't faint. Let's pray together Lord, we've just taken a, a little section of, of Nehemiah this morning.

We're so thankful for all the things that you have taught us and shown us through this wonderful book. over these summer months. We, we ask Lord that you would, Not first and foremost make us encouragers of one another, but I'm so thankful, Lord, that Jesus, he had so many discouragements thrown at him, he could have easily stopped at any point along the way and said, what, I'm not going to do this. I'm not going to the cross.

But he overcame every discouragement, and we today are recipients of an amazing salvation that has come to us because Jesus had a mind to do your work. And he never backed away from it. He went all the way to the cross, and even while on the cross, so many discouragements and insults were hurled at him. And he saw it through to the end.

And we are saved today, those of us who believed in Jesus because we have a savior like this. We're so thankful for that, Lord, and we so admire Jesus that we want to be like him. We want to be like him. We want to do what you've called us to do without fainting, without quitting.

And we also want to be Lord. Encouragers of our brothers and sisters who battle with discouragement the same ways that we do. Bless us, Lord, may a real outpouring of the gift of encouragement just be poured out upon this congregation. And may we abound in this ministry every day, every day, day after day.

We thank you, Lord, for this opportunity to give our offerings to you. at this point in our service, Lord, receive these funds and do much with every penny that is given for the glory of the Lord Jesus, in whose name we pray, and all God's people said. Amen.