Date:   06/08/08

Text;   Nehemiah 6:1-7:73

Title:   City of God

Theme: Since God lives among His people, we are to do His work His way.

Introduction:

  In January of 06, Cynthia and I had the opportunity of spending a week in Germany. In the 3 cities we visited, we saw huge and impressive church buildings, with steeples and towers soaring into the sky. Up to 150 years ago, these churches were the bedrock of western civilization, reflecting the glory and strength of Christianity. These churches were the force behind the modern day missionary movement, sending out thousands of missionaries to every corner of the world. But today, they are for tourist to view the marvelous architecture with hardly anyone worshipping there. This is repeated in churches all over Europe. A 20 th century missionary once said, “My church sent me to China to preach the gospel, but when I come home, my church is there no more.” The fall and failure of the western church is a warning to us.

We regularly receive promotional postcards from various churches in our neighborhood. There are plenty of catchy phrases; such as come as you are in your casual attire, we want you to feel at home. There are sermon topics with sexual innuendos. There is one church in Florida with a sermon title and applications that are even unfit to mention in God's house. We want the church to be user friendly, to be relevant to the world, and very often in the process of doing so, we unknowingly lost sight of the uniqueness of the Christian faith. Sometimes I wonder what such churches will be like 15 or 20 years later. Yes, we are building God's church, but are there any guidelines? How would we know if we are building a human entrepreneur business or God's dwelling place on earth? Is there a boundary, distinction between the two?

We, too, are building God's kingdom on earth. As we join this community of believers, as we minister here and at other locations, we are building God's dwelling place on earth. There are many good business principles we can learn, yet even more important is that we are to learn to build God's kingdom God's way.

It has been quite a while since we last studied the book of Nehemiah. In this book, we are given much insight to see how God used Nehemiah to rebuild the Jerusalem city wall. And in the process, we are reminded of how God works through and beyond human responsibility. In today's passage, we are given several guidelines to show us how to build God's earthly dwelling place in God's way. First let us see:

I •  Believers are to be dependent of God in doing God's work.

6:15: “ 15 So the wall was finished on the twenty-fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty-two days.” The huge project of rebuilding the Jerusalem city wall is now completed. But here is a very simple and low key statement about the completion of a huge project. There were no celebrative or congratulatory remarks. However, behind this simple statement, Nehemiah is hinting that there is more to come about the building of God's city. It's not the time to celebrate.

Vs.16, “ 16 And when all our enemies heard of it, all the nations around us were afraid and fell greatly in their own esteem, for they perceived that this work had been accomplished with the help of our God.” Their enemies heard of the completion of the project and they were afraid, why? For they knew it was completed with God's help. They knew, humanly speaking, it was not possible to finish the project in such a short time; God's hand was upon them. God was working among them.

When others see us, what do they notice? When HCC gave an offering to various projects to help those with needs, or start a project or planting a church, people in the community would say, “this church has plenty of financial and human resources,” Meaning with money and people, this church can do what she wants to do. I have also heard pastors describing their own church this way. Don't we also hear ourselves saying, “Money is not a problem in this church”? Sometimes such comments make me feel sad, because we are saying that we can do anything we set our mind do. From God's perspective, this is pure arrogance. As a church, individually and corporately, we need to humble ourselves before God and to acknowledge that apart from Him, we can do nothing.

In my more reflective moments, I feel that sometimes God allowed certain shameful situations to occur among us, ministries facing difficult obstacles and programs failing to materialize, are His ways of keeping us humble. This plus personal setbacks and disappointments are like God's megaphone calling us to return to Him and become totally dependent upon him.

