Always Reforming

Good morning, church.

Our sermon text today is from Nehemiah, chapter 13, verses 4 through 30.

Nehemiah 13:4–30

That's page 380 in the Pew Bible.

Let me encourage you to turn there with me.

So we've come to the end of our sermon series this summer on the books of Ezra and Nehemiah.

And these books have told the story of how God rebuilt the ruins of his rebellious people,

this people that he loves.

It tells how he brought them home from exile and how he reestablished them in their land.

The end of chapter 12 and the first four verses of chapter 13,

they show how the people after the rededication ceremony of the rebuilt wall around Jerusalem

responded with great enthusiasm to the word of God.

And now we're going to see how Nehemiah's account ends.

What is the final word to us from these powerful books?

So let me pray for us, and then we'll begin reading at verse 4.

God, we have just sung that you would speak to us, that you would open up the eyes of our hearts,

that you would open up our spiritual ears,

so that we might hear what your spirit is saying to us, your church.

God, would you do that now as we come to this final chapter of the book of Nehemiah?

Lord, help us to really hear the message for us that you have.

Help us to see Christ more clearly this morning, Father.

Help us to love him and be renewed in our desire to serve him and enjoy him.

We pray this in the name of Christ.

Amen.

Nehemiah 13, starting with verse 4.

Now, before this, Eliashib the priest, who was appointed over the chambers of the house of our God

and who was related to Tobiah, prepared for Tobiah a large chamber

where they had previously put the grain offering, the frankincense, the vessels,

and the tithes of grain, wine, and oil, which were given by commandment to the Levites,

singers and gatekeepers, and the contributions for the priests.

While this was taking place, I was not in Jerusalem,

for in the 32nd year of Artaxerxes, king of Babylon, I went to the king.

And after some time, I asked leave of the king and came to Jerusalem.

And I then discovered the evil that Eliashib had done for Tobiah,

preparing for him a chamber in the courts of the house of God.

And I was very angry, and I threw all the household furniture of Tobiah out of the chamber.

Then I gave orders, and they cleansed the chambers,

and I brought back there the vessels of the house of God

with the grain offering and the frankincense.

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,

and I appointed as treasurers over the storehouses Shalamiah the priest,

Zadok the scribe, and Padaiah of the Levites,

and as their assistant Hanan, the son of Zachor, son of Mataniah,

for they were considered reliable,

and their duty was to distribute to their brothers.

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.

In those days, I saw in Judah people treading wine presses on the Sabbath

and bringing in heaps of grain and loading them on donkeys

and also wine, grapes, figs, and all kinds of loads

which they brought into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day.

And I warned them on the day when they sold food.

Tyrians also who lived in the city brought in fish and all kinds of goods

and sold them on the Sabbath to the people of Judah in Jerusalem itself.

Then I confronted the nobles of Judah and said to them,

what is this evil thing that you are doing profaning the Sabbath day?

Did not your fathers act in this way?

And did not our God bring all this disaster on us and on this city?

Now you are bringing more wrath on Israel by profaning the Sabbath.

As soon as it began to grow dark at the gates of Jerusalem before the Sabbath,

I commanded that the doors should be shut and gave orders

that they should not be opened until after the Sabbath.

And I stationed some of my servants at the gates

that no load might be brought in on the Sabbath day.

Then the merchants and sellers of all kinds of wares lodged outside Jerusalem once or twice.

But I warned them and said to them, why do you lodge outside the wall?

If you do so again, I will lay hands on you.

From that time on, they did not come on the Sabbath.

Then I commanded the Levites that they should purify themselves

and come and guard the gates to keep the Sabbath day holy.

Remember this also in my favor, O my God,

and spare me according to the greatness of your steadfast love.

In those days, I also saw the Jews who had married women of Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab.

And half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod,

and they could not speak the language of Judah,

but only the language of each people.

And I confronted them and cursed them and beat some of them

and pulled out their hair.

