Nehemiah’s Spiritual Formation of People

Spiritual Formation in Nehemiah

1.) Confess sin.
2.) Organize relationships where God has placed you around serving those in authority over you.
3.) Scout the project and reflect.
4.) Rebuild infrastructure first, study later. Get people moving in a project so that they can see the work, have success, and learn where their strengths and weaknesses are.
5.) Confront the powers. Use the project to expose the powers, and name the issues. There is as much danger in doing good as doing nothing.
6.) Bring justice by taking care of little old ladies and orphans. Follow the iron rule: "Never do for others what they can do for themselves."
7.) Let the Bible read you. Commit with new vows of time (Sabbath), generosity (money), and relationships (marriage). Scripture comes after the hands get dirty. Use the lessons learned from the project to guide thinking as you listen to scripture.
8.) Neighbor the city. Use principles you've practiced before to neighbor (as a verb) the city. The Golden Rule with the Iron Rule. Ministry centers on the assets of the community, not the perceived needs.

Renewing a City with Nehemiah

The book of Nehemiah is a memoir of a construction effort on the walls
of Jerusalem. The story opens with a clever refugee trapped in ancient
Susa who leverages his influence to be appointed as a governor in
his family's homeland. Nehemiah supervises a process that leads to
spiritual renewal in the land. Because the people were reformed, they
read the law (not the other way around.) He was about doing justice
for people who were being mistreated by opponents of change in the
city. He was about setting appropriate boundaries for people. Nehemiah
was about reestablishing identity for a community ruled by outsiders.

This sermon series will guide our thinking as we watch the
reconstruction of our platform. As we replace the platform, we will
get organized with Nehemiah to reorder our lives. We will see our city
as the place that God wants us to do justice. We will look to reform
our lives so we can listen again to God's law. We will establish and
shape our identity rooted in the tradition of ancient Israel.

Because after all, it was never about building a wall. It was about
building a community of people.