Everybody Get Together

What did you do this week that mattered?

It’s an intense question, but one we should ask ourselves often, otherwise we get to a point in life.

Figured out that Lori is the age now of when I first met her mother, Reaona.

1. There are things that are monumental

when you are there at that moment, you know that this is going to make a huge difference in this world

Birth, leading someone to Christ, making a change (you might not be president of the United States but what you do makes an impact in this world)

2. There are things that are part of a process, like learning

This is much more for all of us.

The Bible uses the metaphor of farming, the strawberries on Davis Rd are getting ready to be picked, they had to be planted a long time ago.

Galatians 6:7–8 CSB

7 Don’t be deceived: God is not mocked. For whatever a person sows he will also reap, 8 because the one who sows to his flesh will reap destruction from the flesh, but the one who sows to the Spirit will reap eternal life from the Spirit.

Most of what mattered this week is building to something. Going to work is building towards responsibility, being here is building towards spiritual growth.

Each week, Each day, Each hour is building to something.

This is the Sunday of Easter Week, It begins with Palm Sunday, and on Friday is the crucifixion and all of it builds to Easter. A lot can be built in a week

But some of us might say, I didn’t build much this week.

There are things that are selfish, self-centered, self destructive.

Jesus was asked this week,

Mark 12:28–31 M:BCL

28 One of the religion scholars came up. Hearing the lively exchanges of question and answer and seeing how sharp Jesus was in his answers, he put in his question: “Which is most important of all the commandments?” 29 Jesus said, “The first in importance is, ‘Listen, Israel: The Lord your God is one; 30 so love the Lord God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence and energy.’ 31 And here is the second: ‘Love others as well as you love yourself.’ There is no other commandment that ranks with these.”

We say it simply, that our job, our command, because God doesn’t work for us, we work for God is to

Love God and Love Others

Oh people will quickly add, Well you have to love yourself first, no you really don’t.

If you do the first two

you won’t be in a co-dependent relationship. You won’t cover for others, you won’t seek out others to meet your needs

If you truly love others than again, you put their relationship with God high. You can’t get give into peer pressure because while you’d like to be accepted and for others to feel good about you, if you love them than you do what’s right for them above your desire for acceptance

Yet God does give us acceptance, God does give us unity with others. He gives us ultimate purpose when we live to love God and love Others.

This is more than a good poster.

This is a way to live our lives. This is a life of faith made practical

We are commanded to love God, and love others. This is what it means to follow Jesus. How does that look on Tuesday at 11 am? How does that look when buying groceries? How does that look when you’re with your children?

How can we live real faith

Nehemiah has been giving us a description of what it means to live faith out in our lives, in the real world. Nehemiah was a guy about 445 years before Jesus.

Quick recap. Nehemiah had an ok life, working in the Persian Empire at the highest position he could get as a minority, as a Jew, He was cupbearer to the King.

-problems at home

prayed for favor with the King

God favor and resources

Went to Jerusalem with a plan

Put his faith above his enemies

Began working with others to work the plan

Last week one of the parts of the plan rebuilds part of the wall and gate still around in Jesus day.

Today we talk about the rest of the workers

Nehemiah 3:2–4 CSB

2 The men of Jericho built next to Eliashib, and next to them Zaccur son of Imri built. 3 The sons of Hassenaah built the Fish Gate. They built it with beams and installed its doors, bolts, and bars. 4 Next to them Meremoth son of Uriah, son of Hakkoz, made repairs. Beside them Meshullam son of Berechiah, son of Meshezabel, made repairs. Next to them Zadok son of Baana made repairs.

Why are there lists of people

Remember who put the walls up here?

People do these things and these people matter to God.

You matter to God. God is not dependent on you, but He loves you and desires for you to know Him.

God gives us purpose. These people would be lost to History if it wasn’t for the special call of God in our life.

What you do with your life that matters to God and everyone else.

God gives us opportunity to work together.

- Sometimes we get paid for work

- Sometimes we take what we have, our actual bodies and give back to God through volunteering

Working is a gift to the Lord

What you give has opportunity to shape a lifetime or an eternity

Sunday School Teachers

Walls of the building

- Working together in the Lord bonds people together, it helps people know who is in it and who is not.