And I made them take an oath in the name of God,

saying, you shall not give your daughters to their sons

or take their daughters for your sons or for yourselves.

Did not Solomon, king of Israel, sin on account of such women?

And among the many nations, there was no king like him,

and he was beloved by his God,

and God made him king over all Israel.

Nevertheless, foreign women made even him to sin.

Shall we then listen to you and do all this great evil

and act treacherously against our God by marrying foreign women?

And one of the sons of Jehoiada, the son of Eliashib, the high priest,

was the son-in-law of Sanballat the Horonite.

Therefore, I chased him from me.

Remember them, O my God, because they have desecrated the priesthood

and the covenant of the priesthood and the Levites.

Thus, I cleansed them from everything foreign,

and I established the duties of the priests and the Levites,

each in his work,

and I provided for the wood offering at appointed times

for the firstfruits.

Remember me, O my God, for good.

Semper reformanda.

It's a Latin phrase that means always reforming

or always being reformed.

Apparently, the origin of the phrase comes from 1674

from a Dutch pastor named Jockadus van Lodenstein.

Not a name you hear much today, but a pretty great name,

Jockadus van Lodenstein.

And what Lodenstein saw in the church of his day

was that after the great spiritual advances and victories

of the Reformation of the 16th century

and after the ongoing work of the early 17th century

in purifying doctrine and worship in church government

according to God's word,

what van Lodenstein saw was that there was still a need

for reform.

But not a change in doctrine or in biblical ethics

as some would later use the slogan.

No, semper reformanda originally meant

the need for ongoing reformation of the heart.

That is, vital and true faith must be constantly cultivated.

All the externals can be in place,

but the human heart must always be reformed and renewed.

Semper reformanda.

In fact, perhaps you've seen this in your own life.

After a season of great spiritual growth,

of zeal and energy for the Lord,

after seeing God do great things in your life

or in the life of those around you,

after feeling his close presence,

after seeing his active hand at work,

there comes a time when the fire dies down

and some of those old patterns start to creep back in

and we start to settle down

into what one commentator called

another comfortable compromise with the world.

This is true of many periods in church history.

This is true of many local churches and denominations.

And this is true of many of our own lives.

Semper reformanda,

the need for ongoing spiritual reform.

But how is it done?

What sort of work needs to take place

so that we can maintain our spiritual zeal and fire?

What are some of the means for this ongoing work of renewal?

Well, this is what Nehemiah 13 is all about.

Remember what we've seen so far

in the story of Ezra and Nehemiah.

These books have described

almost 100 years of spiritual reformation and renewal.

There have been ups and downs, yes,

but consider the whole.

In Ezra 1 through 6,

the temple has been rebuilt.

In Ezra 7 through 10,

the people are brought back to the law of God.

And here in the book of Nehemiah,

the city of Jerusalem is rebuilt

and repopulated

and rededicated to God

and to God's word.

In other words,

at the beginning of this story,

the people are in exile and in shame

and at the end,

the people are home,

worshiping God,

feasting on his word,

celebrating his goodness,

watching the kingdom of God advance.

That sounds a lot like a revival to me.

Doesn't it to you?

But the book doesn't end there.

And oh,

how good

for our souls

that the book

doesn't end there.

The verses that we read

from chapter 13

recount actually

three episodes

that take place

sometime after

the completion

and the dedication

of the city walls.

You see,

in 433 BC,

that's about 12 years

after Nehemiah's arrival

in Jerusalem

and the rebuilding of the walls,

in 433 BC,

Nehemiah is called back

to the Persian king,

Artaxerxes.

We see that in verse 6

of chapter 13.

Now remember,

Nehemiah held a official position

in the imperial court,

so he's called back

at this time

to check in.

Then sometime

after that check in,

the exact amount of times

not to mention,

Nehemiah returns

to Jerusalem

sometime after 433 BC.

