SESSION 6 WHAT S SOMETHING WORTH CELEBRATING IN YOUR LIFE? PRAISE THE POINT SERVING GOD INCLUDES CELEBRATING HIS GREAT WORK. NEHEMIAH 8:9-12; 12:27-31a 9 Then Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priest and teacher of the Law, and the Levites who were instructing the people said to them all, This day is holy to the Lord your God. Do not mourn or weep. For all the people had been weeping as they listened to the words of the Law. 10 Nehemiah said, 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. 11 The Levites calmed all the people, saying, Be still, for this is a holy day. Do not grieve. 12 Then all the people went away to eat and drink, to send portions of food and to celebrate with great joy, because they now understood the words that had been made known to them. 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. 31 I had the leaders of Judah go up on top of the wall. I also assigned two large choirs to give thanks. 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, 100 SESSION 6
ENGAGE (15 MINUTES) LEAD OPTION 1 Allow students to come up front and share something great God has done in their lives. Let as many students come up as time will allow. Say, God is constantly accomplishing great things in and through our lives. Sharing with others about His goodness is a great way to praise Him. LEAD OPTION 2 Place a large marker board in the front of the room, and ask students to write down reasons for praising God as they enter. Leave their comments up the entire session. Say, There are an infinite number of reasons to praise God. Whenever we think of His good works, we should be compelled to give Him praise. For free online training on how to lead a group visit MinistryGrid.com/ web/biblestudiesforlife For free Midweek Options for your group, visit lifeway.com/bsflsum18neh LEAD OPTION 3 Search the Internet for Y all mind if I praise God. Play the video as you begin the session. Say, We serve an amazing God, and that s cause for celebration. We should honor God by giving Him our praise. NOTE: Always make sure you preview any video clip you show students and ensure that it is appropriate for your church and ministry. LEADER PACK ELEMENTS If you have the optional Leader Pack, consider one of the following: DVD: Play the Unit 2 Session 6 DVD opener to draw everyone to the main point of the session. ITEM 13: Engage students in the session by incorporating the Things We Enjoy poster. Ask students to list the things they enjoy in the column on the left, and then draw a connection between those things and God s goodness on the right. BIBLE STUDIES FOR LIFE 101
THE BIBLE MEETS LIFE People love to celebrate. For big things (such as birthdays, championships, and graduations), we throw parties, buy gifts, and eat way too much. We also celebrate small things, like sticking to a diet for a week or passing the chemistry test (okay, maybe that was big thing). We shoot fireworks each New Year to celebrate fresh starts, and we have parties in the fall to celebrate football season and cooler weather. Sometimes, we ll even have a party on the weekend for no reason other than to celebrate friendships. Any excuse to throw a party, right! What s a memorable celebration you ve been a part of? THE SETTING After the completion of the wall, the Jews gathered at the Water Gate in Jerusalem and listened to Ezra the priest read from the Book of the Law. Levites moved throughout the crowd and explained what the passages meant. From there, the people moved into a time of celebration of all that God had done. The people also took a vow of faithfulness to God before gathering to dedicate the wall and honor God s work once again. No matter how large or small, nothing is worth celebrating more than God s blessings on His people. The completion of Jerusalem s wall was an amazing blessing! Hearing and understanding God s law was an unimaginable blessing, and God s goodness caused joy to well up in the hearts of the people. Today, we who are God s children have many blessings as well, and when we understand God s goodness in our lives, we can t help but celebrate. FACT: IN 1996, THE SULTAN OF BRUNEI THREW THE MOST EXPENSIVE PARTY IN HISTORY TO THE TUNE OF $27.2 MILLION. 1 GRANTED, OVER HALF THE COST WAS PAID TO HAVE MICHAEL JACKSON PERFORM. 102 SESSION 6
