EXPERIENCING TRUE JOY!

Do you recognize these Bible phrases or allusions?

Rarely a week goes by without any one of us quoting or alluding to that great book simply in our conversations and chatter. These are among the phrases having origins in the Bible:

(Psalm 72:9) Queen Song…

Another one “bite(s) the dust”

(Psalm 27:13) You might welcome a heavy sleeper with this phrase,

“Welcome to the “land of the living”

(Isaiah 40:15) It’s a drop in the __________.

It’s “a drop in the bucket”

(Matthew 15:14) When lost, you don’t want directions from these guys.

It would be “the blind leading the blind”

(Leviticus 16:22) Blame shifting.

He “made a scapegoat”

Giving it another 5280 feet. (Matthew 5:41)

“go the extra mile”

You don’t want it in your soup either. (Ecclesiastes 10:1)

“fly in the ointment”

People could use this to describe my age now. (Job 15:7)

“as old as the hills”

Israel had been back in the land for decades. They milled about as in Wilderness until Nehemiah came and accomplished in less than 2 months what sat unfinished for 20 years. They had been downtrodden, discouraged and distracted for years. But with leadership and a vision, Nehemiah led them to complete it in 52 Days.

Some people think of Nehemiah building the wall. That in itself can be considered a great accomplishment. The wall simply had been a means to an end. He wanted people to know God. He wanted people to experience God. He wanted people to have a joy that moth and rust cannot steal.

Let me remind you, that real joy, not the momentary happiness that sin and selfishness offers. The deep joy of the part of your soul that only God can fulfill comes by knowing God, walking with him. It’s a joy with being at peace with Your creator and having peace within yourself. When you get right with God, no one can knock the joy out of you besides yourself. Nehemiah wanted people to know how to have REAL JOY.

Nehemiah 7:73-8:10

73 Now the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, some of the people, the temple servants and all Israel, lived in their cities. And when the seventh month came, the sons of Israel were in their cities. 1 And all the people gathered as one man at the square which was in front of the Water Gate, and they asked Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses which the Lord had given to Israel. 2 Then Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly of men, women and all who could listen with understanding, on the first day of the seventh month. 3 He read from it before the square which was in front of the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of men and women, those who could understand; and all the people were attentive to the book of the law. 4 Ezra the scribe stood at a wooden podium which 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 Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people for he was standing above all the people; and when he opened it, all the people stood up. 6 Then Ezra blessed the Lord the great God. And all the people answered, “Amen, Amen!” while lifting up their hands; then they bowed low 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, explained the law to the people while the people remained in their place. 8 They read from the book, from the law of God, translating to give the sense so that they understood the reading. 9 Then 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 were weeping when they heard the words of the law. 10 Then he said to them, “Go, eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

WHO MAY ENTER THE JOY OF THE LORD?

Ezra 1:5 5 Then the family heads of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and Levites-- everyone whose heart God had moved-- prepared to go up and build the house of the LORD in Jerusalem.

1. YOU WHEN GOD IS YOUR HEART’S DESIRE!

a. GOD IS ALL ABOUT LISTS! (Nehemiah 7)

God’s people are not a nameless mass, but a list of individuals called together by the HOLY God to dwell with Him forever.

b. JOY COMES FROM BEING ON GOD’S LIST.

Exodus 32:32 32 But now, if you will forgive their sin- but if not, please blot me out of your book that you have written."

Daniel 12:1 But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book.

Revelation 17:8 8 The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to rise from the bottomless pit and go to destruction. And the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world will marvel to see the beast, because it was and is not and is to come.

Luke 10:20 20 Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."

c. GOD ALWAYS HAS BEEN AND ALWAYS WILL BE ABOUT BRINGING PEOPLE OUT OF THE BABYLON OF THIS WORLD TO BRING US INTO THE PRESENCE OF GOD!

Revelation 5:9-10 9 And they sang a new song, saying, "Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, 10 and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth."

God’s people are not a nameless mass, but a list of individuals called together by the HOLY God to dwell with Him forever.

In sin over their heads! Funny illustration.

2. WHEN YOU KEEP THE SABBATH HOLY! (v. 1)

Today we live in a time of celebrity. It has infected the church. People mistake a stage for worship.

Matt Redman shared the background for the song he wrote, “Heart of Worship.”

“There was a dynamic missing, so the pastor did a pretty brave thing,” he recalls. “He decided to get rid of the sound system and band for a season, and we gathered together with just our voices. His point was that we’d lost our way in worship, and the way to get back to the heart would be to strip everything away.”

Reminding his church family to be producers in worship, not just consumers, the pastor, Mike Pilavachi, asked, “When you come through the doors on a Sunday, what are you bringing as your offering to God?”

Matt says the question initially led to some embarrassing silence, but eventually people broke into a cappella songs and heartfelt prayers, encountering God in a fresh way.

“Before long, we reintroduced the musicians and sound system, as we’d gained a new perspective that worship is all about Jesus, and He commands a response in the depths of our souls no matter what the circumstance and setting. ‘The Heart of Worship’ simply describes what occurred.”

When the music fades, all is stripped away, and I simply come / Longing just to bring something that’s of worth that will bless your heart… / I’m coming back to the heart of worship, and it’s all about You, Jesus

There are many people going to church in this environment and they seem excited for a time but like the parable of the seed and the sower, they fade away. But, they never grow. They don’t recognize that worship must grow out of an understanding of WHO worship needs to be focused upon.

3. YOU HUNGER FOR THE BOOK! They wanted the Book brought out

YOU WANT TO HEAR GOD SPEAK! (v. 3)

YOU WANT TO UNDERSTAND HOW TO LIVE FOR GOD. (v. 2)

YOU WILL APPLY IT TO DAILY LIFE. (v. 9)

YOU WILL SHARE IT WITH THOSE WHO NEED TO HEAR IT. (v. 8)

Sometimes the Bible states things that while reading you and I just gloss over. An example would be in this passage. We think its merely reporting that in the month of Tishri. We might not place any more weight on that month than one might for June or January. But imagine if the church had been removed from a country for decades, the people had forgotten about the Holy Days, and then you discover that their first formal worship occured on Palm Sunday? Then they heard the story of Christ’s Resurrection next week, do you imagine they would get excited and bring things together.

Nehemiah is not about building a wall. He is about bringing people back into intimacy with God. It was about restoring the joy of knowing God.

So the month of Tishri has 3 important feasts. The first is Rosh Hasshanah, the Second is the Day of Atonement. 3rd is the Festival of Booths where the people remember when God Tabernacled with them in the desert.

They have been exiled in Bablyon for 70 years and now have return.

Some people believe that Jesus will Reclaim His church on Rosh Hashannah, that would be the Rapture in the way we understand the snatching up of the church. He will bring us into His presence. There is also the belief that he will reclaim Israel on the Day of Atonement. Then finally that He will inaugurate His final Kingdom during the Festival of Tabernacles.

When we get our mind upon the heavenly vision, it brings a noticeable response in our lives and completes our sense of joy.

PERSONAL CHECKLIST FOR ATTITUDES AND ACTIONS THAT WILL WELCOME GOD’S JOY (v. 6 where do you need to bow down to worship and receive His joy?):

1. I am eager to worship God each Sabbath. Yes or No.

2. I arrive early to church so I can fellowship before worship and service and get to the book during class time. Yes or No.

3. I am attentive and focused when the Word is being preached and taught. Yes or No.

4. I am available to serve where needed. Yes or No.

5. I am able to share the gospel clearly and confidently with others. Yes or No.

6. I have talked specifically about God with someone who needed in the past 6 months. Yes or No.