“Friendly” Fire

As Nehemiah chapter 5 begins, a great outcry from the people of Jerusalem against their brethren causes the work of rebuilding the wall around the city to come to a complete halt.

Chapter 4 ended on a note of great victory. The people of God were doing the work of God in unity, and they did it despite all the obstacles from enemy forces they faced. They worked with a sword in one hand and a shovel in the other, and they would not let their enemies stop the work of God.

But now in chapter 5, there is no mention of working on the wall whatsoever. The enemy could not stop the work of God by direct attack, but Satan managed to slither his way in in the form of internal sin being discovered in the camp.

When God’s people work against each other, they are not fighting the real enemy. However, anytime you have imperfect people, like within a church for example, strife is inevitable. It’s HOW conflict and strife are handled is what makes ALL the difference. And it’s the following question that gets right to the heart of what’s truly going on inside of us that shines light on how we handle conflict within the Church: How was conflict handled in your home growing up?

Here are some common “dirty fighting” tactics (sadly, VERY common within the Body of Christ) that we tend to take with us from our family of origin and into our adulthood and subsequently, into the Church as a result.

Note the tactics that apply to you:

❑ Silent Treatment

❑ Sarcasm

❑ Using “You always…” or “You never…”

❑ Lecturing

❑ Complaining

❑ Rage

❑ Blaming/Attacking

❑ Denying

❑ Avoiding

❑ Condescension

❑ Passive-Aggressive Behavior

❑ Threatening Gestures

❑ Appeasing

❑ Lying

❑ Name Calling

❑ Violence

❑ Criticizing

❑ Shouting

❑ Showing Contempt

The core issue of spiritual formation for all believers is learning how to resolve conflict in a godly, healthy, and mature manner. For example, in the gospels, Jesus brought disruption to bring true peace, and He did NOT avoid conflict OR appease people. True peacemakers don’t ignore tension.

Sadly, conflict resolution inside the Church is not very different from conflict resolution outside the church because we rarely mature out of how we handled conflict in our family of origin. A lot of times, “dirty fighting” is so second nature to us that we don’t even realize it. There’s a way to break free, however.

There is another, more God honoring and healthy way to handle conflict. It’s called clean fighting. With clean fighting, BOTH parties must be willing to engage fairly. Here are some clean fighting tactics (think of it as a negotiation not a boxing match!):

State the problem. Use the words: “I notice…”

For example: “I notice you get frustrated with me when we’re talking,” (this describes an emotion). “I notice you get frustrated and get up and walk away when you are talking to me,” (this describes a behavior).

Next, state why this is important to you. Communicate your values. Use the words: “I value…” State your request clearly, respectfully, and specifically. Use the words: “When you______, I feel______.”

As the listener, consider the request. In a few sentences, share your perspective on it. Are you willing to do all of it, some of it, or none of it? Can we agree on the request? (…or are there alternatives, other solutions?)

There’s much more to “clean fighting” but hopefully this short synopsis conveys just how damaging “dirty fighting” is within the body of Christ. We ALL must do some deep soul searching in this area. Let Nehemiah’s leadership in Nehemiah chapter 5 serve as a great example of how this should be handled.

Early in Nehemiah chapter 5 dishonest financial gains led to internal strife, which in turn affected the rebuilding of the wall in Jerusalem. It was “friendly” fire, so to speak. The sheep were biting. There was sin in the camp.

Money is NEVER to blame for problems, it’s the motivation behind it that’s most often the real problem. The job of rebuilding the wall in Jerusalem was paid for by Nehemiah’s boss, the King of Persia, Artaxerxes, who provided the necessary building materials. It was a fully funded project (Nehemiah 2:8).

So, Israel’s money issues didn’t impact the project of rebuilding the wall. The injustices going on in the land did. They caused great strife among the people, effectively stopping the work. More importantly, the injustices within the camp harmed the unity of the people of God. In Nehemiah 5:2-5 we see the following:

• There was a famine which made food more expensive, but it was SO expensive (there was price gouging!) that some had to mortgage their property just to eat. V3 says this: “We are mortgaging our fields, our vineyards, and our houses to get grain because of the famine.”  Big time taking advantage here…

• The nobles and officials kept ruthlessly taxing the people. V4 says this: “We have borrowed money for the king’s tax on our fields and our vineyards.”