And what does Nehemiah find?

He finds that the people

are still in need of reform.

After all the spiritual advances

of the previous generations,

after all the spiritual advances

of just a few years ago,

the people have settled down

into a comfortable compromise

with the world.

The house of God

is being neglected

and even polluted

in verses 4 through 14.

The Sabbath is being ignored

and profaned

in verses 15 through 22.

And the people,

even the priests themselves,

are again intermarrying

with their non-Jewish neighbors

in verses 23 through 29.

Notice how each of these

three sections ends

with one of Nehemiah's prayer.

That's a sort of

clear literary marker

showing us that there are

sort of three sections

in this part of the chapter.

But what's worse

as we look at chapter 13

is that Nehemiah's old enemies,

Sanballat and Tobiah,

if you've been here this summer,

you'll recognize those names.

They're the very ones

who oppose the rebuilding

of the walls

who threatened

and mocked the people

and here they are

implicated

in the very backsliding

of the people.

Tobiah's been given

his own very large chamber

right in the courts

of the house of God,

a chamber that's meant

to store offerings

and other supplies

for the ongoing temple worship.

And on top of that,

one of the high priest's grandsons

is married

to the daughter of Sanballat,

Nehemiah's arch enemy

and the primary antagonist

during the reconstruction project.

Nehemiah's enemies

gotten the last laugh

after all.

You have to admit,

it is a strange ending

to the book.

But it's the ending

our hearts actually need.

We need to know

that the work of reform

doesn't end.

Even after great

spiritual advances,

the church must always

be reformed in heart.

So what are the means

of this ongoing reform

that we need?

There are three

that we see here

in Nehemiah 13.

The first means

of ongoing reform

that we see here

is the need

for ongoing correction.

Ongoing correction.

In each of these three episodes

in chapter 13,

Nehemiah has to do

a work of confrontation.

Notice that word

repeated in verse 11

and in verse 17

and again in verse 25.

You see,

our hearts

are kind of like ships

out on the water

and when we stop rowing,

what happens?

We don't stay in one place.

No,

we drift.

But the funny thing is

we never seem to drift

in the right direction,

do we?

We always drift

towards the rocks

and we always drift

toward the shoals

that threaten to sink us.

But godly correction

you see

is like a coast guard boat

coming alongside us

for our own good

with an air horn

or a megaphone

to wake us up

and to show us

the danger we're in.

Now,

no one likes

being corrected,

of course.

It's uncomfortable.

Sometimes it's embarrassing.

It hurts our pride.

But ultimately,

we need it.

We need a spiritual megaphone

every once in a while

to wake us up

and get us out of our drift.

Now,

consider the three areas

where Nehemiah's contemporaries

needed ongoing correction.

First,

when it came to the house of God.

That's verses 4 through 14.

Now,

not only has Tobiah,

a non-Jewish official

from one of the surrounding nations,

one of the surrounding territories,

been given his own room

right in the temple complex,

but the Levites,

the ones who carried out

the daily tasks

of maintaining the temple,

they're forced

to leave their posts of ministry

to go out into the fields

to farm and defend for themselves

because the tithes

and the offerings

aren't being administered properly.

In other words,

the officials and the people

have become so careless

when it came to maintaining

the right worship of God

that the temple

is being given over

to godless men

and the ministers

are forced to fend

for themselves.

What about us?

I wonder, friend,

for the sake

of ongoing renewal,

for the sake of maintaining

your spiritual fire,

are you willing

to be confronted,

to be corrected

in how you treat

and maintain

the worship of God today?

Think about the issues

with Tobiah

in verses 4 through 9.

Now, giving Tobiah

a spare chamber

in the temple

was probably justified

in the minds of people

like Eliashib

and the other priests

because, after all,

Tobiah was a powerful person

in local politics.

He was a local

neighboring official,

someone who could pull

some strings if need be.

He was already intermarried

to some important families.

