I’m still feeling a bit fresh off of NYR, the youth retreat for high school students. There’s a lot I’d like to share about that, but we have a lot of ground to cover today, so I’ll save it for another time.
While at NYR, one of the preachers shared the story of a man named Rick Rescorla. Rick was a brave soldier who served in Vietnam, fighting at the battles in the Idrang Valley near the Cambodian border. He was well-known in combat for his ability to inspire strength and courage in the soldiers around him.
How did he do it? In the middle of a battle, he would boisterously sing as he ran from foxhole to foxhole, checking on his men and delivering much-needed supplies. One of his men recalled sitting in his hole with his knees knocking, surrounded by his dead comrades and some of the dead enemy. Then, here comes Rick, singing his songs. Pretty soon, that soldier found himself thinking, “If this guy can walk from foxhole to foxhole, checking to see if I have my grenades in the right place, making sure we have magazines, and standing up and singing like he’s going for a Sunday afternoon stroll, what do I have to be worried about?”
Years later, Rick would sing his songs again to calm those fighting for their lives and give them the courage to move and fight. This time, however, it wasn’t on a foreign battlefield, but in the place he called home: New York City. In his later years, he had become the director of security at Morgan Stanley, which was located in the South Tower of the World Trade Center.
On September 11, 2001, after the collapse of the North Tower, Rick began to evacuate the South Tower, going against the orders of the Port Authority. The instructions over the loudspeakers were that the building was secure and people should stay put, but Rick knew better. With his megaphone in hand, he entered the stairwell and went floor by floor, commanding his colleagues to move and to move quickly. For some of them, the fear was overwhelming, and they struggled to put one foot in front of the other. But many recalled finding the courage when the stairwell filled with song—Rick was singing again, and the people kept moving.
He escorted 2,681 Morgan Stanley employees out of the South Tower. When everyone said, “Rick, your folks are accounted for. You’ve done what you needed to do,” Rick just motioned toward the stairwell. There were still people unaccounted for. Rick was last seen in that fateful stairwell, making his way up for a final sweep for Morgan Stanley employees. But the South Tower would collapse before his mission was complete. His voice would stop singing, and his body was never found.
Rick’s wife said about his sacrifice that he had a choice to make. He could have walked out of those buildings anytime he wanted to, but he chose not to. He chose to stay. He chose to do and give “whatever it takes.”
That’s our theme for this year as a church. As we gather around God’s Word on Sunday mornings, we’re trying to give Him our best. We’re trying to commit to doing “whatever it takes.” So, I wanted to start with an encouragement this morning: keep thinking that way. Keep living that way. And, dare I say, keep risking for God and each other that way. And if you can’t say “keep” because you haven’t started, then today is the day.
Let’s pray.
Father, we thank You once again for being with us as we gather here this morning. We ask for Your help once again as we turn to Your Word, to be built up and to receive strength and courage to continue to do and to give You whatever it takes. And Father, may You be glorified in what is learned here this morning, in the way our hearts are changed, in the way our lives are transformed, and in our worship as well. It’s in Your Son’s name that we pray. Amen.
Seeing the Unseen Throne
I mentioned that Rick’s story was shared at NYR, and his was a powerful story, but the theme for the week was powerful, too. The theme was “Eyes on the Throne,” which comes from Hebrews 12:2. Here’s what that verse says:
“…looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”
This is a good segue into our message this morning. You see, this throne can’t be seen with our natural eyes. You could go outside and stare up at the sky and you would miss it. You could use binoculars or the world’s most powerful telescope and you would still miss it. There is but one place you can turn to see and know this throne, and it’s here, in this divine book.
This book, the Bible, allows you and me to see differently. It allows us to see and be in such a way that we walk by faith and not by sight, as 2 Corinthians 5:7 says. It allows us to be thoroughly equipped for every good work, as scripture says in 2 Timothy 3:16-17. It allows us to see and be in such a way as to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with our God, according to Micah 6:8.
As I see it, His Word is all about directing our gaze to His throne. Without it, the throne might as well be non-existent. God’s plan was that “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” John said, “We have seen his glory.” John was talking about something he had seen, but we weren’t there to see it. So, “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” is part of the story. But now, the Word is what we have.
The book of Hebrews begins this way:
“Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.”
