Sermon Tone Analysis

ME

Today is the first Sunday of Advent.

During this time we anticipate and prepare ourselves for the coming of Christ Jesus, though he has come already and enacted the gospel.

He has come as the King, Lord and Saviour which is what we are all commissioned to proclaim.

We are also anticipating Jesus’ return, where he will bring judgment, a new heaven and a new earth.

Now normally at this time, we would be going into Matthew or Luke to look at the story of Elizabeth, or Mary, or Zechariah, or Joseph — the stories leading up to Jesus’ birth.

We will go on that journey next Sunday.

Today, I will conclude our exploration of Ezra-Nehemiah.

WE

However, the message this week is a very apt segueway into Advent.

Part of our anticipation and preparation for Jesus’ birth is an examination of our lives and the confession of our sins to God.

So often we enjoy the benefits of God without first acknowledging how unfaithful we have been as a covenant partner.

The tension of covenant faithfulness is this: knowing that we can never be fully faithful, why does God still want to have any partnership with us?

GOD

We are almost at the end of the book of Ezra-Nehemiah.

And for those who want a refresher, this book is about the Jewish people restoring the temple and building as a sign of covenant faithfulness to their God.

The Jews had previously been in exile because they had abandoned the LORD their God, along with his justice, mercy, and his sole worship.

Two weeks ago, Pastor Shu told us about the joyful story of the leadership encouraging the Israelites who have returned from exile to go about their business with praise and thankfulness for all that has been provided for them.

This includes protection and safety despite the multiple attempts of Sanballat and Tobiah to stop the city wall.

Just to let you know, Sanballat and Tobiah aren’t done.

In fact, if you read chapter 13 on your own it will show you just how much they’ve infilitrated the Jewish elites.

After the momentous joy, the Levites gather the returned exile for some heart to heart talk about their checkered history as a people and nation.

In North America and Western culture, it is often the individuals who matter and are culpable for their actions.

In corporate and communal cultures like Middle East, one’s behaviour past and present affects and permeates throughout history.

National sin needs to be remembered, confessed, mourned and repented of.

Here’s the BIG IDEA:

God’s constant grace and mercy encourages us to confess and repent of our sins together.

Here’s the background:

We know from Pastor Shu in Nehemiah 8:13 the people gathered on the second day to study the word of the Law.

Now it is the twenty-fourth day of the same month.

The once rejoicing people, who were eating the choicest portion and drink have turned to a somber time of fasting, wearing sackcloth and throwing earth on their heads, the traditional acts of mourning.

The Israelites knew of their national and historic sin, acts and thoughts done against God of which they were guilty of (that’s what iniquities mean here).

National because God has called them, as a nation, to be the exemplar for what it means to be a God-focused and God-led society.

They had failed.

Historic because it plainly says they are confessing of the sins of their fathers, or ancestors.

They separated themselves from the foreigners whom some have married in Ezra 9-10.

The assembly read the Book of the Law and confessed and worship equally.

During our worship service at MCBC, we do have a time of confession during the pastoral prayer by me or one of the deacons for 30 seconds.

This is a good start, but have we ever had a service where studying God’s word (sermon) was split equally with praise and worship (including confession)?

How might that renew us as a people, I wonder.

Let’s see what pattern these Levites show us.

They begin by commanding the people to stand up and bless the Lord.

Jewish people pray standing up and only in their deepest despair do they prostrate themselves.

I am sure by the time chapter 9 is completed most of them would be on their knees.

But the first act is to stand and to be reminded of who God is.

He is eternal, glorious, exalted, higher than all kings, all other lesser idols who claim to be gods, and worthy of praise.

And with that, the Levites launch into the pattern we are going to explore:

God’s grace and mercy pours onto his people from creation to nation.

His people rebel.

God’s loyal love will not forsake them.

His people rebel.

God punishes and judges in order for them to return.

The people return confessing their sin.

I. God is Gracious and Faithful to His people (6-15)

Verse 6:

First, we are reminded God alone is the creator of the heavens and all the hosts, sun, moon, stars, and all heavenly, earthly and sea creatures.

Not only does he create but he also sustains their life, and therefore all creation gratefully exalts God, including humanity.

This gives God the right to guide our lives to reflect his glorious purpose of a people called by his name.

Verse 7-8

Out of all humanity, Abram is chosen and became the father of nations.

Verse 8 focuses on the partnership between God and humanity and the proper response of faithfulness.

Out of this, God makes a covenant with Abraham to give his descendants the land of the Canaanites and to form them into a God-centered nation.

Without a land, there’s no nation, and without a nation, there’s no promise.

And Abraham was faithful from a human perspective, imperfectly trusting even though he was old and his wife was barren.

God kept his promise and through Abraham came Isaac, and through Isaac came Jacob, and Jacob became Israel, and the twelve tribes so that at the end of Genesis, the Israelites are protected in Egypt under Joseph.

This is probably as brief as you can summarize the Book of Genesis in 3 verses, though of course the Israelites would have heard from their parents all the in between stories.

The key focus is that last part of verse 8. God kept his promise because he’s righteous.

Now we enter the book of Exodus:

As a new Pharoah arose in Egypt and the Jews multiplied greatly, they became a threat and were therefore enslaved.

All signs of the promise seemed lost, and that’s when God raised up Moses to challenge the worldly power.

It’s interesting to note, however, that Moses’ name isn’t event mentioned until verse 14.

It is God who takes centre stage in verses 9-15, where the Levites give all credit to God for all the events that transpire.

It was God, Yahweh, the LORD, who vindicates the arrogance of Egypt, who sends the ten plagues which forced Pharoah to let the people go.

It was God who split the sea of reed for the Jews to travel safely through and then smother the Egyptian army with the same water.

It is God who leads the Jews on their journey via the two pillars of fire and cloud.

Finally, it is God who gives the Jews his laws and the holy Sabbath day, to remind them that they are set apart as God’s people and are no longer slaves.

God keeps his promises because he’s righteous.

He is determined to fulfill what he promises: to bring Abraham’s children into the promise land, no matter what opposition there is.

Unfortunately, we begin to see some wavering within the people’s part of the covenant.

They grumbled with growling hunger, so he gave them manna, and when they are feisty in thrist he gave them water.

This is of course Israel’s history but it is also a part of our spiritual and faith history.

We see God’s pattern.

He graciously supplies to us all that we need.

He provides for our family.

He blesses us with a job, with a roof over our head and for most of us if we want an education.

But we often grumble about the tiniest things.

Some little inconvenience happens and we blow up as if the world is ending.

We focus on our career while forgetting the One who gave it to us in the first place.

Or we focus on our children so much that they become our idols and our priorities become out of place.

Or we pursue the endless choices of entertainment and leisure, which God invites us to enjoy, and then we push God further and further away.

Let’s recount: how has God been gracious to you?

How has God been gracious to us?

A church building and a plot of land in the heart of Markham between two major streets, surrounded by neighbours of all nations and a neighbourhood who could use the abundance God has provided.

How have we used God’s graciousness to bless others?

Our second point:

II.

God is Loving and Patient despite our continuous Prideful and Rebelliousness response (16-17, 18-30)

Nehemiah 9:16–17 (ESV)

16 “But they and our fathers acted presumptuously and stiffened their neck and did not obey your commandments.

17 They refused to obey and were not mindful of the wonders that you performed among them, but they stiffened their neck and appointed a leader to return to their slavery in Egypt. .