Structured for Tomorrow

Nehemiah 6:15–7:5 (NASB95)

15 So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of the month Elul, in fifty-two days.

16 When all our enemies heard of it, and all the nations surrounding us saw it, they lost their confidence; for they recognized that this work had been accomplished with the help of our God.

17 Also in those days many letters went from the nobles of Judah to Tobiah, and Tobiah’s letters came to them.

18 For many in Judah were bound by oath to him because he was the son-in-law of Shecaniah the son of Arah, and his son Jehohanan had married the daughter of Meshullam the son of Berechiah.

19 Moreover, they were speaking about his good deeds in my presence and reported my words to him. Then Tobiah sent letters to frighten me.

1 Now when the wall was rebuilt and I had set up the doors, and the gatekeepers and the singers and the Levites were appointed,

2 then I put Hanani my brother, and Hananiah the commander of the fortress, in charge of Jerusalem, for he was a faithful man and feared God more than many.

3 Then I said to them, “Do not let the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun is hot, and while they are standing guard, let them shut and bolt the doors. Also appoint guards from the inhabitants of Jerusalem, each at his post, and each in front of his own house.”

4 Now the city was large and spacious, but the people in it were few and the houses were not built.

5 Then my God put it into my heart to assemble the nobles, the officials and the people to be enrolled by genealogies. Then I found the book of the genealogy of those who came up first in which I found the following record:

INTRO: When will it all end? When will the work be finished? Who gets to decide?

You know, when I first read Nehemiah, I got to Chapter 6:15 and thought… why is there still so much more of the book? Why not end the book right here? The wall is complete…

I mean, when a contractor finishes building a house, they get paid and go away… and you don’t hear from them again, even if you want to! When you retire from your job, you don’t keep going in to the office, do you?

But when it comes to ministry - that is, the work that God has called us to, things aren’t on such a time-table.

Where do you belong in this season of life?

What support role do you have?

What parameters exist to help us accomplish the work?

Many of you have wrestled with such questions. Let me assure you, you are not the only ones.

This was also true in Jerusalem as they came to end of rebuilding the wall. More was needed for this project to have any long-term effect or meaning. But what? What steps were necessary in order for Jerusalem to strive?

In the Scripture before us, we see Nehemiah address the factors that would set the city on a path toward tomorrow. It’s my prayer that, as a church, we can glean insights into how we can likewise be Structured for Tomorrow. That’s the title of the message today and we’ll examine 3 Components of Future-Oriented Ministry

I encourage you to make use of the sermon guide located in your bulletin. Let us learn together. The first component of a future-oriented ministry is:

External Structure (6:15-19)

READ 15-16

The wall was completed in 52 days. It had not been accomplished in the previous 100 years, but this time, God was in it!

This was a huge accomplishment and milestone- can you imagine the celebration in Jerusalem?

Of course, there was no celebration among the nations. This milestone meant that, not only was there a secure boundary, but that Jerusalem was successful. The antagonizers had failed and thus lost confidence. They likely began to question own eyes.. how did this happen?

Now, note this: Nehemiah said that they recognized that it was accomplished with the help of our God (16)

IOW - They could no longer deny God because there was a boundary- an external structure which declared the presence and power of God to all who would approach the city.

But this external structure did more that proclaim a message to the outside world, it forced the people on the inside to wrestle with the boundaries as well.

READ 17-19

You see, there were nobles in Jerusalem who had formed alliances with Tobiah, one of the troublemakers we’ve looked at. The wall actually made this alliance unnecessary and put a strain upon the nobles’ relationship.

They now had to choose between God’s way and the world’s way. They wanted to live with one foot in and one foot out of the wall. This is difficult because when we are attached to someone who is in sin, we are prone to make excuses for them.

That’s what we see here. Essentially, the nobles are telling Nehemiah:

“Oh, Nehemiah, we know Tobiah has some rough edges, but he’s a really good guy once you get to know him...”

Meanwhile, Tobiah is sending threatening letters to Nehemiah. Right.

Now, let’s bring this home to the church:

We have external structures: Our statement of faith sets a primary wall, accompanied by our church covenant, constitution & bylaws, and even the local church building that act as gates and doors. All of these external structures help set us apart from the world. We are different.

Even so, you may find it difficult when a relative or friend whom you love is living in sin. Consider this:

Christians who have loved ones who are LGBT tend to be make excuses for them or argue for more tolerance of their sin. In fact, some even try to argue that this sexual perversion is not sinful at all.

Christians who have loved ones who have had an abortion likewise tend to make excuses for their sins and lifestyle. The same is true when we have loved ones who are gossips, double-minded, worldly, etc.

External Structures are important because they proclaim that we are a set-apart people. Either you are in or you are out. But just because we have these structures does not mean that the work is done. We cannot stop here. The second component of a future-oriented ministry is:

Internal Structure (7:1-3)

READ 1-2

Now that the wall is built, there needs to be a system of governance and accountability.

First, there were positions that needed to be filled- we see some general categories- gatekeepers to ensure the city was secured, singers to lead layfolks in song and celebration, and Levites who did the work in the temple.

But then, we see two specific positions that were filled that are critical, for they would shoulder the responsibilities of Nehemiah, the governor.