He had connections.

He had influence.

And it's always good

to have someone like that

in your corner, right?

Why not let him

set up shop in the temple?

Sadly, many Christians

can think similarly today.

Why not let a public official

come and promote

his or her campaign

in the church?

It's good to have someone

like that in your corner, right?

Or maybe another way

we do this,

we say,

let's just look the other way

when it comes to

so-and-so church member.

Yes, his or her life

isn't really that Christ-like,

but they do give a lot of money

to the church

and they are pretty powerful

in the community,

so we don't want to offend them.

They might go somewhere else.

But woe to us, friends,

if we think the God

of the universe,

the Lord of hosts,

needs a Tobiah

to sit in his house,

no matter how powerful

they might be

in the world's eyes,

in order to protect

and preserve

and advance his kingdom

in the world.

But what about the issue

of administering the tithes

in verses 10 through 13?

This is perhaps

even more unnerving

for us today.

Are we willing

to have someone

confront us

on how we use

our finances

for kingdom work?

Are you willing

to be corrected

when it comes

to your money?

Ouch.

Now, let me say

that the pastors

and elders at Trinity

don't see

how much

individual members give.

But if a friend

were to confront you

on how much you gave

to the local church,

the kingdom work,

to supporting the poor,

how would you respond?

Jesus says

that where your treasure is,

there your heart will be.

It's very interesting.

We often look at that verse

and say,

where your heart is,

there your treasure goes.

Not what Jesus says.

He says,

where your treasure is,

that's where your heart goes.

Would you welcome

this kind of correction?

Now, I will say

that God has always

provided financially

for what this church needs.

and God has consistently

raised up deacons

and staff

who can administer

those finances faithfully.

So let me say,

I am thankful

for those of you

who collect and count

on Sundays

and those of you

who budget and plan

and do our accounting

and keep our records

up to date

and pay our bills on time.

It may not feel

like spiritual work,

but it is

and we are grateful for you.

Thank you for the work

that you do.

Pastor Matt

may be able to farm

and fend for himself.

I'm not sure

I could do that.

I'm just kidding.

Actually, I'm not kidding.

I kill most of the things

I plant.

Thank you for your labors

for the kingdom of God,

deacons, ushers,

all of you

who care for the finances,

those of you

who give faithfully.

We are grateful for you.

The kingdom of God

is advancing because of you.

But may all of us

be open to correction

in how we provide

financially for kingdom work.

Let us be open

to being corrected

on how we treat

and maintain

the worship of God.

That's Nehemiah's

first correction.

But second,

in verses 15 through 22,

he corrects them

with regard to the Sabbath.

Now,

in the Old Testament,

God commanded

the people of Israel

to stop working

on the seventh day

of the week

so that they could remember

God alone

as their creator

and their redeemer.

So that they could know

and experience

that it wasn't

their own hands

that made them

or their own hands

that would save them,

but it was God's hands

that had made them

and it saves them.

You see,

stopping on the Sabbath day

was a gift

to help them remember

and live into that reality.

But,

come on,

not work

for a whole day?

Doesn't that make us

one-seventh less

productive and profitable?

Who wants to take

a 14% pay cut?

Right?

But how we use our time

is incredibly important

to God.

Now,

the Old Testament

Sabbath observance

doesn't apply

in the same exact way today

now that we live

in the New Testament era,

now that Christ has come

who is our true

Sabbath rest.

However,

it has become

increasingly clear

to me

on a personal level

that stopping

for one day a week

and letting God

be God

over our time

and over our labor

is a radically

important

spiritual discipline.

God cares

how we use

our time.

Are you willing

to be corrected

in how you use

your time

for God

and for others?

You know,

our time

is not our own.

It is all

a gift

from God.

So,

for the sake

of ongoing renewal,

are you open

to being corrected

on how you use

that gift

of God's time

to you?

Lastly,

Nehemiah

corrects the people

when it comes

to marriage.

