Thank you very much, and thank you for the warm welcome we've received on the island.
We look forward to getting to know you a little bit, and we ask that the Lord will bless the
time together.
I bring greetings from our own fellowship, Kilmally and Arden American Free Church, and
ahead of the visit, we've very much been praying for you, and we trust God to be gracious to
us this weekend.
And we're going to look later on in Nehemiah chapter 9, but I want to begin our time just
with one verse where the people are told,
Bless the Lord your God from everlasting to everlasting.
Blessed be your glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise.
Well, we want to bless and praise the Lord together this evening, and we'll do that with
our first item of praise as we sing together the metrical version of Psalm 111, and we shall
sing the first six verses of Psalm 111.
Praise to the Lord, I will extol Him.
Praise to the Lord.
I will extol Him.
Praise to the Lord.
and on the ancient times.
The whole works of the Lord our God
are great above all measure.
Slaughter they are of every one
at a festive pleasure.
His words most honor our God
is most glorious and pure,
and is undainted by justness
forever doth endure.
His works most wonderful he hath
made to be not upon.
The Lord is gracious,
and he is full of compassion.
He giveth me done to all those
that truly do him dear,
and evermore his covenant
he in his mind will bear.
He did the power of his words
unto his people show.
When he the raven's heritage
upon them death he's true.
Amen.
Well, let's continue now
in praying together
to the Lord our God.
Let us pray.
Our gracious God
and our loving Heavenly Father,
we do gather this evening
as a congregation,
as a company of your people
saved by grace.
Lord, we gather to bless,
to praise,
to extol your name.
Father, we praise you for your works
in creation,
that you have set in their place
the sun and the moon and the stars.
we thank you that it was you
that formed the heights
of the mountains
and who founded the depths
of the sea,
that it was you that breathed life
into all living creatures,
and it is you who sustains
our lives.
And so we praise you
and we worship you
for the works about which
we have sung,
works which are right
and true.
we thank you, Lord,
that you are kind,
that you are great,
and that you are full of grace.
We thank you for the work of grace,
for the work of redemption
in our world,
in our lives.
That time and again
you have saved your people
from all their distress.
When they cried,
you have heard from heaven
and you have answered
answered to deliver.
Lord, how true that is
also of our own lives.
How much we want to thank you
for the times you have taken us
from the mud and mire
and set our feet upon the rock.
Time and again, Lord,
you forgave your people
all of their sins.
For you are a gracious
and merciful God,
slow to anger
and abounding
and steadfast love.
You are the one
who never forgets
and who never forsakes
your own people.
And how we thank you, Lord,
for our redemption in Christ.
That the one through whom
and for whom
all things were made
should step into this broken world.
That he might make one day
all things new.
Thank you that the Prince of Glory
was willing to bear our shame.
That the one in whom
there was life
was willing to die our death.
And that your only begotten Son
should be cut off
from his heavenly Father
in order that we might be welcomed home
and become children of the living God.
So this evening, this weekend,
Father, would you fix our eyes upon Jesus?
Would you turn our eyes upon Jesus
to look full in his glorious face
that the things on earth might seem strangely dim
in the light of his glory
and his grace?
Help us to set our hearts
on things that are above
to remember that our lives are hidden with Christ
who is the hope of glory.
So this evening we pray
as we turn to your word
as we lift up our voices in praise
would you refresh our hearts
and would you remind us once more
of your very great promises
and of the plans and the purposes
you have for our lives
that we might walk in wisdom
that we might walk in uprightness
for your pleasure
and for your praise.
And this we pray in Jesus' name.
Amen.
Well, we're going to sing once more
before we read
and our second item of praise
is Psalm 85
from Sing Psalms
Psalm 85
and we'll sing together verses 1 to 9
In times past, Lord, you showed favour
to your own beloved land
the prosperity of Jacob you restored
by your strong hand.
