And I told them of the hand of my God that had been upon me for good, and also of the words that the king had spoken to me. And they said, “Let us rise up and build.” So they strengthened their hands for the good work. (Neh 2:18)
The Bible tells the stories of builders, many of whom had serious perspective problems.
- The tower of Babel (Gen 11:1-4)
- The temple of Solomon (1 Kings 11:1-8)
- The city of Nebuchadnezzar (Dan 4:28-33)
- The rocky fortresses of the Edomites (Oba 1:1-4)
- The barns of the rich man (Luke 12:13-21)
- The church of the Laodiceans (Rev 3:14-22)
Nehemiah stands out among the builders of the Bible because of his profound perspective. This sermon, delivered in the first assembly of the Laurel Canyon church in our newly expanded facility, uses Nehemiah’s example and reminds us of certain foundational truths which we cannot afford to forget.
- A building does not define our identity, reflect our health or determine our potential (Rev 3:1)
- We are a part of the church built by Christ (Mat 16:18)
- We are servants of the Most High who does not dwell in hand-made houses (Acts 7:47-50)
- We are being built up as a spiritual house (1 Pet 2:4-5)
- Therefore, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord” (1 Cor 1:26-31)
- God-centered perspective compels us to live as if our building isn’t done (Acts 20:32)
This sermon was delivered in the morning assembly of the Laurel Canyon church, February 5, 2012.
For more sermons, visit the Sermons archive.
I preached a series several years ago, entitled, “Great Builders of the Bible”. I enjoyed preaching this series. God also has his destroyers… “See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.” – Jeremiah 1:10. Before Jeremiah could be a builder he had to be a destroyer. Thanks for the article.
Great point, Rick. Thanks for reading.