Now,

let's be clear.

The issue

with these marriages

in verses 23

through 29

is not

an ethnic

or racial issue.

it is a religious

or spiritual issue.

In other words,

the reason God

told his people

in the Old Testament

not to intermarry

with the surrounding

nations

was not because

they were different

racially,

but because they

were different

spiritually,

because they

didn't worship

the Lord,

the one true God.

In fact,

if anyone

from among

those nations

became a worshiper

of the Lord,

if they joined

the covenant community,

they were considered

full members.

Consider Ruth.

She was a Moabite.

And she took

the Lord

as her God.

And so Boaz,

a faithful Israelite,

was free

to marry her.

So at the end

of the day,

God does not

forbid what we

would call

interracial marriage

today.

That's not what

these verses

are about.

God is fine

with that.

God created us

in all of our

diversity

and he celebrates

it.

But what God

does not desire

is marriage

between a believer

and a non-believer.

that's what

verses 23

through 29

are all about.

Now,

why is God

so adamant

that believers

not marry

a non-believer?

Well,

consider the

spiritual effect

on the couple.

Believers are

meant to love

God with all

our heart,

soul,

mind,

and strength.

But imagine

being married

to a person

who cannot

look into

your heart,

into your

very self,

and love

what you

love.

Isn't that

the very thing

we're looking

for in marriage

at the end

of the day?

For someone

to be able

to look into

us and to

love what we

love,

and in so

doing,

to love us.

Inevitably,

such a marriage

between a believer

and a non-believer,

in such a marriage

either the

believing spouse

will drift away

from Jesus,

or the couple

will drift away

from each other,

there are

exceptions,

yes,

but they are

very few

and very far

between.

Nehemiah says,

consider the

example of

Solomon.

If Solomon,

God's chosen

and beloved

king,

had his heart

pulled away

from God

in this way,

what makes

you think

you are

the exception?

But in

Nehemiah,

it's not just

the effect

on the couple,

but also

on the children

that is highlighted.

In verse 24,

half of the children

born to these

families cannot

speak the

language of

Judah.

In other words,

they're losing

their spiritual

heritage.

All that the

people had

gained spiritually

in their return

from the exile

and in their

reestablishment

in the land

was now

threatened to

be lost

in a single

generation,

a generation

who could no

longer take up

the praise of

God and the

prayer of God

and the word

of God.

Nehemiah

confronts

them.

How about

it,

friend?

Are you

willing to

be confronted

when it

comes to

who you

marry,

to who

you date?

For the

sake of

spiritual

renewal,

for spiritual

survival,

are you

open to

that kind

of loving

correction

when it

comes to

your

relationships?

And so,

taking a step

back now,

we see that

we need

ongoing

correction.

In our

approach to

worship and

finances,

in our

approach to

work and

our use

of time,

in our

approach to

marriage and

relationships,

in each of

these areas,

Nehemiah's

contemporaries

had lost

their God

centeredness.

You see,

money and

time and

sex and

marriage,

these are not

separated from

our spiritual

life.

All of our

life is

worship.

God wants

our whole

life to

bring him

praise.

Even the

seemingly

non-spiritual

or ordinary

parts of

our lives

are meant

to be

lived for

him,

for his

praise.

So,

in light

of that,

are you

open to

ongoing

correction

for the

sake of

maintaining

your

spiritual

zeal,

for the

sake of

waking

up from

your

drift?

Jesus

says that

spiritual

correction is

a community

project in

Matthew 18.

And it

takes a

spirit of

gentleness,

Paul says in

Galatians 6.

And some

of us,

yes,

have seen

the work

of correction

done very

poorly,

but even

so,

are you

open to

good,

rightful,

ongoing

correction?

Because you

need it,

and I

need it.

The people

in Nehemiah's

day needed

it.

After our

great spiritual

advances,

the watchword

still has to

be semper

reformanda,

always reforming,

always renewing the

heart.

