Are We Battle Ready?

I recently received a newsletter from a ministry which contained the exhortation: “The Bible says there is a season for everything. This is our season to fight hard—to battle back—to win." 

The timeliness of their statement could not have been better fitting with the main point of this TBC article. We without doubt are in the “last days” (possibly even the last hours) battle before Jesus returns. Scripture warns us that Satan knows his time is short (Revelation:12:12Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.
See All...) and he's unleashing every wrathful and wicked device he has upon "the inhabiters of the earth."                

Therefore, we need every insight we can find in God's Word that sheds light on how we are to "fight the good fight of faith" (1 Timothy:6:12Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.
See All...). In this article, we're featuring a man of God who embodies the qualities sorely needed in the church today. His name is Nehemiah, the son of Hachaliah, who wrote most of the Book named after him. He certainly made himself aware of the times, and the Holy Spirit gave him tremendous insights in what the children of Israel ought to do regarding a variety of very difficult conditions. 

For example, when Nehemiah first became aware of the dire circumstances "concerning the Jews that had escaped" and were living in Jerusalem, his reaction was: he "sat down and wept... and prayed before the God of heaven…." Furthermore, he humbly confessed "the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee: both I and my father's house have sinned" (Nehemiah:1:2-6 [2] That Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men of Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. [3] And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire. [4] And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven, [5] And said, I beseech thee, O LORD God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments: [6] Let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Israel thy servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee: both I and my father's house have sinned.
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Nehemiah was a Jew born in Babylon during the 70-year captivity. He was highly regarded by the Persian ruler Artaxerxes whom he served as cupbearer and wine steward. It was a significant position of tasting the king's drink and food in order to keep the king out of harm's way. Yet his duty for the "king of kings" (perhaps the world's most powerful ruler at the time) did not lessen his concern for his Jewish kinsmen and their struggles in Jerusalem.

Artaxerxes the king took notice: “Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing but sorrow of heart” (Nehemiah:2:2Wherefore the king said unto me, Why is thy countenance sad, seeing thou art not sick? this is nothing else but sorrow of heart. Then I was very sore afraid,
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Nehemiah explained: “Why should my face not be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies waste, and its gates are burned with fire? Then the king said to [him], What do you request? So, I prayed to the God of heaven. And I said to the king, If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, I ask that you send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ tombs, that I may rebuild it” (vv 3-5).

Nehemiah's request of the king tells us a lot about his character. First of all, he immediately "prayed to the God of heaven." Secondly, his request would have him give up an extremely comfortable and honorable position to do work that amounted to hard labor with those who were the poor and struggling returned captives. Not exactly the life he was experiencing among the elite Persian crowd!

I believe Nehemiah's qualities as a leader are sorely missing in today's church leadership. In other words, there are a great many things we can learn about leadership from one whose name means "the Lord comforts." It's not by chance that the Holy Spirit is referred to as "the Comforter." "But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things..." (John:14:26But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
See All...). There's little doubt that Nehemiah was used by the Lord to comfort and teach His people, as you will read.

Nehemiah's first request of Artaxerxes was to give him what was needed to help his people. One of the marks of a godly leader is selflessness,that is, one who is completely other-directed.His request included not only building supplies, but also protection from those whose intention it was to thwart the work of God. This he did, but not without first seeking the Lord in prayer, which He graciously answered: "Then I told them [the Jews in Jerusalem] of the hand of my God which was good upon me; as also the king's words that he had spoken unto me. And they said, Let us rise up and build. So, they [by God's grace] strengthened their hands for this good work" (Nehemiah:2:18Then I told them of the hand of my God which was good upon me; as also the king's words that he had spoken unto me. And they said, Let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for this good work.
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Even so, the opposition to the "good work" intensified. "But it came to pass, that when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up, and that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth, And conspired all of them together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it" (Nehemiah:4:7-8 [7] But it came to pass, that when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up, and that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth, [8] And conspired all of them together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it.
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Nehemiah's response: "Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them" (v 9).

