Nehemiah (part 2)

Okay, well time to go on. We're gonna, there's gonna be a lot of troubles here with the workmanship and the different things that are going on. We've got 55 minutes and we got two and a half, three and a half things to go.

Do we want to go into all the different conflicts and how they were dealt with? They're listed there under the workmanship. We'll follow your lead brother. Oh man, hang on then.

We're going for it. Chapter 4, verse 4, we come into the ridicule for chapter 3. Tobiah, the Ammonite, you've got Sanballat and Tobiah. They're angry and they're angry a lot in this book because the things of God are prospering and they don't like that and there's other, there's other enemies that are, will be mentioned as well, but they start with this, with this, this insult really.

If a fox go up, verse 3, even he shall even break down their stone wall and the response to that kind of conflict is, hear O God, for we are despised and turned their reproach upon their own head. So they're leaving it with God and again we're going to go quickly through these in chapter, in verse number 9 of the same chapter. Nevertheless we made our prayer to God, you see verse 8, they conspired all of them together to come and fight against Jerusalem and to hinder it and so they pray unto God and now they set a watch.

They're doing, they're praying to God because they know they need God, they know that God is interested in them, but they're willing to do their part, willing to do what they can do. What can they do? They can, they can only set a watch against them day and night and then verse 10 is important and Judah said, the strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed and there is much rubbish so that we are not able to build the wall. Really their greatest hindrance this far is the rubbish.

It wasn't the reproach of the enemy. They dealt with that and then they set a watch, but what was really wearing them down was the amount of rubbish that had to be cleared away. So these enemies, Brandon, they were from all, in fact it's a picture of the nation nationally even today because Sanballat, he's a Horonite, he's from the north and then we've got the Arabians, they're from the south.

Then we notice the Ammonites, the Ammonites were from the east and then the Ashdodites, they're from the west. All the enemies surrounding this people and it's a picture of the nation of Israel surrounded by the enemies even in the future day just before the Son of Righteousness comes. The saddest aspect of all of this is when we get to verse number 10 because it's not from the north or from the east or from the west or from the south and Judah said, Judah for them was the crack troops.

Every time you get Judah, there are seven things in the Old Testament in which Judah as a tribe is always first. Whether it's phrase Genesis 49, you can work through seven things and Judah is always first and here it's Judah that is now dispirited. There comes a stage and it's a very practical thing amongst the Lord's people when people that we look up to become dispirited because that causes a major problem for us and it's a very practical lesson that we need to learn just about our own attitude when it comes to the service of God in assembly life.

And it was at a point John where the work was advancing like verse 6 further back in the chapter. So built we the wall and all the wall was joined together. So not quite completed yet but it's joined.

The work is well advanced. Onto the half thereof for the people had a mind to work. Now that's a lovely thing to see in assembly where people have a mind to work.

They're not sitting back on their knees taking it easy and letting everybody else do the work. But here are men that are leaders or were prominent and they were discouraged and they were discouraging others in the work as well. But when did they say that? It says Judah said verse 10 as we've emphasized.

Verse 11 our adversary said. Verse 12 the Jews which dwelt by them came they said ten times unto us ten times. And then verse 14 and I looked and rose up I said Nehemiah said at the end but when it was half built right? It says the wall was half so half right? And isn't that often when things in that middle the wall when things that the enemy comes in and you know we're tired it's hard it says right half half without seeing things through right? Dependability.

Well the Bible reading is half built at the moment but I don't feel like you. I was just commenting I didn't feel that way. So you're not discouraged? I'm not discouraged.

But it is like a Bible reading because he said and then he said. Brandon you've spoken about all of these enemies and you've listed them for us and I wonder if you just might you might make the application to the enemies that Christians face today and I think you can probably draw that out of some of these men. And then verse 10 I find such a challenge I don't know about you of chapter 4 but there is much rubbish so that we are not able to build the wall and I often think about our own lives.

There's a lot of rubbish if we're honest in our lives and that rubbish is what prevents us from just being able to engage in the work of the Lord as we might. But what about these enemies just just to make the application to us they were facing a variety of different enemies but we too face enemies. Well John has already mentioned that they were surrounded by these different enemies and the enemies for the Christian today the world the flesh the devil our own selves the rubbish that we have I guess if you want to go deeper into that.

Not really I mean that's what I was thinking about just so that folks folks are aware of the application that San Balat was quite possibly a Samaritan and so you've got somebody who's got just just just the the appearance of a religious nature and claiming to worship the same sort of God but at the same time was engaged in idolatry and that sort of thing. So sometimes we can we sometimes we can be attacked by individuals like that that have a have a claim to being religious or spiritual but in actual fact Tobiah a type of the flesh isn't he you might say because he was an Ammonite so he was conceived through immorality so you might see Tobiah as a type of the flesh or moral corruption. Geshem the Arabian I don't know I was finding it tricky to make the application but Arabia of course is associated with Sinai the giving of the law and you find that a lot of trouble came in the New Testament you think about the Judaizers who are trying to bring God's people again under the bondage of law so there might be some applications in that way but we're being attacked aren't we by the enemy all the time.

