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Time to Build | Week 7 | Daniel Goulding | Echoes Church · Rewind

Echoes Church

Daniel Goulding · Mar 20, 2025

Daniel Goulding · Mar 20, 2025 · 41 min watch · 2 min read

Time to Build | Week 7 | Daniel Goulding | Echoes Church

Devotional days

Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6
Day 7

Scripture in this message

Matthew 4:4
Jeremiah 15:16
2 Timothy 3
Hebrews 4:12
James 1:22
John 13:17

Big Idea Key points Application

Big Idea

God's word is the anchor that turns ruins into revival, and a church ready for revival grows in its desire, reverence, understanding, and obedience toward Scripture.

God offers His people not just survival but real revival, and He anchors that revival to His word. Pastor Daniel shows from Nehemiah 8 that when God's people gather around Scripture with growing hunger, reverence, understanding, and obedience, ruined and stalled lives are rebuilt into ones marked by blessing.

Key points

1
1A church ready for revival has an increased desire for God's word
Pastor Daniel points out that in Nehemiah 8 it's the people, not the leaders, who ask Ezra to bring out the book of the law, and they listen for six hours without leaving. He connects this to Matthew 4:4 and Jeremiah 15:16, arguing that just as the body needs food, the spirit needs the word, and many settle for less than God's best because they are spiritually starved.
2
2A church ready for revival has an increased reverence for God's word
He notes that Ezra built a platform to physically elevate the word, and the people responded by rising, praising, raising hands, and bowing down. Citing a Gallup poll showing only a fraction of even churchgoers trust the Bible as true and authoritative, he insists Scripture is not mere advice but divine authority, referencing 2 Timothy 3.
3
3A church ready for revival has an increased understanding of God's word
The Levites explain the law clearly so the people can understand it, and as understanding grows, the people weep with both joy and conviction. Pastor Daniel ties this to Hebrews 4:12, describing the word as alive and sharp enough to heal and to cut away what is decaying, and argues the more we understand the Bible the more we understand ourselves.
4
4A church ready for revival has an increased obedience to God's word
Drawing on James 1:22 and John 13's foot-washing story, he argues that Jesus ties blessing not merely to knowing truth but to doing it. He illustrates with tithing and sexual purity that some blessings are only experienced on the other side of obedience, and challenges listeners to name the one thing God has told them to start doing that they are avoiding.

I believe that God's word is the anchor that turns ruins into revival

A story from life

The preacher recalls a childhood houseboat trip on Lake Mead where the family's anchor kept failing to hold, leaving the boat to drift until a stranger showed them how to anchor to the rocky lake bed.

Application

Pastor Daniel's charge is to ask God to increase your desire, reverence, understanding, and obedience to His word until your whole life is anchored there.

Ask God to increase your desire for His word
Admit if you don't hunger for Scripture and ask God to change your desires, starting with discipline if you must, until reading becomes love rather than duty.
Settle whether the Bible is trustworthy
If you're unsure the Bible can be trusted and built on, stop and work through that question first rather than moving forward on shaky ground.
Let understanding of the word reshape your identity
Sit with Scripture during the week, not only on Sundays, and let the Holy Spirit help you understand it so you remember who God says you are.
Identify the one thing you know to start doing
Name the specific obedience you've been avoiding, even if it feels foolish or uncomfortable, and take that next step this week as an act of trust.

Take it into your week

Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI

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Scripture in this message

From the transcript
“Jesus tells us Matthew chapter four verse four that the scripture say people don't live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of god”
Read the whole chapter →
From the transcript
“The prophet Jeremiah in chapter 15 verse 16, he says that when I discovered your words, I I devoured them. They are my joy and my heart's delight”
From the transcript
“The scriptures talk about themselves in second Timothy chapter three. It says that all scripture is inspired by god. It is useful to teach us what is true, to make us realize what is wrong in our lives”
From the transcript
“Hebrews chapter four verse 12 tells us the word of god. It is an amazing thing because it's the only book that is alive and powerful. It it is sharper than the sharpest two edged sword cutting between soul and spirit”
From the transcript
“James chapter one verse 22, it says, don't just listen to god's word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you're only fooling yourself”
From the transcript
“look what he says, John chapter 13 verse 17. He says, now that you know these things, you would think you would end right here. You will be blessed”
From the transcript
“Paul I think was referring to in first Corinthians chapter one verse 18. He says, remember, the message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction but we who are being saved know that it is the very power of god”

Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI

7-day devotional

A personal reading plan from this message — scripture, reflection, and prayer for each day.

Sign in to track your progress through this devotional.