His Son has spoken, and we hold those words in our hands. We have, I think most of us would agree with this, very tender thoughts about Jesus. A lot of us probably think about what it would be like if He would come back and walk beside us in life, gently correcting and consoling and counseling and calling us. But if the Word became flesh and now what we have is the Word once again, when we hold this book, He might as well be right here with us, correcting and consoling and counseling and calling.
We have very tender thoughts about Jesus… or do we? Do we, if we take His Word and leave it or let it go?
That’s exactly what seems to have happened in Nehemiah chapter 8. God’s people have been distracted for some time. Their eyes are no longer on His Word and, therefore, no longer on His throne. The same can happen to us. I would venture to say that today, more than ever, distractions abound. We live in a time where the dominant ethos is abandoning words and learning for pictures and entertainment.
A Call to “Impressive Togetherness”
Neil Postman proved to be prophetic in the 70s and 80s when he suggested that a citizenry that reads becomes serious, but one that devours the food of television and entertainment becomes silly. And we’ve seen some of that silliness play out in modern times. Nearly all the content we consume—whether political, spiritual, or educational—must be performed for us.
Combine that with, as one author puts it, the rise of an “expressive individualism,” which has us turning away from external authority and toward the authority of self. You can see that we’re in serious trouble if we don’t do something. The author goes on to recognize this ethos as the source of some of our popular slogans today: “You do you,” “Stay true to yourself,” “Follow your heart,” and “Find yourself.” He says, “When self-expression rises to prominence, authority becomes suspect and sin disappears.”
Herein lies the dilemma: keeping our eyes on the throne has everything to do with realizing true authority, and it’s not you, and it’s not me. It also has to do with recognizing the sin that impairs our vision and our ability to see and recognize that true authority, the authority of God.
Scripture says this in Psalm 100:3: “Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his.” That’s an incredible truth, but a simple one that flies in the face of our current ethos, especially for younger people. More and more, we go online to social media, and there, as Jen Pollock puts it, “we try to make a whole new self and sometimes lose a soul along the way.”
All of that to stress the importance in our day and time of His divine Word when it comes to keeping our eyes on the throne.
It appears that in Nehemiah chapter 8, God’s people have been distracted by some of their material needs. They needed a wall and now they have it. With their physical needs met, they once again turn their attention to the spiritual. And for that need, where else should they turn but to the book?
In Nehemiah chapter 8, we see God’s people do three things as it concerns His Word—three proper responses to God’s Word, whether it’s read or preached. These are our responses still to this day. But first, a little bit of context. The first verse starts this way: “And all the people gathered…”
Remember the ethos of our day is one of expressive individualism, but what we see here in Nehemiah chapter 8 is something different. I’ll call it “impressive togetherness.” In this chapter of 18 verses, some 19 to 20 times is the collective pursuit of God through His Word mentioned. That’s an emphasis on impressive togetherness. We see phrases like “all the people,” “the assembly,” “in the presence of men and women and those who could understand,” and “all the assembly.” Over and over again, the context here is togetherness.
Sure, in a day and time when we have the blessing of God’s Word in physical form or on our phones, we have that luxury, and personal Bible study is important. But so is the opening, searching, and studying of God’s Word as a community of His people. So as we begin to talk about His Word and how we should learn it, love it, and live it, don’t forget this is something that we should strive to do together. It’s the emphasis of Nehemiah chapter 8 and much of the New Testament.
Let’s turn to Nehemiah chapter 8. We’ll read the first eight verses.
Verse 1: “And all the people gathered as one man into the square before the Watergate. And they told Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the Law of Moses that the Lord had commanded Israel.”
Verse 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.”
Verse 3: “And he read from it facing the square before the Watergate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and women and those who could understand. And the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law.”
Verse 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. And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people answered, ‘Amen! Amen!’ lifting their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.”
Verse 8: “They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly, and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading.”
As Ezra reads the Law, we’ll see all the people respond in several ways.
1. Learn It: A Process of Discovery
First, they care to learn it. Here we see words like understand, attentive, and clearly. The goal can’t simply be “information for the nation,” but rather the transformation of the nation. This is why understanding is required.
Hearing and understanding were important to Jesus. In Matthew 13:23, He explains the parable of the sower and says, “As for what was sown on the good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.” Understanding who He is and where He is leading is what God wanted for His people then and now when they turn to His Word.
