Mosaic Boston

We've spent three months mining the majestic depths of the book of Nehemiah, but it concludes tragically. The people of God, who had all the best intentions of obeying God, return to their former ways of rebellion, and the book ends bleaker than it began. Where is the hope? The bleakness of this tragic ending paints a silhouette of the true hero we're longing for, not Nehemiah, but the greater Nehemiah, Jesus Christ.

In Nehemiah 9, the people of God devote significant time to recalling the sins of their forefathers. The people of God understood, that if they were to move forward, they need to come to terms with their past. They did not justify their personal sins with the sins of their parents. Instead, they acknowledged that their parents' sins were formative in their own lives, and they need to be refashioned and transformed by the Gospel of God's grace. When we are adopted as children of God into the family of God, we must put off the sinful patterns of our family or origin, and relearn how to live life God's way in Jesus' new family.

Most people have heard that the Bible is the best-selling book of all time. In the United States, the Bible is the best-selling book of the year, every year. What is it about the Bible that continues to make it the best-selling book of all time, even today? In Nehemiah chapters 7 & 8, we read about the prophet Nehemiah and the people applying themselves to knowing and understanding God’s word, leading to sorrow over their sin, joy over God's mercy, and active obedience. As Christians, our salvation is accomplished by Jesus, but to grow in our faith, we must actively seek to know and understand God’s word.

Michelangelo has "The Creation of Adam", Michael Jackson has "Thriller", Michael Jordan has Game Six of the '98 Finals. The term "magnum opus" comes is Latin for "great work." The magnum opus represents a person's greatest achievement, the seminal work, the crowning achievement. What will your greatest work be? What do you want to be remembered for? What's distracting you from that work? In Nehemiah chapter 6, Nehemiah's enemies are persistently trying to distract him from his magnum opus, rebuilding the city of God. He responds over and over: "I am doing a great work and I cannot come down."

Compassion fatigue is when we around suffering so often that we have a gradual lessening of compassion over time. Our culture is suffering from compassion fatigue. Nehemiah chapter 5 gives us a glimpse into a godly reaction to injustice and gives us a game-plan for using our power to fight injustice. When Nehemiah hears about the exploitation of the powerless, his fury turns to action as he fights injustice through sacrifice and service. He then wields his power in a godly way to help those who are exploited.

As we continue our journey through Nehemiah, we get to Nehemiah 4, which contains the perfect illustration of the Christian life. On the one hand, Nehemiah and the people of Israel are working hard to rebuild Jerusalem. On the other hand, they need to be ready to fight the enemy if they were to attack. Each worker had a sword and a trowel, to battle and build. Christians are always fighting the good fight of faith, resisting the sinful patterns of this world, the flesh, and the devil, but we are also working hard to make disciples, build each other up in love, and being built up as a spiritual house. Build and battle.

Studies show that purpose-driven people are more likely to be leaders, to have career satisfaction, earn more and enjoy more contentment overall – even living up to 7 years longer. But how do we find purpose? This week, we take a look at Nehemiah's mission in chapter 3, which teaches us a lesson in individual vs. collective purpose, and selfish vs. God-glorifying purpose.

In the second half of Nehemiah 2, the prophet Nehemiah spends time closely evaluating the brokenness of Jerusalem's walls, prior to coming up with a plan for restoration. In our lives, we need an honest self-evaluation to grow as well. And if we can't give ourselves an honest self-evaluation, then how are we supposed to change if we don't think we need to?

What's the biggest, boldest, most audacious prayer request you've ever brought before God? Perhaps you prayed for a spouse, or the healing of a loved one. Perhaps you prayed for a job, or a housing situation. Perhaps you prayed to win the lottery. Whatever it is, we've all probably come to God with some big requests, at some point. Nehemiah asks God for one of the wildest prayer requests recorded in Scripture, and what's crazier, God answers him!

Prayer is powerful. As we continue our series through the incredible book of Nehemiah, we'll look at Nehemiah's prayer in 1:4-11. Not only is this one of the most power-packed prayers in all of history, but it also offers us a template, for how we too can develop potent prayer lives.

The book of Nehemiah is about a godly young professional, whose heart is stirred by the brokenness of the city of God. God gives Nehemiah a "God-sized" vision for his life, the kind of vision that will never come to fruition apart from the sovereign and miraculous intervention of God Himself. Nehemiah devotes his life to be used by God, to help rebuild the city of God, within the city of man. Do you have a vision for your life? Do you have a "God-sized" vision for your life? What's your vision for your church? What's your vision for your city?

What if I told you, there is an investment opportunity with 0% risk and guaranteed returns? You would tell me it's too good to be true! Well, don't take it from me. Take it from God Himself! Jesus said, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Are you laying up treasures for yourself in heaven?

We've all experienced the stress of keeping really good news. It's so hard because good news is contagious. When we hear it we want to spread it. Last week we went through a cliffs notes version of the biblical story. We talked about how King Jesus is the focus of the whole cosmic story: Genesis to Revelation. This week is about your role in the story. We all have a part in the greatest story of all time. How well are you taking on your role?

Many of us our captivated by stories of kings, queens and kingdoms. Stories of just rulers returning to their thrones are rooted in the eternal cosmic story of the Gospel. Our new series, "In Boston as it is in Heaven," looks at Christ's royal return to set things right. While a story like Game of Thrones or Lord of the Rings may capture your imagination, you can only observe. But in the story of King Jesus, you get to participate. Yeah, it's awesome.

Our mission at Mosaic Boston is to help people get a vision of God, and so understand their need for spiritual cleansing from the Savior Jesus Christ, and join the mission of God helping others do the same. After Isaiah's heart and lips are cleansed he hears God say: "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" Then Isaiah said, "Here I am! Send me." Join us as we look at this glorious passage in Isaiah 6.

Why is it when Jesus preached publicly, the good, the bad, and the ugly always showed up to listen to what he had to say? We see this over and over throughout the gospels. It is not by coincidence that tax collectors and sinners, Pharisees and scribes, the outcasts and the elite were all drawn by his message. Jesus’ relationship with these radically diverse groups challenges us today, clarifies our role as followers of Jesus, and gives us great insight on what the Father values. When we understand what the Father values, it changes what we value as well.

If image is nothing, why do we expend so much life-energy to attain a certain image, protect that image, and project that image? Though created in the image of the living God, since the fall, we let the world inscribe its image on us. In the final sermon in Galatians, we look at how gazing at God's image in Jesus Christ leads to redeeming and repairing our self-image.

Many people are comfortable relating to God as Father, and most are comfortable with understanding the divinity of Jesus. However, many Christians have a hard time relating to the Holy Spirit. But living the life God has called us to live is impossible apart from the person and power of the Holy Spirit. Let's examine the command to "walk by the Spirit," be "led by the Spirit," and "keep in step with the Spirit."

The same indifference or apathy that I sometimes feel toward the Freedom Trail, we as Christians sometimes feel toward our freedom in Christ, extended to us by the grace of God. We no longer revel in it. As soon as this happens, the Gospel's transformative power in our lives weakens, and we fall away from grace. Holy Scripture reminds us: "It is for freedom that Christ has set you free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery" (Galatians 5:1). Are you experiencing this freedom now?

When Paul wrote to the church in Galatia, they were at a crossroads: to place their faith solely in the works of Christ, as originally taught by Paul; becoming reliant on the religious practices suggested by the Jewish teachers, or leaving Christianity to go back to their former lives. Though it’s been two millennia since Paul wrote to the Galatians, modern people are still constantly deciding between similar choices.