Sermon Tone Analysis

Last week we started looking at the the fact that many Biblical scholars believe that there is very significant spiritual meaning behind each of the gates.

It was pointed out that nothing in this Book is here by accident, every word is here for a specific purpose, even the order of the words and in this case the order of the Gates around Jerusalem as they appear in Nehemiah 3.

All have a specific purpose This morning we will continue to look at, as Dr. J. Vernon McGee calls it “The Gospel in the Gates of Jerusalem”.

The first gate we looked at last week was:

The Sheep Gate Represents Christ & His Work on the Cross.

Neh.

3:1; Isa.

53:7; Jn. 1:29

This was such an important gate as this was the gate where the temple lambs were brought through for the temple sacrifice.

As we looked at last week, these lambs were spotless lambs that were be sacrificed for the sins of the people.

There is one thing I want to point out as we look at these lambs.

There was no power in the blood of these lambs, none whatsoever.

From the very start, all the way back to the lambs that were sacrificed at the very first Passover in the Book of Exodus, every animal that was sacrificed to atone for the sins of the people was to provide a picture of Jesus Christ, the spotless Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world.

Spiritual healing is provided only in His blood.

We also addressed last week that most historians and theologians believe that all but one time, when Jesus entered Jerusalem, He entered through the Sheep Gate, signifying that He was the long awaited for Lamb of God.

In other words, it was no accident that He used this gate, it was all a part of the sovereign plan of God.

Christ not only came in through that gate, but also when He was arrested and was led out to be crucified, they took Him out through that gate.

The Sheep Gate was the place of judgment, and it tells us that He bore the judgment of our sin.

It is at this gate that we must begin with God.

He is not prepared to meet us anywhere but at the cross.

(J.

Vernon McGee-The Gospel In The Gates)

The last thing we looked at in the Sheep Gate was that this was the only gate where there is no mention of any “bolts and bars”.

There is a very powerful and significant lesson here that we can’t miss.

The mention of the setting of the bolts and bars is specifically referring to the ability to secure and lock the other gates.

There is no mention of bolts and bars on the Sheep Gate signifying that the way of salvation is open to all who will put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ, the spotless Lamb of God.

As long as there is breath in our lungs and the beating in our hearts the way of salvation is open to us.

We moved from the Sheep Gate to the Fish Gate.

The Fish Gate Represents Our Responsibility to be “ Fishers of Men ”.

Neh.

3:3; Mt. 4:19; Prov.

11:26

When we look at the Fish Gate, we were reminded that one of the very first things Jesus did when someone believed in Him was to give them an assignment.

He did the same for us when He gave the Great Commission in Matthew 28:19-20.

We compared our neglect in obeying God’s Great Commission to us with the Nobles of the Tekoites who refused to assist in the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem and were then called out by God on the pages of Scripture.

The last thing we want is for God to call us out for refusing to obey His command to be “fishers of men”.

That brings us to this mornings message as we continue of look at The Gospel in the Gates.

If you haven’t already, please turn in your copies of God’s Word to the Book of Nehemiah chapter 3. It is on page 505 in the pew Bibles.

The next gate we will look at in Nehemiah 3 is: The Old Gate.

Next Slides

The Old Gate Represents The Never Changing Truth of The Word of God .

Neh. 3:6; Jer.

6:16; 1 Cor.

15:58; Prov.

31:23

So much has changed since the days when Scripture was recorded.

People have changed, ways have changed, customs have changed, how we do things has changed, our transportation has changed, our homes have changed…so much has changed, but one thing that has never changed and never will change is the Truths of God’s Word.

God’s Word remains the same and it’s truths transform life’s as much today as It did when the pages were being lived out.

In ancient times in the mideast, there was one particular gate in most cities where the elders, the wise men of the city would meet and sit daily.

People would go to that gate for wisdom, for direction, for judgements on disputes from fair and unbiased judges.

The Old Gate would have been that gate.

In Proverbs 31:23 we read;

This gate represents both the eldership of the city (the leaders of the Body) and their guidance in the "ancient paths" of God in spiritual growth.

We read in Jeremiah 6:16; “Thus says the Lord: “Stand by the roads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls.

But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’

God’s Word is that “ancient path” and It still leads to the place where you can “find rest for our souls”.

And like those whom Jeremiah was addressing, we also can choose to “not walk in it”.

But that is a tragic choice that leads to destruction.

In fact in the case of those Jeremiah was writing to it did.

You see Jeremiah was writing before the captivity that brought Nehemiah’s family with the whole Nation of Judah to the Babylonian.

Jeremiah’s was there as God’s spokesman and when he writes these words, when he is telling the people to “Stand by the roads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it” he is telling the people to return to the covenant God had established in the days of Moses.

He preached this message for 40 years without a single convert.

His listeners refused and paid a heavy price.

We will as well if we turn our back on the never changing truth of God’s Word.

The Hebrew word use in the phrase “Old Gate” has another meaning and that is "storage", you could say this gate represents the fact that we need to study the Word of God and "store it away".

The Old gate speaks to us of the old ways of truth.

The Believer, having experienced the Sheep Gate, then the Fish Gate soon sees the need for experiencing the Old Gate.

This means learning the old ways of truth that never change.

Psalm 119:11 says:

Once we have trusted In Jesus as our Savior, we must enter into the eternal, ancient truths of God's written Word.

We must see the importance of obedience, tithing, daily devotions and all that is revealed in His general will, His written Word.

We learn these by sitting at the feet of anointed teachers of God's Word and studying the Word diligently for ourselves.

Often time this message is driven home more succinctly through the memorization of Scripture.

This is one of the things we are seeking to do with our children during our AWANA program on Wednesday nights.

But Scripture memory should not be limited to one ministry and only to the children.

It is something we should all be participating in regularly.

Scripture memory is huge in transforming our lives.

If you have already made your way through the Sheep Gate, are seeking to be used of God through the Fish Gate, next make sure you are daily grounding yourself in the Word of God, in the Old Gate.

The next gate we see is:

Next Slides

The Valley Gate Represents the Life of Humbleness & Humility .

Neh. 3:13; Ps. 23:4; Phl.

2:3; Col. 3:12

So much of the time our greatest value in the cause of Christ comes not in our mountain top experiences, but in our times in the deep dark valleys.

Have any of you every had the opportunity to camp out or do hikes in the mountains at what is referred to as timberline?

For those that have, let me ask you a question, what grows above timberline?

Almost nothing.

Here is a picture of a peak above timberline in the Colorado Rockies: Next Slide

Make sure to post picture on a powerpoint of timberline.

Looking at this picture, let me ask you a question, if this picture were taken of a lake or pond below timberline, what would you see around a pond or lake?

(All sorts of growth, grass, bushes, trees...).

Yet nothing is growing around this pond.

This is a good picture of what takes place in the life of a believer.

Virtually no growth takes place in the life of a believer when we are living in the mountain top experiences.

There is a reason for that truth.

Honestly, when we are living on the mountain top experiences we sometimes have in the Christian life, we don’t really learn a dependence on God.

Sure we really enjoy those time, but when all is going well, our tendency is to rely more on ourselves than on God.

But when we are in the dark valleys, well that is a different story all together.

Next Slide

Make sure to post picture on a powerpoint of a pond in the valley.

In Psalm 23:4 we read: “4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

What is it that happens in the Valley?