That's Psalm 85
verses 1 to 9
in time
past, Lord, you showed
favour
to your own beloved land
the prosperity of Jacob
you restored by your strong hand
you forgive your people's trespass
you were pleased their sins to hide
you withdrew all your disfledger
from your wrath you turned us high
God our Saviour
now restore us
from us turn away your rage
will your anger burn against us
will it last from age to age
will you not again be
will you not again revive us
that we may rejoice in you
show us, Lord, your covenant verse
show us, Lord, your covenant mercy
your salvation grant and you
I will hear what God the Lord says
to his saints he offers peace
but his people must not wander
and return to foolishness
surely for all those who fear him
his salvation is at hand
so that once again his glory
may be seen within our land
well I
I wanted to look together with you tonight
at the ninth chapter of Nehemiah
which if you have the same church bible
I have before me
it should be found on page 483
that's Nehemiah chapter 9
page 482 and 83
it's a lengthy chapter
we're not going to read the whole chapter
but I hope to reference it in the course
of our study together
but tonight we're just going to read
a few verses from the close of the chapter
that's 32 down to the end
verse 38
this great prayer of confession
before God
and Nehemiah chapter 9
verse 32
we come to the conclusion of that prayer
let us hear together the word of God
now therefore our God the great
the mighty and the awesome God
who keeps covenant and steadfast love
let not all the hardship seem little to you
that has come upon us
upon our kings
our princes our priests our prophets our fathers
and all your people
since the time of the kings of Assyria until this day
yet you have been righteous in all that has come upon us
for you have dealt faithfully
and we have acted wickedly
our kings our princes our priests and our fathers
have not kept your law
or paid attention to your commandments
and your warnings that you gave them
even in their own kingdom
enjoying your great goodness that you gave them
and in the large and rich land that you set before them
they did not serve you
or turn from their wicked works
behold we are slaves this day
in the land that you gave to our fathers
to enjoy its fruit and its good gifts
behold we are slaves
and its rich yield goes to the kings
whom you have set over us because of our sins
they rule over our bodies and over our livestock as they please
and we are in great distress
because of all this we make a firm covenant in writing
on the sealed documents of the names of our princes
our Levites and our priests
and we thank God for his word
in this book of Nehemiah
before we turn to the word together
for a time of study
we will sing once more
this time from Psalm 36
the metrical version of Psalm 36
singing together verses 5 to 10
a psalm about the mercy and loving kindness of God towards his people
thy mercy Lord is in the heavens
thy truth doth reach the clouds
Psalm 36 5 to 10
thy mercy Lord is in the heavens
thy truth doth reach the clouds
thy mercy Lord is in the heavens
thy truth doth reach the clouds
thy对
thy thy justice di That's what
thy justice di E Ais-Blued
Lord, thy preserves man and peace, how precious is thy grace.
Therefore in shadow of thy wings, men's sunset shall quay.
They with the badness of thy heart shall be well satisfied.
O rivers of thy pleasures, I will think to them provide.
Because of life the fountain pure remains alone with thee.
And in the purest light of mine, we clearly light shall see.
Thy lovingkindness unto them continue that be known.
And still on men, how bright in heart thy righteousness be so.
Well, I invite you to keep your Bible open to Nehemiah chapter 9.
And although we read from verse 32, I want to survey the whole chapter with you as we think together.
And it's a wonderful prayer.
It's a prayer of confession.
And it's good as we approach this weekend that we come before God and acknowledge and confess our sins to Him,
trusting in His great mercies, trusting in His steadfast love and faithfulness.
I wonder if you've heard of any occasions in which the leaders of the nation sought to turn a people back to God.
It was a little bit before God.
It was a little bit before my time, but I believe that during the days of World War II,
there was a national day of prayer in advance of the great rescue at Dunkirk.
The king himself called the nation to pray.
And all over the land, church bells rang out, queues formed as people were eager to pray for the safe deliverance of the British Army.
When the time came, the seas were calm, the skies were cloudy, and a great many were delivered.
The leaders of a nation leading their people to God.
And that's something like the scene in Nehemiah chapter 9.
Nehemiah was a leader.
We often think of him as something like a civil engineer, rebuilding gates and walls.
But he sought also to rebuild the community, the people of the tribes who had returned.
He sought to bring the people back to God.
And so in Nehemiah chapter 9, he, Nehemiah the governor, turns his people's attention to the living God,
rebuilding not only the city, but rebuilding the community.
We have in Kilmali and Ardnamurk been studying together the book of Nehemiah over these past months.
And it's the kind of book that's often preached if, for example, you're attending a leadership seminar.
You know, the sort of thing, you know, leadership lessons from Nehemiah.
And somebody rightly commented, it is perhaps the oldest book, the oldest manual on leadership in the whole of human history.
Much to teach us about spiritual leadership, much to teach us about servant leadership, particularly the fifth chapter.
