Confession, Covenant, and the Cross

Don’t Drop the ‘Not’

Who likes to look back at the mistakes they’ve made?

Who likes to look back at the mistakes they’ve made?

It’s no fun.

It brings back the embarrassment, guilt, pain and whatever else was the fallout of the mistake.

At the time it was hard to deal with and it can get harder.

At the time it was hard to deal with and it can get harder.

I haven’t been shy about sharing with you mistakes I’ve made.

They are good teaching moments. I’m trying to do you a favor. I’ve learned it’s much better to learn from others mistakes.

So, if you can possibly avoid some of the things I’ve done your life will go better.

One of the things about wrong turns, poor decisions, mistakes; is if you don’t fully understand what all went wrong then you’re not likely to be able to fully correct it.

I’ve got to know what I did wrong and why I did it that way.

And, that’s a hard place to go.

How many times have I sat down w/ a man who’s having an affair and he’s not sorry for the right thing.

He’s sorry everyone is mad at him, his kids won’t talk to him, he doesn’t feel comfortable at church, his friends won’t reach out to him, and his life generally stinks right then.

But, he rationalizes his decisions, hides some of the facts, and wants people to feel sorry for him. His wife wasn’t all that into him before the affair, so what was he supposed to do?

In one breath he will shallowly admit his affair was wrong but in the next defend his actions as what any other rational person would do given the same set of circumstances.

In reality, the decision to be unfaithful was well down the line of a series of bad decisions that began years earlier to turn his back on God.

He wasn’t close to God, God had stopped blessing him, so he was left to find his own way in his own mind.

This is fresh. I’m still going thru this w/ a friend. He can’t get back 5 or 6 years ago when his first set of decisions turned him away from God.

The course was set. Time goes by. Little steps become giant leaps away from God, away from his wife, away from his Christian friends and little connection to what once was his highest priority.

Physically he was still there. But, spiritually, emotionally, mentally he was checking out.

If my friend doesn’t deal w/ it all the way back to where it began then he is destined to do it again.

That’s where we all go wrong. In that first moment when we make a wrong turn and move away from God we’ve decided to be our own god in that moment.

Cognitively, I know I am not God. But, practically and intellectually I act like I am.

Maybe in just a small way: I’m not going to pray today or read my bible. I don’t need the direction. I know where I’m going, I think.

Or, maybe in a big way. I’m going to look to someone else to give me what only my wife should but hasn’t in a while.

When we turn our backs on God He is very patient w/ us. Still, there are consequences. Over time, the consequences get worse.

I know I am NOT the I AM. But, it’s when I drop the NOT I get in trouble. And, I act like I am.

We all do it. We all sin. Believers and non-believers alike.

God, in His love, wisdom, grace, and mercy has provided a way for us to deal with it. The sooner the better.

If we don’t deal w/ it we are destined to repeat it.

To deal w/ it, we have to face it. But, once we dealt w/ it we can move on. It’s done.

Jesus died to deal w/ it for us. Let Him. Learn from it. Leave it. And, move on in a different direction.

That’s a do-over.

This is where we are in Nehemiah, ch. 9. There was a big celebration. It went on for days. The wall was finished. They were reacquainting themselves w/ God. Every drink was so satisfying that it touched them deeply.

But, the more they read the law, or had it read to them, eventually they got to the parts about wrong turns and what they had to do to deal w/ it.

As they understood it and were able to apply it they realized they needed to deal w/ where they and their ancestors went wrong and why they were struggling the way they were.

The first time Israel arrived here they were wealthy and had their own king. Now, they’re poor and they have to serve and pay taxes to the king in Persia. Not great.

But, if they had any hope of full restoration they had to deal w/ the original problem where the nation first turned its back on God.

Confession

Nehemiah 9:1–5 NIV

On the twenty-fourth day of the same month, the Israelites gathered together, fasting and wearing sackcloth and putting dust on their heads. Those of Israelite descent had separated themselves from all foreigners. They stood in their places and confessed their sins and the sins of their ancestors. They stood where they were and read from the Book of the Law of the Lord their God for a quarter of the day, and spent another quarter in confession and in worshiping the Lord their God. Standing on the stairs of the Levites were Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani and Kenani. They cried out with loud voices to the Lord their God. And the Levites—Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah and Pethahiah—said: “Stand up and praise the Lord your God, who is from everlasting to everlasting.” “Blessed be your glorious name, and may it be exalted above all blessing and praise.

