Build While You Fight

[Christian40]

Don't Stop Building for God!

By David J. Stewart

"But it came to pass, that when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up, and that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth, And conspired all of them together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it ... They which builded on the wall, and they that bare burdens, with those that laded, every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand held a weapon. For the builders, every one had his sword girded by his side, and so builded. And he that sounded the trumpet was by me. —Nehemiah 4:7,8; 17,18

What a precious truth from the Word of God!  It was the year 455 B.C. and the Israelites were busy rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem.  The city of Jerusalem had been utterly destroyed by king Nebuchadnezzar back in 586 B.C.  So now Nehemiah is overseeing the rebuilding of the wall around Jerusalem for security.  When the enemies of God's people heard that the walls were being rebuilt and the breaches (openings) closed up, they were furious.  So the enemies of God came "TO HINDER" (Nehemiah 4:8) the work of God.  The builders of the wall could have easily stopped building and instead gone to fight the enemies of God's work; but they stayed the course.

The New Testament Church has many enemies today, who if we let them, will distract us from getting the work of God done.  It is so easy nowadays to get sidetracked from doing God's work.  The Bible says that every builder working on the wall had his sword girded by his side, AND SO BUILDED.  Literally, the builders of the wall has a spade in one hand to build, and a sword in the other to fight.  They were building in spite of those who had come to hinder the work of God.  This is exactly what believers must do today.  When the Devil comes at us with all the hordes of Hell, we must continue building while fighting the good fight of faith.  Nehemiah and his men could have spent all their time fighting, and the wall never would have been completed.  Thankfully, they did finish the wall, in a record 52 days in fact (Nehemiah 6:15).

The Church has many enemies today, of which we must continually be on-guard; but we must not allow them to HINDER us from doing the work of God.  The work of God is rooted in the Word of God, and encompasses spiritually building people through churches, Sunday schools, bus ministries, prison ministries, ministries to the deaf, rescue missions, et cetera.  The work of God is soul-winning!  So many churches today have been sidetracked by the cares and riches of the carnal world.  The average church doesn't go soul-winning.  This is a sin.  They are not wise (Proverb 11:30).

The Salvation Army has deteriorated into a mere social organization, having more Army than Salvation.  Every year at Christmas time, society is bombarded with Santa Clauses from the Salvation Army, ringing their bells and begging for money.  I've yet to meet even one Salvation Army Santa who presented the Gospel of Jesus Christ, or handed out Gospel tracts.  The Salvation Army is so preoccupied with fighting poverty, social ills and environmental disasters that they have stopped building for God.  This is a shame.  Go visit any Salvation Army website and search for something on how to become a born-again Christian... good luck!  They have been sidetracked from doing God's work.  Jesus said in Luke 9:60, "Let the dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach the kingdom of God."  The Salvation Army is in the business of buying the dead, i.e., they've become nothing more than a humanitarian aid program.  This is apostasy!

I wrote this article to encourage Christians to stay-the-course, i.e., don't stop doing the work of God!  If your church or ministry doesn't preach the Gospel, promote the Word of God, pass out Gospel tracts and make a diligent effort to win lost sinners to Jesus Christ, then you are NOT doing God's work.  We need to constantly be on-guard about getting side-tracked from God's work.  Churches all across America are so busy hosting fund-raising banquets, practicing for the choir, repairing their buses and building new buildings that they've forgotten about SOULWINNING!

Whatever burdens, trials and hardships may be afflicting you personally, or your church, please don't make the grave mistake of allowing the circumstances to control you.  Act; don't react.  The Devil will provide us with 100 excuses not to do the work of God; but the world is dying and going to Hell without Christ, and if we don't warn the wicked, who will?  The average church today is nothing more than a business, i.e., a non-profit corporation.  Ironically, such organizations profit quite well.  God's work is soul-winning.  If you stop preaching the Gospel, then you have certainly stopped building.

http://jesus-is-savior.com/Believer%27s%20Corner/dont_stop_building.htm

[Kilika]

The work of God is soul-winning! So many churches today have been sidetracked by the cares and riches of the carnal world.  The average church doesn't go soul-winning.  This is a sin.  They are not wise (Proverb 11:30).

And YOU Mr. Stewart are wrong!

Sorry, I can't stand this guy! Talk about a false prophet caught up in the "works" doctrine of churchianity.

If he actually read a bible, he'd know what scripture really says about the work of God...

"Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent." John 6:29 (KJB)

[Mark]

And YOU Mr. Stewart are wrong!

Sorry, I can't stand this guy! Talk about a false prophet caught up in the "works" doctrine of churchianity.

If he actually read a bible, he'd know what scripture really says about the work of God...

"Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent." John 6:29 (KJB)

and how do you get someone to believe? you have to help win their soul for Jesus.

[Psalm 51:17]

and how do you get someone to believe? you have to help win their soul for Jesus.

I agree that as Christians, we do the work of an evangelist, but nonetheless it's the Lord that adds to the church, which is why we have to be patient...

Act 2:46  And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,
Act 2:47  Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

1Cor 3:6  I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.
1Co 3:7  So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase.
1Co 3:8  Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour.

[Kilika]

and how do you get someone to believe? you have to help win their soul for Jesus.

YOU don't. No man does. But that mentality of men thinking they can "save souls for Jesus" is a stone-cold churchianity works doctrine, and false.

As BA pointed out, every man WILL "receive his own reward according to his own labour". But remember, we don't preach for filthy lucre, for anything in return. We freely received the truth, thus we freely share it, expecting nothing in return.

We move about as the Holy Ghost moves us, IF we are walking in the Spirit, and are not distracted by fleshly pride. It is God that draws them to His Word. Not our actions. It's the Spirit that does the work. All we are to do is to be patient, and be ready to answer any man of the reason of the hope that is in us.

See, the big lie from churchianity is that man thinks he can call on God to save people, to make them safe during some event, to relieve them of some burden, or even to the extreme of rebuking foul weather (in the name of Jesus of course)! WRONG. Man cannot, all he can do is pray for God's will to be done. That's it. Of course our desire is that all men will be saved, but we don't get to decide that. That is God's decision, and not for us to judge. God knows what we need, when we need it. Jesus says to observe the fouls of the air. "they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns..."

If a person wants to know what we should pray for, Jesus told us. He says, "After this manner therefore pray ye..."

you have to help win their soul for Jesus.

Really? You actually think God needs help with saving people?

"Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed [it], Why hast thou made me thus?" Romans 9:20 (KJB)

By faith and belief, a person is freely given the Holy Ghost, which is Jesus Christ in you, and your going to tell me man needs to help? Lord have mercy!

18  But I say, Have they not heard? Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.
19  But I say, Did not Israel know? First Moses saith, I will provoke you to jealousy by [them that are] no people, [and] by a foolish nation I will anger you.
20  But Esaias is very bold, and saith, I was found of them that sought me not; I was made manifest unto them that asked not after me.
21  But to Israel he saith, All day long I have stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people.
Romans 10:18-21 (KJB)

Even God Himself has His hand stretched forth, and people still refuse to repent and believe, and you think man will do any better in getting the unbelieving to repent? Not going to happen.

The only way it does happen is by the Spirit in a man, and in that process, we "become all things to all men...", but it is not us, it's the Spirit in us that presents us to each man as they have need. To one we may appear as a preacher, another a teacher, etc., but it is still Jesus Christ in us that does the work. What I typed here is just "an unknown tongue" and with it seeds of His Word, but it is only the seeds that will add to the increase, not our own words or efforts.

It's like our words are an attention-getter. It's like saying, "Hey you...". But if we continue to talk to them as the world does, in an unknown tongue, how will they know what you are saying? They must be given also the interpretation, the Word of God. And THAT is what gives the increase. People may understand my words, but it has no life in it, nor will it save them, and it will profit them nothing in the end. It is the Word of God in the end that will lead them to the truth and salvation.

"Yet in the church I had rather speak five words with my understanding, that [by my voice] I might teach others also, than ten thousand words in an [unknown] tongue." 1 Corinthians 14:19 (KJB)

"[When] the poor and needy seek water, and [there is] none, [and] their tongue faileth for thirst, I the LORD will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them." Isaiah 41:17 (KJB)

[Psalm 51:17]

Here's also another good passage...

Mat 11:28  Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Mat 11:29  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
Mat 11:30  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Ultimately, trying to go out yourself to witness to as many people as you can(in a day, week, etc) DOES play a heavy burden on one's flesh, which flies in the face of Matthew 11:28-30.

Also - while yes we should witness to people, shouldn't these churches spend more time feeding their flock with the word of God? There's alot of work to be done not only locally, but within each respective congregation as well.

1The 5:9  For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,
1Th 5:10  Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.
1Th 5:11  Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.
1Th 5:12  And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you;
1Th 5:13  And to esteem them very highly in love for their work's sake. And be at peace among yourselves.

[Kilika]

1  The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed:
2  Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight [thereof], not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind;
3  Neither as being lords over [God's] heritage, but being ensamples to the flock.
4  And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.
1 Peter 5:1-4 (KJB)

"But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel." 1 Timothy 5:8 (KJB)

"(For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?) " 1 Timothy 3:5 (KJB)