Vision 2 –
Refining the Vision
Sunday
Morning Bible Study
January 4, 2004
New Year's Resolutions
The following are some New Year’s Resolutions made by a fellow who actually
kept track of his resolutions from year to year and revised them:
Resolution #1
2000: I will read at least 20 good books a year.
2001: I will read at least 10 books a year.
2002: I will read some articles in the newspaper this year.
2003: I will read at least one article this year.
2004: I will try and finish the comics section this year.
Resolution #2
2000: I will not spend my money frivolously.
2001: I will pay off my bank loan promptly.
2002: I will begin making a strong effort to be out of debt by 2005.
2003: I will try to pay off the debt interest by 2005.
2004: I will try to be out of the country by 2005.
Resolution #3
2000: I will get my weight down below 180.
2001: I will follow my new diet religiously until I get below 200.
2002: I will try to develop a realistic attitude about my weight.
2003: I will work out 3 days a week.
2004: I will try to drive past a gym at least once a week.
Sometimes our “resolutions” don’t quite turn out the way we had hoped.
As I mentioned last week, I don’t want to just stir up the old typical “New
Year’s Resolutions” in you. My goal is to get you dreaming. My goal is to get
you thinking about God’s plans for your life. A good book to stir you up
further is Andy Stanley’s Visioneering
(Multnomah, 1999). Has God been
stirring you up like He has me?
God does have plans for your life:
(Eph 2:10
KJV) For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which
God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
It is our responsibility to find out what those plans are.
I don’t think that God’s plans are necessarily going to automatically
happen. The Bible tells us that God
(1 Tim 2:4 NASB) …desires all men to be saved and to come to the
knowledge of the truth.
Yet not all men are going to be saved. It’s God’s desire, but there are
people who will reject God’s desires for their life.
We’re in the middle of a series on the topic of “vision”. Last week we talked
about “Gaining a Vision”
Week #2 - Refining the Vision
(Neh 2:9-16 KJV)
Then I came to the governors beyond the river, and gave them the king's
letters. Now the king had sent captains of the army and horsemen with me. {10}
When Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, heard of it,
it grieved them exceedingly that there was come a man to seek the welfare of
the children of Israel.
{11} So I came to Jerusalem,
and was there three days. {12} And I arose in the night, I and some few men
with me; neither told I any man what my God had put in my heart to do at
Jerusalem: neither was there any beast with me, save the beast that I rode
upon. {13} And I went out by night by the gate of the valley, even before the
dragon well, and to the dung port, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem, which
were broken down, and the gates thereof were consumed with fire. {14} Then I
went on to the gate of the fountain, and to the king's pool: but there was no
place for the beast that was under me to pass. {15} Then went I up in the night
by the brook, and viewed the wall, and turned back, and entered by the gate of
the valley, and so returned. {16} And the rulers knew not whither I went, or
what I did; neither had I as yet told it to the Jews, nor to the priests, nor
to the nobles, nor to the rulers, nor to the rest that did the work.
Lesson #1
Check before building
Before Nehemiah says anything to anyone, he takes three days to check
things out and see just what needs to be done.
This is hard. Sometimes when I get a good idea I can wait about … five
minutes … before I have to call someone up and tell them my idea.
Yet I think this is where bad ideas can be stopped and where good ideas can
be made better.
Sometimes the vision is wrong
How do I know if God wants me to pursue this idea? What if this isn’t God’s
idea, but just my idea?
Illustration
I belong to an e-mail “listserver” where Calvary Chapel pastors can
communicate with each other. From time to time a pastor will ask the other guys
for advice. A few months ago a pastor (not me) wrote,
“I have one particular lady who believes she is a gifted
vocally. She isn’t! I have told her, our worship leader has told her, and my
wife (who leads our women’s ministry worship team) has told her. Obviously she
doesn’t get it.”
One pastor replied in a humorous way,
You may need to conduct an intervention with this woman...
bring in her family, bring in her close friends, bring in a vocal coach, bring
in others that care about her... have a surprise meeting where she is the focus,
along with problem. Then ask her to sing a song. Give everyone in the room
a chance to share how her singing has affected their lives. Attempt to convince
her that it's not just the leadership—but all who know her—who do not believe
she has vocal giftings. Finally, once she's convinced, immediately get her into
a treatment facility where she can begin receiving long term help.
How do I know if this is of God or
not? Three questions …
1. Where is God in your plans?
Sometimes we have “spiritual” ideas, but sometimes our
ideas aren’t what we’d call spiritual, like what kind of job we want to have.
Is God a part of your plans? He wants to be a part of
everything in your life, even what kind of secular job you have. Are you asking
God for guidance, or are you just informing Him about what you’re going to do?
On Wednesday night we talked about Jesus coming back soon.
