Names That Matter To God (Part II)
Notes
Transcript
Revelation
Revelation
Ezra 10:18-44
18 The following were found to have married foreign women from the descendants of the priests:
from the descendants of Jeshua son of Jozadak and his brothers: Maaseiah, Eliezer, Jarib, and Gedaliah. 19 They pledged to send their wives away, and being guilty, they offered a ram from the flock for their guilt;
20 Hanani and Zebadiah from Immer’s descendants;
21 Maaseiah, Elijah, Shemaiah, Jehiel, and Uzziah from Harim’s descendants;
22 Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethanel, Jozabad, and Elasah from Pashhur’s descendants.
23 The Levites:
Jozabad, Shimei, Kelaiah (that is Kelita), Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer.
24 The singers:
Eliashib.
The gatekeepers:
Shallum, Telem, and Uri.
25 The Israelites:
Parosh’s descendants: Ramiah, Izziah, Malchijah, Mijamin, Eleazar, Malchijah, and Benaiah;
26 Elam’s descendants: Mattaniah, Zechariah, Jehiel, Abdi, Jeremoth, and Elijah;
27 Zattu’s descendants: Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, Jeremoth, Zabad, and Aziza;
28 Bebai’s descendants: Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, and Athlai;
29 Bani’s descendants: Meshullam, Malluch, Adaiah, Jashub, Sheal, and Jeremoth;
30 Pahath-moab’s descendants: Adna, Chelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Bezalel, Binnui, and Manasseh;
31 Harim’s descendants: Eliezer, Isshijah, Malchijah, Shemaiah, Shimeon, 32 Benjamin, Malluch, and Shemariah;
33 Hashum’s descendants: Mattenai, Mattattah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai, Manasseh, and Shimei;
34 Bani’s descendants: Maadai, Amram, Uel, 35 Benaiah, Bedeiah, Cheluhi, 36 Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib, 37 Mattaniah, Mattenai, Jaasu, 38 Bani, Binnui, Shimei, 39 Shelemiah, Nathan, Adaiah, 40 Machnadebai, Shashai, Sharai, 41 Azarel, Shelemiah, Shemariah, 42 Shallum, Amariah, and Joseph;
43 Nebo’s descendants: Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jaddai, Joel, and Benaiah.
44 All of these had married foreign women, and some of the wives had given birth to children.
Now this is the 3rd time I’ve had to preach on a list of names
And in this series alone I think I have 3 more times to do it…pray for me
But this sermon is titled names that matter to God part II
The reason for that is, the last list of names were the names of those who returned with Ezra
And we talked about the decision of faithfulness of those who would leave their comfortability to go back to a desolate land to rebuild
And the names of those people mattered to God, and so they matter to us
Well listen, it cannot be that only those names matter
It cannot be that only the good decisions matter and that God doesn’t care about anything bad, just celebrates the good
No, these names also matter
But let’s talk about this first point
Groups Rise And Fall By Leaders - 10:18-23
Groups Rise And Fall By Leaders - 10:18-23
So I think we can see this first point (as well as the second point coming) pretty clearly
We just read a list of names of those who took foreign wives beginning first with those who were supposed to lead Israel
Now remember for the sake of context, it issue we are seeing here is Israel’s desire to stray away from God and worship other gods
And their intermarriage with the people of the surrounding lands was not inherently the issue, it was the issue of those people they began to look like,
Having no desire to follow the LORD but rather, desired that Israel abandon the LORD to follow other gods
So last week we saw how pervasive this issue became, that it took 3 months in order that they could deal with all of the Israelites who began to intermingle
And here is the list of names
So let’s start where Ezra did, let’s start with leadership
First, is leadership even biblical? Like just because we do it doesn’t mean it has biblical foundations right?
Well spoiler alert, leadership is biblical
In Genesis we see the establishment leadership and its structure in the creation narrative in Genesis 1-2
And then in Genesis 3 we see that flipped on its head
Because the order to operations in Genesis 1-2 is
God - Creates...
Man - Who then receives and names...
Woman - Both together, with Adam as the head are to rule over...
Creation
And then in Genesis 3 we see the fall happen as a result of the corruption of the leadership structure
Creation - approaches and deceives
Woman - who gives the fruit to...
Man - to usurp and become like...
God
The book of Judges lays out what happens when there is not Godly leadership
Judges 17:6
6 In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did whatever seemed right to him.
25 In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did whatever seemed right to him.
Israel’s history that led them into Exile in the first place can be summed up in one verse on leadership
30 This was because Jeroboam had angered the Lord God of Israel by the sins he had committed and had caused Israel to commit.
