WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.220 Keep your Bibles open there at Nehemiah. 00:00:02.280 --> 00:00:04.200 We're actually going to kick off at Nehemiah 3, 00:00:04.719 --> 00:00:05.520 and then move into 4. 00:00:05.580 --> 00:00:07.020 So let's pray as we do that. 00:00:08.060 --> 00:00:12.580 Gracious Father, we stand on the promise of the Lord Jesus 00:00:12.580 --> 00:00:15.000 that we were reminded of last week, 00:00:15.599 --> 00:00:17.580 where he said that he would build his church 00:00:17.580 --> 00:00:20.600 through the confession that Christ is Lord. 00:00:20.920 --> 00:00:23.460 And we pray, Father, that as we open up your word now, 00:00:23.460 --> 00:00:24.740 that you would send your spirit, 00:00:25.260 --> 00:00:28.160 and that you would be about the building of your church now. 00:00:28.160 --> 00:00:31.899 So plant your word deep in our hearts, we pray in Jesus' name. 00:00:32.259 --> 00:00:32.520 Amen. 00:00:35.579 --> 00:00:40.960 Individualism is the mindset that dominates our value system in the Western world. 00:00:41.299 --> 00:00:46.159 It even influences the way we approach our relationship with God. 00:00:46.920 --> 00:00:51.359 The result is what you might call Lone Ranger Christianity. 00:00:52.400 --> 00:00:56.019 Lone Ranger Christianity thinks in terms of personal salvation, 00:00:56.020 --> 00:01:00.800 but doesn't think in terms of the people of God. 00:01:02.060 --> 00:01:05.500 In his book, Stop Dating the Church, Falling in Love with the Family of God, 00:01:05.620 --> 00:01:09.260 Josh Harris profiles a Lone Ranger Christian. 00:01:09.400 --> 00:01:11.640 He calls them a church dater. 00:01:12.800 --> 00:01:13.640 He says, 00:01:13.800 --> 00:01:18.040 First, the attitude towards church tends to be me-centered. 00:01:18.300 --> 00:01:22.280 We go for what we get, social interaction, programs, activities. 00:01:22.280 --> 00:01:25.299 The driving question is, what can church do for me? 00:01:26.060 --> 00:01:29.180 The second sign of a church dater is being independent. 00:01:29.719 --> 00:01:32.740 We go to church because that's what Christians are supposed to do. 00:01:33.400 --> 00:01:38.920 But we're careful to avoid getting involved too much, especially with people. 00:01:39.579 --> 00:01:47.040 We don't pay much attention to God's larger purposes for us as a vital part in a specific church family. 00:01:47.040 --> 00:01:51.660 We go through the motions without really investing ourselves. 00:01:52.680 --> 00:01:56.080 Most essentially, he says, the church dater tends to be critical. 00:01:57.120 --> 00:02:00.080 We are short on allegiance and quick to find fault in our church. 00:02:00.740 --> 00:02:07.380 We treat church with a customer mentality, looking for the best product for the price of our Sunday. 00:02:07.379 --> 00:02:12.620 And as a result, he says, we're fickle and not invested for the long term. 00:02:12.939 --> 00:02:17.159 Like a lover with a wandering eye, always on the hunt for something better. 00:02:18.680 --> 00:02:24.180 Church dater will not make a whole lot of sense of the book of Nehemiah. 00:02:25.000 --> 00:02:31.759 Among the many strengths of Nehemiah is the passion he displays and fosters for the people of God. 00:02:31.759 --> 00:02:41.179 As I said last week, Nehemiah is about rebuilding the people of God, even as he seeks to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. 00:02:42.519 --> 00:02:45.639 And the rebuilding of the walls was a huge task. 00:02:46.399 --> 00:02:52.419 It was more than one and a half kilometers long, over one and a half meters thick and four to six meters high. 00:02:52.899 --> 00:02:54.899 So it's a bit more than a fence. 00:02:54.900 --> 00:03:04.300 Rebuilding Jerusalem's walls had to be seen as a corporate responsibility of the people of God. 00:03:05.599 --> 00:03:07.280 Nehemiah could not do it by himself. 00:03:08.439 --> 00:03:11.500 And this corporate responsibility, in the end, was the problem. 00:03:12.180 --> 00:03:17.620 Notice at the end of chapter two, we read it but didn't kind of get into it much last week. 00:03:18.040 --> 00:03:22.560 Nehemiah takes a secret tour of the walls of Jerusalem, middle of the night kind of thing. 00:03:22.560 --> 00:03:25.180 Why does he do a secret tour? 00:03:26.500 --> 00:03:36.759 Well, I think we can say with a fair degree of confidence that comatose is a fitting description of God's people in Jerusalem at this time. 00:03:37.300 --> 00:03:42.980 There was a total lack of vision and vitality as far as service to God was concerned. 00:03:44.240 --> 00:03:50.580 And so Nehemiah's concern was not so much just the people outside of Jerusalem, but even the people that are in Jerusalem. 