We're looking in passing tonight, just a passing reference. We'll be referring to other Scriptures on our way through in this Bible study. We're looking at verse 5 through to 7. And when we read here about the isles and they feared, and the ends of the earth being freed, We have people in rebellion against God. They're rebels. And when God begins to deal and show His power, do they kind of melt away? No, they are emboldened. And they link arms and they come forward. Then helped, verse 6, everyone is neighbor. And everyone said to his brother, be of good courage. So the carpenter, what's he doing? First stage in making the idol, encouraged the goldsmith, don't let me down, I'll carve it, you cover it. And he that smootheth with the hammer, him that smote the anvil saying, it is ready for the soldering. And he fastened it with nails. that it should not be moved." In rebellion against God, they band together. And they say, it does not matter how powerful God is, our work is going to endure. And they fasten it with nails. Let's just bow briefly again before the Lord in prayer because we're taking the topic tonight, How May I Build, Not Break My Church? How May I Build, Not Break My Church? And of course, the title is lacking because what church are we talking about tonight? We're talking about God's church. How May I Build, Not Break the Lord's church. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, teach us and teach us well to line right up with the promise of our blessed Redeemer. I will build my church, our Savior said, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Help, Lord, in what we do, that we will be building, not breaking, that we will be helping, not hindering, Thy work in this day and generation. Answer our prayer. Help us to offer it humbly. Take away pride. In our Savior's name we pray. Amen. There are always plenty who are ready to give themselves to oppose the work of God. When they see the Lord at work in the building process, their determination is, we must work this, we must stop this, we must cause the work to grind to a halt. Now that sounds like what it was like in the days of Nehemiah. and you're thinking maybe you've heard a recent Bible series on that book, then that's exactly the picture. Back in Nehemiah's day, in chapter 2 and verse 10, we read, when Sanballat, the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, heard of it, It grieved them exceedingly that there was come a man to seek the welfare of the children of Israel, and it just could not sit well with them that somebody had in his heart the work of God. Here's a man. He was come to seek the welfare. That's His purpose, the welfare of the children of Israel. Well, if that's what He's at, we're His opponents, and we must get out there and stop Him. And in verse 19, we have another character adding himself to the ranks, and Geshem. the Arabian. What did they do? Well, initially, they laughed us to scorn and despised us and said, what is this thing that ye do? Will ye rebel against the king? Don't you realize you could be going against the authorities here and you need to be careful? You talk about serving God your king? There's a little king over there on the throne, and he's even bigger." That's what the world was saying. You need to pay attention to what He is telling you. In Psalm 2, and beginning in the opening verse through to the verse 3, we read, "'Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder and cast away their cords from us." And so we have that unholy amalgam again, and they join together, they link arms like they did in Nehemiah's day, the kings of the earth, these people imagining a vain thing, the heathen backing them, the rulers are in there, and they're all together at one purpose, and that is oppose the work of the Lord. But my attention was drawn tonight, as we have already read and referred to it, by Isaiah 41. And we'll read again verse 6 and verse 7 in the context in which we're speaking. They helped everyone his neighbor, and everyone said to his brother, be of good courage. In other words, don't let your nerve fail here. We're in this together, let's keep pushing, be determined." So the carpenter encouraged the goldsmith, and he that smootheth with the hammer, him that smote the anvil, saying, it is ready for the soldering, and he fastened it with nails, that it should not be moved. And so we have these God-rejecting, idol-making people, and they are banding themselves together. One commentator I read tonight said, one tradesman? encourages another to come into a confederacy for the keeping up of the noble craft, inverted commas, of God-making. Thus man's convictions often exasperate their corruptions, and they are made worse both by the Word and the works of God, which should make them better. God is working away Do they drop their tools and say, we ought to be submitting to Jehovah? No, they sharpen their tools. They pull their resources. They harness all the human skill they have to oppose the progress of the work of God. Matthew Henry put in a very pertinent question right here, and he said this, do sinners thus animate and quicken one another in the ways of sin?" And they do. They go in a crowd to do mischief. Do sinners thus animate and quicken one another in the ways of sin? And then here's his big question for you and for me, and shall not the servants of the living Both stir up one another to and strengthen one another in His service. If sinners are addict, if they're banding themselves