author: Ryan Hayden Take your Bibles with me and turn to Nehemiah 8. We are going to look at one of my favorite stories in the Old Testament tonight.

So far in Nehemiah we have seen the walls rebuilt. That was no easy task. Nehemiah faced all kinds of opposition. There were the samaritans and other forces who tried to stop him and there were incidents in Jerusalem that could have stopped him. Lots and lots of opposition - but Nehemiah pressed on in faith and God did blessed and the people worked.

In chapter 7 (which I didn't preach from) Nehemiah finds an old copy of the census of the original people who came to Jerusalem and does a little work to prove who some of the people are. Nehemiah 7 is almost a carbon copy of a chapter in Ezra. He also takes up some gifts to complete the building of the walls.

All of this sets the stage for what happens in chapter 8 - which is a spiritual revival of the people of Jerusalem.

Let's go ahead and read all of Nehemiah 8 and then I'll kind of explain our theme and we'll go back through it to see what we can learn.

[!bible] Nehemiah 8:1-18 - KJV

1. And all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the street that was before the water gate; and they spake unto Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded to Israel.
2. And Ezra the priest brought the law before the congregation both of men and women, and all that could hear with understanding, upon the first day of the seventh month.
3. And he read therein before the street that was before the water gate from the morning until midday, before the men and the women, and those that could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive unto the book of the law.
4. And Ezra the scribe stood upon a pulpit of wood, which they had made for the purpose; and beside him stood Mattithiah, and Shema, and Anaiah, and Urijah, and Hilkiah, and Maaseiah, on his right hand; and on his left hand, Pedaiah, and Mishael, and Malchiah, and Hashum, and Hashbadana, Zechariah, and Meshullam.
5. And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people; (for he was above all the people;) and when he opened it, all the people stood up:
6. And Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God. And all the people answered, Amen, Amen, with lifting up their hands: and they bowed their heads, and worshipped the LORD with their faces to the ground.
7. Also Jeshua, and Bani, and Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, caused the people to understand the law: and the people stood in their place.
8. So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading.
9. And Nehemiah, which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy unto the LORD your God; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law.
10. Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.
11. So the Levites stilled all the people, saying, Hold your peace, for the day is holy; neither be ye grieved.
12. And all the people went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions, and to make great mirth, because they had understood the words that were declared unto them.
13. And on the second day were gathered together the chief of the fathers of all the people, the priests, and the Levites, unto Ezra the scribe, even to understand the words of the law.
14. And they found written in the law which the LORD had commanded by Moses, that the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month:
15. And that they should publish and proclaim in all their cities, and in Jerusalem, saying, Go forth unto the mount, and fetch olive branches, and pine branches, and myrtle branches, and palm branches, and branches of thick trees, to make booths, as it is written.
16. So the people went forth, and brought them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and in the street of the water gate, and in the street of the gate of Ephraim.
17. And all the congregation of them that were come again out of the captivity made booths, and sat under the booths: for since the days of Jeshua the son of Nun unto that day had not the children of Israel done so. And there was very great gladness.
18. Also day by day, from the first day unto the last day, he read in the book of the law of God. And they kept the feast seven days; and on the eighth day was a solemn assembly, according unto the manner.

What happened in this chapter is a beautiful revival - and it all centered around the word of God. It's a beautiful picture for us of what a healthy church looks like.

I want to give you eight points tonight that come right out of this passage that show us how a healthy church relates to the word of God. As I do, I'll explain a little more about this story.

The first thing we see in this chapter is

1. A Healthy Church Is Gathered Around the Word

Look at verse 1 again:

[!bible] Nehemiah 8:1 - KJV

1. And all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the street that was before the water gate; and they spake unto Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded to Israel.

It is very obvious that after Nehemiah finished the walls, that he and Ezra planned out this special meeting to kick off the special month. Ezra had been teaching people the word now for 13 years, and now that the walls were built, it was time for the people to gather together and be taught together in God's city.

So a great crowd of people gather by the water gate to hear the word of God, and they ask Ezra to read from the law.

This whole gathering was a gathering around the Bible. It wasn't a gathering around music. It wasn't a gathering around entertainment. It was a gathering around God's word.

