Nehemiah 8

INTRO

Have you ever thought about how blessed you are to have a copy of the Bible??

Lots of talk about a wall but the wall was only there for the people… People = 13 times in todays text… People are Gods concern !!

God’s Word forms God’s people, and God’s joy is their strength.

Are you part of God’s people?

Are you formed by His Word?

Is His Word your joy?

Is His Word your strength?

Jews know as the people of the book

Christians known as the people of the book

Look To The Book = Neh 8…

Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther (1. The Law Read and Explained (7:73b–8:12))

Williamson has suggested that we have here almost the same elements as in a typical synagogue service: (Church Service)

(1) the assembly of the people;

(2) the request (desire) for reading of the Torah;

(c) the opening of the scroll; (text)

(d) the people standing; (prayer)

(e) the praise (by Ezra);

(f) the response of the people; (worship)

(g) sermon instruction;

(h) reading the law; (sermon)

(i) oral explanation and exhortation;

(j) departure for a fellowship meal. (pot luck)

5 Progressive Principals for us as People of the Book… look to the book now!

PRAYER

God our Father in Heaven…

MESSAGE

1 Listen to the Word

The people were united

Neh 8.1-3 “1 And all the people gathered as one man into the square before the Water Gate. And they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses that the Lord had commanded Israel. 2 So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could understand what they heard, on the first day of the seventh month. 3 And he read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women and those who could understand. And the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law.”

What brought you hear today?… I don’t mean what kind of car do you drive…

there are a lot of things that bring us together but only one things brings unity…

The necessity for being united over the Word of God… What do we stand for as Christians?

there are a lot of things that bring us together but only one things brings unity…

Children in service… VS… Children's church

If there is one thing we must be united on it is upon this Word of God !!

The people were enthusiastic

Neh 8.1-3 “1 And all the people gathered as one man into the square before the Water Gate. And they TOLD Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses that the Lord had commanded Israel. 2 So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could understand what they heard, on the first day of the seventh month. 3 And he read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women and those who could understand. And the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law.”

What is the condition of your heart on Sunday morning?… Are you excited to hear the Bible read and preached?

you should be !! … Why Pastor ? … glad you asked

What did you go out to see?

How would you feel this morning if all of a sudden I decided to preach for 3 hours ??

God never leaves a heart hungry at the table of his Word… “blessed are those who hunger and thirst”

Are you enthusiastic about the hearing of the Word?

The people were attentive

Neh 8.3, 5 “3 And he read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women and those who could understand. And the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law… 5 And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people, and as he opened it all the people stood.”

Does the Bible being the very Word of God actually move you?

Spurgeon said it was a sin to bore people with your preaching… Word of God!

It may be the scriptures delivery but it is never the scriptures deliverer, AMEN

We worship God not the Bible… but we know God by the Bible… Are you Listening FOR him / TO Him?

Do you know how fortunate you are to have the Word of God??… God speaking to you !! YOU

You wanna hear Him?…

The people were responsive

Neh 8.5-6 “5 And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people, and as he opened it all the people stood. 6 And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.”

You see the people of God cannot help but be moved to worship by the Word of God

The reading of God’s word brings revival !!

do you believe this book has power ??

If a mans home was on fire and he sat at the table while the room burned around him you would plead for him to respond and flee from certain destruction… This book is no different it protects and warns us and demands for us to respond, … if we are listening !!

Are you a “person of the book”?

Do you want to see God work in your life?… Let us respond to His Word !!

As we LISTEN to the word we must also…

2 Learn from the Word

The people were submissive

Neh 8.7 “7 Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, the Levites, helped the people to understand the Law, while the people remained in their places.”

You don’t have all the answers and neither do I… What gave these men the authority to teach??… God did !

Submission to leadership… to the Word of God

if the Bible says it will you receive it ??

For the Word to take root the soil must not be hard !

The people were teachable

Neh 8.8-9 “8 They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly, and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading. 9 And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people …

Aren’t you blessed by this !? … You are not alone, some things are hard to understand !