00:03:50.580 --> 00:03:57.660 And what they're going to think about this project that he had been called to do and whether or not they'll just say no. 00:03:58.960 --> 00:04:02.960 And he was worried about it because they've been there for a hundred years. 00:04:03.939 --> 00:04:06.640 The first exiles returned a hundred years earlier. 00:04:07.020 --> 00:04:11.360 They've had a hundred years to rebuild these walls and they lay in ruins. 00:04:11.360 --> 00:04:19.280 They came back from exile and in their own little family units, they built their homes and their farms and their businesses. 00:04:20.280 --> 00:04:27.600 They forgot that God's purpose to display his glory to the world from Jerusalem. 00:04:27.600 --> 00:04:27.680 Jerusalem. 00:04:31.520 --> 00:04:35.080 And that's when you move into chapter three in this long list of names. 00:04:36.120 --> 00:04:39.900 It's actually, it's the commencement of the building work. 00:04:40.520 --> 00:04:42.700 And it's a really exciting read. 00:04:42.800 --> 00:04:47.000 I know at first glance it doesn't appear to be, but it's a really exciting read. 00:04:47.000 --> 00:05:00.660 The real building of Jerusalem is a symbol of the people starting to pursue God's eternal purposes and not their own personal advancement or the advancement of their families, which is what they've been doing for a hundred years. 00:05:02.139 --> 00:05:05.379 Now, rather than go through verse by verse, I'm going to make a few observations. 00:05:05.579 --> 00:05:08.759 So we need to be at Nehemiah 3 if you're not quite there yet in your Bible. 00:05:09.860 --> 00:05:12.439 We see their immediate priority in verse 1. 00:05:12.439 --> 00:05:18.839 Eliashib, the high priest and fellow priests, went to work and rebuilt the Sheep Gate. 00:05:20.180 --> 00:05:23.500 And they dedicated it and set its doors in place. 00:05:24.100 --> 00:05:28.500 It's quite symbolic that they start the rebuilding at the Sheep Gate. 00:05:29.220 --> 00:05:31.600 And eventually they come back around to the Sheep Gate. 00:05:32.360 --> 00:05:39.439 This gate is near the wall's northeastern corner and it was the easiest access to the temple. 00:05:39.439 --> 00:05:47.180 And it was named the Sheep Gate because that's where the animals were brought through to sacrifice in the temple for the sins of the people. 00:05:47.959 --> 00:05:53.279 And by starting here, it's symbolically saying we are now going to put God first. 00:05:54.660 --> 00:05:57.040 Our relationship with God is going to come first. 00:05:58.439 --> 00:06:06.819 A very important symbolic statement from a people who are coming out of apathy and inertia in service of God. 00:06:06.819 --> 00:06:11.099 Notice 2 in chapter 3, the unity in which the people work. 00:06:11.620 --> 00:06:17.920 The priests set a good example by ripping off their robes and lugging stones and timber and building the gate themselves. 00:06:18.959 --> 00:06:24.939 It's a symbol that what we see as we go through here, the teamwork is just so needed for this job. 00:06:25.480 --> 00:06:31.699 People from a variety of backgrounds and trades and places all chip in to get this wall built. 00:06:31.819 --> 00:06:32.839 And they do it together. 00:06:33.199 --> 00:06:34.159 See how the list reads. 00:06:34.160 --> 00:06:41.080 Verse 2, the men of Jericho built the adjoining section and Zucur son of Imri built next to them. 00:06:41.220 --> 00:06:44.140 Verse 4, Merimoth repaired the next section. 00:06:44.240 --> 00:06:45.160 Next to him, Meshulam. 00:06:45.880 --> 00:06:47.640 And next to him, Zadok. 00:06:47.860 --> 00:06:48.660 And on it goes. 00:06:48.980 --> 00:06:49.680 Next to him. 00:06:49.960 --> 00:06:50.560 Next to them. 00:06:50.680 --> 00:06:51.400 Next to him. 00:06:51.700 --> 00:06:53.000 Until verse 30. 00:06:53.000 --> 00:07:04.060 Now I suspect there must have been some wall building experts in the team somewhere to guide the project. 00:07:04.060 --> 00:07:09.579 But the workers who get mentioned are the priests in verses 1 and 28. 00:07:09.920 --> 00:07:12.939 The goldsmith in verses 8, 31 and 32. 00:07:13.420 --> 00:07:15.399 Perfume makers in verse 8. 00:07:15.819 --> 00:07:16.920 Merchants in 32. 00:07:17.160 --> 00:07:19.439 District rulers, probably like a mayor kind of person. 00:07:19.780 --> 00:07:24.319 In verses 9, 12 and 14 to 19. 00:07:24.860 --> 00:07:30.060 And in verse 12, Shalom had the help of his daughters. 00:07:30.060 --> 00:07:33.339 Great memory verse for those of us who have just got girls. 00:07:36.420 --> 00:07:47.740 Sacrificial service was rendered by men and women who threw themselves into the enterprise even though they were totally lacking in experience as builders or laborers. 