Jubilation! Series

JUBILATION

Nehemiah 11:1-12:47

S: Courage

Th: Brave Hearts

Pr: WE MUST HAVE COURAGE TO DEDICATE THE WORK OF OUR HANDS AND THE DESIRES OF OUR HEARTS TO GOD.

?: What? What is the process?

KW: Expressions

TS: We will find in our study of Nehemiah 11:1-12:47 four expressions of the dedication of our hearts and hands.

The _____ expression is we are…

I. MARKED (11:1-2)

II. PLACED (11:3 – 12:26)

III. FORMED (12:27-42)

IV. THRILLED (12:43-47)

Version: ESV

RMBC 30 Mar 03 AM

INTRODUCTION:

ILL Notebook: History (I hate war)

A social studies teacher had just finished a unit on war and peace. "Generally speaking, how many of you," he asked, "would say you’re opposed to war?"

Not surprisingly, all hands went up. The teacher asked, "Who’ll give us a reason for being opposed to war?"

A large, bored-looking boy in the back of the room raised his hand.

"Johnny?" The teacher said.

"I hate war," Johnny said, "because wars make history, and I hate history."

Well, Johnny may not have appreciated history, but as believers, we should.

Because the story of history is His Story.

History reveals God’s story.

Since January, we have been giving consideration to a portion of Israel’s history.

Led by their appointed governor, Nehemiah,…

1. The people of Israel have demonstrated “Brave Hearts”.

“Brave Hearts”, as you may remember, is our theme phrase this year.

And as we have studied the book of Nehemiah, we have seen the demonstration of courage over and over.

During the first part of the book, we have seen the people take on the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem.

Though there was opposition, they continued to work at and finish the task.

The latter part of the book, where we are now, we observe a rebuilding of the faith.

They have demonstrated the courage to hear God’s Word as it is and confess their sin.

In our study last week…

2. In chapter 10 of Nehemiah, the people demonstrated a commitment to…

2.1 Right Living

They committed to being characterized by righteousness.

They committed themselves to letting the Lord be their guide when it come to their relationships, especially when it came to marriage.

The people of Israel had a history of doing it wrong in this area, and their faith had been consistently corrupted.

Last week, we saw them demonstrate the courage to commit to purity.

They also demonstrated a commitment to the…

2.2 Rhythm of Life

The people of Israel committed themselves to the Lord of time.

They recognized that God had given a pace and a pulse to life that made time for rest, worship and witness.

They became resolved to following that design.

They also demonstrated a commitment to the…

2.3 Relinquishment of Resources

The people of Israel also committed themselves to the God that was the Lord of their possessions.

Their wealth found its source in God’s goodness.

So to truly honor Him, they needed to have the courage to let go and continue to trust the Lord who was blessing them.

As we come to today’s study, we are giving consideration to both chapters 11 and 12 of Nehemiah.

Nehemiah is about to return to his king, Artaxerxes, in the capital of Persia.

But before he leaves, there is one more matter that he must give leadership to.

The people of Israel must dedicate the wall.

And in so doing, they teach us that…

3. WE MUST HAVE COURAGE TO DEDICATE THE WORK OF OUR HANDS AND THE DESIRES OF OUR HEARTS TO GOD.

As we give consideration to this, we want to ask the question of “what”?

What is the process?

What is the process we go through to get to this place of dedication?

Well…

4. We will find in our study of Nehemiah 11:1-12:47 four expressions of the dedication of our hearts and hands.

OUR STUDY:

I. The first expression is we are MARKED (11:1-2).

[1] Now the leaders of the people lived in Jerusalem. And the rest of the people cast lots to bring one out of ten to live in Jerusalem the holy city, while nine out of ten remained in the other towns. [2] And the people blessed all the men who willingly offered to live in Jerusalem.

The wall is built, but Jerusalem still had a problem.

The rulers lived in the city, but that was about it.

The common everyday folks did not.

They lived in the surrounding rural areas, towns and villages.

ILL Chuck Swindoll, in his book, Hand Me Another Brick describes the dilemma this way…

We are reminded of the little poem we used to do as children.

Here’s the church, and here’s the steeple;

Open the door, and see all the people.

But the poem would go differently in Jerusalem...

Here’s the wall, and here’s the city;