The Ashdodites would be the Philistines yeah yeah they were people that were in the land but they'd never known redemption never through baptism that's right so let's see yeah yeah and then Eliashib is a priest he's a religious man but he's allied to Tobiah so he's allied isn't he to to the flesh and to corruption and so on. So what's the answer then to this Brandon because obviously we're in a section where there's a bit of a lull in the work and we've got the problems of opposition without and now there's some disinterest within and what's the answer then to this the problem without and the problem within. I think it's in verse 14 where it says remember the Lord remember the Lord and remember why you're doing this and so you just get refocused and we're really what's taking place because all these things that are hindrances are distractions to the work.

Well there was prayer in answer to ridicule as you've highlighted then they were to watch and pray over against the treachery and now there's the remembrance that comes in. So is this an example further then of good leadership you've highlighted good leadership at the beginning of the book and now the leader steps up to the plate he understands what's going on and in verse number 13 we get the answer he speaks to them in verse number 14 as you say the Lord is the sovereign one he's the one that has control but we need to do our part and so he sets the people after their families that's a most instructive thing with their swords with their spears and with their bows. So are we learning brother Brandon that as much as they're depending on the Lord they're linked to their families and there's weapons of warfare offensive weapons which are given to them that they will be able to counter any opposition that's coming to them and they'll do it primarily because we're going to look after our families.

So what are the weapons that we have dear brother John in a spiritual sense then? So we definitely have a sword isn't that right we go to the book of Ephesians for that we've got the armor there's three chapters in the New Testament will give us the armor as our brother William knows quite well but the sword of the spirit comes readily to mind here which is the word of God. It's actually the spoken word right? In that chapter. Yes.

Proclaimed right? That's right. Active. So there's defensive as well as offensive right? So to go back to your leader point John while the walls being built he's in the background right the men and the daughters everybody's doing their their job the one the one good man Zabii he earnestly repaired and Nehemiah is out of sight and now what's happening is there's discouragement and now the leader shows up.

Whose faith follow? So he's leading them on now in faith in the Lord and he's reminding them of the great prospect of it's their own families that are at risk and their own people and when the enemies heard that it was known to us and God had brought their counsel not verse 15 that we returned all of us to the wall everyone to his work. So the work goes on. So there's one thing about the leader to just and I think we've kind of emphasized it but just maybe verse 14 and I looked there's the assessment okay he's not rushing to anybody says I rose up and said so while a leader must be among the people there's also that same aspect where he must enable the people to rise above he must set the bar right raise the bar you cannot be simply just lower than the people you have to raise them up right to a higher standard that's very important.

Followed by exhortation be not ye afraid of them and remember the Lord which is great and terrible the Lord was on their side that would be an encouragement. Exhortation and encouragement. Is there a sense that he personally paid a price in this too Brandon? Because in verse number 14 it says it came to pass from that time forth that the half of my servants now in in the context here my servants is not referring to the people that come up but this man he was actively sent by the king and when he was actively sent by the king he had a retinue of servants now he says I'll tell you what I'll pay a personal price and I'll give you half of my servants I'll put them into the work and I'll give you the other half of my servants they'll bear the swords they'll bear the spears they'll do the offensive work you men can keep working.

I'll pay a price myself so that the work can go forward. Voluntarily. Yes.

And there was other leadership again Brandon. We need to keep going now chapter 5 we're going to go to this is a big one this is another part of the problems and hindrance of the work is that some of these dear people had had gotten into debt because of whether they take the king's tribute or whatever they were needed food and their brethren had bought them and it's getting to the point now the brethren had bought the lands and they're taking slaves and oh my all the same people being brought in brought into bondage by their brethren is this is this happening in assemblies today I don't know of anybody who's going to loan somebody some money for a farm and has repossessed it or anything like that but I can tell you among God's people everywhere assemblies everywhere that forgiveness is necessary. Forgiveness.

That's really what's taking place he says you got to stop this usury you've got it you've got it you you can't be you can't be doing this you've got to go back and you gotta let these people go and and so on but there's a tremendous reality that we have a tendency as God's people to harbor bitterness bitterness. It's a good good practical application and you've got another example of Nehemiah's outstanding leadership haven't you because being in samples to the flock you talked about leaders must be examples to be followed and Nehemiah was that example here in chapter 5 so these richer brethren we have mortgaged our lands verse 3 our vineyards and our houses that we might buy corn because of the dearth and these richer brethren were charging interest on that but not Nehemiah not Nehemiah so he says doesn't he verse 10 I likewise and my brethren servants might exact of them money and corn but he hadn't done that and in actual fact verse 17 he had sat at his table a hundred and fifty of the Jews and he had prepared that out of his own pocket as it were so great example great example to everyone is this leader Nehemiah. He wasn't expecting anything back and he wasn't taking advantage of the brethren he had the he had the funds he could have bought acres and acres and acres of land but he was that wasn't that would have been an awful example yeah I've been the same thing really but he's at his own expense and is there a lovely picture of the Lord there yeah tremendous expense and the cost of forgiveness any other thoughts of Christ and any of this so far before we go on to the penmanship the last chapter at the end of it he talked about the fact that he stood guard and he didn't take off his clothes except for times like that.

