Restore with Reforms of Remembrance
Posted: February 23, 2020 Filed under: Bible, Generosity, Giving, Jesus, Relationships, Remembering, Sermons, Service, Uncategorized Leave a commentThis sermon can be watched or listened to at www.templebaptistchurch.ca!
Remembering can save your life! When you are learning to drive, the instructor teaches you to look both ways before proceeding otherwise you may get into a deadly car accident. Remembering can keep you from getting stranded or worse, pinned down. An example I learned about this week is from a community group who will be using our parking lot for motorcycle training this spring. We love using our property to bless our community! This group got connected to us through the baseball community and they have these big Honda bikes and they actually require the owner to drop their bike so that if the rider got pinned under their bikes they would know what to do. Can you imagine that? You have your brand new bike and you have damaged it slightly with some scuff-marks so later on you can be saved. That is actually the greatest way we remember – through pain. When we are young, we touch a hot light bulb or an electrical socket and get burned or slightly shocked, and we learn quickly not to touch those things that will hurt us. Or maybe a coach or teacher yells at you? I still recall when I was 19 years old and I say, “Hey, Cheryl” to my direct supervisor. She said very sternly, “Hay is for horses.” I thought, “Well, I’ll never do that again,” and to this day I try to avoid the word “Hey” in my greetings, especially those I am under. Remembering can save you future pain and even better, remembering can save your life. So are you remembering the right things?
In fact, what you remember will also be what you will be remembered for. I have done my share of funerals and so I have witnessed first hand what many people say about their loved ones who have passed on. Thinking about your death sounds morbid, but it can actually make you live with more intentionality. As Ecclesiastes 7:4 teaches, “The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning.” Therefore, if you remember to make time for your family and friends, they will remember you. If you remember that there are other people less blessed than you are, then you will be remembered as generous. If you remember that you will have to give an account to God and that is your motivation for having integrity, then you will be remembered. What do you want to be remembered for?
This is the big question we are asking today from Nehemiah – what do you want to remembered for? What will be your legacy? A lot of us want to leave a good legacy, but let’s admit that most of us will not be remembered long here on earth. I recall something that someone once said about my Grampie Stairs. They said that he was still remembered by people thirty years after dying, which was rare. You see, there are only an extremely few people who will be remembered on earth beyond their family and friends. You know this to be true because even memorials to people who contributed are forgotten. As Psalm 103:15-17 declares, “As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; for the wind passes over it, and it is gone and its place knows it no more. But the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him.” I love the contrast and hope of this verse because it reminds me that my life is so short, but God’s love is forever! It reminds me not to live for the things of this world. Our importance in the world’s mind lasts as long as the news cycle. My son recently got some social media attention for throwing a fastball 85 mph. But that was last week’s news and there is a new crop of young men to focus on this week. God’s Good News of His Son has lasted for the past 2000 years. His love endures forever! And this is what is so hopeful for us. Don’t settle for being known here on earth. That is setting your sights too low! Strive to be known in heaven. Did you realize that though we are not saved by our good deeds, God remembers them as we respond to His grace (Ephesians 2:8-10). I love this promise in Revelation 14:13, “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on. Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!” Isn’t this so redemptive? Especially when you think about the mess we are currently in because Adam and Eve our first parents ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. We have been confused about what is good and what is bad ever since. Does this not elevate what we do with every second that God gives us on this earth and that we should make it count? This is why coming to church is so important. It doesn’t save you, but it reminds you that you are destined for God along with His Church. Let’s look at Nehemiah 13 to find out what we should be known for and then this will help us live with intentionality to be known for those things. Literally, how you want be remembered will cause you to remember how to do life! Read Nehemiah 13!
Nehemiah 13:31 ends with a prayer: “Remember me, O my God, for good!” What a peculiar request! If God knows everything, why would Nehemiah need to ask God to remember him? And even if Nehemiah’s theology was off, why record it in the Bible? Was Nehemiah asking to be remembered to perpetuate his legacy on earth? Some might build such a case because Nehemiah has been remembered. We are still talking about Nehemiah and reading the book he wrote 2400 years later. However, our legacy is not just for this earth, but the new heavens and new earth. I think Nehemiah wanted to be known for good beyond this life. If we know anything about Nehemiah after studying these past 6 months is that Nehemiah was a man who could make bold requests and he understood that gaining the world was not worth forfeiting his soul. Recall that he was the cupbearer to King Artaxerxes and was probably the most trusted man in the kingdom of the Persian Empire. Everything that the king ate or drank first passed through Nehemiah’s lips so as to ensure that the King wasn’t poisoned. Nehemiah left this high position because he cared about his people and their horrible plight in their homeland. He cared that the city of his origin (not his birth) was in ruins. Nehemiah wanted to be remembered beyond the Persian Empire. He wanted to be recognized not by the King of Persia, but by the King of kings!