Day 1

Related passage

Pastor Daniel began with a striking picture: a whole nation, after generations of spiritual neglect, gathering in the open square and asking Ezra to bring out the Book of the Law. Nobody twisted their arm. They wanted it. They stood and listened from early morning until noon, attentive to every word. That hunger is the first fingerprint of revival. It's worth sitting with that, because so often we approach Scripture out of obligation rather than longing — a box to check before the day swallows us. But notice the order here. The people had walked away for years, and yet God reawakened their appetite. Revival didn't start with their performance; it started with desire returning. The same is possible for you, no matter how dry the season has felt. You don't have to manufacture passion through sheer willpower. You can simply ask. That's the heart behind Pastor Daniel's first prayer: God, increase my desire for Your Word. This week, let that be your honest starting line. Open the Book not to prove anything, but to meet the One who speaks through it. A small, regular rhythm — even ten minutes — is how a fresh hunger begins to grow.

For reflection

When was the last time I genuinely wanted to open God's Word, and what feeds or starves that desire in me?

Pray

Ask God to increase your desire for His Word, even in a dry or distracted season.

Day 2

When Jesus was famished in the wilderness, He answered the tempter with a line from Deuteronomy: 'People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.' Pastor Daniel pointed to this as the foundation of a Spirit-driven hunger for Scripture. Notice that Jesus didn't treat God's Word as a supplement to real life — He treated it as life itself, as essential as the bread His body craved. We rarely forget to eat. Our stomachs remind us. But our souls can go days, even weeks, undernourished, and we mistake the resulting weakness for something else: irritability, anxiety, a low-grade emptiness we try to fill a dozen other ways. Jesus models a different instinct. In His hour of greatest physical need, He reached for the Father's words. That's not religious heroics; it's honesty about what actually sustains us. If you've been running on fumes, the answer may be simpler than you think. Today, let one verse be your bread. Read it slowly, more than once, and let it actually feed you rather than merely informing you. Living on God's Word is not a discipline to dread but a meal to receive.

For reflection

What am I currently reaching for to fill a hunger that only God's Word can satisfy?

Pray

Pray for a deeper trust that God's Word truly sustains you more than the things you reach for first.

Day 3

Pastor Daniel's second prayer asks God to increase our reverence for His Word. Reverence is more than respect; it's the decision to let Scripture have authority over us rather than the other way around. Paul tells Timothy that all Scripture is inspired by God — literally God-breathed — and useful to teach us, correct us, and train us in righteousness. That word 'correct' is the uncomfortable one. We love a Bible that affirms what we already think and lifts our spirits. We're slower to welcome a Bible that confronts us, that asks us to change. But Pastor Daniel put it plainly: we change our lifestyle to match the Bible, not the Bible to match our lifestyle. That's what reverence looks like in practice. It's not stiff or fearful; it's the freedom of trusting that the One who breathed these words knows us and loves us and is shaping us into something good. When you come to a passage that pinches, that's not a problem to edit around — it may be exactly where God is doing His most loving work. Let the Word read you today, and ask Him for the humility to receive its correction as a gift.

For reflection

Is there a place where I've been quietly editing Scripture to fit my life rather than letting it reshape me?

Pray

Ask God to increase your reverence for His Word and the humility to be corrected by it.

Day 4

'For the word of God is alive and powerful,' Hebrews tells us, 'sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit... It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.' Pastor Daniel's third prayer asks God to increase our understanding — and this verse reminds us that understanding Scripture isn't merely an intellectual exercise. The Bible is alive. It does something to us when we read it. The Holy Spirit uses it to show us who we truly are, both the parts we'd rather hide and, more wonderfully, the truth of who we now are in Christ. In Nehemiah, the people understood the Law because the Levites explained it and made its meaning clear — God provided help so the Word would land. You're not meant to figure it all out alone, white-knuckling your way through hard passages. The Spirit who inspired the Word lives in you to illuminate it, and He often works through community — through others who can help the meaning become clear. If a passage feels closed to you, that's an invitation to ask the Spirit for light and maybe to open it alongside someone further down the road. Understanding grows where humility and dependence meet.

For reflection

Where do I need the Holy Spirit's help to understand a part of Scripture that has felt confusing or closed to me?

Pray

Pray for the Holy Spirit to increase your understanding and to remind you who you are in Christ.