Jesus said,

Matthew 9:38 CSB

38 Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.”

Their is a special unity when we join God at His work.

I need to repent to the church for doing too much of the work on my own.

You have a responsibility to labor for the Gospel. (Pray to the Lord of the Harvest, Jesus said) (The Kingdom of God is at Hand)

Nehemiah 3:5 CSB

5 Beside them the Tekoites made repairs, but their nobles did not lift a finger to help their supervisors.

The ones who do not help. Are they imprisioned by fear because they are closest to the Arab? Are they imprisioned by their status, because things are going well for them and why mess things up?

Why do some not help?

To noble? Can sit at home and have entertainers from all over the world entertain them? Don’t need it, so they don’t do it.

To afraid of missing out on riches? To afraid of losing relationships?

How would you like to be known for the rest of history, all time as the people who did not help out?

Nehemiah 3:6–11 CSB

6 Joiada son of Paseah and Meshullam son of Besodeiah repaired the Old Gate. They built it with beams and installed its doors, bolts, and bars. 7 Next to them the repairs were done by Melatiah the Gibeonite, Jadon the Meronothite, and the men of Gibeon and Mizpah, who were under the authority of the governor of the region west of the Euphrates River. 8 After him Uzziel son of Harhaiah, the goldsmith, made repairs, and next to him Hananiah son of the perfumer made repairs. They restored Jerusalem as far as the Broad Wall. 9 Next to them Rephaiah son of Hur, ruler of half the district of Jerusalem, made repairs. 10 After them Jedaiah son of Harumaph made repairs across from his house. Next to him Hattush the son of Hashabneiah made repairs. 11 Malchijah son of Harim and Hasshub son of Pahath-moab made repairs to another section, as well as to the Tower of the Ovens.

Do you notice who gets to help out? Those who don’t have to work all day.

perfumers, rulers,

No bakers are mentioned.

- Some people don’t get mentioned because they are doing secondary work. If you got the ability and the time there is a responsibility to take on the extra work?

Another example that even in lists there are those that forget to get mentioned

Cleaners of restrooms, callers, those who make possible what everyone else is doing

God offers to save us all, we all have value because we are in the body of Christ.

What is the body of Christ, it is a short saying for the church.

Scripture of the body of Christ

1 Corinthians 12:12–20 CSB

12 For just as the body is one and has many parts, and all the parts of that body, though many, are one body—so also is Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and we were all given one Spirit to drink. 14 Indeed, the body is not one part but many. 15 If the foot should say, “Because I’m not a hand, I don’t belong to the body,” it is not for that reason any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I’m not an eye, I don’t belong to the body,” it is not for that reason any less a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But as it is, God has arranged each one of the parts in the body just as he wanted. 19 And if they were all the same part, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body.

Anybody ever have a foot fall asleep? Nothing else matters than that foot.

Ever go to the dentist with tooth pain and they come out saying you know what, what you really need is a good ear because ears are so important.

My friends you are a necessary part of what God is doing in our church, our community, our cities.

Every part of the body needs to be working, even if your the butt, if the butt doesn’t work nothing else matters, am I wrong.

You can’t say you are a follower of Jesus, and fail to be a part of the work of Jesus.

Even if you are limited.

Nehemiah 3:12 CSB

12 Beside him Shallum son of Hallohesh, ruler of half the district of Jerusalem, made repairs—he and his daughters.

This isn’t right.

women had important jobs that they knew how to do and men didn’t

When I went to Sacramento and learned about the horrible abandonment of women during the Gold Rush.

loom?

Guys had their own jobs, the heavy lifting. A wall is heavy lifting.

this man may have also not had anyone he could call on

A lack doesn’t mean a can’t. The man with only daughters took up rebuilding the walls with his daughters.

Forever known as people who did their part with what they had.

This is another example of everybody working together like in the Body of Christ.

What part are you doing?

What will you commit to do this week?

- DO you know what to do?

- ASK

- Commit to what you know to commit to

- Guy who actually gets involved at work, and one who watches.