We’ve approached the Book of Nehemiah, and the building of the walls as a visual aid, a parable for the building up of the life and mission of the Church. It’s been amazing to learn about Jesus, and to see how He builds His Church, in spite of our sinfulness, and in spite of the opposition to His great project from without and within. In Neh.8 the parable becomes most transparent, the visual aid, and the reality to which it points synchronise.
At this key moment in the project of rebuilding the life of Jerusalem, Nehemiah brings Ezra out of retirement for one last monstrous preaching effort. We often assume that preaching is a cultural hang-over from a time when the world was used to sustained monologues. That leaves us with the uneasy feeling that perhaps there are more ‘culturally appropriate’ methods of engaging with Scripture today? ...that maybe the days of preaching are gone, or should be gone? This is of course patent nonsense. Preaching – in the context of the Church’s worship (Neh.8:6) - is a God-ordained means for the building of the life and mission of the Church. It has always been God’s preferred delivery system for His Word into the life of His people. To put it another way, the Bible is designed to be preached!
Which is not to say God doesn’t speak through His Word in other ways. We’ve all experienced God speaking through His Word in our own personal reading and in smaller groups… BUT, His key way, and the way that legitimises and shapes and informs all other ways, the way God wants His word delivered into the life of the Church is through preaching. The Church’s interaction with the Scriptures can be more than, but never less than, the Word of God being preached!
It is not a coincidence that every revival in Church history has focussed on a revival of preaching (the one notable exception in Wales 1904-6, was arguably a disaster from which the Church in Wales has not yet fully recovered). In 1934, Duncan Campbell noted the ‘eager attention with which young and old listened to the preaching of the Word’. This was also an emphasis of one of the greatest revivals of all, the Reformation. The Church of England – seen by many on the continent as the ‘jewel of the Reformation’ – grasped this when it named preaching as a defining feature of the Church: ‘The visible church of Christ is a congregation of believers in which the pure Word of God is preached...’.
And so, as we work our way through Nehemiah, that is so explicitly focussed on the question of building the Church, of course the epicentre of the book will be about the preaching of the Word of God, ‘making it clear and giving the meaning so that the people understood what was being read’ (Neh.8:8).
Questions:
If this is true (and that might be something you’d want to discuss in your groups), what do we make of Churches where preaching isn’t a priority for either the minister or the congregation?
How important is it to you that you hear the Scriptures preached?
Why do you think that the evening service (where preaching has a greater emphasis in the service) is so poorly attended at MIE?
Why is it so dangerous to start a discussion about a Bible passage with the question: What does this mean to me? How can we make sure that our Homegroup discussions are connected to the preaching at MIE?
One Reformer, in a sermon on II Tim.1:1, said: “It is certain that if we come into a church we shall not hear only a mortal man speaking, but we shall feel (even by His secret power) that God is speaking to our souls, that He is the Preacher”. Is that your experience of listening to preaching? Why do you think that is?
Do you think we should publically read the Scriptures in the same sustained way that Ezra does (8:3)?
What characterises the congregation (8:3, 6, 9, 16)? How can we cultivate this attitude at MIE? What is the responsibility of the preacher? And what is the responsibility of the congregation?
Why do you think the people’s response is so confused, and as it turns out, inappropriate (8:9-11)? Do you think there are always appropriate and inappropriate ways to respond to the Word preached?
We can read about the Festivals being marked in Lev.23:23-44 (note the dating in Neh.8:2). What are these festivals (trumpets, atonement and tabernacles / tents) designed to teach the people? Why does this result in such great joy (Neh.8:17)?
How should all this translate into our own experience of worship and discipleship?
Why not spend some time praying for those who share in the preaching and teaching ministry throughout MIE?
