INTRODUCTION

Citylight Church is in a season in which we are seeking the rebuilding and renewing grace of God for our lives personally and for our church as an attractively different gospel culture that shows off to the world the difference that Jesus really makes among a people and invites everyone to get in on it. The book of Nehemiah is our God-breathed guide to rebuilding together after hardship. Now, you may still be wondering, “what does Nehemiah rebuilding Jerusalem after hardship have to do with us building up the church after hardship?” Important question. Nehemiah was rebuilding so much more than a wall. Nehemiah was rebuilding Jerusalem, the city where God dwelt with God’s people in the Old Testament. By rebuilding the city where God dwelt with his people, Nehemiah was building up Israel as God’s set apart, special, and holy possession so that they could fulfill their mission to be a light and a blessing to all nations. Now that the long-promised Christ has come to live, die, and rise for our sins, God no longer dwells in one city or a temple. Rather, God dwells with his new people, the church, by his Holy Spirit. Nehemiah was building up Jerusalem, where God once dwelt with his people, the nation of Israel. We apply that today by building up the place where God now dwells, the church, so that we can make disciples of all nations. As Paul says in Ephesians 4, the members of a local church are to speak the truth of the gospel to one another in love so that the whole church body build itself up in love. We follow Nehemiah in rebuilding God’s people and God’s place by building up our local church in worship, community, and mission.

As we move into Nehemiah 8, the wall has been rebuilt, the city is now secure, so Nehemiah can finally gather God’s people together as one. Nehemiah 8:1: And all the people gathered as one man into the square before the Water Gate. And they Told Ezra the Scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses that the LORD had commanded Israel. That brings us to the big idea of our passage today: rebuilding requires gathering around God’s word. Now, you may be wondering, “does he mean gather in person?” We’ll come back to that. I want us to first consider the question, “why does rebuilding require gathering around God’s word?” Three answers from our passage: 1. To hear God’s word 2. To understand God’s word 3. To worship the God of the word.

TO HEAR GOD’S WORD (vv. 1-5)

Let’s walk our way slowly through the first five verses. And all the people gathered as one man into the square before the Water Gate. Some 50,000 people are described as gathering as one person. This gathering is a stunning display of unity. Nehemiah 8:1 reminds me of Paul’s words in Romans 15:5-6: May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, 6 that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. The physical, in person gathering of God’s people under God’s word for the sake of God’s worship is a weekly visceral reminder to us of our unity in the gospel and profound witness to the world about the difference Jesus really makes in a people. Let’s continue reading in the middle of Nehemiah 8:1: And they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses that the LORD had commanded Israel. Notice that they call the Law of Moses that which “the LORD had commanded Israel.” This is a very important verse for understanding what Christians believe about the Bible. This verse teaches us that God actually spoke the words of Scripture. When we gather as one people to hear the Bible read, we are actually hearing God speak with complete authority, total inerrancy, beautiful clarity, and stunning relevance for all of life. 2 So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could understand what they heard, on the first day of the seventh month. Parents, we have the profound privilege of both reading God’s word at home and bringing them to church so that they too can hear God’s word read with God’s people because it shapes them more than we know. Let’s pick things up in the middle of verse 3: And the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law…5 And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people, and as he opened it all the people stood. They stand in reverence when the Bible is read because God is speaking and they listen intently when the Bible is read because God is speaking, which is why we invite you to stand before we read the word to open our worship gatherings and why we invite you to stand again to hear the word read before the sermon. God is speaking. Rebuilding requires gathering around God’s word because when we gather to hear the Bible read in our services, we are hearing God speak.

