9 July Title of Sermon: Rebuilding The Wall - Finished Scripture: Nehemiah 6:15-9:38 Preacher: Rev Jeremy Ong Reflections by Dr Ivan Tan

Transcription

1 9 July 2017 Title of Sermon: Rebuilding The Wall - Finished Scripture: Nehemiah 6:15-9:38 Preacher: Rev Jeremy Ong Reflections by Dr Ivan Tan INTRODUCTION Rebuilding of the Jerusalem wall had been completed in the midst of opposition. Nehemiah s enemies were not content and had escalated their attacks upon him.

2 1) GOD'S FAVOUR (Nehemiah 6:15-19) - The entire project took 6 months from the time Nehemiah left Persia. The reconstruction of the Jerusalem wall itself was completed in a record 52 days - This could only have been achieved because Nehemiah and the people of Israel had God's favour - Nehemiah did not have to retaliate against his enemies. Now his enemies stood humiliated before him - Psalm 20:7 let us trust in the name of the Lord, our God, instead of first turning to our own strengths and resources. Do we truly believe that God is greater than the most challenging of circumstances and that He will bring low, our enemies and life situations, as we rise up and stand firm in Him - When we trust in God as we answer His call, He will provide whatever we need

3 2) GOD'S FAITHFUL (Nehemiah 7:1-2, 8:1-6) - Hanani and Hananiah were put in charge of Jerusalem because they were faithful and feared God - Hanani was Nehemiah's brother who had first alerted him to the state of disrepair of the walls. He had been faithful to God's call and had stayed with the cause since Day 1 despite fierce opposition - Nehemiah 8:1-6 - all the people were faithful to God - they came together to acknowledge God's favour, gathering as a people to worship God - Our chief calling as God s people is to be faithful in answering His call and in him and serving excellently. The prophets had proclaimed God's Word faithfully, whether or not people listened - Are we struggling with the need for worldly success? Do we need to achieve something extraordinary so that people will remember our legacy? God may choose to bless our efforts with success, but success is not guaranteed - Instead, seek to be faithful to God. Pray and ask God for strength and courage to persevere, accomplishing what He wants you to do

4 3) GOD'S FORGIVENESS (Nehemiah 9:1-3, 5b-6) - After a season of celebration, in the midst of their success, the people came together in fasting and in sackcloth to confess their sins and the sins of their forefathers - They recounted their history as a nation, beginning with Abraham and culminating in the recent history of the exile - Even as they recounted, they confessed as a people, the sins of their ancestors and God's faithfulness, despite their disobedience and rebellion (v17b). He is a God of forgiveness, gracious and compassionate - Why did the Israelites confess and repent of the sins of their forefathers? > They recognised that they carried the sin and sinful nature of their ancestors - This is a problem of inherited sin or original sin. We all carry the guilt of our ancestors right from Adam and Eve. Hence, we have a nature that is bent to sinning. Whatever we try to do, we cannot overcome sin in our own ability - Only the blood of Jesus can save us from the consequences of our sin and sinful nature - Jesus is the only and final solution to our sins and sinful nature. God showed us His love in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us on the Cross. While we were still enemies, God reconciled us to Himself by the death of His son so that we may now receive His forgiveness

5 CONCLUSION - In rebuilding the wall, God showed Nehemiah His favour - In rebuilding the wall, God's people came together in unity and in response to God's call, trusting in His faithfulness - In the midst of their success, God's people came together to confess their sins and that of their forefathers, recognising their true spiritual condition and that they needed God's forgiveness