Sermon: All In All In Nehemiah 12:27-30 27 At the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, the Levites were sought out from where they lived and were brought to Jerusalem to celebrate joyfully the dedication with songs of thanksgiving and with the music of cymbals, harps and lyres. 28 The musicians also were brought together from the region around Jerusalem from the villages of the Netophathites, 29 from Beth Gilgal, and from the area of Geba and Azmaveth, for the musicians had built villages for themselves around Jerusalem. 30 When the priests and Levites had purified themselves ceremonially, they purified the people, the gates and the wall.
Download Sermon Study Guide I. Introduction I can only imagine how Nehemiah must have felt on the day when the Levites dedicated the wall of Jerusalem. It had been a long journey to this place, and one filled with uncertainty, hard work, and danger. These very walls, which had once protected the city and the Temple from attackers, had been destroyed almost 150 years before; the people of the city driven out to foreign lands. The gates of the city had been burned to the ground, and the Temple had been ransacked and desecrated. Over time, any hope the Israelites might have held onto that they would someday return to their homeland had dwindled, until Ezra the priest and a handful of hopefuls returned to Jerusalem to begin rebuilding the Temple. When his efforts were stalled by Israel s enemies and things were at their bleakest, God raised up Nehemiah, giving him a vision for rebuilding the city walls, so that the people might return in safety and so that the Temple might be rebuilt. Nehemiah risked his life in order to approach the King of Babylon and ask for his blessing to go to Jerusalem and rebuild. He risked his reputation when he led his ragtag band of Jews to begin building the wall stone by stone, while their enemies mocked them. And he risked the lives of God s people when he wouldn t back down to threats of violence from the opposition. But throughout his struggles, Nehemiah placed his confidence in God. He believed that God would fulfill his vision of a rebuilt city, filled with people who would serve God and God alone. His confidence was well placed. In just fifty-two days the remnant of Israel were able to rebuild the city walls and put up new gates. People began to return from exile to their ancestral homes. Ezra and the priests had read the Law to the people, and the people had confessed their sins to God. Despite all of the opposition they had faced, God s vision had
been fulfilled, and now Nehemiah would witness the dedication of the city walls as a testimony to God s mighty acts. Oh, how Nehemiah s soul must have soared. You see, Nehemiah s interest in what was going on that day was more than just a passing fancy. He wasn t just a spectator who happened to come along to see what all the fuss was about. He had been an active part of it. In fact, he had led in this mission from the start. Even more than that, Nehemiah had risked everything to see this day come. He had poured himself heart and soul into accomplishing the task at hand. He had held nothing back in the pursuit of God s vision for God s people. He was sold out for God, and as he watched the wall of the city being dedicated in the name of Yahweh, he knew that he, too, was dedicated to God s vision. II. Dedication means going all in. But what does it really mean to say that someone is dedicated? What does it mean to be all in for God s mission and vision? It might be helpful to start with a definition this morning. According to the dictionary, the verb dedicate means to: 1. 2. devote (time, effort, or oneself) to a particular task or purpose. devote (something) to a particular subject or purpose. In other words, to dedicate something means to set it apart for special service or to commit it to use by a particular individual for an exclusive purpose. The Bible has a lot to say about dedication or devotion. In Colossians 4:2, Paul instructs the church to be devoted to prayer. Acts 2:42 says that the believers devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and to fellowship. Later, in Acts 18 we learn that, when helpers arrived to assist him in ministry, Paul devoted himself to preaching. In 1 Corinthians, Paul
praises those who live devoted to the Lord, to his service, and to the apostles. And in Romans 12:10 he pleads with the church to be devoted to one another in love. The Old Testament often refers to people, places, and things as being devoted or dedicated to God. And in each of these cases, one thing is made clear. That which is dedicated must be dedicated to one thing only, because it is impossible to be devoted to two or more things at the same time. Jesus summed this up well in Matthew, chapter 6. He was speaking to his disciples about money, and the dangers of seeking wealth. He instructed them not to store up temporary treasures on earth, but rather to seek the eternal treasures of heaven. His reason was that people s hearts are naturally tied to whatever they value as treasure. And he clarified that a person s heart cannot be tied to competing desires. In verse 24 he said, 24 No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. Notice that Jesus didn t allow for half measures. He didn t say that we can pursue temporal things and eternal things at the same time. No, he indicated that this is impossible, because whatever we devote ourselves to becomes our master. But Jesus also didn t say that dedication is a bad thing, only that we must be careful what we dedicate ourselves to. Nehemiah chose the wiser course. Rather than devoting himself to earthly concerns like his position in the palace, his reputation, and even his life, he gave himself completely to God and his vision for Israel. He didn t hold anything in reserve, but freely and joyfully offered all that he had and all that he was to God to be used for God s purposes. I am not an advocate of gambling for a great many reasons, but I do find it interesting to watch really great card players from time to time. Many people call poker a game of luck, but
