Scripture to Read: Nehemiah 6:16-19
As we close out this week’s devotions, we read in Nehemiah 6:16 that when all of Nehemiah’s enemies heard the wall had been completed they “lost their confidence; for they recognized that this work had been accomplished with the help of our God.” Nehemiah’s enemies tried, over and over again, to set fear in Nehemiah. They tried to get Nehemiah to lose his confidence and quit. They tried everything they could to get Nehemiah to stop working, but nothing they tried worked. Instead, God’s work was finished and the very ones who thought they could win had now lost their confidence because they saw that God had been working all along. Nehemiah knew God was working, and that is why Nehemiah never gave in to the enemy’s lies and deception. Nehemiah kept his heart focused on God, His Word, and the work God had called him to do. So, did the attacks stop? No, the attacks continued. Tobiah was related by marriage to two “nobles” (Nehemiah 6:17-18), and Tobiah had business dealings with these nobles (Nehemiah 6:18 “bound by oath”). Tobiah and the nobles continually exchanged letters. Also, the nobles would tell Nehemiah about Tobiah’s “good deeds” and then report to Tobiah what Nehemiah would say to them. Tobiah was definitely Nehemiah’s enemy, for he continued writing threatening letters to Nehemiah. Satan is not a quitter. We must remember that we enter the spiritual battlefield daily. Though we will have daily victories, the final battle will not be over until we are called home by our King.
Challenge & Application
1. What did God teach you today about the battles we face?
2. How will you choose to live, knowing that the final victory will not come until we are called home?
Don’t forget to pray using the A.C.T.S. (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication) method!