together, harnessing their energy, combining their powers for the work of wickedness, Henry is asking, shall not the servants of the living God both stir up one another to Him and strengthen one another in His service? And that should spur me on, and that should spur you on. to say what they did in Nehemiah's day, therefore we His servants will arise and build." It's a blessed occasion when in the church of Jesus Christ the people of God unite, band together, support one another. as they labor for the master. Sister, what can I do to help you there and get this little piece of the project over the line? And brother, what help are you needing over there? Do you need some assistance? I'll come and help you whenever I can, and we'll do this together. It is wonderful when that happens. There are, of course, other occasions when, like Judges 5 and verse 23, people are called upon, we need your assistance. and they splinter off one against the other, and they hinder one another, and they defuse to help one another, and they bring down on their heads the censure of the Lord. Curse ye mirrors, said the angel of the Lord. Curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof, because they came not to the help of the Lord, to the help of the Lord against the mighty." I think it's obvious. It's within our gift to help or to hinder God's work, to build or to break it. And we're going to look at some practical pointers tonight as to how I can help effectively the work of the Lord. How can I do this? Where can I play my part? We're going to look at a number of Scriptures. First one is 2 Corinthians, the chapter 1 and the verse 11. 2 Corinthians, the chapter 1 and the verse 11. So, turning with me there to 2 Corinthians, first chapter, the 11th verse, and we read, helping together by prayer for us, that for the gift bestowed upon us by the means of many persons, thanks may be given by many on our behalf." Paul says, here's where you can help See you folk in Corinth, you want to be engaged in the master service, do something more for God, here's a way you can do it. You can hold us up in prayer. Help in the ministering of prayer. And Paul is not so proud, but he looks to them and he says, look, I am in need of your help. I am in need of your intercessions. I need your supplications. I need that support. It is vital for the ministry. And of course, everybody can pray, every child of God can pray, and that praying helps forward the work of the Lord, and it does so in this day. In fact, we will never accomplish anything that is of any substance, that will last more than a day, will be better than Jonah's gird, flourish in a night, disappear in a night. We will not do anything beyond that unless It will come in answer to somebody's prayers. That's what the Lord has caused His purpose to depend upon, the believer that moves it, the prayers of His people. We've been thinking on Lord's Day evenings. of the gospel in the book of Ezekiel. We've looked at Ezekiel chapter 36 into verse 37. The Lord is promising, I will do this and that and the other thing, and there's a whole list of splendid promises, and then He puts this in as a colossal reminder, I will for this be inquired of. by the house of Israel to do it for them. And so if you want to see the church of God build and develop and gain traction in the world and have an impact upon the hearts of men, then you need to be praying before the Lord. Give yourself to the ministry of prayer, 2 Corinthians 1 and the verse 11. But then we're moving for a second way in which you can help build a church and not break it, we're looking to another passage, Acts chapter 18. Acts 18, and the verse 27, and the verse 28. Acts 18, the verse 27, when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive Him, who, when He was come, helped them much which had believed through grace. For He mightily convinced the Jews and that publicling, showing by the Scriptures that Jesus was Christ." I can help in God's work by establishing new converts in the Holy Scriptures. Many had been saved, converted under the preaching of the Apostle Paul, but those people needed discipling. They needed establishing in the faith. And we have Apollos coming in the scene, and Apollos helped them much which had believed through grace. You see, that new convert, you can't just throw him to the wind and say, well, you've made your profession of faith in Christ, now it's up to you to make your own way and see what you make of it. The children of God should be rallying in behind him, realizing that new convert needs to be grounded in the Scriptures that he might grow in grace. 2 Peter 3 in the verse 18, if he's going to develop in the way of righteousness, then he needs to be able to rightly divide the Word of Truth. That does not come automatically. He needs assistance. He needs guidance. He needs the season saints to come and help him right there. 