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Welcome to the weekly podcast featuring Sunday messages from Newlife Church: Coomera.
As a church, we exist to see more people more like Jesus by planting and leading thriving local churches.
For more information visit our website at church.nu or contact us at hello@church.nu. We are one family, many churches so make sure you check out our other podcasts by searching Newlife Church.
Hey. Welcome to the New Life podcast. We're so glad that you're here. New Life is one family with many churches. And whether you're in Brisbane, Coolangatta, Moreton Bay, or Robina, our mission is all about seeing more people more like Jesus by planting and leading local churches.
Speaker 1:On this channel, we share our weekly messages from our Sunday gatherings. And whether you call New Life home or you're just stopping by, we pray and invite you to join us as we dive into the scriptures together and let the holy spirit speak to our hearts. If you find encouragement in this podcast or in anything that we're doing as a church, we'd really love to hear from you. You can drop us a line at hello@church.nu. And if you feel led to support our mission financially, you can visit church.nu/giving and follow the prompts there.
Speaker 1:We truly hope this message encourages, challenges, and inspires you to become more like Jesus. Enjoy the podcast.
Speaker 2:Hey, friends. When was the last time you can remember stepping out in faith? When was the last time you remember stepping out in faith? Do you know in 1936, this is not by the way a story about me. I wasn't around in 1936.
Speaker 2:But in 1936, there was an orphanage that opened up in Bristol, England, is where I'm from. And this orphanage could fit about 30 people tops in it. It had no government support. It had no financial backing. In fact, it was described in a book around its history that it had literally no money at all.
Speaker 2:Not a great way to start an orphanage that's supposed to supply things to people who need things. Right? And so this orphanage opens and people begin to criticize it. They say, this is a foolish endeavor. This is silly.
Speaker 2:If you can't support these children, don't open an orphanage. But the guy who opened this orphanage, he was a pastor, and he was convinced of two things. First, he was convinced that God had given him a burden for orphans. And second, he was convinced that our God is a God who could meet the needs of the mission he's called people to. God had burdened him for a people and God could meet the need when he trusted and went out.
Speaker 2:This man's name, he's quite famous, his name was George Muller. And he refused as a part of his ministry, his principle, to ever ask for money or ever to take on debt. And instead, he said, if this is God's mission, God will provide. And here's the thing, God did over and over again. The stories are insane.
Speaker 2:I I remember hearing these in bible college, and I was like, holy smokes, to see this in our day and in our age. But he was saying the same thing back then. To see it in their day and their age was crazy. Stories like this, they had no milk. No milk at all for the breakfast that they were planning to make for everyone.
Speaker 2:I don't know if you've had porridge without milk, but it is not good. I assume. I haven't. Right? I have milk.
Speaker 2:But like this this this moment would happen. They're like, how are we going to eat breakfast this morning? And then a a milk delivery cart would break down at the front of the orphanage, and the milk person would come in and say, it's all gonna spoil. Do you guys need some milk? And he would be like, yes, we do.
Speaker 2:Thank you so much. Or a baker, there's this one story of, it was a bakery around the corner and he just got up in the morning and he just felt uncomfortable. There was just something in his soul that was so provoked to go and bake a 100 extra loaves and take them to this orphanage. And so in the morning, he got up, he baked the extra loaves, he went to the orphanage and went, do you guys need bread? And and and George was like, hallelujah.
Speaker 2:I knew it was coming from somewhere because we didn't have any other bread. And these are the stories that actually happened. See, by the time George Muller died, this one small orphanage for 30 people had become five very large orphanages across Bristol. Personally, he is accredited for caring for over 10,000 orphans. Right?
Speaker 2:10,000 human beings without parents who had no hope when and in that day and in that age in the industrial revolution would probably have ended up working and unfortunately, eventually dying in the mines. And he said, no. God has burden me to stand for them. 10,000 human beings impacted. He was actually someone who was auditing his education that he gave in the orphanage said was shocked.
Speaker 2:He probably didn't use this word, but he essentially said, holy smokes, you are you do better education than most middle class schools offer in in Bristol, England. It's better now. I promise. It's a good city. And then what he did more than that was he lived out the faith in front of these kids.
Speaker 2:And here's this quote that explains his life, and why he did this the way he did it. He said, the primary object I had in view in carrying on this work was that it might be seen that now in the nineteenth century, God is still the living God. And that now as well as thousands of years ago, he listens to the prayers of his children and helps those who trust him. George was like, I'm gonna make this as a statement so that people know that God is not dead. He's just waiting for people to step out and trust him.
