Foundations 30

We’re still in the book of Nehemiah today. Chapter 7 is for the most part a list of people who came to Israel from the captivity in Babylon. You are free to look at that chapter on your own but I am going to skip over it today and move into chapter 8. I’ll start with verse 1: And all the people gathered as one man at the square which was in front of the Water Gate, and they asked Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses which the LORD had given to Israel. 2Then Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly of men, women and all who could listen with understanding, on the first day of the seventh month. 3He read from it before the square which was in front of the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of men and women, those who could understand; and all the people were attentive to the book of the law. 4Ezra the scribe stood at a wooden podium which they had made for the purpose. And beside him stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah on his right hand; and Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah and Meshullam on his left hand. 5Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people for he was standing above all the people; and when he opened it, all the people stood up. 6Then Ezra blessed the LORD the great God. And all the people answered, "Amen, Amen!" while lifting up their hands; then they bowed low and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground. 7Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, the Levites, explained the law to the people while the people remained in their place. 8They read from the book, from the law of God, translating to give the sense so that they understood the reading. If we look at the previous chapter we find that there were around 43,000 people who came back from captivity to Israel. And so that gives us an idea of about how many people gathered to gather when it says: And all the people gathered as one man at the square which was in front of the Water Gate, and they asked Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses which the LORD had given to Israel. I will be honest I long for the day when we can say that the population of Portland, what’s that about 13,000 people, want to get together to hear the law of God read to them. At this point in time I think 130 people wanting that might be a miracle. But that is where our hope lies – in God turning people’s hearts so that they desire to hear and do the law of God. Nothing could be better than that in my opinion. So Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly of men, women and all who could listen with understanding, on the first day of the seventh month. Notice that if you could listen with understanding you were in that crowd. They expected their children to be their listening to the same word of God that the parents were hearing. It wasn’t dumbed down for them. It wasn’t put into cute little stories. They heard the same words of the law that the adults did. Why? Because God understands that people are people. Being a child doesn’t give you a free pass to not obey the law of God. I believe God also understands that if you expect a lot from your children you will receive a lot from your children. Train up a child in the way they should go is to teach them the book of the law. It is to teach them what false witness, and adultery, and covetousness, and murder and Idolatry and everything else is. You see if you don’t train a child up in the law when they are young it will be hard to get them to bow the knee in submission to God when they are older. Because what you are doing is teaching them to be humble before God at a young age, submitted to law at a young age so that they can already be growing in grace and truth by the time they are ready to go out on their own. It’s time that we quit listening to the lies of educators and child psychologists and on and on and on and started training our children in walking on the path of life. I realize that for most of us we missed the boat. Our kids are out of the house and on their own and we didn’t have a clue what the path of life was when we started out so we didn’t know how to train our children up in the way that they should go. I understand that. So what should we do? Pray. Pray that God would intercede and cause our children and grandchildren to turn toward the path of life in spite of our lack of understanding. God is big enough to change us and our families if we humble ourselves before him. One statement that I hear over and over again is that the children are our future. It is true but it is also true that children who do not know how to walk on the path of life will create a future headed toward covenant curses. We have to decide now what kind of future we want to see blessing or cursing. If we want curses we do nothing. If we want blessing then we had better be falling on our knees before God begging him to change hearts because that is the future’s only hope for blessing. It’s interesting that Ezra read the law to them from early morning until midday and at some point other priest were translating the words so that the people could understand. Here we have a generation or two that have been raised in Babylon, they may speak fluent Bablyonian but it seems their Hebrew has gotten a little rusty. So they translate the word of God into the language of the people so that they could understand it. We see the same thing a few hundred years later they translate the scriptures into Greek so that the everyday people can understand. I think the key in all of this is that the goal is for people to understand the word of God so that they can begin to apply it. Knowing it intellectually doesn’t do you any good if it’s not applied to your life. We see this over and over again in scripture God provides a way of grace through the shed blood of Christ but the people who just go through the motions, understand it in their heads but don’t humble themselves and turn from their sins don’t find salvation. They die in the wilderness unpleasing to God because they refused to humble themselves before God. We demonstrate our love for God by obeying his commandments. It’s that simple. We have to know what they are before we can keep them. And that too has been a problem in the church: we continually lose the law. If keeping and doing the law of God demonstrates our love for him and we keep losing the law what does that say about our love for God? It makes me nervous I’ll tell you that. In verse nine we read: Then Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, "This day is holy to the LORD your God; do not mourn or weep." For all the people were weeping when they heard the words of the law. 10Then he said to them, "Go, eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength." 