• Because the people couldn’t pay their debts, they had to give their children as servants. V5 says this: “…we are forcing our sons and our daughters to be slaves, and some of our daughters have already been enslaved, but it is not in our power to help it, for other men have our fields and our vineyards.”

The challenge for Nehemiah now was if he didn’t find a way to deal with the severe internal strife, the work of God would be stopped without a single arrow being fired by the actual enemies of God.

Nehemiah called a public trial. Nehemiah 5:6 says this: “I was very angry when I heard their outcry and these words.” 

Nehemiah became angry over the greed of those who wanted to make a profit based off the money troubles of others, something God’s Law clearly said was wrong. Exodus 22:25 says this: “If you lend money to any of My people with you who is poor, you shall not be like a moneylender to him, and you shall not exact interest from him.”

Nehemiah also became angry over the injustice which led to a lack of unity among God’s people. It was nonsense; all based on the sin of greed. In Nehemiah’s eyes, unity was more precious than any amount of money.

Additionally, Nehemiah became angry because all this stopped the work of the LORD.

Let’s look at Nehemiah’s wise responses as he confronted those who were in the wrong. In the beginning of Nehemiah 5:7 we read this from Nehemiah: “I took counsel with myself…”

Nehemiah gave it some serious thought. Just like he prayed for FOUR months before he even came to Jerusalem in Nehemiah chapters 1 and 2, we see a strong inner life with the Lord full of prayer and deep contemplation. This was great leadership from Nehemiah. He was a man passionate enough to get righteously angry; but wise enough to not act until he had considered the matter carefully.

The last part of V7 says this: “…and I brought charges against the nobles and the officials.”

Now, Nehemiah proceeded. He was no coward and was no doormat. When people were in the wrong, he confronted them. He told the truth, and from the result which we’ll see in a moment in Nehemiah 5:12-13, we can judge that he must have told the truth with conviction but also in love. Nehemiah teaches us that a leader should deal with problems

Likewise, Jesus teaches us in the New Testament how we are to handle sin in the body of Christ: Matthew 18:15-17 says this- ¹⁵ “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. ¹⁶ But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. ¹⁷ If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.” 

Let’s break down Nehemiah’s rebuke in Nehemiah 5:7-11 and see how he went about making sure the victims were restored-

V7 “You are exacting interest, each from his brother.”:

• Usury is interest that is either too high or should not be charged at all. The Bible says it is wrong to make money off someone’s financial need.

V8 “We, as far as we are able, have bought back our Jewish brothers who have been sold to the nations.”

• Nehemiah noted that when Judah was conquered, many Jews were sold as slaves to foreigners and many of them had been bought out of slavery by other Jews. Because of this, it was very wrong to have Jews being sold into slavery to other Jews just because they couldn’t pay off high-interest loans.

V9 “Ought you not to walk in the fear of our God…”:

• This is where many money deals (i.e.- business, politics, government, pharmaceuticals, sports, church, etc.,) go wrong because there is no regard for God’s will or wisdom. The only concern is if a deal can be made, and if money will come from it; not if it is right or wrong.

V11 “Return to them this very day their fields, their vineyards, their olive orchards, and their houses, and the percentage of money, grain, wine, and oil that you have been exacting from them.” 

• Nehemiah was not asking the nobles and the rulers to just feel bad, or to just stop what they were doing; they had to set the wrong right. If money had been charged unfairly or collateral was taken unfairly, it had to be set right.
  • Proverbs 11:1 says this: “The Lord detests dishonest scales, but accurate weights find favor with Him”.

Here’s how those responsible responded to Nehemiah’s rebuke and his leadership-

Nehemiah 5:12: “We will restore these and require nothing from them. We will do as you say. And I called the priests and made them swear to do as they had promised.”

The healing balm of repentance. This was good. Nehemiah wisely told the truth in love, confronting these brothers; and they received the rebuke, doing the right thing and admitting they had been wrong.

