Marie Kondo is a professional decluttering advisor, who has written books on how to tidy up your home and to declutter any space in it. She recently launched a new TV series on Netflix, where she goes in to help people with the process of decluttering. I’m not entirely sure that I would buy into all that she advises - for instance, it seems that she says that you should only keep no more than 30 books. I’m not sure how I would manage with that bit! But when it comes to decluttering, here’s the question that she uses to help her clients decide whether to keep something or to get rid of it: Does it spark joy?
The reason I mention Marie Kondo is because that’s the very question that we’re asking tonight. Does it spark joy? You see, in our reading tonight, we come to what is probably the best known line from the whole book of Nehemiah. If you weren’t able to think of much else of what Nehemiah does or says, there’s a fair chance that you would know this line. It appears in modern Christian songs, it’s quoted in lots of Christian books, and it’s often seen in social media posts. The joy of the Lord is your strength.
But what does it mean? What did it mean when Nehemiah said it? And what might it mean for us, tonight in Richhill?
Last week at Cafe Church we were looking at happiness and how to be happy. And we saw how happiness depends on what happens, it can go up and down, whereas joy is that Christian virtue, that fruit of the Spirit, that continues to bear us up no matter what our circumstances. It’s a settled contentedness that comes from the Lord.
But to ask Marie Kondo’s question in a slightly different way - what is it that sparks this joy? How do we get this sort of joy in the first place?
The answer that Nehemiah 8 gives us may not sound like the most exciting answer. It might sound a wee bit boring, predictable, and unexciting. But it’s the answer that Nehemiah gives, and the whole Bible confirms: The joy of the Lord comes from hearing and understanding and obeying the word of God. That’s it. That’s what Nehemiah 8 will show us. But it’s far from routine. It is revolutionary - it was for the people of Nehemiah’s day, and it will be for us as well if we really hear and obey God’s word.
Our reading tonight describes a most remarkable week in the life of the city of Jerusalem. We’ve been watching as Nehemiah hears the report of the city when some of the people have returned from exile. The people in great trouble and disgrace, and the city walls broken down and the gates burned. So Nehemiah set out to build up the walls, and then to build up the people. His first task was completed, so then he set about building up the people.
And to do that, a great assembly is called on the first day of the seventh month. Verse 1 says: ‘all the people assembled as one man in the square before the Water Gate.’ Everyone is gathered together, they’re all there, for just one purpose. They want to hear the ‘Book of the Law of Moses, which the Lord had commanded for Israel.’ (1).
Their desire is to have the first five books of the Old Testament read aloud to them - the Book of the Law of Moses. They want to hear God’s word. You see, in these days, not everyone would have been able to read. And very few would have had a copy of the Scriptures - certainly not like the easy access we have these days with Bibles galore and Bible apps on our phones. they wanted to hear God’s word. And that’s what Ezra gives to them.
The assembly gathers, ‘men and women and all who were able to understand’, in order to hear Ezra read for hours and hours from God’s word. Did you notice how long it was? ‘From daybreak till noon’. The seventh month is when we have September. And daybreak in September comes between 6.15am and 6.30am. (Isn’t the internet wonderful for all sorts of information!). So for at least five hours, Ezra reads, ‘And all the people listened attentively to the Book of the Law.’
Verses 4 onwards tell us a bit more about the practical details of how it was all worked out. There’s a high wooden platform built for the occasion, so that Ezra can be seen and heard. The other priests in verse 4 are on either side of him.
Verses 5 and 6 tell us about the liturgical details, each of which show how the word is honoured and respected. So, earlier, you stood for the reading of the Gospel, and said the responses ‘Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ’ and ‘Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.’ Well here, in verse 5, when Ezra opens the book, the people stand up. As Ezra praises God, the people lift their hands and respond with Amen! Amen! Then they bow down and worship.
The Levites also have their part to play. They seem to be in and among the crowd, instructing the people in the Law. They’re reading from the Book of the Law, ‘making it clear and giving the meaning so that the people could understand what was being read.’ And, in a sense, that’s what we’re doing right now, and what we seek to do in every sermon - to read and then explain and apply God’s word, so that it’s clear and the meaning is given, and so that everyone can understand it. That’s why it’s good to have your Bible open in front of you, and it’s why there’s a lot of work goes into sermon preparation and writing.