This is 2 days after the Feast of Tabernacles, or temporary shelters.

Talked about that last week celebrating how God protected Israel and provided for them as they wandered in the wilderness.

It was a fun celebration.

Now, the mood is about to change dramatically. Time to get serious and get down to business w/ God and deal w/ why they were exiled and why they are still struggling as they are.

They separated those born Jewish from the foreigners.

The foreigners were believers. But, they didn’t have the same position as those born Jewish.

When the temple was built the outermost courtyard was a close as any non-Jew could get to the building.

They fasted. Willingly gave up food and drink that they wanted. The pain was real.

They wore sackcloth. Like a burlap sack. Uncomfortable, itchy, plain. The clothing of poverty, of need, of lack.

They put ashes and dirt on their heads. They were unclean. The poorest can’t bathe.

All this represented spiritual poverty. They grieved and mourned their loss of a close relationship with God.

Sin, wrong turns, do that. Create a distance between us and God.

They are admitting it was their own fault.

This is what Jesus meant in the sermon on the mount.

Matthew 5:3–4 NIV

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

Matthew 5:

Those who acknowledge they are spiritually poor apart from God and beg for help.

Those who mourn due to their responsibility for their wrong turns and turn to God will be comforted.

This picture of poverty and sacrifice acknowledges that God is going to have to make a huge sacrifice to pull us out of our poverty.

Israel looked ahead not knowing exactly what God was going to do. Just looking forward to the Messiah.

We look back and know exactly what God did.

For 3 hours Israel stood and listened to the law being read. No doubt the part about sin and how to deal w/ it.

Slaughter a bull for this. Slaughter a ram for that. A lamb must die. A goat must be set free.

They have t/b thinking this is going to get expensive!

It is. Sin is costly.

For the next 3 hours they confessed. They verbalized the sin they became aware that they committed.

They praised God for His mercy. They worshiped Him.

If God was of little value to them. Or, even if God was just a little god they wouldn’t bother confessing sin.

When we don’t confess sins we are aware that we have committed we are communicating to God that He is of little value to us.

And, when we continue to commit the same sins we are communicating to Jesus we don’t appreciate his payment for them. We cheapen the act.

Who likes to go back and admit we’ve done anything wrong? Let’s just collectively stick our heads in the proverbial sand and move on.

When we hold our monthly evenings of worship and prayer during the summer we spend the least amount of time in confession.

Some of that is simply due to mercy. Let’s just hit it and move on. But, some is due to our lack of awareness and lack of desire to face it.

For 3 hours they confessed. You can imagine the weeping, wailing, and mourning.

It has been a long time and they had a lot to cover.

The temple had been built several years earlier but they got busy building the wall and the teaching was limited until this day. Now, the word was their focus and they learned what they had been missing for the 70+ years of exile and why they were exiled in the first place.

There was a lot to deal w/.

So, for 3 hours they confessed sin.

How long would it take you and me? Probably longer than we think if we’re completely honest.

While this was going on, the Levites drafted a covenant prayer that they were about to read, ask everyone to participate and agree, then all the leaders would sign.

This was a covenant prayer to God, admitting every wrong turn the nation had ever taken all the way back to the beginning.

Remember, we’ve got to go all the way back to the first wrong turn and understand why we made it before we will ever be able to turn back to God.

Covenant

This goes all the way down thru v.31. I’m not going to read the entire thing. I’m just going to read a few selected verses and summarize the rest so we all get the gist of what they are saying here.

This is an admission to God. They are admitting their guilt. Owning it. Which is a big step in the right direction toward being fully restored in the land.

They go back to their beginning. This is their history. They kept making wrong turns and God kept loving them and kept His promises.

Nehemiah 9:5–6 NIV

And the Levites—Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah and Pethahiah—said: “Stand up and praise the Lord your God, who is from everlasting to everlasting.” “Blessed be your glorious name, and may it be exalted above all blessing and praise. You alone are the Lord. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.

Always start with a genuine complement.

They declared God’s glory, uniqueness, and creation of the universe. Acknowledge Who He is. They knew it and needed to affirm it.

