All of Jewish History
Notes
Transcript
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I’d like to start today with the scripture ...
Nehemiah 9:4–37 (CSB)
4 Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani stood on the raised platform built for the Levites and cried out loudly to the Lord their God.
5 Then the Levites—Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah—said, “Stand up.
It was right here that I got reminded of the way I’d like to begin today’s topic.
Stand up.
Stand up.
Confession is really, really misunderstood in our day. Sadly Jim Gaffigan’s funny extreme take is more of our daily understanding, the idea that something that happens in a booth to a person who is a set a part like a catholic priest, but the word of God, the Bible, never shows a booth, never shows a confession to a priest.
Today we need to discover what God really says about confession because God gives freedom, power, healing inlcuding healing of mental health threw Confession. It’s a powerful process that has become all messed up. Let’s look to God’s word to take on the attitude of Jesus.
instead it reads
16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is very powerful in its effect.
A righteous person, not a profession, a person, this writing wasn’t to leaders only but all followers of Jesus so when the words say one to another, that means like we are the righteous people.
9 But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.
You, yes, you if you are a follower of Jesus, if you have said Jesus is Lord of your life, that describes you and you can hear my confession.
I could go into a history of how this machinery for hearing confession in the catholic church came to be and some of its cool some of its not but we are to take on the attitude of Christ Jesus and this isn’t history class. We already have the attitude of our culture, of our history, the reason today is to praise God and to learn more about what it means to make Jesus Lord of our life. If you don’t know Him or claim that you follow Jesus we still welcome you to listen, hear and check it out. So today, we look to find out more about confession.
But in order for us to learn and not just make this stuff up, we go to the Bible as the source of our faith for all of us.
We’ve been looking at the Biblical book of Nehemiah. That’s what I started with at the beginning Nehemiah chapter 9. By now most of you who are in here should be able to tell something that you remember, maybe even the order of the story of Nehemiah. I’ve been preaching from the book since February.
So here you go, pop quiz review time, some people here they haven’t been here since february so this is group work. I know you know the jist of Nehemiah and I want to realize you remember it today. Before you freeze here are the first couple of verses
2 Hanani, one of my brothers, came to visit me with some other men who had just arrived from Judah. I asked them about the Jews who had returned there from captivity and about how things were going in Jerusalem.
3 They said to me, “Things are not going well for those who returned to the province of Judah. They are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem has been torn down, and the gates have been destroyed by fire.”
4 When I heard this, I sat down and wept. In fact, for days I mourned, fasted, and prayed to the God of heaven.
That was a big hint reminder
So right now I want you to do do only one of three things. What I want you to do
Do either 1. tell each other what happened in the story of Nehemiah up until now.
Do either 1. tell each other what happened in the story of Nehemiah up until now.
OR 2. Introduce yourself to someone and find out how they are doing and something you have in common, other than not remembering anything about Nehemiah.
OR 2. Introduce yourself to someone and find out how they are doing and something you have in common, other than not remembering anything about Nehemiah.
OR 3. Ignore me, stare at your phone and make me feel bad about how pathetic my leadership skills are.
OR 3. Ignore me, stare at your phone and make me feel bad about how pathetic my leadership skills are.
You have 2 minutes 47 seconds to accomplish this task.
One more time:
What I want you to do - 1- tell each other what happened in the story of Nehemiah up until now. OR Introduce yourself to someone and find out how they are doing and something you have in common, other than not remembering anything about Nehemiah OR Ignore me, stare at your phone and make me feel bad about how pathetic my leadership skills are.
What I want you to do - 1- tell each other what happened in the story of Nehemiah up until now. OR Introduce yourself to someone and find out how they are doing and something you have in common, other than not remembering anything about Nehemiah OR Ignore me, stare at your phone and make me feel bad about how pathetic my leadership skills are.
I hope your group got it. If not go back and read it Nehemiah chapters 1 through 8. It’s a great read.
On this day we look at a piece of scripture that at first read you might be tempted to breeze through. The chapter reads like an intro to a binge worthy series.
6 You, Lord, are the only God. You created the heavens, the highest heavens with all their stars, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to all of them, and all the stars of heaven worship you.
7 You, the Lord, are the God who chose Abram and brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans, and changed his name to Abraham.
8 You found his heart faithful in your sight, and made a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanites, Hethites, Amorites, Perizzites, Jebusites, and Girgashites— to give it to his descendants. You have fulfilled your promise, for you are righteous.
