The Trademark of God's Leaders - Nehemiah - Courageous and Bold

 

This is Chuck Rapp with Multiply, a podcast to provide a word of encouragement for village church

planters and leaders.

In this podcast we continue our study about the character, or characteristics, of good and godly leaders.

We find much to imitate in the life of Nehemiah. We’ve already identified in our previous episode that

he was a man of prayer. Prayer preceded his actions, and that is an excellent model for us.

In chapter 2, following four months of prayer (that is the interval between the month of Kislev (1:1) and

the month of Nisan (2:1)) it was time for Nehemiah to approach King Artaxerxes. We see in this

encounter that Nehemiah was a man of courage.

We read the following in the second part of verse 2 and in verse 3, “I was very much afraid, but I said to

the king, “May the king live forever! Why should my face not look sad when the city where my ancestors are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?””

I would suggest that courage is not simply the absence of fear. To intentionally, or otherwise, overlook

dangerous or ambiguous situations is imprudent and potentially dangerous. Instead, there are times

when godly leaders must acknowledge our fears, give them to the Lord, and entrust ourselves to God’s

care and protection. In spite of – or in the midst of – fear, empowered by the Holy Spirit, we must move

forward.

Courageous leaders are also willing and able to make difficult decisions in the midst of uncertainty or

ambiguity. Reluctance or failure to make a decision when a decision is necessary can sometimes be as

detrimental as the wrong decision. I have often said that “failure to make a decision is actually a

decision by default … it’s a decision to do nothing.” This can result in frustration and discouragement for those who follow us.

I would suggest that courageous, godly leaders should demonstrate these behaviors:

 Prayerfully and humbly seek the Lord for His course of action

 Be willing to face our fears and move forward

 While seeking to avoid mistakes, we cannot be afraid to ever make a mistake. Sometimes there

is an element of uncertainty, and it is necessary to step forward with faith and boldness. If we

have missed the mark, the Lord will gently restore us to the right path.

Lastly, Nehemiah moved forward with boldness. We continue the story in 2:4b-5. “Then I prayed to the

God of heaven, and I answered the king, “If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my ancestors are buried so that I can rebuild it.”

Notice that Nehemiah’s first response was to pray. He then made a bold request of the king.

This has been a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters and leaders.

The Trademark of God's Leaders- Nehemiah's Intercessory Prayer

 

This is Chuck Rapp with Multiply, a podcast to provide a word of encouragement for village church planters and leaders.

Today we continue this theme of intercessory prayer and its role in the life of a leader. In our last episode we concluded our series on the life and character of Daniel, and we now transition to Nehemiah. This Old Testament leader followed Daniel by approximately 100 years during the period when the Hebrews were still exiled in Babylon although a few had returned to Jerusalem. Nehemiah, like Daniel, made intercessory prayer on behalf of his people. When he heard the report about the situation in Jerusalem, we read the following in chapter 1, verses 4-7.

Now when I heard these words, I sat down and wept and mourned for days; and I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven. I said, “Please, Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps the covenant and faithfulness for those who love Him and keep His commandments: let Your ear now be attentive and Your eyes open, to hear the prayer of Your servant which I am praying before You now, day and night, on behalf of the sons of Israel Your servants, confessing the sins of the sons of Israel which we have committed against You; I and my father’s house have sinned.

Several important things stand out to me in this passage.

 He wept and mourned for days about the situation. It became very personal to him.

 He was fasting and praying before God.

 He was praying on behalf of the sons of Israel.

 He confessed the sins of the sons of Israel against God.

 He also confessed “I and my father’s house have sinned.”

Nehemiah did not merely pray for the forgiveness of “their” sins. He, himself, “owned” the sins of the Israelites. In the last episode I quoted Ezekiel 22:30, and I repeat it here. The Lord, “looked for someone among them who would … stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found no one.” Once again, I would suggest that leaders are called to “stand in the gap” in intercessory prayer.

Chapter 1 concludes with these words in verses 10 and 11. Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. Give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of this man.” I was cupbearer to the king.

Before approaching King Artaxerxes, Nehemiah was “prayed up.”

Let us be like Nehemiah and Daniel and commit ourselves to a consistent discipline of prayer.

This has been a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters.

Multiply!

 Hello everybody, my name is Dean Davis and this is “Multiply,” the podcast that provides a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters.

God promised through the prophet Isaiah that the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. That promise, found in Isaiah 11:9, was given more than 2,700 years ago. Sadly, it has yet to be fulfilled.  There are so many places on earth that have no knowledge of the Lord.  But the good news is that people who until recently had never heard of Jesus are hearing about him. People who had never known the unconditional love of God are hearing about Jesus and his amazing story. They are learning of the life, teachings, death, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus. His story demonstrates the love of God to all of us who rebelled against him. The knowledge of the Lord is spreading on our earth! Dear church planter, as you have prayed, made disciples, and started new churches, you have had a vital role to play in making Christ known across the earth. I am so thankful for your devotion to Christ and your hard work. Praise the Lord!

