Good morning.
My name is Matthew Capone, and I'm the pastor here at Cheyenne Mountain Presbyterian Church,
and it's my joy to bring God's word to you today.
A special welcome if you are new or visiting with us.
We are glad you're here, and we're glad you're here not because you are filling a seat this morning,
but because we are following after Jesus together as one community,
and we are convinced as we follow after Jesus that there is no one so good that they don't need God's grace,
and no one so bad that they can't have it.
And so God has something to say to everyone in his word, and everyone needs to hear what God has to say to us.
When I left off a few weeks ago, we had finished the season of Advent,
and as I said over and over, Advent's about two comings.
Jesus' first coming that we look back to, and Jesus' second coming that we look forward to.
And we're going to be starting a series in the book of Nehemiah, and Nehemiah is in the Old Testament.
And the simplest way to think about the Old Testament is that it is everything that happened before Jesus' first coming.
So previously, before Advent, we were in the book of Philippians, and that was a church.
That was a church that was a community in Philippi that existed after Jesus' first coming.
And now we're going to be looking at a community that is before Jesus' first coming.
And this book comes at a time in the history of the nation of Israel when they have previously been in exile.
If you were with us when we studied the book of Isaiah, you know that God had given his people a mission in the Old Testament.
They were meant to be a light to the nations around them.
They were meant to show everyone in the world what it was like to live according to God's ways,
that we could see God's goodness and his justice and his mercy and his love.
But the people of Israel had failed in that job.
And so God sent them into exile in Babylon.
They had to leave their home country, their home city of Jerusalem.
And they went into exile, finally in 586 B.C.
And they were there for a long time until they were freed from Babylonian captivity by the Persian Empire in 539.
And then in 538, they began returning.
And we're fast-forwarding all the way to 446 B.C.
And if all these dates are making you sleepy, the point is this.
Almost 100 years before this story, God had set his people free to return back to their land.
And yet we're going to meet a man who has still not returned to God's land.
We're going to find out that the city that they had left, that had been destroyed, is not fully rebuilt yet.
And so the reason that we are digging into the book of Nehemiah is that as we start a new year together,
and as we start a new chapter in the history of our church,
Nehemiah asks the big question of what does it look like for God's people to stay close to him?
What does it look like for God's people, if they have strayed far away from him, to return to him?
Or if you're someone who has questions or doubts or objections to God and his ways,
what does it look like to become close to God for the first time?
As we are starting out on a new chapter together as a church,
there is nothing that is more important for us than that we stay close to God.
And so Nehemiah is going to serve as an example, as a model for us,
of what it looks like for God's people to turn back to him.
And so that's going to be our simple question this morning.
What does it look like for God's people to return to him?
What does it look like for those who are with him to stay close to him?
And what does it look like for people who don't know God to know him for the first time?
And so we're going to begin here in the first chapter of Nehemiah.
It is in your worship guide near the very end, if you would like to turn there.
And remember that as we come to this, this is God's word.
And God tells us that his word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path.
In other words, God has not left us to stumble alone in the dark.
But instead, he's given us his word so that we would know the way to go.
And so that's why we're going to start now with Nehemiah chapter 1.
Please read with me.
The words of Nehemiah, the son of Hekelia.
Now it happened in the month of Chislev in the twentieth year, as I was in Susa the citadel,
that Hanani, one of my brothers, came with certain men from Judah.
And I asked them concerning the Jews who escaped, who had survived the exile, and concerning Jerusalem.
And they said to me,
The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame.
The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire.
Verse 4.
As soon as I heard these words, I sat down and wept and mourned for days.
And I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven.
And I said,
Verse 7.
We have acted very corruptly against you and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, and the rules that you commanded your servant Moses.
Remember the word that you commanded your servant Moses, saying,
If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples.
But if you return to me and keep my commandments and do them,
though your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of heaven,
from there I will gather them and bring them to the place that I have chosen,
to make my name dwell there.
Verse 10.
They are your servants and your people, whom you have redeemed by your great power and by your strong hand.
O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant and to the prayer of your servants,
who delight to fear your name.
And give success to your servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.
Now, I was cupbearer to the king.