But it's not just a book about leadership.
And it's a book that's often preached on, isn't it, just before a building project.
We are ourselves about to renovate our small church building on the Ardnamurk Peninsula,
but that wasn't why we wanted to preach it.
It's not just a book about building projects.
In fact, building is really only half the story.
The books of Ezra and Nehemiah originally circulated as one book, Ezra-Nehemiah.
And we often concentrate on the physical rebuilding.
In Ezra, that is the temple.
In Nehemiah, the gates and the walls of Jerusalem.
But each book is itself in two halves.
The first half, there is a building project.
The second half, a rebuilding of the people's lives and their faith and their community around the Word of God.
And so Nehemiah seeks not only to rebuild the city, which he does under God, but to rebuild the people.
To restore not only the gates and the walls of Jerusalem, but to restore their relationship with the living God,
built on the foundation of the Word of God.
And in chapter 8, that Word is opened for the first time in a long time.
And as the people hear the Word, they weep,
because they realize what they'd lost, how their forefathers had behaved.
But they're told in that chapter not to weep,
because it was a time to celebrate, and a time to celebrate the Feast of Booths.
And so in chapter 8, there is feasting, there is a festival.
But then in chapter 9, the time comes to weep,
to confess their sins before God, to repent of their sins,
to turn back in faith to the living God.
And so in chapter 9, that's what we find happening.
On the 24th day, the people assemble with fasting, sackcloth, and with earth on their heads.
They separate themselves from the people of the land,
and they hear the Word of God for a quarter of a day.
Verse 3,
And then for another quarter, they make confession and worship the Lord their God.
It's a remarkable passage.
Where we live, we have a nice view of Ben Nevis,
from some of the windows of the house.
And if you're familiar with the Nevis Range, you'll know there's a gondola,
which is the easiest and the quickest way to get up to enjoy the view.
And if you take the gondola in Anakmur, you get a tremendous view of the surrounding mountains.
Nevis Range, the Memors, all the way across to the west.
And in Nehemiah chapter 9, we get a tremendous view of the Old Testament.
We're given a summary of Old Testament history.
We're given a survey of Old Testament events from the creation of the universe in Genesis
to the return from exile at the time of Nehemiah.
And it's not just a register of names and important dates and significant places.
It is a record of God's faithful dealings with His unfaithful people.
It's a long passage.
But there is a repeated pattern that helps us understand what's at work.
Repeatedly, we are told of God's initiative in calling people to Himself, in making a covenant with them.
You did this, the gracious initiative of God.
And then there is then described how the people turned away,
how they were ungrateful, how they were disobedient.
But we did this.
And then they are taught how the Lord showed His mercy and grace,
how He persevered with them,
and how He pardoned their sins times without number.
And so I want to briefly survey this passage,
observing three things in the first eight verses.
God makes a covenant.
In the verses 9 to 31,
the people break the covenant and break His commandments.
And then in the verses we read, 32 to 38,
they seek to remake the covenant.
And the opening verses take us right back to the beginning,
right back to the beginning of all things,
the creation of heaven and earth.
Verse 6,
You made heaven, the heaven of heavens,
the earth and all that is in it.
We live in a beautiful and a wonderful world.
You live on Lewis.
I don't need to tell you that.
The more we learn about the world,
the more we marvel at the wisdom and the power
of the God who made it.
The Lord, we're told, made all men and women.
And He chose one man, this man, Abram.
And He made a covenant with Him.
He who made all things made a covenant with this young man,
this old man, I should say.
And He promised Abram
that He would be the father of many peoples.
He promised to many descendants,
though He was at the time childless.
He promised His own land,
the land of the Canaanites.
He promised that He would bless him
and that through His seed,
through His offspring,
all the world would be blessed.
And immediately, we're told,
in these chapters,
verse 8,
You have kept your promise,
for you are righteous.
The one who made all things made a promise.
And undergirding this whole chapter
is that the Lord kept His promise,
for He is righteous.
Abram, his heart was found faithful to God,
but God proved Himself faithful to His people
and to His ancestors
throughout their long and their troubled history.
God is faithful.
God keeps promises
at the very start of this confession.
Have we ever failed to keep our word?
Have we ever broken a promise?
Not kept an appointment,
an arrangement without telling anyone?
Not fulfilled a contractual obligation?