But, in spite of our best efforts, there are still men and women, boys and girls who have never heard of Jesus.  There are still villages with no knowledge of his goodness.  There is still so much to do to make Christ known. How will we Christians ever fulfill the Great Commission? How will we share the Good News with every person?  How will we ever finish the task of making disciples of all nations?

The only way is through multiplication! The only way to cover the earth with the knowledge of the Lord is if we multiply disciples, leaders, and churches just as God’s word teaches us to do. As much as we celebrate the expansion of churches into thousands of new villages over the past few years, we know there are still hundreds of thousands of villages with no witness for Christ.  We must therefore keep our eyes on horizon. We must not be content to stay where we are to make our existing churches strong and prosperous and comfortable. No! We must make disciples and prepare them to go. Go find villages without churches. Go find persons of peace. Go make disciples. Go teach them to obey the commands of Christ. Go! And teach others to go as well. Multiply!

Church planter, have you made a map showing the villages near your place that do not have churches? Have you mobilized your people to pray for those villages? Have you identified disciples of Jesus you can equip and send to start churches where there are no churches? Have you told the Lord that you will not be satisfied until you and your disciples multiply many new, healthy churches in many new places?

My prayer for you is that you will not be satisfied with just one or two churches but that you will devote yourself over the next decade to multiply dozens of churches.  You may feel weak. You may not think you have the strength or wisdom or resources necessary.  But your God is able.  He will give you the grace you need to do his will. Will you trust him for a multiplied harvest far bigger than you have ever asked or imagined?

Oh my brothers and sisters, go out and be fruitful in Jesus’ name!

#EncouragementForVillageChurchPlanters #GoMakeDisciples

The Trademarks of God's Leaders - Daniel Consistent in Prayer

 

This is Chuck Rapp with Multiply, a podcast to provide a word of encouragement for village church planters and leaders. 

Today we continue to explore some of the leadership characteristics of the Old Testament prophet Daniel.  Today we look at chapter 6, the story of Daniel in the lions’ den.  

At the time this occurred, Daniel was serving under his third Babylonian king.  There were Nebuchadnezzar, followed by his son, Belshazzar, and now Darius. Bible historians estimate that by this time Daniel was in his 70s or 80s.   

Government officials who were jealous of Daniel because the king planned to set him over the entire kingdom (verse 3) persuaded Darius to make a decree that anyone who prayed to any god or man during the next 30 days, except to Darius, would be thrown into a den of lions.  

I appreciate and admire Daniel’s response.  We read about it in verse 10.  “Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before.” 

I have several observations about this situation.

• Those who were jealous of Daniel must have known about his practice of prayer.  That is why they conspired to persuade Darius to make the decree. 

• The king’s edict had no effect upon Daniel’s prayer life.  He continued to pray three times per day … with the windows open! 

• The prayer habit that got Daniel into difficulty is also what rescued him from his difficulty.  

My pastor recently preached a sermon on Jesus’ School of Prayer from the Luke 11 account.  His main points were these: 

1. The Content of Prayer – (verse 2) He said to them, “When you pray, say, Father …”  We can pray because God is our loving Father, because Christ is our mediator giving us access to the throne of the universe, and because the Holy Spirit himself indwells us.  We worship and pray to a God who is approachable.  

2. The Attitude of Prayer – (verse 8) “yet because of the man’s persistence he will get up and give him as much as he needs.”  We must not give up when our prayers aren’t answered when, or how, we expect.

3. The Heart of God for Us in Prayer – (verse 13) “So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.” 

4. The Power Encounter of Prayer – (verse 20) “But if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you.”   

Let us be like Daniel and commit ourselves to a consistent discipline of prayer.  

This has been a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters.

Passing On Encouragement To Our Daughter Church Planters

 

Welcome to Multiply, a podcast to encourage church planters, pastors, and Christian leaders. I am your host today, Daneille Snowden.

In Luke 19:4-6 it says, “So he (Zacchaeus) ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way. 5 When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” 6 So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.”

My church planters, the power of encouragement is surmounting! Surmounting means to prevail and overcome! When we encourage others, we place courage into others! I have been studying about Jesus passing by lately and noted here, as Jesus passes by Zacchaeus, we notice that just by speaking to this man and spending time with him; Jesus encouraged Zacchaeus to become even more for God than he ever had hoped or thought before. 

As we work hard in our work as church planters, we too need to be encouraged! God does this too, and one way is in the Body of Christ! We exhibit this to our disciples as well, and how rewarding it is when we walk into our new churches and see the power of encouragement among the entire new church! 

Through out our years of ministry, God would send humble servants our way and encourage us in the work we were doing. Many times, Brad and I would become a bit weary and quite bewildered; then a woman or a man of God would lift our hearts with the sweetest, yet most powerful words of encouragement to keep going, look up to Jesus, and so much more. 