I believe that the key mark of a faithful and healthy church is that they gather around God's word. Not around tradition. Not around culture. Not around one man. But around the Bible.

Notice in verse 2 that everyone who could hear gathered around the word. This wasn't just for men. This wasn't just for adults. Men, women and children all need to hear the word preached.

So as we gather, we gather to hear the word. We gather around the word. The word is the key to our church.

A second thing we see as a pattern in this story is...

2. A Healthy Church Is Attentive to the Word

Look at verse 2:

[!bible] Nehemiah 8:3 - KJV 3. And he read therein before the street that was before the water gate from the morning until midday, before the men and the women, and those that could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive unto the book of the law.

Did you notice that phrase "the ears of all the people were attentive". Notice that they were attentive even though the message went for several hours. That is the sign of a good church right there.

This wasn't a quick sermon - this was a marathon of listening. The people were just hungry for the word of God.

I've had several guest preachers tell me that they love preaching in our church because the people here are expecting to get something. They love that you are attentive, that you take notes, that you seem ready to hear.

May we never lose this. May the word never get boring to us.

Look at a third things we can learn...

3. A Healthy Church Honors the Word

Look at verses 4-6 again and notice how these people responded to the word of God:

[!bible] Nehemiah 8:4-6 - KJV 4. And Ezra the scribe stood upon a pulpit of wood, which they had made for the purpose;..(with 13 other guys) 5. And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people; (for he was above all the people;) and when he opened it, all the people stood up: 6. And Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God. And all the people answered, Amen, Amen, with lifting up their hands: and they bowed their heads, and worshipped the LORD with their faces to the ground.

Everything about this scene shows a deep reverence for the word of God. The people stood as it was brought out and stayed standing. Ezra blessed God and the people said Amen and they lifted their hands in worship.

The whole thing was reverential. They were showing the highest regard for the word.

I want our church to be a place that shows a high regard for the word. I want it to be more than just a name on our sign, but who we really are. We are a church that honors God's word.

We may not stand every time it is read (not that there is anything wrong with that) or stay standing throughout the sermon. We may not have everyone say "amen" after the Bible reading - but we need to be a people who obviously revere the word of God.

Let's look at a fourth mark here:

4. A Healthy Church Has People Clearly Explaining the Word

Look at verses 7-8 again:

[!bible] Nehemiah 8:7-8 - KJV 7. Also Jeshua, and Bani, and Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, caused the people to understand the law: and the people stood in their place. 8. So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading.

This wasn't just Ezra preaching. It was a group effort. There are 14 different names listed here. But everyone one of them did the same thing:

• They read in the law of God distinctly. They read clearly. They read carefully.
• They gave the sense. So they taught people what it meant.
• They caused them to understand the reading.

Listen, whatever else preaching is - it is at least this. It is explaining the word of God so that people can get a sense of it and understand it.

Notice that their preaching came out of the word of God. It wasn't Jeshua and Bani coming up with a bunch of ideas for a good sermon and then finding a text to go with it. They were expounding the Bible.

One of the things I hope is true about Bible Baptist Church is that we are always expounding the word, making the Bible clear for people. That we have a team of preachers who teach the Bible.

I've told you many times, you don't need my opinions - you need the Bible. You don't need politics - you need the Bible. You don't need me to rile you up about what is wrong with the world - you need the Bible.

I want every preacher who preaches here to be a bible preacher and I want our church to be a place that trains Bible preachers.

So a healthy church

• gathers around the word
• is attentive to the word
• honors the word
• has a group of people explaining the word

Let's look at number 5:

5. A Healthy Church Is Convicted by the Word

Look what happens when the word is read and explained. Look at the end of verse 9:

[!bible] Nehemiah 8:9 - KJV 9. ...For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law.

When the people had the Bible explained to them - it caused them to weep. Do you know why? Because the Bible is convicting. The Bible sets a standard that none of us can live up to on our own.

I've preached well over a thousand messages here, and never once have I opened the Bible and looked into it and thought "Oh, yeah, I've got this. I'm good."

Every time I open this book its' like looking in a mirror showing me where I need to grow in holiness and love and grace. The Bible is a convicting book.