Again, one of the marks of the Comforter is "He shall teach you all things..." (John:14:26But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
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The Holy Spirit then gave Nehemiah a gameplan of how to engage God's enemies. Certainly, prayer first, then a strategy to enable the work to continue. "And it came to pass from that time forth, that the half of my servants wrought in the work, and the other half of them held both the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the habergeons; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah. They which builded on the wall, and they that bare burdens, with those that laded, every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand held a weapon. For the builders, every one had his sword girded by his side, and so builded" (Nehemiah:4:16-18 [16] And it came to pass from that time forth, that the half of my servants wrought in the work, and the other half of them held both the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the habergeons; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah. [17] They which builded on the wall, and they that bare burdens, with those that laded, every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand held a weapon. [18] For the builders, every one had his sword girded by his side, and so builded. And he that sounded the trumpet was by me.
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For those who don't see an application for our day, I suggest the sword they might think of is "the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Ephesians:6:17And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
See All...). Too often among today's leadership, looking to God's Word is not a priority. It's considered as “impractical.” 

As often happens in times of great struggles, it brings out the best and worst in folks. Nehemiah's leadership qualities not only helped him react and recognize the problem—he "was very angry" at how the Jewish rulers were treating their brethren. It's called usury.Basically, their kinsmen were being put in financial bondage by their kinsmen.His solution was a stiff rebuke: "Ye exact usury, every one of his brother. And I set a great assembly against them" (Nehemiah:5:7Then I consulted with myself, and I rebuked the nobles, and the rulers, and said unto them, Ye exact usury, every one of his brother. And I set a great assembly against them.
See All...). The end result of his uncompromising stance (which is rare in church leadership today) was thus: "Then said they, We will restore them, and will require nothing of them; so will we do as thou sayest" (v 12).

Doing what's right is always the right thing to do, but it can create other problems. Not surprising, it has a way of cranking up the opposition of God's enemies, as well as a never-ending diversity of attacks such as false accusations, distractions, continual harassments, outright lies, intimidation, false prophets, ad hominem attacks, etc.

Finally, through prayer and obedience to the guidance of the Holy Spirit and His grace, "the wall was finished… in [an amazing] fifty and two days" (Nehemiah:6:15So the wall was finished in the twenty and fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty and two days.
See All...). Adding to that good news, while under Nehemiah's administration, the Lord had Ezra teach the people the Scriptures [the Sword of the Spirit!], laying a critical foundation that they might learn and obey God's laws. And as they did, the people and the land prospered.

However, for the brief time period when Nehemiah returned to Babylon from Jerusalem, many of the people drifted away from his governorship and God's laws. How Nehemiah handled their disobedience, I believe, is a lesson in general for every pastor who believes he has been called to shepherd God's flock. Granted, what Nehemiah did in some cases may seem harsh, even outrageous by today's so-called standards, but two words speak loudly to me regarding his approach. They are: No compromise.

Today's word for compromise can best be termed ecumenism, which is an attempt to reconcile all professing Christian religions, even those which clearly contradict each other. Rick Warren, who is the executive director of Finishing the Task mission coalition, is today's best-known advocate of ecumenism that fosters the belief that "can't we all just get along?" is the key to religious unity (see TBC video At Home in Rome on page 8, or online—www.bit.ly/HomeInRome). He's simply following the historic compromise of Billy Graham with the Catholic Church.

Here's what Nehemiah faced when he returned from Babylon, especially in light of those in Jerusalem who had turned back to "wicked works": "And I came to Jerusalem, and understood of the evil that Eliashib did for Tobiah, in preparing him a chamber in the courts of the house of God" (Nehemiah:13:7And I came to Jerusalem, and understood of the evil that Eliashib did for Tobiah, in preparing him a chamber in the courts of the house of God.
See All...). That's reflective of Acts:20:29-30 [29] For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. [30] Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.
See All...: "For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also, of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them." 

