The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Nehemiah 4:14, “When I saw their fear, I rose and spoke to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people: ‘Do not be afraid of them; remember the Lord who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses.’”

It has been said of Jesus’ disciples that they were always either in trouble, headed for trouble, or just getting out of trouble. That also appears to have been the general situation with Old Testament Jews.

Nehemiah had returned to Jerusalem and to rebuild the city walls that had fallen into disrepair. He had been burdened to reestablish the worship of the LORD in the City of Jerusalem. Doubtlessly, he had anticipated some difficulty, but nothing like what he discovered in Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem.

What do you do when you’re faced with opposition? It largely depends upon what kind of opposition you face and how persistent it is. Nehemiah’s first opposition was an invitation to leave the work and talk with the men who opposed him. He refused. Next, the opposition began to deride and mock his venture. He virtually ignored them.

Nehemiah consistently refused to stop work and parley with the opposition. His was a great work; it was intended to glorify the LORD. There was no time to discuss anything. Yet, as the opposition’s rage grew greater, Nehemiah thought it wise to set guards alongside the workers for protection. This was not because he lacked trust in the LORD, but because it made practical sense for the Jewish laborers to do their part in protecting what they had constructed. Were the LORD not injecting Himself into the situation here, who knows what would have been the outcome?

The opposition grew still stronger. Satan doesn’t give up easily. Anything and everything we do as unto the LORD and for His glory, Satan strenuously opposes! He opposes the study of God’s Word. He opposes our spending time in prayer. He opposes our sharing Christ Jesus with those who don’t know Him. We must always follow the pattern Nehemiah established: “Keep on keeping on.”

In the end, the walls of the city were built. The Temple was erected; and the LORD was glorified! When we come to know the LORD, His Holy Spirit takes up residence within us. We are then “a temple of God.” How we live reflects how much He is glorified. What the world needs is Jesus! Now, we’ve got our marching orders, let’s get to work! God bless you abundantly!

Heartily in Christ Jesus

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”