Dear church planters, trainers, coordinators, pastors, and evangelists: May I encourage you as well? You are doing great! Move forward, as you are working towards God’s Will and work He has for you! 

And remember as Paul wrote in 

1 Timothy 4:10 “For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.”

This has been Multiply, please share this podcast with others. Remember we have a website: www.vcpencouragement.org, we are also on Facebook and Youtube. God bless!

The Trademark of God's Leaders - Daniel Received Favor

 

This is Chuck Rapp with Multiply, a podcast to provide a word of encouragement for village church planters and leaders.

Today we continue to explore some of the leadership characteristics of the Old Testament prophet Daniel.  In Chapter 1, verse 9, we read, “Now God had caused the official to show favor and compassion to Daniel…”

I find it interesting that Daniel’s experience in Babylon resembles that of Joseph in Egypt. Genesis 39:21 records that “the Lord was with him [Joseph]; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden.” Both these Hebrew leaders were exiled from their home country, and yet the Lord gave them favor in the eyes of those watching over them.  

One definition of favor is “an act of kindness beyond what is due or usual.”

I’ve learned in my life that there have been seasons when I, or a ministry in which I served, have experienced God’s favor, that is, His goodness beyond what might be considered usual. I believe that Village Church Planting is currently enjoying such a season.  

As I study the life of Daniel, I see four results, or outcomes, of God’s favor in his life.

• Provision – Daniel and his three friends spent three years preparing for the king’s service.  During this time, all their meals were provided, and their education in the ways of the Babylonians was entirely free of charge.

• Promotion – at the end of the story about Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, we read in 2:48 that “… the king placed Daniel in a high position and lavished many gifts on him. He made him ruler over the entire province of Babylon and placed him in charge of all its wise men.”  Later, in Chapter 5, verse 29, Daniel received further promotion.  “Then at Belshazzar’s command, Daniel … was proclaimed the third highest ruler in the kingdom.”

• Protection – Chapter 6 is the story of Daniel in the lions’ den. Verse 22 gives evidence of Divine protection.  “My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight...”

• Power and wisdom – Chapter 2, verses 19-20 tell us that Daniel praised the God of heaven and said: “Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are his. And three verses later he adds, “You have given me wisdom and power...”  [emphasis added]

 

While Daniel was blessed to receive God’s favor in all four of these areas, any of these may be an indication of His favor in our lives. The important thing that I want to leave you with today is to be keen to recognize God’s favor, and like Daniel, give Him praise for His unusual kindness.  

This has been a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters.

Serve the Lord's Supper to the New Disciples in New Churches

 

Hello everybody, my name is Dean Davis and this is “Multiply,” the podcast that provides a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters.

“The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, ‘This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.’” 

These words were recorded in 1 Corinthians 11:23. Our merciful Lord and Savior spoke them as he was anticipating being tortured, crucified, and buried. Jesus’ command shows the depth of his love and compassion for you and me. He wants all of his disciples in all places to obey them.  

First of all, Jesus portrayal of the new covenant with bread and wine shows his love for others. He was not focused on his own problems, his own pain, his own struggle. Jesus, although he was about be killed, turned his focus to his disciples and invited them to celebrate with him his covenant of grace.  What amazing love.

Secondly, Jesus turned his focus to his saving sacrifice. “In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.”

It is amazing that God would make a new covenant with us sinners. All that our sin deserved was a broken relationship with our heavenly Father. But Jesus made a way by shedding his blood on the cross and rising from the dead. He said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood.”

So how is that gracious, glorious new covenant of forgiveness and grace to be recorded and remembered? The new covenant with Jesus that brings us new life is to be remembered by breaking bead and drinking wine. This is what Jesus said on the night he was betrayed. It is not a small thing that Jesus died for us to purchase our salvation.  By comparison, taking time to gather bread and red juice and the followers of Jesus to remember the new covenant is quite simple.  It does not take much effort at all. And yet, just before he suffered for us, this gathering and this eating of bread and drinking of wine is what our Lord commanded us to do.

So why is it that so many newly planted churches find it so hard to celebrate the Lord’s Supper as Jesus’ commanded? And, what are the benefits that new believers miss when church planters fail to make sure the Lord Supper is served to them? Without the Lord’s Supper, new believers miss the simplest and clearest explanation of the Good News. When the Apostle Paul was describing the Gospel to the newly planted church in Corinth, he said, “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.” This of course is the same message that is proclaimed in the serving of the Lord’s Supper. New believers, even more than others, need to remember, reflect. and embrace this message repeatedly.

Of course, the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus is important for all of us, but it is especially important for new believes in new churches who are just beginning to experience God’s grace. So make sure they receive the Lord’s Supper at least four times per year. It will be life and peace and power for you and for them.

 

This has been “Multiply,” and I’m Dean Davis asking, “Who will you share this encouraging word with today?

 

 

#EncouragementForVillageChurchPlanters #TheLord’sSupper #DoThis