We talked about how all the plans that God has for each of us fit into one
giant plan, Jesus coming back to set up His kingdom on earth. We ought to be
looking forward to the day when we hear Him say:
(Mat 25:21 KJV) …Well done, thou good and
faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee
ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
That doesn’t mean that you have to work for a Bible
bookstore or be a pastor. You may be a computer programmer, but if you’re doing
it with the aim of serving Jesus, you’re on target.
2. Is it Scriptural?
Nehemiah’s idea of rebuilding Jerusalem
was totally scriptural.
Nehemiah already knew that God planned for the Jews to
return to Israel.
We’ve seen it in his prayers.
God’s Word may not speak to some specifics in your life,
but it will certainly give some good guidelines. For example:
If you’re thinking of living together with your boyfriend
before you get married, you’re thinking wrong. The Bible says:
(1 Th 4:3 NLT) God wants you to be holy, so you
should keep clear of all sexual sin.
(1 Th 5:22 KJV) Abstain from all appearance of evil.
If you’re thinking of pursuing a relationship with a girl
who is not a Christian, think again.
(2 Cor 6:14 KJV) Be ye not unequally yoked together
with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness?
and what communion hath light with darkness?
3. What do godly people say?
It doesn’t hurt to check the vision with other people. Some
people will just discourage you from trying something too risky, but if no one
supports your vision, perhaps you ought to rethink things.
Did Nehemiah check with others? Actually he did. King
Artaxerxes himself gave approval of Nehemiah’s ideas.
This is a very difficult subject. Godly people can
disagree over all sorts of things.
Sometimes the vision is right, but
there needs to be some adjustments.
The wall that Nehemiah ended up building was quite a bit smaller than the
one that had been torn down. Perhaps Nehemiah’s tour through the city helped
him see that he needed to think smaller.
Checking can be dangerous. This
is not only is this where bad ideas can be stopped, but sometimes good ideas
are stopped as well.
Before Israel
went into the Promised Land, twelve men went ahead of the armies to spy out the
land and report back.
We can sometimes think this was a mistake because their
report ended up discouraging the nation and in the end they had to wait another
40 years before going into the Promised Land.
But it was God’s idea to send the spies in the first
place.
God’s idea for sending the spies wasn’t to discourage the people;
it was to show them realistically what was up ahead.
I think God wants us to face our lives with our “eyes wide
open”.
We may become more aware of just how difficult it will be
up ahead, but if this is a God thing, then God will also provide a way to
defeat the trouble.
(Neh 2:17-18 KJV) Then
said I unto them, Ye see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lieth waste,
and the gates thereof are burned with fire: come, and let us build up the wall
of Jerusalem,
that we be no more a reproach. {18} Then I told them of the hand of my God
which was good upon me; as also the king's words that he had spoken unto me.
And they said, Let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for
this good work.
Lesson #2
Share the vision
In most cases, you can’t do the work alone. Nehemiah wouldn’t be able to
build a wall by himself. Others need to be brought in on the work. At some
point others probably need to be brought in on your vision if things are going
to happen. Even if your “vision” only involves you, there’s a good chance that
things will go smoother if those close to you are on board supporting you.
Last week we mentioned Habakkuk getting a vision by climbing into his
watchtower:
(Hab 2:1-2 NLT) I will climb up into my watchtower now and wait to
see what the LORD will say to me and how he will answer my complaint. {2} Then
the LORD said to me, "Write my answer in large, clear letters on a tablet,
so that a runner can read it and tell everyone else.
He was to write down his vision in large letters, to be
able to communicate it so others could understand it.
Nehemiah doesn’t just show up and ask everyone to start building a wall. He
gives a speech that helps bring the people alongside of him.
When you come to the point where you risk sharing your idea with someone
else, there are four things that you need to think about and be able to
communicate:
1. The problem: “Jerusalem
lieth waste …”
2. The solution: “let us build
up the wall …”
3. The reason something must be done:
“that we be no more a reproach …”
Nehemiah takes it a step further than just stating the
problem. There’s a reason the problem needs to be addressed.
The city walls being torn down not only made the city
defenseless, it was a shame to all the other nations. It showed they were not
strong enough to even defend themselves. It was a disgrace to the people of Israel
as well as to God. Something needed to be done. I would imagine his words may
have stung the people a bit to be reminded of their disgrace.
4. The reason for acting now (instead
of later): “the hand of my God which was good upon me … the king’s words …”
The city walls had been torn down for over a hundred
years. What’s the big rush? Why now?
Nehemiah saw God’s hand on how everything had been put
together up to that point. Nehemiah saw God’s hand in King Artaxerxes being
interested. Nehemiah was given time off of work. The project was even going to
be paid for by the king. Now was the
time to act.
Part of getting people on board with your vision is to
understand why “now” is the time.
For some of us, now may not be the right time. Don’t let
the “now” just be based on you being impatient. Now may be a time to wait.
Nehemiah saw that his time had come.
(Neh 3:1 KJV) Then
Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brethren the priests, and they
builded the sheep gate; they sanctified it, and set up the doors of it; even
unto the tower of Meah
they sanctified it, unto the tower of Hananeel.