You see, Nehemiah could not do this on his own… he is only one man and the most important work is not so much the tasks of governing, but rather the leadership and direction of the city.

So he delegates leadership to two men- one who would be like a mayor who dealt with policies and public programs, and another who likely oversaw the security and safety… like the chief of police.

These men were given both authority and instruction. This allowed them to do their job. Let’s look a bit closer:

First, we see that they were given charge over Jerusalem. These men were given the authority to make necessary decisions and implement programs or laws that allowed for the city to flourish. Just as Nehemiah had modeled stewardship of his authority, these men now would be tasked with wielding their authority for the good of the city.

Second we see that their authority was warranted based upon their character. (2b)

Hanani cared deeply for the people- this is likely why he made the long journey to Susa to talk to Nehemiah in the first place. He demonstrated that he had a desire to serve the people for God’s glory and their good. (Chapter 1)

Hananiah, Nehemiah said, was faithful and feared God more that many. IOW- he was a man of integrity and authentic faith. He would not be easily tempted to tolerate ungodly behavior nor to compromise the integrity of God’s city for some sort of worldly gain.

Last, we see that Nehemiah gives expectations for these men in verse 3. (READ)

There are times when it is appropriate to open the gates, but they must be guarded. Furthermore, ensure you have good reinforcements throughout the city so that there remains no vulnerable places.

Now these leaders could do their job. They understood the expectations and had the authority to carry out the tasks. Nehemiah could then focus on other items that required his attention.

Likewise, the church has internal structures.

According to our constitution, “The pastor shall have in his charge the welfare and oversight of the church...” Deacons serve the church and assist the pastor in areas of: discipline, benevolent work, ordinances, pastoral care, and general encouragement and guidance to the church body. This assigns authority and instructions to pastors and deacons as leaders in this church.

Like Hanani And Hananiah, leadership positions in the church are based upon calling and character. If you are willing to elect deacons and call a pastor, then you are electing and calling them to lead. And church, you must let the leaders do their jobs by doing yours… more on than shortly.

This internal structure is so that we can make decisions and effectively uphold the external structure that proclaims “we are different from the world! We belong to Christ!”

Structure is important. External structures set us apart, internal structures help us to remain set apart, but there is one final component of a future-oriented ministry. That is the:

Ongoing Mission (4-73)

READ (4-5) The problem in Jerusalem was that, even though the wall was rebuilt, in order for the city to accomplish it’s God-honoring purpose, there would need to be people in it doing the work of the mission.

Many of the folks who were helping on the wall commuted in to work. That was fine for that project, but remember the point of building the wall was to restore the city to its purpose of worshiping God and proclaiming His praises to the nations.

What Nehemiah does is he finds out who all is there. If you look at v. 6-73, we see, essentially census data. Now, we won’t take time to read this out loud together… unless you really want to. You should take time to scan it at least, but let me show you this: This section of verses is the same as what we see in Ezra 2.

Ezra, if you remember, records efforts to rebuild the temple. His question in the census was “Who are God’s people?” Who are the ones that worship God alone?

These will be the ones that gather at the temple, bring sacrifices, and sing loudly their praises to God.

Nehemiah is asking a different question, that is: Who will repopulate the city? or Who belongs inside the walls and where do they fit?

Now, some said they were Levites or priests, but lacked the qualifications. , but other than that, Nehemiah was able to see where all the people fit and called them to commit to the ongoing work of restoring Jerusalem to God’s desired purpose.

Let’s bring this back to the church.

We have an external and internal structure, but the work of the church is far from done. The kingdom of God is not yet filled. Our purpose is ongoing!

When I look at our census data- our church roles, there is a place for each of you to ensure that God’s purpose for this church is carried out. Look, we are called to bring the world to follow Jesus… to be like Jesus.

Colossians 1:28 NASB95

28 We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ.

Friends, until we can present everyone mature in Christ, our work is not done. And in order to do that, we need to have healthy external and internal structures from which we accomplish the ongoing mission.

We need every member to fill the role that God has for you now… to graciously serve on one of our serving teams, to go share the gospel in the community, to lead mission trips and to support the work of the church.

We also need to bring in more workers- to delegate leadership and to ensure that we are continuing in Kingdom Work.

And we need for God’s leaders to do the work God has called for them to do now. I need you to allow me to lead alongside our deacons… If you are one who lacks trust in the leadership, then someone is in the wrong place.

So, here is what I want to leave you with today: We can praise God this morning that we have a healthy external structure… we can know without a doubt that we are a set-apart people.

And we praise God that we have an internal structure that allows for that external structure to held so that people can see we are not just a building or a stack of dusty old documents, but a living organism!

And we praise God that we get to be a part of His ongoing mission- to bring the world to follow Jesus!

If you do not know Jesus as Lord, I’d love to introduce you to Him.

The questions for our members are: Where do you fit? Are you inside the wall? Are you on mission?

If you don’t know, then let’s get a cup of coffee or something and figure it out together. Church, I love you and I cannot wait to see what God has in store for LRBC!

[PRAY]

Discuss: What is the importance of structures such as a statement of faith or constitution for a church?

Discuss: When you consider the leadership paradigm in the church, how can these structures help ‘guard the gates’?

Discuss: The mission is ongoing. Where is your spot in this mission?