LEAD, Don't "Push" the Church

17 Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in, how Jerusalem lies in ruins with its gates burned. Come, let us build the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer suffer derision.” 18 And I told them of the hand of my God that had been upon me for good, and also of the words that the king had spoken to me. And they said, “Let us rise up and build.” So they strengthened their hands for the good work. 19 But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite servant and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they jeered at us and despised us and said, “What is this thing that you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?” 20 Then I replied to them, “The God of heaven will make us prosper, and we his servants will arise and build, but you have no portion or right or claim in Jerusalem.”(Nehemiah 2:17-20).

Taken in order of occurrence, these verses give us God’s way of going about leading people to do the work of the Lord. In principle they seem to outline the process. So, in order to get the people to do the work of God:

1. Get Them to “See” the Need. “You see the trouble we are in” (v. 17a).
2. Invite Them to Do Something About the Problem. “Come, let us build the wall of Jerusalem, . . .” (v. 17b).
3. Support Your Decision With Testimony of God’s Empowerment. “And I told them of the hand of my God that had been upon me for good” (v. 18a).
4. Mention Too When Earthly Powers Have Been Marshalled for Good. “ . . . and also of the words the king had spoken to me” (v. 18b).
5. Let the People Get Behind the Project. “They said, ‘Let us rise up and build.’ So they strengthened their hands for the good work.” (v. 18c)
6. Be Prepared For Nay-sayers to Detract From the Work. “But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite servant and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they jeered at us and despised us and said, “What is this thing that you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?” (v. 19). Notice the three measures brought to bear against God’s work: 1) Outright verbal attack-“they jeered at us and despised us,” 2) Questioning motives: “What is this you are doing?” And, 3) Assuming the worst, “Are you rebelling against the king?”
7. Ground Your Success in God’s Sovereignty. “The God of heaven will make us prosper, and we his servants will arise and build, but you have no portion or right or claim in Jerusalem.” (v. 20). He is responding, “God has spoken, His servants are working, and you have no say-so in it. Period!

If the work is the Lord's, doing it His way leads to the above success. But beware of opposition. If you move you're bound to create friction. God will bless!

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