Please pray with me as we come to this portion of God's word.
Dear Father in heaven, we confess that without you and your word, we would be stumbling in the dark.
Lord, we wouldn't know how to find our way to you.
We wouldn't know how to find our way in this world.
And so we thank you that you have given us a lamp and a light.
We ask that you would do that for us this morning, that you would speak to us,
that you would help us to hear you clearly,
and that you would give us light to see the path that you have for us.
We ask all these things not because any of us have earned them from you,
but because Jesus has earned them for us.
And so we ask it in his name.
Amen.
We immediately meet this man named Nehemiah,
and we find out right away that he has not returned with God's people to Jerusalem.
As I mentioned earlier, God's people had been in exile under the Babylonian Empire,
and then they had been freed later by the Persian Empire.
And the city that Nehemiah is in, the city of Susa,
is the place where the Persian king would spend his time in the winter.
And so this is probably November or December,
and Nehemiah receives a visit.
Now, it's unclear whether this man named Hanani is actually his brother
because the word brother in the Old Testament has a very broad range of meaning.
So this could be his biological brother.
It could also just be a family member, a relative.
But he comes and brings this news to Nehemiah that apparently is a surprise.
He asks them how people are doing,
how his people, the Jews, are doing in Jerusalem.
And he finds out that things are not going well.
They tell him in verse 3,
the remnant there in the province who survived the exile.
In other words, the people who had made it all the way back to Jerusalem.
When God had exiled his people, it was part of his testing of them,
and so there were some people who remained faithful to God in his ways,
and some people who fell away.
But this remnant, these people who are in Jerusalem,
these are God's people who have stayed,
the ones that he has preserved.
Because while they have not kept his mission,
they have not obeyed him and been a light to the nations.
God is so adamant and persistent in his mission to the world
that he always retains a people for himself.
And so Nehemiah asks about them and finds out the terrible news.
This remnant is in great trouble and shame.
The wall of Jerusalem is broken down,
and its gates are destroyed by fire.
In other words, the city that God had set to be a light to the nations,
to show everyone in the world what the world would be like
if people lived according to God and his ways.
is not a light to the nations,
but instead it's an embarrassment.
And God's people who've remained faithful to him
are not strong and protected,
but instead they're incredibly vulnerable
to anyone who would come and attack them.
So what does Nehemiah do?
Did you notice his very first response?
When Nehemiah understands how bad it is,
the very first thing he does here in verse 4
is he sits down and weeps and mourns for days.
It says,
Nehemiah is so moved and impacted by the reality of the destruction
that he's heard,
that he has no other choice
but to pray and fast and grieve.
And so what does it look like for God's people to return to him?
How do we stay close to God?
There is no way we can stay close to God
without doing what Nehemiah does here,
and that is understanding and seeing
the ruin and consequences of sin.
We have to understand and see and grieve
the ruin and destruction that sin has caused
not just in the world,
but in our lives as well.
And unless we do that,
we cannot understand the bad news of the gospel
that I spoke about earlier
that leads to the good news.
We will not repent.
We will not return to God.
We will not stay close to God
unless we see the ruin,
unless we understand
how much has been destroyed and lost by sin.
And you know,
everyone in this world agrees that there are ruins.
We can look around.
We don't have to look far to see destruction in our world.
We don't have to look far to see the consequences
of sin,
whether it is the increasing political polarization
that we see as people who believe different things
are having a harder and harder time
talking to each other.
It could be the pollution that we see in our world
as we've taken the good earth
that God has given to us
and failed to steward it as he wanted.
It could be the political turmoil
that we watch every day in the news.
It could be refugees coming in
with nowhere else to live.
It could be the reality of human trafficking.
But everyone in this world agrees
that there's a ruin.
What everyone in the world does not agree about
is what role we have in the ruin.
And so what we have to do
to return to God,
to stay close to him,
is do what Nehemiah does here.
He doesn't just see the ruin around him,
but he also sees the ruin in him.
He doesn't just see the ruin around him,
but he also sees the ruin in him.
We're gonna see this in a second
in verse six when he says,
even mine, my father's house, have sinned.
But let's pause here for a second.
