Awakened to Grace

Chad Roberts: Welcome to Awakened to Grace. I'm Chad Roberts, and I'm so glad you're joining us today. I believe God has connected us for a great purpose. Today, you're going to hear a powerful sermon. But before we get to the sermon, I want to encourage you to check out my new book. It's called Blind Faith: Seeing God Through Darkness. It's published by our partners at Lifeway.

The reason I wrote this book is because I am 100% blind. And as I've walked this path of blindness, this path of suffering, I want to teach you how Christians can suffer well. I say that today my job as a blind pastor is to help people trust a God they cannot see. You can order the book right now anywhere that books are sold in any format.

Even if you're not much of a book reader, you can even get it in audio where you can listen to it. I hope you'll go right now to the official website, which is blindfaith.life. Again, that's blindfaith.life. I hope you'll not only get a copy for you, but I hope you'll pick one up for someone who needs encouragement in their faith today.

Rebuild my people for my glory. When Nehemiah showed up and he began casting the vision, he began to say, "Here's what we're going to do." You realize Nehemiah spent four months in prayer before he ever did anything? I want you to think about this. You read the book of Nehemiah in its entirety. They built the walls in a stunning, remarkable, and unbelievable 52 days.

They built the walls in 52 days, but he spent four months in prayer. Do you see how we have it reversed in today's church? We spend four months working and 52 minutes trying to pray. Nehemiah spent four months in prayer and only worked for 52 days. So many people have it backward. They think that they are to do the work of the Lord, but let me tell you, friends, your prayer life is the work of the Lord.

Do not think that you're going to do some greater work above and beyond prayer. Prayer is the greater work. How many of us can say amen? Prayer is the greater work. It's not about doing the greater work; prayer is the greater work, and prayer is the labor that we are to be doing. Nehemiah spent four months praying and only 52 days engaged in the work.

The enemy is angry. He's mad. He says, "What are these feeble Jews doing? Are they going to sacrifice? Are they going to build this wall by themselves? Are they going to sacrifice? Are they going to do it in a day?" Listen to the mockery. "Are they going to take the ruined stones?" The Bible even says "the burnt ones" at that. This wall was decimated.

Think how large the city of Jerusalem is. Think how large of a wall the people would have had to build over such a vast area. What do these feeble Jews think they're up to? But it doesn't take long before their mockery turns to anger. If you read on, I believe it's verse number eight. As most of you know, I'm unable to see with my eyesight, so forgive me as I go from memory.

I believe it's verse number eight. Notice what Nehemiah does once they find out about Sanballat and Tobiah, once they find out about the Amorites and Syria and all these enemies that they have and what they're saying. Notice what Nehemiah does. I believe it's verse three. Notice what he does. He prays.

He says, "Oh God, see that we are despised. See that they're mocking us and shaming us." And then he says something remarkable. "Turn it, turn it against them." I'm praying that for our church right now, that all of the opposition Satan's tried to cause, all of the battle he's tried to cause, all the harm that he's tried to cause, God, turn it against him in Jesus' name. What a great Old Testament prayer.

Don't pray that against your boss or your wife, but you understand what I'm saying. Against the enemy, turn it against them in Jesus' name. Then notice what he says: "So we built the wall." I love that. If Nehemiah had been worried about what his critics were saying or fearful about what his enemies were up to, they would have stopped building the wall. You cannot pay attention to people or the enemy; you have to do exactly what God has told you to do.

There's a phrase in the church that I really dislike. It's a cute phrase, but unfortunately, some people think it's a Bible verse. Have you ever heard the phrase "new levels, new devils"? I hate that phrase. New levels, new devils. Most people think that's a verse out of the Old Testament, and it's not. It's not even in the Bible. It's not a biblical phrase.