Nehemiah’s goal of being remembered is so evident from the text. The words “Remember (me), O My God” are repeated and used in verses 14, 22, 29 and 31. And we know that when a word is repeated 3 or more times in a Bible passage, God is trying to get our attention. So if being remembered by God is the big idea of the passage, it begs the big question: what do you want to be remembered for by God? Here are seven questions that you should ask yourself this week. They are seven remembrances that will change your life and cause you to be remembered by God. Let’s list them! Will you be remembered for: 1) Reading God’s Word? (v. 1); 2) Taking God’s Word seriously to the point of potentially costing you relationships? (v. 1-2); 3) Being protective of God’s Work? (v. 4-9); 4) Giving to the Lord? (v. 10-14); 5) Resting in God? (v. 15-22); 6) Holy relationships? (v. 23-27); and 7) Serving and staying in your lane? (v. 30)
Let’s unpack those 7 questions. The first question is will you be remembered for reading God’s Word? I could have made that part of the second question but I think it stands alone. Reading God’s Word daily is the best thing you do in your life. An apple a day supposedly keeps the doctor away. Reading God’s Word each day keeps the Devil at bay!And reading God’s Word individually is good, but it isn’t enough. God’s Word is meant to be understood in community because the family of God confirms the Word of God by the Spirit of God. This is why small groups are so crucial. We chosen small groups over a very good thing with our former Sunday night service because we believe that disciples are best made in smaller groups like Jesus did. Nehemiah 13:1 records, “On that day they read from the Book of Moses in the hearing of the people.” We must read, study and apply God’s Word together. This is why I am so concerned when I read stats that according to expert Phil Bowdie in his book Rethink Communication, “In 2010, the average person attended church only once every 2-3 weeks. In 2018, the average person attended church only once every 5-6 weeks.” If the average person comes to church only 10 times a year, how are they going to be aligned in growing in Christ? Their study, service and giving will be anaemic. Be remembered for reading God’s Word. That was the one thing my dad wanted to be remembered for – majoring in the Bible!
The second question follows the first one closely. Are you not just reading the Bible but are you taking God’s Word seriously to the point of it potentially costing you relationships? This is what God’s people in Nehemiah’s day did according to verses 1-3, “And in it was found that no Ammonite or Moabite should ever enter the assembly of God for they did not meet the people of Israel with bread and water, but hired Balaam against them to curse them – yet our God turned the curse into a blessing. As soon as the people heard the law, they separated from Israel all those of foreign descent.” We have talked recently that following Christ may make you get a new set of friends. However, this should not invoke a cavalier attitude, like, “Forget you, I’ve got Jesus now!” Unlike the Jews in Nehemiah’s day, our initial response to our friends after receiving Christ should be to pull them towards Christ rather than push them away. Many of you know this already, but following Christ may cost you your friends. Jesus made this clear when He said in Luke 14:26, “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.” For some of us the question boils down to: will you be remembered as a friend of men or a friend of God?
The third question comes from verses 4-9. Nehemiah had to go back to King Artaxerxes “after 12 years of being governor of Judea.”[1] And in his absence, Eliashib the priest, stirs up trouble by inviting back a troublemaker. This happens so often in a leadership transition. Troublemakers sneak back. It happened in the New Testament as Paul warns the Ephesians Elders in Acts 20:29-30, “I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things to draw away the disciples after them.” Did Paul still follow God’s path and leave the Ephesian Church? Yes! God can protect His Church and this gives me great comfort when I go away. But it also requires for us to be remembered for being protective of God’s Work. Nehemiah did what Jesus did. Verse 8 records, “And I was very angry and I threw all the household furniture of Tobiah out of the chamber.” Lovingly confront somebody who is stirring up trouble and call them to repentance and reconciliation. Protect this house – God’s house!
But we should not just be remembered for protecting God’s work. We should also be remembered for providing for God’s work. Nehemiah 13:10-12 states, “I also found out that the portions of the Levites had not been given to them, so that the Levites and the singers, who did the work, had fled each to his field. So I confronted the officials and said, ‘Why is the house of God forsaken?’ And I gathered them together and set them in their stations. Then all Judah brought the tithe of the grain, wine and oil into the storehouses.” May I just speak to you from my heart as your pastor? I know you don’t like me talking about money. Some outsiders think that is all we talk about, but we only exist because of God stirring people up to give freewill donations and we are in a rare season where we are sacrificing to build a new tool to reach our community with the gospel. The Lord gave me an insight this week. I am your heavenly financial planner. Jesus said in Matthew 6:20, “Store up for yourselves treasure in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.” Pay attention to that word – yourselves! Do you realize that you have a chance to be rich in heaven and if I didn’t help you become rich in heaven and grow in your faith, obedience and generosity, then I would be a poor heavenly financial planner and pastor to you? I don’t want you to miss out! Jesus is promising better than a lifetime warranty on your investment. He is promising an eternal warranty on your investment. Just like in Nehemiah’s day, “if you love the temple, it meant you loved the Lord.”[2] This is why Nehemiah cries out to God in verse 14, “Remember me, O my God, concerning this, and do not wipe out my good deeds that I have done for the house of my God and for His service.” I want us all to live in the same rich neighbourhood in the new heavens and new earth. I don’t know for sure if we all will, but I want that because I love you. Be remembered as giving generously and sacrificially to the Lord!
