Epiphany III, Cycle C

"This Day Is Holy to the Lord Your God—and to You!"

January 24, 2010

The Rev. Dr. David M. Wendel

Saint Luke's Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs

Lessons: Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10; I Corinthians 12:12-14, 27; St. Luke 4:14-21

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Let it be said after today, you have heard a sermon preached on the Book of Nehemiah! It may be your one and only sermon ever preached on Nehemiah, but I just don't see how we could come to worship today, and not spend a little time hearing about, and considering Nehemiah and the people of Jerusalem and Judea, gathered for worship at the so-called Water Gate in the wall that was being built around the rebuilt Temple and the city of Jerusalem as it was being restored. So, let's begin with some history.

As you know, Solomon's Temple, and the city of Jerusalem was laid waste by the Babylonians in 587 B.C., after several years of conquest. The temple and city were destroyed to demoralize the people, as their leaders, civil and religious were being carted off into exile in Babylon. This was the strategy of the Babylonians—remove the people from the land, destroy their homes and civic and religious facilities so that there will be no reason for the people to want to return—so that they will be quickly assimilated in their new home. That's how it worked for most peoples and nations conquered by the Babylonians. But that's not how it worked for the Jews. For there was a connection to Jerusalem that was greater than expected, for God had given the Jews this land and this city, and had commanded the Temple to be built, so that you could take the Israelites out of their homeland, but you couldn't take the homeland out of the Israelites—which we have seen continuously throughout history, until the state of Israel was restored as a result of the Holocaust. While in exile the Jews continued to yearn for a return to their spiritual home, Jerusalem, and for the chance to rebuild the Temple, the place of the Lord God's presence among his people. And though it took decades, finally, Cyrus the King of Assyria, who conquered the Babylonians, allowed the Jews to return in 538 B.C., and in fact re-constructed the Temple, beginning in 536 B.C. It wasn't finished until 516 B.C., under the reign of the Persian emperor Darius I, at the urging of Haggai and Zechariah. However, having the Temple completed, didn't mean the city was completely rebuilt, and it was Nehemiah, a Jew who had risen to risen to prominence and authority in the Persian Empire, who implored the King Artaxerxes to allow him to go to Jerusalem and rebuild the wall around the Temple and city, so that it might be protected as the city of the Lord God continued to be rebuilt in the future. And Artaxerxes allowed Nehemiah to go, giving him letters for safe passage, as well as letters for him to acquire the materials needed for the rebuilding of the city walls. And the fortress of the city walls was completed by Nehemiah and the returned exiles—according to Nehemiah's count, 42,360 people, besides their male and female servants, of whom there were 7, 337. And on the first day of the seventh month, Nehemiah gathered all these people, the whole assembly before the Water Gate, which led from the city down to the Gihon Spring, where residents went to get water. And they met there because there was a large square, a large open space where all 50,000 or so could gather.

Why? To have a service of worship, in which Nehemiah would have the priest Ezra read from the Scriptures, the Law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could hear with understanding, as we read in our first lesson. The fact is, the Lord had commanded that on the first day of the seventh month of the year, there was to be a holy day, called the Feast of Trumpets, in accordance with the commandment to remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy. The Lord God's people were to observe a Sabbath Day of worship each week, but they were also to keep a Sabbath month—so that there was this ongoing cycle of worship, weekly, but also yearly, with the seventh month being a time for the corporate reading of Scripture, and for interpretation or preaching, and for prayer. And then, this Feast of Trumpets, was to begin the longer festival of Tabernacles.

And our lesson describes for us the worship of the people—of all God's faithful people rejoicing that they had been returned from exile, that their Temple was rebuilt and sacrifices resumed, and now, the city wall was rebuilt, and manned, so that they would be protected from future attacks. And we are told that Ezra brought the Torah, the combined five books of the Laws of Moses before the assembly, and he read from it facing the square before the Water Gate, from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and women who could understand, and the ears of all the people were attentive to the book of the Law. And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was standing above all the people, and when he opened it, all the people stood up. Then Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people answered, "Amen, Amen", lifting up their hands. Then they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. So they read from the book, from the Law of God, with preaching. The priests gave the sense of the texts so that the people understood the reading. 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 had wept when 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 of them to them who have nothing, for this day is holy to our Lord; and do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength!"

