Job Done (Nehemiah 7.1-5a and 7.73-8.12)

Introduction

We had a letter this week that confirmed we have been awarded a grant of £2,000. That means we have met -and slightly surpassed- the £97,000 target we set for financing the roof project, 60% of which has come from the extraordinarily generous people of this church.

Jesus said, “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap.” We have seen that it is true. Glory to God.

Isn’t closure a great feeling? Do you know what I mean by that? When you get all the Christmas cards done or finish cutting the hedge, or put away that completed basket of ironing? You can put your feet up and enjoy a nice cup of tea and say “job done.”

After all the challenges Nehemiah faced, one by one, which we have been looking at over the past few weeks 6.15 says this: “So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days. When all our enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were afraid and lost their self-confidence, because they realized that this work had been done with the help of our God.”

Did you know that 25th of Elul corresponds roughly to late August, early September, which is when our roof project is due for completion?

But the bottom line is this; Nehemiah got the job done. And he got it done by covering each and every phase of his mission in specific, dependent, believing prayer. He successfully faced off every challenge and completed the work. Basically, he was a winner.

You’re a winner too! Did you know that? It’s true. When your parents got together and made you (which is a weird thought so let’s not dwell on it too long) but when they did it was your spermatozoon that fought off all the competition and got to the ovum before anyone else - unless you’re a twin, in which case it was an honourable draw. But did you know that the chances of you hitting the tape before all your challengers in that particular race were roughly one in two-hundred million! Never let anyone tell you otherwise, you make Usain Bolt look ordinary!

All Christians are winners. Romans 8.36-37 talks about trouble, hardship, persecution, famine, nakedness, danger and deadly weapons before saying in all these things we are more than conquerors through Jesus - who gives a crown of life to those who keep going and don’t give up.

Well, as we’ve said already in this series, the first half of Nehemiah is about the building and the second half is about the people. We’re moving into the second phase of the book of Nehemiah now so the focus changes from the reconstruction of ramparts to the renewal of hearts.

God is interested in both. He is actually interested in the material repair of the roof above us; but he is also looking for spiritual renewal amongst us. And this morning’s passage (missing out all the names) sets the scene for God’s programme of spiritual renewal. And it sets out some key priorities for the spiritually renewed people God wants you and me to be. So this is of immediate and real concern to all of us.

Spiritually Renewed Worship

When you get to 7.1 it says this: “After the wall had been rebuilt and I had set the doors in place, the gatekeepers, the musicians and the Levites were appointed.”

As soon as the city wall was sorted, Nehemiah organised a service for celebration and rededication, appointing Levites, musicians and gatekeepers (the modern equivalent might be pastors, worship leaders and bouncers – let’s call them the welcome team)!

And then in v4 it says this: “Now the city was large and spacious, but there were few people in it, and the houses had not yet been rebuilt.”

You read that right. The houses hadn’t yet been rebuilt. People didn’t yet have a roof over their heads. But notice, it didn’t occur to them to sort that out until they had come before God first. No one said, “Well, I’ve got a bit of DIY to do on my living room this weekend so I won’t be able to make the service.” No! God first.

A worldly church, a jaded church, is one in which people seek happiness in pleasing themselves. A spiritually renewed church is one in which people find true joy in pleasing God. The first and greatest commandment is this: love the Lord your God with all you heart, mind, soul and strength. Everything else is comes after.

Your attitude and mine to worship says a lot about where our priorities in life really lie. If I cannot honestly say that worshipping my mighty Creator and magnificent Saviour is the number one thing in my life I need spiritual renewal.

And look at this - in 8.5, everyone stands together. In 8.6 they all say “Amen” and bow down before God as one. I’m not a great fan of “If you want to sit, sit; if you’d rather stand, then stand.” I don’t mean to say there’s never a place for that, particularly in prolonged times of ministry, but I think it’s right to respond to God together as one body, not just as individuals who happen to be in the same place.

A spiritually renewed All Saints’ starts with worship that shows passion for God and that is rooted in a love for sound, biblical truth.

And I include giving as part of worship as well. There’s a church in this Diocese who have a very unusual offertory prayer. When they bring the plate up to the front, the service leader often prays: “It’s not just what we say or do; this is what we think of you.”

It’s not about having a form of service that we like. Chances are that this format is not your preferred style. You probably prefer 9:00am or 10:30am. But it’s not about you – or me – it’s about the Lord. The only thing of any consequence this morning is if our worship pleases him.

I was sharing in the Communion service on Wednesday that I have a friend who’s a vicar in Chelmsford. He was standing at the back of church one Sunday saying goodbye to people as they left. And someone mumbled “I didn’t really get much out of that service today.” Well, you can imagine his face when my friend said, “Oh, I didn’t realise we were worshipping you!”