In verse 9 we see the conclusion of the day’s events. The reading and explaining has been finished. So what is it that Nehemiah and Ezra and the Levites say? ‘This day is sacred to the LORD your God. So not mourn or weep.’ This is a holy day, a sacred day, and so they say not to mourn or weep. Why do they say this? Well, because, as verse 9 continues: ‘For all the people had been weeping as they listened to the words of the Law.’
As they heard what God demanded of them, as they heard what the Law said, they were weeping, because they realised how far short of the standard they were. At high school I wasn’t terribly athletic (I know that’s hard to believe!) but I definitely didn’t like the high jump. The bar was set, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get over it. And the Law sets up a standard, but no one could keep it. And so the people weep and mourn. They’re aware of their failings.
But notice what Nehemiah also says as he says those famous words of his: ‘Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is sacred to our LORD. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.’ (10).
There’s a contrast here - between the grieving and the joy. The people think they need to fast and grieve. But instead Nehemiah says that the Lord gives joy, that there’s a joy in hearing God’s word, that this day is special, that it should be kept with feasting, because they have heard God’s word. This joy is something only God can give, and it gives us strength for all that he calls us to do in response.
After the Levites have said the same, we see the effect in verse 12. ‘Then all the people went away to eat and drink, and to send portions of good and to celebrate with great joy, because they now understood the words that had been made known to them.’ They go to feast and to share so that others can feast, because they celebrate with great joy. And why do they have this great joy? Because they understood God’s word.
Is there a danger that we’re so familiar with the Bible that we think we know it all already? Have we lost this joy, this amazing thrill of hearing and understanding God’s word? You remember the disciples on the road to Emmaus, their hearts burning as Jesus explained the scriptures to them. Have we ever had that good type of heartburn as we’ve really grasped what God is saying... to us?
Now, that was all day one. (Don’t worry, the other days will be briefer!) And on day two, verse 13, it’s a smaller gathering back for more Bible study. It’s not the whole assembly then, but it is the ‘heads of all the families, along with the priests and the Levites, gathered around Ezra the scribe to give attention to the words of the Law.’
The leaders of the people are there to study the Bible. And as they read and study, they discover that God had commanded a special feast to be kept in that very month, on those very days. The feast of booths (or Tabernacles) was to remind the Israelites of how their ancestors had lived in tents during the wilderness years, on their way to the promised land. And so straight away, they hear and respond to God’s word - they obey it - and send the word out to everyone to come with branches to make booths to stay in for the week of the feast.
Everyone built their shelter - either on rooftop or courtyard or temple courts or in the city squares - and lived in it for the feast. It hadn’t been seen or experienced for a very long time - in fact, not since the days of Joshua son of Nun, when Israel first entered the promised land. ‘The Israelites had not celebrated it like this.’ And what happens when they do? ‘And their joy was very great.’ (17).
And so, for the whole seven days of the feast, Ezra reads from the Book of the Law of God. There is joy in hearing and understanding and obeying God’s word. Yet, as we’ve said, and know all too well, we can’t keep the Book of the Law. The standard is too high. It would be like having the pole vault height and having people try to high jump over it. None of us can do it.
But that’s why Jesus came into the world. He came to fulfil the demands of the Law. He perfectly obeyed every command on our behalf, and then took the punishment of the law-breaker. And why did he do it? Hebrews 12:2 - ‘for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of God.’ Jesus was focused on the joy set before him as he suffered on the cross. And in Jesus, we are offered the joy of the Lord to strengthen us. He gives us his joy so that it is just as if I’d never sinned, but had perfectly obeyed the word of the Lord.
Tonight we’re invited to share in the meal that celebrates his victory on the cross. In bread and wine, we marvel at his grace, that takes law-breakers and makes us law-keepers. Find in Jesus your sins forgiven and receive his perfect righteousness. Then rise from the table, determined to grow in the joy of the Lord, to find strength for the journey, as you hear and understand and obey God’s word.
Perhaps Marie Kondo’s question does make sense. Other possessions, even other books may or may not do it for us. But above all, as we take up our Bible, may we know for sure that it sparks joy in our minds and hearts and lives, because it is God speaking to us, calling us to follow and obey. The joy of the Lord is your strength. May this be so tonight, and always.
This sermon was preached in St Matthew's Church, Richhill on Sunday evening 20th January 2019.
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