“How To Respond To The Bible”
Nehemiah 7-8
Sermon Series: “Change Your World In 52 Days”
Introduction: If Nehemiah were fiction, the story would have ended at chapter 6 with the completion of the wall, and it would have made an exciting ending. However, the story is historical fact, and real life is not quite so neat. This is a transition point in the book. Basically, the first six chapters are about the rebuilding of the wall, and the last seven chapters are about the even harder work of repopulating the city, reforming of God’s people, and the spiritual renewing of those people. At the beginning of chapter 7, Nehemiah adds some leaders and finds a genealogy of those who had moved back in preparation for repopulating the city. He had to make sure they were truly Jews to know they were part of God’s people. This applies to us today in the sense that our spiritual genealogy is having our name written in the Lamb’s Book of Life in heaven through trusting Jesus Christ. Only those who receive Jesus through repentance and faith are part of the family of God. Then, in chapter 8, Ezra, the scribe, began to read and teach the Bible to the people. The Bible is crucial to the spiritual renewal and building of God’s people. Warren Wiersbe writes of this, “It is important to note that Ezra and Nehemiah put the Word of God first in the life of the city…. ‘The primary task of the church and of the Christian minister is the preaching of the Word of God,’ said Dr. D. Martyn LloydJones. ‘The decadent periods and eras in the history of the church have always been those periods when preaching had declined’.” Let’s look at how they responded to Scripture and learn how to respond to the Bible through their example. We respond to the Bible by:
1. Accepting it as the Word of God (v. 1). Verse 1 refers to Scripture as “the Book of the Law of Moses, which the Lord had commanded Israel.” Do we accept the Bible as the Word of God?
2. Hungering for it and being attentive to it (v. 2-3). How do we give attention to Scripture?
A. By reading it (1 Timothy 4:13).
B. By meditating on it (Psalm 1).
C. By memorizing it (Psalm 119:11).
D. By studying it (2 Timothy 2:15).
3. Proclaiming it through expository preaching (v. 7-8). This verse really defines true biblical preaching for us. They read, explained, and helped the people to understand the Word of God. Expository preaching is “exposing” or “reading out” what God is actually saying in the text. God is speaking when that happens.
4. Obediently applying it to our lives (v. 9-18). They read in God’s Word that they were to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles (Leviticus 23:39-44), and they acted on it. Warren Wiersbe writes of this feast, “During the seven days of the feast, the Jews lived in booths made of branches and usually built on the flat roofs of their houses. It was a time for looking back and remembering the nation’s forty years of wandering in the wilderness, when the people were homeless and lived in temporary shelters. But the feast was also a time for looking around at the harvest blessings from the hand of God. The Lord had given them a good land, and they were never to forget the Giver as they enjoyed the gifts (Deut. 8). The Feast of Tabernacles was also an occasion for looking ahead to the glorious kingdom God promised His people Israel (Zech. 14:4, 9, 16-20). It was a week-long festival of joyful praise and thanksgiving, focusing on the goodness of the Lord.” The application to us is to “be doers of the word, and not hearers only” (James 1:22) by confessing our disobedience, repenting, and obediently applying Scripture to our lives like they did.
5. Worshiping God (v. 4-6, v. 9-18). The proper response to the Bible is worshipping the Author of the Bible.