2 Timothy 2 in the verse 15, and so while we know evangelism is absolutely vital, Get the gospel net and get it well spread out there, but so too is when the fish come in, we need those new believers to be consolidated. We need to help in the work of building them up. Part of that great commission, you will know, the Lord gave to His disciples was that they should go out and teach all nations, and they would be taught to observe whatsoever He had commanded them. So there was that teaching ministry that followed on from the day when they came to faith in Jesus Christ. How can I help build my church? By giving myself to the ministry of prayer. by establishing new converts in the Scriptures. And maybe you're saying, as we're in a very dry, spiritual climate at this particular time, well, I don't know of these new converts. Well, that's what your prayers are for. Pray them in. Pray them into grace, into faith, into repentance, and the Lord will honor those prayers. Pray. Lord, give me new converts that I can be a good and a godly influence upon, so that Thy kingdom will go forward at peace." But then if we go to 2 Corinthians again for a third pointer, 2 Corinthians chapter 1 and the verse 24. 2 Corinthians 1 and the verse 24. not, for that we had dominion over your faith, but are helpers of your joy. For by faith," he stamped, underlined that little phrase, helpers of your joy. So important. Fellow workers for How do I help in the Lord's work? Well, is this not telling me in 2 Corinthians 1 and verse 24 that I can help in the Lord's work by promoting joy in my fellow Christians? We are helpers of your joy. Paul had this burning desire within his heart, and he wanted to see joy bubble up and flow out in the Christians in the city of Corinth, and we should have this same desire. In fact, Paul writes to the Philippians, and one Guy King, a commentator and a former preacher, Guy King took that book of Philippians and he entitled his brief commentary on it as Joy Way. Joy Way. And where it's within our ability, we should be increasing the joy of those who are around us in the service of the Lord by our attitude, by our words, by our activities. We shouldn't be designing ourselves so that we make people sad or make them unhappy or turn them to misery, but we need to make them joyful. We need to make them feel they're all the better for having been with us. How do we do that? By being friendly. We haven't time to look up all the references, but if you're noting them, 1 Corinthians 11, 33, by being friendly, by being sympathetic, providing a shoulder to lean on, Romans 12 and the verse 15, by being patient with them, 1 Thessalonians 5 and the verse 14, not sort of tut-tutting our way through if they misstep over here or they're not quite catching the joy over there or they're looking miserable today. let's make it our business to be patiently nurturing that joy within them by being practical as well. Galatians 6 and verse 10, by being humble ourselves. 1 Peter 5 and 5, by being forgiving Ephesians 4 and verse 32, and many, many times we stumble right here. We see somebody and they think, ah, they're going off the plumb there, they have walked away, they've done something wrong, and we're on them like a ton of bricks, crashing down upon them, and you would think our only business is to be that crusher. or that demolition ball, take them out, break them down, don't let them reassemble themselves or be built up at all. And then we go like that big rolling ball, taking out a skittle. We need to be forgiving. And by being loving, 1 Peter 1 and 22, and if we cultivate joy in other saints of the Lord, We have no idea the brilliant knock-on effect that has and the impact it has in our own heart and in our own mind and in our own life, because if you can bring joy to others in the work of Christ, you will, by the same token, bring joy to your own heart. So how do I build, not break, Christ's church? By committing myself to the ministry. prayer, by ensuring that I'm looking for these new converts that I can see them develop in their knowledge of Christ, by promoting joy, not misery, in my fellow believers. And then if you turn with me to the book of Philippians that we mentioned just a moment or two ago, Philippians chapter 4. We are looking at verse 3, Philippians chapter 4, the third verse. Paul writing, the context is from prison, sends out this message, I entreat thee also, true yoke-fellow, Help those women which labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and with other my fellow laborers, whose names are in the book of life." Help. What primarily to do to keep the unity? If you back up into verse 2, I beseech Judas and beseech Syntyche. that they be of the same mind in the Lord. And how do I help? In the building of the Lord's church here upon the earth, I do it by striving to keep the unity of the Spirit. There had been a quarrel here, and Paul is saying help should be given to these people so that they can resolve the difference, that harmony might be restored again in the fellowship, and this ministry of patching up, reconciliation may not be an easy one, but it is a blessed one. Did our Lord not say? In Matthew 5 and 9, blessed are the peacemakers, those that preserve the unity within the church. That's another arm of ministry in which I can be engaged. And then if you turn with me to another passage, another verse in Scripture, the book of Romans, the chapter 16, the final chapter there, Romans 16. and travel only as far as verse 3. Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my helpers, my helpers in Christ Jesus. What's Paul doing here? He's sending people with a message of encouragement. He's telling them, stretch joy, a smile at least, over your faces. Greet Aquila and Priscilla. These were two persons in the front line of the battle. And Paul's saying there's a vital ministry here that you can encourage those who were in the front line of the battle. Greet them. You will know from studying the Scripture that Priscilla and Aquiline were great friends of the Apostle Paul, and he wanted strength to be given to them and support to be shown for them. He talks about them as his helpers in Christ Jesus, and you can check it all out in the book of Acts. the chapter 18 primarily, verse 2, verse 18, verse 26, and again in 1 Corinthians 16 and the verse 19, back to this pair, priscilla and equillum. And they had given Paul moral support. They had given him support in so many areas, probably financially as well. But here they are, and they're on the front line of the battle as Paul is himself, and he's sending people to greet them. Encourage them through the arms of care and concern about them and assure them we are with you in the task. How can I build rather than break Christ's church? By encouraging those who were in the front line of the battle. Then if you turn to that little book, 3 John, 3 John. We're looking at one verse within it, it's the verse 8. 3 John and the verse 8, we ought therefore to receive such that we might be fellow helpers to the truth, fellow helpers to the truth or to the faith. You could compare that with another verse in Jude chapter 3, where we're earnestly contending for the faith, once delivered unto the saints. There's a great need, not just for new converts, but all of us in the body of Christ today, those who are naming His name, there's a great need for us to develop in our understanding of the truth of God. to not only understand what it is, but to obey it as we understand it, to be established within the truth, 2 Peter 1 verse 12, and to speak forth the words of truth, because let's face it, our society doesn't know the truth anymore. We're in a climate of lies, deception, delusion, You're reading material today, and you read the opposite of it tomorrow, and your mind's in a spin, and you're wondering, what is right and what is wrong, and where should I pitch my tent here, or do I need to move it again tomorrow and the next day? Because it seems the truth is continually on the move. That's why we need to know God's truth. to obey it, to walk according to it, to be established in it, to speak forth the words of this truth and certainly not to err from the truth. And when we do it, that we do it in love to those who are outside and in love to those who are inside the church of God as well. I often think Given the way things are lurching about in our country and in our executive and government and over in Westminster and all the corridors of power that have authority over us, that we, as a church, are sleepwalking into disaster, where the truth is being hidden and the truth has become the casualty. Do you realize that our Northern Ireland executive, on its debating table? They are discussing measures that if they were approved, they call it conversion therapy, but they would outlaw the teaching of Jesus Christ and the Apostle poem regarding sexual sin. And while they're debating it, we in the church are snoring, not awake to what is going on. doing little to nothing about it, letting the enemy sow as many tares in our society as he pleases. And then we wake up and we wonder, where did all these weeds come from? How did we ever reach this scenario? Is this a harvest? Well, that's the only seed that's been sown, and that's the only harvest you can expect from bad seed, bad fruit. We need, in building the Lord's church, to stand up for the truth, to rediscover A strong voice that reverberates in society for God and for righteousness. And there's a final thing. In building, not breaking the church, and if you turn with me to Acts 16 and 9, I'll emphasize what it is. Acts chapter 16 and 9. We'll read just it to get a context to it, and they passing by, Mysia, came down to Troas, and a vision appeared to Paul in the night. There stood a man of Macedonia and prayed him saying, come over into Macedonia and help us. We have heard the Macedonian call today. send the light. It's a missionary call. How do I help in building the church? By responding to Christ's missionary call. And here the vision comes to Paul, the call comes to his heart, the response is here that he and his fellow workers made, and that missionary call, it bounces down through the generations and centuries of time, and it comes to your heart and to mine today, and it asks me and you, What are you doing for Christ? Are we willing to go with His bidding? Some can plead age, some can plead circumstances as to why they can't go, but if you're in your youth, Lord, if you're calling, let me hear. and give me grace and help to respond favorably. And all of us can support missionary work by our giving and by praying for those who already are in full-time and part-time service for Jesus Christ. How can I help the work of God? How can I not be a burden to, but a bearer of burdens in the work of Christ in my day and generation. How can I be a builder rather than a breaker, a helper rather than a hinderer? By exercising the ministry of prayer, by establishing new converts in the Scriptures, And wouldn't it be a wonderful thing for all our churches in this day to hear the cries of new converts again? By promoting joy in my fellow Christians, by striving by all means possible to keep the unity of the Spirit, by encouraging those who are on the front line of the battle by standing up, and not slinking away into the background, but standing up for the truth, by responding to Christ's missionary call, here am I, send me. By these simple means, we will be builders. not breakers, in Christ's church. And may the Lord direct each and every one of us along this path.