Ironically, the next question is not about working harder, but being remembered for resting more! This may be the number one question for me this year and beyond. Nehemiah 13:15-22 describes how “in those days I saw in Judah people treading winepresses on the Sabbath…” The people were using the Sabbath as a day for commerce. They even hired “Phoenician merchants to open up a fish market probably at the Fish Gate.”[3] You may recall from Nehemiah 3:3 that the Fish Gate was the second gate repaired after the Sheep Gate, which was used to allow lambs for sacrifice, so the Fish Gate was very important because it brought economic prosperity to the city. But the people wanted more money. Money is always God’s top competitor for affection. Instead, the people were to trust God because “The Lord provides food for the Sabbath.”[4] Nehemiah was so concerned about following the Sabbath that he secured guards to not allow any work to be done (v. 19). The people tried to make it a cottage industry outside the walls of Jerusalem on the Sabbath as verse 20 declares but Nehemiah put a stop to that as well. He then prays in verse 22, “Remember this also in my favour, O my God, and spare me according to the greatness of your steadfast love.” Be remembered for resting in God and not for being a workaholic! Give God no rest in prayer, but let’s rest ourselves in Him!
Not only are we to read and take God’s Word seriously, protect and give to His work while resting in Him, but we are also to be remembered for holy relationships. The people once again chased after other lovers. Verses 23-27 records that they had intermarried with the women of Ashdod, Ammon and Moab. You might ask what’s the big deal? We need more diversity and multiculturalism. Even the Bible records Boaz marrying the Moabitess Ruth and they produced children in the Messianic line? The problem was these foreign women were teaching their children the native language so that Hebrew was a second and unknown language. What is the problem with that? The kids couldn’t then read their Bibles. They were Biblically illiterate. “This threatened the erosion of the identity of God’s people and also the access to God’s Word!”[5] Is that not true in our society? Do kids know their Bibles today? Be remembered for holy relationships and teaching your children the Bible. This was essentially Nehemiah’s prayer after chasing the main culprit, the high priest’s son, away in verses 28-29, “Remember them, O my God, because they have desecrated the priesthood and the covenant of the priesthood and the Levites.” I have a heart for PKs because I am one, but they cannot be treated with favouritism.
Lastly, we must be remembered for serving and staying in our lane. In other words, serve with all your might to the Lord, but don’t try to do other people’s jobs. Notice in verse 30 how Nehemiah “cleansed them from everything foreign, and I establish the duties of the priests and Levites, each in his work.” We must be remembered for serving the Messiah, but not trying to be one! The reason is because Jesus Himself was remembered for reading and taking God’s Word seriously even when it cost Him His life. He jealously protected the Temple of God. He gave the ultimate sacrifice to the Lord – Himself! He rested in God, built holy relationships and served the people while giving His followers, including you and I, a role to play. May we look forward to the day when the Lord declares, “I remember you for good! Well, done good and faithful servant!”
CONCLUSION: Will you be remembered by Jesus for good? In Luke 13:22-30, Jesus tells a shocking story that though some people who have eaten with Him and sat under His teaching, He will not acknowledge them at the Judgment Day. He won’t remember them. This does not mean that Jesus does not know about them because Jesus knows all things. It means that there was not intimate relationship. Will you be remembered by Jesus for good?
[1] Derek Kidner, Ezra & Nehemiah – An Introduction and Commentary (Downer’s Grove: Inter-Varsity Press, 1979), 129.
[2] F. Charles Fensham, The Books of Ezra and Nehemiah – NICOT (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 1982), 262.
[3] Fensham, 263.
[4] Fensham, 264.
[5] Kinder, 131.
RESTORE with Dedication
Posted: February 16, 2020 Filed under: dedication, Jesus, Joy, land claims, Money, possessions, purity, Sermons, Sex, Uncategorized Leave a commentThis sermon can be watched or listened to at www.templebaptistchurch.ca!
You are going to think that I am totally weird if you don’t already, but I have tennis elbow. From playing tennis? No. From playing sports? No. From physical labour? No. Lifting up too many books. Here’s why I’m weird, I have tennis elbow in my left arm, my non-dominate arm! And so how did I get this injury? Well, every night I put my left arm over my head and hold on to our bedpost. I sleep hard and so through years of repetitive movement, I have developed tennis elbow. Anybody else sleep hard? Well, I hang on for dear life in my sleep. So guess what the solution is? My physiotherapist put Leukotape on my elbow so that my brain would be conscious of the tape and remind me to keep my elbow below my shoulder. In other words, that tape was dedicated to a specific task of keeping my arm down so I don’t hurt myself, at least while I’m asleep. The tape has no power in itself, but because of dedication, it has power over me! Only the power I give it, but I allow it to have power over me. A little bit of cloth can stop my arm from causing tennis elbow, because as one created in God’s image, like you, I have authority created things on the earth (Genesis 1:28). And this authority can be used for good or evil depending on how and what we dedicate.
Today, we are going to talk about dedication. Dedication is devoting oneself to a person, purpose or task. Dedication raises all sorts of questions: Should we dedicate inanimate objects? Should we dedicate our children to the Lord? Should we dedicate buildings like churches and homes to the Lord? Is there such a thing as a spiritual power in inanimate object? And why is this even important? What does this have to do with our daily lives? Well, what if we thought our schools, workplaces, homes and other community places were dedicated as places for the kingdom and the peace of God?What if you and I started to think that way? Would it make a difference to think of your workplace as a location, which is dedicated for God to work rather than a place to pick up a paycheque? Would it make a difference to think of your home as a place where you commune with God rather than just a place to rest, recreate or sleep? Would it make a difference if you saw your school as less of a place of study and more of a place that the Holy Spirit was teaching people truth? As the former Prime Minister of Holland Abraham Kuyperproclaimed, “There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry, Mine!”
