Sermon Tone Analysis

Dealing with Discouragement

Dealing with Discouragement

Main Scripture Text:

Date Preached: October 8, 1978

Main Scripture Text:

“And Judah said, The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed, and there is much rubbish; so that we are not able to build the wall.”

Introduction

Introduction

I.

The Curse of Discouragement

II.

The Cause of Discouragement

A. They Were Worn Out

B. They Were Weighted Down

C. They Were Wrought Up

III.

The Cure for Discouragement

A. Nehemiah Armed his People

B. Nehemiah Assured his People

C. Nehemiah Aroused his People

D. Nehemiah Applied his People

E. Nehemiah Assembled his People

F. Nehemiah Admonished his People

Conclusion

Introduction

Nehemiah chapter 4—we are talking today on this subject: “Dealing With Discouragement.”

Now, folks, God has given us a great job here.

We’re together in a program called Together We Build, and by the grace of God we’re going to build a marvelous multi-ministry center.

This center will provide space for hundreds of children—preschoolers—so Mom and Dad can come and hear the Word of God preached.

Also, it will provide space for literally hundreds and thousands, we trust, of adults who will be able to hear the Word of God preached and taught in seminars.

Also, there will be a media center, where books and tapes and videocassettes can be seen and viewed and checked out.

And there will be a counseling center, and all kinds of things to help to get the job done.

This building is not something extraneous; this building is not something frivolous; it is a tool to help us to get the job done that our Lord is calling us to do.

And so we’re in a program together called Together We Build.

And we’re asking all of our people to give sacrificially, to pray earnestly, and to work tirelessly to get this job done.

Today, we’re going to talk about another of the devil’s methods to stop the work of God.

And the title of the message today is “Dealing With Discouragement.”

Verse 7:

And so I have chosen to preach through the book of Nehemiah, because I don’t know of a better book that parallels what we’re trying to do or points out needs any greater than the book of Nehemiah.

We said that any work for God is going to be met with opposition from the devil—any work for God.

When God’s people say, “Let us rise up and build,” () the devil will say, “Let’s rise up and stop them.”

And when God’s people have a mind to work, the devil has a mind to wreck.

And so, last week we talked about one of the ways that the devil tries to stop the work of God—and that is by ridicule.

And we spoke last week on this subject: “Reacting to Ridicule.”

Nehemiah 4:

Now, today, we’re going to talk about another of the devil’s methods to stop the work of God.

And the title of the message today is “Dealing With Discouragement.”

Verse 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,”—now, boys and girls, that means they were really angry—“and conspired all of them together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it.

Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them.

And Judah said, The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed, and there is much rubbish; so that we are not able to build the wall.”

()

Here’s the first discouraging note in the whole book.

Judah says, “We can’t do it.

It can’t be done.

We’re not able to finish what we started.

We’re not able to build the wall.”

and then verse 11

Here’s the first discouraging note in the whole book.

Judah says, “We can’t do it.

It can’t be done.

We’re not able to finish what we started.

We’re not able to build the wall.”

And then, verse 11: “And our adversaries said,”—that is, “our enemies”—“They shall not know, neither see, till we come in the midst among them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease.”

()

Nehemiah

I.

The Curse of Discouragement

Now here they could not say they had never heard a discouraging word, because here was one—and it was a big one.

I want us to talk about “Dealing with Discouragement.”

And, first of all, I want us to think very briefly about the curse of discouragement; a little more in length about the cause of discouragement; and then spend most of the lesson focused on the cure for discouragement.

Very briefly—the curse of discouragement.

I want to tell you that, next to ridicule, I believe that discouragement is the devil’s chief tool.

Some people think that it is the chief tool of the devil.

Remember the legend I shared in the e-mail:

There’s a legend that tells about the devil one day, who was auctioning off his tools—you know, the tools that he wrecks every work of God with—and he had all of his tools out there.

There was pride, and the price on pride.

And there was laziness, and there was arrogance, and there was hate, and there was envy, and there was jealousy, and all of these tools.

And he had a high price on all of them.

But there was one tool that had a sign under it: “Not for Sale”—sort of a strange looking tool.

And someone said, “What is that tool, and why isn’t it for sale?”

He said, “Well, I couldn’t afford to get rid of that one.

That’s my chief tool.

It’s discouragement.”

And the friend said, “Well, why is it so important?”

“Well,” he said, “with this tool I can get into a heart and pry it open.

And once I get into that heart, I can do most anything I want.

Discouragement is my chief tool.”

I know that more damage can be done by discouragement than almost any other thing.

And, you know, good people can get discouraged.

Did you know that if you’re not careful, even you could get discouraged?

Did you know that?

I want us to notice who it was that got discouraged.

Look in verse 10: “And Judah said, The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed, and there is much rubbish; so that we are not able to build the wall.”

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Who said this? Judah said it.

Well, who is Judah?

That was the chief tribe.

These were the best of the best.

Judah was the cream of the crop.

Judah was the dominant tribe.

They were the leaders.

It was of the tribe of Judah that our Lord would come.

And Judah was the one who said, “It can’t be done.”