Not kept a vow,
maybe a baptismal vow,
but bringing up the children in the faith?
Are we unwilling,
or more likely unable,
to keep the promises we make?
It's part of life in the sinful
and this fallen world
that people say things
and make promises,
but they cannot fulfill them.
And yet there is one
who kept His promise,
who keeps His promise,
for He is righteous.
In the great hymn Amazing Grace,
John Newton has these words,
The Lord has promised good to me.
His word my hope secures.
He will my shield and portion be
as long as life endures.
He has promised,
and He will keep His promise,
because He is righteous.
So, the confession begins
with a reminder
of the faithfulness of God,
the favor He showed to Abraham
in making this covenant.
And in the chapter,
the verses that follow,
we move from Genesis
into Exodus,
the next book of the Pentateuch.
And we learn once more
of the Lord's deliverance
of His people
from Egypt.
He fulfilled His promise
in multiplying them greatly.
And though He had yet
to give them the land
of their inheritance,
they multiplied
and they lived in Egypt.
And the Egyptians
became afraid
of the immigrants.
They began to oppress them.
They were terrified
that they'd take over.
And then we have Pharaoh,
who does not let
his people go.
And we're told
in Nehemiah
from verse 9
that God saw
their affliction
as they worked
as slaves.
He heard their cry
at the Red Sea
and He performed
these signs
and wonders
against Pharaoh,
for they acted
arrogantly
against
our fathers.
But Moses
went to Pharaoh
and he explained
that the God
of heaven
had commanded him
to let His people go.
Pharaoh said,
Exodus 5 verse 2,
Who is the Lord?
I do not know the Lord.
He failed to rightly
honor the God
of heaven.
And so the Lord
showed His signs
and wonders
and He brought
His people
safely out,
made a name
for Himself,
divided the sea
before them.
And there in the wilderness
He fed them
daily with manna
from heaven.
He led them
day and night
with a cloud
of fire.
And He led them
supremely,
verse 13,
by speaking to them
from heaven
and giving them
right rules
and true laws,
making known to them
the Holy Sabbath,
giving them
the law
of Moses.
The Lord
liberated them.
The Lord
fed them.
He led them.
He gave to them
His law.
He did them
so much good.
And then in verse 16
we read that word,
but they and our forefathers
acted presumptuously
and stiffened their neck
and did not obey
your command.
How did they respond
to the saving initiative?
How did they respond
to God hearing their cries
and helping?
How did they respond
to His care
and His daily guidance?
They stiffened their neck.
They refused to obey
His commandments.
They forgot
the miracles,
not mindful of the wonders
you'd performed
among them.
They sought to return
to their slavery
in Egypt.
They committed
great blasphemy
and they worshipped
an idol,
verse 18.
They were not mindful
of all that the Lord
had done for them.
Ingratitude,
insolent.
They could not have been
more ungrateful
to the Lord.
Instead of worshipping Him,
they cast for themselves
this golden calf
and they said,
this is your God
who brought you up
out of Egypt
and they committed
great blasphemies.
I wonder how you
or I would respond
in the face
of such ingratitude.
Would we say,
after all I've done
for you
and this is how
you thank me,
how does the Lord
respond
to their
ingratitude?
You
are a gracious,
a God ready to forgive,
gracious and merciful,
slow to anger
and abounding
in steadfast love.
You did not forsake them,
verse 17.
In your great mercies,
you continued
to give them
the pillar of cloud,
the pillar of fire.
Verse 20,
you gave your good spirit,
you gave the manna.
For 40 years,
you sustained them
in the wilderness.
They lacked
nothing.
The people
rejected
the Lord.
The people
sought to
go back
to slavery
in Egypt,
yet the Lord
persevered with them.
He didn't give up
on them.
He didn't give them
over.
He persevered
with them.
Disciplined,
yes,
but not abandoned.
Still
fed with the manna,
still led
with the
pillar of cloud
and fire,
still sustained
by his spirit
for 40 years
in the wilderness.
And the answer
and the reason
why,
verse 19,
is that word
will meet again,
these words,
your great mercies.
He made a promise
to Abraham
that he would
bless his descendants
and he kept
his promise
because he
is righteous,
he is faithful
even when
his people
are unfaithful.
The opening
psalm,
reading a little
further down
to verse 9,
Psalm 111,
this time in the
Sing's Praise
version,
has this
stanza.
He sent
redemption
for his people.
