Garry spoke tonight from Hebrews 10:22-25 about the importance of Christian fellowship and the role of the church of God. It can be easy to be half-hearted in our approach to church (and indeed to God), but these verses urge us to draw near to God with a sincere heart, so that we are not just ‘going through the motions’ and attending services because it is routine or what is expected of us. The word ‘sincere’ is derived from a word meaning ‘not concealed‘; a sincere heart has nothing to hide and does not have mixed motives. Is 29:13 reminds us that we can come near to God with our mouths but our hearts can still be far frm Him; God wants us to be real and to come to Him, no matter what. We can’t afford to wait until everything is ‘sorted’; we need to come as we are, warts and all!

These verses also urge us to ‘spur one another on toward love and good deeds.’ We need to stir each other up, to egg each other on, to push people further rather like a sports coach does with an athlete. Great sports people often have great coaches who know how to motivate, criticise and encourage, and we have the Holy Spirit to urge us on, but we do also need other people. We need people to encourage us, get alongside us, motivate us and believe in us. All of us need this encouragement; all of us can give this encouragement.

These verses remind us not to give up meeting together. We need each other and must work together We are called to carry each other’s burdens, problems and difficulties, to open our lives and share with each other. As we do this. we reflect God’s caring nature and become empowered to do His will.

We said this morning that Nehemiah’s knowledge of God informed his prayer life and gave him hope, even when the news from Jerusalem was not good. (Neh 1:2-3) Throughout the book, we see that it was his knowledge of who God is which inspired his prayers:

• ‘Lord, the God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments…’ (Neh 1:5)
• ‘You alone are the Lord. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.’ (Neh 9:6)
• ‘you are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. Therefore you did not desert them, even when they cast for themselves an image of a calf.’ (Neh 9:17-18)

Prayer needs to start with who God is; as Jesus taught us to pray. (‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name.’ Matt 6:9) Prayer is our response to God and not simply a list of our requests, though these are welcome. (Phil 4:6-7)

It is clear also that he knew God’s word and often used this as the springboard for prayer: ‘Remember the instruction you gave your servant Moses, saying, “If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations, but if you return to me and obey my commands, then even if your exiled people are at the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen as a dwelling for my Name.”’ (Neh 1:8-9) Often, we feel helpless or that we do not know what to pray, but Nehemiah gives us a framework for prayer, starting with God’s character and using His word when we do not know what to say.

This morning we looked at the book of Nehemiah and saw how this man, an official to a foreign king in Susa, demonstrates what James calls ‘the seamless unity of believing and doing.’ (James 2:25, The Message) The book is written at the end of the Babylonian exile and shows us Nehemiah’s very practical role in rebuilding the walls in Jerusalem as the Jewish people return there after seventy years. Much of what he does seems very mundane: organising teams to build, persuading the king to give him safe passage and materials to use, ensuring the safety of people and the project when opposition occurs. But at the same time, we see how everything he does is soaked in prayer and based on a sure knowledge of God’s character. He is a great example of seeing how the miraculous and the mundane are woven together and how our lives should display faith and works going hand in hand.

Nehemiah was concerned about what was happening in Jerusalem, even though he had never lived there. (Neh 1) He brought his concerns and sorrow to God instead of simply being overwhelmed by them and he had hope because of who God was (Neh 9:6, 17-18). Despite natural fear, he prayed and had specific requests for the king (Neh 2:2-5); when opposition came, he combined practical action with prayer (Neh 4:9-18). Everything we do needs to be soaked in prayer, rather like when we marinate a meat to make it more tender. But the meat will still not be edible unless we then cook it! In the same way, Nehemiah shows us the value of hard work for God as well as the need to pray. He teaches us that there is no division between the sacred and the secular, that praying and working are both absolutely essential in the kingdom of God. He shows us that we need faith and prayer: ‘Our God will fight for us!’ he declared. (Neh 4:20) But we read also that they continued the work with half the men holding spears, from the first light of dawn till the stars came out. (Neh 4:21) He was wholly committed to this work, saying that neither he nor his brothers nor his men nor the guards with him took off their clothes at night; each person had his weapon, even when he went for water. (Neh 4:23) Nehemiah’s commitment, faith and capacity for practical work can be inspirations to us as we serve God in our society.

We have just received a new photo of Bedline, the Compassion child we sponsor each month who lives in Haiti. Incredibly, Bedline is now 12 years old and looks very grown-up in this latest photo.

Thank you to all who support us; we have a jar at church to give loose change for the 3 children we sponsor. Apart from Bedline, we also support 15 year old Innocent in Uganda and Amshika in India.