Spiritually Renewed Welcome

Now notice the two qualities Nehemiah looked for in his gatekeepers (or welcome team). Chapter 7, verse 2: “I put in charge of Jerusalem my brother Hanani, along with Hananiah the commander of the citadel, because he was trustworthy and feared God more than most people do.”

In other words, you could rely on them to turn up and organise everything and they were prayerful, it says they feared God. If you’re on the welcome team, or if you serve in any practical way in the church (flower arranging, making coffee, cleaning, putting out chairs – whatever…) the Lord is looking for two things; reliability and reverence.

One of the best welcomers I ever knew was called Esther and she was from Peru. She was totally dependable; she was always early, well prepared, attentive, cheerful and friendly without being intrusive. I once said to her, “You do that job so well” and she blushed a little. And I had to dig it out of her but I found out that she prayed silently for the people she welcomed as they entered the building, “Lord, bless that man today,” “Lord speak to that woman today.” “Lord let that child discover more of you today…”

In a spiritually renewed All Saints’ everyone would be a gatekeeper. Everyone would look out for everyone else; welcoming in the stranger and watching out for those in special need of God’s touch in their lives.

So that’s the worship leaders and the welcomers. Then you get all these names in chapter 7 which I’m not going to preach on except to say this: every name on that list is important to God. Not one person is forgotten.

And the Lord records the names of everyone who belongs to him. It’s called the Lamb’s Book of Life. At the Last Judgement, all those whose names are written in that book will enjoy the glorious new creation for eternity. And those that aren’t won’t. Are you sure that your name is in that book? Don’t leave this place today uncertain about whether it is or not. Speak to one of the leaders and they will be able to show you from the Bible how you can be confident that your name in that book, because of what Jesus has done for you.

Spiritually Renewed Hearing

When we get to chapter 8, we find the public reading of Scripture (v3) and (in v8) a kind of preaching; “They read from the Book of the Law of God, making it clear and giving the meaning so that the people understood what was being read.”

Notice that the whole objective of the preaching ministry is to enable people to hear the message, to grasp it and understand it. It was never designed by God to give overworked people a chance to catch up on sleep!

You’ve probably heard the story about the woman who wanted her five-year old son to go to church but couldn't sit with him because she sang in the choir. So, she asked the boy’s grandfather to sit with him. The problem was that the old man always nodded off during sermons, so she offered her son £1 to keep him awake. Half way through the sermon one Sunday though she looked up and heard him snoring away. So she questioned her son after church. “Why didn’t you do your job and keep granddad awake? I gave you £1 to wake him up.” “Oh,” he said, “but grandpa gives me £5 to let him sleep!”

Funnily enough, in the celebration service described in Nehemiah 8, the preaching lasts for hours but apparently no one brings a pillow.

And look at 8.9. “All the people had been weeping as they listened to the words of the Law.” They realised how far they were from obeying them and it touched their hearts.

A spiritually renewed All Saints’ will be one where we love the word of God, let it convict us and rebuke us, and listen carefully to every verse, asking the Holy Spirit “how does this apply to my life?”

Conclusion: Spiritually Renewed Joy

And a spiritually renewed All Saints’ will be a community conspicuous for its infectious joy.

I once saw a sticker on a car that said “Start each day with a smile. Get it over with.” That’s not the joy of the Lord!

In 8.10 Nehemiah says, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

The prophet Isaiah prophesied that the Messiah, when he came, would be anointed with an oil of gladness.

Those who have a love for intercessory prayer are usually really joyful people, have you noticed? No wonder! After all Jesus says “Ask and you will receive so that your joy will be complete” (John 16.24). The joy that the Lord gives is your strength.

Have you ever wondered what makes joy ugly or beautiful? Think about this; if people enjoy cruelty and violence, their heart is callous. If people enjoy dirty jokes and toilet language their heart is dirty. Or when we get our enjoyment simply from our possessions, our hearts shrivel up like a gadget or a lifeless object. We become like what we desire.

But when your heart delights in the perfections and the preciousness and splendours of the triumphant and risen Christ you become like him. That’s why the joy of the Lord is your strength.

One last thing. Because our roof project (like Nehemiah’s wall project) is not just about the building – but also the people – we are planning a Celebration and Rededication Service at the end of September.

It will be a great occasion to invite friends and family. We hope to have a few surprises as well.

Our idea is to invite the roofers, the architect and also the Kirklevington Day Release team who’ve done lots of work on the grounds to thank them for their work and give them a small gift.

It’ll be an opportunity to honour all the people from All Saints’ who have worked so hard on the project over the years.

But it will be an opportunity for us to stand solemnly before the Lord and joyfully renew our commitment to serve him, pledging our lives once again to his service. And we plan to follow the service with a glass of champagne and a celebration lunch. Put it in the diary.

Sermon preached at All Saints' Preston on Tees, 28th July 2013