11So the Levites calmed all the people, saying, "Be still, for the day is holy; do not be grieved." 12All the people went away to eat, to drink, to send portions and to celebrate a great festival, because they understood the words which had been made known to them. What we see here is that the bible sees no such thing as a separation of the state from godliness. The state just as much as the individual is to walk in obedience to God’s law. It is in fact to be the enforcer of the law. The church is called to teach the law and explain the law. That is its sphere of governance. Education is the church’s responsibility. The government is called to enforce the law and punish evil doers. Oh that our governments would stop doing all that they are not supposed to be doing like education, food safety, fighting wars in other countries, paying the poor not to work, shaving the value off of our money and much much more and start enforcing the law and punishing evil doers. Our budgets would be balanced in a very short time and we would be free to move about and live with a hope of prosperity once again. In this passage the political leaders of the state and the religious leaders stand side by side UNDER the law of God. There are no loop holes to get out of obeying God’s law – Especially since the new testament because one of the signs of being a believer in Christ is that the LAW of God is now written on our hearts a new. I want you to understand that placing yourself under the law of god is not a sad thing. It is not a thing to mourn over. Now in this passage the people heard the word of the Law and they began to be sad. They were grieving over their rebellion and sin. But the law does so much more than convict us of sin. You see when the law convicts us of sin all it is doing is showing us where we are walking in death. It’s not saying stop having fun. It is saying stop killing yourself. The law of God is the path of life. It is the way of blessing. Without the law there is no redemption from our sin. We are saved because Jesus became the Lamb of God slain for the sins of the world according to the law. You see redemption is proscribed by the law. Now the law apart from humbleness before the law giver is a sentence of death. It is nothing but pride and self righteousness. It is choosing death in the form of religion without the power. God has called us to life. He has laid out the path of life for us in his law. If we want to live life to it’s fullest then we should search out the commandments and seek with all our hearts to conform our lives to the ways of God. I believe that is the essence of what 2 Chronicles 7:14 is about: If my people called by my name will humble themselves, pray and seek my face, I understand that to be seek my character that is revealed in my commandments, that is where the face of God is to be found. We humble ourselves before God – God I am a sinner in rebellion against you and in love with death. We pray something like: God help me, I have really messed up, I am in love with death please save me from myself. Then we seek his face – we become acquainted with his ways and the path of life by reading and hearing the law of God which continues to humble us before God. Then and only then will God begin to heal our land, our families, our own hearts. Nehemiah and Ezra also understood that the law is not meant to make you sad. It is to be a tool of rejoicing and gladness. It is your hope in the world it is the means of blessing and life in a cursed and dying world. Rejoice in the commands. Look at the passage: "Go, eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength." 11So the Levites calmed all the people, saying, "Be still, for the day is holy; do not be grieved." 12All the people went away to eat, to drink, to send portions and to celebrate a great festival, because they understood the words which had been made known to them. I pray for the day when it begins to really sink in that the law of God is the Joy of the Lord: It is our strength. It is life to our bones and to our families. It is the source of all blessing, real, deep and meaningful blessing in the world. Embrace the joy of the Lord and stop grieving. Trust the word of God which promises that if we will humble ourselves, pray and seek his face HE WILL HEAL OUR LAND. Don’t be afraid to give up your sin, don’t be afraid to humble yourself by forsaking death and rebellion and submitting to the law of God. Don’t grieve over having to give up your sin and the path of death that you are on. Instead embrace the path of life, enter into the joy of the Lord, walk in obedience and rejoice in your God. All the death and decay that is around us means nothing in comparison to what God is going to do in the lives of those who humble themselves, pray and seek the face of God. Please embrace the joy of the Lord and take hope in the promises of God. Let’s pray. Oh father, give us eyes to see the difference between life and death. Give us the will to chose life and rejoice in it and reject death and not grieve over giving it up. Keep your promises oh Lord. If we are walking in death pour out covenant curses upon us and our families. If we are walking in life pour out covenant blessings upon us and our families. Have mercy upon us that we may choose life in every area of our existence. In Jesus power and authority I ask these things. Amen. Be reminded of the Path of Life: "Hear, O Israel, the statutes and the ordinances which I am speaking today in your hearing, that you may learn them and observe them carefully. 2"The LORD our God made a covenant with in Jesus Christ. 3"The LORD did not make this covenant with our fathers, but with us, with all those of us alive here today. 4"The LORD spoke to you face to face at the mountain from the midst of the fire, 5while I was standing between the LORD and you at that time, to declare to you the word of the LORD; for you were afraid because of the fire and did not go up the mountain. He said, 6'I am the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Sin, out of the house of slavery to rebellion. 7'You shall have no other gods before Me. 8'You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. 9'You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, and on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing loving kindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments. Go in Peace.