His covenant
remains the same,
ordained by him
throughout all ages,
holy
and awesome,
is his name.
He is faithful
even when they
are unfaithful.
And we see that
same pattern
play out
in the next
verses,
moving this time
from Exodus
into the historical
books,
the conquest,
Joshua,
all the way
through to the end
of 2 Kings.
Verse 22,
he gives them
kingdoms.
Verse 22,
they possess the land
he had pledged
to give to them.
And it's a lovely land,
rich,
fertile land,
houses and cities
they didn't build,
flowing with milk
and honey.
The people
delight themselves
in God's
great goodness.
And how do they
respond?
Well, it's
depressingly
predictable,
isn't it?
Verse 26,
nevertheless,
they were
disobedient
and rebelled
against you
and cast your law
behind their back.
Not with
gratitude
and rejoicing
at the Lord's
great goodness,
not with worship
and obedience
to his word.
On the contrary,
they cast
his law
behind their
back,
going so far
as to kill
the prophets
that came
and spoke
to them
and warned
them.
The Lord
doesn't give up
on them.
Verse 23,
he'd multiplied
them as the
stars of heaven,
as he'd promised
to do.
And though they
give themselves
over once more
to idolatry
and blasphemy,
he doesn't
give them up.
He does
give them over
to the hands
of their enemies,
but he doesn't
give them up
fully and
finally.
And verse 27,
when they cry
out to him
in their distress,
once more he
hears their
affliction
and he responds.
And there's
that little
phrase
again
in verse 27,
according to
your great
mercies.
He made a
promise
to their
forefather.
He kept
that promise
because he
is faithful.
And the people
just go downhill.
Things get worse
and worse.
We're told
that they
acted
presumptuously.
It's the same
language,
verse 29,
that was used
of Pharaoh.
So this
unbelieving
Pharaoh,
who didn't
know the
Lord,
acted
arrogantly
towards him.
And sometime
later,
the Lord's
own people
act
presumptuously,
as if they
didn't know
the Lord.
They keep
on sinning.
They turned
a stubborn
shoulder.
They stiffened
again their
neck.
They closed
their ears
to the pleas
of the prophets.
And this
wasn't an
occasional wobble.
This wasn't
a one-off.
We're told
it was a
pattern of
behavior that
continued for
many years,
decades,
centuries.
They tried
his patience
time and
again.
And yet he
never made
an end of
them,
verse 31.
And he
never forsook
them,
for he is a
gracious and
merciful God.
He kept
his promise,
because he
is righteous.
He is the
God of
great mercy,
slow to
anger and
abounding in
steadfast love.
Perhaps
you've known
the experience
in your life
where you've
sought to
support a
wayward child
or a
testing spouse
or in the
workplace,
a difficult
employee,
a manager,
member of
the department.
Perhaps in
your family,
there's a
member of the
family who
year after
year causes
nothing but
heartache.
They don't
listen to
advice.
They go
their own
way.
They make
mistakes,
foolish decisions,
bringing nothing
but shame and
dishonor upon
the family.
And yet you
bear with
them.
You persevere
with them
because you
love them
and they're
part of your
family.
Or maybe a
spouse,
maybe
neglecting you
emotionally,
maybe never
having anything
positive to
say,
never anything
encouragement,
and yet you
bear with
them because
you love
them.
And you
made a
promise,
you made a
vow to
them to
love them
till death
do you
part.
Sometimes
in life,
we're called
to be
long-suffering
with those
we love,
to bear
with them.
And the
Lord here
is depicted
as long-suffering
with His
people.
We marvel
at His
patience
century after
century as
He comes
after them
and they
turn away
from Him
for many
years.
And yet He
doesn't make
an end to
them.
He doesn't
forsake
them.
He doesn't
forget the
promise that
He made
to their
ancestor
Abraham,
the covenants
that He
made with
their forefathers.
You or I
might be
tempted,
if treated
that way,
to say,
fine,
that's it.
Have it
your way.
Washing
my hands
of you,
that's
enough.
I quit.
We'll go
our separate
ways.
Not the
Lord.
He made
a promise.
He made
a covenant.
He is the
God of
great mercies.
He is
righteous,
and He
will keep
that promise.
And so
it's against
that background
that we come
to the verse.
We looked
at verse
32,
and in
these verses
the leaders
of the people
seek to
renew the
covenant
with God.
