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Speaker 1: I'm John Stangey, and today we're in Neemiah chapter four,
Speaker 1: and we'll be reading from the contemporary English version. When Sandbalot,
Speaker 1: the governor of Samaria, heard that we were rebuilding the
Speaker 1: walls of Jerusalem, he became angry and started insulting our
Speaker 1: people in front of his friends and the Samaritan army.
Speaker 1: He said, what is this feeble bunch of Jews trying
Speaker 1: to do? Are they going to rebuild the wall and
Speaker 1: offer sacrifices all in one day? Do they think they
Speaker 1: can make something out of this pile of scorched stones.
Speaker 1: Tobiah from Ammon was standing beside Sandbalot and said, look
Speaker 1: at the way they are building. Why even a fox
Speaker 1: could knock over this pile of stones. But I prayed,
Speaker 1: our God, these people hate us and have wished horrible
Speaker 1: things for us. Please answer our prayers and make their
Speaker 1: insults fall on them. Let them be the ones to
Speaker 1: be dragged away as prisoners of war. Don't forgive the
Speaker 1: mean and evil way they have insulted the builders. The
Speaker 1: people worked hard, and we built the walls of Jerusalem
Speaker 1: halfway up again. But Sandballot Tobia, the Arabs, the Ammonites,
Speaker 1: and the people from the city of Ashtod saw the
Speaker 1: walls going up and the holes being repaired. So they
Speaker 1: became angry and decided to stir up trouble and to
Speaker 1: fight against the people of Jerusalem. But we kept on
Speaker 1: praying to our God, and we also stationed guards day
Speaker 1: and night. Meanwhile, the people of Judah were singing a
Speaker 1: sorrowful song. So much rubble for us to haul. Worn
Speaker 1: out and weary, will we ever finish this wall? Our
Speaker 1: enemies were saying, Before those Jews know what has happened,
Speaker 1: we will sneak up and kill them and put an
Speaker 1: end to their work. On at least ten different occasions,
Speaker 1: the Jews living near our enemies warned us against attacks
Speaker 1: from every side, And so I sent people to guard
Speaker 1: the wall at its lowest places and where there were
Speaker 1: still holes in it. I placed them according to families,
Speaker 1: and they stood guard with swords and spears, and with
Speaker 1: bows and arrows. Then I looked things over and told
Speaker 1: the leaders, the officials, and the rest of the people,
Speaker 1: don't be afraid of your enemies. The Lord is great
Speaker 1: and fearsome, so think of him and fight for your
Speaker 1: relatives and children, your wives and homes. Our enemies found
Speaker 1: out that we knew about their plot again tainst us.
Speaker 1: But God kept them from doing what they had planned.
Speaker 1: So we went back to work on the wall. From
Speaker 1: then on, I let half of the young men work
Speaker 1: while the other half stood guard. They wore armor and
Speaker 1: had spears and shields, as well as bows and arrows.
Speaker 1: The leaders helped the workers who were rebuilding the wall.
Speaker 1: Everyone who hauled building materials kept one hand free to
Speaker 1: carry a weapon. Even the workers who were rebuilding the
Speaker 1: wall strapped on a sword. The worker who was to
Speaker 1: blow the signal trumpet stayed with me. I told the
Speaker 1: people and their officials and leaders, our work is so
Speaker 1: spread out that we are a long way from one another.
Speaker 1: If you hear the sound of the trumpet, come quickly
Speaker 1: and gather around me. Our God will help us fight.
Speaker 1: Every day from dawn to dark, half of the workers
Speaker 1: rebuilt the walls, while the rest stood guard with them
Speaker 1: their spears. I asked the men in charge and their
Speaker 1: workers to stay inside Jerusalem and stand guard at night,
Speaker 1: so they guarded the city at night and worked during
Speaker 1: the day. I even slept in my work clothes at night.
Speaker 1: My children, the workers, and the guards slept in theirs
Speaker 1: as well, and we always kept our weapons close by.
Speaker 1: Let's pray, Lord, we thank you for your word, and
Speaker 1: we thank you for the privilege of being able to
Speaker 1: look at it together today. And Lord, as we look
Speaker 1: at this portion of scripture, there are a variety of
Speaker 1: things that stand out to us. One of the things
Speaker 1: that certainly stands out to me is how regularly Nea
Speaker 1: Maiah prayed before you, and how he sought your help,
Speaker 1: and how he recognized that you were his defense and
Speaker 1: confident of your presence and confident of your help. He
Speaker 1: also did what you called him to do and led
Speaker 1: the people to do the same. They worked hard, they
Speaker 1: stood prepared, and they kept plugging away at the work
Speaker 1: that you had given them to do. Lord, we pray
Speaker 1: that likewise, in the context in which we live, that
Speaker 1: we would be people of prayer. We recognize that we
Speaker 1: have confident access to your throne through faith in your son,
Speaker 1: Jesus Christ. You tell us in your word that in fact,
Speaker 1: we can come boldly before you, knowing that you will
Speaker 1: welcome us into your presence because our sins have been
Speaker 1: forgiven through Jesus, and Lord, you empower us, you strengthen us,
Speaker 1: and you remind us of your presence with us. So Lord,
Speaker 1: we're grateful for that reality. We're grateful for your love.
Speaker 1: We're grateful for your goodness, and we commit this day
Speaker 1: to your care, confident that you will accomplish everything that
Speaker 1: you desire to accomplish around us and within our lives,
Speaker 1: and that we could rest knowing that our lives are
Speaker 1: secure in your hands. We thank you for your goodness,
Speaker 1: and we thank you for your love, and we pray
Speaker 1: this all in Jesus' name. Amen,