This episode addresses the final weapon of the enemy to derail the work of God through Nehemiah by way of a false prophet. The "prophet" uttered words designed to so frighten Nehemiah that he would take matters into his own hands and "sin accordingly." When the enemy fails to frustrate ministry using diversions and slander, he sometimes employs carnal believers to provoke us to "protect" the work of God with our own efforts, based on fear. Believers, like Nehemiah, should reject the enemy's devices that inspire fear, even when coming through trusted believers. The recipe is again the same for all the schemes of the devil: regular intimate time with the Father who alone delivers us out of all our fears.
Responding to Slander
This episode addresses how believers should respond to slander. The ultimate slanderer is the devil, who typically seeks to accuse believers based on their past failures. Just as Nehemiah confessed the sins of his people before being used by God, anyone pursuing ministry should initially come clean before God with prior failures (1 John 1:9) This helps inoculate the believer against possible accusations and slander made by carnal believers, tares, and unbelievers. The ultimate objective behind demonically inspired slander is to cause fear and derail the work of God. Nehemiah continued his work and entrusted the divine project and his reputation to God Himself, even when Sanballat and Tobias supposedly maligned the work among the nations. The lesson for believers is obvious: continue the work God began through you and trust God to vindicate you when opposition arises through slander.
Build the Wall and Bring Your Sword
This episode provides a realistic picture of ministry based on Nehemiah 4:16-23. Opposition to the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem necessitated that half defended while the other half worked. This strategy is carried over into the New Testament where believers are called to aggressively seize the kingdom while putting on the whole armor of God (Luke 16:16, Eph. 6:10-17). While all believers are transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of Christ (Col. 1:13), we are nevertheless all under construction, where the Holy Spirit progressively drives out our remaining sympathies with the evil one. This suggests that a balanced approach to ministry is preserving what God has already done while He directs us to build and expand His kingdom. And the local body of Christ, where "every joint supplies,"
When you’re Afraid Remember the Lord
Coming from Nehemiah 4:11-14, this episode provides a model for overcoming fear amidst opposition to God's purposes in our lives. When threatened with death by "vision-killers," Nehemiah encouraged his compatriots, "Do not be afraid of them, remember the Lord who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers.." When believers experience discouragement and fear because of their aggressive embrace of the kingdom, they join in the "fellowship of sufferings" that old and new testament saints experience. And all endured opposition and fulfilled their calling by remembering the Lord Who is great and awesome.
God’s not through with You
This episode largely addresses the simple response to overcoming past failures in order to be used by God. Nehemiah confessed his sin and that of his people and implored God to use him to rebuild Jerusalem. God gave him favor, even gaining the blessing and resources of king Artaxerxes to return to Jerusalem. He and countless others in Scripture were used mightily by God after dire failures. The Biblical response to failure, the silver lining from Genesis to Revelation is the same: repentance and renewed commitment to the will of God
“Build, with God’s Power”
This episode builds on the first episode, emphasizing that all sanctification is fundamentally drawing on the power of Christ provided in the resurrection. We were born again through the resurrection of Christ (1 Pet. 1:3), and in sanctification, we progressively live out of the power that Christ has made available. "God's divine power has given to us everything pertaining to life and godliness..." (2 Pet. 1:3) The episode exhorts believers not to make the tempting mistake of the Galatians who sought "to be perfected by the flesh" instead of drawing on the divine power. (Gal. 3:2-3) New Years' resolutions often fail because they're based on fleshly resolve and power. The episode closes with the a summary of the numerous qualities that Christians are to walk in, based on abiding in Christ and His power. Even the Christian response is based on God's divine power. So, with respect to the constitutional metaphor, "separation of powers" doesn't refer to a Christian's response independent of God's power, but merely highlights human responsibility to ACT, in response to God's power.
Dump your God-complex and respond to His Power
With a view to beginning the year right, this opening episode calls believers back to the fundamentals, the constitution. Typically constitutions enumerate the powers of government, and our U.S. constitution provides a separation of powers. A successful life in God's eyes is founded on a separation of powers, where believers don't presume on divine prerogatives but only fulfill their responsibilities prescribed in the Biblical separation of powers. Well constitutionally speaking, the Christian life rests completely on the power of God. 1 Pet. 2:3 states that "God's divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life in godliness." The successful Christian life abides in Christ, and out of the power of Christ, bears much fruit. (John 15:5) The fruit enumerated in 2 Pet. 1: 5-8 are all based on the Christian's responsibility to access the power. Well when believers learn to operate in their proper domain, fulfilling their responsibilities through the power of Christ, many of the unnecessary headaches and heartaches that plague believers diminish. Things work better in the kingdom when we let God be God and appropriately respond to His power.