9 You saw the oppression of our ancestors in Egypt and heard their cry at the Red Sea.
The men with the long names cry out this confession that reviews the history of God,
From the beginning of time for all people then to the history with the Jewish people they tell the history of God and humanity.
From the beginning of time for all people then to the history with the Jewish people they tell the history of God and humanity.
Similar to what I just asked you to do in reviewing Nehemiah the men review all of the big moments. They start with Creation than Abraham, then slavery in Egypt and the crossing of the Red Sea.
it’s awesome. They keep listing all the awesome things God did for them.
10 You performed signs and wonders against Pharaoh, all his officials, and all the people of his land, for you knew how arrogantly they treated our ancestors. You made a name for yourself that endures to this day.
11 You divided the sea before them, and they crossed through it on dry ground. You hurled their pursuers into the depths like a stone into raging water.
12 You led them with a pillar of cloud by day, and with a pillar of fire by night, to illuminate the way they should go.
Continues with God talking with Moses and giving the law of God, and even the bread and water provided by God in the desert.
What would your list be if you sat down and began to make a historical list of what God has done for you?
What would your list be if you sat down and began to make a historical list of what God has done for you?
I give you room to do so in the sermon notes on the church app.
In my own life, God provided me an incredible wife, right at the moment in my life when I was so depressed at Baylor and didn’t know what to do, I prayed God why am I here, and she walked by just a few minutes later. There is more to the story and it took many more years before she became my wife, for me it was about a week, but my wife is smarter so she thought about it longer, and I forgot what God had done, I didn’t even register she was the answer to my prayers until much later.
God has restored families and hope where there was none. I remember praying with my Dad and Frances when she had no idea what would happen with her son, the sone she loved but was horribly lost in addiction. She has shared this story here. But fast forward many years, God saved Raymond and today he leads a wonderful ministry that some of you have been a part of called takin it to the streetz.
Each and everyone of you were brought here by a work of God. But I can tell you that this is just our recent history. I don’t know if some of you realize or know but many more will wonder what if you knew the spiritual history of your great grandparents? Because just as God is faithful to you in the moments of your life now, God was faithful to you in the history of your ancestors too. Most likely that is lost now but a story you will hear in eternity.
You could be the answer to your great-great-great-great grandmother’s prayer.
You could be the answer to your great-great-great-great grandmother’s prayer.
That something we lose when we read the Bible because we read about something in the Bible, flip the page and there is God’s answer forgetting that time passed. God is eternal. The men who cried out on the stage in Nehemiah’s day, a truth that occured 2,300 years ago and is impacting you today, knew to begin with thankfullness about the awesomeness of God.
In fact we are told to stay alert in our thanksgiving.
2 Devote yourselves to prayer; stay alert in it with thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving is the understanding that we can live with a knowledge of gratitude. Gratitude requires a memory and perhaps if we stay with understanding and even
listing what God has done for us frames our present and our future.
listing what God has done for us frames our present and our future.
Have you every been with someone when they are desperately looking for a job. They are reaching out everywhere, searching for something that works for them. Then they discover it, maybe even beg for prayer as they interview. It’s such a thrilling time as someone gets that job.
People are super excited when God answers prayer.
People are super excited when God answers prayer.
If only we could keep that joy, because how long until we hear, my job sucks! I need a new job.
Yet, if we sit in the joy of gratitude, even when the struggles of a job come are way, and even if a new job is necessary, we enter into that time aware that God delivered once and can do so again.
God delivered once and can do so again.
God delivered once and can do so again.
Thus those of Nehemiah’s day know what they were doing when they start with gratitude all that God has done in history for their people. it is a spirit of gratitude but then something else pops up.
Confession.
16 But they, our ancestors, were arrogant; bullheaded, they wouldn’t obey your commands.
17 They turned a deaf ear, they refused to remember the miracles you had done for them; They turned stubborn, got it into their heads to return to their Egyptian slavery. And you, a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, Incredibly patient, with tons of love— you didn’t dump them.
18 Yes, even when they cast a sculpted calf and said, “This is your god Who brought you out of Egypt,” and continued from bad to worse,
19 You in your amazing compassion didn’t walk off and leave them in the desert. The Pillar of Cloud didn’t leave them; daily it continued to show them their route; The Pillar of Fire did the same by night, showed them the right way to go.
This again comes from the long ago history of the Jewish people. It will continue and continue, God does amazing things, and the Jewish people don’t obey God.