Day 5

'But don't just listen to God's word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.' This is the hinge of Pastor Daniel's message, and his fourth prayer: God, increase my obedience to Your Word. James names a danger we don't always take seriously — that we can know a great deal of Scripture, nod along, feel moved on Sunday, and still be deceiving ourselves if none of it travels into our actual choices. Knowing without doing isn't neutral; James calls it self-deception. That sounds severe, but it's actually freeing. It means the goal was never to accumulate information about God but to walk with Him. Pastor Daniel urged each of us to name the one area where God is pressing us toward obedience — not a vague someday intention, but a concrete next step we can take this week. It might be a hard conversation, a habit to release, a step of generosity, a relationship to mend. Don't rush past this. Sit honestly before God and let one thing surface. The aim isn't religious striving; it's a love for God that finally reaches your hands and feet. Name your one thing, and take the first real step toward it.

For reflection

What is the one concrete next step of obedience God is pressing on me right now — and what's my first move toward it?

Pray

Ask God to increase your obedience and to give you courage for the one step He's pressing on you.

Day 6

Related passage

When the people heard the Law read aloud, they wept — they felt the weight of how far they'd drifted. But Nehemiah and Ezra stopped the mourning with surprising words: 'This is a sacred day before the LORD... Don't be dejected and sad, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.' Pastor Daniel highlighted this turn carefully. The strength to walk in obedience doesn't come from sorrow or grim determination — it comes from joy. That matters, because we can easily turn following God into white-knuckled duty, bracing ourselves to obey through sheer effort. But that kind of religion burns out fast. The joy of the Lord is different. It's the gladness of belonging to Him, of being forgiven and welcomed, that actually fuels a life of obedience over the long haul. Conviction has its place — the people's tears were real and right — but God didn't want them stuck there. He wanted them strengthened by joy. If obedience has felt heavy lately, like one more burden, this verse is an invitation to receive God's gladness as your fuel. Celebrate what He's done, rest in His welcome, and let that joy carry you into the very obedience you've been straining toward.

For reflection

Am I trying to obey God out of grim duty, or am I letting His joy be the strength that carries me?

Pray

Pray that the joy of the Lord — not striving or guilt — would become your strength this week.

Day 7

After washing His disciples' feet, Jesus said, 'Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them.' Pastor Daniel built his whole message toward this truth: some blessings are only experienced on the other side of obedience. Knowing is not the same as doing, and the blessing Jesus names belongs to the doer. Over this week we've prayed four prayers — for desire, reverence, understanding, and obedience — and they build on one another. Desire draws us to the Word. Reverence lets it hold authority. The Spirit grows our understanding. And all of it is meant to land in a life that actually does what God says. Pastor Daniel was honest that the next step often looks foolish or costly — generosity that stretches us, purity that swims upstream, a leap of faith with no guarantee. The world calls such things foolish, but Paul reminds us the message of the cross is foolishness to those perishing and the power of God to those being saved. Breakthrough often waits exactly where obedience feels most expensive. So as the week closes, return to your one step. Don't admire it; take it. The blessing Jesus promised is on the other side of doing.

For reflection

Looking back over this week, which of the four prayers do I most need to keep praying — and what does taking my next step actually require of me?

Pray

Pray for courage to take the costly-looking step where God's breakthrough may be waiting, trusting Jesus' promise of blessing for those who do.

Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI

Small-group discussion guide

For leading a group conversation about this message.

Open

Most of us can remember a time when something old and familiar suddenly came alive again — a song, a place, a friendship. This message in Nehemiah 7–8 traces how God's people moved from spiritual ruin to revival when His Word came alive among them again.

Discussion questions

1
In Nehemiah 8, the people gather and ask for the Word to be read after generations of neglect. What do you notice about how they respond to hearing Scripture again?
Related passage
2
Pastor Daniel described revival beginning with a fresh, Spirit-driven desire for God's Word. What do you think stirs that kind of hunger in a group of people, and what tends to dull it?
3
The message drew a line between treating Scripture as good advice and revering it as divine authority — changing our lives to match the Bible rather than the reverse. What does that difference actually look like in how we read it together?
4
James says to be doers of the word and not hearers only, who deceive themselves. Why might it be so easy for people to mistake knowing Scripture for actually living it?
5
Pastor Daniel said some blessings are only found on the other side of a specific act of obedience. How might naming a concrete next step — rather than a vague intention — change the way we follow God?
6
Nehemiah tells the people that the joy of the Lord is their strength, not sorrow or striving. How could leaning on that joy reshape the way we encourage one another to keep walking in obedience?
Related passage

Pray together

Pray around the four prayers Pastor Daniel offered — that God would increase our desire for, reverence for, understanding of, and obedience to His Word — and ask Him to make His joy our strength as we take the next step He's pressing on each of us.

Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI

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Topics

Breakthrough Through Obedience God's Word and Obedience Holy Spirit Understanding Scripture's Authority Spiritual Revival

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