He liked my example and taught the Lord in the garden knowing that he was going to have to lay down his life and die and so when we ask the same of the disciples he never asked anything of us that he himself did not do and the leader who asked us to give his people that he himself did not willingly do we are much of a leader when we were forced to learn the assembly of God and so here you see Nehemiah everything he asked to do he did and Christ himself did that very same thing here. Very good thank you we see Nehemiah is hospitable in verse 17 moreover there were at my table a hundred and fifty of the Jews and rulers beside those that came on to us from among the heathen that were about us it is wonderful to think too of the Lord Jesus that he is willing if Revelation 3 20 to come into us and to sup with us and hold communion with us so Nehemiah was marked by that too. Okay we're going to chapter 8 ready or not we got to go chapter 8 is a lovely chapter we'll begin at verse number 1 says and all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the street that was before the water gate and they spake unto Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses which the Lord had commanded to Israel and Ezra the priest brought the law before the congregation both of men and women and all that could hear with understanding on the first day of the seventh month and he read therein before the street that was before the water gate from the morning until midday before the men and the women and those that could understand and the ears of all the people were attentive unto the book of the law and Ezra the scribe stood upon a pulpit of wood which they had made for the purpose and beside him stood Medithiah and Shema and Ananias and Erijah and Hilkiah and Messiah on his right hand and on his left hand Pediah and Mishael and Malchiah and Hashem and Hashbananah the bad banana Zechariah and Meshulam and Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people for he was above all the people and when he opened it all the people stood up and Ezra blessed the Lord the great God and all the people answered amen amen with lifting up of their hands and they bowed their heads and worship the Lord with their faces to the ground and dropped down to verse end of the verse 7 they caused the people to understand the law verse 8 so they read in the book read in the book in the law of God distinctly and gave the sense and cause them to understand the reading will be more that will reference but we've got the clarity of the Word of God what a time the Word of God is this the first time that it's opened in the book so far I think it is we've gotten now we built the wall the temple has been established the wall has been built and it's amazing and yet it's shocking that if this is the first time that the that the Word of God was open in Nehemiah and what a response there's a desire there's a hunger from the people it didn't come from Nehemiah Nehemiah wasn't saying okay now it's time to open the book it was the desire of the people of God somebody comment on that please that the aspects of the book in the chapter are beautiful aren't they as you say the people they call to Ezra and he's not called Ezra the priest here my brother Dan pointed that out yesterday he's called Ezra the scribe and the man who was familiar with the book he's requested here in verse number one bring the book verse number five says Ezra opened the book verse number eight says so they read in the book verse number three says the people were attentive to the book and then as we come down we we understand they get the sense of the book they get the understanding of the book and the practical implications first two weeks we're we're at a critical point aren't we of Nehemiah so I divide Nehemiah into two by the by the way we we didn't quite get the wall finished but the wall was finished in 52 days amazing but but Nehemiah you can almost split into two and it's just following exactly the same pattern as Ezra so Nehemiah 1 to 7 again it's the physical it's the practical we're building but we're building walls but as soon as you get to chapter 8 and this is running through to the end of Nehemiah there's still building but it's not so much building the walls building the city now you're actually building the people you're building the community so now this is spiritual and the first thing bring the book so that's the emphasis all the way through these through these books isn't it bring the book Scripture is what is going to build this people bring the book and it's constantly referred to as the law yeah rather than the commandments or the precepts or the why maybe some of our brother why why the difference the law as opposed to when we get the law it's just it's authoritative authority Frank it's stressing the authority that God has in this in this book and would you not find that the law is more well rounded in terms of the affairs of life God God is emphasizing overall the affairs of life it's a more complete aspect of just the commandments it's the law the wholeness of it right you would agree that there are I'm saying there's both but sure in the New Testament we can actually read about the law but when we're reading about the law it's actually dealing with the whole of the scriptures yeah that's right and so like yourself it's taking in the whole picture but behind the whole picture of the law of commandments the authoritative word of God the way I like to think about verse 1 because verse 1 says bring the book of the law of Moses which the Lord had commanded to Israel now I think we've said already this law was almost exactly probably a couple of years out but almost exactly 1,000 years since that law was given and you could be forgiven for Ezra the people saying this book is a thousand years old has no relevance for us whatsoever it's the law of Moses but hang on it's what the Lord commanded that's what makes it relevant to us it isn't dry and dusty and old why not because it's the commandments of the Lord it's divine it's inspired on relevant to us unchangeable so John John 10 Frank was what I was thinking when it comes to your your comment there the Lord Jesus says is it not written in your law and then he says the Word of God came and then he says for the scripture cannot be broken so those three things would just give us a very vibrant picture it's the law it's the Word of God it's the scriptures that particular word as you know is only used of the sacred scriptures it's a unique book brother Brandon what about there's a few questions that come up in verse number one here the Watergate is mentioned again and then when have we gathered that's a beautiful study that we can see so the people are here but there's a period mentioned and there's a place mentioned and all of those things would have spiritual significance even for us when it comes to the link with this book isn't that true so the the Watergate is the still water right