Nehemiah 6:16 And It came to pass, that when all our enemies heard thereof, and all the heathen that were about us saw these things, they were much cast down in their own eyes: for they perceived that this work was wrought of our God.
Nehemiah chapter six is in my opinion one of the greatest pictures of consistency in all of Scripture.
As the wall nears its completion (6:1) the enemy of Nehemiah Sanballat becomes desperate to stop the work in any way possible.
- He calls Nehemiah to meet with him in the plain of Ono (6:2)
- Spread lies about Nehemiah hoping that he would stop the work and defend his reputation (6:5-8)
- Tried to discourage Nehemiah saying they would never finish (6:9)
- And had a Jew encourage Nehemiah to hide in the temple (therefore weakening his testimony) (6:10-14)
Nehemiah’s response to every attempt was the same
Nehemiah 6:3 And I sent messengers unto them, saying, I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to you?
To put it in more basic terms, I’m not coming down till the job is done!
This passage is an important reminder that Satan chooses to distract us from the work of God instead of tempting us to reject it. He will encourage us to focus on another secondary task, since you can always return to the important job. However, our moment of distraction will open up an opportunity for attack.
Sanballat asks Nehemiah to meet him in a distant place called Ono to sign a peace treaty. Of course the reason why somewhere far away was chosen is so Nehemiah cannot protect the wall from their attack that would come while he’s gone.
In the same way Satan uses our moment of distraction from the important work of God to gain a victory.
The point is the world needs finishers….
People who won’t quit on a job or become distracted from it until the job is done
May the Lord help us stay on the wall doing His work, and not come down until it is finished
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