Speaker 2:He's not dead. And I think this is what we're seeing in Nehemiah too, thousands of years before. Right? The god was still living, listening to the prayers of Nehemiah and helping him as he stepped out in in a trust greater than his fear. You see, George Muller had a vision, a burden for the sake of orphans.
Speaker 2:Nehemiah had a vision and a burden for the sake of his people still in Jerusalem. Our church here today has a vision, burden for renewal, that we would see more people more like Jesus by planting and leading thriving local churches. And and friend, here's what I wanna tell you. As you personally draw near to God, you'll find that God has given a holy vision to you. A calling to live out his kingdom in this world and some crazy strange way that is not the way I've been called.
Speaker 2:You will see God do remarkable, remarkable things as you step out into that vision. And so here's my hope today. As we examine this scripture, I I I I that we would be called out of defeatism around whatever vision, whatever burden God has put on our hearts. And instead, we would step out and truly believe that our God is able, our God is ready, our God is willing to do remarkable things through those bold enough to step out in faith instead of those being paralyzed by fear. And it starts in Nehemiah chapter one.
Speaker 2:It says, in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of king twentieth year of king Artaxerxes, when wine was brought for him. I took the wine and I gave it to the king. I I had not been sad in his presence before. And and so the king asked me, why does your face look so sad when you are not ill? This can be nothing but a sadness of heart.
Speaker 2:I was very much afraid. I was very much afraid. Let's unpack a little bit of what's happening in this scripture. It opens up in chapter two with some pretty specific detail. It lets you know the month they were in.
Speaker 2:They were in the month of Nisan. Why does it matter what month they're in? If we go back a whole chapter and we read the opening to chapter one, it also tells us what month they're in. They were in the month of Kislev, which I think I read on the screen is November, December, and there's oh, the v has dropped. In November, December.
Speaker 2:And this chapter two has now opened up in Nissan in March forward slash April. Obviously, the months are different to Az, and it's been about four months that's passed. Why does this matter? Well, four months ago, Nehemiah had had his heart broken for a struggle that God's people were going through. And chapter two opens up by showing that this morning, this deep lament hadn't been like you know when you watch a movie and it's a really good movie, you know, like Goodwill Hunting, like one of those deep movies that get in your soul, and, you know, Robin Williams is like, it wasn't you.
Speaker 2:It's not your fault. And you're just sitting in that moment holding back tears, just me. I don't know. It's a really emotional movie for Anyway, and and and he's like, it's it's not you. It wasn't your fault.
Speaker 2:And then and then the movie ends. And we're like, what should I do now? I'm a bit bored. And it's like all that emotion ends with the movie. Sometimes I feel like our emotion in life can be like that.
Speaker 2:But for Nehemiah, it didn't just come and go as quickly. Right? This stuck with him for four months. It lingered. He was moved emotionally by this plight, this burden in his heart to the point that it became visible to the king.
Speaker 2:Here's the thing. I don't know what you think of when I say the king. My brain is warped. I I always go straight to like an animated Disney movie. Do you know like those kind of just and sweet and perfect and blemish free kings who were just wonderful?
Speaker 2:Right? I wanna let you know that the kings of history weren't quite so clean. They weren't quite so good. In fact, the king of Persia, which is who this was, was a really powerful man. The world existed at his whim.
Speaker 2:He had the authority as a human being, he was a king, but in his culture more so, he was esteemed as near God himself. Like, this is the kind of man who could bless you or could decimate you and not even realize he had done either. He could step on you like an ant or he could make you wealthier than you ever dreamed and not realize he had moved a muscle. Muscle. That's the kind of power this man had.
Speaker 2:And as Nehemiah served this man, he found himself in a moment where where where a vision that for four months had been brewing could grow legs. You see, right at the end in Nehemiah chapter one, he prays, God, give me favor before this very king. And here, a third of a year later, still mourning, still praying, still moved, a moment presented itself for Nehemiah to begin to shift his vision of aid for his people from being just an idea and a passion to being a movement, something with momentum, something that has action and impact. And here's the thing, this moment didn't just happen of its own accord. It wasn't like, you know, he was a quick witted respond to a moment that just kinda came up.