it's going to be the washing of the water by the word that's the point purpose of the book into the street I'm not sure what the significance of that is what do you think it's a broad place yes it's actually a word that we would use for plaza and so what we're going to learn brother Brandon is this that there was room for all correct all of the Lord's people in fact one of the things that comes up right down as we're reading here is the reference to all the people that's right so 11 times right through here all the people there's there's going to be young that are going to gather here yes there's going to be old that's going to gather here and there's going to be a middle-aged strata were you telling us you were middle-aged today I didn't say that I said I'm not a youth he's over 40 but but the interesting thing Brandon is that when it comes it's nice for us at a conference because we've got some older ones here we've got some younger ones here and we've got someone Dan's age they're here as well and Moses commanded the same thing it's a sad thing isn't it sometimes we can divide the people of God and we shouldn't be dividing the people of God in any of our gatherings all the people all the people all the people and it was exactly the same thing under the law wasn't it Moses said for the law to be read in its entirety every seven years and bring the children now it's those that have understanding so as soon as children are of an age where they can understand the language that's being spoken not necessarily understand the teaching and the ministry you know sometimes I don't understand that but they can perceive and understand what is being said they can learn from that get children to the gatherings exactly the same in the book of Deuteronomy read it to the children and God will bless parents won't they who seek to bring their children along to every assembly gathering and have them pay attention yeah that's the other not booklets and crayons and everything right that's what you have at the end of verse 3 Frank and the ears of all the people were attentive onto the book of the law yeah it was expected that children who were of the age of understanding would be attentive mm-hmm so parents are responsible to instruct their children in that right mm-hmm yeah and just notice that phrase please verse 3 all the people were attentive now you notice were attentive is in italics all the people unto the book of the law literally in Hebrew it's the idea of they pressed their ears to the law now they didn't literally because Ezra was on a pulpit he was on a platform he was up above the people he was reading the law but in a sense this people were so engaged in the reading of their word in the reading of the word it's almost as if they had they had a copy of the law and their ears were pressed against it because they were desperate to hear it what do our ears press against today well you know what our ears press against and sadly don't press against this book as often as they should attentive right can I ask for some help from you please ask you a question maybe we'll hold your name the same yes go ahead no I would just like some help about how effectively to use the book because when we get to verse number eight if you don't mind me going there I'll go there yep so they read in the book of the law but they did it distinctly and then the second thing that's mentioned Brandon is they gave the sense and then it says they caused them to understand the reading do we get a very practical import there I would like you maybe to help us just on those aspects of how this man and others with him not just him but there were others with him that then unpack some of this stuff so that maximum benefit would come from this gathering of the Lord's people and so I they're they're opening the book and they're reading it distinctly very clearly very understandably I can't read the names very distinctly today anyway but they're they're giving the sense and to me practically it's taking it in the context to apply it to us today to read it clearly put it in its context and then cause them to understand really what's taking place they there would people and people there that would never have heard the law before yes right and so they can't assume that they that they knew anything so what do you think no no I'm very happy with that one of the problems we're facing here is this as they were reading in the book of the law of God that would have been in Hebrew now these people that come back from Babylon the language that they had been used to was a language which was quite similar but but different it was Aramaic and so one of the problems that's going to arise is this that they might not know just exactly what is being said so first of all there was a reading in the book of the law of God distinctly that means to break up and to separate it's all distinct it's all very clear and once that was given then the sense of what had been read was given there was an interpretation it was very clear unpacking of what the actual words were once the interpretation was given then there was the meaning of it effectively and practically an application was given to the Lord's people now are we wrong still to do that Brandon no right never was wrong to do that expositional you're talking almost in a sense of extra I believe that's what's happening Frank so the reading was given first then there was exposition of what it actually meant and then the application of what it meant was given to the Lord's people and I think in this Bible reading there's been very valid aspects of that have been given notice verse 5 for a moment just on a very practical way Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people is that what it says there in your Bible or does it say he opened his iPad in the sight of all people hmm on a practical way I think brethren sister I'm not against using an iPad I use it for notes and so on but when it comes to public preaching and public reading of the Word of God I think it's best to use the physical copy of our Bible so that people can see you see that it was in the sight of all people you opened a book so keep it keep that in mind how did he open that book if you don't mind me asking you that question probably unrolled it it would have been a scroll likely so so that brings a very practical thing William if it was a scroll which it was he had to know the contents of that scroll he did he most likely didn't read the whole scroll no this man is actually being specific because this is the Feast of Tabernacles most likely there was something that he chose that would meet the pertinent need amongst God's people and when he opened the scroll he got to a particular passage which he knew this will be effective to meet the need of the Lord's people here do you think that's what the seventh month was in the chapter ending before he brought in the portion that was appropriate for that time yes so verse 3 he read therein