The subject of martyrdom and global disasters is not one which has us rushing to find out more! Both subjects feature in our world already, and in Revelation 6:9-17, we read about the fifth and sixth seals opened by Jesus which let loose further woes in our world. Whether these correspond to things happening already or refer solely to things which have yet to happen has been hotly debated over the years, but whichever way we look at these things, we see God’s wrath and judgment as well as a longing for justice to be done on the earth as it is in heaven.

In his vision, John saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. (Rev 6:9) They cry out to God, ‘How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?’ (Rev 6:10) The cry, ‘How long?’, has been heard throughout the ages (see Ps 13:1-2, Ps 94:1-3). Once more, we are reminded that time is in God’s hands; only He knows the time until He puts all things right and makes all things new. It is never easy to wait for God, but we must continue to trust that at the right time, He will act (see Gal 4:4).

It would be difficult to paint any scene more moving or more terrible than that described at the opening of the sixth seal. All the elements of a great catastrophic judgment of God are here present, namely, a great earthquake, the sun becoming black, the moon becoming as blood, the stars of heaven falling like ripe figs, the heaven departing as a scroll, and every mountain and island moving. Whether these things are interpreted literally or figuratively, what is clear is that this is a time of testing and unparalleled disaster. The judgments of war, famine, and death, and the martyrdom of the saints which have been outlined earlier in the chapter have largely originated in human decision and in the evil heart of man. The judgment described here, however, originates in God as a divine punishment inflicted upon a blasphemous world. We often struggle with this aspect of God’s nature, but must hold in balance the total revelation of God as given in the Bible. The Lord is not only “merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin,” but He is also the One “who will by no means clear the guilty” (Ex 34:6–7). We need to hold in balance God’s love and justice, God’s mercy and punishment. They are not mutually exclusive, and God has provided – and continues to provide – time and opportunity for all men to repent (‘The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.’ 2 Peter 3:9) As we read this chapter, we are aware that we can only stand by the grace of God. Peter comments that a knowledge of what lies ahead should motivate us to live holy and godly lives now (2 Pet 3:11-12). It would be easy to focus only on the negatives or the unknowns in this chapter, but we must retain both a secure understanding of God’s character and a humble reverence and awareness of God’s holiness as we progress through John’s revelation.

I am an only child and so it was often left to my own imagination when it came to playing as a child. I would gather my dolls or soft toys for pretend picnics and act out different scenes, voicing all the parts in these scenarios quite happily. Talking to yourself in this way is a healthy and normal part of growing up; I enjoy listening to my grandchildren doing this with their Barbie dolls now.

As we grow up, we continue to talk to ourselves, but by and large we internalise these conversations lest others think we are odd (or because we do not want others to hear what we are saying to ourselves.) These internal conversations are not just monologues; they often contain dialogue as we argue different points of view and consider how we feel and how we should act.

We are often not aware of these conversations, which may well include admonitory phrases. When I drop something, for instance, the conversation often starts with, ‘You’re so clumsy, Julie!’ or if I lose my keys (which I regularly do on a daily basis), ‘How could you be so stupid? You know you’re supposed to put them there: why didn’t you?’

Whilst many of these internal conversations seem harmless and inconsequential, the truth is that what we say to ourselves is actually very important and these conversations to ourselves can either build us up or tear us down.

It’s important that our inner dialogues are as consistent with truth as our spoken words to other people. Paul told the Ephesians to ‘speak the truth in love’ (Eph 4:15), and this applies not only to what we say to others, but to what we say to ourselves. Hebrews 13:6 says, “So we say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?'”

This is the kind of positive self-talk which puts problems into perspective and builds truth into our souls (and if we do not build truth into our souls, we cannot expect others to.) It’s significant that this self-talk is actually quoting Scripture to oneself (the reference is from Psalm 118:6-7). There is a solidity and stability to Biblical truth which is not found in the ‘positive confessions’ advocated by the world, however helpful these may be at times. The very best words to speak to ourselves are God’s words, because these words are truth. They are not tainted by subjectivity; they are not tarnished by bias or prejudice.

When we stop to listen to our internal conversations, we must make sure that these are rooted in truth or we will end up defeated, dejected and depressed. It isn’t just about being positive or optimistic or ignoring life’s problems. It is about speaking God’s word in confidence and then allowing that word to permeate our whole being and shape our thiinking and attitudes.

Michelle Obama says she tries to start each day with a message of kindness to herself because she struggles daily to like and accept herself and has a ‘fearful mind.’ I would urge us all not only to be kind to ourselves, but to speak truth to ourselves, God’s truth, as this has the power to set us free.