I don't like that phrase because if we're not careful, it almost puts some fear in our hearts. What if God grows me to the next level? No. Listen. We know based on Ephesians 6 that there are various ranks of the kingdom of darkness. Principalities, rulers, authorities, spiritual wickedness in high places, and cosmic forces. When Paul writes Ephesians 6, in the original Greek, it literally refers to a military rank.

But listen, we're not to fear our enemy. Not when we're doing what God has called us to do. We are to go forward in faith. This is what the Bible says very specifically in the book of Nehemiah. When Sanballat and when Tobiah learned that we were going forward with the building of the wall, then they became angry.

The mocking turned to anger. The jeering turned to plotting. And now Israel finds themselves in a different situation. But notice verse eight: "So we built the wall." I feel like this is such a word to our church right now. Listen to what it said: "And the people had a mind to work."

Praise God. The people had a mind to work. I just want to thank this body and this house for being a people who have a mind to work. As we get ready for our big outreach season, we're going to have this great Hop To It event where my main focus is the prayer tents. As we get ready for Easter and the flood of people who are going to come through our doors, or as we get ready for Rise Together at the farmers market, you don't host this many sets of crowds without having a mind to work.

But here's what I see different in our church. We've always done those things. This is our sixth consecutive year doing Hop To It. Yesterday, many of us gathered and you guys stuffed 21,000 eggs. One person who had never done it before asked, "Chad, have you ever done this?" I said, "Yeah, it's on my resume: egg stuffing." We've stuffed 20,000 eggs for six consecutive years. It's a life skill at this point. I can stuff an egg.

But that's not the real work. I just want to thank you as a pastor. The real work is the 40-day fasting that we just came through. The real work is the growth in prayer meeting that we're seeing. The real work is that we'll say, out of all the busyness, we'll create a weekly prayer gathering. Out of all the busyness, we'll add a 9:00 AM service. Out of all the busyness, we're going to grow the people serving in teams exponentially. Out of all of our busy lives, we're going to put our hand to the plow and we're going to watch God change life after life after life. That's the work, and you have a mind to work.

Let me tell you very briefly just a couple of things that happened this week. I sat down with a family yesterday while we were stuffing eggs together. I love this brother, his wife, and his family. They are so precious to me. They came to our church from what I understand as unchurched people. Now their parents, who are in their 80s, are coming to our church too.

I was asking him yesterday, "Have you ever went to church as a family?" He said, "No. My entire life, this is the first time we've went to church as a family." Praise God. I think that's massive and huge. I had a man come see me early in the week who walked into this church some time ago. He said the first time he walked in and was in the lobby, he felt a hand on his back. He turned around and nobody was there. He knew it was God.

That man, to God's glory, walked down here Sunday morning, and Pastor Bob led him in a prayer to give his life to Jesus Christ. He's going to be baptized next Sunday. Praise God. It's life after life after life that we're seeing people change to God's glory. That's the work. Those things only come by prayer and fasting. It's the only way it comes.

As we go in this labor of prayer and as we're working for God's glory, we're seeing what God is doing and it's remarkable. So the people had a mind to work. But things got serious when the enemies of Israel saw that the wall was going forward. There's a phrase in here I want you to note: "And when the breaches were being repaired."

When the gaps were being filled in, that's when the enemy began to go, "Uh oh. They're a lot more serious than what we realize." Do you understand? I think today that the kingdom of darkness is looking at the church as a whole and at our church today, and they are jeering and mocking us. They are saying, "What do these feeble believers think they're going to be able to do? They're fasting and doing these silly things." But guess what the enemy's beginning to see? The breaches are being repaired. The walls are being built. He has no idea how serious we really are about prayer and fasting.

As the enemy sees how serious we are, I believe he's growing more angry toward us. But that's all right. I think the Bible has a word specifically in season right now for this house and this body. Verse 14: "Do not be afraid, but remember Adonai."

Remember who you serve and who you are the servants to. Remember who your master is, who the sovereign one is, and who the Lord is. He's Adonai. Do not be afraid because he's Adonai. Fight. Fight for your homes, fight for your wives, fight for your children, fight for your brothers, and fight for your sons and daughters.

