RECAP Last Week Sermon Pointers - Schemes of the Enemy - He seeks to:
(1) Distract you. We overcome it by planned neglect. Focus on the GREAT work.
(2) Defame you (rumours & gossips). We take care of our character; trust God to take care of our reputation.
(3) Discredit you (intimidate you). We choose to fear God, not men.
Practice saying YES to God and His priorities, as often as you can.
Practice saying NO to distractions, again and again. Make it into a HABIT.
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Nehemiah loved the Lord and was moved by His Spirit to do His will.
• He might be just one man, but we have seen over the past weeks how one man fully committed to and reliant upon God could accomplish His work despite the oppositions and challenges.
• One man can make a difference, if he cares to trust God and make sacrifices.
This is the theme for this series – “Living to Make a Difference”
• We are called to serve God and do His ‘great work’ (words used by Nehemiah).
• We are called to make a difference in our world. Jesus described us as the light of the word and salt of the earth.
• We can because He enables to. So remember this, we live to make a difference.
Up to this point we have seen Nehemiah’s single-minded effort in rebuilding the wall. We did not expect more than that.
• But God has a greater plan than just the rebuilding of walls. [Read 7:1-5, 70-73]
7:5 says, “So my God put it into my heart” to assemble the people for registration by families.
• There was a shift in emphasis now. Building the wall was just a first step (a small one, in fact.)
• Building a people of God – that is God’s ultimate desire.
• 2 things we can learn from this passage: (1) Watch Your Character, and (2) Remember Your Identity.
What really makes a nation? It is more than just the infrastructure, it is the people.
• What makes a nation strong? It is more than just having a wall, but its people.
• Nehemiah was now burdened by God to rebuild the nation (now that the walls have been rebuilt).
So Nehemiah took steps. He put in gatekeepers, the ICA Immigration & Checkpoints Authority who would be responsible for people coming in and out of the city. They watch over all the entry points.
• He set up guards (7:3b) – residents of Jerusalem, assigned at certain posts or near their own houses.
• He appointed his brother Hanani as a community leader, and Hananiah the commander of the citadel (watchtower), to oversee the defence of the city.
It wasn’t only capabilities that Nehemiah was looking for. He was looking for people whom he could trust to do a good job.
• His brother was mentioned in 1:2 as the one who made the long trip to Susa to inform him of the state of Jerusalem city.
• He shared the same burden with Nehemiah and had been with him throughout the entire ordeal. He was someone dependable and loyal.
Hananiah was “a man of integrity and feared God more than most men do.” (7:2)
• Nehemiah needed to say something about this man and he wanted us to know – “I chose him because he is faithful, reliable, and fear God more than anyone else.”
• It was important to him. You need to put the right people at the right place.
• And it is important to us today.
I want to dwell on this thought for a moment – our CHARACTER before God, because this is what makes us the people of God.
Think about that for a moment – if these are the criteria the church looks for, how would you fare?
• Would someone describe you as a person of integrity (reliable), and one who fears God more than most people?
• It is an honour to be known that way, and Nehemiah had such a man beside him. What he needed was dependability.
This is what God looks for, according to Jesus.
• Jesus said in the parable of the talents (Matt 25) that the Master was happy with the “good and faithful” servants, who have been faithful with a few things, and so He would put them in charge of many things.
• It was not about the one, two or five talents, but their faithfulness in their duties.
• We tend to focus only on capabilities but God is concerned about our character.
I was reading an article by Norman L. Geisler, a distinguished professor of apologetics at Veritas Evangelical Seminary in Murrieta, California. This line caught my attention:
“The stark truth is that God is more interested in our holiness than in our happiness. There is no verse in the Bible that says, “Be happy, as I am happy.” There are verses that declare, “Be holy, as I am holy” (Lev. 11:44-45; 19:2). Yes, God is more interested in our character than our comfort, and He has been known to sacrifice the latter in order to achieve the former.”
Jesus said in Matt 24:45-47 “45Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? 46It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. 47I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.”
• So don’t be too carried away by the fact that we are gifted, talented, more endowed than others.