IMPART NEHEMIAH 8:9 Then Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priest and teacher of the Law, and the Levites who were instructing the people said to them all, This day is holy to the Lord your God. Do not mourn or weep. For all the people had been weeping as they listened to the words of the Law. NEHEMIAH 8:9 Regret can be a powerful emotion. We ve all done things that may have seemed okay at the time, but later we realized how desperately wrong we were. Maybe it was angry words that seemed justified at the time, or maybe it was an opportunity to make a difference, but we were too afraid or even too selfish to step in. After hearing and understanding the law, the Jews fell on their faces in worship. As they heard the law, they understood how they had offended God s holy standards. Their bowing was an expression of honor to God, and their being unworthy to stand in His presence. To make matters worse, they d had God s law all along, but they had ignored it. They had not only missed out on God s blessings, but they had lived in rebellion and offended their holy God. They were overcome with regret, and more importantly, conviction and they wept and wailed. Leader: Feel free to share an appropriate personal story about regret. Invite one or two students to share. Ask the group how they respond when they experience deep regret. VERSE 9: The Jews sins weren t just mistakes, they were rebellion. Whereas their hearts were previously hard, the Jews response was a sign that they had softened. This was a work of God. The leaders spoke to the people and told them not to mourn or weep. Yes, they had sinned, but because of God s grace, He had restored them to a place of blessing. They had reason to be thankful. Because we live in a fallen world and are subject to the weaknesses of the flesh, we too will fall short of God s standards. But Scripture exposes our sin, and the appropriate response is to weep. In fact, Psalm 51:17 teaches that the sacrifice that pleases God is a heart that s broken and contrite before Him. It s appropriate to mourn our sin. However, we can take heart in the fact that God forgives. And that s something worth celebrating! VERSE 9: The idea of holiness means to set apart for God. In this case, an entire day was singled out for special focus on God. The leaders did not want it remembered only for the sadness it caused, but as a day the people repented something worth celebrating. Contrite means literally crushed. God resists the proud, but welcomes those who come before Him in humility and brokenness. DAILY DISCIPLESHIP GUIDE (P. 104) 1 2 3 When has a truth from Scripture really clicked for you? Describe a time you were crushed over a sin you committed. What does it mean to you that God is willing to forgive? BIBLE STUDIES FOR LIFE 103
IMPART NEHEMIAH 8:10-12 Nehemiah said, 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 Levites calmed all the people, saying, Be still, for this is a holy day. Do not grieve. Then all the people went away to eat and drink, to send portions of food and to celebrate with great joy, because they now understood the words that had been made known to them. NEHEMIAH 8:10-12 Restoration began for the Jews as they heard God s Word. The reading of God s Word convicted the people, and they felt the weight of their sin. But God did not leave the Jews to wallow in guilt. His grace is evident in this passage. He forgave and restored them. Nehemiah, Ezra, and the Levites instructed the people: Stop weeping: There was a time for mourning, but that time had ended. Start celebrating: God s grace is bigger than our sin, and we are free to focus on His goodness. Leader: Share a story about restoration. When we watch restoration projects on TV, whether it s a car or an old painting, the process seems quick and easy it just materializes before our eyes. However, the truth is that it requires a long, painstaking process and the skill of an expert. Ask students to share about something they ve restored. Nehemiah instructed the people, Go and eat what is rich, drink what is sweet, and send portions to those who have nothing prepared. It s useless to grieve over sin that God has forgiven and removed! For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, but worldly grief produces death (2 Cor. 7:10). Instead, we re free to enjoy the abundance of good things God lavishes on our lives. VERSES 10-12: This happened on the first day of the seventh month, the day designated for the annual Feast of the Trumpets, which led up to the Day of Atonement, the holiest day on Israel s calendar. It was likely the first national celebration held in Jerusalem since before the Babylonian exile. The festivals of the Law were a part of Israel s national identity, and to celebrate one of the major holidays was a big step forward for the people. The people had a party. They ate delicious food and enjoyed sweet drinks. They shared with those who had no food prepared and were likely poor. The celebration was extravagant, as well as generous, and it was all an act of worship. They had restored the wall as an act of obedience to God, but now they were celebrating their relationship with Him. They had sinned, but God hadn t destroyed them He had instead restored them. For the forgiven, we know the joy of the Lord for He protects us against our enemies, particularly the death that results from sin. DAILY DISCIPLESHIP GUIDE (P. 105) 4 5 6 7 What things do you enjoy? How do they help you understand God s goodness? Describe the joy you experience because of forgiveness from sin. How would you describe the connection between repentance and celebration? What does it mean that the joy of the Lord is our strength? 104 SESSION 6
