* The war in Israel is a physical manifestation of the spiritual battle.
* The Bible is a book about Israel.
* OT - enemies attacking Israel
* NT - enemies ruling over Israel
* So why Israel? - Gotta go back to beginning (War in Heaven - Rev 12)
* God created Adam - gave him authority over the earth.
* He sinned & Satan became prince of the earth.
* God had to send His Son - He needed a nationality (ISRAEL)!
* Rev 12:13 - “When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child.”
* The Woman = Israel
* Male Child = Jesus (the OT/NT shows us this pursuit)
* Satan knew Jesus (in heaven).
* God protected both. So look what Satan did:
* Rev 12:17 - “Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring—those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus.”
* Offspring = Christians
* This is why Iran chants “Death to Israel AND America.”
* Satan wants to take you out!
* So if we’re in a battle, what are we to do?
* BE FAITHFUL - just like Nehemiah!
* Backstory - We read in Nehemiah 3 that the Jews began building the walls of Jerusalem.
* When we turn to Nehemiah 4 we discover that this project was carried out in the face of ruthless and unrelenting opposition.
* The instigators were three-fold:
* Sanballat - governor of Samaria.
* He was a descendant of the mixed race that settled in Samaria after the Assyrian conquest ( 2 Kings 17).
* Tobiah - an Ammonite official who was from an old and famous family that ruled Ammon for years.
* Both Sanballat and Tobiah were related to the High Priest in Jerusalem.
* Geshem - an Arab man who was even more influential and formidable than Sanballat and Tobiah.
* Satan sought to discourage the Israelites through these three guys using:
* Mockery, Threats, Fear.
* vs 1-3 - “When Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became angry and was greatly incensed. He ridiculed the Jews, and in the presence of his associates and the army of Samaria, he said, “What are those feeble Jews doing? Will they restore their wall? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they finish in a day? Can they bring the stones back to life from those heaps of rubble—burned as they are?” Tobiah the Ammonite, who was at his side, said, “What they are building—even a fox climbing up on it would break down their wall of stones!”
* How did Nehemiah respond?
* Two ways:
* 1) He brought the situation to God:
* vs 4-5 - “Hear us, our God, for we are despised. Turn their insults back on their own heads. Give them over as plunder in a land of captivity. Do not cover up their guilt or blot out their sins from your sight, for they have thrown insults in the face of the builders.”
* Going to God aligns your head w/your heart.
* You think in terms of “God’s got this.”
* In God’s presence, we get His power.
* 2) He stayed faithful to his work:
* vs 6 - “So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height, for the people worked with all their heart.”
* Theor response wasn't, "so we convened a meeting to figure out how to appease those who were reviling us."
* They simply continued the work.
* Why? Because they had a mind to work.
* In light of what you know to do, KEEP DOING IT!