Speaker 2:This was planned. As I said in chapter one, he prays for this moment. And then when we go on to read the rest of chapter two, there is a specificity to the requests that, Nehemiah asks for from the king that shows for those four months, yes, he had been moved to mourn. Yes, he had been moved to pray, but also he had been moved to plan. His vision was real.
Speaker 2:There's a quote I read this week, I didn't write it down, but it was like, a Christian's planning begins where their pray ends. A Christian's planning begins, sorry, when their prayer begins? And I love this idea of like, we often think, oh, I don't know. Planning is worldly and I do my planning over here, and praying is godly and I do my praying over here. Right?
Speaker 2:And and these things must be separate because for God to do a move, I must keep my hands out. But that is not the way God moves in scripture. God is like, I want to move and I wanna move through your hands. Not because your hands are perfect, not because you cannot get it right. I don't know.
Speaker 2:If you have kids in the room, right, you know when your kid wants to help you do something and you know that's gonna take five times longer, but you say yes anyway because you love them and you wanna do it with them? With a kid. And God's like, yeah, I wanna do it for you. I wanna include you. I love you.
Speaker 2:This is something that would delight me. And we see throughout scripture, God partners with us as we stuff it up over and over again. And so in this moment, he's standing before the king, the king who could squash him like an ant, decimate him and probably will, let's be honest, and he's in this moment where a vision that has stirred his soul for four months is about to potentially happen. The king turns to him and says, you seem sad. What's going on?
Speaker 2:And in this moment, Nehemiah, I I just love the honesty he has. Like, he's not like, and I boldened my soul, I tensed my muscles, and I looked that king in the eye, and I told him what I thought. You know, he's like, I was afraid. I was very much afraid. The moment was scary and this man of God felt it as he stood before the king of a foreign nation.
Speaker 2:One that I wanna point out, the book of Ezra says, this very king had already stood against the building of rebuilding of Jerusalem. He had put a stop to the work already. And he was gonna say to him, hey, king, big king, king, who thinks he's God? Could you just change your mind for me, please? Just would you would you do that for me?
Speaker 2:You know, this would this would literally be fatal for Nehemiah if it annoyed the king this much or worse. You remember that moment in Exodus where Moses walks into the throne room like he owns the place and he's like, let my people go? And the pharaoh's like, who are you little man? How about this? I take away the bricks and I make all your servants work twice as hard.
Speaker 2:It's like, this wasn't just risky to Nehemiah. If this annoyed the king enough, the king could take it out on all the Jewish people. He could just flatten the city once and for all and say, I'm sick of all the people trying. So there was so much risk here. But more than that, the king aside, Nehemiah gets this one in a million opportunity to stand before the king of the Persian empire.
Speaker 2:What if he stuffs it? What if he comes on too strong? What if his words are just a little bit off track and he just says, oh, I should have said that, but I accidentally said that? What if he puts his foot in his mouth? Anyone else in the room good at putting their foot in their mouth?
Speaker 2:I am fantastic at it. Right? And he's like, what what if what if it's not that the king might stuff it? What if he has a moment given by God and he doesn't use it well? And so Nehemiah stands at this moment and he was afraid.
Speaker 2:Have have you ever felt afraid? Have you ever felt afraid? I have. Guys, three months ago no. Who am I kidding?
Speaker 2:Four we're in a four month regression. That's how I know. Four months ago. Right? It was my birthday.
Speaker 2:I was sitting there, and I was thinking about how nice life was and how in about a a few days, my wife was about to have a baby, and and I was feeling somewhat afraid. Now, I think anybody who is about to become a new parent, very rightly so, should feel afraid. Like, it is a big endeavor to become a parent. God is entrusting these hands to keep a human being alive. I probably couldn't keep a goldfish alive.
Speaker 2:And God's like, oh, here's another human being, you know. I'm so glad my wife's good at it. Right? And so and and so I was afraid, but I wasn't just afraid because being a parent is scary. I come from a pretty broken background.
Speaker 2:My real dad was not a good dad. My real dad treated my whole family awfully to the point that he wound up imprisoned for it. Like, my dad was a bad man. And I remember sitting there and being like, God, I'm a you know, I I took this big game, but like, what if I'm no better? What if I I just wind up getting stressed one day and I and I just do the same stuff to my kid?
Speaker 2:You know, and I was just like this fear started looming over me. I had this vision of the kind of life I wanted for my daughter, Remy, and and then this voice, this fear just started attacking that. And I'm sitting there already overwhelmed by all these very sad depressive feelings. And then I'm like, oh, and in the middle of all that, I'm about to plant a church. Whose wild idea is that?