It is so wise what is done in this confession. The Jim Gaffigan joke leads to the problem most of us have with confession. The fake guy who wants to hurry up his confession is going to meet a hooker, something that almost all people, regardless of faith, think is bad, they would say is dangerous physically and mentally or at least not something to be proud of. It’s an extreme. Most of us have our own rankings of sin. I have heard it said so many times, I totally screwed up, but it’s not like I … and then the next thing shows how bad the other person really thinks they are. You know if the only thing worse a person can say is I didn’t kill anybody than what they originally did was pretty awful. But if they say I didn’t kill 5 people, well.
I’m kidding but I’m not am I.
We fail because we compare our sins, and almost always with someone who we think is worse.
We fail because we compare our sins, and almost always with someone who we think is worse.
The people of this part of the Bible do something much wiser.
They confess by comparing themselves to God.
They confess by comparing themselves to God.
They not only point what God did in the past, then what they did, they even point out how forgiving God is.
18 Even after they had cast an image of a calf for themselves and said, “This is your god who brought you out of Egypt,” and they had committed terrible blasphemies,
19 you did not abandon them in the wilderness because of your great compassion. During the day the pillar of cloud never turned away from them, guiding them on their journey. And during the night the pillar of fire illuminated the way they should go.
God kept forgiving. Here is another amazing thing to remember when it comes to the things we can remember.
Remember what you confessed before and all that God has done with you since.
Remember what you confessed before and all that God has done with you since.
Confession is not just what I have really done, what I look like when I compare myself to God which is worthless. The prophet Isaiah said it best
5 Then I said, “It’s all over! I am doomed, for I am a sinful man. I have filthy lips, and I live among a people with filthy lips. Yet I have seen the King, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.”
When we compare ourselves to God we see who we really should be , to the reality of our lives, we come face to face with God and realize we don’t deserve any thing good.
When we stop comparing ourselves to people we don’t think much of, when start thinking about the sins we really do.
Confession allows us to see how much God really does love us.
Confession allows us to see how much God really does love us.
Have you ever been very kind to someone and then they used you, or messed up all the kindness you did for them, or ruined the relationship?
Now think about how God has treated you and how you have treated God.
8 But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
In reality, Jesus is the most loving one you have ever known. In reality, Jesus is the purpose for our life. In reality, the reason for us to be blessed is not us; it’s Jesus. The reason for forgiveness is not how sorry we are; but How Great HE Is! The reason God is telling His story through us, is because he loves to show off His love.
When others confess, they are afraid of the punishment. But for us, for those who follow Jesus,
Confession is an opportunity to remember just how great, loving and generous God is
Confession is an opportunity to remember just how great, loving and generous God is
Because yes, we failed but God is amazing enough to take a broken person and make them into something that tells His glory.
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come!
My friends, come face to face with God through Jesus, confess, and commit your life to following Him.
For all those who follow Him we invite you to confess of your need for a savior and the fact that Jesus is that savior, that he allowed himself to die on the cross to pay the punishment for our sins and that he rose again, bringing us new life and the hope of resurrection.
Christians have been remembering this through the Lord’s supper from the early beginnings. Jesus himself gave it to us. And one of the oldest prayers we have of early we are talking about Christians outside of the Bible, in the AD 100s, like over 1900 years ago, awesome to think people have worshipped Jesus that long. They would pray over the bread and then the drink. It is recorded in a book with the greek name, the didache. Which calls the Lord Super
the Eucharist with means in English, thanksgiving.
the Eucharist with means in English, thanksgiving.
Not the holiday, but the giving of thanks. The prayer for the drink is,
We give you thanks, our Father, for the holy vine of your servant David which you revealed to us through your servant Jesus. To you is the glory forever”
We give you thanks, our Father, for the holy vine of your servant David which you revealed to us through your servant Jesus. To you is the glory forever”
The prayer for the bread is
we give you thanks, our Father, for the life and knowledge which you revealed to us through your servant Jesus. To you is the glory forever. Just as this broken loaf was scattered over the hills, and, having been gathered together, became one; in like fashion, may your church be gathered together from the ends of the earth into your kingdom. Because yours is the glory and the power through Jesus Christ forever
we give you thanks, our Father, for the life and knowledge which you revealed to us through your servant Jesus. To you is the glory forever. Just as this broken loaf was scattered over the hills, and, having been gathered together, became one; in like fashion, may your church be gathered together from the ends of the earth into your kingdom. Because yours is the glory and the power through Jesus Christ forever
You are welcomed to serve an awesome God. Who has delivered, healed and forgiven. He can forgive sins and pay punishments. He has done it for thousands of years.
We invite all those who call Jesus, Lord of their life to take part with us in the greatest confession, the Eucharist.