00:07:48.920 --> 00:07:52.079 And it's because of this common unity of purpose. 00:07:53.879 --> 00:07:58.100 These people are not coming and saying, I'll do my bit but providing I do it my way. 00:07:58.100 --> 00:08:01.580 It's not like one guy builds a wall. 00:08:01.820 --> 00:08:04.360 Beside him someone's constructing a fence. 00:08:04.800 --> 00:08:07.020 Beside him someone's building a flower bed. 00:08:07.340 --> 00:08:09.780 Beside him, oh actually that guy's just gone on holidays. 00:08:10.140 --> 00:08:12.879 When he gets back he'll do his bit however he likes it. 00:08:13.300 --> 00:08:17.140 In his time, when he feels led, when he gets around to it and after he's cut his own grass. 00:08:18.520 --> 00:08:19.760 They're working together. 00:08:19.759 --> 00:08:28.839 The whole thing would be doomed to failure if their ranks became disrupted by rivalry and pride and individualism. 00:08:29.579 --> 00:08:39.340 It seems I think that when I glance through here, Nehemiah experienced what would be any pastor's delight in building up the family of God. 00:08:39.899 --> 00:08:40.700 Here I am. 00:08:41.360 --> 00:08:42.240 How can I help? 00:08:42.740 --> 00:08:44.000 And how do you want me to do it? 00:08:44.000 --> 00:08:50.860 It's such a wonderful picture in chapter 3 of selflessness. 00:08:52.059 --> 00:08:57.919 Quite remarkable for a people who returned from exile and basically just pursued their own agendas. 00:08:57.919 --> 00:09:16.240 Volunteers came from Jericho, verse 2, Toccoa, verse 5, Gibeon, verse 7, Mispah in 7, 15 and 19, Zenoa in verse 13, Ben-Hakarim, Beth-Hakarim in verse 14, Beth-Zer in 16 and Keelah in 17 and 18. 00:09:16.240 --> 00:09:23.039 These people had their own paddocks to cultivate, their own sheep to tend, their own shops to look after. 00:09:23.440 --> 00:09:31.139 And instead, they left their homes and their families, came to Jerusalem to offer themselves to rebuild the walls. 00:09:32.320 --> 00:09:40.720 Notice 2 in verse 4, Merrimoth completed one part of the wall and then we see him pop up again in verse 21, repairing another section of the wall. 00:09:40.720 --> 00:09:46.620 Same with Mishlam in verse 4, he did this, pops up again in verse 31. 00:09:47.660 --> 00:09:50.519 They enthusiastically went the extra mile. 00:09:51.279 --> 00:09:55.360 There's no sense of, whoop, there you go, done my bit, over to you guys. 00:09:57.420 --> 00:10:01.040 It's now time for some other generation to take care of it or some other people to look after it. 00:10:03.180 --> 00:10:10.259 It seems that they regarded their work on the wall not as a chore, but as a privilege. 00:10:10.720 --> 00:10:12.220 A priceless opportunity. 00:10:12.399 --> 00:10:17.500 God had done so much for them and there was an opportunity to live and labor in gratitude. 00:10:18.960 --> 00:10:24.519 I think it's the same selflessness and gratitude that you read in 2 Corinthians 8. 00:10:24.519 --> 00:10:37.480 That resulted in the Macedonian churches urgently pleading with Paul to allow them the privilege of sharing in the service to the saints in Jerusalem. 00:10:39.399 --> 00:10:45.720 Which what it meant for them was that they wanted to sacrificially give to the church in Jerusalem. 00:10:45.819 --> 00:10:48.460 A bunch of people who they've probably never met. 00:10:48.460 --> 00:10:51.519 Why did they do such a thing? 00:10:52.240 --> 00:10:56.460 Because right at the beginning of 2 Corinthians 8 we are told it's because of the grace of the Lord Jesus. 00:10:58.460 --> 00:11:06.100 And at least for some people on this wall, their selflessness and their generosity was a privilege 00:11:06.100 --> 00:11:10.360 because they had been forgiven of serious mistakes in the past. 00:11:10.360 --> 00:11:15.360 Take for example verse 11, Maokiah son of Haram. 00:11:16.360 --> 00:11:20.539 He was one of the men who had disobeyed God by marrying a foreign wife. 00:11:21.879 --> 00:11:30.320 And he had been convicted of covenant unfaithfulness under Ezra's ministry 13 years earlier in Ezra chapter 10 verse 25. 00:11:31.779 --> 00:11:33.360 And he'd put the matter right. 00:11:33.360 --> 00:11:34.360 He's been convicted of covenant unfaithfulness under Ezra chapter 10 verse 25. 00:11:34.360 --> 00:11:35.360 And he's been convicted of covenant unfaithfulness under Ezra chapter 10 verse 25. 00:11:35.360 --> 00:11:45.300 And now he is mentioned here rebuilding Jerusalem's walls, reaffirming his commitment to the covenant God and his promises. 00:11:47.779 --> 00:11:56.300 This selfless and enthusiastic partnership is an example of what the people of God have done over the centuries 00:11:56.300 --> 00:11:59.519 in response to God's grace to them in the Lord Jesus. 