Page 46 - Principles of Leadership - Nehemiah

the wall. The laborers who carried the loads worked with one hand and held a weapon with the other. 18
Each of the builders had his sword strapped around his waist while he was building, and the trumpeter was
beside me. 19 Then I said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people: “The work is enormous and
spread out, and we are separated far from one another along the wall. 20 Wherever you hear the trumpet
sound, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us!”

Don’t miss the picture that Nehemiah was drawing for us here. Remember that the walls of the city were about
1 1/2 to 2 1/2-mile-long or 2.2 to 4 kilometers. Nehemiah had no idea where the enemy might attack, so he
said to the people The work is enormous and spread out, and we are separated far from one another along
the wall. 20 Wherever you hear the trumpet sound, rally to us there. What was Nehemiah’s rallying cry? Our
God will fight for us!

If you want a picture of leadership, you will find it here. Notice that Nehemiah commands them to rally to us
wherever you hear the trumpet sound. Notice who will be at the center of the battle when the trumpet is
sounded. Nehemiah said rally to us. He assured the people that he was willing to fight for a cause that was
bigger than his own life and that he was willing to fight side by side with the people he loved. Again, listen to
the assurance he is trying to give to the people, rally to us. He reminded them that God had frustrated their
schemes, and he would fight side by side with them because our God would fight for us! This seems to be a
recurring theme found in the book of Nehemiah, where he points to the providential hand of God with
statements such as " God had frustrated, or God will fight, or an earlier comment, the good hand of our God
was upon us. Yes, Nehemiah credits God as the prime mover and the willingness of everyone to return to their
own work on the wall, which was supported by the officers (tribal leaders). However, I want to circle back to
Nehemiah and remind you that this would have been impossible without Judah’s vision caster, Nehemiah.

Andy Stanley says, "There is no season in which the leader can push autopilot and expect the organization to
remain vision driven… Vision doesn't stick without constant care and attention. One of the greatest challenges
of leadership is making the vision stick." 154 This is why the scriptures tell us that once again I said to the nobles,
the officials, and the rest of the people… Our God will fight for us! Nehemiah realized that "casting a
convincing vision once is not enough to make it stick. Twice isn't enough either! Vision needs to be repeated
regularly." 155 Nehemiah realized that he must state the vision simply Our God will fight for us! But he also had
to cast the vision convincingly, repeat it regularly, celebrate it systematically, and embrace it personally for the
vision to stick. Because he was successful once again in casting his God-given vision, they continued in the work.
However, he lost half of his work crew because of the enemies of the Jews. (See below)

As I think about how to apply this passage to our lives today, I must ask myself if I live for a cause greater than
myself. Do I lead by example like Nehemiah? What enables us to stay on course is the beauty of the gospel. As
this beauty enraptures our conscience and every fiber of our being, are we compelled by the power of his
resurrection and the fellowship of his suffering?

5. Sacrifice is inescapable (4:21-23)
21 So we continued the work, while half of the men were holding spears from daybreak until the stars came
out. 22 At that time, I also said to the people, “Let everyone and his servant spend the night inside Jerusalem,
so that they can stand guard by night and work by day.” 23 And I, my brothers, my men, and the guards with
me never took off our clothes. Each carried his weapon, even when washing.

If there was ever a time for discouragement to derail this group of builders, it would be at this moment. Half of
the men were holding spears from daybreak until the stars came out, while the other half continued the
work. It also appears that those who lived outside the walls spent the night inside Jerusalem so that they
could stand guard by night and work by day. “Nehemiah never left the focus of building his wall for the fight of
the battle… The opposition was mocking, but Nehemiah was rebuilding. The opposition was ridiculing, but he
kept doing what was right. They threatened repeatedly, but he kept moving forward. They despised him, but he
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