it clearly requires incredible skill and mastery, or the same few people wouldn t always finish at the top of the world championship games. At any rate, if you have ever watched a game of the World Poker Tour on television, you have likely seen someone get to the point where they decide to lay everything on the line for a single hand of cards, either because they have been dealt a winning hand, or because they believe they can successfully bluff. When this happens, the player pushes all of his or her chips to the center and says, I m all in. They leave nothing in reserve for the next hand, instead committing all their resources to this single play. Nehemiah followed God like a poker play, who is betting everything on a single hand. He went all in. He was fully committed to God s vision, and had no backup plans. He was, by our own definition, completely dedicated to the outcome. III. Being all in requires a focused mission & vision It sounds great to talk about being completely dedicated, right? That sounds like a commendable trait. In fact, we often substitute words like loyalty or passion, when we talk about dedication. But when we hear someone say they are loyal or passionate, the next question we probably ask ourselves is what are you passionate about, or to whom are you loyal? In other words, what is the purpose behind your loyalty or passion? We should ask the same question when we talk about dedication within the church. What good does it do us to say that we are going all in for something, if we don t know what the purpose, or final goal, is? Now, I ve known some people over the years that were enthusiastic about everything, ready to give 100% at all times. Have you ever known someone like that? Think about that guy or girl in high school or college who was up for anything or who always seemed to be in the middle of whatever
was going on. Maybe you were that person. It can be fun and motivating to be around someone with unbridled enthusiasm, because they bring so much energy to a task. But that sort of unrestrained zeal is more often a hindrance than a help. Even though a person like that might have passion, they are typically the last sort of person I want to work with on a team. The reason is that, when people have passion without purpose, they tend to run off in all directions. They tend to skip steps that might seem uninteresting or tedious. They are all about being where the action is at, and less about committing themselves to a long-term goal. Passionate people without a purpose tend to flit from one cause to the next when the excitement wears off. They tend to give up too soon, when the going gets tough. We have a problem with misplaced passion in the church. We have a tendency to look for the project or program with the most excitement, jump in headlong for a while, and then move on to greener pastures when the fun wears off. We tend to withhold our limited resources of time and money and energy for those things that have the most aesthetic appeal, or that we think will have the biggest short-term payoff. This is passion without purpose. When we seek instead to be purposefully passionate, though, it means we are willing to dedicate ourselves fully to any task, any program, and project of the church, because we know that each step that we take forward gets us closer to a common goal. Purposeless passion is ultimate self-seeking, because it s objective is continued excitement for the individual. Purposeful passion, on the other hand, is other focused, because it seeks to achieve the goals of the group at the cost of self-fulfillment. In order to become purposefully passionate, truly dedicated people, we need a clearly defined mission and vision. So, I would like for us to take a few moments this morning to talk
about our goal as Jesus church. Let s start with the general, and move to the specific. 1. 2. 3. Great Commission (Matthew 28). All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age. United Methodist Church Mission. Making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. The Vision of Union United Methodist Church. Praising God. Loving people. Seeking disciples. Serving Jesus. This is the purpose toward which we need to focus our passion. If we are to live fully into who God has called us to be in Jesus, we must dedicate ourselves to whatever is necessary to achieve these goals. But in order for us to become truly dedicated to our common goal as a church, every person here has to become individually dedicated as well. In other words, each of us has to decide whether or not we are all in. So, are you ready to become fully dedicated to God and his vision for us? Before you answer, consider this. Becoming fully dedicated to God s vision might mean serving in a position that you don t find exciting or fulfilling. It might mean taking part in difficult and thankless work. It might mean making a long-term commitment to doing something that doesn t show results for months or years. Going all in for God s vision will definitely mean surrendering your resources to Jesus. It will mean giving of your time, your talents, your energy, your prayers, and even your finances, with no strings attached. For Nehemiah, being dedicated to God s vision led to uncertainty, mockery, and threats of violence. He was asked to give up everything his royal position, his comfort, and possibly his life in order to fulfill his purpose with passion. Why should we
expect dedication to require any less of us today? IV. Jesus was all in for us. You might be questioning whether or not this sounds like a good deal, after all? The truth is, I think most of us know what God expects from us, when we make the claim that Jesus is Lord. We know that Jesus desire for us is not that we would become half-hearted groupies, but that we would become fully dedicated disciples, transformed into his image. But when the stresses of life begin to overwhelm us, or when the luxuries of life begin to appeal to us, we often find it easier to take a back seat and let someone else be the dedicated one. Have you ever said any of these things to yourself? I don t feel led to do that. I m too old. I m too young. I ve already put in my time. Someone else needs to take a turn. I m too busy. I don t think it will work. It s a waste of time. It s a waste of money. What will I get out of it? It s just not my thing. Why should I care? I ve said some of these things before in my own internal monologue. My guess is that I am not alone. Friends, we know what God desires from us, because he sent Jesus to demonstrate it on a cross. Aren t you glad that Jesus didn t say, I don t feel like going all in. Let someone else do it. They are a waste of time. They are a waste of resources. They never learn. It won t work. What will I get out of it? God desires fully transformed people who love him, who love people, and who are willing to go all in, fully dedicated to serving him, even to death on a cross. V. Application Becoming fully dedicated to God and his mission has a prerequisite, though, and there is no way around it. We cannot