Do you believe that God owns everything? Do you believe that there is not one part of your life that God is not welcome? Is there one area that you are holding back that God wants you to dedicate to Him? This is what happened in Nehemiah 12:27-47 where the people of God started to take God serious in every area of their life. May that happen with us today, especially in light of bringing this principle into the New Testament and our lives where we are to “offer our bodies as living sacrifices unto God.” (Romans 12:1) Read Nehemiah 12:27-47!
Here is the Big Idea from the passage: Dedicate yourselves to the Lord in your praise, your purity, your places, and your possessions!Those areas are the pressure points for most of us: our singing, our secure locations, our sexuality, and our stuff. You might think that the first one may not be a big deal but can you imagine if you were never able to sing or hear your favourite song again? Most of us would agree: Don’t mess with my music! A student understands this if people starting messing with their Spotify. A grandparent understands this if people are down with their gospel music. In churches, worship wars have occurred over music preferences, which I am so thankful that has not happened here. Worship wars happens when we start to worship our worship rather than the Lord. This is why today we are learning to dedicate ourselves to the Lord with our praise, our places, our purity, and our possessions.
Let’s go deeper and take a second look at this dedication starting in verses 27-29. We see very clearly, “And at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought the Levites in all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication with gladness, with thanksgiving and with singing, with cymbals, harps and lyres. And the sons of the singers gathered together from the district surrounding Jerusalem and from the villages of the Netophathites; also from Beth-gilgal and from the region of Geba and Azmaveth, for the singers had built for themselves villages around Jerusalem.” This was not a solemn event; it was a celebratory event. It wasn’t reflective; it was rocking! Notice that loud instruments were used – cymbals, harps and lyres. This is not unlike what our worship band uses today with the drums, bass guitar and electric or acoustic guitar. Friends, we are not trying to drown out anybody, especially those with hearing aids. But we are trying to express with exuberance our thankfulness and gratitude to the Lord, which should not be quiet. We are excited about the Lord and we are using the common instruments of our day that the next generation also embraces. The instruments listed in Nehemiah’s day were to accompany the singers and that is still true today. In other words as Pastor Jason Elliotsonhas said, “The human voice should be our loudest instrument in praise to God.”
Causing the community to worship God was so important to the worship band in Nehemiah’s day that they actually relocated as we read in verse 29. The singers actually moved closer to Jerusalem and built villages of veneration to God. They wanted to be where the action is. Could I challenge you to sit up at the front of the church next Sunday to be where the white-hot worship is? I know that when I sit at the back I tend to do more watching than worshipping and I get distracted. This also leaves room for newcomers to have an opportunity to find a seat without being disruptive if they are late. We need to dedicate our praise to the Lord. We must sing one another’s songs to the Lord! It is actually more worshipful to God if I can thoroughly enjoy a worshipper next to me worshipping, even though it is not my favourite song. Thank you seasoned saints for welcoming the young by welcoming their music. We will have to continue to do this in the years to come. Trying to involve everybody is challenging but so important that as verse 31 records, “Then I brought the leaders of Judah up onto the wall and appointed two great choirs that gave thanks.” Worship is a priority. Maybe you need to join the choir? I would love to have the choir up here every Sunday with me!
We also need to dedicate our purity to the Lord. This is what God’s people did in verse 30, “And the priests and Levites purified themselves, and they purified the people and the gates and the wall.” This raises the question: What does it mean to purify ourselves? Bible scholar Charles Fensham explains, “For the clergy it might have included fasting, abstaining from sexual intercourse, a sin offering, washing of garments and bathing.”[1]To modernize it for us today, to purify one’s self is not just to avoid things that may harm us, but it means to decontaminate anything that would destroy our devotion to God. It is not only our sexuality, but that is often ground zero because our bodies follow our hearts. The good thing is that purity is a community project.This was true in Nehemiah 12 and also in the New Testament in Ephesians 5:3, which I love most from the NIV, “But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality or of any kind of impurity or of greed because these are improper for God’s holy people.” (emphasis added) This is both scary and liberating. It is scary because we are all sexually broken. Our leaders know firsthand how this can be a weakness in our lives, which is why we have accountability software that gives reports to an accountability partner. What I look at online generates a report to the Chair of the Elders David Pinkerton and to Darryl Brush. Sometimes David sees that I am too interested in baseball websites. Sometimes he sees I have been looking at things that don’t honour God. I confess that I have had the embarrassment of repenting of those sins. But I need help and so do you need help. You are not alone. Purity is a community project. This is why women should help each other out if you see a little too much flesh showing from one of your sisters. Discreetly, and without judgment, help the sister in Christ know that this may cause a brother to stumble, but more importantly, it draws attention to herself rather than to the Lord. I can say this right now because I don’t know of any violations. We don’t need a dress code because that slips into legalism! We need a dedicated community to the Lord who seeks purity in all things. This Family Day weekend, what if we dedicated ourselves to what 1 Timothy 5:1-2 commands, “Do not rebuke an older man, but encourage him as you would a father. Treat younger men like brothers, older women like mothers, younger women like sisters, in all purity.” We are a church family. We need to have sexual discipleship because no one else will teach us how to honour the Lord who bought our bodies and minds to be used in holy ways. We must dedicate our praise and purity to the Lord. Find an accountability partner of the same sex. Pray for each other. Memorize Scripture together. In your small groups, break off into separate men’s and women’s groups and find out if you are honouring God with your minds and bodies. Men, are you loving your wives and put them first by meeting their needs first? Wives, are you recognizing that your husband is being bombarded by lustful images every day and you are the only legitimate source of sexual expression for your husband? Young people and all of us, are you careful what you watch on your screens? Are you engaging in pre-marital sex? It’s tough be pure but God calls you to love because love is patient. He doesn’t want sex to stunt your relationship as it becomes the dominate expression. Wait until marriage so you can have the best relationship without guilt in marriage. This is a call to be loving and looking out for one another. Purity is a community project! And for the singles I want you to hear me that you are loved and you have family here, especially on a weekend that emphasizes romance and family. As Gina Dalfonzoremarks in her book One by One, “When the whole world seems to be obsessed with sex – and believe me, when you’re not having sex, that is something you’re very much aware of – the church of God gives us something the world can’t – we don’t haveto be obsessed with sex and in a paradoxical way, this sets us free.”[2] Dedicate your purity to God.