II.   Believers are to be alert when we do God's work.

  Vs.17-19 provides us with more information about one of Nehemiah's enemy. “ 17 Moreover, in those days the nobles of Judah sent many letters to Tobiah, and Tobiah's letters came to them. 18 For many in Judah were bound by oath to him, because he was the son-in-law of Shecaniah the son of Arah: and his son Jehohanan had taken the daughter of Meshullam the son of Berechiah as his wife. 19 Also, they spoke of his good deeds in my presence and reported my words to him. And Tobiah sent letters to make me afraid.” Tobiah was married into one of Israelite's noble family. This information suggested that it will be hard to completely remove Tobiah. This enemy will always be around. So in chapter 7 we read about Nehemiah appointing Hanani and Hananiah to govern and protect Jerusalem. They were also given detailed instructions regarding when to open and close the gates. These precautions were taken because the enemy was constantly lurking around; therefore, they needed to be alert at all times. This is a continuation of the conflict originating in the garden of Eden.

  This is further explained by Peter in 1Pet 5:8-9; “ 8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 Resist him, firm in your faith,…”

When I returned to China two months ago, I noticed a student whom I taught in 2006 was missing. Later the school told me that he had committed a sexual misconduct and was dismissed from the school. Our enemy, Satan, is constantly trying to find weakness in us and pull us away from God, from doing God's work. Don't we ever say, “this would never happen to me.” This could happen to anyone. We need to be on the lookout for our enemy is like a roaring lion, constantly trying to pull us away from God. To bring shame to God's name.

III.   Believers are to be aware of priority in doing God's work.

  What did Nehemiah do when the walls and gates were completed? In 7:1, “ 1 Now when the wall had been built and I had set up the doors, and the gatekeepers, the singers, and the Levites had been appointed,” The first thing he did was to appoint the gatekeepers, singers and Levites. Who were they? They were the temple staff. Nehemiah knew that the city of God was more than a strong and fortified city. The city of God is about people. It is

1 •  A worshiping community. The important thing was what made the people of that city unique. What made it different from the city of Susa and other cities? To Nehemiah, the people living in God's city, God's community is a worshipping community. They are to worship the God who dwells among them. Seeing this, Nehemiah appointed the gatekeepers, singers and Levites, to prepare for what was to come. Nehemiah knew what was important.

  I remember over 10 years ago, I visited a church in LA. The staff tried to explain the church to me. They said, the Chinese in that community would refer to this church as the big white building on the main street. At times when I tried to explain to others which church I am serving, before I finish my sentence, they would say, oh, the church on S. Main, or the church near Astrodome. People identify churches with buildings and streets. Is that all? How about the activities that transpire inside the walls? How are we different from the Buddhist group meeting in the China town area? Do we feel that because they excel in charity work, therefore we, too, must excel in this area?

  The one thing that is to separate us from others is that we are a community that worships the true living God. It's more than just the form of worship, what music we use, but this worship must be demonstrated in our obedience to God's teaching. Later on, we'll see more of what this community of God's people is known for.

  There is another unique characteristic of the people living in this city of God.

2 •  Leaders with integrity. We read earlier that Nehemiah appointed Hanani and Hananiah to govern and guard the city. Vs.2 gives us the reason why they were chosen; “ 2 I gave my brother Hanani and Hananiah the governor of the castle charge over Jerusalem, for he was a more faithful and God-fearing man than many.” Hanani was Nehemiah's brother; his first appearance was in chapter 1 when he brought to Nehemiah the news of Jerusalem's desolation. He had a heart and burden for the city. How about Hananiah? He was more faithful and God-fearing than others.

We notice that Nehemiah did not tell us too much about their skills. We can assume that they are capable of governing the city. What we should pay attention to is their character: faithful and God-fearing. They were persevering in their ministry, they didn't easily give up. They were God-fearing, meaning, being obedient to God's law. Their faithfulness and God-fearing formed the bedrock of who they were and what they did.

As I was studying this passage, I can't help but think of what happened to the former NY Governor. For many years he was a tough and skilful prosecutor. He won the title of Mr. Clean. He had high standards of those in the finance world. But underneath that Mr. Clean image, was a man of double standard. While he was prosecuting others for not abiding with the law, he was doing the same. When an individual has no fear of God, then there will not be any fear of men and the law.

