It's My Birthday Let's Get Holy!
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Pet peeve in my world, I couldn’t find anything in my classroom.
Maybe for you it’s your house, or car ...
messy counters
needed to put things up
too many people
didn’t know where things went
cleaned and found everything
Took pictures of every cabinet
currently labeling the book
Amazing, things are staying cleaner
I still have to remind - look at the picture
Now I need to create an index, I need to write it down.
Less behaviors because we aren’t looking for stuff.
There comes a time when it’s not about getting something it’s about knowing what to do, how to use it, where it’s at.
It’s frustrating and even sometimes tragic when something that could fix everything can’t be found until it’s too late. Its even worse when its right there but no one knows how to use it.
Had a student with a speech device, no one trained us. He just enjoyed hitting buttons and hearing the sounds.
This year, I shared so many sermons about Nehemiah working to build a wall. In it we found how someone sees their faith is worked out with their intelligence. That there can be times of great prayer before God gives us opportunity to trust him and act. That even when God is with us, we still will come against enemies and betrayal,
Nehemiah is like us going dealing with one thing after another, but God is in the another.
Nehemiah is like us going dealing with one thing after another, but God is in the another.
Last week, in this part of Nehemiah, the wall was completed. We come upon times in our life when we finish. We finish good things like a school year, a contract, a graduation. We finish hard things like a healing, a funeral, a crisis. It is done.
We celebrated the fact that God is in the done.
We celebrated the fact that God is in the done.
When the crises happens, when Nehemiah is brought to tears and prayer for his people when he hears there is no wall, He goes to God. What will he do when such a great accomplishment of in the face of enemies and everything they built the wall. Now, what is next. He goes back to God but this time not alone, He goes with the people.
Sometimes it might feel like we can’t find God, we can’t connect, we don’t get it. We can’t find any truth of where God is at.
We start the connection with what Nehemiah leads the people to do
Read the Word of God
Read the Word of God
73 The priests, Levites, gatekeepers, temple singers, some of the people, temple servants, and all Israel settled in their towns. When the seventh month came and the Israelites had settled in their towns,
1 all the people gathered together at the square in front of the Water Gate. They asked the scribe Ezra to bring the book of the law of Moses that the Lord had given Israel.
2 On the first day of the seventh month, the priest Ezra brought the law before the assembly of men, women, and all who could listen with understanding.
The way this book of the Bible lays out is very similar to the way we tell stories today in TV shows and movies.
This is a new scene, and in this true tale, you might imagine on the bottom being typed out “Seventh Month” and then seeing all the religous leaders gathering in a special place in the city, the Water Gate and one leader being obviously more important than the others.
It’s also maybe a little tough to understand, so let me be like Charlotte is when we watch a Marvel movie and tell you what is happening. The Jewish calendar is different than ours as the one we use has only been used by English speaking people since 1752.
and the seventh month of the year is approximately our September. So in September all these people gathered.
Ezra, there is a book in the Bible called Ezra and this is that guy. He was the priest who led the majority of the Jews back from exile the first time. If you read the book of Ezra, it’s like the Prequel to Nehemiah. Ezra’s group got stopped by the enemies of Jerusalem in building the wall but now God choose to use Nehemiah to fulfill his promise. Ezra did nothing wrong, God choose to show his glory in a fuller story. Remember that. God can give you a vision and fulfill it through someone else, it doesn’t mean you are less, both are part of God’s story.
God is the most important part of your story.
God is the most important part of your story.
It is in the realization that God is the most important part, that obedience to God is the most important that Ezra once again leads his people. Nehemiah even takes a back seat.
When we live with humility
10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
Since life really is one thing after another, than be in the another with what God is doing.
Since life really is one thing after another, than be in the another with what God is doing.
Ezra comes back in to this story as one who will do the most important thing for the city and the culture to continue. He will call people to what it means to be God’s people.
The scene is still being set, the camera is scanning the whole of the picture.
Nehemiah 8:3–6 (CSB)
3 While he was facing the square in front of the Water Gate, he read out of it from daybreak until noon before the men, the women, and those who could understand. All the people listened attentively to the book of the law.
4 The scribe Ezra stood on a high wooden platform made for this purpose. Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah stood beside him on his right; to his left were Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hash-baddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam.
5 Ezra opened the book in full view of all the people, since he was elevated above everyone. As he opened it, all the people stood up.
6 Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and with their hands uplifted all the people said, “Amen, Amen!” Then they knelt low and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.
Ezra blessed the Lord.
Do you bless the Lord in your worship?
Do you bless the Lord in your worship?
When you walk in today did you think to yourself, I am going to bless God. I have to tell you that stopped me and made me reflect deeply.
It perhaps seems dumb that I could give God anything. God the maker of the universe, from platinum to dark matter, what could I possibly give him.
Tuesday is my birthday and my children are going to give me gifts. My sons got something for me. My wife got something for me. But here is the thing, my wife and I share our bank account. That money is money I worked for. My wife works hard and makes good money, but my sons don’t make any outside money.
I bring up my sons because my daughters make their own money. But my sons just take my money and buy me something.
Why should they take my money and give me a gift? Because the value they add is priceless. It is the generosity of thinking what would Dad want?
I ask you what does your Heavenly father want from you in worship?