00:11:59.519 --> 00:12:07.960 Friends, every week, dedicated prayer partners spend hours earnestly praying for some country that they'll never visit. 00:12:09.659 --> 00:12:15.179 Millions of Christians sacrificially give money for projects that they will never see 00:12:15.179 --> 00:12:20.679 or ministry that they will never personally experience the benefit of. 00:12:20.679 --> 00:12:30.059 No personal benefit to them other than the privilege of participation and doing it for their Lord. 00:12:31.159 --> 00:12:38.779 Those who love Christ have been liberated from the curse of selfishness and individualism 00:12:38.779 --> 00:12:42.639 and found their greatest joy in serving others in the service of the Lord. 00:12:42.639 --> 00:12:50.639 And if I may just use, just go offside here just for a moment. 00:12:51.639 --> 00:12:56.220 And that I believe is what we are, we've been calling us to do as a church here. 00:12:58.819 --> 00:13:08.419 Our own building project is but just one opportunity that we have to selflessly sacrifice for the sake of others. 00:13:08.419 --> 00:13:17.539 I'm calling us to put a fair bit of effort and resources into a project that many other people will get the benefit of. 00:13:19.099 --> 00:13:27.379 That is, selflessness means we give for the sake of others, not just if there's some personal benefit to me. 00:13:27.379 --> 00:13:38.220 For instance, put your hand up now if you were here when they built this building that we're sitting in right now. 00:13:43.200 --> 00:13:46.159 There was a few people in the morning congregation who put their hand up. 00:13:46.939 --> 00:13:50.519 And I said, leave your hand up if you paid for the building this morning. 00:13:50.519 --> 00:13:55.360 And one person put their hand up. 00:13:55.840 --> 00:13:57.519 And I said, did you pay for it all? 00:13:57.899 --> 00:13:59.199 No, not at all. 00:14:00.559 --> 00:14:06.939 But aren't you glad that some parish council and there were ministers and parish councils and people and builders 00:14:06.939 --> 00:14:15.960 who envisaged it and went with it and paid for it and we sit here and we have the benefit of it. 00:14:15.960 --> 00:14:21.040 Sacrificial service from people in the past. 00:14:21.720 --> 00:14:23.300 And we get the benefit of it. 00:14:23.680 --> 00:14:29.600 The St. Paul's Church family stands on the shoulders of over 110 years of sacrifice for God's people in this place. 00:14:31.040 --> 00:14:35.900 Now I'm not just talking in terms of generations past sacrifice for buildings. 00:14:35.960 --> 00:14:37.040 I'm talking about for people. 00:14:37.820 --> 00:14:43.759 I know the person who witnessed to me and displayed the glory of the Lord Jesus to me. 00:14:43.759 --> 00:14:46.919 But I don't know the person who did it to him. 00:14:47.419 --> 00:14:49.039 And I'm so glad he did. 00:14:52.059 --> 00:14:55.519 Chapter 3 is a wonderful picture of unity and sacrifice. 00:14:57.019 --> 00:15:00.200 And yet the note of realism is not missing. 00:15:01.159 --> 00:15:05.559 It's quite painful to read that not everyone came rushing forward with their picks and shovels. 00:15:06.340 --> 00:15:13.319 The leading citizens of Tekoa were well aware of the need, but they refused to roll up their sleeves. 00:15:13.320 --> 00:15:14.700 It says in verse 5, 00:15:15.100 --> 00:15:17.660 The next section was repaired by the men of Tekoa. 00:15:17.840 --> 00:15:18.180 Woohoo! 00:15:18.980 --> 00:15:24.420 But their nobles would not put their shoulders to the work under their supervisors. 00:15:25.240 --> 00:15:33.040 That is, they weren't prepared to get in and do their bit under someone else. 00:15:33.039 --> 00:15:38.459 I'll do it, provided I do it my way. 00:15:40.779 --> 00:15:45.039 And it suggests that it was pride rather than inability that kept them from the work. 00:15:45.620 --> 00:15:50.519 This working bee in Jerusalem was, well, it was below them. 00:15:52.279 --> 00:15:54.139 Pride is a cruel enemy. 00:15:54.399 --> 00:15:58.559 It inflates our self-importance and makes holiness impossible. 00:15:59.439 --> 00:16:01.899 And pride is at the heart of selfishness. 00:16:04.139 --> 00:16:08.919 A further dose of realism comes in chapter 4, which was just read out to us by Tim. 00:16:09.479 --> 00:16:14.339 That menacing duo that I said, let's remember these guys because we're going to see them again. 00:16:14.439 --> 00:16:16.899 They reappear here. 00:16:17.159 --> 00:16:18.439 They're from chapter 2. 00:16:18.939 --> 00:16:20.659 So let's have a look from verses 1 and 3. 00:16:20.659 --> 00:16:27.139 When Sambalat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became angry and was greatly incensed. 