Wise Master Builder #18 | A Tightrope

Introduction 

A tightrope routine only works if the line is securely fastened between two poles which stand opposite each other. The Christian life has many such tensions. One in particular is brought into view by this text. On one side we have the joy of God’s gracious forgiveness of all our sins, on the other we have the godly sorrow which our sin should bring about. If you detach from one pole you end up with glib antinomianism. If you detach from the other you end up as a paranoid legalist. The options seem to be Joel Osteen or Amish. The Christian life needs the line between these two truths to be taut.

The Text

Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackclothes, and earth upon them. And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers. And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the law of the LORD their God one fourth part of the day; and another fourth part they confessed, and worshipped the LORD their God. […]
Nehemiah 9:1ff

Summary of the Text

After the observance of the Feast of Booths (Tishri 15-22, Cf. Neh. 8:15-17), the people assemble once more for a day of fasting (v1, Tishri 24). This was to be a solemn day of getting right with God. 

A group of eight Levites (vv4-5a) offer a prayer of repentance (vv5b-37). There is a striking counterpoint in this prayer between “they” and “thou” (especially in v26 & v31). This prayer traces the history of God’s kindness as seen in His covenant making. It begins with creation and then continues through three principle covenantal high points: Abram, Moses, then the prophets (vv6-15). God’s covenant faithfulness is set in contrast with Israel’s many abuses of that kindness (vv16-29). God demonstrated staggering forbearance towards Israel (vv30-31). 

The prayer then turns to petition God to remember them in their current affliction. This spirit of contrition before God is wonderfully summed up in verse 33, “Howbeit thou art just in all that is brought upon us; for thou hast done right, but we have done wickedly.” Though they don’t deserve it, they ask God to, once more, deliver them (vv32-37). This deliverance is requested in order that the people might serve God (v36). The fruit of the land has enriched the pagan kings and rulers which God has set over them as their judgement, but this arrangement is a great distress (v37). The people renew covenant with God, sealed by the princes, Levites, and priests, the terms of the covenant are found in the next chapter (v38).

A Time to Weep

The joyful feasting in the last chapter, and the mournful fasting in this appear to be at odds. The people were cut to the heart and wept, and Nehemiah told them to dry their tears and have a party. But now, after the week of the celebratory Feast of Booths, we have a day set aside for mourning and confession of sin. So, which is it? Notice how Nehemiah and Ezra lead the people to lead their emotions. After nearly two weeks of feasting, one day is set aside for sorrow. This day of confession was quite needful, but the train of emotions were set on the rails of God’s Word.

During the hardscrabble days of America expanding her frontiers, revival meetings became a feature of the religious life of our country. That has been with us ever since. Those camp meetings often focussed on exciting a crowd to emotional response. This response became a proof of a Spirit-born revival. The furniture of the church was no longer just a font, a table, and a pulpit, there was an anxious bench added to the sacred furniture. The anxious bench famously became the spot where folks were invited, nay cajoled, by all means of dramatic flourishes from revival preachers to “close with God” or else fall into eternal damnation. 

This approach is quite out of step with the example we see here (and elsewhere) in scripture. We really do need to sorrow over our own sins and those of our fathers. But we need to recognize that one of those sins, particularly for Americans, is feral emotionalism. Ezra’s example is quite the antidote to the aforementioned feral emotionalism. He gives the eight Levites a well-prepared prayer to lead their respective groups through. This prayer formed rails to keep the steam engine of the people’s emotions moving to an appropriate end. Godly sorrow leads to repentance. Worldly sorrow no matter how loudly it might flail and wail, does not lead to true reformation. There is a strong cord here that holds this prayer of sorrowful repentance together with the joyful feasting.

Covenant Renewal

So, consider what stands between both those two polls. It is the covenant making of God. Jehovah’s covenant faithfulness runs like a vein of gold through this prayer. This solemn day was done at the culmination of the Feast of Booths (Cf. Ezra 3:4) which was a feast that not only anticipated Christ’s incarnation, but what the incarnation would bring about: the outpouring of the Spirit. The custom was for all the worshippers to go with their torches to obtain fire from the altar in order to illuminate their own tabernacles. The Spirit comforts you with the assurance of God’s grace to you, and the Spirit convicts you of your sin bringing about godly sorrow. These things are held together by the objectivity of the covenant. God’s covenant is gracious and full of tender-mercy. Christ drank up the cup of wrath. This being the case, in the words of Paul, should we sin so that grace may abound?

This is an opportune moment to comment on what we mean when we describe our worship service as a Covenant Renewal service. Our service to God in our corporate worship is founded on the gracious covenant that God has made with us through Christ. This covenant holds out two things to you: God is more merciful to you than you could ever imagine, and thus sin must not find any footing within your life and must be confessed.

Why do we set aside a time each week to confess our sins? It isn’t to store up your sins and only confess them when the pastor invites you to kneel. Rather, we should think of it as a time for God to uncover anything we have either been overlooking or deliberately hiding. This should be a daily habit, and our confession in our service serves as the headwaters of that river of quick confession of our sins. Habit does not mean unspiritual. When done in faith, it really serves to guard us from being manhandled by our fickle emotions.

Thus, covenant renewal becomes for us the steady support for our joy in God’s forgiveness on one side, and our honest sorrow over our sin. This keeps us steady, for as the Word says elsewhere, “Let God be true, and every man a liar.” 

Reminding God

God always deals with His people via covenant. He has solemnly bound Himself to us and there are accompanying blessings and curses. The prayer found here relies on the covenant blessings and curses outlined in Leviticus 26. Ezra’s prayer here reminds God of His covenant promises, and pleads with Him to make good on those promises, although the people had sinned against Him repeatedly. 

Each Lord’s Day we are seized by God’s summoning Word. We are cut with the knife of the Spirit’s convicting use of the Word. We are cleansed by the clean water of the Word preached. We are brought to a feast table to commune with the God who made us His. We are commissioned anew to take dominion of this earth, subduing it to the reign of Christ. This really is the high point which orders our entire life. Here our joy in God’s tender-mercies towards us, and our sorrow over how we have not been faithful to honor Him rightly are held steadfast in perfect tension by His covenant Word to us.

That Word is summed up in the words from this prayer: thou art a gracious and merciful God. Because He has bound Himself to you in Christ, you can rejoice and be exceedingly glad. Because He dwells in You by His Spirit, you can rightly mourn over your sins. Because of this covenant you can serve Him rightly by walking daily in this solemn joy of this covenant of grace.

Charge and Benediction

Your whole life needs to rest, by faith, on the solid and immovable covenant of grace which God brought you. That covenant allows both your joy in sins forgiven and your grief over your sins to be rightly situated.

The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.
Numbers 6:24-26