The Ministry of the Word
Notes
Transcript
Revival is what we want
Revival is what we want
9 And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people wept as they heard the words of the Law.
Evidence that the people were under conviction and were yielded to the Lordship of God.
What happened before this?
1 And all the people gathered as one man into the square before the Water Gate. And they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses that the Lord had commanded Israel. 2 So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could understand what they heard, on the first day of the seventh month. 3 And he read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women and those who could understand. And the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law. 4 And Ezra the scribe stood on a wooden platform that they had made for the purpose. And beside him stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah on his right hand, and Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam on his left hand. 5 And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people, and as he opened it all the people stood. 6 And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. 7 Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, the Levites, helped the people to understand the Law, while the people remained in their places. 8 They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly, and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading.
A hunger for God’s Word (1-3)
A hunger for God’s Word (1-3)
1 And all the people gathered as one man into the square before the Water Gate. And they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses that the Lord had commanded Israel. 2 So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could understand what they heard, on the first day of the seventh month. 3 And he read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women and those who could understand. And the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law.
ring the Book of the Law of Moses that the Lord had commanded Israel (1)
They gathered as one man. So this wasn’t some zealous minority calling for the Book to be brought. We know there’s always that one or two people who want something different than the majority. They annoy us. But that’s not what’s going on here. This is what the people wanted.
Ezra read from the Law before the people (v. 3) from early morning to midday. (6 AM - 12 PM)
Notice v. 3: And he read
read = heb. (karah) which means to cry out. The reading was passionate and with feeling.
And notice how the people were responding
The ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law. The idea is people leaning on the edge of their seats to hear and understand. The people were focused on the word of God, not necessarily who was reading the word.
So there was a hunger for God’s Word. A hunger to hear it and a hunger to proclaim it and a hunger to understand it.
Are we hungry church?
Do we want more Bible? Oh that this hunger would be the substance of our unity. This is what revivals are made of, and we need to cry out to God that He would move in us to grant us this hunger.... all of us, so that we will, just as the people at the Water Gate did, gather as one man with a hunger for God’s Word.
A unity in God’s Word (4-5)
A unity in God’s Word (4-5)
4 And Ezra the scribe stood on a wooden platform that they had made for the purpose. And beside him stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah on his right hand, and Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam on his left hand. 5 And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people, and as he opened it all the people stood.
It’s easy for us to want to pass over all these names, but there’s some value in pausing just for a minute. Most of the men were priests. Ezra was a priest. He was a scribe, as stated in v. 1, but a priest. The men were there to feed the people the Word of God, and they were displaying their solidarity by standing on either side of Ezra while he read from it. The men on this platform had been through a great deal together.
Ezra was above the people as he stood on that platform that was made for this occasion. And what did the people do as Ezra read aloud God’s Word? They stood. Now, I don’t necessarily think this is prescriptive… Standing as God’s word is read out loud, although I have been in churches that do that, and I have always found that to be helpful.
A response of worship to God’s Word (6)
A response of worship to God’s Word (6)
6 And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.
Ezra opens the book as the people are watching, and Ezra blesses the Lord. He proclaims honor to God. Praise God! He is worthy! Hallelujah! And notice how the people respond. Remember 40-50k people: Amen, Amen, lifting up their hands. They are rejoicing. This is a scene of celebration. Yes, celebrating all that Gd has done among them, but it is now culminating in the proclamation of God’s Word. A scene of celebration.
But this was also a scene humility. The people not only raised their hands but they bowed their heads and worshipped the Lord with their faces to the ground.
Something was going on here. Celebration, bowing down, heads to the ground in worship. All provoked by the reading and proclamation of God’s Word.
Do you see how connected God’s Word is to meaningful worship. Do you see why we can never marginalize God’s Word in worship. It is foundation to everything else. Worship without the ministry of the Word is meaningless motion.
An understanding of God’s Word (7-8)
An understanding of God’s Word (7-8)
7 Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, the Levites, helped the people to understand the Law, while the people remained in their places. 8 They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly, and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading.
Kind of anti-climactic isn’t it?
Hunger for God’s Word
Unity in God’s Word
A response of worship to God’s Word
An understanding of God’s Word.
Really, I suppose the case could be made that this is the most important point. Our worshipful, unified hunger for God’s Word won’t mean a whole lot is we don’t have a concern to understand it.
The concern to understand God’s Word has already been expressed through these verses
v. 2: both men and women and all who could understand what they heard
v. 3: And he read from it.... in the presence of the men and the women and those who could understand.
“those who could understand”: is this referencing children who could understand? Children’s Church??
But I want us to see one word in v. 8: clearly. You know what that Hebrew word means?
cause to be separated. In other words , God’s Word was being read in such a way, that it was being dissected into parts so that it could be clearly understood.
I want us to be united in a desire for God to move among us as He did among His people at the Watergate in Jerusalem. That we would weep over our sins, repent, but also take joy in knowing that we have forgiveness in Christ, who is the Word.
