Nehemiah 3:2-12

² People from the town of Jericho worked next to them, and beyond them was Zaccur son of Imri. ³ The Fish Gate was built by the sons of Hassenaah. They laid the beams, set up its doors, and installed its bolts and bars. ⁴ Meremoth son of Uriah and grandson of Hakkoz repaired the next section of wall. Beside him were Meshullam son of Berekiah and grandson of Meshezabel, and then Zadok son of Baana. ⁵ Next were the people from Tekoa, though their leaders refused to work with the construction supervisors. ⁶ The Old City Gate^[a] was repaired by Joiada son of Paseah and Meshullam son of Besodeiah. They laid the beams, set up its doors, and installed its bolts and bars.⁷ Next to them were Melatiah from Gibeon, Jadon from Meronoth, people from Gibeon, and people from Mizpah, the headquarters of the governor of the province west of the Euphrates River.^[b] 8 Next was Uzziel son of Harhaiah, a goldsmith by trade, who also worked on the wall. Beyond him was Hananiah, a manufacturer of perfumes. They left out a section of Jerusalem as they built the Broad Wall.^{[c] 9} Rephaiah son of Hur, the leader of half the district of Jerusalem, was next to them on the wall. ¹⁰ Next Jedaiah son of Harumaph repaired the wall across from his own house, and next to him was Hattush son of Hashabneiah. ¹¹ Then came Malkijah son of Harim and Hasshub son of Pahath-moab, who repaired another section of the wall and the Tower of the Ovens. ¹² Shallum son of Hallohesh and his daughters repaired the next section. He was the leader of the other half of the district of Jerusalem.

After seeing how Pastors should set the pace the second thing, we see is that:

2. Some worked as families – Vs 3, 12

In verse 3 and 12 we see sons and daughters working on the wall. The problem today is that we are not serving as families. We are letting our kids watch us do the work. When my kids were little my wife Angel would go up to the nursing home and sing to the residence and it would have been easy to get a babysitter and leave the kids at home, but she took them with, she included them in ministry. You know most of those grandmas didn’t get to hold their great grandbabies, but they got to hold our babies, and for them that ministered to their hearts. Later as they got a little older, I would take them when I had a hospital call. Many times, they were the ones who would pray over the people that were sick. There is no better way to grow closer as a family than to serve together. Some of you are frustrated with your kids, because they are self-centered brats, they are rude and disrespectful but often we as parents are the ones creating the problem. While we complain about our kids being selfish we need to realize that that’s the message we have been modeling. They are just imitating what they have seen. We let our kids sit and watch instead of serve and work, we cater to their every want and whim, creating a selfish heart. So, let me ask you are you cultivating selfishness or service. Don’t just show your kids how to serve invite them to join you. Families that serve together stay together. Dads don’t dismiss your daughters. In verse 12 we meet a man who understood the value of working women. Throughout the centuries God has valued and invited women to build his church. Jesus was born because Mary was willing to surrender and say yes to God. She understood the ministry of motherhood. Men we need to see women as valuable vessel in God’s kingdom. Many times women do more of the work in the church than men but if you read your bible you will discover that this is nothing new, look at all the women who served and ministered to Jesus during his earthly ministry and the many women who were at the cross while there was only one man. Do you value the work of women? Does your family find ways to serve the Lord together?

3. There will always be those that serve and those that sit – Vs 5

Tekoa was a town about eleven miles from Jerusalem, and while the regular people of Tekoa were willing to commute and work the wealthy rulers refused. What kept them from participating in God’s work, pride, they wouldn’t be placed under a supervisor. As rich rulers when there was work being done in their town, they were the supervisors and others did the work. They weren’t just lazy leaders they were lording leaders who looked down on others. They were too proud to submit themselves to the supervisors of the job. They were too important to get their hands dirty. In order to serve some of you are going to have to get over self. Pride prevents a lot of people from participating in God’s work. We are not called to be spectators but participators. Are you going to sit or serve? Instead of letting pride sideline you start letting the privilege of participating in God’s kingdom motivate you to serve.