yes right yes yes so I think he's selected absolutely selected a portion and that's what we were saying about the ready scribe so is this is this about as close as we get in the Word of God the scriptural authority for what we're doing this weekend the Bible reading there were Levites you know we said Timothy give attention to reading but that was reading the Word of God reading such right acts 20 and here so here are the Levites moving amongst the people and helping them to understand what is being read one one question can I just ask you John because you raised it Malachi comes later why does he write in Hebrew not Aramaic so if this people couldn't understand Hebrew strange that the Lord would speak to them in Hebrew through the Prophet Malachi I don't have an answer to that I believe this was written in Hebrew to this book the book of Nehemiah yes all of these said they didn't understand Hebrew so right so why would the Lord speak in that way or communicate in that way because yeah there is a practical lesson there if you don't mind me stepping into that down yeah and that is this that sometimes we think if we get an easy no I'm not against other translations let me just be clear on that but there is an aspect of Bible study that demands attention to the Word of God and it's not just something that you know one of one of the things we have heard at this conference one of the reasons why Brandon's taken the Bible reading in this way this afternoon is because he spent hours at this could you do how many hours did you put in before I don't know yeah yes what are you done yes on another practical note first the next word it says all the people said amen amen I don't hear too many amens do we really too much we're always against that you wonder you're looking around and did I say something is it only is it only for the brethren to say amen I think all the people said amen yes that's what it says yeah it's what it says that's right that's right I would take it to from 1st Corinthians 14 where an unbeliever or one unearned would come into your company they were expected to say amen and I giving of thanks how can he say that that indicates to me that that was a congregational function just why do we not do that why do we really not do that I mean at the end of the prayer it's almost like okay he's done okay you know I'm kind of shy so most people go so long you remember what mr. Peter or a sock taught us if they go so long you don't say a man you say old man so if two or three of two if two of you shall agree on earth as concerning anything it shall be done of my father which is in heaven if two of you shall agree the word agree is to make a symphony so here are two individuals that are praying or here's a company that's praying and they're all praying along the same sort of lines we mentioned about a brother leading God's people in prayer they are making a symphony so at the end of that prayer all the people say amen unless you don't want the prayer to come to pass that the brothers prayed so just say silent then perhaps you don't care perhaps you're not interested perhaps you don't agree don't say anything then but if you want God to I say this advisedly if we want to make a symphony before God a brother is leading the company the whole company should say amen if they're in agreement with that particular request I think isn't there also a sense in which there is a public response to the fact that we are going to do this there's that there's a public witness and they're saying amen and we're going to agree and do it before the Lord before there's there's an aspect here that in this prayer is we're actually praying with them right it isn't whether we agree with it yeah we're praying with them that's why we say amen yeah right so are we right then to say that before he gets to this this business of the meaning of the book and reading in the book he prayed first mm-hmm verse number six is that right Brandon yeah for sure and then on the basis of that then they said amen because he was blessing the great God and they knew he has blessed the great God we say we will hear what the book says what's the outcome I would like you to help us with what the outcome and why the reason for the outcome when we get further down verse number 9 10 11 well they mourned and they wept all the people wept when they heard the words of the law yeah so it had a conviction a convicting impact upon them caused them to mourn but Nehemiah didn't want them to stay there because we you know not in a state of despondency look at the end of verse 10 this day is holy unto our Lord neither be sorry for the joy of the Lord is your strength so the Levites stilled all the people saying so there was that stilling of the people he was encouraging them to have joy in the Lord and not to be merely despondent by the conviction that they were under from the word but it changed him it affected him affected affected him right a lot of times we open the scriptures and it doesn't affect us now we're not going to jump ahead but I just want to say this we've got 20 minutes left let's as we go through this look at the the fellowship and the worship together with it or otherwise we won't get to them because it's all blended here together the people are now as a congregation they're in fellowship one with another they're in fellowship with the prayers they're in fellowship with the Word of God and it's producing worship and it kind of continues on so let's just kind of notice them as we go through through the rest of the time we have the power of God's word to change is an amazing thing and that's what we're going to learn here in fact brother Brandon one of one of the things about this is that the Word of God will take people back bring us back constantly that's actually seen in this text because I don't want to take you to verse number 17 but one of the effects of God's Word is this all the congregation of them that came out again out of the captivity made booths and sat under the booths for since the days of Joshua the son of none unto that day it had not been done now the interesting thing is there's three feasts in the Old Testament in the days of Hezekiah the Word of God was brought on when the Word of God was brought it says there was nothing like it since the days of Samuel Solomon unleavened bread they kept the feast there was nothing like it since the days of Solomon then we move on a few years and we get to Josiah's time and again the Word of God is brought and it says when the Word of God was brought they kept the Passover and it takes us back further it says there was nothing like it since the days of Samuel so Solomon's day Samuel's day and we get to this passage and the Word of God is brought and they keep the feast of tabernacles and you say we'll go back to Solomon's day no they get back to Joshua's day and we're going back again and we get just a beautiful balance of God's Word it's convicting power in all of our