Speaker 2:I ain't never planted a church before. And I was like, who's gonna come? First of all, thank you guys, by the way. You know, who's gonna come? And I was like, and where are gonna find the money to rent a school home, a school hall, let alone renovate forward slash rebuild the property we have on a river.
Speaker 2:Right? And then how are gonna integrate a 150 year old worshiping community into a broader community of people that we might worship, glorify, make much of God as a loving and inclusive community together? I was like, I don't know. There are things these guys love. I don't know how to navigate this well.
Speaker 2:And I was like, and then beyond all of the the logistics, what about the mission? Like, what about the fact that I believe that a church is more than a spectating, consuming body, but but it's a place of real discipleship, of real love, of real family. How do we do that? So I had this fear. Guys, I have known fear in the last few months.
Speaker 2:Have you? I know that fear is a universal experience. It's something we all share and it doesn't have to be so lofty. The vision might be I wanna put food on my table this month, and the cost of living is killing me. God cares about that, you know.
Speaker 2:God cares about that. And the problem with fear is fear sucks the wind out of vision. It starts to whisper to us. It says the status quo is safer. It comes with a threat of a million what ifs.
Speaker 2:What could go wrong? And what it does is it crowds out room in our heads and hearts for God's voice. You know, I I say, I have this vision for my daughter, for my family, and Fia says, look back, you'll never be enough. And we we share a vision for God's people here in Coombera. Right?
Speaker 2:And Fia says, guys, you've already you've already failed. The community won't lean in. God won't do it again. Don't bother believing. Don't bother trying.
Speaker 2:Fia says this, it's safer to focus on your preferences rather than God's mighty hand. And this is why I just wanna stand here and honor the Uniting North congregation that's joined us. You know, two years ago, I don't know the full story behind this, I think it's bigger than this, but the story I do know, two years ago, they sensed God had a vision for them that was bigger than they knew how to do themselves. And they said, we know that God wants to do a remarkable thing in this region, and we've been positioned to be a part of that. And they went, okay, but how do we do it?
Speaker 2:And they started praying and praying, and they sensed that maybe what they were right then wasn't the way God was gonna do it. And so they came to New Life. They came to New Life and said, guys, we think God wants to do a remarkable thing in this region. And we're just we're just praying for what it would look like to be a part of that. And we're wondering whether you would pray New Life to be a part of that well.
Speaker 2:And when we begin to pray and we have these conversations, if we do this, it's it's gonna cost comforts, it's gonna cost preferences, it's gonna cost things you enjoy, and these guys are just like doubling down. I reckon the vote went up each time. These guys are like, yes. Awesome. That sounds horrible and terrible, I don't wanna do that at all.
Speaker 2:But yes, because the vision's worth it. Because there's something about believing that God could do something again that is worth getting uncomfortable for. And this is what we're seeing in Nehemiah, fear trying to suck the life out of the vision God had given him. And then in verse three, it says, I was very much afraid. And then verse three says this, but this is what UNC did.
Speaker 2:They go, that is terrifying. But, but and they stepped into it. So Nehemiah goes, but I said to the king, may the king live forever. Why should my face not look sad when the city my ancestors are buried in lies in ruins and its gates have been destroyed by fire? If fear has the power to suck life out of vision, how do we navigate this fear in a way that doesn't rob us of living the kind of life and being the kind of community God has called us to be?
Speaker 2:And I just think the power in Nehemiah saying, I was afraid, but I stepped out anyway, but I went anyway. See, God didn't answer Nehemiah's fears and then Nehemiah went, okay, I'll step out. Right? God didn't say sorry, Nehemiah didn't decide to wait until God figured it all out before he went. Nehemiah had to have the audacity to answer his faith with a but.
Speaker 2:With a but, I will stand. I will have courage. I will step out in spite of the what ifs and the risks. The voice of fear will not crowd out the voice of God within me. Amen?
Speaker 2:Amen. Because that's my prayer. Let the voice of fear not crowd out the voice of God within us as he calls us to the kind of things he's doing. And then, and only once he steps out, God begins to work it out in front of Nehemiah. And what we see is this story of God answering fear with a resounding move of provision and support.