IMPART NEHEMIAH 12:27-31a 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. The musicians also were brought together from the region around Jerusalem from the villages of the Netophathites, from Beth Gilgal, and from the area of Geba and Azmaveth, for the musicians had built villages for themselves around Jerusalem. When the priests and Levites had purified themselves ceremonially, they purified the people, the gates and the wall. I had the leaders of Judah go up on top of the wall. I also assigned two large choirs to give thanks. NEHEMIAH 12:27-31a In Nehemiah 12, the walls were dedicated with a large celebration, but recall what brought them to this point. When the process had begun, most of the walls were rubble; now the walls stood complete. The people stood restored as well. They had pushed back threats from enemies and resolved a major internal conflict between the rich and poor. They had worked tirelessly for fifty-two long days, at times with a sword in one hand and a trowel in the other. The presence of the Word of God had moved them through grief to forgiveness and joy. Now they were dedicating the wall, but their celebration was as much about God s work in their lives as it was about the wall. The previously broken walls represented their own spiritual decay, but now the restored walls demonstrated their complete commitment to God. The dedication of the wall was only as important as people s dedication to God if the people had completed the wall only to remain broken themselves, they would have had nothing to celebrate. But the people were restored, and a celebration was in order. The celebration of the people had two main components: Thanksgiving: Because of our human nature, we do not thank God enough. We can never fully appreciate or understand the depth of His work in our lives, but the more we see God s kindness, the more thankful we become. Often, when we struggle in our relationships with God, it s because we fail to live in continual thankfulness. Purification: After the priests and Levites had purified themselves, they purified the people, the city gates, and the wall. This purification process was a symbol of the change in the hearts of the people. This dedication was not only to celebrate the completion of the walls, but a time for the entire community and everyone in it to be purified, set apart for God, and dedicated fully to Him. God has promised to forgive our sins. If we have trusted in Jesus, we can lay aside our sadness and celebrate God s restoration. The joy of the Lord is our strength! DAILY DISCIPLESHIP GUIDE (P. 105) Scripture exposes our sin, and the appropriate response is to weep. However, we can take heart in the fact that God forgives. #BSFLNehemiah 8 9 10 What has happened recently in your spiritual life that needs to be celebrated? When has a time of worship been particularly meaningful for you? How can we help one another celebrate God s work more regularly? BIBLE STUDIES FOR LIFE 105
LIVE IT OUT (10 MINUTES) CHRIST The Jew s worship involved not only repentance and dedicating themselves to God s purposes, but also being thankful for His goodness. Today, thankfulness is an important part of our relationship with God. 11 What do you need to thank God for today? 12 Make it a point each day this week to list one thing you re thankful for: #1 #3 #5 #2 #4 #6 #7 13 At the end of the week, journal your thoughts. How is making it a point to be thankful affecting your relationship with Jesus? 106 SESSION 6
LIVE IT OUT COMMUNITY Celebration is a powerful tool for bringing people together. With your group, discuss things worth celebrating together, and plan a time to celebrate the things God is doing among you. 14 List a few of your ideas: CULTURE 15 Our culture celebrates many good things, such as our independence on the fourth of July. What other good things does our culture celebrate? 16 Our culture also celebrates things that God despises. What are a few examples? 17 Evaluate your own life. Is God pleased with the things you celebrate? What do you need to change to align yourself more fully with God instead of with the world? BIBLE STUDIES FOR LIFE 107