00:16:27.980 --> 00:16:32.399 He ridiculed the Jews and in the presence of his associates in the army of Samaria, he said, 00:16:32.500 --> 00:16:34.219 What are those feeble Jews doing? 00:16:34.659 --> 00:16:36.059 Will they restore their wall? 00:16:36.159 --> 00:16:37.379 Will they offer sacrifices? 00:16:37.600 --> 00:16:38.759 Will they finish in a day? 00:16:39.179 --> 00:16:43.159 Can they bring the stones back to life from these heaps of rubble, burned as they are? 00:16:44.219 --> 00:16:47.600 And standing beside him is Tobiah the Ammonite. 00:16:47.600 --> 00:16:51.340 He's hearing the taunts of his mate Sambalat and he comes in. 00:16:51.420 --> 00:16:52.779 He says, yeah, yeah. 00:16:52.980 --> 00:16:53.960 What they're building? 00:16:54.360 --> 00:16:57.440 If a fox climbed up on it, it would just fall over. 00:16:58.240 --> 00:16:59.040 Yeah, take that. 00:17:01.019 --> 00:17:02.540 They start with the ridicule. 00:17:02.659 --> 00:17:03.360 What a joke. 00:17:04.220 --> 00:17:05.000 What a joke. 00:17:05.099 --> 00:17:05.640 Look at them. 00:17:06.839 --> 00:17:10.200 Priests and goldsmiths and perfume makers. 00:17:11.000 --> 00:17:12.120 It's going to look good. 00:17:12.500 --> 00:17:13.700 It's going to smell good. 00:17:13.700 --> 00:17:18.500 But stick a squirrel on it and what a joke. 00:17:19.620 --> 00:17:24.559 Now, the verbal taunts are one thing, but they're followed by the plots in verse 8. 00:17:24.740 --> 00:17:28.960 To come and fight against Jerusalem and stir up trouble against it. 00:17:29.640 --> 00:17:33.799 To bring this project to a standstill, they're going to need more than just verbal taunts. 00:17:34.440 --> 00:17:37.160 They're going to need to be supplemented with dangerous weapons. 00:17:37.160 --> 00:17:43.220 And verse 2 says that Sambalat was accompanied by the army of Samaria. 00:17:43.940 --> 00:17:51.340 Verse 7 says, Tobiah, the Arabs, and the Ammonites, and the men of Ashdod were also plotting against them. 00:17:51.580 --> 00:17:59.140 What that means is that as they built the wall in Jerusalem, they were surrounded by armies. 00:17:59.140 --> 00:18:05.080 It's one thing to hear the taunts. 00:18:06.259 --> 00:18:13.800 It's another thing to have sweat dripping off your bowels, your brows being hammering and chipping and carrying on and lumping stones. 00:18:13.900 --> 00:18:18.740 And look up from your work, stretch your back and just see armies. 00:18:18.740 --> 00:18:29.059 Verse 11 reveals the clear and present danger before they know it or see us. 00:18:29.559 --> 00:18:34.400 We will be right there among them and we will kill them and put an end to the work. 00:18:35.819 --> 00:18:40.559 And so verse 10, we see the discouragement that God's people felt. 00:18:41.339 --> 00:18:45.440 And this is exactly what the enemy wanted to see happen. 00:18:45.440 --> 00:18:53.500 It says, the people in Judah said the strength of the laborers is giving out and there is so much rubble that we cannot rebuild the wall. 00:18:55.080 --> 00:19:02.080 And if the people, the workers in Jerusalem didn't have enough to cope with, they get some more issues to deal with. 00:19:02.180 --> 00:19:07.700 In verse 11, it says, the people in Judah, men and women from the surrounding villages and towns, 00:19:08.000 --> 00:19:14.860 came to Nehemiah grieving about the dangers that their families were exposed to in the countryside. 00:19:15.440 --> 00:19:22.500 The enemy had threatened to attack the homes and the families of the men who were building the walls. 00:19:24.799 --> 00:19:29.320 And those threats and propaganda were there repeated to the workers on the wall. 00:19:29.720 --> 00:19:30.960 See it there in verse 12. 00:19:31.200 --> 00:19:35.480 These people are coming and the Jews who lived near them came and told us, 00:19:35.640 --> 00:19:41.340 10 times over, wherever you turn, they will attack us. 00:19:41.339 --> 00:19:43.679 10 times over. 00:19:43.980 --> 00:19:48.459 It's like they're coming to Nehemiah and saying, Nehemiah, a lot of people are saying, 00:19:49.579 --> 00:19:52.480 Nehemiah, a lot of people are unhappy with this. 00:19:54.379 --> 00:19:59.159 It's gossip and it's propaganda that is designed to discourage. 00:19:59.980 --> 00:20:03.639 It threatens to unravel the unity and the focus and the purpose of this work. 00:20:03.640 --> 00:20:11.900 These Jews were coming and urging their fellow countrymen to abandon the work on the walls 00:20:11.900 --> 00:20:16.280 simply because it was physically exhausting. 00:20:16.820 --> 00:20:17.900 There were practical problems. 00:20:18.000 --> 00:20:19.280 There were hostile opponents. 