I want you to imagine for a moment God himself writing in the sky, “tomorrow at noon I will be speaking at City Hall in Center City Philadelphia.” Is there anything in the world that could stop you from being there? Of course not! God is speaking! Friends, rebuilding requires gathering around God’s word because when we gather to hear the Bible, God is speaking! That’s why there is so much Bible in our services. We read the Bible in our opening call to worship, we read the Bible in our confession and assurance of pardon, we sing songs full of Bible in them, we stand and read the Bible before the sermon, we read the Bible when we take communion, and we read the Bible to close our services in benediction. Why? When we hear the Bible read, we hear no one less than Almighty God speak. Two practical implications. First, gather with the kind of frequency and regularity that you would if Almighty God were to show up to speak in our church every Sunday because he does. Who of us would want to miss that? Second, when the Bible is read in our services, be as attentive as you would be if Almighty God were talking to you because he is. Whether it’s the call to worship, the benediction, or the Scripture reading before the sermon, listen as attentively as you would if you were hearing God speak, because you are. Rebuilding requires gathering around God’s word, first, to hear God’s word. But when we gather we have the privilege of doing even more than hearing God’s word…

TO UNDERSTAND GOD’S WORD (vv. 7-8)

When God’s people gather to hear God’s word, God’s leaders were not content for God’s people to only hear the word. The leaders want God’s people to understand the word. Nehemiah 8:8: They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly, and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading. The Levites were official Bible preachers. When all the people gathered as one, their job was to move among the crowd to read the Bible, making sure everyone understood the language, interpret the Bible, giving people a clear sense of the meaning, and give people a clear understanding of the Bible so that they could connect the transforming power of God’s word to their everyday lives.

Verses like Nehemiah 8:8 help explain why the Citylight pastors preach the way that we do. We believe in and practice something called expository preaching. Recently, the rapper Kanye West made expository preaching world famous on Joe Rogan’s podcast. Describing the way his pastor preaches, Kanye said, “…Expository, it’s like one to one by the word…there’s some types of preachers, they have the Bible in their hand and they close the Bible and they just talk for two hours. And…some do have anointing. But the expository preachers go line for line. And for me it’s like, I come from entertainment, I got so much sauce. I don’t need no sauce on the word. I need the word to be solid food that I can understand exactly what God was saying to me through the King James Version, through this translation, or the English Standard Version.” That’s a shockingly good description of expository preaching. At its core, expository preaching is preaching that is in service of and exposes the word of God to God’s people. No sauce required. That’s what the Levites were doing and that is what your pastors seek to do when we gather each Lord’s Day. “Expositional preaching is empowered preaching that rightfully submits the shape and emphasis of the sermon to the shape and emphasis of a biblical text, showing the fulfillment of the text in Christ, with application to everyday life.” Now, you may be thinking, “Matt, I’m never going to be a preacher, why do I need to know about expository preaching?” First, because I want you to long for it and expect it your pastors. Second, I believe that part of my job is to prepare our church for its next pastor. If I get hit by a bus on the way out of here, only hire a man to be your lead pastor loves and lives expository preaching. Finally, though it’s one of the saddest parts of my job, I know that many of you are not here with us permanently. When you move and seek to join a new church, please only join one that practices expository preaching and if you’re not sure, just reach out and ask me.

I am committed to being the best expository preacher I can be and I want to give you a quick guide to being the best expository listeners you can be when we gather. First, expect God to speak (1 Peter 4:11). Come to the sermon physically and mentally fresh and attentive. Before the sermon, make a habit of saying, ‘Lord, speak to me. I am listening.’ Second, admit that God knows better than you. Say to yourself, “God is God and I am not. It’s me that needs to change my opinions, my beliefs, my life, my heart, not him.” Third, check what the preacher says by what the passage says. This is why it’s so important to come to church with your own Bible (not phone) each week, keep it open during the sermon, make sure the main point of the sermon is what the passage is actually about, and ask good questions if something doesn’t line up. Fourth, hear the sermon in church week by week. It’s great to podcast Matt Chandler and H.B. Charles Jr., but that’s nothing like hearing God’s word, with God’s people, through the men that God has put you in covenant with as your pastors so you can encourage other hearers in it. Fifth, when you hear God’s word, obey it today. Write down how you’ll respond, tell someone about it, and rejoice that God’s word is written just as he wanted for just this moment. Rebuilding requires gathering to hear and understand God’s word because hearing and understanding the word leads us, third and finally, to…

TO WORSHIP THE GOD OF THE WORD (vv. 5-6)

Nehemiah 6:5-6: And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people, and as he opened it all the people stood. 6 And Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground. The word of God dwelling richly among the people of God creates fervent worship of God. Don’t miss this: it’s the depth of the word that leads to the height of worship. Citylight, I hope until your dying day you long for greater awe and intimacy and fervor and genuine passion in our worship together. I hope you long to lift your hands and bow your heads and experience the glory of God in worship. And I desperately want you to know how to get it. It’s the depth of the word that leads to the height of worship. Listen to the word, understand the word, plant your life in the word and you’ll worship the God of the word with a fervency that transcends every season of life in our fallen world. If you want more height in worship, then go to greater depth in the word. Rebuilding requires gathering to hear God’s word, understand God’s word, and respond by worshiping the God of the word.

