HOW TO KEEP GROWING AFTER THE WALL IS BUILT
Nehemiah 7:1-73
Key Verse 7:2
“I put in charge of Jerusalem my brother Hanani, along with Hananiah the commander of the citadel, because he was a man of integrity and feared God more than most men do.”
I read an article in Sports Illustrated as I waited to be seen by the eye doctor. It was about a football player. I’m not a huge football fan, but the article I read was quite intriguing. The article was about Raymond Berry. Raymond was a scrawny kid. One leg was shorter than the other. His feet and hands were big and he wore glasses. Because of his deficiencies, he had to work harder than his teammates in order to play well. So while they partied, he studied game plays from NFL players. He wrote down their every move, went to the field and practiced their moves again and again until they were perfected. Later, he was selected to play for the Baltimore Colts as their wide receiver. After making the team, he didn’t say, “I did it” and then relax. Instead he worked harder. Each night after everyone went home, he and Johnny Unitas, the quarterback, would go out to the field and practice. In 1958, his team played in the NFL Championship game which was known as the “Greatest Game Ever Played”. In that game, Raymond made a championship record catch of 12 passes and a touchdown which led his overtime team into victory. After this successful game, he again didn’t say, “I made my goal. It’s time to take a break.” Rather, he worked even harder to improve himself. At the end of his football playing career, he held an NFL record of 631 receptions and 68 touchdowns and made the Pro Football Hall of Fame. But at the end, he again didn’t say, “I did it. I’m through. Time to retire.” Instead he went on to become the head coach of the New England Patriots where he led the team into two playoffs in the Super Bowl.
So, why am I telling you a football story on Sunday? It’s because Raymond Berry is a great example of what Nehemiah did after completing the wall of Jerusalem. After rebuilding it, Nehemiah didn’t take a break. When most people complete something, they either stop growing or go downhill. Michael Jackson is one such person. At the age of 11, Michael started his music career. In the late 1980’s, he began to write many popular songs, such as “Thriller” and “Bad”. Then in 1989, he was presented with an artist of the decade award and was proclaimed as “the true king of pop, rock and soul.” All the way up to the year 2000, he grew. He clearly could have kept on growing. He is such a talented man. However, in 2002, he began his downfall. He was blamed for child molestation and began having many financial difficulties.
In today’s passage however, we learn a very important lesson. No matter what, we must never stop growing! Why is this? It’s because God made man to always grow. Genesis 1:27 tells us that God made man in His own image. This means we must grow to God’s image. In Matthew 5:48, Jesus said, “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Of course, we can never be perfect. That’s why we must find a way to keep on growing until the day we die.
So what did Nehemiah do after completing the wall? How did he keep on growing? Nehemiah 7 tells us three things.
1. He appointed leaders (vs. 1-3)
2. He registered the people (vs. 4-69)
3. He asked for financial support (vs. 70-73)
First, Nehemiah appoints leaders (1-3).
Verse 1 says, “After the wall had been rebuilt and I had set the doors in place, the gatekeepers and the singers and the Levites were appointed.” The walls of protection had been built and the gates had been put in place. The city was fortified. But it was still in danger of being attacked. Nehemiah needed to find a way to protect what he had worked so hard to build. So he appointed gatekeepers who would watch the gates and open and close them at the proper time. At Sam’s Club, in order to get in, you need to show your member’s card. Once, while I waited by the door for my wife, the card checker person stepped inside for a few minutes. At that moment, anyone could have gotten in. But as I stood there, people thought I was the card checker person and they began showing me their cards. Because I thought it was pretty cool, I pretended that I was. I would look at their cards, look at them closely and then nod my head signaling that they could go in.