And Ezra seems to be the perfect person to lead the way. In Ezra 7:10, we learn something is different about him. It says, “For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the Lord, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel.” We see that Ezra embraced the need to study and understand and to do what God said, especially if he was to lead God’s people in God’s direction.
If you and I likewise set our hearts to study the Law of the Lord and to be doers of His Word, we can teach His statutes and rules. We can teach them in our homes, in our neighborhoods, in our schools, in our workplaces, in our prisons, and even in our sufferings.
Notice a simple pattern in these verses, which I think we can follow as we seek to be God’s people. Concerning the book:
- First, Ezra picked it up. He had it and he knew where it was.
- Second, he popped it open. It wasn’t good enough to just have it, but to be interactive with it. And the people honored it as the very words of God, not just another book, as they stood in its presence.
- Next, Ezra poured it out. He didn’t keep it to himself but rather shared it. He read it with his people, as it was meant to be shared. The sharing of His Word is among the most beautiful things we can do and see in this world.
- Finally, Ezra probed its depth. He does his best to explain things and help people to understand. Again, the emphasis on understanding here signals that the goal is not just information but transformation. God’s Word is unlike any other book. It’s light to our path. It’s bread for the soul.
So the process isn’t difficult. When it comes to God’s Word, we must learn it. That looks like this: pick it up, pop it open, pour it out, and probe its depth.
2. Love It: From Mourning to Rejoicing
Going back to Nehemiah chapter 8, let’s look at verse 9:
“And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people, said to all the people, ‘This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep.’ For all the people wept as they heard the words of the Law. Then he said to them, ‘Go your way, eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord; and do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.’ So the Levites calmed all the people, saying, ‘Be quiet, for this is holy; do not be grieved.’ And all the people went their way to eat and drink and to send portions and to make great rejoicing, because they had understood the words that were declared to them.”
The first response to God’s Word is to learn it. Next, we see that they love it. That is to say, they rejoice in it—at least eventually they do.
As Ezra begins to read, I think two things initially happen in the hearts and minds of the people: their eyes are being opened to the will of God. And so they begin to see and feel both the conviction and the cost of God’s Word being preached.
Conviction is the pricking of the conscience. We see it happen in that first gospel sermon preached by Peter in Acts 2:37. After the people heard the gospel preached, it says they were “cut to the heart” and said to Peter and the apostles, “What must we do?” God uses His Word, His promises, His wisdom, and His truth to begin to soften hearts of stone and make them hearts of flesh that beat for Him. That process—that heart surgery, if you will—it hurts a little bit.
Not only are people weeping because the conviction hurts, but also, I think, because they realize the cost involved. God’s Word has a way of showing us the trades we ought to make. And those trades hurt, too. As a Cardinals fan, I remember when Albert Pujols left St. Louis. It hurt, but it was best for the team.
As Ezra is preaching, there’s no doubt that the people are faced with how they’ve traded the things of God for the things of the world. When the Word is preached here every Sunday, in some way, shape, or form, we are being called to trade in our idols, our lies, our insecurities, our attitudes, our hobbies, and our plans. Those trades hurt because those are things we know.
The pain of this process is seen clearly in Matthew 19 when Jesus encounters the rich young ruler. He was ready to add one more thing to his list of good deeds, but Jesus didn’t ask him to do one more thing so much as to give one more thing. When Jesus asked him to trade his treasure on earth for treasure in heaven, we read in Matthew 19:22, “When the young man heard this, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.” The trades God calls His people to make then and now, they hurt. But those trades are more than worth it.
His Word convicts and it costs, but it brings about repentance and it gives life. This discipline is proof that God loves us. And so, ultimately, they’re called to rejoice.
Psalm 119:162 says, “I rejoice at your word like one who finds great spoil.” In biblical times, people used to bury their wealth in jars in fields. What would sometimes happen is someone would die, that field would be sold, and a new farmer would be plowing along and dig up this incredible treasure. You can imagine the dancing and singing and rejoicing that would come when that treasure was uncovered. In the same way, each time we go to God’s Word, and it’s read or preached and studied, treasures are uncovered. Do we rejoice as if that’s the case? Can we say what the psalmist said earlier in Psalm 119:111: “Your testimonies are my heritage forever, for they are the joy of my heart.”
