There’s a lie all of us need to imagine — even towards all obtainable proof. It trades on our God-given capability for hope. It tempts even these with impeccable theology. It lures us in after which leaves us within the lurch. It goes like this: “Life will get simpler if I simply make it previous this present problem.”
We really feel this fashion about life phases. “If I can simply discover a romantic companion . . . make it by way of grad faculty . . . marry and calm down . . . have youngsters . . . survive the diaper stage . . . survive the horrible twos . . . survive the teenager years . . . discover a higher job . . . retire . . . then, lastly, all shall be properly.” We expect this fashion about temptations. “If I can accumulate sufficient in my checking account, I received’t be concerned anymore.” “As soon as I personal my own residence, I received’t envy what others have.” “After I marry, pornography will not be a difficulty.”
You’ve most likely seen medicine commercials that includes ridiculously match and joyful older folks with silver hair and ideal enamel taking part in tennis and laughing in a carefree vogue. That’s the lie. It’s not true. In a few years of pastoral ministry, I’ve seen quite a few folks work exhausting and honor God by way of their childrearing years and careers solely to retire and face elevated challenges. Mates transfer away. Misunderstandings with grown youngsters happen. Spouses die. Medicines multiply. Typically, retirement isn’t a quiet harbor however the open ocean.
As a result of the Bible is lifelike, nearly each web page punctures the lie. Specifically, the clear-eyed story of Nehemiah reminds us that God’s folks face lifelong hardships and temptations. On the similar time, Scripture isn’t a counsel of despair for these in Christ. Like Nehemiah, we will be taught to let exhausting be exhausting but additionally full of hope. Think about how his story may provide recent energy on your present season — not some unpromised future one.
Sea of Hardships
Tasked with rebuilding the Jerusalem wall, Nehemiah finds himself surrounded by enemies. They merely won’t stop of their efforts to stymie his work. Like Wile E. Coyote, the well-known cartoon nemesis of the Roadrunner, the adversaries are unrelenting, undeterred, all the time making an attempt new schemes. Their preliminary technique for hindering Nehemiah is mockery and public disgrace (Nehemiah 2:19; 4:1–3). When that fails, they fight deception, pestering Nehemiah for a personal assembly, which means to hurt him (6:1–4). Then, in an open letter (in order that the rumor will unfold), they point out that he’s rebelling towards Persian authority (6:5–7). They attempt to wreck his repute (6:10–13) and ship extra letters to scare him (6:19).
I can think about Nehemiah saying to himself, “If I simply get this wall rebuilt, life shall be simpler.” However that’s the lie. As a result of as soon as the wall is accomplished, the homes of Jerusalem have to be rebuilt and town repopulated (7:4). And, because it seems, those that fill town are sinful, which implies Nehemiah should reply to continued and complex crises (see Nehemiah 13). It by no means stops. God’s folks face lifelong hardships and temptations.
John Newton understood this. In his hymn “Superb Grace,” he proclaimed his confidence that God could be his protect and portion “so long as life endures.” You want a protect solely when spears and arrows are flying your means, so Newton clearly believed they’d be within the air so long as he lived. Sure, many “risks, toils, and snares” have been already up to now. However Newton knew that the baseline expectation for God’s folks is that extra will come. Our solely secure haven is heaven, and there’s no heaven on earth. (Not but, a minimum of.)
But biblical realism needn’t result in pessimism or passivity. Regardless of stiff opposition, Nehemiah and his followers carry on working and full the wall (Nehemiah 6:15). Regardless of the continued disobedience of those that returned to Jerusalem, Nehemiah continues to make reforms and name the folks again to God (Nehemiah 13). Nehemiah chooses to face actual hardships and temptations with energetic hope fairly than slack despair. And upon nearer inspection, his story additionally reveals us how: by wanting up and looking out again.
Wanting Up
Within the midst of unrelenting opposition, Nehemiah repeatedly appears up. He speaks to the God of heaven who’s right here with him: “However now, O God, strengthen my palms” (6:9). Right here’s the primary key to joyful perseverance amid pervasive difficulties: look as much as God.
Nehemiah is legendary for setting his sights heavenward in tight spots. He tells us that, within the intimidating presence of King Artaxerxes of Persia, “I prayed to the God of heaven” (2:4). As he recounts his enemies’ taunts, he bursts into prayer: “Hear, O our God, for we’re despised!” (4:4). He’s a shining instance of the right way to lookup.
And, in fact, our expertise of God’s presence is larger than his. We all know the Messiah’s identify and the small print of his story. We’ve seen God’s glory in Jesus’s face. His very Spirit lives inside us, encouraging and emboldening us. We get pleasure from his continuous assist. Via him, we possess fixed, assured entry to the Father. So, in the end, we don’t want hardships and temptations to finish as a result of we’ve God with us within the midst of them.
Wanting Again
Not solely does Nehemiah gaze heavenward; he additionally appears backward. God’s previous faithfulness is a second supply of indominable hope. My church helps world companions who lately realized that sharing tales of God’s faithfulness on the mission area is noticeably reducing their anxieties whereas there. This may be true for us too. As we meditate on God’s assist up to now, our confidence in him grows within the current.
Certainly, this is without doubt one of the causes for the in any other case baffling inclusion of Nehemiah 7, a protracted family tree of the primary wave of exiles who had returned to Jerusalem a century earlier than Nehemiah’s day (see additionally Ezra 2). Why embody it right here? As a result of it’s a tangible, particular reminder of God’s meticulous previous provision. It fuels hope. Equally, the folks’s celebration of the Feast of Cubicles (Nehemiah 8) reminds them of what God has already completed for them.
We too ought to look again. “I bear in mind the times of outdated; I meditate on all that you’ve completed; I ponder the work of your palms” (Psalm 143:5). After all, we’re capable of ponder 1000’s extra years of God’s faithfulness than Nehemiah may. The reservoir of God’s grace has grown, and that grace now contains Jesus’s life and redeeming work. God’s previous work fuels current confidence within the face of future challenges. We press ahead by wanting again.
Onward
God’s folks endure hardships and temptations that won’t finish earlier than heaven. New difficulties are absolutely simply across the nook for you — solely a textual content, name, or e-mail away. However don’t despair — and don’t pin your hopes on the useless expectation that struggling will stop. There isn’t any paradise right here.
As an alternative, look again and lookup. God’s love will outlast each discouragement, worry, nervousness, setback, and temptation we face. Nehemiah reveals us the right way to endure grave challenges with glad hope.