As it is God who instituted leadership, therefore it matters who leads
It matters who leads in churches and how they lead
It matters who leads organizations and how they lead
It matters who leads in our community and how they lead
All this because the burden of biblical leadership is of both authority and responsibility
Because in all of those, leaders are meant to reflect the LORD and point people to the LORD
In all of those.
Truly Christian leaders in communities will be a reflection of the LORD and will point people to the LORD
1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy, and say to them, ‘This is what the Lord God says to the shepherds: Woe to the shepherds of Israel, who have been feeding themselves! Shouldn’t the shepherds feed their flock? 3 You eat the fat, wear the wool, and butcher the fattened animals, but you do not tend the flock. 4 You have not strengthened the weak, healed the sick, bandaged the injured, brought back the strays, or sought the lost. Instead, you have ruled them with violence and cruelty. 5 They were scattered for lack of a shepherd; they became food for all the wild animals when they were scattered. 6 My flock went astray on all the mountains and every high hill. My flock was scattered over the whole face of the earth, and there was no one searching or seeking for them.
7 “ ‘Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord. 8 As I live—this is the declaration of the Lord God—because my flock, lacking a shepherd, has become prey and food for every wild animal, and because my shepherds do not search for my flock, and because the shepherds feed themselves rather than my flock, 9 therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord!
10 “ ‘This is what the Lord God says: Look, I am against the shepherds. I will demand my flock from them and prevent them from shepherding the flock. The shepherds will no longer feed themselves, for I will rescue my flock from their mouths so that they will not be food for them.
11 “ ‘For this is what the Lord God says: See, I myself will search for my flock and look for them. 12 As a shepherd looks for his sheep on the day he is among his scattered flock, so I will look for my flock. I will rescue them from all the places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and total darkness. 13 I will bring them out from the peoples, gather them from the countries, and bring them to their own soil. I will shepherd them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines, and in all the inhabited places of the land. 14 I will tend them in good pasture, and their grazing place will be on Israel’s lofty mountains. There they will lie down in a good grazing place; they will feed in rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. 15 I will tend my flock and let them lie down. This is the declaration of the Lord God. 16 I will seek the lost, bring back the strays, bandage the injured, and strengthen the weak, but I will destroy the fat and the strong. I will shepherd them with justice.
This is the burden of leadership, if your desire is the lead then you stand accountable to God for those you lead
Groups will rise and fall on the faithfulness or faithlessness of leadership
Groups Are Shaken Or Strengthened By Members - 10:24-44
Groups Are Shaken Or Strengthened By Members - 10:24-44
Here also is the key however, leaders lead people.
And while leaders can promote, foster, and convince, people to take certain actions
It still falls upon the individual to take that action
Notice it is not just the leaders who are indicted and the members get a pass
No because God has given us His Word,
Because God has given us His law,
And because God has fulfilled the requirements of the law in the person of Jesus
And shown us therefore that He requires our faith in trust in Jesus
We are accountable, individually.
If you are not a follower of Jesus, you are accountable as God has revealed, that you should turn away from a life of trusting in yourself
Turn away from a life of despair and bondage to sin
And turn to trust in Jesus and have Him as the object of your faith
Stake your life upon the person and work of Jesus
But if you are a Christian,
that means you have already done this, and therefore have already been taken from death unto life
And therefore have been given the Holy Spirit to dwell within you,
We are therefore accountable in walking with God, keeping in step with the Holy Spirit
As the evidence, of our salvation
See our culture likes to blame one or the other
We either solely blame the leaders OR we say its all the individuals fault
Yet biblically its both
Since we are a church plant, let’s make some quick application
I could be the greatest leader and pastor this world has ever known, yet if the members of the plant
Are not walking in faithfulness, it matters not
Because I can point and lead the members to faithfulness but it is upon them to take up that mantle
Yet the reverse is also true
I could have the greatest and most amazing members, but if I myself am corrupt and wicked and faithless
The longer the members stay the more corrupt they will slowly become
Accountability is upon both
But really all of this comes down to this,
What is the purpose of your life?
Why do you exist?
Whether leader, aspiring leader, or member of a group, a church, a business, whatever
What is your purpose in that role?
You purpose in all things is to bring Glory to God by enjoying Him forever
That means you are to walk in God’s ways
You are to trust in God’s promises
You are to seek God’s Mission