4. It’s not about your ability but your availability – Vs 8

God uses all kinds of people, Verse 8 tells us that God used a goldsmith and a perfume maker to rebuild the wall. God didn’t need a thousand masons and carpenters, he needed ordinary people who were willing to work. Remember the Ark was built by amateurs, the titanic was built by professionals. When it comes to the Almighty how available are you? These people are the opposite from those who say, “I’m too good to do this kind of work.” These are the people who say, “I might not be good at this but if it’s for God I’m game.” The goldsmith could have said I don’t do that kind of work, that’s for common people I’m a real craftsman. I can’t afford to risk get these hands skinned up working on a wall, the kind of work I do is skilled labor not servant labor. While prideful hearts kept the rulers from participating, hearts of humility caused gifted artisans to lend a help hand. It’s not about you position it’s about participating in God’s plan.  What about you are you sitting or serving? Are you making it about your ability or your availability?

Nehemiah 3:1

“Then Eliashib the high priest and the other priests started to rebuild at the Sheep Gate. They dedicated it and set up its doors, building the wall as far as the Tower of the Hundred, which they dedicated, and the Tower of Hananel.”

Last time in chapter 3 we saw how people working together can accomplish more than if just one person tried to do all the work. As you look back at chapter 3, I want you to underline in your Bible every time you see the following phrases: “next to him,” “next to them,” “after him,” and “after them.” These expressions are recorded 28 times in this chapter! The biblical principle is this: No one can do everything, but everyone can do something. Look Christ didn’t save you to be a lone ranger Christian. If God’s work is going to get done, we have to cooperate with one another, not compete, compare and criticize. As a people we value our independence but often it’s at the expense of inclusion. Why is our nation in turmoil because instead of teaming together we are tearing each other apart. We focus more on our personal rights that living right. What if as a nation we would stop blaming and start building, if we would replace our bitter bricks with bricks of blessing. If we would replace the mortar of meanness with that of mercy.  How did previous generations face tough times, by teaming together, today instead of teaming together we are tearing down. But regardless of the standard that society is setting we have to come back to the bible as our basis for life. In a world where everyone is only concerned for themselves, we are called to come together and serve. It’s here in chapter 3 that we’re going to see two different kinds of work being done: rebuilding and repairing. It seems that the wall was not torn down evenly by the enemies of Jerusalem; some sections needed to be completely rebuilt, while other sections just needed to be repaired. The same is true in our lives, because sometimes there’s a part of our lives that has been damaged: A broken heart, a wounded spirit, smashed self-esteem, a destroyed dream. Sometimes the damaged area just needs to be repaired, while other times it needs to be completely rebuilt from the ground up. Either way, we have the perfect contractor, Christ who can fix the damaged areas of our lives. Its here that we see:

1. THE PEOPLE

As we come to the people, notice the progression, the purpose the priority the people. God first, service second. We start with worship and then the work. Last time we saw a description of the work on the walls of Jerusalem, section by section, counter-clockwise around the city. Starting at the Sheep Gate and finishing at the Sheep Gate, the gate through which sheep came into the city to be sacrificed for sin. And we saw how everything should start with Jesus and end with Jesus.  Now as we come to the people teaming together, we see several powerful principles. The first thing we see is that:

1. Pastors should set the pace – Vs 1

We see here that when it came to work on the walls the Priests didn’t sit on the sidelines. They didn’t say oh I only do religious work, no they rolled up their sleeves and went to work, setting the example. One of the problems with the church in America is that there are a lot of pastors who don’t practice what they preach. It’s what I call lazy leadership, it’s the pastor who wants the prominent position just not the work. But if anybody in the city should have been busy with the work, it was the priests, because God’s reputation was at stake. These priests were not afraid of ruining their robes and getting their hands dirty and notice who lead the way when it came to the work, the high priest. As religious leaders we have a great responsibility because we set the pace for the people. Romans 12:11 says “Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically.” The high priest had no hesitation using his consecrated hands to swing a hammer or plaster mortar. But it’s not just about how you start the work it’s also about finishing well. Later on, in chapter 13 we will see that Eliashib the high priest did not remain true to his calling. Instead of pursuing God’s purpose he actually partnered with the enemy and created some serious problems for Nehemiah. There will be those who begin enthusiastically but end up bailing or even turn against us. What counts is completing the work, because you don’t get credit for a partial project. Men I want you to think about your marriage for a moment, what work needs to be done, are you pursuing your bride, or are you being a putz? Are you being a loving leader or a lazy leader? It’s time to stop holding the remote and start holding her hand, because sadly many men know more about sports stats than they do their spouse. What pace are you setting for your family and is your pace in step with God’s purpose?