life bringing us back to first principle that's the point that's it yeah so it isn't always taking us forward in order for us to go forward we have to go back it's where we got away it's right so it takes us back and then it takes us onward to where Paul says to Timothy but continue thou mm-hmm right so are we right to suggest like here here they're they're weeping they're actually told not to weep and there were sacrifices which had been offered brother Brandon those sacrifices were peace offerings you say how do you know there's peace offerings well they were actually told to drink and eat the sweet portions and send portions to others now the lesson I learn in this as the Word of God is disseminated and the sacrifices you got Christ again in all of the fullness of his person now the person who brought that peace offering he got some of it and the Lord received a portion from it and the benefit was there were other people they received a portion as well and so we've got all of this going on but the people are weeping and they're actually told don't weep and the interesting thing is then they get back to pilgrim character they're going to dwell in booths and now their homes are there but they're going to erect these temporary dwelling centers you say what's that all about that's just a commemoration of what happened in the past and it's prospective it's looking forward to what's coming in the future when the millennial rain dawns we're going to see pilgrim character in all of its fullness exhibited linked to the person of the Lord Jesus but also the fullness of the inheritance that's the point yeah that's yes that's it let us make three tabernacles Peter says on the mount and the reason why Peter said he thought the millennial rain had come I think they felt the weight of the word so if they hadn't if they hadn't heard the law being read before they couldn't read it for themselves maybe in Babylon and this was the first time that they were hearing the law being read I think it had a tremendous impact upon them they felt the weight of the Word of God and we've been saying already we read this book very glibly you know we've been spending a few hours in it and maybe it just doesn't have the impact it should but they felt the real weight of it and perhaps they felt their own their own inconsistency and inability just to measure up to the standard the righteous standard of the Word of God and so they're weeping yeah no I don't think that Nehemiah was criticizing it I think it's good when the Word of God touches the heart touches the conscience because how do we know how to live how can we put things right in our lives the Word of God should touch the conscience and at times it should cause us to weep but I think Nehemiah's point is this is a day of festivity this is a day of joy so there is another relevant time for mourning and for weeping the day of atonement a day of affliction and so on but this this is a period for joy now the joy of the Lord is your strength I like to think of it in this way but it's not only that the Word of God can produce challenge and conviction but the Word of God can also produce joy in our hearts in our lives it can and they were rejoicing by the end of this chapter because they were obedient to it now what brings joy in a Christian's life well if you love me keep my commandments obedience to the Word of God brings joy in our lives and the Word of Christ brings joy doesn't it if I go I will come again now what does that do in your heart that doesn't create solemn weeping sorrow does it that creates joy in your heart Christ is coming again so I think it's all flowing out of the word of the joy here if I could ask a question this is not subjective ie what I mean by that is this this is not telling us that this is the Lord's joy as a result of his people I think this is telling us what Dan has highlighted here this is objective this is the joy that they had they had heard God's word as a result of God's word they were going to be brought into the bounty of the Feast of Tabernacles and everything associated with it and now the strength for this people is actually joying in the Lord and that's the same for us yeah no it's their morning yes so therefore it must be their joy I think and it brings us into chapter 9 then they're good they want more yeah sorry how long did the Bible conference last well we're extending works on the basis of this yeah we're extending for another what's the period we're going to give it it's not just that so when when did Ezra stand to read beginning of the day when did he finish midday children were here mm-hmm so he was reading potentially for five hours six hours reading in the heat of the noon day and then what do they say at the end of the day they say we want another day of this day to six hours they stood the whole time stood the whole time and by the way they stood in their place which means they didn't well they didn't move a muscle no toilet breaks they just listen and they stood six hours and then the next day another six hours and then I take it they didn't stay all the way until the Feast of Tabernacles I suppose they went home came back again but then the Feast of Tabernacles you got another seven days reading the law again these Bible conferences are good things so so they didn't they didn't want to do it the next day because all the fun they had standing in the hot heat and all this right it was all us it was all the spiritual joy yeah right it's addicting isn't it yeah I was just gonna say we're talking about joy here but the end of the chapter shows the proper outcome that this joy is not exuberance it's not just like you said subjective it's objective yeah in the sense that it actually says it almost seems to be contrastive where it says and on the eighth day was a solemn assembly according unto the matter but the idea there is that it was an assembly was restraint there was control as a result of that in their lives from what is happening produced by the Word of God and verse 17 there was very great gladness some Christians are very unhappy Christians you say why well maybe there's disobedience in the life you know if we're being obedient to the Word of God there should be very great gladness so they went on at this Bible conference for seven days verse 18 plus the original to us right can we go to chapter 9 that's where I was gonna say we need to go to chapter 9 oh all right go to verse 2 yes exactly well I was in verse 1 the too slow verse 2 and all the people said amen the 24th day of this month take it that's the seventh month of the feet the Feast of Aphrodite's was in the seventh so 24th day Israel were assembled with fasting and sackcloth and earth upon them and the seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers and stood and confessed their sins and iniquities and the iniquities of their fathers why my question is this why is that coming in here after all that has gone before in the month