Sermon Tone Analysis

In last weeks message we began to look at the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem, specifically at some of the individuals God chose to use in the rebuilding of the gates and wall.

First we looked at Eliashib, the High Priest as well as the other priests with him.

We noted that their coming alongside the common people to build, signified that God’s Hand was on this building effort.

We also looked at the fact that we learn in that while there was a time Eliashib was the type of spiritual leader he was called to be, that in the end he did not finish well.

The challenge for us it to realize that it matters little if we accomplish great things for Christ if in the end we don’t finish well.

Not finishing well means we miss out on hearing “Well Done, good and faithful servant.”

Next we moved to the ones God called out on the pages of Scripture for all eternity.

The Nobles of the Tekoites felt they were too good to join the common people in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem.

We were reminded through the bad example of these men that Being High in Your Own Eyes Brings You Low in the Eyes of the God of Heaven.

But we also learned that just because those who are supposed to be leaders dropped the ball in their leadership, doesn’t mean that we that are under them are freed from serving God faithfully.

In we find that the Tekoites basically did double duty rather than follow the lead of their nobles.

We closed out last weeks message by reviewing the specific occupations of these wall builders and discovered that there was no indication whatsoever that there was a single skilled laborer involved.

Simply put, in the Christian life The Only Requirement for Building God’s Kingdom is an Available servant with a Willing Heart .

You see God was not looking for qualified builders, He was looking for willing and available servants.

This morning we will continue to look at and the rebuilding effort in Jerusalem, specifically we will be looking at the gates.

As I have mentioned many times, and will continue to mention, nothing in this Book is here by accident.

Every word is here for a specific purpose, even the order of the words and in this case the order of the Gates around Jerusalem as they appear in .

All have a specific purpose.

Many Biblical scholars believe there is very significant spiritual meaning behind each of the gates, including their order as they appear in .

This morning we are going to look at, as Dr. J. Vernon McGee calls it “The Gospel in the Gates of Jerusalem”.

If you haven’t already, please turn in your copies of God’s Word to the Book of Nehemiah chapter 3. It is on page 505 in the pew Bibles.

Next Slide

The Tour of the Gates.

Dr. J. Vernon McGee writes: “There are ten of these gates, and they form an instrument of ten strings from which vibrates heaven’s harmony.

As we stand back to better examine the massive stones of the walls, they begin to speak.

They have a message for us, for you and I are building walls – spiritual walls, if you please – with the same gates and having the same message.

Today God has given us a subcontract that you and I might build these walls of Jerusalem in our own hearts and lives.”

There are ten of these gates, and they form an instrument of ten strings from which vibrates heaven‟s harmony.

As we stand back to better examine the massive stones of the walls, they begin to speak.

They have a message for us, for you and I are building walls – spiritual walls, if you please – with the same gates and having the same message.

Today God has given us a subcontract that you and I might build these walls of Jerusalem in our own hearts and lives.

Dr. J. Vernon McGee writes: There are ten of these gates, and they form an instrument of ten strings from which vibrates heaven‟s harmony.

As we stand back to better examine the massive stones of the walls, they begin to speak.

They have a message for us, for you and I are building walls – spiritual walls, if you please – with the same gates and having the same message.

Today God has given us a subcontract that you and I might build these walls of Jerusalem in our own hearts and lives.

Next Slides

Now let’s look at the gates and what each one represents.

To begin with this morning, let’s start with:

The Sheep Gate Represents Christ & His Work on the Cross.

; ;

Now right from the start I want to let you know I will likely spend more time on this gate than any of the other gates, and we may not make it through all of the gates this morning.

So don’t get nervous when you see all of the gates listed in your bulletin handouts, thinking this message may last until Thanksgiving!

In we read:

Nehemiah 3:1

We mentioned the significance of this gate last week, especially as it related to the Eliashib, the Chief Priest as well as the other priests.

This was the gate where the lambs for the Temple sacrifice were brought through.

That, in and of itself is very significant, but that is just the beginning of what we will see this morning.

By the way, I mentioned that this was the gate where the lambs were brought through for the temple sacrifice, but their was something else that needed to be done before lambs were brought to the temple for the sacrifice.