00:20:20.200 --> 00:20:24.180 They considered the task too hard and the sacrifice too much. 00:20:24.180 --> 00:20:32.140 And so in verses 13 to 23, we get Nehemiah's organized perseverance. 00:20:34.580 --> 00:20:41.660 Far from abandoning the work when it got tough, what Nehemiah does is he calls for more sustained effort. 00:20:42.400 --> 00:20:43.279 He turns the heat up. 00:20:45.019 --> 00:20:48.019 He doesn't call a holiday break, long weekend. 00:20:48.700 --> 00:20:49.759 He gets them to work harder. 00:20:49.759 --> 00:20:54.859 People were placed in the most vulnerable positions on the wall. 00:20:55.700 --> 00:21:00.680 Swords and spears were carried with buckets and shovels and picks. 00:21:01.460 --> 00:21:03.799 Nehemiah had a permanent guard placed with him. 00:21:04.099 --> 00:21:05.759 He installed an alarm system. 00:21:06.859 --> 00:21:10.759 Shifts were extended so that they worked until the stars came out. 00:21:11.279 --> 00:21:13.400 And there would be no more commuting to work. 00:21:14.000 --> 00:21:19.440 As they were now required to live, sleep, eat, the whole lot on the work site. 00:21:19.759 --> 00:21:24.359 Those working on the wall from outside of Jerusalem were now needed. 00:21:24.599 --> 00:21:28.240 When you finished your shift on the wall, you were now needed for guard duty. 00:21:28.879 --> 00:21:31.400 And Nehemiah himself didn't even change his clothes. 00:21:31.799 --> 00:21:33.279 I don't know what that would have smelled like. 00:21:33.920 --> 00:21:36.119 But he's leading by example. 00:21:37.700 --> 00:21:44.400 And God uses the opposition to increase the work. 00:21:44.400 --> 00:21:53.300 Nehemiah's confidence was not, however, in his organizational ability to meet the immediate crisis 00:21:53.300 --> 00:21:56.300 or the greater effort that everyone was going to put in. 00:21:56.519 --> 00:21:57.880 His confidence was in God. 00:21:57.960 --> 00:21:59.080 See it there in verse 14? 00:21:59.079 --> 00:22:27.939 Fear is conquered by reflecting on the sufficiency 00:22:27.940 --> 00:22:30.100 of the promise-keeping God. 00:22:30.420 --> 00:22:32.840 Nehemiah calls the people to remember the Lord. 00:22:32.840 --> 00:22:38.980 He uses the words of his opening prayer in chapter 1 verse 5 00:22:38.980 --> 00:22:41.620 when he first heard of Jerusalem's plight. 00:22:42.059 --> 00:22:46.880 Do not forget that our God is a great and awesome God. 00:22:46.880 --> 00:22:52.900 The narrative of chapter 4 with its problems and dangers 00:22:52.900 --> 00:22:57.360 is deliberately interspersed with affirmations of faith 00:22:57.360 --> 00:22:59.700 and confidence in the God of heaven. 00:23:02.160 --> 00:23:03.660 And so with such confidence in God, 00:23:03.820 --> 00:23:08.600 Nehemiah and his colleagues continue to build despite verbal assault, 00:23:08.599 --> 00:23:13.740 psychological pressure, physical danger, natural discouragement, 00:23:14.319 --> 00:23:17.240 difficult work, crippling fear and extreme danger. 00:23:18.459 --> 00:23:22.740 The people worked hard, organized well, sacrificed much, 00:23:22.799 --> 00:23:28.379 but in the last analysis, the success would depend upon their great and awesome God. 00:23:28.380 --> 00:23:36.540 We read last week in Matthew 16 of Jesus' commitment to build his church. 00:23:37.660 --> 00:23:38.360 He said, 00:23:38.360 --> 00:23:40.480 Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah, 00:23:40.900 --> 00:23:45.220 for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. 00:23:45.300 --> 00:23:47.300 And on this rock I will build my church, 00:23:47.760 --> 00:23:52.240 and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. 00:23:52.240 --> 00:23:55.759 Jesus promises there, as I said last week, 00:23:55.900 --> 00:23:57.720 in person to build his church, 00:23:57.980 --> 00:24:03.559 and it will triumph over all forms and powers of death and evil and wickedness. 00:24:03.880 --> 00:24:07.680 He will build his church as the truth about him is declared 00:24:07.680 --> 00:24:12.359 and received as people respond to the Lord Jesus in repentance and faith. 00:24:12.640 --> 00:24:14.720 That is how he will build his church. 00:24:15.720 --> 00:24:17.779 And our confidence ought to be 00:24:17.779 --> 00:24:20.920 that as the truth of Jesus is declared, 00:24:20.920 --> 00:24:26.500 Jesus will do his work and bring people to repentance and faith. 00:24:27.080 --> 00:24:29.720 Do we have that confidence that that's what he will do? 00:24:34.140 --> 00:24:35.440 Let me just say that again. 00:24:35.779 --> 00:24:38.480 Do we have that confidence that that is what he will do? 00:24:40.480 --> 00:24:41.620 I find it hard. 00:24:44.920 --> 00:24:48.560 I find it hard to have that confidence week after week after week after week. 00:24:50.920 --> 00:24:52.120 And yet just tonight, 00:24:52.880 --> 00:24:56.500 someone told me a story about someone who committed their faith 00:24:56.500 --> 00:25:00.360 to the Lord Jesus when I preached this event in 2007. 