Speaker 2:We see God give through an unexpected person. He gave more than Nehemiah could ask, and he all gave he gave all of this out of his unfailing love. But before he Nehemiah could experience that, Nehemiah had to step out. Friend, I don't know what God has put on your heart. I don't know what fears are containing or repressing or shackling this calling on your heart.
Speaker 2:Maybe you just feel such a pressure that God's like, are called to disciple your family, to raise children that will know me and love me. This is your calling. This is what I've put on your soul. And you're just like, I don't even know where to start. I don't even know where to start.
Speaker 2:Maybe you sense in your soul a vision to share the gospel with your neighbors or or or with your colleagues at work or or perhaps with a stranger across the world across the road. Sorry. But you're like scared of, like, what if what if I stuff it up? What if I come on too strong? What if I say the wrong things and they like the gospel even less because I spoke?
Speaker 2:Maybe God's put on your heart a burden for a specific group or a specific need, and you're looking at that and you're like, how could I make a difference in that space? Perhaps God has said to you to give generously to a need or to a cause in a way that's so far beyond the means you actually have. And you're like, how do I step out, God? How do I be that person? How do I live that out?
Speaker 2:Maybe God said to you to live a life of prayer that isn't bound by the world, and yet you struggle to believe God will really show up at all to begin with. And here's the promise we see in here. If you, if I, if we would dare to step out, what we read is this, God is a God who uses places and people that the world will say is hopeless. Hopeless. God is a God who will give more than we ask or imagine for his name's sake.
Speaker 2:And God is a God who gives faithfully out of his love for us. And we're just gonna journey through these for the minutes I have left, and my hope is that this would be an encouragement to our soul if we could believe knowing these three sentences are true. See, this is what God was doing in Nehemiah's life, but it's not really only about Nehemiah. So first, God gives through the unexpected. Verse four, the king the king said to me, what is it you want?
Speaker 2:And then I prayed to the god of heaven. Great start. Then I prayed to the god of heaven and I answered the king. If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my ancestors are buried so that I can rebuild it. And then the king, with the queen sitting beside him, asked me, how long will your journey take and when will you get back?
Speaker 2:It pleased the king to send me, so I set a time. I wanna remind you that when I say the king, we're not talking about animated Disney perfect flawless king who's really kind and gentle and raised, you know, Snow White and then, you know, bad things happened to him. You know, like, I'm not talking about that king. I I'm I'm talking about someone who was not a Jewish king, someone who was not a pro Jewish king. This was a king, as I said, who had already shut down the rebuilding of Jerusalem, who had already opposed the work that Nehemiah was proposing to be done.
Speaker 2:Fear yells, this will never work. This man is a dead end. There is no hope here. Stop trying. Don't bother.
Speaker 2:Don't dream. And yet, in my experience, it's people the world declares hopeless, lost causes, dead ends. It's people and places like these that God delights to show his power through. Amen? The amen is yeah, that's me included.
Speaker 2:Right? Like it's us. I mean, we see in scripture murderers like Moses, social outcasts like Matthew, persecutors of the church like Paul. Right? These are the people.
Speaker 2:You know, there's a time in the bible he literally even uses a donkey. Hallelujah. This is good news for us. If God can use a donkey, surely I have something to offer. Right?
Speaker 2:Like, hopefully. See, God is not limited by the worldly limitations we face. Where we see dry bones and defeat, what God sees is a way. I've seen this in my own life. I've seen this in moments where the people are directly and actually opposing God and the very fabric of their opposition when I look back and I thought it was hopeless, that's what God used to do his good thing.
Speaker 2:In fact, we don't see a greater example of that than in Jesus. I mean, it is the devil himself that gets into Judas' head that twists the culture, that leads to the lies that with the attempt to silence, stop, bring an end to the work and move of God on the earth. And how does he do it? Puts him to death. That'll do it.
Speaker 2:Kill him. And yet, it's this very means, the very act of killing Jesus, it's the very substance by which God rescues and redeems all who would put their trust in Jesus as savior. It's this act of killing him that overcame and conquered the enemy. God is able. Jesus proves it.
Speaker 2:This is why I'm saying it's not really about Nehemiah. God is able. Jesus proves it. And so here's what we know. I know this is hard to believe.
Speaker 2:Our culture is not doomed. Qumara, the Northern Gold Coast, the idols of sex and money and wealth and Instagram and image have not overpowered our God. Right? Our culture is not doomed. It is not unreachable.