One single in our church said, “Christ is enough and far greater than any of my own desires. It is so important to refrain from things that would cause you to stumble (certain TV shows, music, etc.) and to be sure to bathe yourself in God’s Word, desiring to fall deeper in love with Christ alone.” This person went onto say,“I did struggle more at one point with how that need was met in my life when I am single, but I’m understanding better that in Him alone is true contentment and I’ve learned, “If the Lord knows and supplies every need and He hasn’t given me something, then He must deem that I don’t have need of it at this point in time.” As John Piper has said, “Resolve to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and he will add to you everything you need sexually. It may be a spouse. It may be the grace and freedom to be single and pure and content. That is up to God. Ours is to seek the kingdom. Or to put it another way, our all-consuming passion must be to glorify God in our bodies by keeping ourselves free from every enslavement but one: the joyful, fulfilling slavery to God.”
Map created by Daniel Sweet
But we should not only dedicate our praise and purity to God, but also our places. Notice that the two choirs became what we might consider a marching band and choir. Have you ever seen a group of people moving and singing at the same time? It’s inspiring. Think of watching a play like Les Miserables.It’s mesmorizing to watch those actors run and leap across a stage all while belting out difficult songs with many parts being sung at the same time. The choirs in Nehemiah’s day dedicated themselves to filling up more locations with praise to God. They were on the move. Verse 31 tells us, “One went to the south on the wall to the Dung Gate.” I love how the pure people of God started there as they wanted the praise of God to produce the purity of God. Verse 38 records that Nehemiah went with the choir who went to the north because as we all know We the North can be leaders in praise, “The other choir of those gave thanks went to the north, and I followed them with half of the people.” This map created by Daniel Sweet shows how the “the procession went from the north onto the east.”[3] Notice how the choirs surround the city. I can just imagine them gathering worshippers along the way. My parents grew up Pentecostal and they used to do what was called “A Jericho Walk.” The whole church would end up doing a circle around the auditorium. There is something about using your whole body in worship. We try to do that more on Wednesday nights at our Prayer Encounter. We want praise to fill this place!
Now it might be weird to do a Jericho walk at your work or school, especially if you tell people what you are doing. But have you ever walked and prayed around the building you spend most of your time in, dedicating it to the Lord? Ask God if you have authority to do so. I am not trying to say that you should make a land claim, but make a light claim. Ask God to show His light there so you can see the needs and then apply what I taught you last week from the Discipleship Strategy of Jesus from Luke 10 – Believe, Pray, Expect Opposition, Don’t Worry about Provision, Don’t get distracted, Find the Person of Peace, Proclaim Jesus and His Kingdom and Stay and disciple as long as you are welcome there. Find those places that are used for evil and pray for God to redeem them. This is why it is also okay to dedicate and pray over our houses and cars. Inanimate objects don’t have power in themselves. Only when we give them power! This is why it is both good and Biblical to dedicate our building and property to the Lord. If Haitian leaders in 1791 made a pact with the devil in order to be liberated from the French that they would dedicate Haiti to Satan if he helped them fight off the French, why can’t we as children of light dedicate our lands to Jesus Christ? Dedicate your places to God. Ask God for protection. As verse 43 declares, “For God had made them rejoice with great joy.” The wall had been built. You see, “Protection makes us joyous.”[4]And this joy was multi-generational and contagious. Verse 43 goes on to say, “… the women and children also rejoiced. And the joy of Jerusalem was heard far away.”
But dedicating our praise, our purity and places to God isn’t enough? Notice verses 44 and 47, “44 On that day men were appointed over the storerooms, the contributions, the firstfruits, and the tithes, to gather into them the portions required by the Law for the priests and for the Levites according to the fields of the towns, for Judah rejoiced over the priests and the Levites who ministered… 47 And all Israel in the days of Zerubbabel and in the days of Nehemiah gave the daily portions for the singers and the gatekeepers; and they set apart that which was for the Levites; and the Levites set apart that which was for the sons of Aaron.”The people took care of the worship catalysts. The principle of the worker being worth his wages has always been true from the Bible. This is why when you give to Temple and care for us as a Staff, which we are so thankful for, it increases our dedication of praise, purity and places. It is important that you dedicate the possessions that God has lent you while on earth to the Lord. We encourage you to tithe. Did you realize that 60% of our donors give $2000 or less? This means either most of us live way below the poverty line of $37,000 for a family of 4, which actually 1 out of 10 people in our Waterloo region do leave below the poverty line,[5]or we are not trusting and obeying God with a tithe. If you are giving all you can out of joy, then praise God. But if not, test God this month and give at least 10% to Temple, the storehouse of God. All that we do here and around the world only comes from free-will donations. This will require a new sense of dedication and trust in God.