We may be doing all the right things for God. We lead bible study, worship, fellowship and small group ministries, teach Sunday school and participate in short term mission trips. We may even excel in all these ministries. But how is our heart toward God? You know, God treasures what is inside us more than our external performances. God-fearing is not how I perform when I am in public but rather what I am like when no one is watching me. As in Proverbs 21:2 “ 2 Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the heart.”

As we serve together in this community of believers, may our focus be not much on our performance, but what is inside of us. Our character counts. May the fear of the Lord and faithfulness permeate everything we do.

IV.   Believers are to understand the nature of God's community.

  Vs.4, “ 4 The city was wide and large, but the people within it were few, and no houses had been rebuilt. 5 Then my God put it into my heart to assemble the nobles and the officials and the people to be enrolled by genealogy…” Yes, the community living in this city of God was a worshipping people, led by people of integrity. But where do they come from. The city was big but with few residents. Who would come? Nehemiah gathered the leaders and looked at the genealogy. He wanted to populate Jerusalem with individuals who were descendents of those who belonged to the first wave of returnees from Persia.

  Beginning in vs7, is a list of names. With few exceptions, it was a repeat of the list found in Ezra 2. When the same list appeared twice, we better identify its significance. In Numbers 1;26; Joshua 18;19 were list of names of families that left Egypt. The numbering is similar to what we have in Ezra and Nehemiah. After Exodus, God was building a community of his redeemed people. They were in his covenant community. God wanted the Israelites to know that they belonged to him. Now, after 70 years of captivity, they came back to the land of Judah. It was like the second Exodus. By listing the people, God was recreating his covenant community. They were the people that would populate Jerusalem, the city of God. This being the case, what do these names mean?

1 •  God knows his people intimately. Have you seen parents calling their toddlers by name? Or grandparents calling their grandchildren by name? That instant was a moment of intimacy. It was a Kodak moment. Nehemiah is saying that God knows and calls his people by name. It was a very intimate relationship. And then several hundred years later, Jesus said, John 10:2-4“ 2 "But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep." 3 "To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out." God knows his people by name. It is a very close relationship.

In some of our work places, and especially in college, we're really nothing but a string of numbers. It is a very cold world. But as we're brought into this community of God's people, we're intimately connected to him. God knows us by name and promised to be with us when we face the waters and fire in life. Therefore, we don't have to be afraid, we can remain faithful. These names also tell us something more.

2 •  Everyone is important to God. In this and the other genealogy, we notice names of the leaders. But also those called ‘the rest of the people'. The rest of the people contributed more to the building of the walls. In God's community, everyone is important.

Conclusion:   

  I mentioned earlier about the European churches. While sending out missionaries, something happened in the European churches. Human reason was elevated to a position that it could function beyond God. Man began to decide which part of God's word is good for us, which part we can do without. When men pushed God aside, they began to worship themselves. They also began to make god following their own image, and slowly, within one or two generations, men became the object of his worship. Yes, they were doing God's work; but slowly they pushed God aside and began to do God's work in human ways. And less than 200 years, the church buildings became empty buildings with marvelous architectures.

When people find out that I am a pastor of this church, the conversation will inevitably turn to the size of the physical building, number of members, annual budget and any ongoing projects. We too have the tendency to look at our church or fellowship groups and evaluate them in terms of physical facility, performance and programs. I understand that these could be important pointers or indicators of the health of a church. Yet, what is even more important is how God looks at us.

This morning we learned that Nehemiah completed the rebuilding of the Jerusalem walls and gates. In a way, he completed the very mission which took him to the land of Judah. However, through this narrative, we are reminded again that the city of God is not just a physically fortified place. It is about people who live there. It was a covenant community, a people redeemed by God. They belong to God and are totally dependent upon Him. It is a community of worship, with leaders of integrity. The people in this community are deeply loved by God, for He knows each of us by name. In the security of his love and care, we learn to do God's work God's way.