What are the three most important things about you? What would you say? What if you had to describe your job in just three essential tasks, could you come up with that list? What if you had to tell someone three things, they need to know about being a Christian? It can be hard to summarize a big topic into just three things, but it is also incredibly helpful. This week as we dig into Ephesians 1:15-23, we will see that Paul prays that the Ephesians would understand three essential aspects to their faith in Jesus. And all these years later, those three things are still essential to our faith in Christ today.

It’s strange that the passage which declares all that God has done for us in our salvation, is also a passage which can be a cause of theological debate and conflict. How can it be that this long, single sentence of breathless praise can also be such a source of angst? Well, the problem might be with preachers, so I’ll make you a promise: I’m going to do my best to say what the text says and not say what it doesn’t say. At the same time, the problem may be with us. It may be that we have a little too much faith in ourselves, and maybe not quite enough trust in God. So, this week will you also join me in a promise? Let’s walk all the way through this passage together, line by line, trusting God for his part, before we go looking for our part.

In the last several months we have learned a lot from Nehemiah, and the building of the wall. The people were building a wall, and God was building up his people. It’s a little ironic that we now turn to Ephesians, where God has actually torn down a wall in order to further build up his people.

This Sunday we begin a new series: Ephesians—I Will Build My Church. As you can see, I’ll continue to take advantage of the building metaphor from this building season God has set before us. So, before Sunday morning, read through the book of Ephesians and see how many building terms, images or metaphors you can find. Then, on Sunday we will see from Acts 19 and Ephesians 1:1-2 that our Lord is building his church, although it might not fit into the old zoning expectations!

The book of Nehemiah has been a wonderful reminder that God restores and builds up His people so that they can be a powerful witness for Him to the world. As the church today, we are called to carry the torch of the glory of God and the gospel of Christ. The book of Ephesians will reinforce our mandate to “live as children of the light.” This is a great privilege and joy! In our Scripture for this Sunday, we will look at not only our calling to “shine like stars” in this dark and broken world, but also at two unexpected and often overlooked behaviors that diminish the brightness of our testimony. As we learned last week from the closing chapter of Nehemiah, what we do matters! And Paul will remind us from the Philippians' text this week that what we say and how we say it also matters a great deal.

The book of Nehemiah ends on a strange note. Throughout the book, God’s hand has been upon them for good, and both the wall and the people have been restored. The opposition has failed, God has provided, and the people have responded with tender hearts and joyful praise. But now, at the end of the story, the wheels seem to fall off, there’s even an episode of cursing, beatings and hair-pulling! It’s not the ending we would have expected... What are we to make of it?

Keeping Worship Real, Nehemiah 12:44-13:3

Last week in Nehemiah 12 we saw worship get real for those who marched atop the walls restored by “the good hand of God upon us.” I hope you also can recall times when your life has overflowed in joyful worship and willing response to all that God is doing. But when we come down from that mountaintop, how can we continue the march? How can we keep worship real?

Our text for this Sunday is the segue between a time when worship was very real, and a time when it really wasn’t. It’s a great place for us to consider how to keep our worship real.

Now there’s a question that some of you can’t wait to hear me answer, some of you might roll your eyes that I would pose the question, while others might think there’s only one answer: "They don’t!”

Well, Nehemiah Chapter 12 describes a really big party that was so loud that all of the neighbors heard it. There hadn’t been a party like this in years, maybe centuries! And yes, God was pleased. In fact, God is the one who made it all possible. This Sunday we’ll see what this joyful celebration can tell us about how we celebrate what God has done.

Nehemiah Chapter 11 describes the people assigned to several key roles in God’s restored Holy City. You have likely never listed your occupation as a priest, Levite or gatekeeper, yet these roles are surprisingly relevant to us. This is actually a very practical chapter. We can learn much from those important roles as we pursue God’s priorities as His people.

This weekend in the NFL playoffs, one team or the other will get the advantage of having the first chance to score by the flip of a coin. Some games are so close it seems the coin flip may have made the difference. Is that fair? Maybe it doesn’t really matter—it’s just the NFL.

But what if it were one of your major life decisions? Would you choose where you would live by the flip of a coin. Would you choose your vocation or service in that way? Would you want to determine guilt or innocence in a capital offense by the casting lots—which is a lot like flipping a coin?!

Nehemiah 11:1-2 describe big decisions, and significant personal sacrifices in following God’s will. This Sunday we’ll talk about how to know God’s will and living in it.

This Sunday we return to our series in Nehemiah. In chapter 10, the people gather to reaffirm that they are in a covenant relationship with God. There are similarities and differences between their relationship to God with ours today. We won’t be lining up and signing commitments of what we will do to stay in God’s blessing and not be cursed—that’s not for us. But we can, at the start of this new year, reaffirm and celebrate the privilege we have to live in God’s new life in his New Covenant through Jesus. Let’s celebrate this privilege in song, prayer, word and Lord's table this Sunday.