They've
rehearsed
the whole
story
from creation
to exile,
and they
now confess
their sins,
the sins
of the
people,
the sins
of their
forefathers,
sins,
and they
remind one
another of
God's
covenant,
but also of
His steadfast
love and
of His mercy
and grace.
they cast
their minds
back to the
time of
the exile,
verse 32,
when the
northern kingdom
was taken
to Syria
and then the
southern kingdom
off into the
Babylonian
captivity,
the result
of the Lord
disciplining
His wayward
people for
their breaking
of the
covenant.
And they
acknowledge
that in all
of this,
verse 33,
He has
been
righteous,
He has
been
faithful,
and they
have acted
wickedly.
And it's
not a few
rotten eggs,
it's not a few
bad apples
among the
people.
Verse 34,
the kings,
the priests,
the fathers
have not
kept your
law.
It's all
of them
from the
top to
the bottom,
from the
greatest to
the least,
the whole
nation has
turned their
back on
God.
And so
now the
whole
leadership
of the
nation seeks
to turn
back to
God,
and to
turn the
people
back to
God.
Those who
knew the
law,
those who
should have
known the
Lord,
who should
have taught
the law,
ignored it,
they broke
it.
Though He
had fulfilled
every one of
His promises,
giving them
descendants,
giving them
the land,
blessing them
with good
fruit and
good gifts,
they failed
to honor
the giver.
And they
turned away
and threw
His law
behind their
back.
And the
irony is,
they ended
up in the
same state
they were
in before.
Verse 36
tells us that
we are slaves
this day
in the land
you gave to
our fathers.
We are
slaves.
They inherited
towns and
cities they
hadn't built,
olives and
vineyards they
hadn't planted.
It was a
wonderful land
rich in
produce.
And now
their tenants
giving the
taxes and the
tributes to
the kings,
even their
own bodies,
are the
possession of
the kings
far away in
Persia.
home.
And you see
the irony,
when the
Lord heard
their cries,
they were
slaves in
Egypt.
And He
brought them
out with
these miraculous
signs,
these wonders,
brought them
out of Egypt,
brought them
to Himself
at Sinai.
And while
they enjoyed
their good
gifts,
they forgot
about the
giver.
And they
went their
own way.
And they
ended up
back in
slavery,
not in
Egypt,
but in
Israel,
in their
own place.
It's one
of the
ironies,
isn't it,
in the
modern world
that people
think becoming
a Christian
means some
kind of
loss of
personal
freedoms.
In some
way, if we
become a
Christian, we
have to
give up
the freedoms
that we
might have
to enjoy.
And of
course,
becoming a
Christian is
dying to
self.
It is a
path of
saying no
to self
and saying
yes to
Christ.
But it
is in
Christ that
we find
freedom.
It is
outside of
Christ,
Scripture
tells us,
that we
are enslaved.
It is in
Christ that
we find
fullness of
life.
John
chapter 10
verse 10.
The people
were slaves.
God heard
them.
He heard
their cries.
He delivered
them out of
slavery.
He brought
them to a
place of
abundance and
blessing and
goodness.
And they
turned away.
And so they
found themselves
slaves once
more.
And realizing
their sorry
state, they
confessed their
sins to
God, the
sins of
their fathers,
the sins of
their leaders.
They cry
out to
Him for
His love
and His
mercy and
His grace.
And they
promise to
change their
ways to
demonstrate
their
repentance.
Verse 38,
they make
this firm
covenant and
the obligations
of the
covenant are
there for
us just
over the
page.
They resolve
not to turn
away but to
turn back to
the living
God, not
to cast
His law
behind their
backs but to
open it before
their eyes and
to hide it in
their hearts and
to walk in the
ways He has
commanded them
to do.
And they
appeal once
more to His
great mercy.
They appeal to
the promise He
made to their
forefather,
Abraham.
They appeal to
His steadfast
love and His
faithfulness.
And in a
sense they're
saying to
Him, Lord,
as You
treated our
forefathers when
they sinned,
when You
welcomed them
back, when
You showed
them Your
mercy and
grace, when
You pardoned
them all of
their sins and
trespass, would
You do it
again?
Would You do
it in our
day?
Would You do
it in our
lives?
Would You
do it in
our lives?
Will You
not again
revive us,
says Psalm 85?
That we may
rejoice in You.