And why are we spending so much time on this, today? Why would we care about Nehemiah, and the Jews, in 445 B.C.? Because here we see how God's people are to observe the Sabbath, and how we are to respect and revere God's Word, and how our Sabbath is not to be a day for ourselves, or our own leisure pursuits, but a day for the Lord, in which there is no mourning or weeping, except when we weep for joy at the hearing of the words of the Scriptures. And we are to feast, and celebrate the goodness of the Lord God, and how He has delivered us, and redeemed us—sharing what we have with those who have none, so that all may participate in the joy of the Lord, who is our strength!

The truth is, in western Christianity, our Sabbath, the Lord's Day has largely lost its significance for us, as we squeeze in an hour for worship only occasionally, when it's convenient, because hey, it's the socially acceptable thing to do—to show up for church now and then. We should learn something from our Lord, whom we hear about in our Gospel reading, when Jesus went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, as was his custom! It was Jesus' custom to worship on the Sabbath in the synagogue, and on this particular day in the synagogue in Nazareth, Jesus was asked to read from the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. And Jesus read, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because He has anointed me to bring good news to the poor, to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." And then Jesus added, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."

And that wasn't just then, it's also now, as Jesus continues to come to the synagogue on the Sabbath, as He, himself shows up here, in our sanctuary, week after week, to proclaim the Scriptures to us, and to announce, once again, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." Jesus assures us that when we come to this synagogue on the Sabbath, when His Word is proclaimed, in our midst, the Scriptures will be fulfilled in our hearing! Good news will be brought to the poor and downhearted; release will be proclaimed to those who are living in bondage; the blind will see, and the oppressed will go free—as we receive the Lord's favor! And all this will happen—in our hearing! As we hear the Word of God proclaimed in our hearing!

But to hear, we must be here! Nehemiah gathered all the people of Jerusalem together for worship, and there, in their hearing, the Word of God was proclaimed, and they heard; those with ears were attentive to the reading of God's Holy Book; and when Ezra opened the book, the people all stood, in respect—and they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. Oh, that we Lutherans would once again so revere the Word of God, the Law and the Gospel, that when it is read in our hearing, we might listen with attentive ears, and bow our heads and worship the Lord with our faces to the ground. In many homes, the Word of God is treated like an accessory, placed upon a table or stand to gather dust—rarely opened or read. In many churches, the Bible is thrown around like a cheap romance novel, with little respect or reverence shown to it. I make no apologies for the way we carry the book of God's Word in procession, lifting it high as we proclaim, "The Word of the Lord"! In fact, I look for more ways that we might lift up God's Word, celebrating His Word in our midst, emphasizing that it is not "man's book" to do with as we please, but God's Word, given to us through His Holy Spirit, speaking to us with authority and truth—to guide our lives, to shape and transform our world, to give us life and hope and joy. And that's why it's so good for us, so encouraging for us, so uplifting for us to hear about Nehemiah, and Ezra, and the Jews returned from exile, gathering around the Scriptures, celebrating God's Word, with respect and reverence, as they come together for Sabbath worship—not grieved, not mourning or weeping, but knowing, knowing that the joy of the Lord, is your strength! For today, and every Sunday, this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing!

And could it be, then, the example of Nehemiah and Ezra and the Jews, might renew out commitment to the Word of God, in church, but also in our homes, in our daily lives? Might we begin to hunger and thirst for the Word of God, and the Word made flesh, in the Sacrament of the Altar? Must we succumb to the increasing secularism of the culture surrounding us, so that we ignore and sideline God's Word, as do the unbelievers and the unconverted? Because God has given us His Holy Word, let us, in this new year, restore God's Word to its proper place, in our church, and in our lives—that we attend to it, and listen to it, and follow it, and give it at least one day in our week—when there is no mourning or weeping, but feasting, and celebrating this day that is holy to the Lord—because indeed, the joy of the Lord is our strength!

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.