Message of the Week

The Little White Community Church

Scripture: Neh. 8:1-12 June 8, 2025

Message: “The First Pulpit!”     

by Pastor George Gnade

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Introduction:

1. As I have told you in a previous sermon, the Books of Ezra and Nehemiah overlap.  Ezra returned to Judea about 13 years before Nehemiah. 

2. After Nehemiah succeeded in rebuilding the walls to the City of Jerusalem, he and Ezra called for a special meeting of the people so they could share the law that had been given to Moses by the Lord on the top of Mt. Sinai.

a. It was because the people totally neglected the Law of the Lord that they had gone into captivity.

b. Now that they had returned, Ezra and Nehemiah wanted to make sure the same problem didn’t happen again.  That is why this special meeting was convened.

3. But they didn’t have microphones in those days. So they had to find a way to magnify what was said. 

a. In Jesus’ day, He would often speak from a boat so the wind would carry his voice inland.

b. Other times He would speak from the side of a hill so His voice would carry down the hill.

A. Ezra and Nehemiah came up with another idea.

1. They decided to build a platform and create a pulpit so the speaker could put his notes on the pulpit and speak from that high position. That way they could hear the speaker and see the speaker (Neh. 8:4).

a. As we all know, that method became more and more popular as the years have gone by.

b. I have no way of knowing if a pulpit like this was ever used before this event that we are studying today. What I do know is that in our day, most churches have platforms and pulpits. This has become a very popular way to preach and teach others. 

2. In Neh. 8:5, it says: “Ezra opened the book. All the people could see him because he was standing above them; and he opened the book and all the people stood up.”

a. This was a way of showing reverence for what was being said. It does not say how long they remained standing. Since the meeting lasted a very long time, I assume they sat sometimes and stood at other times. 

b. In vs. 6, it says: “Ezra praised the Lord, their great God, and all the people lifted their hands and responded, saying: ‘Amen! Amen!’ Then they bowed down and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.’”

3. In those days, people would bow down before their king.

a. How much more then should they bow down before their God, whom the Bible calls the king over all kings, the king over all the earth.

b. In the days of the Romans, Christians often refused to bow down before Caesar to show that they had a higher allegiance to the Lord Jesus Christ.

c. In Phil. 2:9-10, after describing how Jesus died on the cross for us, the Bible says: “Therefore, God has highly exalted Him and given Him a name above all names that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.”

4. From this passage in Nehemiah, you can see why different churches worship in different ways – sometimes standing up, sometimes bowing down, sometimes raising their hands etc. The important thing is that whatever we do, we should do it in a way that glorifies and pleases Him.

B. That brings us to the message that Ezra brought to the people.

1. He did not do this all by himself. He also used other Levites to assist him. In Neh. 8:7, it says: “The Levites … read from the Book of the Law of God, making it clear and giving the meaning so the people could understand what was being read.”

a. In the O.T., the Book of the Law referred to the first five books of the Bible. Of course, that included the law given on Mt. Sinai too. 

b. Notice what they did. They “gave the meaning and made it clear” to them. Their purpose was to make sure the  people understood it. 

2. Isn’t that what ministers contimue to do to this day? At least, that is what they should be doing. Sadly some sermons are nothing but interesting speeches.  Often they read a passage of Scripture and never explain it at all. They simply share their own ideas, but fail to explain what was written. 

a. That is why Paul told Timothy to “study to show yourself to be approved by God, a workman who is not ashamed , rightly explaining the Word of truth.”

b. When a preacher studies the Word and explains the Word, he makes it clear to those who are listening. 

3. Ezra and his helpers did their job and did it well. We know this from their reaction to what they heard. Now many of them were convicted. 

a. Now they understood why God allowed them to go into captivity. Now they understood why Ezra and Nehemiah were trying so hard to explain all this to them.

b. In fact, many of them began to cry because they didn’t want God to punish them all over again.

4. That is what is supposed to happen when a person is convicted of his/her sins. But God does not want us to be sad. He wants us to confess our sins and be forgiven and be relieved. 

a. That is always what God desires. And so Ezra and Nehemiah and the scribes told the people in vs.9-10: “This is a sacred day unto the Lord. Do not mourn or weep… Go and enjoy choice foods and sweet drinks and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is sacred unto the Lord. Do not grieve for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

b. Yes, when we respond to God and want to learn more about God, He wants us to experience the joy of the Lord. 

5. Neh. 8: 10 is one of the most important verses in the Bible.  God wants “the joy of the Lord” to be “our strength”. 

a. When we have faith in Him and trust in Him, He offers us a “peace that passes understanding” (Phil. 4:7).

b. When we trust in Him, it is amazing what God will do. 

6. In context, God had just shown them what He can do when they trusted Him.

a. First, He caused Cyrus the Great to allow them to return to their own land. Then He helped the people to rebuild their temple. And finally, with the help of Nehemiah, they had just finished rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. 

b. So for the first time in a long time, it was safe to worship and live in Jerusalem like they had once done in the past. 

In conclusion: 1. Here is an O.T. passage that still speaks to us today. It explains what worship is all about. It explains what preaching and teaching is all about. And it points us ahead to the good news of the gospel that is found in the Lord Jesus Christ.

2. If the joy of the Lord was their strength, how much more should it be our strength. That is why Paul wrote in Phil. 4:4, “Rejoice in the Lord always; and again I say rejoice.“

I pray His joy will fill our hearts too. Amen!