ever be fully dedicated to God and his mission, until we are first found to be in Christ. You see, Nehemiah 12:30 links dedication to purification. Only when we are purified, can we be fully set aside for Jesus, and only Jesus can purify us from the stain of our sins. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! In Christ we are new creatures, who are no longer enslaved to our past lives of sin or present temptations. We are free to go about kingdom work, because we walk with the Holy Spirit, who gives us the power and wisdom we need. In Christ, we are adopted as daughters and sons of God, who are charged with the responsibility and authority of the Father to complete the work he has given us. And what is that work? To seek out those who are far away from him, and to bring them home to the Father s house. This one thing should be our burning desire, and we must dedicate ourselves to it, if we would continue to call Jesus Lord. Jesus went all in for us, so we shouldn t rest until all people are in a relationship with him. When I reach the end of my life, it won t matter how much money I made. It won t matter how many degrees I have from schools. It won t even matter whether I sat in church every Sunday or read my Bible every day. None of those things will matter, unless Jesus has transformed my heart. And if my heart has really been transformed I will demonstrate it my actions. Everything I do at work, at home, at the store, at a ball game everything will point people back to him. Friends, I don t know about you, but I want to hear those words, Well done, good and faithful servant! I want to be all in for Jesus, to know that I didn t hold anything back. I don t want to rest until all people are in a relationship with him. There are sometimes many steps between where we now stand, and where Jesus wants to take us. And we are all at different points along that journey. If we you want to become who Jesus has called you to be, you have to take that next step, and
then another, and another. Some of them are difficult, but when we take these steps we can do so knowing that Jesus journey to the cross was far more difficult, and through him we can have victory. So, what is your next step toward going all in for Jesus? Maybe for you the next step is: A personal relationship with Jesus Baptism Confession of sin to God and a brother or sister in Christ Reading your Bible daily Inviting someone to church Getting involved in a small group Surrendering your finances Reprioritizing your time Volunteering in the church Joining the church Going on a mission trip Sharing your faith with a neighbor Maybe for you, the next step toward going all in for Jesus is to simply say yes to something we are doing as a church. For example, God has blessed us with the joy of many children and youth in our church. But we haven t done all that we can yet to demonstrate to these kids how important they are to us and to Jesus. So, next month, after Easter has passed, we will be launching a new Children s Church program for all children, through fifth grade. Our desire is to show our children how much Jesus loves them, to encourage them toward developing a personal relationship with him, and to help them experience church the way that all of us want it to be a joyful place where they are valued, not for what they can do for us, but for who they have been uniquely created to be in Christ. And let s not forget our older kids and teens. We want to provide a place for them to worship and learn to follow Jesus, as well. But for this to work, we need your help. We don t need people who sense that children s ministry is their whole
purpose in life. We ll take your help, if that s you. But what we need are fully dedicated followers of Jesus who see these children and teens as God sees them precious jewels, purchased at a great cost. We are also taking some new steps as a church toward reaching those in our community who are living far away from God, through works of mercy. This month we started a new mission effort called One Thing. Each month, we will be partnering with an organization in our community or close to our hearts, to meet a tangible need for resources or volunteers. Sometimes, we get too comfortable with writing checks to meet needs. There is always a need for financial assistance, and we should continue to give to those in need, but what this world needs is not more philanthropy it needs more Christians willing to step out of our church buildings and onto the streets of our neighborhoods and cities. This month, we are collecting much-needed items for the Clay County Food Pantry. But this isn t just about buying some inexpensive items and calling it a day. At the end of the month we will also send a team to help them stock their shelves. In a church our size, we can make a sizeable difference, if we will just take the next step toward going all in for Jesus and his vision for our church. Friends, we have so many things warring for our souls, things that would hinder us from becoming fully devoted to Jesus. But he died and was raised again, so that these other things would no longer have power over us. Jesus went all in for us. How can we possibly give him less than everything in return? VI. Closing Prayer Let us pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you that you sent us your Son Jesus, to die in our place, taking our guilt upon himself, and setting us free from bondage to sin and the fear
of death. Thank you, Jesus, for not withholding anything from your mission, instead giving everything so that we might become daughters and sons of God. Would you send your Spirit now to us? Would you make us wholly devoted to you and no other? Would you take our hearts and make them new, teaching us to love as you love, and holding nothing back for ourselves? We ask this in Jesus name. Amen.