Show us, Lord,
Your covenant
mercy, Your
salvation grant
anew.
That is their
prayer.
They're asking
God to forgive
them as He
forgave their
forefathers.
And so the
chapter,
lengthy chapter,
very helpful
review of the
history of
Israel, a
survey, a
summary of
Old Testament
history.
But a rich
revelation of
the character
of God.
Slow to
anger,
gracious and
merciful,
faithful to
His promises,
abounding in
steadfast love.
He is the
one who takes
the initiative,
who makes and
who keeps His
promise.
He is the
one who delivers
people from
their distress
when they cry
to Him.
He is the
one that gives
to His redeemed
people good
gifts and
who is with
them day and
night.
He is the
one who forgives
the unfaithful,
for He is
faithful.
And they say to
Him, Lord, would
you do it again?
Would you give us
another chance?
Do it again,
Lord.
We mustn't lose
sight of the
goodness of God.
He blessed the
people abundantly.
I stayed with a
friend last night
in Ullapool,
and just late at
night we were
chatting, and
then again this
morning, and he
just out of the
blue said,
do you know if we
thanked the
Lord for all His
gift stuffs, we'd
never have time to
talk about anything
else.
just awareness of
the goodness of
God, the God who
gives so much that
we delight in His
great goodness.
But we mustn't
lose sight of the
grace of God.
It was God's grace
that called Abraham,
God's grace that
took the initiative,
God's grace that
made the promise
to Him.
And as we're
sitting here tonight,
we mustn't lose
sight of the grace
of God and the
initiative of God
in our lives.
How did you come
to be in this
place?
How did you come
to be in Christ?
Was it through a
praying relative,
maybe a granny,
or a grandfather
that prayed for you
by name every day?
Was it through a
godly influence in
the home, a
mother or father
that taught you,
prayed with you,
sang with you,
brought you Lord's
day by Lord's
day to church?
Was there a
teacher in the
school?
Was there a
Sunday school
teacher?
Was there a
Christian friend
who came into
your life and
showed great
faithfulness to
you?
Was it through
the ministry of a
minister, perhaps a
visiting missionary?
Or was it simply a
prompting of the
Spirit to go into a
building at the time
of a service and to
see what was going
to happen there?
The Lord in His
grace takes the
initiative, sending
people into our
lives to share with
us the gospel, to
share with us the
encouragement to keep
living as a
Christian.
Because of that
grace, He
welcomed His people
back time and
again.
And that's true of
us.
Before He went to
Calvary's cross, the
Lord made a new
covenant in His
blood, the covenant
the Old Testament
prophets had looked
forward to.
And He made a
promise that all who
trusted in Him would
receive forgiveness
and freedom and
fullness of life.
life.
And yet we can
often lose sight of
that.
As the people in
Nehemiah's day might
not have been
mindful of the
great works the
Lord had done.
We can forget to be
mindful of the
great work done at
Calvary.
It might be a
simple thing, just
busy with life,
busy with job,
busy with career,
busy with raising
up children or
grandchildren, vital
role, vital
responsibilities, but
we can crowd out
the things of God.
We can let the
devotional time
slide.
We can let the
family devotion
slip.
We can find
ourselves not
regularly in the
Lord's house.
We might just
prioritize other
things over our
Christian walk.
We might enjoy all
the good things God
gives, but we might
enjoy them perhaps in
the wrong priorities,
hobbies, good in
themselves, but which
seem to expand to
fill all the
available time, which
draw our best
affections, which
concentrate our best
attentions.
things.
Or it may be we want to
play down our
Christian life, keep
it quiet, keep it
private, don't want any
friction at home or in
the workplace or among
friends.
Or it may be you're here
tonight.
Maybe you're surprised to
be here tonight because
you've openly and very
deliberately turned away
from your Christian faith,
faith.
Like the people in
verse 26, you've cast
God's law behind your
back.
You were raised in the
church, been prayed for
and taught, but you
shy away from the
claims of Christ.
The call to deny
self, the call to take
up your cross, the call
to be a stranger in this
world.
And you think that more
peace and happiness and
freedom will be found
outside of Christ and in
Him and among His
people.
The Lord warns us that
He may discipline those
He loves.
He warns us that if we
turn from the freedom
we have in Christ, we
might, like the
Israelites, find
ourselves back in
slavery.
But He gives a word of
encouragement that He
keeps His promise, that
He is faithful, that
His mercies are great.