3. Live It: A People of “The Way”
God’s Word is preached, and the people learn it and they love it. And now we see their final response is to live it.
Verse 13: “On the second day, the heads of fathers’ houses of all the people, with the priests and the Levites, came together to Ezra the scribe in order to study the words of the Law. And they found it written in the Law that the Lord had commanded by Moses that the people of Israel should dwell in booths during the feast of the seventh month… So the people went out and brought them and made booths for themselves each on his roof… And all the assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made booths and lived in booths. For from the days of Jeshua the son of Nun to that day the people of Israel had not done so.”
It appears as though this Feast of Booths had not been celebrated in accordance with God’s Word for some time. But now they’ve heard this good news, and immediately they do it. They apply it to life. Not only do they obey, but all of them obey together. Verse 17 says, “All the assembly of those who had returned from captivity obeyed the words of God concerning this feast.”
Hearing God’s Word is not enough. It’s the start of something, but obedience is the intended result. In this moment, they enjoy obedience. It’s a good reminder for us to appreciate that God gives us clear direction in our pursuits of Him. Following Him isn’t some blind game of Marco Polo, but rather a well-plotted path thanks to the gift of His Word.
This gift is the way that we know Him specifically. It’s the way we know the plans He has for us. It’s the way we take hold of His promises. It’s the way we become His children. It’s the way we are to live and find true freedom.
In the book of Acts, Christ’s followers are often referred to as “people of the Way.” You’ll remember that Saul persecuted those of “the Way” in Acts 9. This reference probably originates from two facts:
- Jesus Himself in John 14:6 says that He is “the way, and the truth, and the life.” He said He’s the only way to the Father.
- Jesus taught about a couple of different ways a person could travel through life. In Matthew 7, He said, “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.”
Jesus says there’s an easy way and a hard way. And the hard way is the way that leads to life. So, what do we need? We need a guide, an instruction manual if you will, to help us walk the narrow way. Ultimately, this reference to early Christians as being “people of the Way” was a recognition that these people were different. They loved different and lived different because of the way that was spelled out for them in God’s Word as taught by Jesus and the prophets and the apostles.
The Bayonet of His Word
This picture is on the cover of a book I read a long time ago, “We Were Soldiers Once… and Young.” It tells the story of the battles of LZ X-Ray and LZ Albany in the Idrang Valley, a battle that took place in the Vietnam conflict. This is a picture of Rick Rescorla, much younger then.
I’d like for you to look at the photo closely. There isn’t much background or context, but the trained eye understands the story told here. I asked a group of our servicemen what detail is most telling about this photograph. Kevin P. responded this way: “Vietnam era M16 at low ready with fixed bayonet, finger not near the trigger. I’d say this soldier is preparing for CQB, close-quarters combat.”
That’s the detail to notice in this picture: the fixed bayonet, a sign that this soldier, Rick Rescorla, was in the heart of a fight for his life and the lives of his comrades. I wonder, what’s the detail in the photograph of your life that proves you’re in the fight, in the heart of the fight, in a fight for your life and the lives of those you love?
Maybe this is that detail. And with it, just like with a bayonet, you have a fighting chance. Without it, we perish.
The way I see it, Nehemiah chapter 8 is a heartwarming scene. You’ve got God’s Word being learned and loved and lived. But it’s also a battle scene. Ezra and Nehemiah are preparing God’s people for the battles ahead.
And so are you. When, like Ezra, you take God’s Word and you pick it up, pop it open, pour it out, and probe its depth. Remember that scripture says our battle isn’t against flesh and blood. So praise God for this kind of bayonet, for that kind of battle.
Daypring, what do you say? Let’s do whatever it takes to learn it, to love it, and to live it—the Word of God. Let’s pray.
Father, we’re grateful that You’ve left us such a gift, Your Word, and that it’s such a help. It’s a help for us in good times. It’s a help for us in bad times. And it’s a help, Father, that we turn to together each and every Sunday morning. I pray that You would keep that commitment to You and Your Word and each other at the forefront of our lives. And Father, I’m excited as I think about going into the future with such a gift like Your Word and the transformation that will take place in us individually and in us as a church. Father, thank you for caring and loving us and giving this incredible gift to Your people. It’s in Your Son’s name I pray. Amen.