A life of faith

I recently passed a personal milestone just over a month ago, 20 years as a disciple of the Lord Jesus.

It was the 31st of May, 1993.

I was sitting in the big shed on the Katoomba side, up at Katoomba, on the Christian Convention side in Katoomba.

And I remember it specifically as a Friday night.

It was cold, but I remember the words of John Wesley, my heart was strangely warmed as my chains fell off.

My heart was free and I rose and I went forth and followed him, the Lord Jesus.

And I've been exposed all of my life up until then to the Bible.

Prayer was pretty much a normal thing.

I even gave money to Christian organizations.

But up until that point, I had trusted in myself and not Jesus.

And the biggest and immediate change that happened in my life when I became a Christian was a love for Jesus' church.

It didn't exist up until that point.

I was suspicious and even judgmental of the church.

But a love for Christ went hand in hand with a love for Christ's church.

And I think the New Testament expects it.

Listen to how Paul puts it to the Ephesian church.

Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy,

cleansing her by the washing with water through the word.

And present her to himself as a radiant church without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish,

but holy and blameless.

The church that Christ loves is one of the key features of God's plan for time and eternity.

All who love the Lord Jesus Christ ought to love the church,

which is the object of Christ's love.

And so I would suggest from the New Testament that there is something wrong with professing Christians

who do not identify with the church and love it and invest themselves in it and carry its needs on their hearts.

Now when I say love for the church,

I don't mean love for the institutional church.

Just need to clarify that.

Those who love the church in its institutional form

will have an enthusiasm for its liturgy, ceremony, bureaucracy,

and the labor that keeps the wheels turning.

It will express itself in a strong interest in preservation,

maintenance, and the nurture within a closed group,

accompanied by an indifference,

or even an opposition to revival, evangelism, and conversions that ultimately drive change.

The church that I fell in love with is the New Testament picture of God's people

getting together on a regular basis to do the things that the church does.

To praise and pray,

to hear the word of God through preaching and teaching,

to practice fellowship and pastoral care with mutual encouragement and accountability,

to exalt and honor Jesus Christ,

specifically by word and song and sacrament,

to reach out locally and cross-culturally

in order to share Christ with people who need him.

A church that sees itself not as an institution,

but as Mission HQ

for the glory of God.

It's a love for the church that is expressed in a constant quest

for faithfulness and holiness and vitality

in our individual and corporate life.

A love that results in a deep care

for the faithfulness and holiness and obedience

and spiritual vitality and a missional effectiveness of the church.

A love that is committed to praying and planning and sacrificing

and laboring and praying again

for the reformation and revitalization of the people of God.

That is what the next 30 days of time to build is all about.

What is immediate obvious to most of us

is that we have a building project.

It's kind of obvious.

It's been in process for three years.

Today we are voting as a church

as to whether we will proceed or not.

And if we do,

and I've suggested that we should,

then one of the purposes

of the next 30 days of time to build

is to raise the almost $1 million

we need to fund the project.

But even if we vote not to proceed with the building project,

this stuff's staying here

and we're proceeding with time to build.

Because what is most important to me in time to build

is the building, reforming,

and revitalization of the church,

the people of God.

Which is why time to build has three purposes.

Three other purposes, I should say.

And that is spiritual growth across the church,

the building of fellowship,

and the building of gratitude.

Even as we seek to redevelop our facilities,

the church that Christ is building

is the community of men and women,

boys and girls,

who have been redeemed by God the Father

through the finished work of the Savior,

Jesus Christ, on the cross.

This building means hearts being changed

so that repentance and faith and obedience

become more and more the pattern of our lives.

And the evidence of such building work

will be the humility and purity

and love and zeal for God and His Word,

a devotion to pray,

a love for the people of God,

a deep passion for those who need Christ.

That is biblical church growth.

And Nehemiah will instruct us in the next 30 days

because Nehemiah is about building saints

even as he seeks to rebuild Jerusalem.

Nehemiah loves the glory of God

and the people of God

more than the place where they came together.

His passion is for the relationship

between God and His people,

not so much the walls of Jerusalem.

Nehemiah was governor in Jerusalem

for 13 years.

It took him 51 days to build the walls.

Nehemiah starts in chapter 1, verse 1,

thousands of kilometers away

from their homeland of God's people.

Nehemiah is writing in his diary

in the month of Kislev in the 20th year.

That's about 140 years

after the most devastating event

in the history of Israel.

An event that they were warned would happen,

but it didn't cause them

to reform their life together

in order to stop it from happening.

And if you've read the Old Testament,

then you would know

that God had formed a people for Himself.

He had called them by name.

He had given them His law.

He had given them a land.

He had made His presence

to dwell amongst them

in the temple in Jerusalem.