They are new every
morning.
The Apostle John in his
first letter says, if we
claim we have no sin, we
deceive ourselves and the
truth is not in us.
But if we confess our
sins, as the men and
women of Nehemiah's day
confessed their sins, He is
faithful and just to
forgive us our sins and to
cleanse us from all
unrighteousness.
God's great mercies
sending forth Christ, the
Son of Abraham, to make
the new covenant in His
blood and so for the
blessings of the gospel to
flow to the whole world.
God doesn't mean we can be
presumptuous.
A philosopher once wrote,
God will forgive me, that's
His job.
It's what God does, what He
did.
But we mustn't be
presumptuous.
But we can be confident that
if we come before Him as the
people of Nehemiah's day came
before Him and acknowledge
and confess our sins and
own our sins and say, Lord,
we have strayed, we have
wandered, we have gone our
own way.
But as you forgave our
forefathers, would you
forgive us?
Would you remember again your
covenant?
Would you show once more your
great mercies and forgive us
and cleanse us from all
unrighteousness?
I will hear what God the
Lord says to His saints.
He offers peace, but His
people must not wander and
return to foolishness.
Surely for all those who fear
Him, His salvation is at
hand so that once again His
glory may be seen within our
land.
He offers peace tonight to the
troubled conscience.
He offers us a way out of
returning to foolishness.
And He offers once more His
grace to any whose hearts have
gone astray to welcome us back
as the Father welcomed back the
prodigal so that His glory may be
seen once more within our land
and within our lives.
Well, may God give us the grace
to respond in faith and to look
into our hearts and then to look
to Him this weekend.
I just want to pray once more
before we sing our final item of
praise.
And we'll just pray together now.
Gracious God, we do bless your
name, the name that is exalted above
all blessing and praise.
Bless you as our Creator, the Maker of
the heavens and earth.
I bless you as the one who made all
things and the one who made covenant
with your people.
Father, we thank you that in a world
of lies and fake news, your word is
true.
In a world of broken promises and
broken dreams, your promises are
sure for you are righteous.
We thank you that you're kind to us
hearing our prayers, providing for
our every needs, giving to us more
than we could ever ask or imagine.
And we thank you, Lord, for your
mercy and your grace that you are
patient, long-suffering.
Lord, even when we stiffen our necks,
even when we turn a stubborn shoulder
towards you, even when we cast your
words behind our back or stop our
ears to hear what you have to say to
us, that you bear with us.
You do not make an end to us.
You do not forsake us.
For you are gracious, merciful, slow to
anger and abounding in steadfast and
covenant love.
Lord, tonight and this weekend we ask
that you would teach us the height, the
depth, the breadth, the length of that
love.
And as we look at our lives, as we
inspect the state of our hearts, that in
your goodness and mercy you would forgive
us from our ingratitude, from our
insolence, even from our indifference,
from our apathy to the things that are
eternal.
Would you not again revive us that we may
rejoice in you?
Lord, show us your covenant mercy, your
salvation grant anew.
So, Lord, this night, this weekend, this is
our prayer, that you will be glorified,
that we might respond to your grace, come
to you to be refreshed, come back to you
after perhaps a time away.
I'll come to you, Lord, even for the first
time, and to taste and see that you, our
Lord, are good.
And so we thank you for your amazing grace
given to us in Christ, in whose name we
pray.
Amen.
Well, to end our time together, I wanted to
sing the metrical version of Psalm 126,
Psalm that speaks of the return from exile
and from joy emerging from sorrow.
Psalm 126, the metrical version,
when Zion's bondage God turned back,
as men that dreamed were we, then filled
with laughter was our mouth, our tongue
with melody.
We sing to close to God's praise.
Psalm 126, the metrical version,
when Zion's bondage God turned back, as in a tree
in her way.
When filled with laughter was our mouth, our tongue
with melody.
They mount the need and said, the Lord, with things more than
the throne.
The Lord has done, the Lord has done, the Lord has done, the King's bondage God,
when joy to us is done.
As streams of water in the south are haunted sharply gall,
whose soul endures the leaping time of joy and joy they shall.
That man who hailing precious seed, enrolling for the corn,
the earth is bringing at his sheep, rejoicing shall return.
So may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God our Heavenly Father,
and the fellowship of his Holy Spirit be with us now, this evening, and forevermore.
Amen.