with the reading of the law and the weeping and the joy and and very very great gladness there in verse 17 why is this coming in now because they recognize you need it but the Feast of Tabernacles would be over yes and the Feast of Tabernacles was associated with joy yes the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles was a high Sabbath that's what our brother Frank has told us there from the end of verse number 8 it was a day of restraint and the reason why it was a day of restraint was it was prescribed actually in Leviticus chapter 23 as a Sabbath of rest now we have moved beyond the Sabbath of rest we're in the 24th day of the month the festivities gone the day of restraints gone now is the time for the impact of this to be felt in its totality and is this the cumulative impact of the reading of the Word of God even from those original two days and the Feast of Tabernacles so it's all building up now and we're seeing really now then they're separated from the strangers so what was taking place physically in the building of the wall now they're starting to deal with that in a practical way among them yeah so now they're reading they're standing in their place again for a fourth part of the day and they read and then they confess and they worship the Lord their God so I take it the half of the day would be the daylight hours it would be a fourth of us will be three hours each that'd be right yeah so they weren't there all night and all day but they read the book first then they confessed so they're hearing something that they need to confess they're learning and then they worship the Lord their God it's interesting you were going over the the various stages John verse 6 they speak to to the Lord thou alone has made heaven Genesis right verse 11 thou didst divide the sea before them Exodus verse 13 thou camest down also upon Mount Sinai spakest unto them from heaven giving them the right judgments and the laws and the statutes and the commandments Leviticus and and so on you can meet you can follow it all through and how they were led through the wilderness numbers and Deuteronomy Joshua all the way through in fact to the kings and princes there over in verse 32 and 33 that's first and second Samuel and first Kings and even into the prophets where they've done dealt wickedly and so on so they're covering a whole scope of what has already taken place for the nation of Israel and they're entering into it in an intelligent way before the Lord as they make their confession and they bring it right up to date as to where they're at they get they're getting located before the Lord themselves likely some of these didn't know their own history as a nation right so they had to start in Genesis and go all the way through so they get the full scope of of the magnitude of what's taking place so experience is a great thing if we learn from it so the past is reviewed but it's not for us to state it was not for them to stay in the past because when we get to verse number 38 and because of all this we confirm we cut we make a sure covenant and write it and it wasn't so much at that stage brother Brandon they were looking back to the past now they're looking forward to the future because they know everything now is dependent on how we live for the Lord going forward from this day and I think that was your drive wasn't for this conference like we do look to the past we should look to the past we look to great men that have been raised up in Wisconsin and Iowa and around these parts but brother Brandon might I would judge that we got a look to the future for sure absolutely they're entering into this and it's part of one of the writings down further but they make a make a vow and they put it in writing and it says that they enter into a curse you see the laws the law hasn't changed and they're making the same mistake that their forefathers did all that the Lord said we will do and they're entering into this now in their own writing their zeal is good but isn't it a marvel that we're not under the law today it's a it's a covenant that is that is not a two-way covenant if I could put it that way it's just sweet that we we have in this age of grace we are so blessed to be in this time personally I think they actually recognize what it was that this is this was sin what our fathers did was sin and we know it yeah and and they can actually honestly enter in it for their own self to I they've seen the effect of it they've been in Babylon right but only a small part of them have been recovered from Babylon so they worship God let's drop down with five to seven minutes left we got a long way to go trying to find where to go chapter 12 anything in chapter 12 sticks out to you brother well it's interesting that how many times several times in this book you have it the city connected with the city of David the city of David the city of David I think it's beautiful to see that at the beginning of the book it was the city that lied waste at the end of the book and moving through it's the city of David you know it's bringing back the royal aspect bringing back prophecy bring back promise you know as they work and as God is with them that's encouraging because in light you know it there's a tremendous reality to what we're doing that ultimately it it does belong to God and there's royalty associated yes one of the practical things that comes out along with that because this is the dedication of the wall of that city but one of the interesting things Brandon is we have found that the Levites have been missing on quite a number of the the times that we've been looking through these post captivity books we get to chapter 12 now these are the priests and the Levites that went up and there's a reflection back and those who did come up in the pastor remembered then verse number 26 they were in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Jeshua the son of Josedach and in the days of Nehemiah and they're going to be remembered now right in this day and then we find that there's going to be an appointed portion for them as we go down verse number 44 and verse number 47 there's going to be a portion for these men because they recognize their service of the Lord that is required in this on these men are prepared to do it now there's a practical lesson for us in that with regard to divine service we need men for service on women for service in this day and the Lord will look after those men we're assured from this chapter and God will meet the needs of those men just as he met the needs of these men in this day something else that had been lost even or not left now but lost earlier in Babylon was what their song they hung their harps on the willows right was it 137 but yet three times in chapter 12 we read about the singers that build of them houses and then they sang their songs and then they were heard from far off so they got their song back yes so in chapter 13 yet yep this man Elijah verse 14 he he