But it's

not just

ongoing

correction that

we need.

The second

means of

ongoing

reform that

we see

here is

the need

for courageous

leaders.

Now,

we won't

spend as

much time

here as

on the

first point,

but it's

hard to

read this

chapter and

not be

struck by

Nehemiah's

bold actions

and his

honest

prayers.

Of course,

on first

reading,

his actions

maybe seem

a little

too bold.

In

verse 25,

he's slapping

them and pulling

out their

hair.

I've never

seen that in

a how-to

pastoral manual.

I'll just let

you know.

But remember,

not everything

described in

the Bible is

meant to be an

example for us

to imitate.

Those actions

would not be

appropriate for

us today.

However,

given Nehemiah's

context,

maybe a few

ears needed to

be twisted and

a few hairs

pulled out,

as it were,

to wake up the

drifting ship

and keep it

from crashing

ashore.

Again,

I'm not

advocating that

we take the

exact same

measures,

but are we

willing to

be bold,

to be

courageous?

The church

needs leaders

who have a

God-centered

love,

who are

willing to

swim against

the tide and

confront when

necessary.

But it's not

just bold action,

it's also

honest prayer.

This chapter

is punctuated

by Nehemiah's

prayer life,

verse 14,

verse 22,

verse 29,

and then it

all rounds

off in

verse 30.

And now,

much like his

bold actions,

his honest

prayers can

strike us on

the first

reading as a

bit odd,

maybe even a

bit self-righteous.

But actually,

on closer

inspection,

these prayers

are just the

opposite.

Yes,

Nehemiah

prays for

God to

remember him.

But,

this prayer

springs not

from a sense

of self-importance

or self-accomplishment,

but from a sense

of humility.

In fact,

it's an appeal

for help.

After all,

in the Bible,

God's remembering

always implies

his intervention,

his action,

his help.

God's remembering

is not just

his recollection

or his

recognition.

In other words,

Nehemiah in

these prayers

is committing

himself and

his cause

to the only

safe hands,

the hands of

God.

And so,

you see,

what drives

Nehemiah at the

end of the day

is not what

his contemporaries

think of him

or how they

might remember

him,

but what God

thinks of him

and how God

might remember

him.

Nehemiah longs

at the end

of the day

to hear God

say,

well done,

good and

faithful servant.

And living

for God's

approval

rather than

the approval

of people

is part of

what real

spirituality

looks like.

So,

in the work

of ongoing

reformation,

we need not

just correction

but courageous

leaders.

So,

church family,

will you commit

to praying

for the leaders

here at Trinity

and for the

elders especially?

For our own

spiritual good,

for our own

ongoing renewal,

we need bold

and prayerful

pastors and

elders.

leaders,

would you pray

for them

in that work?

But also

pray for the

deacons and

for the small

group leaders

and for the

ministry leaders

and volunteers

that they too

would be bold

and prayerful

in their work.

But also

consider your

own life.

Are you

willing to be

this kind

of courageous

leader in

your own

spiritual

context,

in the midst

of your

family,

parents,

in the midst

of your

Christian

friendships,

in the context

of your

small group?

You know,

each of us,

when we think

about it,

has a role

of influence

no matter

where we

are placed.

And sometimes

God will call

us to bold

action.

That doesn't

mean nitpicking

on every little

thing,

but lovingly

addressing real

issues as they

arise.

it's not

going to be

easy.

It will

take a

thick skin

and a

soft heart,

but again,

prayer is

the key.

Dependence

and humility

before God.

Living for

God's approval

more than

for the

approval of

others.

So then

the need

for ongoing

reform takes

ongoing

correction and

courageous

leadership,

but that's

not all.

We actually

need more

than just

correction and

godly leaders.

Because,

you know,

if we stopped

there,

we'd be merely

talking about

outside-in

chains,

trying to

continue to

go from the

outside to

the in.