If you want to feel good about yourself - don't do expository preaching. Go to a church where they have a motivational speech or a comedy routine every Sunday. But if you are going to look into the word - its going to convict you - even if you are a seasoned Christian.

Now notice - they didn't TRY to make it convicting. That wasn't the purpose of this meeting. In fact, they tried to get it to stop. But the people heard the word and it caused them to cry. It led them to repentance.

And this sadness - this genuine sadness - actually opened the way for gladness.

And that, by the way is the 6th point tonight:

6. A Healthy Church Rejoices in the Word

So the people were crying, right? But Nehemiah and Ezra didn't want them to cry. They were actually supposed to be celebrating.

So look at verses 10-12 with me:

[!bible] Nehemiah 8:10-12 - KJV 10. Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength. 11. So the Levites stilled all the people, saying, Hold your peace, for the day is holy; neither be ye grieved. 12. And all the people went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions, and to make great mirth, because they had understood the words that were declared unto them.

The people were sorrowful when they heard the word. They were repenting, which was a good thing. But it is not a good thing to wallow in sorrow. We have a Savior. We have a merciful God. He has forgiven our sins. And knowing that should lead to rejoicing.

Listen, when we really understand the word, then it should lead us to "great mirth" because God is good. God is gracious. God is merciful.

God doesn't actually want us down here saying "Woe is me, it is so hard to be a Christian." God doesn't want us to be a bunch of perpetual spiritual Eoyores. God wants us to rejoice in Him.

There is a time for mourning, but there is also a time for joy. God has given us the fat to eat and the sweet to drink.

When they understood the word - they sorrowed, but then they rejoiced and kept on rejoicing. That is the pattern for us.

So a healthy church

• gathers around the word
• is attentive to the word
• honors the word
• has a group of people explaining the word
• is convicted by the word
• rejoices in the word

We have two more things left:

7. A Healthy Church Puts the Word into Practice

I'm not going to reread verses 13-17, but what happens there is that as they are studying the word, the people find out that it is supposed to be the month of the feast of the tabernacles - a feast that Israel has not celebrated since the time of Joshua.

Even though they have less than two weeks to prepare, they immediately spring into action and build booths as God commands. Then they take a week and everyone lives in these booths and hears the word of God every day and they rejoice together.

The point I want to make is that they didn't just hear the word - they immediately sprung to put the word into practice. God's word said "in the seventh month you take a week off and have this festival" and they said "Ok, it's the seventh month, let's do it."

They could have said "We've never done it that way before." They could have said "that's weird, that's change, I don't like that." But no, they heard it in the word and they immediately put it into practice.

Like I said this morning, we don't need to be just people who hear the word, we need to be doers of the word. Practicers of the word.

If we found out in the Bible tonight that something we had been doing was unbiblical - than we ought to stop it immediately. If we found out we should be doing something we aren't - we ought to start it immediately. Be doers of the word.

So a healthy church

• gathers around the word
• is attentive to the word
• honors the word
• has a group of people explaining the word
• is convicted by the word
• rejoices in the word
• One more thing...

8. A Healthy Church Continues in the Word

Look at verse 18:

[!bible] Nehemiah 8:18 - KJV 18. Also day by day, from the first day unto the last day, he read in the book of the law of God. And they kept the feast seven days; and on the eighth day was a solemn assembly, according unto the manner.

The people did not just have this revival one day and then stop. They continued in the word of God.

If they weren't committed to the word - they probably would never have gotten to this point. Ezra at this point had been teaching the Bible for 13 years. It took 13 years of teaching to bring the people to the point in this chapter.

That resonates with me, because I've been your pastor now for 13 years. I'm going to tell you, I'm seeing fruit now that I didn't see for a long time.

We have to stick with the word of God. We know the word will bear fruit. So we have to keep teaching it and then keep teaching it more.

Conclusion

Nehemiah 8 paints a beautiful picture of a healthy church—a people gathered around the Word, honoring it, attentive to it, explained clearly, convicted and rejoicing in it, putting it into practice, and continuing in it. As Wallace Benn said, “The Spirit of God took the Word of God and made a community of God.” Let’s ask ourselves: Are we this kind of church? If not, let’s return to the Word, let it shape us, and find the joy of the Lord as our strength.