Ok, I mentioned at the beginning that I’d come back to the question, “wait, does he mean that rebuilding requires gathering in person around God’s word?” I think the question beneath this question is, “Can’t I hear, understand, and worship from home?” The honest answer to this question is “yes” and “no.” Quite literally, you can hear us read the word, you can get the sense of the words meaning, and you can sing in response to the word from home watching live stream. But I would never want any of us to draw the false and, I believe, unbiblical conclusion that there is only a minor or relatively insignificant difference between the live stream and gathering in person. There is a significant difference. After all the Greek word translated “church” means assembly. Meeting isn’t just what we do, it’s part of what a church is. We cannot be the church from home forever. Similarly, the New Testament commands the church to do certain things that can only happen when we meet in person. Colossians 3 says that we are to instruct one another through our songs of worship, but we cannot sing to one another at home. 1 Timothy 4 tells us to devote ourselves to the public reading of Scripture, but we cannot do that in private. 1 Corinthians 11 tells us to partake in the Lord’s Supper or communion together, but that’s a church family meal that cannot be taken without the family. But beyond thing we can’t do, there are things we can’t be if we don’t meet. We cannot be a reminder to ourselves and a picture to the world of the kind unity that we have in Jesus and lifting one voice in worship. So, as we consider whether to gather in person or not, let’s all begin by settling that there is a massive practical and biblical difference between meeting in person and watching a live stream.

Of course, this doesn’t settle the question as to whether you should personally choose or encourage another particular member to gather in person because we are living in a global pandemic that affects people in different ways. I believe that the principal question that we need to ask ourselves and help our brothers and sisters ask for themselves is, “am I making my decision on the basis of conviction or convenience?” Conviction means, for example, that you believe it would be wrong for you to gather in person. If you have convictions that for the sake of personal or public health that it would be wrong for you to gather in person, your pastors honor that and have provided the live stream for just that reason! If you have a medical condition genuinely prohibits you from being able to wear a face covering, then your pastors honor that and have provided the live stream for just that reason. On the other hand, if you don’t actually think it would be wrong for you to come from a personal or public safety standpoint, and you’re staying home because, honestly, it’s simply more convenient to not have to pack up your kids, to not have to drive all the way here, to not have to worship with your little ones, or not wear a mask for 75 minutes, I want to encourage you to gather with us in person anyway. I know for some of you, masks are incredibly infuriating. I sympathize with you. My wife will tell you that I’ve been getting these nasal infections off and on since I started wearing masks, they’re incredibly painful, and being here with you is worth it. My wife will also tell you that worshiping in person with two little kids and no husband to help in the service or even drive with her every week because I’m preaching all over the place isn’t easy, but it’s worth it to be with her church family. We understand that there is less risk and hassle if you stay at home, but some things are worth the risk and hassle. Again, the choice is yours and you’re genuinely free to make it. But let this question drive your decision: am I making my decision on the basis of convenience or conviction?

Let me close now by reminding you that we are privileged to participate in a gathering far more glorious than the one we read about in Nehemiah 8. In Nehemiah 8, God’s people gather as one nation to hear God’s word and respond in worship. Israel was one people group, often called God’s son in Old Testament. Their worship looked forward to the day when the true Israel, the only begotten Son of God would come into the world to gather not one nation but a people from every nation who embrace Jesus Christ as Lord. This Jesus is coming again to judge the world in perfect righteousness and welcome his international people into a new heaven and a new earth where we all unite in one voice from a myriad of languages and worship the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Each Sunday when we, the people of God from a myriad of national backgrounds, gather to worship the Father, through the Son, by the Spirit, we are drinking in a foretaste of heaven. Rebuilding requires gathering around God’s word.