And we

need more

than just an

outside-in

kind of

change.

We need a

change,

we need a

renewal that

can happen

from the

inside out.

We need a

way to

stoke the

fire from

the inside.

inside.

And what

Nehemiah 13

ultimately

shows us

is just

that.

What this

chapter points

us to is

a need for

nothing less

than a new

covenant and

a new heart.

Now,

here's what you

have to see.

These three

areas that

Nehemiah

corrects in

chapter 13,

they are the

very three

areas that in

chapter 10,

the people

took a

solemn oath

to uphold

as they

renewed their

covenant with

God.

The covenant,

that is the

terms of the

relationship that

God established

at Sinai.

In chapter 10,

they said,

we're going to

do it.

And you

remember,

just a few

chapters ago,

just two weeks

ago,

what were the

principal things

they promised

to uphold

from that

covenant?

Who they

married,

observing the

Sabbath,

and taking

care of God's

house.

We're going

to do it,

they say.

But despite

their best

intentions,

the people

cannot keep

their end of

the covenant.

In a little

over a decade,

the same

generation who

was vowing

their utmost

obedience will

be breaking

the very

commands that

they swore

to uphold.

After all,

what are the

failures of

chapter 13?

Who they

marry,

observing the

Sabbath,

and taking

care of God's

house.

we need

ongoing

correction,

yes.

We need

courageous

leaders who

will provide

it,

yes.

But above

all,

we need a

new covenant,

and we need

a new heart.

And you see,

Nehemiah 13 is

like this beacon

pulsing at the

end of Old

Testament history.

This is the

last piece of

history written

in the Old

Testament.

This is how

the story ends,

right here.

And here it is,

just beaming

out,

crying out

for God

to remember,

and to remember

not just

Nehemiah,

but for God

to remember

his own

promise to

do something

that his

people couldn't

do.

Do you

remember Jeremiah

in those years

leading up to

the exile,

the prophet

Jeremiah?

We actually

read his

words earlier

in the service.

What did he

talk about?

He'd talk

about a new

covenant where

God would

write his

law,

not on

tablets anymore,

but he'd

write them on

the very

hearts of

his people.

And in

doing that,

what would

be the

condition of

that writing

on their

hearts?

He would

forgive their

sins once

and for

all.

And then

Ezekiel,

the prophet

Ezekiel,

in the midst

of the

exile,

spoke about

a time to

come when

God would

actually take

out our

hearts of

stone and

give us a

heart of

flesh that

actually beat

and pulsed

with the

love of

God rather

than the

love of

ourselves.

And here's

Nehemiah at

the end of

Old Testament

history saying,

God, remember

for our

good.

And in the

New Testament,

we see that

God makes

good on

his promises.

God sends

his son Jesus

to do what

Nehemiah could

never do.

Nehemiah could

confront and he

could correct and

he could cleanse

temple chambers,

but he could not

cleanse the human

heart.

And yet Jesus,

fully God and

fully human,

takes our

fallen human

nature upon

himself and

he obeys the

terms of God's

covenant perfectly.

And he dies on

a cross to pay

the penalty for

our covenant

breaking in our

place so that

now the terms

of our

relationship with

God, the

covenant can be

new.

There can be

new terms

between us

and God.

Terms that

depend not on

my righteousness

or my

obedience or

my love,

but on Christ's

righteousness and

on his obedience

and on his

love.

And through

faith in Christ,

through coming

into union with

him, we come

into his new

covenant.

And like

Jeremiah and

Ezekiel said,

and like Nehemiah

prayed and

longed for,

God remembers

and gives us

forgiveness and

a new heart.

What keeps the

fire burning in

our hearts?

What is the

real, vital

basis for this

work of

ongoing reform?

Semper

reformanda.

Correction will

help.

Courageous

leaders will be

needed.