Like Nehemiah, we also need to guard the things that we have worked so hard build. This could be anything. Our jobs, bank accounts, school studies, church ministries, marriages, friends, and even our lives of faith. If we don’t guard these things, we are in danger of losing them. Verse 3 says, “I said to them, ‘The gates of Jerusalem are not to be opened until the sun is hot. While the gatekeepers are still on duty, have them shut the doors and bar them. Also appoint residents of Jerusalem as guards, some at their posts and some near their own houses.’" Nehemiah’s enemies were Sanballat and Tobiah who wanted to destroy the wall and Nehemiah. But ultimately his enemy was the devil. 1 Peter 5:8 says, “Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” Satan really wants to destroy what we have worked so hard to gain. He wants to destroy our families. He wants to destroy our schools. He wants to destroy our friendships, church ministries, and our lives of faith. But we must not let him. But how can we? Proverbs 4:23 says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” Psalm 28:7 says, “The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him…” And Jesus said in John 10:9, “I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved.” The best way we can guard what we have worked so hard to build is by trusting in God and by asking Jesus Christ to come into our hearts. When we do, then they will become our gatekeepers and will protect us from Satan. May God help you to accept Jesus Christ as your gatekeeper into your heart today.
Look at verse 2. It says, “I put in charge of Jerusalem my brother Hanani, along with Hananiah the commander of the citadel, because he was a man of integrity and feared God more than most men do.” Nehemiah put in charge of Jerualaem his brother Hanani, along with Hananiah. Nehemiah was the prime minister to the king of Persia. He could have ruled Jerusalem with absolute authority saying, “I built it. This city is mine and all the people belong to me. Now do as I say!” Most people who are given positions of authority do this. In 1971, Stanford conducted a behavioral experiment on two groups of people. The first group was appointed to be prison guards while the other group was appointed to be the prisoners. They were to be studied for several days. But shortly after beginning, the prison guards took advantage of their position and began abusing the prisoners, so the experiment had to be stopped. Nehemiah however was not this way. He knew that the only way to grow the city was to entrust and delegate his leadership to others. This isn’t always easy to do, mainly because we think we can do it better. Before we had this beautiful church building, we had an old rundown building. The old building needed many renovations. Once while I was fixing up the outside entrance into the basement, a friend of mine, Dr. Harvey Siy, asked if he could help. But thinking that I could do it better than he could, I said “No”. Then he said, “Now I know why no one helps you.”
In this chapter we see Nehemiah appointing all kinds of people. He appointed gatekeepers, singers, Levites, a mayor, a sheriff, priests, and temple servants. Because he entrusted his leadership to others, his city grew. At the beginning of his career, Sam Walton, the founder of Wal-Mart, had a few department stores. Wanting to grow his business, his asked his managers if they wanted to become his business partners by investing and overseeing their own stores. This was a great risk he was taking. But excited by the opportunity, the managers took ownership of the stores and worked hard. As a result, by 1962, Sam Walton and his brother owned a total 16 stores in three states. Later, they grew to be one of the most powerful department stores in history. This is the secret of growth. We must entrust our leadership to others and we must accept the opportunity to lead when it is given to us.
Here at our West Loop church, we’re praying to grow to 1000 members and to establish 100 couples. How can we do this? – By entrusting and appointing leaders. Recently we have established two teams: A worship service team and an outreach team. The worship service team are those who try to make our worship service attractive and worshipful. They are our praise band, our 6 pastors, the audio/visual team, and the worship leader. The outreach team, which was just formed last week, are those who try to find a way to invite students and people from our community to come to our church. This past week they made lollipops and put Bible verses on them and handed them out to students as they went to take their final exams. If any of you would like to join any of these two teams, please sign up. If you have a great idea, let us know. If you like to sing, to act, to dance, or even to clean, please let us know. Let’s work together to continually grow and build our West Loop ministry for the glory of God.
Second, Nehemiah registers the people (4-69).
Verses 4 and 5 say, “Now the city was large and spacious, but there were few people in it, and the houses had not yet been rebuilt. So my God put it into my heart to assemble the nobles, the officials and the common people for registration by families. I found the genealogical record of those who had been the first to return. This is what I found written there.” This section is extremely long. But it’s beautiful, because in it we find Nehemiah who continually finds a way to grow his city.