And as His special covenant people,

Israel was to shine as a light

to the world around

so that the nations around Israel

could see how brilliant it was

to live in friendship with Yahweh,

the God of Israel.

Israel instead turned away from Yahweh.

They followed other gods

and they made idols.

They loved their wealth and their luxury.

They despised the word of God.

And despite repeated warnings from God

through the prophets

that He would punish His people

for their rebellion,

they just kept turning their backs on Him.

So in 587 BC,

Jerusalem finally fell

to the Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar

and it was utterly destroyed.

The elite of the people

were put in chains and dragged off.

The king's eyes were put out.

His wife was killed.

The temple itself,

the place of God's presence

with His people

was sacked and left in ruins.

It's difficult, I think,

to express the humiliation

and catastrophe

that this event was.

Not to minimize it,

but this is not like

the occupation of France by Germany.

This is not the annihilation

of a native culture

or the brutality

of ethnic cleansing.

It is as if Yahweh,

the God of Israel,

was dead.

God had attached His name

and His glory

to that place

and its temple

in Jerusalem.

And now all of the evidence

points to the fact

that He has abandoned

His promises.

The God who would never

abandon His promises.

And He must be dead.

And so for many,

the exile was the death of hope.

But after 70 years in exile,

God began to do a new thing

to draw His people

back to Jerusalem.

Nehemiah is one of God's people

still left in Babylon.

But He had risen

to the absolute pinnacle

of the Persian corporate ladder.

He was cupbearer to the king,

King Artaxerxes,

the most powerful man

in the planet in the day.

Nehemiah was the only person

in the kingdom

who had access to the king

every day

and several times a day.

He had to be

utterly trustworthy

and an impressive individual.

But his occupation

is not his preoccupation.

Nehemiah's interest

was not his career

nor himself.

It was the glory of God

and the people of God.

His heart lies

in his homeland.

God had started

to bring His people

back to Jerusalem

after 70 years of exile.

But in verse 2,

Nehemiah gets some bad news

from home.

Those who survived the exile

and are back in the province

are in great trouble

and disgrace.

The walls of Jerusalem

is broken down

and its gates

have been burned with fire.

And verse 4

is Nehemiah's response

to this news.

When I heard these things,

I sat down and wept.

For some days,

I mourned

and I fasted

and I prayed

before the God of heaven.

He sits down

and he weeps

and he mourns

and he fasts

and he prays

for the city.

Verse 4 indicates

that Nehemiah's grief

and distress

continued for some months.

Most likely,

he stayed in that position

or in that state

for at least

four months.

But his concern

is more than a ruined city.

It is what this ruined city

represents.

Jerusalem was to be

the center,

the light,

the hope for the nations

as God dwelt

amongst his much loved people.

But it is in ruins.

It is a disgrace.

His concern is more

about what it says

about God

and God's people.

The prayer that dominates

chapter 1

reveals that

his deepest sorrow

is over rebellion

and faithlessness

and faithlessness

first and foremost

not over broken walls.

His prayer

first and foremost

looks to the character

of God,

the God that

it would appear

had died.

And he says,

O Lord God of heaven,

the great and awesome God

who keeps his covenant

of love with those

who love him

and obey his commands.

Israel's God

is a great

and awesome God

who is not

to be trifled with.

All the hosts

of the heavenly realm

bow in his presence.

This God

expects to be obeyed.

But he's also

a faithful God

who is committed

to his covenant

of love.

He is a God

who has made us

for himself,

who reveals his kindness

and mercy

and gentleness

to those he loves.

And it is

this knowledge

knowledge

of the character

of God

that leads him

first to confess sin

and secondly

to plead

the promises

of God.

And so in the middle

of verse 6

Nehemiah acknowledges

the failure

of God's people.

He says,

I confess the sins

we Israelites

including myself

and my father's house

have committed

against you.

We have acted

very wickedly

towards you.

We have not

obeyed the commands

decrees

and laws

that you gave

your servant

Moses.

Notice that there is

no us and them

accusation going on

here,

but he is completely

identifying himself

with the failure

of the people

of God.

And this little

prayer of confession

here is not just

some mere polite

concession

because as a culture

or as a church

we might admit

well no one's

really perfect

in the end.

Ezekiel 36

speaks of the time

when God would

bring his people

back from exile

and as part

of that returning

it says

in verse 31

of Ezekiel 36

then you'll remember

your evil ways

and wicked deeds

and you will

loathe yourselves

for your sins

and your detestable

practices.

Be ashamed

and disgraced

for your conduct

O house

of Israel.

And so his prayer

here is not just

some mere

acknowledgement

of oh well no one's

really perfect

in the end.

His contrition

is an intense

loathing

of sin.

and this is the same

contrition

and acknowledgement

and remorse

and loathing

of our sin

that the gospel

requires of us

when we come

to Christ.

