Sermon Tone Analysis

Welcome

Good Morning!

I’m Pastor Wayne and I’d like to welcome you all to the gathering of Ephesus Baptist Church.

Today, you are here to serve God; to give glory to His name!

He does all that He pleases from His throne in Heaven.

He was pleased to send Jesus Christ to offer us His salvation.

May you revel in the love God showed humanity as we worship Him together.

If you are visiting with us this morning, we want you to know that Ephesus is an active faith community on a mission with Jesus.

We don’t all share the same story; in fact, we come from many different paths.

But here, we are one people giving our all to love God, love others, proclaim Jesus, and make disciples in our generation.

We have a connect card in the pew in front of you.

I invite you to take one and fill it out!

If you have prayer needs, you can let us know about those as well.

I promise, our prayer team will lift you up soon.

You can place those cards in the offering plate when it comes around.

Scripture Memory

Opening Scripture

Opening Prayer

580 words (5 minutes)

Introduction

Last week we began a new series of sermons from the Book of Nehemiah.

We talked about who he was, what he did, and where he was.

We discovered that Nehemiah was an ordinary guy who was full of character and virtue.

He was comfortable in his career as the Cupbearer of the King of Persia.

Nehemiah gives us a valuable lesson on rebuilding, refocusing, renewing and revitalizing not just individuals but whole communities and cultures.

Last week, I asked you to begin answering the following questions in your hearts:

1.

What are the things in your life that are broken and in need of God, the Master Re-builder, to repair or revitalize?

2. What things are there in the church that are broken and need to be restored, or reclaimed for the glory of God?

3. Do you consider yourself ordinary?

4. What is your character quotient?

5. Do you have a special empathy and compassion for your fellow man?

6. Do you have a passion for the Glory of God?

As we will see throughout our study, Nehemiah wrestled with similar questions in his own life as he sought to serve the King of kings!

Nehemiah through God rebuilt a city and its walls, God through Nehemiah rebuilt a people for His glory!

Nehemiah was called to a ministry of revitalization!

Revitalization is a work of rebuilding something.

Giving it new life!

Any contractor will tell you that rebuilding something is often a bigger challenge than building something new from scratch.

For years, the exiles had seen the need to rebuild the broken walls and the burned down gates of Jerusalem.

Some tried to rebuild them, but they failed to complete such a large and difficult task because they didn’t start the project in the right way.

Nehemiah accomplished what others could not, and he did it in less than two months (52 days to be exact).

And a huge factor in his success was in the way he got started.

Today, we are going to see that true revitalizers, like Nehemiah, know how to get things started in the right way.

Join me in Nehemiah 1, we are going to read verses 1-4.

Prayer

Whenever we seek to rebuild anything (whether it be a vintage car, a house, a business, a career, a marriage, or a church), we discover that there are not just things that need to be done, but there are things that need to be undone as well.

Rust is present that needs to be removed.

Old electrical wires need to be replaced.

The old customer base has vanished.

Habits exist that need to be broken.

Unrepentant fault prevents the forgiveness of a receptive heart.

Some church people love their church more than they love their God.

Some people believe it is easier to simply walk away and start over than it is to invest the effort and energy needed for rebuilding.

Nehemiah was zealous for the Glory of God!

I believe that it was that zealousness that allowed God to use him to rebuild and revitalize Israel.

Today, I want to share with you two questions our passage raises that will guide us toward being more Zealous for God’s Glory!

Maybe then, God can use us in mighty ways as well.

1. Do you realize the need for a regular, honest assessment of your current reality?

Nehemiah had every reason not to be concerned with the condition of Jerusalem.

Let’s not overlook the fact that he had been born into captivity and had never even been to Jerusalem, which means he had never worshiped in the temple.

He was the Cup-bearer to the King of Persia.

He had a comfortable, although ordinary life.

I am sure he had great benefits serving the king in that capacity.

Why was He so concerned about a broken-down city over 800 miles away that he had never seen?

Two reasons:

a. God’s Word directed His affections and as a result His life.

The exiles did not have a copy of the Law.

They may not have had any Scripture in their captivity, but they had passed down a plethora of Scripture they had memorized.

Especially, verses that spoke of the Glory of God resting in Jerusalem.

As a result, for Nehemiah:

Jerusalem was the prescribed place for fellowship with God.

It was the place to offer sin atoning sacrifices.

Jerusalem was the appointed place of blessing.

It was the place that provided the blessing of freedom and renewal of life for which the exiles longed to return.

Jerusalem, the city of David and the place of Solomon’s temple, was recognized as the place where God had chosen “to put his Name,” that is, it was Israel’s appointed worship center, where the presence of God be sought and enjoyed.

Another verse he surely learned was the Shema

The exiles also passed down to him a lifestyle of prayerful dependence.

b.

Through prayer, God changed Nehemiah’s heart as he sought God’s will daily.

Nehemiah asked his brother, Hanani, questions that would lead to an honest assessment of the current reality of Jerusalem.

He asked about the exiles who escaped captivity and survived.

He asked about Jerusalem.

He knew that his boss had stopped work there a few years earlier due to uprisings (see Ezra 4).

He was curious about if the restoration was being hampered or if it was progressing.

He wanted to know the truth even if it hurt him.

O.S. Hawkins described three approaches people take when seeking to rebuild something that is broken in their lives in His book, “The Nehemiah Code.”

One is the way of the “superficial optimist.”

The superficial optimist will resist making any semblance of an honest evaluation, wishfully thinking that if he or she just waits long enough or hunkers down deep enough then everything will eventually be made right.

Another is the way of the “busy optimist.”

They admit there is a problem, but they attack it by trying to get everyone around them to be as busy as they can be.

They attempt to find inspiration and motivation with all types of positive-thinking techniques.

But they never get around to honestly evaluating and addressing their real needs.

3. The way of the “honest optimist.”

There are those like Nehemiah, who make an honest evaluation of the situation right from the beginning.

They have the strength and patience, as well as the wisdom and understanding, to address the systemic issues and actually work to correct them.

Those who make such honest assessments are not afraid of offending others or making enemies.

They are not intimidated by threats, and they cannot be formed and fashioned into someone else’s mold.

Nehemiah was just such a person.

He made an honest assessment.

He asked questions.