Followers of Jesus have often been treated as threats to the ‘established order.’ In many ways this is strange: a group committed to living peaceful, holy, servant-hearted lives ought to be the very last people to be considered subversive. On the other hand, we worship a different Lord, one to whom all the Powers That Be will one day give an account; and that makes flawed human authorities nervous. Corrupt power hates having to share it, or recognise its limitations.
Such a state of affairs goes all the way back to Jesus himself; the only perfect human who ever lived was frequently subjected to false allegations, not least at his final arrest and trial. The main reason Christians were martyred in the time of the Roman Empire was because they refused to worship Caesar as a god. Interestingly they were also accused of incest, since spouses referred to each other as ‘brother’ and ‘sister’ – a term which reflected their faith not their genes!
This latter piece of scandalous gossip connects much more directly with what Nehemiah faces in today’s passage. We’ve seen the various ways that his opponents have tried to undermine him – thus far primarily through insult or intimidation. Now, they try a different tack: (v6) ‘It is reported among the nations – and Geshem says it is true – that you and the Jews are plotting to revolt.’ Lies, basically, spread via gossip (if Geshem says it is true…). It is a sobering but healthy reminder that even our best intentions can be misinterpreted – sometimes unwittingly, here quite deliberately. This is a ploy to stop the rebuilding work, effectively continuing the policy of intimidation by other means.
I have seen this myself. I spent many years attending a church which was part of the HTB network in London. These churches are thriving, and a lot of people hate them for it. More than one national newspaper has written articles over the years describing it as a cult. As someone who attended one of these churches during the period it was being described as such, I can safely say that I couldn’t imagine anything that was less like a cult; anyone could come and go as they please, and leadership was widely dispersed and actively encouraged. Its ‘problem’ was that people who joined one of these churches really loved their Christian community, thrived in their faith and naturally wanted to share it as a result. Sadly, HTB was perceived as a threat largely because its evident fruit was a pointed reminder of the decline of much of the rest of the church.
Jesus called the devil the ‘father of lies,’ and much of the devil’s best work is done simply through encouraging people to spread them. What should our response be? Certainly not to ‘fight fire with fire’, or even to indulge in lengthy self-justifications; Nehemiah’s response is our model. He simply tells the truth and gets on with his work: (v8,v9) ‘”Nothing like what you are saying is happening; you are just making it up out of your head.’ …I prayed, “Now strengthen my hands.”’
St Paul tells us that the only offensive weapon we have in the armour of God is ‘the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.’ Let God’s word in Nehemiah be our ‘sword’ today, powerful truth demolishing the lies which can undermine our faith. And may the Lord strengthen our hands for whatever kingdom work He has for us, this day and this week. Amen.