Our grasp

of the wonder

of the mercy

of the Lord

Jesus

is directly

proportional

to our grasp

of the desperate

sinful state

that we are in.

superficial

grasp

of sin

leads to

superficial

grasp

of grace.

No mourning

for sin

leads to

no joy

in the gospel.

And if your

psychoanalysis

disagrees

with that

they're wrong.

They're wrong.

Sin

is at the

core of

Nehemiah's

problem

and Israel's

problem

and our

problem.

Every time

we disobey

God

we are seeking

to break

away from

him

and to put

a barrier

in our

fellowship

with him

and that

is why

Jerusalem

is in

ruins.

You see

Nehemiah

could have

prayed in

that moment

for God

to restore

Jerusalem

to its

former glory.

Let's have

a prayer

meeting

get together

let's pray

for those

walls in

Jerusalem.

Artaxerxes

could have

pulled out

his wallet

as he

did

but he

could have

pulled out

a bigger

wallet

pulled out

the treasure

chest

like some

Middle Eastern

prince

with lots

of oil

and built

a spectacular

building in

Jerusalem.

He could have

made the walls

bigger,

wider and

higher and

he could have

made Jerusalem

into a resort

town in the

Middle East

but it would

have meant

nothing.

It would

have looked

good

but it

would have

meant

nothing.

And we

can fix

up our

facilities

but they

will not

lead to

greater

intimacy

with Christ

or joy

as a

Christian

or to

God's

blessing

being poured

out upon

us.

repentance

and brokenness

of heart

before God

is the

only path

to intimacy

and communion

with the

God of

heaven.

Without the

repentance

there will

be no

return

to God.

There will

be no

return to

Jerusalem.

Nehemiah

knew that

the rebuilding

of the

people of

God

into the

people of

repentance

and faith

is where

the real

restoration

work needed

to be

done

and it

started

with him.

The second

part of

Nehemiah's

prayer is an

appeal to

God's

steadfast

love.

It's again

an appeal

to God's

character.

This is

where we

see he

is a

man of

faith

and of

faith in

the promises

of God.

If you

cast your

eye down

to verses

8 to

10,

Nehemiah

quotes the

promises of

God that

God had

made to

Moses in

Deuteronomy.

Deuteronomy

30 describes

exactly the

situation

Nehemiah and

the people of

God are in

right now.

And it

gives a

promise that

Nehemiah

remembers.

And here

it is.

Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy 30:2

chapter 30

verse 2.

When you and

your children

return to the

Lord your

God and

obey him

with all

of your

heart and

with all

of your

soul,

according to

everything that

I've commanded

you today,

then the

Lord your

God will

restore your

fortunes and

have compassion

on you and

gather you from

all the nations

from where you

are scattered.

And Nehemiah

knows that

they're right at

that point of

history that

Deuteronomy 30

is talking about.

And his

prayer to

God is

reminding God

of his

promise.

He has

faith that

when God

promises

something,

he will

do it.

That's

his

confidence.

It is

this

knowledge

and

confidence

that God

is awesome

and powerful

and faithful

to his

promises that

sees

Nehemiah

make

faithful,

wise,

gutsy

decisions for

the glory

of God.

His

confidence is

not in

himself as

the cup

bearer to

the king.

his

confidence is

not even

in King

Artaxerxes,

the most

powerful man

in the

planet.

Look at

the end of

chapter 1

and how he

expresses this

relationship.

Give your

servant success

today by

granting him

favour in

the presence

of this

man.

I was

cup bearer

to the

king.

He might

have had

unprecedented

influence in

the presence

of the most

powerful man

on the

planet.

But compared

to the

almighty God

of Israel,

he is

nothing more

than a

drinks boy

for the

king.

And

compared to

the mighty

God,

Artaxerxes,

the most

powerful man

on the

planet,

is simply

this man.

Nothing

more.

Nehemiah's

confidence is

in his

God.

You see it

again in

chapter 2

verse 4,

when the

king actually

asked Nehemiah

what he

wants,

what did

Nehemiah

do in

that moment?

He

prayed.

He'd been

doing it for

months, but

in that

moment, he

says, then I

prayed to the

God of

heaven.

And when

the king

grants him

his request

at the end

of chapter 2

verse 8,

we see his

faith and

confidence within

God.

He says,

because the

gracious hand

of God

was upon

me, the

king granted

my requests.

And when

he finally

tells the

leaders in

Jerusalem,

after a

little trip

around the

wall in

verse 18

of chapter 2,

that it was

time to

rebuild these

walls, he

reveals that

his first

confidence is

in God and

not the

official letter

which is in

his pocket

from the

most powerful

man in

the world.

He had

the same

letter in

his pocket

when the

three stooges,

Sambalat,

Tobiah and

Jeshim, mocked

them and

accused them of

rebelling a

king against

King Artaxerxes.