That's just part of today's apostasy that is rampant within professing Christianity.Nehemiah's solution: "And it grieved me sore: therefore I cast forth all the household stuff of Tobiah out of the chamber" (Nehemiah:13:8And it grieved me sore: therefore I cast forth all the household stuff of Tobiah out of the chamber.
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For decades those of us who have recognized the completely antichrist content of Christian psychology and psychotherapy have pleaded with church leadership to fill dumpsters with their pseudo-scientific lies. Tragically, all to no avail. Psychotherapy is the most popular career choice among today's "Christian" university students. Anyone remember the teaching that God's Word is sufficient and God-breathed? Therefore, adding to it or subtracting from it consists of man's lies (Proverbs:30:5-6 [5] Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him. [6] Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.
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That which led to the Babylonian captivity had to do with the breaking of the sabbath. Not that we're advocating sabbath keeping (it was required for Israel under the old covenant), yet Nehemiah saw the irony: "Did not your fathers thus, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us, and upon this city? yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath” (Nehemiah:13:18Did not your fathers thus, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us, and upon this city? yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath.
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Nehemiah had a solution for those selling things on the sabbath: "Then I testified against them, and said unto them, Why lodge ye about the wall [to do business on the Sabbath]? if ye do so again, I will lay hands on you. From that time forth came they no more on the sabbath" (v 21). Obviously, Nehemiah's "laying on of hands" differed from the popular charismatic technique, yet it was quite effective.

The evil of religious intermarriage returned during Nehemiah's absence in Babylon: "In those days also saw I Jews that had married wives of Ashdod, of Ammon, and of Moab: And their children spake half in the speech of Ashdod, and could not speak in the Jews' language, but according to the language of each people" (vv 23-24).

Nehemiah's solution: "And I contended with them, and cursed them, and smote certain of them, and plucked off their hair, and made them swear by God, saying, Ye shall not give your daughters unto their sons, nor take their daughters unto your sons, or for yourselves" (v 25). On the one hand, Nehemiah's solution, especially in our day, may possibly result in spending time in jail or at least a psychiatric ward. On the other hand, the long-term grief resulting from a husband and wife whose beliefs are diametrically opposed, will end up being a far more tragic and long-term condition.

Nehemiah reminds us of Solomon's intermarriage with Pharaoh's daughter and issues a warning. "Did not Solomon king of Israel sin by these things? yet among many nations was there no king like him, who was beloved of his God, and God made him king over all Israel: nevertheless, even himdid outlandish women cause to sin. Shall we then hearken unto you to do all this great evil, to transgress against our God in marrying strange wives?" (vv 26-27). Nehemiah's addressing the "great evil" of religious intermarriage were sometimes of a very simple and practical solution—although not heeded. One involved Joiada, who was "the son of Eliashib the high priest, [who] was son in law to [the wicked] Sanballat the Horonite" (v 28). What wisdom did Nehemiah issue forth: "I chased him from me."Simple yes, but it's part of the battle of faith that needs to be heeded. 

Although these things took place at the time of the Babylonian Captivity, they were indicated by Jesus that the same and worse would occur at the time of His second coming: "And as He sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you" (Matthew:24:3-4 [3] And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? [4] And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
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What we know regarding the strategy of Satan, his overall goal as the father of lies is to deceive humanity—which he started with Eve, convincing her of the ultimate lie, "ye shall be as gods" (Genesis:3:5For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
See All...). There is no greater deception that robs us of our true hope, the hope that only Jesus, who alone is the Truth, can fulfill. 

Our prayer is that the Lord will raise up leaders and fathers in the church similar to Nehemiah, who was a bold, prayer-first, selfless, uncompromising man of God. They will need the Lord’s help to guide them through the perilous times of unprecedented deception ahead (2 Timothy:3:1-2 [1] This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. [2] For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
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"Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the LORD." (Psalm:31:24Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the LORD.
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TBC