Sunday Message: My own personal Sanballat

During my vacation, I listened with Laurie as she was in a study of Nehemiah.  I have to tell you, this is a dry book only on the surface; there is so much to grow from if you just take the time to dig.  And one of the things I have made my own is my battle against my inner Sanballat.

Setting the scene here:  Nehemiah was the governor in Jerusalem, who had come there after the people began to return from Babylon.  He was the cupbearer to the Persian King of kings, and stepped from this comfy post to help out when his brother and others came to him and let him know how miserable the Jews were having it.  He took upon himself to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem- or rather, God gave him this burden, because my lesson here is all about you and I doing God's work and our enemies trying to shut it down.

Who are the enemies?  Well, let's look at the enemies of Nehemiah.  First and foremost, Sanballat the Horonite.  Here is what historically I can tell you- and it will blend into my point.  The name is Babylonian for "Sin (the moon god) is eminent", says one source.  This man, whatever his origins, is a proud idol-worshipper.  "Horonite" brought some controversy:  at least two possible places of birth.  The first is the once fortified keeps of Beth-Horon; the other is in Horonaim- in the heart of Moab.  Now, I lean toward the latter, and I'll explain why in a minute.  But if the former, consider: this area is at the meeting of Ephraim (the heart of fallen Israel), Benjamin (which was destroyed for its own abominable practices in the past) and Dan (the heart of Israelite idolatry).  Moab, however, is sprung from the sexual relations that Lot had with one of his daughters- a sinful offshoot of the Hebrew lineage.

Next enemy is Tobiah the Ammonite.  Tobiah is a "false Jew"- he is by marriage connected to the Jewish nobility and thus wears a Jewish name; but he is by birth an Ammonite- the people sprung from Lot's illicit sex with his OTHER daughter.  He's also false in putting on airs, because he started out as somebody's servant- a lackey.  A verse from Proverbs comes to mind- one of the things the world rebels against is a fool made into a king.

And the third is Geshem the Arab.  Apparently descended from the peoples that Sargon the Assyrian settled in Israel after he exiled the ten lost tribes, his people are sprung from Ishmael, the son of Abraham by Hagar when he was not faithful enough to wait upon the Lord for legitimate offspring.

And this is the common tie of Nehemiah's enemies- and ours as well- THEY ARE ILLEGITIMATE.  They are false, they are liars.  And they want to keep us below their level.  This isn't about pride of place, but our effectiveness in bearing fruit for the Lord.



So now, let's look at the attacks they make.  First one comes in Nehemiah 2:19:

Neh 2:19  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?" 

This happens at the start of the work.  Sanballat basically is saying, "What do you think you're doing? Who do you think you are?"  You are a SINNER, you can't do God's work, you're disqualified.  What does Nehemiah do?  He remembers- and responds- with two things.  First, God will prosper you if you are doing His work.  Second, he told Sanballat, "You have no business in this."  And the devil might tell you you can't do it, but guess what? What you can do is between you and God, and not up to him.  So when you hear that you can't do it and you aren't worthy, just rely on God and defy the voices.

Second attack and an extensive one, comes in 4:2-3:

Neh 4:2  And he said in the presence of his brothers and of the army of Samaria, "What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore it for themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish up in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, and burned ones at that?" 

Neh 4:3  Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, "Yes, what they are building--if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall!" 

Accusations, lies, and insults.  Sounds familiar, doesn't it, social media fans?  He tells Nehemiah, 1) you can't do it, you're too weak; 2) You can't do it by yourself, and no one will help you; 3) you won't be able to finish, you'll give up when it gets tough; 4) when it doesn't happen overnight, you'll give up; there's no point, no hope in what you are doing; and 5) anyone can break what you've accomplished.

Nehemiah's response?  He prayed.  He remembered they weren't just insulting and belittling HIM- they were doing it to GOD, which is always foolish.   And then?  He went back to work.  And God prospered them.

Thrid attack was much more subtle:

Neh 6:1  Now when Sanballat and Tobiah and Geshem the Arab and the rest of our enemies heard that I had built the wall and that there was no breach left in it (although up to that time I had not set up the doors in the gates), 

Neh 6:2  Sanballat and Geshem sent to me, saying, "Come and let us meet together at Hakkephirim in the plain of Ono." But they intended to do me harm. 

Neh 6:4  And they sent to me four times in this way, and I answered them in the same manner. 

"Let's talk it out, let's compromise- let's make a deal."  Now that the work is almost done, the enemies try to stop it by persuasion- and by treachery.  This plain of Ono- if the origin number one of Sanballat is correct- is right in Sandy's back yard, just south of Beth-Horon.  Instead of being surrounded by walls (and thus, God's protection), they wanted him surrounded by enemies.  This is where I have my biggest problem, because this is basically, "Oh, come on, everybody does it."  And you start to think, "well this IS everybody's weak spot... it's not unreasonable to expect I should fail here... why not go along with the crowd?"