All he

needed to do

was whip out

the letter and

say, hang on

a bit, his

name's at the

bottom of this

letter saying

we're on his

business.

But in

chapter 2

verse 20, he

says the God

of heaven will

give us

success.

His confidence

is that when

God says he

will do

something as

he did in

Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy 30 · chapter mention

chapter 30,

then he will

never abandon

his promises.

God is

faithful to

his covenant

commitment to

love his

people.

I can see

that Nehemiah

was a man of

faith in the

promises of

God.

I cannot see

anywhere in

this book

where he got a

specific word

from God

to get up

and to go

and rebuild

those walls

in Jerusalem.

He was

simply,

faithfully

acting on

what God

had promised

in his

word

centuries

before.

And that

is how the

walls of

Jerusalem got

built.

And that

is how God

builds his

people.

By acting

upon the

promises of

God.

in his

word.

2 Corinthians

1 says

that no

matter how

many promises

of God

there are,

they are

all yes

in the

Lord Jesus.

They're all

fulfilled and

completed in

the Lord

Jesus.

In Jesus,

we are

under a

new covenant

and God's

purposes no

longer center

around the

physical city

of Jerusalem

and the

nation of

Israel.

to get

to the

presence of

God,

we don't

need to

make a

pilgrimage

to a

temple in

Jerusalem

somewhere.

In fact,

Jesus said

of that

temple in

Jerusalem,

tear it

down and

in three

days I'm

going to

rebuild it.

Through

his death

and resurrection,

we now have

direct access

to God

through the

Lord Jesus

by the

Spirit.

He promises

us the

right standing

before God

and the

intimacy

before God

that Nehemiah

actually longed

for here.

Hear the

promise of

God in the

Bible from

1 John

1 9.

And when

Jesus says

it, when

the Bible

says it,

when God

says it,

it's true

and he'll

fulfill it.

And he

says if we

confess our

sins, he,

Jesus, is

faithful and

just and he

will forgive us

our sins and

purify us

from all

unrighteousness.

That's a

promise.

What Nehemiah

longed for,

we get in

Jesus.

He promises

to forgive us

and make us

right before

God.

And what's

more, Jesus

doesn't promise

those who

confess their

sin and

trust him a

land carved

out in

Palestine

somewhere.

Jesus

promises us

a new and

perfect and

eternal heavenly

home where

there will be

no need for

walls and

gates because

there will

never be a

threat that

can challenge

what he is

eternally built

for his

people.

And until

that great and

final day

when we see

him face

to face,

God promises

to give his

people a

foretaste of

our great

future in

the Lord

Jesus that

he has built

for us for

all of

eternity by

building together

up and out

his people,

the church,

on the person

of the Lord

Jesus Christ

and his

gospel.

That is

Jesus' promise

to us in

Matthew 16

in response

to Simon

Peter's

declaration

that Jesus

was the

Christ,

the son of

the living

God.

He says,

blessed are

you,

Simon son

of Jonah,

for this

was not

revealed to

you by

man,

but my

father in

heaven,

and on

this rock

I will

build my

church,

and the

gates of

Hades

will not

overcome

it.

Jesus

promises

in person

to build

his church,

and it

will triumph

over all

forms of

evil,

and death,

and wickedness,

and governments,

and the

media,

and everything

that will

want to

prevail against

the church,

cannot stop

the building

of God's

people.

That's the

promise of

God.

He will

build his

church as

the truth

about him,

as ridiculed

and mocked

it is,

is declared

and received

as people

respond to

Jesus in

repentance

and faith.

That's what

happened to

me 20

years ago.

He promised

not just to

leave us on

our own

sinful ways

as well,

but to

increasingly

transform us

into his

likeness as

his spirit

works through

his word

to bring

about

obedience.

obedience.

So my

brothers and

sisters,

love the

Lord Jesus

and love

his church

by giving

yourself to

the building

up of his

people here

at St.

Paul's.

Know this,

we will

always be

flawed and

imperfect.

perfect.

We will

never meet

all the

expectations.

We will

always fall

short of

expectations.

I will

always fall

short of

your

expectations.

But that

should drive

us to the

Lord Jesus

in confession

and to give

us hope for

the future

day when

he calls

us to our

perfect home

with all

of his

church from

every tribe

and nation

and language

and generation.

We should

be looking

forward to

that perfect

day and

the decisions

we make

driving us

towards that

perfect day.

And so

today,

I want us

to vote yes

to proceeding

with the

redevelopment

of our

facilities.

But more

than anything,

I want us

to say yes

to allow God

to do a

radical

rebuilding

of our

individual

and corporate

life as

his people.

Where

repentance

and faith

become the

norm.

May his

vision for

his church

be the

driving

influence

in our

vision for

his church

and our

love for

his church.

Amen.