8/11/2011 7:54:29 AM
SPIRITUAL DIARY
My Worship Time Focus: Intimidating plots
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Nehemiah 4:7-9
Message of the verses: “7 ¶ Now when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the repair of the walls of Jerusalem went on, and that the breaches began to be closed, they were very angry. 8 All of them conspired together to come and fight against Jerusalem and to cause a disturbance in it. 9 But we prayed to our God, and because of them we set up a guard against them day and night.”
In today’s SD we will look at a second device that Satan will use to oppose the work of the Lord.
Before I comment on these three verses I want to look at a passage from Daniel chapter nine. The reason for this is because it was Daniel who had gotten a message from the Lord in answer to his prayer that is recorded in the ninth chapter. He saw after reading Jeremiah 25:11 that the captivity of the Jews would be seventh years long and he wanted to know what would happen after the captivity was over. The things that were going on in Nehemiah’s day at this time of his writing were told to Daniel would happen. There are different parts to Daniel’s prophecy and after the prophecy is started the first part has to do with restoring and rebuilding the city of Jerusalem. Daniel prophecies that it will be in a difficult time that this will occur: “"So you are to know and discern that from the issuing of a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; it will be built again, with plaza and moat, even in times of distress.”
This section from the book of Nehemiah shows that the Jews had four different enemies who were working together to stop the work of rebuilding the walls. To the North came Sanballat and the Samaritans; to East Tobiah and the Ammonites; to the South, Geshem and the Arabs; and to the west came the Philistines headed by the Ashdodites which was the largest city of the Philistines and was an old enemy of the Jews.
Nehemiah knew what it meant to “watch and pray,” for we will see later on in 4:17 that the workers had tools in one hand to work on the wall and weapons in the other hand to protect themselves from their enemies that they were surrounded by.
From a Christian perspective on this Dr. Wiersbe writes the following: “The Christian battle is not against flesh and blood, but against Satan and his demonic forces that use flesh and blood to oppose the Lord’s work. If we hope to win the war and finish the work, we must use the spiritual equipment God has provided (Eph. 6:10-18; 2Cor. 10:1-6). If we focus on the visible enemy alone and forget the invisible enemy, we are sure to start trusting our own resources; and this will lead to defeat.”
Spiritual meaning for my life today: “1 ¶ Now I, Paul, myself urge you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ-I who am meek when face to face with you, but bold toward you when absent! 2 I ask that when I am present I need not be bold with the confidence with which I propose to be courageous against some, who regard us as if we walked according to the flesh. 3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, 4 for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. 5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, 6 and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete.”
The highlighted section of the above passage is something I wish to focus in on. This seems to me that it goes along with the statement the Dr. Wiersbe made that believers are to watch and pray and not trust in opposing the enemy just in the flesh, but by praying too and depending upon the Lord to defeat the enemies that we face.
My Steps of Fait for Today:
1. Romans 12:1-2
2. Proverbs 3:5-6
3. Ephesians 6:10-18
4. Philippians 4:10-13
5. Philippians 4:13
8/11/2011 8:36:03 AM
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