opened up the house of God and he prepared a chamber in the house of God for this man to buy up an ammonite and yet as they read in the book of the law verse 1 back up in verse 1 they found out that it was written that the ammonite and the Moabite should not come into the congregation of God forever and and so on and then we get this this account of what had already happened that this man Elijah the priest had not gone according to the law but it actually prepared a chamber for the enemy of God's people this man to buy up now that was a sad state of affairs but they're going to do something about that so what would that teach us about the principle of separation well he brought him into his own house and this is the same man we talked about earlier who didn't build the wall by his own house and he the wall that he did work on or the gate was the gate that had no locks so this man was compromised the whole time right right so it is possible for one in an assembly applying it now hmm to be so what do you say making a favorite of someone to such an extent that the truth of the word of God could be compromised and one of the areas in which men would be test maybe the most is in the area of family favoritism toward family compromising divine truth just because their family the blood test is very revealing isn't it and the reality is he's selling out the whole congregation yes it is it he's he's whether it's to keep the family ties smooth he's selling out the congregation whether it's for his own personal gain he's selling out the whole congregation because sin is being brought in and it is it is a tremendous thing this is why Nehemiah's reaction is is so so dramatic I shouldn't say dramatic that's the wrong word so strong he goes and throws all the stuff out of the house beards get pulled so it's just a regular brawl but it affected the worship because this chamber where this that was given to this man a fourth time they were laid up there the meal offerings and frankincense and the vessels and ties of the corn and new wine and so on provisions for the house of God for worship was affected because of this there was a breakdown and separation and it affected the worship of God so Malachi is written about 50 years later and what are they doing in Malachi the robbing God yeah and it's already started now 50 years isn't a very long time yes right so everything that is it's a it's a reminder that revivals are generally short-lived what what it does show to the way and the next verse says but in all this was I not at Jerusalem so I think of Paul speaking to the Ephesian elders after my departure shall grievous wolves come in so it shows the importance of men that will stand against these things I'll just say one thing for my own sake and I none of us as far none of us are elders here and we were talking about leadership and so on personally what I would have enjoyed to hear and I've always said this is men who are elders in the company to contribute because you've met have had that experience in this and it would be valuable to hear from you and add those comments by your own experiences whether they're you know perceived or real shortcomings we all have them but it would help everyone and it would be a great thing to have that contribution contribution among us to contribution contribution thank you amen so Brennan just just as as a point this business of guarding now not so much the physical wall and the physical gates but coming back to the spiritual is actually seen here mm-hmm Tobiah mm-hmm Tobiah could have been in you say it says no more bite and no Ammonite would have any part to come into the congregation of God forever but there was a Moabite got in mm-hmm didn't she but she wasn't a Moabite s when she came in right she was a worshiper of the true God that's how she got in and if this man had repented and had become a worshiper of the true God there was a place for this man mm-hmm but if he'd done that he would have accepted the scriptures and never violated the law of Moses and so all of those principles again we're coming back to right here in this context but the charge that Nehemiah brings to the the rulers verse 11 when he found finds out the the deficiencies in his absence then contended I were the rulers and said why is the house of God forsaken this was this was a something major this wasn't just something small so so if God was there why did God not act yes we're in the times of the Gentiles the glory had not returned the glory had not returned God is not directly intervening with his people but dispensationally isn't that true that at the beginning of each era the Lord does act as we move Ananias and Sapphira in the church age the man that gathered sticks on the Sabbath day in the earlier period right through every generation in every epoch God steps in at the beginning but because of sin and the lack of fear of the Lord then the Lord seems not to step in in the same way yes but it and that's wonderful and that's true but isn't the simpler answer the fact that God has given us his word to act on yes he they had his word and that's their resource that's the point exactly but they had his word in some of those other cases to directly through the Apostle absolutely but he did act judgmental yes there are things like you say characteristically that are marking the beginnings of dispensations right God but but what carries us right through always is the Word of God and to act on that right all right time is gone brethren just say one thing the question that William ended with is I was thinking of why is the house of the Lord forsaken let's keep that in mind wherever assembly you're from however old or however young you are are you forsaken the house of the Lord whether through the reading of the Word of God or whether through through leadership or for worship whatever it might be we're in the last days there's there's still time for revival let's pray yeah father as we come to a close this afternoon we're thankful for the for the instruction that we get from Nehemiah and our father certainly we pray that it would touch our hearts that we might in some sense be like this man that we might have a heart for the people of God that we might have a sensitivity to the God of heaven and we when it comes to our sin and when it comes to our work and to the quality of it our father we would long that each one here would go away seeking to put on gold and silver and precious stones upon a foundation that is already laid that we might take heed how we build thereon for certainly we're either building or we're tearing down and our father we would ask that we might be sensitive and our eyes might be awakened and our hearts might be opened and softened to the person of Christ for he alone is worthy plus this gospel now we do pray as we give thanks for the weekend and for the conveners of the conference in the worthy name of our Lord Jesus Christ amen chairs around to face the front please