Any organisation is only as good as the order and structure of the leadership. Jerusalem needed to administrate her leaders properly if the people were going to thrive after the wall was built.
Nehemiah 11: The Leaders in Jerusalem
1 Now the leaders of the people lived in Jerusalem. And the rest of the people cast lots to bring one out of ten to live in Jerusalem the holy city, while nine out of ten remained in the other towns.
2 And the people blessed all the men who willingly offered to live in Jerusalem.
3 These are the chiefs of the province who lived in Jerusalem; but in the towns of Judah everyone lived on his property in their towns: Israel, the priests, the Levites, the temple servants, and the descendants of Solomon's servants.
4 And in Jerusalem lived certain of the sons of Judah and of the sons of Benjamin. Of the sons of Judah: Athaiah the son of Uzziah, son of Zechariah, son of Amariah, son of Shephatiah, son of Mahalalel, of the sons of Perez;
5 and Maaseiah the son of Baruch, son of Col-hozeh, son of Hazaiah, son of Adaiah, son of Joiarib, son of Zechariah, son of the Shilonite.
6 All the sons of Perez who lived in Jerusalem were 468 valiant men.
7 And these are the sons of Benjamin: Sallu the son of Meshullam, son of Joed, son of Pedaiah, son of Kolaiah, son of Maaseiah, son of Ithiel, son of Jeshaiah,
8 and his brothers, men of valor, 928.
9 Joel the son of Zichri was their overseer; and Judah the son of Hassenuah was second over the city.
10 Of the priests: Jedaiah the son of Joiarib, Jachin,
11 Seraiah the son of Hilkiah, son of Meshullam, son of Zadok, son of Meraioth, son of Ahitub, ruler of the house of God,
12 and their brothers who did the work of the house, 822; and Adaiah the son of Jeroham, son of Pelaliah, son of Amzi, son of Zechariah, son of Pashhur, son of Malchijah,
13 and his brothers, heads of fathers' houses, 242; and Amashsai, the son of Azarel, son of Ahzai, son of Meshillemoth, son of Immer,
14 and their brothers, mighty men of valor, 128; their overseer was Zabdiel the son of Haggedolim.
15 And of the Levites: Shemaiah the son of Hasshub, son of Azrikam, son of Hashabiah, son of Bunni;
16 and Shabbethai and Jozabad, of the chiefs of the Levites, who were over the outside work of the house of God;
17 and Mattaniah the son of Mica, son of Zabdi, son of Asaph, who was the leader of the praise, who gave thanks, and Bakbukiah, the second among his brothers; and Abda the son of Shammua, son of Galal, son of Jeduthun.
18 All the Levites in the holy city were 284.
19 The gatekeepers, Akkub, Talmon and their brothers, who kept watch at the gates, were 172.
20 And the rest of Israel, and of the priests and the Levites, were in all the towns of Judah, every one in his inheritance.
21 But the temple servants lived on Ophel; and Ziha and Gishpa were over the temple servants.
22 The overseer of the Levites in Jerusalem was Uzzi the son of Bani, son of Hashabiah, son of Mattaniah, son of Mica, of the sons of Asaph, the singers, over the work of the house of God.
23 For there was a command from the king concerning them, and a fixed provision for the singers, as every day required.
24 And Pethahiah the son of Meshezabel, of the sons of Zerah the son of Judah, was at the king's side in all matters concerning the people.
Villages Outside Jerusalem
25 And as for the villages, with their fields, some of the people of Judah lived in Kiriath-arba and its villages, and in Dibon and its villages, and in Jekabzeel and its villages,
26 and in Jeshua and in Moladah and Beth-pelet,
27 in Hazar-shual, in Beersheba and its villages,
28 in Ziklag, in Meconah and its villages,
29 in En-rimmon, in Zorah, in Jarmuth,
30 Zanoah, Adullam, and their villages, Lachish and its fields, and Azekah and its villages. So they encamped from Beersheba to the Valley of Hinnom.