Where is the ruin in our lives?
Where is the destruction?
Because if we cannot see the ruin
and the destruction of sin in our lives,
there is no way
that we will be able to turn back to God,
and there is no way
we'll be able to stay close to him.
It could be the ruin of
treating people harshly for a long time,
and then suddenly in a moment,
in a day,
like Nehemiah here,
seeing the ruin,
realizing the damage that it's done,
and that it's not gonna be
something easy or small
to come back from.
It could be having broken
your parents' trust over and over,
and then suddenly realizing
that your freedoms are more limited
than you ever thought.
It could be the ruin of pure laziness.
You did whatever you wanted to do
for as long as you wanted,
and now you look around
and you realize your house
and your life is falling apart.
Maybe you've even lost your job
as a result.
And so finally, suddenly,
the ruin comes into complete relief.
Maybe it's the ruin
of choosing everything
over your children,
and now you finally realize
and see that they are deciding
to choose everything over you.
Maybe it's the ruin
of refusing to trust God
and other people,
thinking that it will make you safe.
And then you wake up one day
and realize it hasn't made you safe.
It's just made you very alone.
Maybe it's the ruin
of not being able
to get the grades that you want.
And so one day,
you realize that it's a lot easier
than you thought.
All you have to do
is just start cheating a little bit.
And it works well
and your grades are good
until you get to the point
where you've skipped so many things
and forgotten so many things
that you come to a point
where you can't go any further
because there's so much
that you don't know.
Whatever it is,
it's the ruin
that pushes us to God.
It's the ruin
that allows God's people
to stay close to him
and return to him
because as we saw
in our confession of faith
this morning,
it is repentance
that leads unto life.
And so we cannot
stay close to God.
We cannot be his people
following with him
on his mission
unless we understand
the ruin
that is all around us.
But when we see the ruin,
when we understand the ruin,
that is when repentance
is our great hope.
And so that's where
Nehemiah turns next.
First, we see, of course,
that he weeps and mourns here
over his sin,
over the destruction
that he sees.
By the way,
this is a long-term destruction.
This is not something
that's happened in a day
or a week, right?
God's people returned
in 538
and this is 446.
So almost 100 years
since God has set
his people free
through the Persian Empire.
This has been something
that's not been in the making
for days or weeks
but for years.
And so it's not a small problem
but a big problem.
There are some people
in this world
that will say that
the only people
who can solve our problems
is us.
And that's great advice
for certain things in life.
It's great to take responsibility.
It's great to
take the things
that are before you
and be responsible for them
and in charge of them.
But what we see here
in God's word
is that
we are not the only people
who can fix our problems
because our problems
are so much bigger than us.
The reality of sin
is so powerful
and destructive
that only God himself
can come and help us
and save us.
And so when we see
the destruction,
repentance is our great hope.
And that's where we see
Nehemiah go next.
After he's done
weeping and mourning
and fasting and praying,
we then hear his prayer here.
And based on what we know
from this book,
of course it says
he prays day and night.
He did this for days.
We were going to find out
in chapter 2
that it's multiple months later
that he takes any action.
And so what we see here
is Nehemiah's prayer
that has been truncated.
It's been put down
as this is a summary
of what Nehemiah
prayed to God for months.
And his prayer here
is one of repentance.
See in verse 6
he asks God to hear
because he's confessing
the sins of the people
of Israel
which we have sinned
against you.
Even I and my father's house
have sinned.
And so staying close to God
is not just seeing the ruin.
Because if all we see
is the ruin around us
it will lead us to despair.
But instead
seeing the ruin
and then turning
in repentance to God.
Nehemiah here repents
on behalf of the people.
He's a leader.
He's going to become a leader.
And so he repents
for all of their sins
but he also acknowledges
his own role in it.
It's not just a problem
that other people
out there have caused
but Nehemiah and his family
are implicated as well.
They're implicated
in the fact that Israel
has failed to be
a light to the nations.
They were supposed to
remember the poor
and worship God.
And instead
they've forgotten the poor
and chased after other gods.
They were supposed
to build their families
and said they'd have
destroyed them.
And so Nehemiah repents.
