Let’s All Celebrate!
Celebrating God’s Great Works: Lessons from Nehemiah 12
What do birthdays, weddings, promotions, and sports victories all have in common? They’re occasions we celebrate. But in Nehemiah 12:27-47, we discover something else that deserves our celebration: the great works of God.
When Nehemiah and the people of Israel completed rebuilding Jerusalem’s wall in just 52 days, they didn’t simply move on to the next project. Instead, they organized a special worship service to dedicate the wall to God and celebrate His goodness. Their example teaches us valuable lessons about how we should celebrate God’s works in our lives today.
Why Should We Celebrate God’s Works?
The people of Israel had many reasons to celebrate. God had:
- Given them leadership through Nehemiah
- Unified them for an incredible task
- Protected them from enemies
- Restored worship in Jerusalem
- Enabled them to rebuild the wall in just 52 days
As New Testament Christians, we too should intentionally celebrate God’s goodness shown to us and through us. When God answers prayers, saves souls, heals bodies, or provides for needs, these works deserve recognition and celebration.
How Should We Celebrate God’s Great Works?
1. Celebrate with Gladness
“Now at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, they sought out the Levites from all their places to bring them to Jerusalem so that they might celebrate the dedication with gladness” (Nehemiah 12:27).
This gladness refers to an inner joy that manifests outwardly. When we celebrate what God has done, our inner rejoicing should overflow into visible expressions. Our facial expressions, words, and actions should reflect the joy we feel inside.
Think about it: When someone gets saved, we shouldn’t respond with folded arms and stoic faces. Our joy should be evident! People should be able to see that we’ve “tasted the goodness of the Lord” rather than looking like we’ve “sucked on a bottle of apple cider vinegar.”
2. Celebrate with Thanksgiving
The Israelites celebrated “with hymns of thanksgiving” (Nehemiah 12:27). They vocalized their gratitude to God for all He had done.
Scripture repeatedly emphasizes thanksgiving:
- Colossians 2:7 says we should be “overflowing with gratitude”
- 1 Thessalonians 5:18 instructs us to “give thanks in everything”
Remember Jesus’ healing of the ten lepers in Luke 17? Only one returned to thank Him, and Jesus asked, “Were there not ten cleansed? Where are the nine?” This teaches us that gratitude shouldn’t just be internalized but outwardly expressed.
As novelist Gertrude Stein said, “Silent gratitude isn’t very much to anyone.” Saying “thank you” isn’t just good manners—it’s good theology.
3. Celebrate with Singing and Music
The Israelites celebrated “with songs to the accompaniment of cymbals, harps and lyres” (Nehemiah 12:27). They assembled singers from surrounding villages and organized two great choirs that processed around the wall, meeting at the temple entrance.
Colossians 3:16 instructs us to let Christ’s word dwell in us richly, “teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”
Unlike a concert where we come to be entertained, church worship invites our participation. Our worship teams aren’t performers—they’re leaders guiding us in songs of thanksgiving, praise, faith, and love.
Some might hesitate to sing unfamiliar songs, but Revelation tells us we’ll sing new songs in heaven. If a song has good theology and praises God, we should learn to sing it as preparation for eternity.
4. Celebrate with Holiness
“The priests and the Levites purified themselves; they also purified the people, the gates and the wall” (Nehemiah 12:30).
Before their celebration, the Israelites took appropriate steps to ensure they were ceremonially pure according to the law. This likely involved washing garments, changing clothes, making sacrifices, and possibly fasting.
These purification rituals reminded God’s people that they were sinners approaching a holy God who must be approached on His terms, not ours. As Christians, we need to guard our hearts, character, and conduct to worship acceptably.
First Peter 1:16 reminds us that God calls us to be holy because He is holy. Just as soap cleans physical dirt, confession cleanses our spiritual impurity. When we come to worship, confession should precede celebration.
5. Celebrate with Giving
“On that day they offered great sacrifices and rejoiced because God had given them great joy” (Nehemiah 12:43).
Israel’s celebration involved giving in two significant ways:
- They offered sacrifices according to the sacrificial system
- They gave contributions, tithes, and offerings to support the Levites and priests
As Christians, we don’t bring animal sacrifices since Jesus offered Himself “once for all” (Hebrews 10:12). However, we can still offer spiritual sacrifices:
- Our bodies as “living sacrifices” (Romans 12:1)
- A “sacrifice of praise” (Hebrews 13:15)
- Good works and sharing our resources (Hebrews 13:16)
Every worship service provides an opportunity to demonstrate our giving hearts—whether through financial gifts, time, talents, or dedication of our lives.
Life Application
Imagine a city whose team just won the Super Bowl, but instead of celebrating, everyone simply went home and continued business as usual. Wouldn’t that seem strange? Sometimes I wonder if angels look down upon us when God does amazing things—souls saved, addictions broken, lives changed—and are puzzled by our muted response.
This week, I challenge you to become more intentional about celebrating God’s works:
- Identify God’s recent works: What has God done for you or through you recently that deserves celebration?
- Express outward gladness: How can you let your inner joy become more visible in your expressions of worship?
- Vocalize thanksgiving: Take time each day to specifically thank God for His works in your life.
- Participate fully in worship: Next Sunday, engage wholeheartedly in singing, regardless of song familiarity.
- Examine your heart: Is there unconfessed sin hindering your celebration? Take time to confess and receive cleansing.
- Give sacrificially: How can you offer your life, resources, time, or talents as a sacrifice of celebration?
Remember, we serve an awesome God who deserves to be celebrated. Let’s be a people who recognize His great works and respond with genuine celebration that reflects His goodness to the world around us.