Jesus taught… every generation must be taught

Listen, did you know we have a better teacher then Nehemiah, Ezra, Levites… HS is our teacher… if we submit and want to learn

We must work to understand… He will not disappoint !!

Listen up and you might learn something…

The people were grieved

Neh 8.9b “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 wept as they heard the words of the Law.”

Bible study is not for the faint of heart !! … The danger of encountering the Living God...

God is Holy… We have sinned … Our sin caused separation, damnation

The bible is a mirror… Without the mirror we would have no vision of ourselves. The people wept because what they heard in the reading of Scripture condemned their lifestyle. But they would not have had an awareness of their sinfulness unless they had first been confronted with the mirror of Scripture’s revelation of the majesty of God.

One of the chief lessons to be learned by scripture is the depth of our sin before a Holy God.

Is your heart grieved this day… by the state of this (world, nation, state, city, neighborhood, family, self)

Listen, as you Learn our hearts will be grieved but the text does not end there…

The people were glad

Neh 8.10-12 “10 Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” 11 So the Levites calmed all the people, saying, “Be quiet, for this day is holy; do not be grieved.” 12 And all the people went their way to eat and drink and to send portions and to make great rejoicing, because they had understood the words that were declared to them.”

Mourning gives way to Mirth… blessed are those who mourn for they will be comforted.

Scripture not only condemns sin it proclaims the remedy !!

If all you have experienced of God is grief then perhaps you need to listen and learn a little more my friend !!

Passages like John 3.16 do not produce their full weight without passages like Romans 3:10–20.

Do you understand the Word of God beloved? If you do let us rejoice !!

We LISTEN to the Word to LEARN from the Word so we can…

3 Lead by the Word

The people were studious

Neh 8.13-14 “13 On the second day the heads of fathers’ houses of all the people, with the priests and the Levites, came together to Ezra the scribe in order to study the words of the Law. 14 And they found it written in the Law that the Lord had commanded by Moses that the people of Israel should dwell in booths during the feast of the seventh month,”

Responsibility for the leading is lead by the leaders… Deut 6.4-9.

It is not enough for you to be a listener you must pursue being a learner… James 1:22

I want to argue to you this morning that if you do not have a hunger and a thirst for more of the Word of God you ought to ask why…

These had just eaten the fat of the land and they would say...

Psalm 19:7–11 “7 The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple; 8 the precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes; 9 the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the Lord are true, and righteous altogether. 10 More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. 11 Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.”

Hosea 4:6 “6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from being a priest to me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.”

Hebrews 5:12–6:1 “12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, 13 for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. 14 But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil. 1 Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity...

malnourishment is always an ailment and never an asset !!

Let us grow beloved, let us strive to be students of the Word !!

The people were encouraging

Neh 8.15 “15 and that they should proclaim it and publish it in all their towns and in Jerusalem, “Go out to the hills and bring branches of olive, wild olive, myrtle, palm, and other leafy trees to make booths, as it is written.””

They could not help but talk about it as they sought to do it

What an encouragement you are to your brother as they see you leading in line with the Word

What a discouragement when we do not

The people were an example

Neh 8.16 “16 So the people went out and brought them and made booths for themselves, each on his roof, and in their courts and in the courts of the house of God, and in the square at the Water Gate and in the square at the Gate of Ephraim.”

Neh 8.18 … They kept the feast seven days, and on the eighth day there was a solemn assembly, according to the rule.

Talk is cheap… actions speak louder than words… practice what you preach

Zeal to do as God commands… exactly as He commands it

There is a world of people out there that are not willing to listen because we are unwilling to Lead !!

Where are you most tempted to fudge the numbers, to bend the rule?

Let us be zealous in our works as an example to one another as well as to those who do not know Christ !