Their teachable spirit and being open to correction were impressive. Tragically, in the Church, so few are willing to repent and admit they are wrong and to do what is right. The reaction is most often met with offense and anger when sinful actions and behaviors are confronted, even in a godly way. People don’t like boundaries and that’s a big problem.

Proverbs 17:10 says this: “A single rebuke does more for a person of understanding than a hundred lashes on the back of a fool.”

Nehemiah 5:13 says this- “I also shook out the fold of my garment and said, “So may God shake out every man from his house and from his labor who does not keep this promise. So may he be shaken out and emptied.” And all the assembly said “Amen” and praised the Lord. And the people did as they had promised.”

What does this mean? Nehemiah wisely knew their words were NOT enough. Their words had to be followed through with action – and it was. The text says: “the people did as they had promised.”

With the oaths and public record of all this, Nehemiah assured accountability in the community. We often need accountability to help us do what is right. Our spirit may be willing, but our flesh is often weak.

Here are 3 ways Nehemiah restored order to the community-

First, Nehemiah renounced self-gain in Nehemiah 5:14-16- 14 Moreover, from the time that I was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year to the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes the king, twelve years, neither I nor my brothers ate the food allowance of the governor. 15 The former governors who were before me laid heavy burdens on the people and took from them for their daily ration forty shekels of silver. Even their servants lorded it over the people. But I did not do so, because of the fear of God. 16 I also persevered in the work on this wall, and we acquired no land, and all my servants were gathered there for the work. 

Nehemiah is a great example of putting the work of God ahead of one’s own personal interests. He certainly had the right to tax the people for his support (others had done it before him as noted here in the text), but he didn’t claim that right because it wouldn’t help the work of God.

Nehemiah did what was right before God, not what was “right” for his own cares and concerns – because he knew he would have to answer to God.

In V15 “Even their servants lorded it over the people. But I did not do so, because of the fear of God.” 

Nehemiah could say this because it didn’t matter to him what others did, how the crowd acted, and what the rest of the world thought. He lived by a different standard, GOD’S STANDARD.

With the Holy Spirit of the Living God living inside of us, we should have an even better standard than Nehemiah did. When confronted by the sin this world, and sometimes even the Church takes for granted, we should say: “I did not do so, because of the love of Jesus.”

Second, Nehemiah cultivated Generosity in Nehemiah 5:17-18- 17 Moreover, there were at my table 150 men, Jews and officials, besides those who came to us from the nations that were around us. 18 Now what was prepared at my expense for each day was one ox and six choice sheep and birds, and every ten days all kinds of wine in abundance. Yet for all this I did not demand the food allowance of the governor, because the service was too heavy on this people. 

Nehemiah not only did not take what he could have; he also gave when he didn’t have to. He received a lot of food from the king’s provisions, which he could have sold for his own profit. Instead, he gave them away as an example of generosity – feeding as many as 150 people regularly.

Nehemiah could have taken more as per the governor’s provisions, but he didn’t. Therefore, Nehemiah set an example by what he did not take and by what he did not keep. Nehemiah renounced entitlement.

Nehemiah, in his own life, lived the way he told the nobles and rulers to live – to not take personal advantage of another’s need. He did what every godly leader must do: he never expected more of his followers than he expected of himself.

Third, Nehemiah brought it all back to the glory of God in Nehemiah 5:19- “Remember for my good, O my God, all that I have done for this people.”

This is NOT a self-centered prayer. In his prayer, Nehemiah did not look for praise from man – but from God. In fact, Nehemiah perhaps originally intended that no one else see all or part of this book, because it was written as a diary, so to speak.

In our own private time with the LORD, it is entirely appropriate – and right – to say, “Remember me, my God, for good” – to have confidence in our heavenly reward, instead of the praise of men.

We should be glad that God took this personal diary of Nehemiah and gave it to us. It shows us that a leader must first lead by example, and that Nehemiah could tell others to do what was right because his own walk was right. His public words and private actions said the same thing.

As believers, it’s IMPERATIVE that our lives are the same on Sunday as they are from Monday through Saturday. Here’s the main point of the entire message: God’s character shows that He demands honesty from His people.

Keep Looking Up,

Rev. Jon Barrett

Executive Director of CVCCS

CVCCS is a proud member and ambassador of the True Charity Network.