He sees the ruin
but instead of saying
this is a problem
only I can fix
he realizes
that this is a problem
only God can fix.
And so as we turn back
to God
and stay close to him
and follow after him
it means that day by day
we have to do
what Martin Luther said
which is we live a life
of faith and repentance.
we look at our sins
we see the destruction
but then we turn back
to God
tell him our sins
and confess to them
knowing that he will
forgive us
that his faithfulness
is for everyone
who turns back to him.
So Nehemiah confesses
not just other people's sins
but his as well.
You may remember
the story
now almost a decade ago
in 2009
the former
South Carolina governor
Mark Sanford
had an unfortunate end
to his career
in June of 2009
he went missing
and no one knew
where he was.
The now famous story
that his office
told people
is that he was hiking
on the Appalachian Trail
turned out he was very far
from the Appalachian Trail
he was actually in Argentina
and he was in Argentina
with a mistress
a woman he was not married to
and the media
finally caught up with him
and so when he came back
he had a press conference
filled with tears
and he said this
I have spent the last
five days of my life
crying in Argentina
I am committed
to trying to get
my heart right
what I did was wrong
period
end of story
and then he spent
the next several years
apologizing to
the people that he had hurt
the groups that he had hurt
the political associations
that he had let down
and he had a real ruin
Mark Sanford
lost his marriage
he was supposed to be
a presidential hopeful
which immediately died
that day
he continued to have struggles
he ended up divorcing
he didn't continue
on a perfect path
and whether you agree
with his politics or not
I think what we can all
agree about is this
what Mark did is rare
for both Republicans
and Democrats
which is that he had
real repentance
he didn't cover over
his sins
and find someone else
to blame for it
Nehemiah doesn't find
someone who's going to
take the blame for him
here
he doesn't just say
the people of Israel
it's their fault
but he says
me and my family
and so Mark Sanford's
repentance was imperfect
it didn't happen
until it was caught
but it did happen
and so he models here
what Nehemiah also
models for us
that when we see
the ruin and destruction
of sin
we don't minimize it
we don't cover it up
we don't try harder
just to make up
for what's lost
but we come
and we repent
to other people
we say
what I did was wrong
I'm sorry
please forgive me
and this is a problem
bigger than I can solve
it's something
that I need God himself
to come and fix
remember when we talked
about the apostle Peter
in Matthew chapter 26
I reminded you
that our tears
are a sign
of spiritual life
when we're weeping
over our sin
it's a reminder
that God is still
at work in our lives
because it's possible
to see the ruin
and not repent
there are many people
who see the ruin
in their lives
and instead
they try to hide
or minimize it
maybe they try
to work harder
maybe they just
feel shame
or maybe we just
refuse to see
the ruin
but here
Nehemiah shows us
a different way
he shows us
God's way
for his people
he doesn't just
see the ruin
but he repents
he turns back
to God
as I have
spent
several decades
now in the church
I have met
many people
who want to be
great spiritually
I've met many people
who want to be
big men
or big women
spiritually
and that's not
a wrong desire
it's not wrong
to want to be
great spiritually
the problem
is that God's
definition of greatness
and our definition
of greatness
are not the same
if you're a child
if you're a youth
being great
spiritually
does not mean
that you get all
the answers right
in Sunday school
if you are a parent
being great
spiritually
does not mean
that no one
ever sees
your children
misbehave
if you
are a Christian
trying to follow
after Jesus
being great
spiritually
does not mean
you have a better
quiet time
than other people
or a more
comprehensive knowledge
of the Bible
but spiritual
greatness
is found
in one thing
if you want
to be a big
man
spiritually
if you want
to be a big
woman
spiritually
there is only
one path
and that path
is the path
of repentance
in our New Testament
reading this morning
we read from Paul
one of the greatest
men spiritually
and as he
nears
the end of his life
what he tells people
is that he has
discovered
that he
is the greatest
of sinners
the secret
of Paul's
greatness
spiritually
is that he
understands
his sin
and he's
repenting
of it
Nehemiah
we're going
to see
is a great
