Serving One Another for God’s Purpose

Open in Prayer

Transition: Have you noticed that God uses every kind of person to accomplish His Will?

Read Nehemiah 3:1-4

Nehemiah 3:1–4 LSB

Then Eliashib the high priest arose with his brothers the priests and built the Sheep Gate; they set it apart as holy and made its doors stand. And they set apart as holy the wall to the Tower of the Hundred and the Tower of Hananel. Next to him the men of Jericho built, and next to them Zaccur the son of Imri built. Now the sons of Hassenaah built the Fish Gate; they laid its beams and made its doors stand with its bolts and bars. Next to them Meremoth the son of Uriah the son of Hakkoz made repairs. And next to them Meshullam the son of Berechiah the son of Meshezabel made repairs. And next to them Zadok the son of Baana also made repairs.

Continue on Nehemiah 3:29-32

Nehemiah 3:29–32 LSB

After them Zadok the son of Immer made repairs in front of his house. And after him Shemaiah the son of Shecaniah, the keeper of the East Gate, made repairs. After him Hananiah the son of Shelemiah, and Hanun the sixth son of Zalaph, repaired another section. After him Meshullam the son of Berechiah made repairs in front of his own quarters. After him Malchijah, one of the goldsmiths, made repairs as far as the house of the temple servants and of the merchants, in front of the Inspection Gate, and as far as the upper room of the corner. Between the upper room of the corner and the Sheep Gate, the goldsmiths and the merchants made repairs.

Take a look at the work that is happening in the narrative:

Jerusalem in the time of Nehemiah’s Reconstruction Project.

The Work is Far Greater Than Any One Person.

Personal ambition and empire building are hindering the spread of the gospel.

John Stott

The people respond to God’s encouragement and the work begins.

Nehemiah 3 does not include quibbles or dissension among the people.

Everyone takes to the task of working on what is in front of them.

Similarly to the Church today, the work is far more grandiose than any one local congregation, regardless of its size.

Are we burdened by the wrong focus as we follow after the Lord Jesus? Are we stuck by a sense of fear or disbelief?

The Work is More About The People.

Too often, we plan our projects and then ask God to bless them; but Nehemiah didn’t make that mistake. He sat down and wept (Neh. 1:4), knelt down and prayed, and then stood up and worked because he knew he had the blessing of the Lord on what he was doing.

Warren W. Wiersbe

The once defeated Judahites are now energized.

The once hopeless people are now purposefully working towards the future.

The blindness to their circumstances is removed by God’s presence among them.

The people are the actual work, the wall is the instrument utilized by God to unite them.

The Work Begins and Ends with Our Focus on YHWH.

Christ died to glorify the Father and to repair all the defamation we had brought upon His honor.

John Piper

The book opens with prayer, the book also ends with prayer (spoiler alert).

The reconstruction of the walls and the gates begins with the temple area and it wraps to the temple area once more.

The people are uniting under the actual focal point of the community—The Living GOD.

More than a people group, more than a kingdom similar to this world, God is leading His People back to Himself—The intended plan from creation.

Hear the words from the New Testament:

Galatians 3:11–14 LSB

Now that no one is justified by the Law before God is evident, for The righteous shall live by faith.” However, the Law is not of faith; rather, “He who does them shall live by them.” Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”— in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

God is leading the people back from hopelessness and faithlessness to see the riches of being known and loved by Him. Do we live under this truth?

Key Question: What Is God’s Intent Through This Chapter?

We Christians are the Church and whatever we do is what the Church is doing. The matter, therefore, is for each of us a personal one. Any forward step in the Church must begin with the individual.17

A. W. Tozer

God’s intent is to see the world in perfect holiness.

The Church, like Jerusalem continues to be built by those who are called by God’s name.

Every believer is to expected to actively build the Church, seeing God active in their lives and the Church.

Bottom Line:

We are called to edify the Church that will reflect God’s plan for His people, for His glory.