Speaker 2:It is not lost to God. And that sense that we have in our soul that God is calling us to, when we feel and we feel we're not good enough, the truth is we're probably not. But God will still do it because God is able. And when you look at the soil of the work that God is calling to you and if it feels solid and dead and you don't know how to break that ground, good. Stop trying to do it in your own effort.
Speaker 2:Plan and dream and watch God do what you can't. Whether you're standing for your family, for your own heart, for your own holiness, your own faith, for someone you're praying for, maybe someone you wrote on those cards last week, just a plug to keep praying for those people. Whether you're standing for culture, an institution, a thing far bigger than you or I, whatever fear say is saying is a lost cause. God is saying, it ain't lost to me. Step out and see.
Speaker 2:God will use the unexpected. He uses a conquering, enemy, occupying king in Nehemiah that has already opposed the work to do the work. And he can use whatever we're feeling is stopping us today to accomplish things we could not imagine. And we'll look back and go, there wasn't a different way. That was the way.
Speaker 2:And he does it over and over in scripture. This is the first thing. The second thing we see is that God gives more than we expect. I I just love the audacity of Nehemiah. A few minutes ago, he was like, I was afraid.
Speaker 2:I was very much afraid of pretty much shaking in my boots. Right? I was terrified. And the king gives him a bit of good news. Then he's like, in verse seven, and then I also said to him, if it pleases the king, may I have letters to the governors of Trans Euphrates that they will provide me safe conduct until I arrive in Judah?
Speaker 2:And may I have a letter to Asaph, keeper of the royal park, so he will give me timber so that I can do this work? You know, it starts off when he's like, hey, can I just get a can I just get some annual leave? It starts off, just get a break? And then it's morphs into saying, hey, can you write letters for safe passage? And then it grows and he goes, hey, and and can you actually pay for all of this because I don't actually have the money.
Speaker 2:Like, can you make the resources to make this happen? Like, you imagine me going to my boss and being like, hey, Can I have some time off starting tomorrow? And and then, like like, new life is like, yeah. You know what? Why not?
Speaker 2:And I'm like, great. And can you organize my passport for me? Because I don't have one. And they're like, okay. And then, like, oh, and also, could you pay for the flights?
Speaker 2:Because I don't have any money. Do you think they would say yes? Do you think they say I don't think they'd say yes. So I think that's a pretty fat no. So what made Nehemiah so bold to a man a few seconds ago he was terrified would obliterate him?
Speaker 2:Nehemiah knew this was not God's work. I'm sorry, it was not his work. Wrong sentence. Nehemiah knew this was not his work, it was God's. And you know the fact that the king hadn't immediately killed him but had showed favor gave the courage for Nehemiah to know that God was in this.
Speaker 2:And here's the thing, if God's in it, God will do it. Do you know that if God is in it, God will do it? And God did. And not only did God lead the king to give Nehemiah everything he asked for, he then went above and beyond that. It doesn't show Nehemiah asking for this, but the king of his own volition then says, here are some military officers and some cavalry as well.
Speaker 2:I hope you get protected as you go. So I don't know what you know of God, but if God is in it, God will bless it. He will make ways. He will meet needs. He will do it in abundance.
Speaker 2:You know, in the book of Ephesians in in verses in chapter three verse 20 to 21, Paul writes this to the church, not to a church. Ephesians was written to the church. He says, now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations forever and ever. Amen. Friends, all generations includes you and it includes us today.
Speaker 2:To him who is able to do immeasurably more than what we can ask or imagine. He is God. He is not limited. He knows our needs. He cares for our hearts, and he pours out in ways unexpected and far more than we could ever imagine.
Speaker 2:And again, we don't see this in any greater way than in the cross. Friend, I I don't know what you think of the cross, but let me paint this picture for you. Alright? You're sinful. The Ephesians chapter two verse one says you're actually dead.
Speaker 2:Like kaput, done. No hope. Dead. And then Jesus comes and pays the price for our sins. I would say, thank you very much.
Speaker 2:That's more than generous. I I didn't deserve that at all. Thank you for saving me from my sins. He reaches out his hand, I grab it, he picks me up, and I go on my merry way and never ask for anything from God again. But but God doesn't give me that option.
Speaker 2:He then says, hey, would you come and dine at my table and do life with me? Like me, the guy who who he had to die for. He's like, I I would like you to come to my table. And I'm like, oh, okay. I can't say no.