Nehemiah 9:7–8 NIV

“You are the Lord God, who chose Abram and brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans and named him Abraham. You found his heart faithful to you, and you made a covenant with him to give to his descendants the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Jebusites and Girgashites. You have kept your promise because you are righteous.

Back to the very beginning. Israel began with God choosing Abraham from among all the ppl on earth.

This is their entire history acknowledging God’s role in their establishment and development.

He made Abraham a promise that one day his descendants would occupy this land. The entire earth and all its inhabitants would be blessed thru one descendant in particular.

Here Israel is acknowledging God kept the promise.

That’s the only reason Israel ended up there in the first place. No person nor nation could take any credit.

Long before they got to the PL, they had to get out of Egypt first.

Nehemiah 9:9–12 NIV

“You saw the suffering of our ancestors in Egypt; you heard their cry at the Red Sea. You sent signs and wonders against Pharaoh, against all his officials and all the people of his land, for you knew how arrogantly the Egyptians treated them. You made a name for yourself, which remains to this day. You divided the sea before them, so that they passed through it on dry ground, but you hurled their pursuers into the depths, like a stone into mighty waters. By day you led them with a pillar of cloud, and by night with a pillar of fire to give them light on the way they were to take.

Then spent no time on how they got into Egypt; only that the Egyptians enslaved them and Israel cried out to God for help b/c of their suffering.

God responded to their cry w/ miracles to get Pharaoh to let them leave.

Again, only God could get credit. He used Moses but God did the work. No one else could do what He did.

God led them thru the parted sea then collapsed it on the entire Egyptian army killing them ensuring Israel’s safety on the other side. He protected them.

Then, led them to land as a pillar; smoke by day and fire by night.

No organization, no government. What did God expect of them. For generations they were expected to make the Egyptians happy.

But, now, what about God?

Nehemiah 9:13–15 NIV

“You came down on Mount Sinai; you spoke to them from heaven. You gave them regulations and laws that are just and right, and decrees and commands that are good. You made known to them your holy Sabbath and gave them commands, decrees and laws through your servant Moses. In their hunger you gave them bread from heaven and in their thirst you brought them water from the rock; you told them to go in and take possession of the land you had sworn with uplifted hand to give them.

Right after the sea episode God met Moses on Mt. Sinai and gave him the law, good rules to lives by.

As they journeyed God provided food and water miraculously.

He led them to the land and told them to take the land, and they did just like He promised.

It didn’t take long for them to take their first wrong turn.

Nehemiah 9:16–18 NIV

“But they, our ancestors, became arrogant and stiff-necked, and they did not obey your commands. They refused to listen and failed to remember the miracles you performed among them. They became stiff-necked and in their rebellion appointed a leader in order to return to their slavery. But you are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. Therefore you did not desert them, even when they cast for themselves an image of a calf and said, ‘This is your god, who brought you up out of Egypt,’ or when they committed awful blasphemies.

Nehemiah 9:

They immediately needed a do-over.

While Moses was getting the law from Israel, the ppl were violating most of it.

They made the golden calf and appointed Aaron to lead them back to Egypt.

But the calf couldn’t have led them out nor thru the sea.

In spite of it all God did not desert them in the wilderness to die. They may have deserved this. But, He was forgiving, gracious compassionate, slow to anger, and abounding in love.

God stayed close even when they pushed Him away and He led them every step of the way.

Nehemiah 9:19–21 NIV

“Because of your great compassion you did not abandon them in the wilderness. By day the pillar of cloud did not fail to guide them on their path, nor the pillar of fire by night to shine on the way they were to take. You gave your good Spirit to instruct them. You did not withhold your manna from their mouths, and you gave them water for their thirst. For forty years you sustained them in the wilderness; they lacked nothing, their clothes did not wear out nor did their feet become swollen.

For 40 years God continued to guide them, instruct them, and provide for them. He didn’t desert them, ever.

Out of compassion He provided food, water, and their clothes never wore out.

He still led them right up to and into the land he had promised Abraham.