Remember, these were lambs for the sacrifice, meaning they were to be spotless lambs, but on top of being spotless they also had to be cleaned.

So, before they were brought in for the sacrifice, they were brought to a very special pool where they were washed.

This was the: Next Slide

John 5:1-9

This was the:

The Pool of Bethesda.

That pool came into play in the Gospels, almost 500 years later.

We read in:

The Fish Gate.

; ;

At the time of Christ, superstitious traditions held that there was a mysterious power in this pool.

The water had a reddish tint to it and was apparently fed by an underground spring that would, from time to time stir movement in the water.

They felt that anytime the water stirred, it was being stirred by an angel and that the 1st person in the water would be healed.

That is why this man was there.

Jesus completely ignores the superstitions held by the people and moves right to the healing.

J. Vernon McGee writes: “That act was symbolic of the fact that He came as the Lamb of God to take away the sin of the world.

And the poor man whom He healed is a picture of every sinner who, if willing to come to the cross of Christ, will find deliverance from sin.”

That act was symbolic of the fact that He came as the Lamb of God to take away the sin of the world.

And the poor man whom He healed is a picture of every sinner who, if willing to come to the cross of Christ, will find deliverance from sin.”

The key is that healing comes from Jesus and not from the pool, Jesus then entered the City of Jerusalem through the Sheep Gate.

Most theologians believe that Jesus always entered Jerusalem through the Sheep Gate, except on one occasion.

That occasion was the Triumphal Entry the week of the Crucifixion.

Now, perhaps you may be wondering what would be significant about Jesus always entering Jerusalem through the Sheep Gate?

I believe the answer is found in , where we read:

John 1:29

In other words, Jesus purposeful entrance through the Sheep Gate was His way of pointing everyone to the fact that He had come as that spotless Lamb of God, Who would take away the sins of the world.

To emphasize this in an even greater way, let me read to you from the Book of , where we read:

Isaiah 53:7

So, how does this fit with the Sheep Gate.

The path the Jesus was led on from His trial in front of Pilate to the place of the Crucifixion, took Jesus right through the streets of Jerusalem, past the Temple, His feet literally walking the path of the lambs that were being led to be slaughtered, and He then exited Jerusalem through the Sheep Gate.

He was very literally fulfilling and at the same moment.

It also fits very well with what Jesus said in :

This brings us to the homework assignment I sent out this week via the churches email list.

The assignment was for you to look over the verses comparing all of the other gates to the the Sheep Gate.

To see if you could find something that took place with the Sheep Gate that did not take place with any of the other gates and see if you can find a detail in all of the other gates that is not listed on the Sheep Gate.

The 1st question was, what took place with the sheep gate that did not take place with the other gates?

(The Sheep Gate was the only gate that was consecrated by the priests).

The priests understood from the very beginning that this gate was a very special gate.

When they consecrated this gate, they were setting it apart as a very special gate.

Truthfully, at the time they had no idea how really special this gate was for all of history.

Only now are we beginning to understand, but even we won’t know until the day we stand face to Face with that spotless Lamb of God Who takes away the sins of the world.

The 2nd question was, what was the detail seen in all of the other gates that was not listed in the Sheep Gate? (Every other gate mentions that they “set it’s bolts and bars).

There is a very powerful and significant lesson here that we can’t miss.

The mention of the setting of the bolts and bars is specifically referring to the ability to secure and lock the other gates.

There is no mention of bolts and bars on the Sheep Gate signifying that the way of salvation is open to all who will put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ, the spotless Lamb of God.

As long as there is breath in our lungs and the beating in our hearts the way of salvation is open to us.

That brings us to the next gate, and by the way, I want you to notice that the listing of the gates progresses counter-clockwise.

This, in and of itself is an important thing to notice, you see the things of God often go counter to what we might expect.

The next gate is:

Next Slides

The Fish Gate Represents Our Responsibility to be “Fishers of Men”.

; ;

When we look at the Fish Gate, we are reminded that one of the very first thing Jesus did when someone believed in Him was to give them an assignment.

We see this when He called the disciples.

You will recall what He said to Andrew and Peter, to James and John when these fishermen were by the Sea of Galilee, He said; “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”