I ask you what does your Heavenly father want from you in worship?
You know what’s funny, most people will say I can’t sing.
I don’t expect to go home and receive an epic song sung to me by my children. I don’t expect what they can’t do. I don’t expect to see a new Tesla in my driveway, with Andrew going by the way, your credit rating is now shot.
Why do would anyone think God wants anything of us that we can’t do. He made us and knows us best.
Worship is Blessing the Lord with who you are and what you do.
Worship is Blessing the Lord with who you are and what you do.
Ezra blessed the Lord.
Giving to God is not a waste as giving to a parent is not a waste of a gift but special because of effort
Giving to God is not a waste as giving to a parent is not a waste of a gift but special because of effort
7 Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, and Pelaiah, who were Levites, explained the law to the people as they stood in their places.
8 They read out of the book of the law of God, translating and giving the meaning so that the people could understand what was read.
If Nehemiah was 332 BC, and with the most conservative dates of the first five books of the Bible being 1300 BC, that puts 1000 years between the reading in Nehemiah and when it was written. Even the most liberal scholars would put 400 years between the two.
Do you realize that 1000 years ago was 1,023 AD. Sometimes we forget how many years the Bible spans. It is an amazing revelation of what God does and who He is.
What was happening in 1023?
1023? That was 32 years before the Roman Catholic and Orthodox church split. No modern country is that old. That was A LONG TIME AGO.
What about 400 years ago, 1623? The first King James Bible was only 12 years old and King James was still King of England! A long time ago!
It is okay if the Bible is hard to understand. It is hard to do a lot of things in life. There are so many jokes about adulting. Many of you describe how hard it is to use your cell phone, how hard it is to use a remote control.
My son has an extremely difficult time reading, Doug is dyslexic and he is brilliant.
Reading though is vital for modern life. It is a convenient way to share truth. If you want to know God than read He is word, and yes it will take some work to understand.
12 For the word of God is living and effective and sharper than any double-edged sword, penetrating as far as the separation of soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
Yet, You, who have given your life to Jesus, have something that the people at the time of Nehemiah didn’t have, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit takes up residence in you and guides you into all truth.
13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth. For he will not speak on his own, but he will speak whatever he hears. He will also declare to you what is to come.
17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit—which is the word of God.
Our job is to make ourselves open to what the Holy Spirit is saying to us in scripture.
11 I have treasured your word in my heart so that I may not sin against you.
This is why every week we push on the church app, a Bible devotional that is so easy to get to and read. Or if you have difficulty like my son, you can listen to it!
I read with my breakfast in the morning. Know God’s word.
So Nehemiah knows like we know that putting the word of God in our life changes things, it opens us up to the full reality of this world is.
Let me ask you a weird question, if I told you that today is a day to be Holy,
what ideas does the word Holy bring up in your mind.
what ideas does the word Holy bring up in your mind.
Your friend calls up and says lets do something Holy.
Holiness often can be seen like the worst of religion, sit still, listen, no joy, no fun. Yet listen to what Ezra and the leaders explain.
9 Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who were instructing the people said to all of them, “This day is holy to the Lord your God. Do not mourn or weep.” For all the people were weeping as they heard the words of the law.
Why are they crying, we don’t know. Perhaps People are moved to condemnation for their sin
OR perhaps a realization of a thought that if people followed God’s laws it could have been prevented.
All these people have to rebuild. Their walls, their culture, everything because God judged their people.
But they are told by those who know God’s word. Holiness is not a time of Grief. This isn’t a sad time. It is a time to bless the Lord with celebration and joy.
God actually came to give us joy and celebration
9 Passing along, Jesus saw a man at his work collecting taxes. His name was Matthew. Jesus said, “Come along with me.” Matthew stood up and followed him.
10 Later when Jesus was eating supper at Matthew’s house with his close followers, a lot of disreputable characters came and joined them.
11 When the Pharisees saw him keeping this kind of company, they had a fit, and lit into Jesus’ followers. “What kind of example is this from your Teacher, acting cozy with crooks and riffraff?”
12 Jesus, overhearing, shot back, “Who needs a doctor: the healthy or the sick?
18 John came fasting and they called him crazy.
19 I came feasting and they called me a lush, a friend of the riffraff. Opinion polls don’t count for much, do they? The proof of the pudding is in the eating.”
Jesus came and joined with those who celebrate. These were not bacchanals but Jesus’ first miracle is at a wedding. He is celebrated by crowds.
Holiness is life not academic study. I get it. All that brings us joy should not be thought of as evil.
If you were to describe what it means to be Holy, would it look more like what you do at a funeral? Is it possible that all of us have misunderstood it? It’s hard for me to wrap my head around that too, but look at the further description ....
10 Then he said to them, “Go and eat what is rich, drink what is sweet, and send portions to those who have nothing prepared, since today is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, because the joy of the Lord is your strength.”
11 And the Levites quieted all the people, saying, “Be still, since today is holy. Don’t grieve.”
12 Then all the people began to eat and drink, send portions, and have a great celebration, because they had understood the words that were explained to them.
That’s a party. Bring enough food for everyone. Enjoy life. Enjoy each other.
Celebrate this day is Holy
Celebrate this day is Holy
I’ve become a fan of a pastor online who explained this very well ...
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