Because the crowd wants to DESTROY you.  Nehemiah had a real simple response to this one- and one I am trying to adhere to:

Neh 6:3  And I sent messengers to them, saying, "I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?" 

The fourth attack was on the heels of the third:

Neh 6:5  In the same way Sanballat for the fifth time sent his servant to me with an open letter in his hand. 

Neh 6:6  In it was written, "It is reported among the nations, and Geshem also says it, that you and the Jews intend to rebel; that is why you are building the wall. And according to these reports you wish to become their king. 

Neh 6:7  And you have also set up prophets to proclaim concerning you in Jerusalem, 'There is a king in Judah.' And now the king will hear of these reports. So now come and let us take counsel together." 

Telling lies about your intentions.  Telling you, "Everybody is saying it".  Maybe even floating out a name you recognize.  Then pointing out your "self-righteousness".  "You are going to get hurt if you keep it up; stop being an ass and let's talk about it."  Making you question yourself and your safety.

Nehemiah's response?  In the vernacular, "I doth call BS."  He flat out said to them, "Now you're just making stuff up."  He kept his center on God, and didn't let the lies touch him.

And the fifth attack came on the heels of that.  They enemy had employed a "holy man" by the name of Shemaiah:

Neh 6:10  Now when I went into the house of Shemaiah the son of Delaiah, son of Mehetabel, who was confined to his home, he said, "Let us meet together in the house of God, within the temple. Let us close the doors of the temple, for they are coming to kill you. They are coming to kill you by night." 

Interesting bunny trail:  Shemaiah's lineage gets traced down to his grandfather Mehetabel- who, I learned, was an EDOMITE.  You know, Edom, sprung from Esau, Jacob's twin who was NOT chosen by God?  Any wonder why he fits in which the "illegitimate trio"?

But here's the thing:  If Nehemiah flees to the Temple for sanctuary, he: de-legitimizes himself and puts the government into the hands of Tobiah; shows cowardice before the people; allows the work to grind to a halt; and sins against God, since he is not a priest and is not allowed in the Temple. To listen to this, he does everything that the enemies has been accusing him of all along.

His response?  First, he refused to give into fear.  second, he stopped and reasoned out the consequences of his action, should he listen.  Third, he prayed.  and finally, he got back to work.  See the main pattern emerging, the way to fend off the attacks?  PAY ATTENTION, CHRIS- You pray, and get back to work.  This is why I am typing this right now.

Another thing to consider here- the enemy wanted Nehemiah to close in on himself- "hide out".  If I've said this to you all a dozen times, I've said it to myself a thousand- you fell? Get back up. NOW.

And with their arsenal exhausted, the enemy seemingly backs off.  So with the walls restored, the people re-committed, and everything set right, he returns to the King of kings in Susa for an extended time- perhaps a year or more- to debrief, return to his first job, prepare for a return.  And when he gets back, at the end of the book?

The High Priest, who's Tobiah's in-law, has given him an office IN THE TEMPLE- which the people just committed to keeping non-Jews OUT of.  Plus, he let his grandson marry Sanballat's daughter...

The people are following the example of the leaders, intermarrying with their old enemies.

The sabbath is being broken right and left by merchants inside the city and out.  Plus, he saw that the tithe was not being given to the Levites- and they were being starved out of the priesthood.

The first is power, the pride of life.

The second is illicit sex- the lust of the flesh.

The third is greed- the lust of the eyes.

This is why Nehemiah's solution always works- the devil's methods NEVER change.  But, you HAVE TO KEEP IT UP.  While his back was turned, the people did not.

Nehemiah's responses?

He threw Tobiah's crap out of the Temple and had the room re-sanctified.

He had just as vehement response to those that married foreigners:

Neh 13:25  And I confronted them and cursed them and beat some of them and pulled out their hair. And I made them take oath in the name of God, saying, "You shall not give your daughters to their sons, or take their daughters for your sons or for yourselves. 

And third, He threw out the merchants a la Jesus in the Temple, and put the Levites back on the payroll.

Get it?  The response is ZERO TOLERANCE.  I can tell you about this from aggravatingly repeated experience- the first crack in the wall is the beginning of the end.  Don't let them in.

The people of Jerusalem failed when Nehemiah was gone.  They needed someone watching over them, and they didn't get that they HAD someone- God himself.  The thing that made Nehemiah is what we need every day in our battle against the devil.  1- Pray.  2- Keep on working. 3- Zero tolerance.