But at the

end of the

day, it's

the reality of

the new

covenant, sealed

by the blood

of Jesus, ratified

in his resurrection

from the dead,

imparted to our

hearts by the

pouring out of

his spirit,

received by

faith.

above all, we

must seek

ongoing intimacy

with our living

Lord Jesus and

his abundant

grace.

That is

renewal.

Revivals are

good.

We pray for

them.

We pray that our

city will experience

a great turning to

God.

Healthy church

growth is good.

We want to see

our church and all

the churches of New

Haven grow in

breadth and in

depth, and we

want to plant more

churches that will

do the same.

Personal seasons of

spiritual zeal and

energy for God are

good.

We thank God for

them, and we want

more of them.

But as this chapter

shows us, there will

also be seasons of

drift, and we have

to be ready for

them.

And there, in those

moments when we're

tempted to settle

down into a

comfortable compromise,

it's the new

covenant.

that we have to

grasp once again,

that Jesus died so

that we might live,

that he rose again

so that we might

know we're forgiven

and accepted, that

Jesus ascended as

king, and that Jesus

will come again and

make all things new,

and that we,

friends, are his

people on earth

bearing the salt and

light of his

kingdom.

So may the Lord

Jesus be always

reforming us,

always renewing our

hearts, and may he

always be exalted

among us.

Semper reformanda.

Let's pray.

Oh, Father, how much

we need your Holy

Spirit to come down

into our hearts and

rekindle our first

love for you and for

our Lord Jesus.

God, as we take just

a moment in silence

before you, would you

come and would you

meet with us as we

prepare to come to

your table?

Amen.

Well, friends, it's

fitting that after

considering Nehemiah

13, we'd celebrate

the Lord's Supper.

Nehemiah 13 shows us

we need a new covenant

that is a relationship

with God based not on

our obedience but on

Jesus' faithful obedience

in our place.

And here at the

Lord's Supper, we

celebrate just that,

that Jesus established

this new covenant.

So we eat bread and we

remember his body

broken for us and we

drink a cup and we

remember his blood shed

for us.

And by the Holy Spirit,

Jesus promises to be

present here and to

fan the flames of faith

in our hearts.

You know, this act that

we do, do you remember,

it goes all the way back

to Jesus himself.

So as we sit here

around this table,

it's like we're sitting

in that original upper

room with Jesus as the

host and he's saying to

us, here it is,

beloved, the new covenant

in my blood.

Do this in remembrance of

me.

So if you've turned from

sin and you placed your

trust in Christ, eat with

us.

If you're a believer in

Jesus and you haven't been

baptized, don't delay.

Get baptized.

Identify publicly with your

Savior and with his people.

If you're here this morning

and you're not a Christian,

if you're not sure kind of

where you're at spiritually,

we're glad you're here, but

just pass the trays by as

they come around.

If you need help on your

spiritual journey, there are

prayers in the bulletin that

are there just as sort of

tools or means for you to

pray as you seek God.

You see, rather than taking

the bread and taking the

cup, this is a time for you

to take hold of Christ

himself.

And there are prayers there

that can help you to do

that, to come into a living

relationship with the living

Lord who loves you.

So I wonder if those who are

helping to serve would come

forward.

The way we do this at

Trinity is that we're going

to pray and we're going to

ask God his blessing as we

eat the bread together and

we'll pass it out and then

we'll eat it together.

And then we're going to pray

again before we take the

cup and we're going to pass

the cup out and we're going

to drink it together.

James, would you pray for

the bread for us?

All right, let's pray

together.

Father, we are grateful for

the new covenant that has

done for us what we could

not do for ourselves.

It has done for us what no

other human could do for us.

Thank you for this regular

reminder of the price of our

redemption and the power of it

for we are forgetful people.

We pray that as we take this

bread that you would imprint in

our hearts and you the power of

your salvation and that you would

cause us to be bold in acting

in accordance to your will, to

your glory.

We pray this in Christ's name.

Amen.