Nehemiah 9:22–25 NIV

“You gave them kingdoms and nations, allotting to them even the remotest frontiers. They took over the country of Sihon king of Heshbon and the country of Og king of Bashan. You made their children as numerous as the stars in the sky, and you brought them into the land that you told their parents to enter and possess. Their children went in and took possession of the land. You subdued before them the Canaanites, who lived in the land; you gave the Canaanites into their hands, along with their kings and the peoples of the land, to deal with them as they pleased. They captured fortified cities and fertile land; they took possession of houses filled with all kinds of good things, wells already dug, vineyards, olive groves and fruit trees in abundance. They ate to the full and were well-nourished; they reveled in your great goodness.

God conquered the occupying nations for them. Israel took over their already fortified cities, well-stocked homes, previously dug wells, abundant vineyards, olive groves, and fruit trees.

They had to do nothing except faithfully obey God and they were handed this abundance.

They hadn’t been good enough to deserve any of it. But, it didn’t matter. God promised He’d do it.

And, they acknowledged that God is good. They knew it.

But, it didn’t take long for them and they blew it.

Nehemiah 9:

Nehemiah 9:26–31 NIV

“But they were disobedient and rebelled against you; they turned their backs on your law. They killed your prophets, who had warned them in order to turn them back to you; they committed awful blasphemies. So you delivered them into the hands of their enemies, who oppressed them. But when they were oppressed they cried out to you. From heaven you heard them, and in your great compassion you gave them deliverers, who rescued them from the hand of their enemies. “But as soon as they were at rest, they again did what was evil in your sight. Then you abandoned them to the hand of their enemies so that they ruled over them. And when they cried out to you again, you heard from heaven, and in your compassion you delivered them time after time. “You warned them in order to turn them back to your law, but they became arrogant and disobeyed your commands. They sinned against your ordinances, of which you said, ‘The person who obeys them will live by them.’ Stubbornly they turned their backs on you, became stiff-necked and refused to listen. For many years you were patient with them. By your Spirit you warned them through your prophets. Yet they paid no attention, so you gave them into the hands of the neighboring peoples. But in your great mercy you did not put an end to them or abandon them, for you are a gracious and merciful God.

Big wrong turn #2.

As soon as they were at rest in the land they turned their back on God.

They didn’t believe they needed Him any more.

So, God turned His back on them.

He didn’t need them. And the soon found out how badly they really did need Him.

They cried out in repentance so He returned to them.

But then there was big wrong turn #3, and #4, and #5, and so on. v. 28 says “time after time”.

Every time. For many years, God was patient and warned them thru prophets but they refused to listen. They paid no attention. So finally, God exiled them.

Still, He is gracious and merciful so He forgave them and let them return.

For 400 years the cycle continued. While they lived in the land enjoying God’s blessings they sinned.

God blessed them, they benefitted, they got lazy and turned their back on Him, God punished them, they repented so God relented and blessed them. And so on.

Now, slaves in the land, paying taxes to Artaxerxes, they begged for relief.

They repeatedly made wrong turns.

To repent means make a right turn. Turn away from what’s wrong, change direction and move back to God.

If they were not truly repentant then they were destined to repeat it.

They never entirely got themselves turned toward God.

John wrote about this to us in the NT.

He was a teenager when Jesus was crucified. He lived the longest and wrote the latest.

Time filtered much of his thoughts and he wrote what He believed to be the most important things we needed to know and do as Christians.

It all centered around the cross.

Cross

1 John 1:8–10 NIV

If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.

John is writing to Christians. We sin. We regularly need do-overs.

But, in order to take full advantage of the do-overs God gives us we first have to acknowledge what we did and why we did it.

If we do this, it’s done. It’s handled. We can move on, guilt-free.

Repent.

We made a wrong turn. Admit it. Now, make a right turn.

We all sin. Every sin hurts at least one relationship.

God provided a way for us to be able to deal w/ our sin and repair these relationships.

If we don’t, we are destined to repeat it.

Jesus died to deal with it. Let Him. Learn from it. Leave it at the cross, don’t take it back. Move on in a new direction.

This is your do-over.

Application

There really is just one.

This morning take time and ask God right now if there is anything you need to do business w/ Him about.

Own it. Admit it.

Then, let Jesus deal w/ it. Learn from it. Leave it at the cross, don’t take it back. Move in a new direction.

This is how you take full advantage of every do-over God gives you.