• Rather, be concerned about being faithful to whatever we have been called to do.
• Someone said, “The greatest ability is dependability.”
Paul says in 1 Cor 4:1-4
1So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the secret things of God. 2Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. 3I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. 4My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me.
How men see you, that’s not too important. But it is very important how God see you. We “live for the audience of ONE.”
The world measures success by profits – how much are you earning; or by status – how high in the corporation have you climbed; but God measures success by faithfulness.
• Sadly faithfulness is not a virtue appreciated much today. We see many broken marriages, we see students under scholarships breaking their bonds. Why should we remain faithful?
• Yet God looks for faithfulness, above all else. He is not going to measure us according to the number of converts we have, or the number of years we have served in church.
God is concerned that we be found faithful to His call, that we remain committed to His cause, and devoted to His ways.
• If you never seem to get ahead in life, if you barely make a name for yourself, don’t be too bothered. Never mind. It does not matter in the end.
• We are not called to be successful; we are called to be faithful.
Are you faithful to God today? Are you someone God can depend on? Can I trust you to do a good job?
• If the answer is NO, you have failed. If YES, you have succeeded.
* * * * * * * * * * (2) Remember Your Identity
Nehemiah appointed not just gatekeepers and guards, but singers and the Levites.
• He counted the people, but the motivation was not to count the people but to acknowledge that these people counted.
• I need to know who are back here. Who are the people of God that God has brought back from captivity to this place? We are going to restore this nation, starting with this group of returnees.
In the genealogical record of the families, we see a particular groups of people highlighted.
• They are important people – the priests (v.39), the Levites (v.47), singers (v.44), and temple servants (v.46).
• The priests are the descendants of Aaron, responsible for the service of the Temple and overseeing all aspects of Jewish religious festivals. They are the pastors or the clergymen today.
• The Levites are the ministry leaders today, assisting the priests and serving full-time in the Temple. They do not cultivate the lands but live on the offerings of the people.
• We have temple servants who help the Levites, like the volunteers we have in church today.
• And the singers are dedicated to the worship of God in the Temple. They were the descendants of Asaph, the ones who write and sing the psalms.
They need to organise themselves and re-instate the proper worship of God, which they had sacrificed during the exile.
• Physical restoration was one thing, and it was only a small step.
• This spiritual renewal was the thing that would really defines them as the people of God.
• Each time Moses confronted Pharaoh and asked for the release of his people (Exo 8-10), this was what he said, “This is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: "Let my people go, so that they may worship me."” (7 times)
We can’t run away from this, it is very clear. God made it very clear.
• What makes Israel Israel is the worship of God. This is what makes the people, the people of God.
• The people need to acknowledge God and recognise His presence among them.
• They need to renew their worship of God; otherwise Jerusalem will just be an empty shell.
King Solomon understood this. He wrote later in Ps 127:1 “Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labour in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain.”
• And we will see in Chapter 8 the entire nation gathering together to listen to the reading of the Word of God.
• It is the desire of a nation wanting to return to the worship of their God.
• This is what make Israel truly Israel, the people of God.
I want to close with this thought - by the same token, this is what makes the church, the church.
• It is not the building, although it is good of have a proper building and cosy place.
• But that is not the church. The people make the church. We are the church.
• We are called into a relationship with God through Jesus Christ, and our chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. (That’s how the Westminster Shorter Catechism puts it.)
I saw a clip a few months back that kind of jogged me back to thinking about my true identity. Let’s take a look at it now [play clip].
• We tend to define ourselves in terms of our work, education, occupation, or the things we own.
• But this is not how God sees us. Paul says in Gal 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.”
• Jesus defines who I am and the way I live. This is what makes us different.
This was what makes Israel different. They are the people of God.
• They have to get back to acknowledging Him and worshipping Him again.
• So must we. Worship Him with all our heart and glorify Him.
Watch your CHARACTER and remember your IDENTITY.
What areas of your life do you need to tweak for you to align yourself back to God’s desire for you? In what way can you be more Christlike?