I believe this is where we are right now. How many people are we standing in the gap for this very moment? How many people on Tuesday nights were crying out to God for their salvation, for life change, and for deliverance? How many people are we bringing before the throne of God right now saying, "God, move in their life"? I'm telling you, the enemy's taking notice because the walls and the breaches are being repaired. The gaps are coming together, and it's happening because the people have a mind to work.

So what's the word of the Lord for us? Well, don't be afraid. Fight this warfare. Ephesians 6, put on the whole armor of God. Don't step backward. Go forward. Take your stand. Dig in your heels. Put on the shoes of the gospel of peace that have those spikes in them and take your ground and do not back up. That's what the Lord's saying to us.

We have an enemy, but don't fear that enemy. Look to Adonai. Remember Adonai. Remember the Lord our God. Remember how strong, sovereign, good, and faithful he is. Remember Adonai.

Then notice what he says. As they got more serious about the work, he says from that day forward, a line was drawn in the sand. Nehemiah says from that day forward, they began to work differently. The Bible says while one man labored with one hand, he kept his weapon in the other hand.

The men who bore the burden and were carrying stone kept their swords strapped about them while they worked. They were ready for war and ready for battle. Are you and I ready in that sense for what the enemy tries to do? Are we ready?

I chuckled a couple of times this week because I knew in my heart that as God delivered a blow to the enemy last week, there would be a shout of victory in this church. Mightily, mightily, mightily. I knew Satan was going to try to oppose and hinder. There were one or two situations last week where someone got offended or sideways or hurt. We fixed it just like that.

We prayed and fixed it right there. It was healthy and good. We did it because in the spiritual sense, while we're laboring, building, praying, and fasting, our sword is right here. Our eyes are wide open.

Here's what Nehemiah says: "From the dawning of the day until the appearing of the stars at night, the people worked." Nehemiah said, "We know our enemy is plotting against us." Their mocking and jeering has turned into actual battle plans. They're going to attack us.

Nehemiah said, "We're spread so far across the wall." He put clan with clan, family groups with their family groups, each working on their section of wall. Nehemiah put a trumpeter with him.

Go back and study trumpets throughout the Bible and their use for the people of Israel. The Bible says one day when the trumpet sounds, the dead in Christ shall rise first and we, which are alive and remain, shall be caught up together with them to meet the Lord in the air. Nehemiah kept a trumpeter by him.

Nehemiah said, "When you hear the blast of the trumpet, each man leave your post on the wall and you rally at the point of the trumpet. And we're going to go to war." But it's not us going to war. He says, "Our God will fight for us." Do you believe that today? Do you believe that God is fighting for us and is as faithful as he says he is?

Has Satan got you isolated to where you feel like you're doing battle alone? You feel like you're by yourself, weary, and worn out? No. Listen for the trumpeting of God's word. Rally together with us. Come together as the people of God. I'm promising you, God will fight for us. God will help us and encourage us.

He's not going to let the enemy overtake us. The Bible says when the enemy comes in like a flood, God will raise a standard against him. Yahweh-Nissi, the Lord our banner is victory. God has victory for you, for your place in life, for this season, and for the hardship you're facing.

Sadie read me a quote today by William Barclay, a Scottish pastor from centuries ago. The gist of it was, God doesn't get his glory by just taking hard things and voila, changing them to good. God gets his glory when you take the hard seasons of your life and you produce it to the glory of God.

Guest (Male): Thank you so much for listening to our broadcast today. I did want to take just a moment and mention our store. If you go to our website, awakenedtograce.com, navigate to the store page and you're going to find music by all of our awakened artists and plenty of books by Pastor Chad.

Also, while you're on the website, you can view Pastor Chad's story about his blindness and what the Lord is doing through him through Awakened to Grace and through our church, Preaching Christ Church. Thank you so much for joining us today on Awakened to Grace.