We LISTEN to the Word so we can LEARN form the Word because we have been charged to LEAD by the Word because there is…

4 Life in the Word

The people were thankful

Neh 8.17 “17 And all the assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made booths and lived in the booths, for from the days of Jeshua the son of Nun to that day the people of Israel had not done so. And there was very great rejoicing.”

God had protected them in Egypt and provided for them in the Exodus

God had preserved them in captivity in Babylon… Now they are back!!

Lam 3.22 “22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end;”

Lam 3.32 “32 but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love;”

Lk 4.18 “18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed,”

The people were a witness

Neh 8.17 “17 And all the assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made booths and lived in the booths, for from the days of Jeshua the son of Nun to that day the people of Israel had not done so. And there was very great rejoicing.”

These are returned to the Land by Gods faithfulness… a new Exodus

Hyperbole - This was a God Party!!

You never have seen anyone cry while liking an ice-cream cone !!

The people had confidence

Neh 8.18 “18 And day by day, from the first day to the last day, he read from the Book of the Law of God. They kept the feast seven days, and on the eighth day there was a solemn assembly, according to the rule.”

From first to last God was, is, and will be faithful to His people

Lam 3.22 “22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end;”

Lam 3.32 “32 but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love;”

People of the Book, we ought to be the most joy filled people of all the earth… The Joy of the Lord is our strength… We have found Life in the Word… Abundant…

In the Word we have found rescue from our past, peace for our present, and hope for our future.

The Message of Nehemiah: God’s Servant in a Time of Change a. Scripture Exposes Our Sins

Within ten days this new year holiday would be followed by the Day of Atonement. On that annual public declaration of God’s mercy, all ‘the uncleanness and rebellion of the Israelites’ would be fully, immediately and irrevocably pardoned, ‘whatever their sins have been’. On that day, the atoning sacrifice was offered; the scapegoat would ‘carry on itself all their sins to a solitary place’. The people were confronted with a visible sign as well as a verbal assurance: ‘Then, before the LORD, you will be clean from all your sins.’

Each year, that Levitical scapegoat anticipated a greater atonement by far. The day came when, on that first Good Friday, God’s Son carried our sins to the cross in his sinless body. By that unique sacrifice, those who repent and believe are eternally forgiven.

We LISTEN to the Word to LEARN form to LEAD by the Word because there is LIFE in the Word… People of the Book

5 Love the Word

John 1:1–4 ESV

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men.

John 1:4 ESV

4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men.

John 14:15 ESV

15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

1 John 5:3 ESV

3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome.

1 Corinthians 13:13 ESV

13 So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

God’s Word forms God’s people, and God’s joy is their strength.

Look to the Book

CLOSE

Holy words long preserved for our walk in this world, They resound with God's own heart Oh, let the Ancient words impart.

Words of Life, words of Hope Give us strength, help us cope In this world, where e'er we roam Ancient words will guide us Home.

Ancient words ever true Changing me, and changing you. We have come with open hearts Oh let the ancient words impart.

Holy words of our Faith Handed down to this age. Came to us through sacrifice Oh heed the faithful words of Christ.

PRAYER

Group Questions

What benefits do children gain from attending a worship service of their own?

What benefits from attending with their parents?

Should the congregation stand when the Word of God is read out loud? How do we show reverence for God’s Word without worshiping a book?

Have you known anyone whose joy was contagious, whose enthusiasm was infectious? Describe that person’s personality.

What evidence do you see that God feels that kind of joy for you? Is the joy of the Lord your stronghold?

What can you do to increase or decrease the joy that God feels for you?

What can you do to increase your experience or appreciation of God’s joy?

In what way are you metaphorically sojourning toward the new Jerusalem?

How do you celebrate God’s provision for you as you sojourn toward the new and better promised land, the new heaven and new earth?

Do you have a tendency to interpret your life through the lens of the Bible or the Bible through the lens of your life?

What would change if you became convinced of the Lord’s joy in you—if the joy of the Lord became your stronghold?

What keeps you from believing that the death of Christ on the cross is sufficient to pay the penalty for all your sin?