Speaker 2:Like, that's so generous. So then I go sit at God's table. And then God says, hey, I wanna call you a child, a son, or a daughter of me. Like us, the rebels. He just gave his life to save.
Speaker 2:He's calling us not only out of sin, but out of a wilderness and a lostness and then into his family. And he says, hey, I'm gonna give you an inheritance for all eternity in me. That's what I wanna give you. Like, Jesus doesn't just give a bare minimum, that is abundant generosity. God doesn't operate in scarcity.
Speaker 2:He gives, he lavishes, His kindness is abundant. And the third thing that I noticed in this story is that Nehemiah didn't doubt God could do it. And here's what I want to say on this. This is like a three second point, but I just it's so important to say it. The reason Nehemiah didn't doubt that God could do it, the reason he was willing to step out is because he knew the stories of God.
Speaker 2:This wasn't a unique moment where God did a thing for Nehemiah and we go, well, he probably was just doing that for Nehemiah and contextually, it probably wasn't for me. That's absurd. Why could Nehemiah step out? Because it's who God is. And Nehemiah knew the character of God and so Nehemiah could trust God.
Speaker 2:In the book of Exodus 34 verse six, this moment where God introduces who he is for the first time to his people. It's you you know, you we all know the burning bush. God says, you know, I am who I am, Yahweh. And it's like, okay. So you are who you are.
Speaker 2:But then Moses, you know, being Moses, he kinda takes a step further and he goes, yeah. But who are you? And this is this moment when God replies that and he says this, the Lord passed before him and proclaimed the Lord the Lord or I am who I am. I am who I am. I am faithfully myself.
Speaker 2:You can trust me. Who am I? I am a God merciful and gracious. Wasn't just something for Nehemiah. I am slow to anger.
Speaker 2:I am abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. This is who God is. He is faithful. He is unfailing in love. It's not about Nehemiah.
Speaker 2:It's about the character of God. And so when I talk about the lavish generosity of God, what I'm not saying, and you need hear this please, is that you'll get a red Ferrari when you start praying for it. Right? Because that wouldn't be the lavish, generous, kind, loving, faithfulness of God. Right?
Speaker 2:His love is far more real and genuine than that. He's not a pandering parent trying to make you like him. He loves you. He doesn't need to make us rich to satisfy us daily. And the lie of fear is this, that we can't trust God to show up in our future day of need.
Speaker 2:And the challenge God makes is the greatest need you have is not stuff, things, circumstance, the greatest need you have is me. And until you know who I am, you will never be satisfied. Until you've come to know my love and my goodness, you are still out in that wilderness. And I could give you the red Ferrari. I could make you a gazillion.
Speaker 2:I could do it all for you. You'd be more lost, more hurting, more broken, more destroyed, more empty than you've ever been before because none of that stuff is your greatest need. Your greatest need is God. My greatest need is God. And in this moment, Nehemiah is not leaning on God to be breakthrough that he might have stuff.
Speaker 2:Nehemiah is leaning on the God who is who he is and he knows him. So who do you know God to be? Will you answer the vision God has called you towards? Will you answer that with fear, frustration, and guilt? Or will you answer that vision with the confidence that God is who he says he is?
Speaker 2:He is able, he is faithful, he is abundant, and he is loving. You know, I I don't know if you've ever ran five orphanages before, but I imagine George Muller was an incredibly busy person. And when he spoke about his life of faith, this is something he said. He said, faith does not operate in the realm of the possible. There is no glory for God in that which is humanly possible.
Speaker 2:Faith begins when man's power ends. I don't know what your vision or what your hope that you have for this church is. I don't know why you came along this morning. I don't know why you've joined us for two weeks. I don't know why you came to our pre services.
Speaker 2:Or if you're part of Uniting North, why you voted yes to bring us in to begin with. Right? I don't know what your vision is. But it will not happen if we give fear the final word. It will not happen.
Speaker 2:And whatever it is you're praying and you're believing for, for your families, whatever you sense God might be calling you towards, We will be stunted, muted, shackled, powerless as long as fear is the dominant voice in our hearts. My my invitation is this, would you come? Would you dare to believe that God could be at work today, that he is not finished, he is up to something, that he is abundantly able and faithful to even work through you and me. In verse eight, Nehemiah sums up all of God's provision with this simple line, because the gracious hand of God was on me. The king granted my requests.