00:25:02.920 --> 00:25:04.279 Just heard about it tonight. 00:25:05.560 --> 00:25:06.300 Praise God. 00:25:07.220 --> 00:25:08.460 He's doing what he said he'll do. 00:25:08.460 --> 00:25:13.860 Jesus also said this earlier in Matthew. 00:25:14.600 --> 00:25:17.059 I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. 00:25:17.319 --> 00:25:20.480 Therefore, be as shrewd as snakes and as innocents as doves. 00:25:21.120 --> 00:25:24.259 Jesus never promised that the building of the church, 00:25:24.720 --> 00:25:27.220 that the Christian life, the mission of the church, 00:25:27.680 --> 00:25:30.039 would be painless and trouble-free. 00:25:30.799 --> 00:25:32.079 Expect it to be hard. 00:25:32.480 --> 00:25:33.940 Expect opposition to the gospel. 00:25:33.940 --> 00:25:36.340 Expect to sacrifice. 00:25:36.660 --> 00:25:37.860 Expect hard work. 00:25:38.019 --> 00:25:39.940 Expect discouragement from within the church 00:25:39.940 --> 00:25:41.840 and pressure from outside the church. 00:25:42.320 --> 00:25:45.320 But don't be repelled by it. 00:25:46.380 --> 00:25:51.700 God will use it to advance his work in us and in others. 00:25:52.580 --> 00:25:55.960 We should expect that Jesus will build his church as he promised. 00:25:56.660 --> 00:26:00.100 The local church is where God's eternal purposes 00:26:00.100 --> 00:26:01.820 are being worked out in his world. 00:26:01.819 --> 00:26:05.139 People are still being saved by Christ 00:26:05.139 --> 00:26:06.899 and growing in Christ, 00:26:07.200 --> 00:26:10.299 even amongst us and even in the last few weeks. 00:26:11.179 --> 00:26:12.539 Praise God for that. 00:26:13.980 --> 00:26:17.139 For those here who have been saved by Christ 00:26:17.139 --> 00:26:19.200 and included in his eternal purposes 00:26:19.200 --> 00:26:20.419 and get to work, 00:26:20.619 --> 00:26:24.399 you get to work for something that will last forever. 00:26:25.139 --> 00:26:28.480 All service and sacrifice and hardship for Christ and his church 00:26:28.480 --> 00:26:30.679 should be seen as a privilege. 00:26:30.680 --> 00:26:35.340 The church is the vehicle that God chose 00:26:35.340 --> 00:26:39.019 to take the message of the gospel to every generation and people 00:26:39.019 --> 00:26:41.360 and even to the heavenly realms. 00:26:42.320 --> 00:26:46.880 This is how the apostle Paul puts it in Ephesians 3 verses 10 to 11 00:26:46.880 --> 00:26:51.299 right before he talks about unity and partnership in the church. 00:26:52.060 --> 00:26:52.940 He says this, 00:26:52.940 --> 00:26:55.900 His intent was that now through the church, 00:26:55.980 --> 00:26:57.779 the manifold wisdom of God 00:26:57.779 --> 00:26:59.420 should be made known, 00:26:59.660 --> 00:27:04.320 displayed to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms 00:27:04.320 --> 00:27:07.680 according to his eternal purpose, 00:27:07.960 --> 00:27:10.600 which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. 00:27:10.599 --> 00:27:16.839 The church matters because God chose it 00:27:16.839 --> 00:27:22.059 to show and tell the eternal message of his love and salvation. 00:27:22.799 --> 00:27:25.039 This message is the world's only hope. 00:27:26.399 --> 00:27:27.339 And so if you're a Christian, 00:27:27.459 --> 00:27:32.159 then your life is so much bigger than a job. 00:27:32.160 --> 00:27:38.820 It's so much bigger than an understanding spouse. 00:27:39.519 --> 00:27:42.560 It's so much bigger than having non-delinquent kids 00:27:42.560 --> 00:27:45.380 or a beautiful house and gardens. 00:27:45.500 --> 00:27:49.279 It's so much bigger than overseas trips and nice clothes and cars. 00:27:49.500 --> 00:27:52.860 And you are part of something immense. 00:27:52.859 --> 00:27:58.179 It is something that began before you were born 00:27:58.179 --> 00:28:02.059 and it was something that will continue after you die. 00:28:02.759 --> 00:28:04.759 God is rescuing fallen humanity, 00:28:05.039 --> 00:28:06.579 transporting them into his kingdom 00:28:06.579 --> 00:28:09.919 and progressively shaping them into his likeness. 00:28:11.279 --> 00:28:12.879 And he's called you to be part of it. 00:28:15.299 --> 00:28:17.000 God not only saves us, 00:28:17.079 --> 00:28:20.799 but includes us for our joy 00:28:20.799 --> 00:28:24.200 as part of his master plan for all of eternity. 00:28:25.159 --> 00:28:26.099 This is our duty, 00:28:26.500 --> 00:28:28.359 our calling and our privilege. 