Rebuild by Securing the Gates

Nehemiah 3:1-5

3 Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brothers the priests, and they built the Sheep Gate. They consecrated it and set its doors. They consecrated it as far as the Tower of the Hundred, as far as the Tower of Hananel. 2 And next to him the men of Jericho built. And next to them Zaccur the son of Imri built.  3 The sons of Hassenaah built the Fish Gate. They laid its beams and set its doors, its bolts, and its bars. 4 And next to them Meremoth the son of Uriah, son of Hakkoz repaired. And next to them Meshullam the son of Berechiah, son of Meshezabel repaired. And next to them Zadok the son of Baana repaired. 5 And next to them the Tekoites repaired, but their nobles would not stoop to serve their Lord.

The first thing we want to point out is that Eliashib the high priest rose up with other priest and as they did others joined them in rebuilding. As they rebuilt they worked together, you do not hear of any quarreling but rather we are told as the priest began to work the others followed.
A message to us leaders in the place today, when we rise up to do a good work others will follow.

So it was in the rebuilding of the city. In this chapter of Nehemiah, we find a pattern that occurs over and over again.  That pattern is as follows.  They first repaired the gate, laid its beams and set its doors, it bolts and its bars. After the gate was installed those adjacent to the gate also begin to rebuild. But it started with the gate.

Gates are of extreme importance, they let good things in and they keep unwanted things out. Even as these gates were placed with hinges things that we allow into our lives or things we keep out of our lives hinges on our will.

In Nehemiah’s day there were 10 gates to Jerusalem and each one had a specific purpose.
We are going to talk about these ten gates and as we do ask yourself:

What are you letting in and what are you keeping out?

Sheep Gate- (verse 1 & 32) The sheep gate was the very first gate mentioned. This was the gate which the sheep and lambs used in the sacrifice were brought through.
This gate was the only gate that the priest consecrated or deemed “Holy.”
This gates symbolizes to us our very first experience when we came to know Christ. that is, a realisation that Jesus was the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world. The sheep gate then speaks to us of the cross and the sacrifice that was made for our sins.

It is the starting point of everything but you will also notice the sheep gate is also mentioned at the very end once we have come full circle. That is because everything starts and ends with Jesus’ death on the cross.

When observing the sheep gate one must ask his or herself:
Have I opened the gate to allow Jesus to come into my life?
Have I walked into the gate that leads to his glorious inheritance which is laid up for the saints?
What have you allowed in and what are you keeping out?

Fish Gate- (verse 3) The Fish gate was mentioned next. It was called the fish gate because the fisherman of Galilee would bring their catch in through this gate to be sold.
For us, it speaks of evangelism as we have been called to be ‘fishers of men’ (Matt 4:19). It is a natural progression in our Christian life that after seeing that Jesus died for our sins, we would then want to tell others about it. Your testimony of what Jesus has done in your life qualifies you to be ‘fishers of men.’

So this is the next step in the Christian life.
Have you allowed evangelism into your life or do you shut the gate to reaching out to others?

Old Gate- (verse 6) Following from the Fish gate was the Old gate. The Old gate may have been one of the original gates made.  This speaks to us of the old ways of truth. A young Christian 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.

God has established ways that do not change and remain the same yesterday, today and forever.
Have you allowed the truth of God’s word into your life or do you set up a guard to keep it out?

Valley Gate- (verse 13) Several valleys surround Jerusalem and this gate apparently opened out to the valley of Hinnom.

But sooner or later the valley gate must come. The valley gate speaks to us of humbling and trials – valley type experiences used by the Lord for our personal growth.  Never easy but the Christian needs to remember that in the natural nothing really grows on the mountain tops, but it certainly does down in the valleys. So it is in the spiritual. Never a nice experience but it always produces fruit.

Do you allow the valleys in your life to produce character or do you let them crush you?
Dung Gate- (verse 14) All of Jerusalem’s refuse and rubbish was taken out through the dung gate, down to the valley of Hinnom, where it would be burned.

This is where the rubbish is removed and this is what happens in our own life. Clearing away the rubbish in our lives is never easy but the benefits of this experience can be seen in the next gate.
From the diagram above, up until this point we have been moving downward and the experiences have been hard, but having come to this point there is a sharp turn in the road and we begin to move upward again.

Will you allow the rubbish to be taken out of your life?
What have you allowed in and what needs to be taken out?

Fountain Gate- (verse 15) The fountain gate is located near the pool of Siloah and was often used by the people for cleaning before proceeding on to the temple.
After a valley type experience where rubbish in our lives is cleared out through the dung gate, true faith comes forth and the fountains begin to flow quite quickly!
This speaks to us of the living waters of the Holy Spirit that cleanse our lives and empower us for our Christian life. Jesus said: ‘Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." (John 7:38)

Have you allowed Christ to fill you with living water, or have you kept him out?

Water Gate- (verse 26) We are not talking about the political scandal of the 70’s.
However we are talking about the Water Gate of Jerusalem which led to the Gihon Spring which was located adjacent to the Kidron Valley.  The water gate is a picture of the word of God and its effect in our life. Eph 5:26 states ‘… having washed her by the water of the word.’ Psalm 119:9 states that it is only through God’s word that we can be clean.

It is no coincidence that this gate was located next to the fountain gate as the two often go together. The Holy Spirit is the one who makes the word of God alive to us personally, allowing cleansing, encouragement and direction to take place in our life.

Have you allowed the word to cleanse you and make you whole or do you close the gates to the word of God?

Horse Gate- (verse 28) The horse gate was close to the King’s stables and the men of Jerusalem would ride their horses out of this gate to war.  The horse gate speaks to us of warfare as horses were used in battle and became a symbol of war.

Revelation 19:11 ‘I saw Heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness does He judge and make war.’
Spiritual warfare is a requirement of every Christian because we are all in a battle whether we know it or not.

Ephesians 6:12 (ESV)  12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

As Christians we have to be willing to engage in spiritual warfare. In other words passionate pleading with the Lord for our families and our communities. It also means, rebuking the enemy off of our lives and canceling his work that is set against us.

Have you opened the gate to spiritual warfare?

Have you allowed it to be a part of your life or have you lived apart from it?

East Gate- (verse 29) The East gate is located on the opposite side of the Mount of Olives.
Personal aspect: Ezekiel 44:1-3 ‘… the gate that looked toward the east, and it was shut. The Lord said to me, ‘This gate shall be shut; it shall not be opened, and no one shall enter by it, for the Lord God of Israel has entered by it.’

The east gate opens and looks toward the Mount of Olives and we know that when Jesus returns He will return to this mount. He will then enter Jerusalem by the east gate. The east gate then speaks of the return of Jesus Christ.

For our Christian life it shows us of our need to live with this hope and to long for His return. A specific crown is even given to those who do this (2 Tim 4:8).

Have we allowed the hope of Christ’s coming back to rest in our hearts? Do we hope for heaven or have we closed the gate to this idea?

Inspection Gate- (verse 31) Also known as the Miphkad gate. It was at this gate that David would meet his troops to inspect them.

This gate speaks to us of the examination of our lives by the Lord where our lives are inspected and rewarded appropriately. In our Christian experience we should be living with this in mind. We are called to live our lives with eternity in view, caring more for the things of eternity than the temporal that we see around us.

Have you lived your life as though you will one day have to give an account before The Lord for how you lived? Or have you closed the gate to this idea and instead of living for eternity you live for the moment?

In order for God to start a work in those around you, you first must secure the gates of your life.
Sheep, Fish, Old, Valley, Dung, Fountain, Water, Horse, East, Inspection.