Sunday Setup – Nehemiah 11 & 12

[music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [music] Hey guys, what's up? Um, today we are going to be talking about Nehemiah 11 and chapter 12. Uh, super excited about this passage. [music] Uh we're going to be talking about willing hearts. And I'm just going to read to you a couple of the verses in these two chapters. There's a lot to go into uh a lot to talk about in these chapters. Uh but we're going to read a couple of these verses. Uh starting out with uh chapter 11 1-4. Uh let's dive in and let's start reading. [clears throat] Now the leaders Now the leaders of the people stayed in Jerusalem and the rest of the people cast lots for one out of 10 to come and live in Jerusalem, the holy city. While the other 9/10ens remained in their towns, the people blessed all the men who volunteered to live in Jerusalem. These are the heads of the providence who stayed in Jerusalem. But in the villages of Judea, each lived on his own property in their towns, the Israelites, priests, Levites, temple servants, and descendants [music] of Solomon's servants, while some of the descendants of Judah and Benjamin settled [music] in Jerusalem. See, we right here we see um the willing hearts of the people that [music] God had already blessed. Um God put these people in the position uh to lead his holy city. And but what the cool thing about this I just want to point out is the posture of these people that were just willing to go serve and they were blessed by God. They were appointed by God. And uh I just want to [music] just kind of echo their heart. Um, every time I think about uh how I serve and where God has put me in a position [music] um to lead students, to lead on soccer and football fields, uh to lead in first impressions, [music] um I know it is given by God that I'm in that position. And um I just love their posture here. [music] I love that they're willing even though God has chosen them, they're still saying yes. They're saying, "Yeah, God, I will go and serve you. I'm willing to surrender to you. I'm willing to put my trust that you will provide and you will protect me in this holy city. And that's what I kind of want to do. I want to pray in this first prompt right here. I want to pray, hey Jesus, help us to have the same posture as these people. Jesus, help us to have a willing heart like these people. Help us to be ready to go surrender to him, to go trust in him, to provide and protect us in all that we do. Let's go ahead and pray those things right now. >> [music] [music] [music] >> Heat. Heat. [music] >> [music] [music] [music] >> And next we see is all the names um all the names that were willing to live in the city of Jerusalem. And that's in verses 3- 24. I won't read all the names there. Um I'm not even going to read all the names that were outside of Jerusalem as well. Um those names are in 25-36. [music] And then we see the priests and the Levites um that [music] get called to their positions. And that is in chapter 12 uh 1 through uh 1- 26. Those are those priests and Levites. And right here is where I want to pick [music] up in 27. We talk about the dedication of the wall. The dedication, the wall [music] that they've been building, the wall that they have been striving to just have a city. And this is where we pick up on 27. It says at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem and [music] brought them to Jerusalem. Oh wait, I skipped the whole line. At the dedication, so [clears throat] we see the dedication of the wall. And it says this [music] on verse 27. At the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, they sent for the Levites [music] wherever they lived and brought them to Jerusalem to celebrate the joyous dedication with thanksgiving and singing accompanied by symbols, harps, and layers. [clears throat] The singers gathered from the region around Jerusalem. After [music] the priests and Levites had purified themselves, they purified the people, the city gates, and the wall. Guys, I think what I love right here is I love this word joyous. Uh these people were joyous to [music] go serve the Lord. They were excited to go serve the Lord. You see the excitement that they have. They're bringing all their instruments. They they are ready to dedicate themselves to purify themselves [music] before God. They are ready to serve the Lord. There is like an anxiousness with this. And I think this teaches us several uh things in this passage that we just see of them dedicating this wall and getting ready to dedicate [music] this wall. But this is how we should anticipate how we go and do God's work, [music] how we go and serve the Lord, how we go to church, um how we go and serve our families, how we go and [music] serve the people we work with, how we go and just do anything in our life. We should be joyous [music] and we should be ready. We should be excited about going to do these things. I think it just challenges us to just refocus, man. Hey, where am I not joyous? Where am I not joyous to go serve [music] God? and and how can I correct that? How can I look like these people that are just [music] excited to go celebrate what God is doing in their city? How can we do that in our homes? So, let's pray right now just in that God, how how [music] can I just be more joyous? How can it be just more joyous to go serve you? [music] Let's do that now. Let's pray. [music] >> [music] [music] [music] [music] >> Finally they they get ready to um be excited and they dedicate [music] this wall. And after the dedication of the wall and after this celebration they go go through um it doesn't stop there. [music] um they start supporting the Levites and let's read from 44 until [music] 46 and it says this on the same on that same day men were placed in charge of the rooms that house the supplies contributions [music] first fruits and tents. The le [clears throat] the legally required portions for the priests and the [music] Levites were gathered from the village fields because Judah was grateful for the priests and Levites who were serving. They performed the service of their [music] God and the servant the service of purification along [music] with the singers and the gate and gatekeepers as David and his son Solomon [music] had prescribed. For long ago in the days of David, there were heads of the singers and songs of praise and thanksgiving [music] to God. The thing I just love here, I we just see the gratitude that's overflowing out of the people. These people are just grateful for the Levites. They're grateful [music] for the people they put in charge to go run the holy city. And we just see this is what true citizens look like [music] in God's kingdom that's just overflowing with gratitude, overflowing towards their God. That God, thank you for remembering us. Thank you for remembering all the things that we have done, but you still have not forgotten us. You have made us a priority still in your life, in your mind, in our lives, in our time. right here. I just love this this part [music] where it says, "For long ago, for long ago, God has never forgotten any of us." And I just every time I read this, I just think, man, thank you, God. I'm grateful [music] that you've never forgotten me. You never forgot my wife. You have never forgotten my kids. For long ago, you made me a priority. You made you, you guys watching today, [music] you were a priority in God's thoughts and God's mind. And um I just want to pray through that and just be grateful just like these people. I just want to pray pray [music] a prayer of gratefulness that man we have a such a gracious God. We have a merciful God. We have a graceful God. And um I just want to pray those things and and however you feel ready to pray and just [music] to express your gratitude to your God and let's just do that right now. Let's just pray and say thank you God. Thank you for always being gracious to me and I am grateful for you. Let's pray. [music] [music] [music] >> [music] [music] >> Heat. [music] Heat. [music] >> [music] >> Thanks guys for uh reading with us and being a part of the Sunday setup. We'll see you on Sunday. Peace. [music] [music] >> [music] [music] >> Heat. Heat. [music] >> [music] [music]