Determined To Do What Is Right

Our Text

Neh 10:28-33 “Now the rest of the people, the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, the temple servants and all those who had separated themselves from the peoples of the lands to the law of God, their wives, their sons and their daughters, all those who had knowledge and understanding, are joining with their kinsmen, their nobles, and are taking on themselves a curse and an oath to walk in God’s law, which was given through Moses, God’s servant, and to keep and to observe all the commandments of God our Lord, and His ordinances and His statutes; and that we will not give our daughters to the peoples of the land or take their daughters for our sons. As for the peoples of the land who bring wares or any grain on the sabbath day to sell, we will not buy from them on the sabbath or a holy day; and we will forego the crops the seventh year and the exaction of every debt. We also placed ourselves under obligation to contribute yearly one third of a shekel for the service of the house of our God…”

Intro

Nehemiah is the second part of a two volume book, the other being Ezra

This takes place in the post-exilic world

The major task is to rebuild a part of the wall destroyed during the attack by Babylon

Our text is part of the book that emphaiszes COVENANT RENEWAL & COMMUNITY RESTORATION

Yes, the wall was done BUT GOD wasn’t finished with the people

God wants men to get right with him

2 Pet 3:9 “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.”

To understand our text we need to read the following. . .

Neh 9:38 ““Now because of all this We are making an agreement in writing; And on the sealed document are the names of our leaders, our Levites and our priests.””

Because of what?

Chap 9 details the digression, degredation and eventual demise of what remained of God’s people

1-6 - The Physical Rebuilding

7 - The census is taken

8-13 - The Spiritual Rebuilding

APPL. - Sometimes we assess our faithfulness by the presence of material blessings

Chap. 9

Doing what is right is not always easy. But with the right focus and will we can gain that determination to do the right thing.

Ask Peter about when lost focus from Jesus. Ask Paul when we was doing wrong and Jesus redirected his focus

APPL. Maybe the reason it’s hard for you to do right is because Jesus is not your focus.

Three (3) things to help build our determination to do the right thing. INFORMATION. OPERATION. OBLIGATION

Information - I need to KNOW what’s right!

Neh 10:28 “Now the rest of the people, the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, the temple servants and all those who had separated themselves from the peoples of the lands to the law of God, their wives, their sons and their daughters, all those who had knowledge and understanding,”

Notice it was not just those that led that were committed to the word

People tend to do what they know - you can’t do what you don’t know

What they wanted to do. . .was get right with God. First they had to know what God has to say - What God says still matters!!!

Ps 119:172 “Let my tongue sing of Your word, For all Your commandments are righteousness.”

Rom 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” Rom 1:17 “For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “But the righteous man shall live by faith.””

Tit 2:11-12 “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age,”

If you are here tonight and you are looking for salvation you need to know what’s RIGHT

(One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one body) One way,

If you are here tonight and you are looking for a revival you need to know what’s RIGHT

Longevity is not a guarantee to faithfulness/Die to self daily/It’s ok to not be ok

There’s a lot of misinformation in the world

Operation - I need to DO what’s right

Neh 10:29-31 “are joining with their kinsmen, their nobles, and are taking on themselves a curse and an oath to walk in God’s law, which was given through Moses, God’s servant, and to keep and to observe all the commandments of God our Lord, and His ordinances and His statutes; and that we will not give our daughters to the peoples of the land or take their daughters for our sons. As for the peoples of the land who bring wares or any grain on the sabbath day to sell, we will not buy from them on the sabbath or a holy day; and we will forego the crops the seventh year and the exaction of every debt.”

When you have the right INFO you need to put it into practice.

Notice in the previous verse a “from” and a “to”

We can’t just talk it. . .we need to walk it

“Observe” - to do, perform or to act [in any manner]

The Bible is replete with this concept of “doing” not just “knowing”

James 1:22 “But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.”

John 13:17 ““If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.”

Matt 7:21 ““Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.”

James 2:17 “Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.”

I cannot just know, say, believe - I NEED TO DO

Obligation -I need to commit to what’s right

Neh 10:32-33 We also placed ourselves under obligation to contribute yearly one third of a shekel for the service of the house of our God: for the showbread, for the continual grain offering, for the continual burnt offering, the sabbaths, the new moon, for the appointed times, for the holy things and for the sin offerings to make atonement for Israel, and all the work of the house of our God.”

We don’t have the temple today, but we have God!

Committment means to be dedicated to a cause

It is a willingness to give [time, energy] towards something you believe in

Your committment is “walk in Christ”

Col 2:6-7 “Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.”

Sacrifice is something else that comes up

I’ve never heard of a sacrifice that benefits the indiv