man
spiritually
and he's
a great
man
because he
sees his
sin
here
and repents
of it
when I
was
in college
I went
to a
mentor
at one
point
and I
asked him
a question
I said
you know
I hear
people
talk
all the
time
about
leading
their
families
and how
important
it is
for men
to lead
their
families
and you
know
I don't
really know
what that
means
you know
you're older
and wiser
what does
that mean
what does
it mean
to lead
your family
this man
was a
pastor
and he
said
you know
I'll tell
you what
it doesn't
mean
it doesn't
mean
that I
pull my
wife aside
and I
point her
to passages
in the
Bible
and say
honey
you need
to know
this
and learn
this
because she
listens
to me
as it
is
but Matthew
I'll tell
you a story
about what
it means
for me
to lead
my family
spiritually
recently
I was
driving
my
elementary
daughter
to school
and as
I was
driving
she was
fussing
and I
just got
more and
more frustrated
with her
and as
I dropped
her off
at school
I finally
lost it
and I
just started
yelling
at her
I was
so done
and so
frustrated
he said
it impacted
her very
deeply
shortly
after that
she began
having
night
terrors
and difficulty
sleeping
he said
the way
that I
lead my
family
spiritually
is I
repent
to them
I tell
my daughter
how wrong
it was
for me
to do
that
that I'm
sorry
that her
father
needs
Jesus
and so
I lead
them by
repenting
because I
show them
my need
for Jesus
to help
them
understand
their
need
as well
leadership
is
repentance
and repentance
is leadership
and if we
want to be
great
spiritually
then we
must
repent
if you
spend any
time in
the mountains
here in
Colorado
you know
that as
the tree
line
goes up
suddenly the
trees start
to disappear
the higher
and higher
you get
on the
mountain
right
the closer
you get
to the
ridge
the less
there is
that's
growing
now that's
for several
reasons
one is the
wind is so
high it's
hard for
anything to
grow
but the
other reason
is that
there's not
much oxygen
up there
and so as
you head up
the mountain
plants start
to disappear
they start
to drop
off
because they
simply can't
breathe
there's no
ability or
opportunity for
them to
grow
repentance
is the
spiritual
oxygen
of our
lives
we cannot
expect
anything
great or
good to
happen in
our church
in our
families
and in our
lives without
repentance
and so if
we want to
be great
if we want
to see new
and exciting
spiritual fruit
pop up in
our lives
in our
families and
in our
church
we want as
much oxygen
as we can
get
if we want
to see a
beautiful forest
then we have
to provide the
oxygen of
repentance
to the people
around us
it's easy
to
tell people
that no
one is so
good that
they don't
need God's
grace
but it's
also easy
to live like
we don't
believe it
if we say
that we need
God's grace
but refuse to
repent of the
ruin that we're
telling people
that by our
lives that we
don't
there's nothing
that we need
from God
and so we
stay close to
God we
return to
him by
seeing the
ruin
we return
to him
by repenting
but finally
we have to
see the
great hope
that God
has for
everyone who
turns back
to him
if all we
could see
is the
destruction
if all
Nehemiah
knew is that
the walls
were broken
down and
shame and
trouble
then it
would lead
simply to
him being
overwhelmed
or it
could lead
to his
self-righteousness
here
we skipped
over verse
five
do you notice
what Nehemiah
said there
repenting
wasn't actually
the first
thing he
did
he addresses
God and
says oh
Lord God
of heaven
the great
and awesome
God
who keeps
covenant and
steadfastness
love with
those who
love him
and keep
his
commandments
this
steadfast
love is
the same
phrase that
we saw in
the book
of Ruth
and it's
the same
phrase that
we saw in
December in
the Psalms
it is God's
never stopping
never giving
up
unbreaking
always and
forever love
God's people
have failed
him
they've created
a ruin
they've had
almost a hundred
years to rebuild
the city and
yet they haven't
but we see
in verse 9
what this
steadfast love
looks like
starting in
verse 8
remember the
word that you
commanded your
servant Moses
saying if you
are unfaithful I
will scatter you
among the
peoples but
if you return
to me and
keep my
commandments and
do them
though your
outcasts are in
the uttermost
parts of heaven
from there I
will gather
them and bring
them to the
place that I
have chosen
to make my
name dwell there
in other words
Nehemiah is
able to
repent he's
able to
confess his
sin because
he knows how
great and
awesome God's
love is and
he knows that
God offers his
grace and his
forgiveness for
anyone who
returns and
turns back to
