Sunday Setup – Nehemiah 8

Hey, Cross Church. Welcome to the Sunday setup. This is our time each week where we digitally gather across our social media platforms to just prepare our hearts for this Sunday as we dive into God's word. Today, we're going to look at Nehemiah chapter 8. And as we read this passage, I want and we pray through this. I want us to just get ready for this Sunday as we're going to be praising, as we're going to be preaching through this text. But we want to set in our hearts a mood to how can we put this text into practice and how can it change our lives to make Jesus known to those around us. And we start in Nehemiah 8 uh starting in verse one which actually leaves off from the end of verse or chapter 7 but it says this. When the seventh month came and the Israelites had settled in their towns all the people gathered together at the square in front of the water gates. They asked the scribe Ezra to bring the book of the law of Moses that the Lord had given Israel. On the first day of the seventh month, the priest Ezra brought the law before the assembly of men, women, and all who could listen with understanding. While he was facing the square in front of the Watergate, he read out of it from daybreak until noon before the men, the women, and those who could understand. All the people listened attentively to the book of the law. The scribe Ezra stood on a high wooden platform made for this purpose. Mataya, Sheami, Ariah, Uriah, Hilka, and Messiah stood beside him. On his right, to the left were Padia, Michel, Malachi, Hasham, Hashbad, Zachariah, and Meshelum. Ezra opened the book in full view of the people since he was elevated above everyone. As he opened it, all the people stood up. Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and their hands uplifted. All the people said, "Amen. Amen." Then they knelt low. They knelt low and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. Jesua, Bonnie, Sheriah, Jam, Akub, Shedel, Hodiah, Messiah, Kelllet, Azariah, Jazabad, Hannah, and Playia who were Levites explained the law to the people as they stood in their places. Then they read out the book of law of God translating, giving the meaning so that the people could understand what was read. Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe and Levites who were instructing the people said to all of them, "This day is holy to the Lord your God." Do not mourn or weep, for all the people were weeping as they heard the words of the law. Then he said to them, "Go and eat what is rich. Drink what is sweet and send portions to those who have nothing prepared since today is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve because the joy of the Lord is your strength." And the Levites quieted the people, saying, "Be still, since today is holy, don't grieve." Then all the people began to eat and drinks and portions and have great celebrations because they had understood the words that were explained to them. On the second day, the family heads of all the people along with the priests and Levites assembled before the scribe Ezra to study the words of the law. They found written in the law how the Lord had commanded through Moses that the Israelites should dwell in shelters during the festival the seventh month. So they proclaimed and spread this news throughout their towns in Jerusalem, saying, "Go out to the hill country and bring branches of olive, wild olive, myrtle, palm, and other leafy trees to make shelters just as Israin." The people went out. They brought back branches. They made shelters for themselves on their each of the rooftops and courtyards, the court of the house of God, the square by the water gate, and the square by the Ephraim gate. The whole community that had returned from exile made shelters, and they lived in them. The Israelites had not celebrated like this from the days of Joshua son of Nun until that day. And there was tremendous joy. Listen to this last verse as we wraps up this chapter in verse 18. Ezra read out of the book of the law of God. Every day from the first day to the last, the Israelites celebrated the festival for seven days. And on the eighth day there was a solemn assembly according to the ordinance. Man, what a powerful chapter that we are so excited to be diving into this week. A chapter that is just full of richness that there is so many sermons you could preach from this. But as we start to prepare our hearts and to prepare what God is moving, just want to call a few things out in here. And first we see just how there was this spirit that when God's word was open, there was this response that just kind of came natural to this. And I want us see verse 6. As Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and with their hands uplifted, all the people said, "Amen." Amen. They knelt and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. As Ezra blessed the Lord and recognized him as a great God. And and this is our first prompt. I want us just to start with a a prompt of worship is this is just as simple is just kind of pray this prompt to our God is we worship you the great God because we worship you the great God because fill that in. Why are why is our God so worthy of our worship? We worship you the great God because pray that to our Lord. Heat. Heat. Lord, we worship you, the great God, because you are holy. God, you are full of joy. Lord, you are good. Lord, you are perfect. Lord, because all the great things that happen in our life, they are from you. Because you are the epitome of what is good and right and great in our world. God, we worship you because you are in your own standard. You are above all others. Lord, you are higher than all else. God, we worship you because of all that you have done, all that you are doing, all that you will continue to do. And Lord, you are God. But God, we worship you and then you call us to respond. in verse 18 has it we've seen as the word of God is read throughout this chapter there is just challenging as the word of God is read all of a sudden there is movement among the people and I I love this in verse 18 when it says Ezra read out of the book of law of God every day every day he was reading out of the book of the law and he was moving in the hearts of people for them to respond for them to find joy that they hadn't found before and I think for us here's our prayer prompt and in this new year and I hope maybe that you've been challenging yourselves to read more and and maybe you haven't started a a reading plan or maybe you've already given up, but it's not too late to either get back on it or or start again or start a new one. But kind of just having this prayer prompt of valuing God's word is God, let me read your word every day so that God let me read your word every day. Let me read the Bible every day so that so that I can become more patient. So I become more joyous so that my life can change. God, let me read your word every day so that pray that prayer to our God. Heat. Heat. God, we worship you as the great God because you are holy, because you are perfect, because you are indescribable, God, and because you are so holy, but you are also so loving, you've chose to make yourself known to us through your word and through your son. And God, as we read your word, Lord, I just pray that we can read your word every day. So you challenge a true joy in our heart, uh that we can become more patient, that we can become uh enduring through the hard times, that we can become more loving to the people around us. Lord, that we just become more like Christ and less like our sin. And God, we know we don't have the power to do that. Is only through the power of the Holy Spirit, through the discipline of following your word. And God, I just ask that you challenge us of just as we saw the heart of a nation be erupted, be awoken by the reading of your word. God, we can see the same revival happen in the lives of those at Cross Church. God, let us read your word. Let it fill our hearts. And God, let it take us on a mandate to go make Jesus known to the world around us. God, we thank you for this passage. God, we thank you for our church. Lord, we ask that you gather us together this Sunday so that we can glorify you and we can get ready to then go practice uh what you show us in your word. And Lord, we just lift all this up in Jesus' name. Amen. Thank you guys for joining us. We're excited to dive into Nehemiah chapter 8. And we'll see you this Sunday.