My friends, being dedicated to something is a difference maker. We see this in sports, in music, in school and in work. Why should we be dedicated to God?Because He was dedicated to us by sending His Son Jesus to live and die in such a way that we know His level of dedication.
[1]F. Charles Fensham, The Books of Ezra and Nehemiah – NICOT(Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 1982), 257.
[2]Gina Dalfonzo, One by One(Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2017), 183.
[3]F. Charles Fensham, The Books of Ezra and Nehemiah – NICOT(Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 1982), 256.
[4]F. Charles Fensham, The Books of Ezra and Nehemiah – NICOT(Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 1982), 258.
[5]Source: https://www.waterloowellingtondiabetes.ca/userContent/documents/Professional-Resources/povertymythbusters_accessibleseptember520131.pdf. Accessed February 13, 2020.
RESTORE by Being Thankful
Posted: February 9, 2020 Filed under: Discipleship, Sermons, Thankfulness Leave a commentThis sermon can be watched or listened to at www.templebaptistchurch.ca!
Last week if you were here, you were commissioned as missionaries to go to the city and share the gospel. This week we are going to attempt to follow Jesus’ discipleship strategy from Luke 10:
- Believe that there is a harvest – “The harvest is plentiful…” (v. 2)
- Pray – “pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers” (v. 2)
- Expect opposition – “I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves” (v. 3) (Neil Cole teaches that the only way Jesus was not a bad shepherd for sending out His lambs amongst wolves is that He went with them!)
- Don’t worry about provision and don’t get distracted – “Carry no moneybag and greet no one on the road” (v. 4)
- Go find the person of peace of a community – “Go … first say, ‘peace be to this house!’ And if a son of peace is there…”(v. 3, 5-6)
- Serve and be served over time – “Eat what is set before you… heal the sick” (v. 8-9) (Try to meet the needs of others, but you are trying to build an ongoing reciprocal relationship where you bless each other!)
- Proclaim Jesus and His Kingdom – “The Kingdom has come near to you.” (v. 9)
- Stay and disciple as long as the community will have you – “And remain in the same house” (v. 7)
In Luke 10:17, we find the disciples reported back to Jesus with great joy and so today, you are going to give a report back to us thanking God for what He has done. This is actually the same attitude that we have seen of the Jews in Nehemiah’s day. And it is the same attitude that we should have today (c.f. 1 Thessalonians 5:18). Let’s read about how each individual listed in Nehemiah 12:1-26 is remembered as serving and thanking God! Read Nehemiah 12:1-26!
- Verses 1-9 – “This bridges the gap between the first generations of exiles described in verses 1-9 and the contemporaries of Nehemiah.”[1]
- Verse 24 – One brother thanked God and another brother faced him and thanked God out of continual obedience – “watch by watch”!
BEING GOD IS NOTA THANKLESS JOB!
This week what has God done that you are thankful for?
- ABC’s of Public Testimony – speak Aloud (so everybody can hear you), Briefly (so everybody can speak) and Clearly (so everybody can understand you.)[2]
[1]Derek Kidner, Ezra & Nehemiah– An Introduction and Commentary (Downer’s Grove: Inter-Varsity Press, 1979), 123.
[2]Adapted from Daniel Henderson, Old Paths, New Power (Chicago: Moody Press, 2016), 127.
RESTORE by Going to the City
Posted: February 2, 2020 Filed under: cities, courage, God, Heart, Jesus, Justice, Sermons Leave a commentThis sermon can be watched or listened to at www.templebaptistchurch.ca!
Who here grew up in the country? Who here grew up in the city? I grew up in what was called rurban. Chatham, Ontario is a small city of 40,000 surrounded by farms. My wife Lori grew up in a small town of 2000 people in Medicine Lodge, Kansas. And when we first got married we lived in a small town of 6000 people in Illinois almost bordering Iowa. Maybe this is why I resonate with TV shows that try to expose all the best parts of small towns. Maybe it is also why we love Cambridge so much! Cambridge is a bigger city surrounded by the country. We think it has the best of both worlds.
So understanding my small town bent, you can imagine when I was 19 years old and going to the big city of Chicago to attend college that the sights, sounds and smells was sensory overload and I loved it. The city was vibrant and never slept. There was so much to see and do. I soon learned that because there are so many needs in a big city that there is also much ministry that can and must be done. As Tim Keller defines a city, “It is any place of density, diversity and cultural energy.”[1] And out of this density, diversity and cultural energy of people there are great opportunities to make cultural influence while caring for the individuals who seem to get swallowed up by the city with its loneliness and getting lost in the crowd. This is how the early Christians saw the cities in their day. Listen to Rodney Stark, a sociologist of religion: “Christianity served as revitalization movement that arose in response to the misery, chaos, fear and brutality of life in the urban Greco-Roman world … Christianity revitalized life in … cities by providing new norms and new kinds of social relationships able to cope with many urgent problems. To cities filled with the homeless and impoverished, Christianity offered charity as well as hope. To cities filled with newcomers and strangers, Christianity offered an immediate basis for attachments … to cities torn by violent ethnic strife, Christianity offered a new basis for social solidarity. And to cities faced by epidemics, fires and earthquakes, Christianity offered effective … services.”[2]
That is an incredible amount of good that Christianity has led the way in both thought and deed. It has been the church that has been the thought leaders and love leaders down through the centuries. However, it would seem that people have a love-hate relationship with cities. When a city becomes dangerous, those with means will flee and create what we call suburbs. Some try to escape the city by going to the cottage. Do you see how today we have a love-hate relationship with cities?