00:28:29.720 --> 00:28:32.559 Isn't it just like God that he should design the church 00:28:32.559 --> 00:28:36.480 so that we get the joy of loving and being loved 00:28:36.480 --> 00:28:39.440 and he gets the glory for the goal of it all? 00:28:41.460 --> 00:28:43.940 This is where our core value of treasuring Jesus 00:28:43.940 --> 00:28:46.399 is so essential for us. 00:28:46.720 --> 00:28:47.859 Let me read it to you. 00:28:47.859 --> 00:28:51.979 Core values are meant to shape the culture 00:28:51.979 --> 00:28:53.279 of who we are as a people. 00:28:54.159 --> 00:28:55.000 And here's one of them. 00:28:55.399 --> 00:28:56.619 Treasuring Jesus together. 00:28:57.279 --> 00:28:59.579 Having been led individually by the Spirit of God 00:28:59.579 --> 00:29:01.719 to receive Jesus Christ as the Lord, 00:29:02.240 --> 00:29:04.439 Saviour and Supreme Treasure of our lives, 00:29:04.859 --> 00:29:06.899 we now most solemnly and joyfully 00:29:06.899 --> 00:29:08.599 enter into covenant with one another 00:29:08.599 --> 00:29:09.879 as one body in Christ. 00:29:10.639 --> 00:29:13.679 We believe the people whom Jesus has called 00:29:13.679 --> 00:29:15.919 into relation with himself are his church 00:29:15.920 --> 00:29:18.279 and not an institution or a building. 00:29:18.880 --> 00:29:20.480 In an age of individualism, 00:29:20.560 --> 00:29:22.420 we value vigilance and accountability 00:29:22.420 --> 00:29:24.440 in treasuring Jesus together. 00:29:24.440 --> 00:29:26.580 And therefore, we are committed to 00:29:26.580 --> 00:29:30.160 our corporate life, ministries and church policies 00:29:30.160 --> 00:29:31.980 to give explicit evidence 00:29:31.980 --> 00:29:35.320 that we treasure Jesus Christ above everything. 00:29:36.120 --> 00:29:39.120 Making corporate worship a weekly priority. 00:29:40.100 --> 00:29:41.620 Meeting together in small groups 00:29:41.620 --> 00:29:44.360 for more intimate opportunities for nurture and service. 00:29:44.359 --> 00:29:47.399 Small groups being the main network 00:29:47.399 --> 00:29:50.619 for discipleship and pastoral care and relationships. 00:29:51.199 --> 00:29:52.959 Treasuring Jesus together by engaging 00:29:52.959 --> 00:29:55.379 to watch over one another in brotherly love. 00:29:55.859 --> 00:29:57.539 Remembering one another in prayer. 00:29:57.939 --> 00:29:59.919 Aiding one another in sickness and distress. 00:30:00.559 --> 00:30:02.679 Cultivating Christian sympathy and joy. 00:30:03.139 --> 00:30:04.500 Being courteous in speech. 00:30:05.000 --> 00:30:06.339 Being slow to take offense, 00:30:06.459 --> 00:30:08.359 but always ready for reconciliation. 00:30:09.139 --> 00:30:11.179 And mindful of the command of our Saviour 00:30:11.180 --> 00:30:13.500 to secure it without delay. 00:30:14.060 --> 00:30:16.820 Welcoming people from every background. 00:30:17.220 --> 00:30:18.820 Openness towards new people 00:30:18.820 --> 00:30:20.420 and the avoidance of cliquishness. 00:30:21.460 --> 00:30:23.700 Purging our lives of the sin 00:30:23.700 --> 00:30:25.340 that causes division. 00:30:25.920 --> 00:30:28.220 Pursuing increasingly visible, 00:30:28.480 --> 00:30:31.000 authentic, practical ways of loving each other. 00:30:31.220 --> 00:30:32.880 And being personally involved 00:30:32.880 --> 00:30:34.820 in one ongoing ministry 00:30:34.820 --> 00:30:37.500 toward building up the St. Paul's family 00:30:37.500 --> 00:30:39.220 according to our gifts. 00:30:42.099 --> 00:30:43.960 For those amongst us 00:30:43.960 --> 00:30:45.099 who are living out, 00:30:45.240 --> 00:30:46.460 treasuring Jesus together, 00:30:46.779 --> 00:30:48.400 I just want to say thank you. 00:30:50.720 --> 00:30:52.880 Thank you for helping me 00:30:52.880 --> 00:30:55.240 keep my focus 00:30:55.240 --> 00:30:56.480 on the glory 00:30:56.480 --> 00:30:58.099 and the purpose of God. 00:30:59.940 --> 00:31:02.079 Thank you for investing in me, 00:31:03.180 --> 00:31:04.200 in my life, 00:31:04.319 --> 00:31:05.619 and in the life of my family, 00:31:05.619 --> 00:31:07.619 and the life of the St. Paul's church family. 00:31:08.919 --> 00:31:10.699 For those struggling with it, 00:31:11.879 --> 00:31:13.799 can I say for your own soul 00:31:13.799 --> 00:31:15.939 and for God's glory, 00:31:16.619 --> 00:31:17.679 this core value 00:31:17.679 --> 00:31:19.359 calls you to step away 00:31:19.359 --> 00:31:20.759 from individualism 00:31:20.759 --> 00:31:24.199 and seek the Christ-exalting joy 00:31:24.199 --> 00:31:26.299 of treasuring Jesus together 00:31:26.299 --> 00:31:27.819 for His glory 00:31:27.819 --> 00:31:29.079 and the joy, 00:31:29.259 --> 00:31:30.159 not just of yourself, 00:31:30.599 --> 00:31:31.879 but the joy of all people. 00:31:32.719 --> 00:31:33.000 Amen.