Speaker 2:Why? Because the gracious hand of God was on him. Do you know that gracious hand today? You might have called yourself a Christian for a hundred years. You might have made a decision yesterday.
Speaker 2:You might not have made a decision yet. The gracious hand of God is extended towards you right now. It is. And sometimes I think we confuse it for a backhand. Right?
Speaker 2:And we think God's more likely to backhand me than open his hand to me. And we think he's angry. And I just wanna let you know this. I think it so needs to be said. God is not angry with you.
Speaker 2:See, the greatest fear I think we face is the lie of the devil that that God wants nothing to do with And therefore, why would we step out or try it all to begin with? Why would we bother leaning into vision? Why would we bother having hope? God is not angry with you. You see, in Jesus, he extended his hand in love to you.
Speaker 2:It's because of Jesus. It's only in Jesus. We have no hope outside of Jesus. I will prefer sin and rebellion over God every single time except for by Jesus. The Jesus who by unexpected means laid down his life that we might have life abundant.
Speaker 2:The Jesus who with unexpected generosity made us not only alive and forgiven, but children, heirs, loved, known, wanted by him. The Jesus who who lived out his faithfulness, saving us not because we made the first move or because we were perfect or because we had good hearts, but because he's loved us for all eternity and wants nothing more for us than for us to know his love personally in life with, in life with, in life in relationship, in life knowing who he is, his goodness, his kindness, his faithful hand open in love to you today. Would you trust him? He's doing a good thing. He is not defeated.
Speaker 2:Last week, I said a number of times, we are not a defeated people. The only reason that has merit is because we don't serve a defeated God. He is not defeated. Would you join me in prayer? Lord, I I just thank you, God, that this is the word of God, that it's not an inspiring and rallying pep to come up in the minds of people, but rather, God, it is your word, your promise, your gift.
Speaker 2:And as we gather in this room, your people, we we we don't gather trying to make up who you might be, we come relying on who you've said you are. God, I I thank you that your voice is clearer, more certain, more beautiful, more stable, more good than any voice fear might come up within us. I just pray in this room for us as we gather as your people. I think there are things in our souls that might come up as I pray this, places where we have allowed ourselves to be defeated, to believe that God, you wouldn't show up, you wouldn't move, we are defeated. Their fear has had this final voice.
Speaker 2:And if you're in this room and that's you, I just want you to put your arms out in front of you. If if there's a place where fear is dominating your heart and you know it, and you're like, no, I want to believe the goodness of God, then just just quietly between you and God, just open your hands before him. Invite him in and say, Lord, this is yours. It says in Jesus Jesus says in the gospels that the sheep will know his voice. And right now, what we're praying is this, God, would we know your voice?
Speaker 2:And with the wolves and the and the enemies and the we're facing, God, would would would they fall down? You are able. You are faithful. You are loving. You are present.
Speaker 2:Your spirit is at work in this room and in this community. You are our hope. And we've released this burden to you. You know what we need and you've promised to do it in scripture. Hallelujah.
Speaker 2:And you've called us to a life to be bringers of the kingdom of God to this side of eternity. To our families, to our neighbors, to our workplace, to our regions, sometimes to strangers even. And that's not in our strength, but in yours, God. And so come and heal it. And maybe in this room, you you actually are one of those people who have never made a decision to follow Jesus before.
Speaker 2:You know, all eyes are closed. Christians, if if you've if you've met Jesus, if you've encountered him, I just invite you to stop praying. Because there might be someone in this room who doesn't know what you know, hasn't experienced what you've experienced. And if that is you in the room, I just wanna give you a moment, if you feel the spirit of God is doing a thing inside of you, I just wanna give you a moment to make that known just to me. If you wanna make a decision today to start a relationship with Jesus and work out the rest on your way, I just invite you to raise your hand in the air.
Speaker 2:All eyes are closed, all heads are bowed as we pray that you would see and taste what we have seen and tasted. But if that is you, go ahead and do it now. Come on. Lord, I thank you that you're merciful and good, that you're at work and restoring. Lord, continue, our hearts are yours, we surrender, and we have no hope except for you.
Speaker 2:Our lives are yours. Come and have your way. It will be good. Jesus, in your perfect name we pray. Amen and amen.
Speaker 1:Thanks
Speaker 1:again for listening to the New Life podcast. If that stirred something within you or you'd like prayer, you can head to church.nu/prayer or contact us through our Instagram or our Facebook pages. We pray that you have a great week. Be blessed.