him and so as
he looks out
over a hundred
plus years of
ruin Nehemiah is
not without
hope as he
looks at
something that
has been
caused by
decades of
sin and
destruction
Nehemiah knows
that God is
still faithful
and so the
same is true
of us as
well whether
we are looking
back on five
decades of
mistakes or
seven decades
if we are
still alive and
breathing here
today in this
room God has
hope for us
his steadfast
love is still
for us and
the offer of
verse nine is
still for us
if we return
to him he
will gather
us and bring
us back
so then we
hear in verse
10 they are
your servants
and your people
whom you have
redeemed by
your great
power and
your strong
hand
while Nehemiah
starts with
crying we're
going to see
that he
doesn't end
there because
he knows how
powerful God's
grace is and
so as we return
to God and
stay close to
God if we
only see the
ruin and our
repentance it
will crush us
but God's
redemption is
real his hope
is real and
his offer of
grace is real
for anyone and
everyone who
turns back to
him and the
reason his
grace is real
is because
later there's
going to come
another son of
Israel his name
is going to be
Jesus we
celebrated his
first coming in
advent and he
is going to come
and take the
penalty for the
sins of Nehemiah
of his people
and of everyone
else who turns
back to him
Jesus is going
to tell a story
in Matthew
chapter 18 about
his people that
he refers to as
sheep and he
says this what
do you think if a
man has a hundred
sheep and one of
them has gone
astray does he
not leave the
ninety-nine on the
mountains and go in
search of the one
that went astray
and if he finds
it truly I say to
you he rejoices
over it more than
over the ninety-nine
that never went
astray God will
leave the ninety-nine
sheep to pursue
the one so that he
will return to him
and so the same
grace that is here
for Nehemiah is
for us and we get
a hint of it here
at the end the very
last verse Nehemiah
has looked at the
destruction he has
seen what has
happened from
unfaithfulness for
centuries what seems
insurmountable and
impossible he repents
and he cries out to
God in this moment
for God's help and
what do we find out
as the chapter closes
God's steadfast love
is real because as
Nehemiah repents and
turns back to God
God has placed him in
the very right place
he is cut bearer to
the king in other
words Nehemiah by no
accident but because
of God's faithfulness
and his steadfast love
is one of the most
powerful people in the
Persian Empire and so
God is already at
work bringing back
the one he's already
at work with his
steadfast love and so
we're going to see as
Nehemiah continues that
God is going to stay
true to everything that
we hear here he's
going to meet those who
repent and help them
return he's going to be
faithful to his
promises and even
though they have
created a ruin it is
going to be God who
is going to lead them
out
famous story is told
about the English
writer G.K.
Chesterton at one
point in his life he
saw an advertisement in
the newspaper asking
for people to write in
letters responding to
one question the
question was this what
is wrong with the
world G.K.
Chesterton wrote back a
very short response
says this dear sir
regarding your article
what's wrong with the
world I am yours truly
G.K.
Chesterton it's when we
understand that the ruin
is not just around us but
in us and we turn back to
God in repentance and say
the problem with the
world is me that God
meets us with his love
and his grace no matter
how much we've messed up
no matter how many
decades or centuries of
ruin there is because it
is his joy and his delight
to leave the 99 to find
the one and so because
that's God's heart and his
desire we can pray to him
and cry out to him and so
let's do that now
dear father in heaven we
thank you so much that you
have called us to yourself
you've made us your people
we confess that the
problems around us are not
just around us but in us
and so we ask that you
would help us you'd send
your spirit to give us soft
and tender hearts that we'd
see the destruction of sin
we ask that you would
cause us to return to you
in repentance but most of
all that you would show us
that there is hope there is
hope in you and your grace
because Jesus was willing to
take the full punishment for
our sins and so we put our
trust and our hope in him
knowing that you hear our
prayers not because we have
done anything but because
Jesus has and so we ask it
in his name amen
please stand for our closing
song
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