Even those in ministry have a certain give and take relationship with cities. For example, some of the ministry training that is taking place around the world, especially to unreached people groups, requires the training to take place in the remote areas. The reason why is that if a person is pulled into the city and receives training, they might want to stay in the city, which often offers more opportunity and economic growth and then they neglect the remote and forgotten areas. So this is really important when it comes to mission that we must care for the city and we may need to train in the city like I showed you last week with those girls in Togo who have been rescued from child marriage. However, we must care for the forgotten places of the world whether urban or rural. The only way that will happen is if we commit to the city so they can serve the country. What happens in our own city effects the whole country and world with our manufacturing in this global economy.
The city’s influence on the country is exactly what happened back in Nehemiah 11 with Jerusalem. Let’s check out Nehemiah 11 to see God’s heart for the city and how we may gain such a heart. Read Nehemiah 11!
Here is the BIG IDEA from this text: Go to our city courageously with the gospel to protect others. You need to remember this group of God’s people had been rescued from slavery that had been in exile for decades because they had rebelled against God. They had come together and finally built a wall to restore hope to the people. So was it time to go back to their homes and live a more comfortable life? For some yes! But for others, it was time to go or for those already there, to put roots down in the city so that those out in the country would be helped in worshipping God. You see, the temple in Jerusalem was the place where the people from both the city and the country would come to worship God and have their sins atoned for. If you look at verse 17, “And Mattaniah son of Mica, son of Zabdi, son of Asaph, who was the leader of the praise, who gave thanks.” They had rebuild and protect the place of worship to God. The city also provided protection when under attack and economic prosperity for the whole country as the city would function as the central marketplace. The Jews didn’t just build a wall and then forget about it. They couldn’t just rebuild and repair the temple in Jerusalem and not have people to support the ongoing ministry there. They had to take care of the city of Jerusalem.
But first there was a sort of lottery system. They cast lots to see which of them would go or stay in Jerusalem. Lots were a way of determining God’s will. Proverbs 16:33 declares, “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord.”And so these lots would affirm God’s will for the Jews. There were going to be 10% of the Jewish population that would live in Jerusalem. Sort of like how we sent 10% of our church in 2018 to the south side of town to form Restoration Church. We didn’t cast lots who would go, but we were willing to make the sacrifice. It was voluntary for both Restoration Church today and for the Jews over 2400 years ago, even if they were selected. “As citizens of the one empire, these people were free to settle where they would, provided they kept the peace.”[3]People had a choice. Isn’t this what we find in verse 2, “And the people blessed all the men who willingly offered to live in Jerusalem”? God is still looking to tap on the shoulders of men and women and children who will go where He sends. It requires a willingness to chase God’s assignments wherever they are. It requires understanding that you are called by God. It requires change and flexibility. As our Prayer Mobilizer Wendy Hodgins says, “Flexible people don’t get bent out of shape.” And it requires courage and valour. This is why in verse 6, the sons of Perez were called “valiant men.” In summary, God gives us a calling to heed, a change of heart and a courage to help the city! God will give us a calling, a change and a courage for the city! This immediately raises some questions: 1) Are you called by God to go to our city? Yes, because unlike those living in the Judean countryside in Nehemiah’s day, most of us we live in a city and we are called to love our neighbour. 2) Are you called to a change of heart? I believe yes because I don’t believe we are to stay static. While we are here on earth, we must continue to change and grow in our relationship with Christ. This is why our theme for the year is entitled “Growing in Christ!” 3) Are you called to be courageous and protect others? Yes, let’s remember that we are more than conquerors in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:37). We are called to act with justice towards others.
Let’s break this down quickly. Look again at Nehemiah 11:1-2, “Now the leaders of the people lived in Jerusalem. And the rest of the people cast lots to bring one out of ten to live in Jerusalem, the holy city, while nine out of ten remained in the other towns. And the people blessed all the men who willingly offered to live in Jerusalem.” My friends, notice two important lessons that are actually consistent throughout the Bible in determining when God is calling you to a ministry. First, you must be willing, but you don’t volunteer for ministry. Instead, we must be chosen by God! It has been my observation and my own experience that our calling by God is a surprise. Moses and David were keeping sheep when God called them to lead the Israelites. Peter, Andrew, James and John were fishing when Jesus called them to follow Him and He would make them fishers of men. Paul and Barnabas were serving and teaching at the Church of Antioch when in the midst of fasting by the whole church they were called to be missionaries to the Gentiles (non-Jews) and this church affirmed calling has led to our salvation this very day. A calling by God leads us to often ask, “Who me, Lord?” Why is this important? This is because there will come days that are so hard that the only reason why you keep going is because you remember that God called you to this situation and so it His problem. Second, God’s people will affirm your calling and assignment. Verse 2 describes that the people blessed those who willing offered to live in Jerusalem. I have seen people trying to pursue their destiny by themselves and they usually have some detours in that pursuit because they forget that following God’s call is a community project. Did you hear what I said? Discerning and following God’s call on your life is a community project. It’s not an individual pursuit. Check with godly members and leaders in your church before taking action.
