Fires generally start from a small spark, and when sparks of conflict between people are ignored or left to smolder over a period of time, they quite often erupt into a firestorm that seemingly consumes everything in its path. And when infighting and deep rifts among Christ-followers are permitted to fester, it too can turn into a wildfire, destroying the unity of the church, slowing ministry momentum by taking focus away from more important matters, and even worse, causing people outside the church to want nothing to do with Christianity.

Here’s what we can bank on: Whenever God wants to do a special work in and through the church, our Enemy will be ready to pounce in an effort to stop God from accomplishing what He wants to do. We’ll see that firsthand this week as we take a closer look at the fifth chapter of Nehemiah, but we’ll also find that there are steps we can take to prevent conflict in the church and in our relationships to keep it from spiraling out of control.

Related Topics: Justice, Unity | More Messages from Steve Durand | Download Audio

From Series: "Let's Build It Again"

This Week's Sermon: "Inching Away from Spiritual Revival"

Spiritual decline is often like a flat tire. Most flat tires occur because air leaks out over time. Gradually. Imperceptibly. We're usually not even aware that there is a problem until the car becomes too difficult to steer or a worse problem arises.

The decline of one's spiritual life, the loss of one's vitality and first love for the things of God, can be quite similar. It happens gradually and imperceptibly -- and it’s what we see taking place in the nation of Israel in the final chapter of the book of Nehemiah. After having experienced such great spiritual renewal earlier in the book, what went so wrong for Israel in Nehemiah 13? And what can we learn from their story that can help us to maintain our spiritual fervor for God and prevent us from making the same mistakes?

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