Everything had been completed except for the houses. The job was done. It was time for Nehemiah to go back to Persia. But wait! Nehemiah wasn’t ready to go back. There was a problem lingering in his heart - The city was large and spacious, but only a few people were in it. Most people might be satisfied with this saying, “I’ve done my job, time to go home.” So many people today are satisfied with a mediocre life. This past week UIC students finished their exams. What next? Is it time to go home and relax and enjoy the summer? Each day when parents finish their job at work, they go home. Instead of doing something when they get home, I heard that many of them just plop down on the couch, turn the TV on, play XBOX or surf the net all night long. But when Nehemiah finished rebuilding the wall, he wanted to do more. He wanted to find a way to keep on growing. What did he do?
Look again at verse 5. It says, “So my God put it into my heart to assemble the nobles, the officials and the common people for registration by families.” God helped Nehemiah to register all the people by families. What was the point of this? After registering the people, Nehemiah knew everyone who was in the city. He knew the first ones who returned from the exile (6-7). He knew the families and how many were in each family (8-38). He knew the priests (3-42), the Levites (43), the singers (44), the gatekeepers (45), the temple servants (46-56), the descendants of the servants of king Solomon (57-59). He even knew those who couldn’t prove that they were descendants of Israel (61-64). By writing down everyone’s name, Nehemiah made them feel truly valued and appreciated for who they are. Our true value as human beings is not really based on what we do, but it’s based on who we are.
Jesus is the best example of one who values us for who we are, not what we do. Once, after arriving in the region of the Gerasenes, Jesus was met by a man who was possessed by 6,000 demons. Upon meeting him, Jesus didn’t say, “You horrible sinful man. What did you do to make you possessed by so many demons?” But rather, Jesus gently asked him, “What is your name?” Jesus valued this man for who he was, not for what he had become. Then Jesus drove out his demons. Immediately after this, this man wanted to follow Jesus for the rest of his life. He felt so valued and loved by Jesus (Mk 5). Another time, when Jesus was sitting at a well, a woman came up to the well to draw some water. This lady had lived a sinful life. She had been married 5 times and was now living with a man whom she had not yet even married. Upon seeing her, Jesus didn’t rebuke her saying, “You sinful woman! What’s wrong with you? Repent!” Instead, Jesus valued her as who she was. After a long and meaningful conversation with her, this woman repented of her sins, accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior, and began to tell her whole town what Jesus had done for her. After telling them, many more became believers (Jn 4:1-42).
I have known Dr. Ben for about 13 years now. Even though I’m much younger than he is and not even his son, I know how much he loves and cares for me as though I am his son and even one of his closest friends. Dr. Ben knows me. He has encouraged me to grow, to be a man, to be a father, and to be a friend. Because of his love, I want to co-work with him in growing our West Loop ministry. Everyone wants to be loved and accepted as who they are not what they do. Let’s genuinely love and accept UIC students. Let’s genuinely love and accept our own children. Let’s genuinely love and accept our family and friends. Through our love, they will be encouraged to accept Jesus and will be encouraged to grow.
Third, Nehemiah’s asked for financial support (70-72).
Finally, to grow the city, Nehemiah needed financial support. He wanted to restore the temple, but he couldn’t do it on his own. So he set the example by giving 270 ounces of gold, 50 ceremonial bowls, and 530 robes for the priests. After this, the heads of families gave their gifts. Then finally, the rest of the people gave their offerings. They were moved to see that Nehemiah himself, the one who led the project from beginning to the end, was the first to give his offering and it was the most. Nehemiah didn’t do this for recognition or to look proud or for people to say, “Look at him.” But he did it because of his love for God. The people recognized this and they also gave to God willingly. The total amount of money given was more than 5 million dollars in today’s terms. The point is, God is pleased when we give to him what we have. He doesn’t ask for much. God only asks for a 10th of what we have. But when we give, God always gives twice that amount back to us.
In this passage we learned that we must never stop growing. But how can we? Do you remember what Nehemiah did after he completed rebuilding the wall? He appointed leaders. He registered the people. And he asked for help. What about you? What can you do? The possibilities are limitless. You can volunteer for something. You can initiate a project. You can entrust someone with your leadership. You can sing, dance, join our outreach team, or invite your friends to join our Sunday service. Bill Gates once said, “At Microsoft there are lots of brilliant ideas but the image is that they all come from the top - I'm afraid that's not quite right.” God made all of us to grow and we must find a way to keep growing after our wall has been built.