31 The people of Benjamin also lived from Geba onward, at Michmash, Aija, Bethel and its villages,
32 Anathoth, Nob, Ananiah,
33 Hazor, Ramah, Gittaim,
34 Hadid, Zeboim, Neballat,
35 Lod, and Ono, the valley of craftsmen.
36 And certain divisions of the Levites in Judah were assigned to Benjamin.
Things to think about…
1. We see the leaders already living in the city, Neh 11:1, but lots (God’s choice) were being cast for 1 in 10 of the people to also move from the surrounding towns and live permanently in Jerusalem. Jerusalem needed more people inside to protect and manage the city. How do you see this principal being applied with a church context with respect to how it operates and manages its ministries? The Lord calls out people to dedicate themselves to the health and wellbeing of the church.
2. We see the kingly line also recorded in the list, Neh 11:4-6. Jesus would come from this line of Judah. The Jews have kept meticulous records from creation until today. They still seek a son of David to rule as a prince. Tragically they missed the David’s greater Son – Yeshua. One day their eyes will be opened to the Messiah, Isa 59:20,21; Rom 11:26, but only after a period of trial and persecution as they have never experienced.
3. In Neh 11:2-19 list all the names of the leaders of the city who had charge over the city, the wall (the gates) and the house of God. We see the line of praise and worship leaders, the sons of Asaph and the sons of Jeduthun, vs 17. These men were around in the time of David the King and wrote Psalms. There were others who were like the town councillors, who lived in the city. Some Levites also lived in Jerusalem, vs 18. But most Levites and Priests lived in the towns surrounding Jerusalem, vs 20. Getting the right balance of how many activities a church does within the church and how many it does in the surrounding community is always a tough balance to get right. Pray the church leadership get this right especially with the building projects for this year.
4. What do you think about secular provision for a spiritual work? Look at Neh 11:21-24. In vs 24 a man named Pethahiah was before the king concerning all matters of the people of Judah. The king (of Persia – Artaxerxes) is paying for the singers and is likely to be supporting others judging by the context. How, if at all, is this able to be applied into the modern question surrounding the separation of church and state? In all the great building works the Lord has used throughout biblical history the secular ruling power of the time would supply Israel with materials. Israel received abundant gold, silver and resources from Egypt before the exodus. David and Solomon used wealth from the surrounding conquered nations for the first temple. The second temple was rebuilt using Persian finances. This second temple was greatly extended in Jesus’ day by Herod utilising the vast wealth of Rome. If churches can utilise unrighteous mammon from the world for a holy purpose without being trapped by worldly influence, there is a good deal of scriptural support to do so.
5. In Neh 11:25-36 we see the surrounding village’s names. You will notice Ziklag, vs 28 – which was a Philistine city originally but was given to David and had remained with Judah ever since. As mentioned above, sometimes the Lord uses the world to bless the church.
6. In Neh 11:32-39 we see the agreement surrounding tithes, firstfruits and sacrifices. The Law of Moses stated that the Lord’s blessing or cursing was determined by whether these laws were being obeyed. How do you reconcile this with your New Testament understanding of giving/tithes/offerings and the Lord’s blessing or otherwise?
Vision statement for CBC
CBC’s Vision :- To be a growing biblical church community, significantly influencing our city and beyond, through intentional outreach, fulfilling our mission.
Prayer Points
1. Pray for new people to step into ministries at CBC – eg worship, café, sound/technical, giving.
2. Revival over our city.
3. Finances to cover our needs
4. Pray for PlayPatch, Kids church, Creche and Kids Hope at Karalee State school.
5. Growth, conversions, joy in the Word and Spirit to increase.
Praise Points
1. Podcast area almost completed – Thanks Aart and Jacquiline
2. Kids church divider almost done – thanks Aart
3. The Lord’s grace over our lives and country
4. Café, music, kids church, admin, sound and technical team every week
5. Joy, peace and grace we see at CBC. Thankyou Lord
Announcements
1. Ministries this week. Life groups, Kids@Church, Kids Hope - Karalee.
2. PlayPatch 1-5yos, Fridays 9:30am at church.
3. Church bank details bsb:- 704 913 and Acc number:- 4000 4388 1
4. Tune in again this week on our YouTube page. Subscribe to the CBC channel Chuwar Baptist YouTube channel.
Catechism questions for June...
Q. 33. Who can change a sinner's heart? A. The Holy Spirit alone.