The vision turns into a plan. The walls of the city are divided into
sections and different families and groups each take a part of the work and
begin building.
(Neh 4:1-5 KJV) But it
came to pass, that when Sanballat heard that we builded the wall, he was wroth,
and took great indignation, and mocked the Jews. {2} And he spake before his
brethren and the army of Samaria,
and said, What do these feeble Jews? will they fortify themselves? will they
sacrifice? will they make an end in a day? will they revive the stones out of
the heaps of the rubbish which are burned? {3} Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by
him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall even
break down their stone wall. {4} Hear, O our God; for we are despised: and turn
their reproach upon their own head, and give them for a prey in the land of
captivity: {5} And cover not their iniquity, and let not their sin be blotted
out from before thee: for they have provoked thee to anger before the builders.
Lesson #3
Handle criticism with prayer
Perhaps Nehemiah’s language was a bit harsh, but the bottom line was that
he was praying.
Be careful about spending too much time answering your critics. There will
be people who will find fault in anything you do. Don’t become criticism
centered, stay vision centered. Don’t spend your energy criticizing your
critics, take it to prayer. It’s appropriate to answer people’s concerns, but
don’t make it the focus of your energies.
Sometimes the criticism is going to come from the people closest to you. You
may have been expecting them to congratulate you, but instead they criticize
you.
Illustration
Wittle
Wabbits
A little girl walks into a
pet shop and asks in the sweetest little lisp, “Excuthe me, mithter, do you
keep wittle wabbits?” And the shopkeeper bends way down and puts his hands on
his knees so that he’s on her level, and asks, “Do you want a wittle white
wabby or a soft and fuwwy bwack wabby? Or maybe one like that cute wittle bwown
wabby over there?” She in turn puts her hands on her knees, leans forward and
says in a quiet little voice, “I don’t fink my pyfon weally cares.”
People closest to us are the ones we count
on for being cute and cuddly. We don’t
often expect them to say things that hurt.
When someone criticizes a dream of yours,
it hurts. It catches us off guard and
our emotions can flare up. Don’t respond
from your hurt feelings. Take it to prayer first before you respond. It might
save you from saying some things you’ll regret later.
Then get back to work. (vs.6)
(Neh 4:6-9 KJV) So built
we the wall; and all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof: for
the people had a mind to work. {7} 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, {8} And conspired all of them together to come and
to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it. {9} Nevertheless we made our
prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of
them.
Lesson #4
Keep revising
The original plan was just to build. After surveying the city, it’s
possible that Nehemiah might have scaled back some of his plans. Now Nehemiah
revises again and adds guards to the plan.
Some of Sanballat’s criticisms (vs. 2-3) may have actually been valid. But
that’s not a reason to quit. It’s a reason to adjust and keep going.
Don’t confuse your plans with God’s vision
The vision was to rebuild the walls. The plan was to divide up, everyone
take a part, and get building.
The dream of what could be is from God.
Our plans are sometimes just a “best-guess” as to how to get there. Sometimes
our plans fail, but if the vision was from God, there will be another way.
(Neh 4:14-20 KJV) And I
looked, and rose up, and said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the
rest of the people, Be not ye afraid of them: remember the Lord, which is great
and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your
wives, and your houses. {15} And it came to pass, when our enemies heard that
it was known unto us, and God had brought their counsel to nought, that we
returned all of us to the wall, every one unto his work. {16} And it came to
pass from that time forth, that the half of my servants wrought in the work,
and the other half of them held both the spears, the shields, and the bows, and
the habergeons; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah. {17} 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. {18} For the builders, every one had his sword girded by his side,
and so builded. And he that sounded the trumpet was by me. {19} And I said unto
the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, The work is great
and large, and we are separated upon the wall, one far from another. {20} In
what place therefore ye hear the sound of the trumpet, resort ye thither unto
us: our God shall fight for us.
Lesson #5
Encouragement
We need encouragers in our lives.
When things got scary, Nehemiah encouraged the people. He kept them going.
They were to watch out for each other and blow a trumpet for help if they
needed it – being available to help and encourage each other.
Are there people to encourage you? Don’t do it alone.
Where could you find encouragers? You might find them at church. You might
find them at the Men’s study on Tuesday nights or one of the various Ladies’
studies during the week.
We need to be encouragers.
Parents – do you know what kinds of things your kids dream about? Do you
have dreams for your kids?
Husbands and wives – do you know what kinds of things your spouse has
dreams about? Do you talk about each others’ dreams?
Do you encourage each others’ dreams or do you step on each
others’ dreams?
I know that I’ve been way too focused on my own dreams and
haven’t spent enough time getting to know my wife’s dreams.
Look at what kind of vision Jesus has in His marriage:
(Eph 5:25-27 KJV) Husbands, love your wives, even
as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; {26} That he might
sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, {27} That he
might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or
any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.
Jesus’ vision is for us to be “glorious”. He died on a
cross to make us that.