It is one thing to hear God’s call to the city, but you are going to also have to have change a heart. Otherwise, we will be like Jonah who God called to the wicked and enemy city of Ninevah and Jonah ran away. Maybe this is where some of us are at … we need to have a new heart for the city? Maybe you need to go for a walk and see the homeless or the young moving to the Gaslight District? I remember walking this summer from my home in Galt all the way to the south side of town and as I walked and prayed, God enlarged my heart for Cambridge. I walked through the poor neighbourhoods. I walked through the Muslim neighbourhoods. I walked through our ever-improving downtown. I saw the affluent condos and homes. I prayed for our businesses to be businesses for good and to bless our community. In Nehemiah’s day, “The city wall was built and now a new measure to safeguard the city was instituted to repopulate it.”[4]In other words, we can provide a gentrification of our property and city, but we must also go and be present with the needs of the people. As COMPASSION Canada CEO, Allison Alley, says, “Changed people change places.” Temple, you have done this, especially in your past. When we moved from our first location on Dunbar Road in Preston where many people were won to Christ through door to door evangelism, some of you moved to the surrounding neighbourhood around our present building to be a part of the mission. This explains why a number of you live today on Cindy Avenue or in the apartment building across the street. Today, we need to reach out to our city once again as we recreate our property and try to create a community centre for Christ here. The building alone won’t attract them. We must be missional and personally go. Let me get very practical in how you can bless the city. Maybe you sit on the local Arts Council or Hospital Foundation or a Parent Council? Maybe you coach a local sports team? That is where I have spent a lot of my extra time because it fits with my passions and experience. Maybe you are just helping your neighbours shovel snow or going to your nearby nursing home and helping with repairs or landscaping? Maybe you are helping with the Spring Clean-up or Earth Day effort by picking up trash? Maybe you need to join one of the number groups from our church who serve at the Food Bank or the Bridges? Talk to Ross Morrell if you want to help out. Maybe you need to go serve at Nightlight in downtown Galt where you can just hang out with those marginalized? Another opportunity is buy potatoes next Saturday morning at Food Basics where our youth group will be collecting for those in need. These are all your opportunities to reflect God’s light there and I think there are many more that I hope you will discuss in your small groups this week. Ask, how can we be a blessing to our city through our volunteering our time and God’s money? We certainly need help here at our church. I want to give a shout out to our Frontliners this morning. You are like those gatekeepers described in verse 19 who protect others since we are all worried about security in our society today, but you are also welcoming. What you do here is critical and we are eternally grateful, but God’s restoration project from the beginning of this series was also to restore the city.
However, let’s admit it. There is an obstacle to our calling and change of heart. There is a fear or a number of fears to going to the city. Maybe one of our fears is what will people think of us, especially if we grew up here? Or maybe you are afraid of the homeless? Maybe you are fearful that you have nothing to contribute? In your small groups this week, maybe you can discuss more fears you have about going to the city. However, in verses 6, we find that some of those who went to the city of Jerusalem were described “valiant.” In verse 14 it is taken a step further and some were called “mighty men of valour.” To have valour is to have courage. But let’s not confuse courage with self-aggrandisement. In the movie The Lion King, the King of the Jungle Mufasa takes his young cub Simba up to a rock overlooking the plains and says, “Look, Simba. Everything the light touches is our kingdom. Young Simba replies, “You rule all of that?” Mufasa responds, “Yes, but a king’s time as ruler rises and falls like the sun. One day, Simba, the sun will set on my time here and will rise with you as the new king.” Young Simba asks, “All of this will belong to me?” Mufassa corrects Simba and says, “It belongs to no one, but it will be yours to protect. A great responsibility.” What a reminder that our city doesn’t belong to us, but God. However, it is our responsibility while we are here and so we must courageously take the gospel to the city to protect others. This will take valour and courage. And how do we gain such courage?
Friends, we gain courage and care for others by thinking of others. However, we don’t need to cast lots anymore. Why? Because Jesus cared for the city of Jerusalem when the soldiers cast lots for His clothes (Luke 23:34). Jesus took on the needs of the city and the world by dying naked on a Cross to take on our guilt and shame. He courageously went to the city of Jerusalem with His Good News to provide ultimate protection for us for all eternity. He provides daily for us even better than King Artaxerxes commanded a daily, fixed provision for the singers as verse 23 describes. It is Jesus who should be our motivation for going to the city courageously with the gospel to protect others. So many in our city are hurting and lonely. Let’s bring the love and truth of Jesus Christ to them.
CONCLUSION: You may have noticed this sticker with our church’s name and logo on it along with the word #FORcambridge. We would encourage you to take a sticker and put it on places that will help you to remember that we are to be God’s representatives for the city of Cambridge. We must bless the city we find ourselves in!
[1]Tim Keller, Gospel in Life – Study Guide(Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010), 157.
[2]Rodney Stark, The Rise of Christianity(New York: Harper, 1997), 161.
[3]Derek Kidner, Ezra & Nehemiah– An Introduction and Commentary(Downer’s Grove: Inter-Varsity Press, 1979), 121.
[4]F. Charles Fensham, The Books of Ezra and Nehemiah – NICOT(Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 1982), 244.
Commissional 