Memorise: For the rod of the wicked shall not rest upon the lot of the righteous; lest the righteous put forth their hands unto iniquity. Psalm 125:3
Read: Nehemiah 4:1-15 (KJV)
1 But it came to pass, that when Sanballat heard that we builded the wall, he was wroth, and took great indignation, and mocked the Jews.
2 And he spake before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, What do these feeble Jews? will they fortify themselves? will they sacrifice? will they make an end in a day? will they revive the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned?
3 Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall even break down their stone wall.
4 Hear, O our God; for we are despised: and turn their reproach upon their own head, and give them for a prey in the land of captivity:
5 And cover not their iniquity, and let not their sin be blotted out from before thee: for they have provoked thee to anger before the builders.
6 So built we the wall; and all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof: for the people had a mind to work.
7 But it came to pass, that when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up, and that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth,
8 And conspired all of them together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it.
9 Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them.
10 And Judah said, The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed, and there is much rubbish; so that we are not able to build the wall.
11 And our adversaries said, They shall not know, neither see, till we come in the midst among them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease.
12 And it came to pass, that when the Jews which dwelt by them came, they said unto us ten times, From all places whence ye shall return unto us they will be upon you.
13 Therefore set I in the lower places behind the wall, and on the higher places, I even set the people after their families with their swords, their spears, and their bows.
14 And I looked, and rose up, and said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, Be not ye afraid of them: remember the Lord, which is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses.
15 And it came to pass, when our enemies heard that it was known unto us, and God had brought their counsel to nought, that we returned all of us to the wall, every one unto his work.
Bible in one year:
Isaiah 7-9,
Mark 13:24-14:9,
Hymnal:
Sing hymn 18
Message:
I want you to see today’s topic as a prophetic word from God coming to you with power. You may be wondering, “What is it that shall not stand?” The counsel of the wicked against you shall not stand in Jesus’ Name.
In this regard, there are many lessons to be learnt from Nehemiah and his team of builders. It is amazing that there are people who are opposed to good things in life, but the good news is that for those who know the true God, the counsel of the wicked will never stand. When Nehemiah got to know of the conspiracy hatched by Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabians and their other devilish allies like the Ammonites and Ashdodities, he called for prayer. Nehemiah 4:9 says:
“Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them.”
Beloved, if you suffering must cease and the conspiracies of the wicked against you must no longer stand, you must learn to pray.
Furthermore, observe that Nehemiah set a watch, day and night, against the evil conspirators. Jesus told the disciples in Mark 14:38 to watch and pray. Nehemiah and his team did not watch alone, because they knew that “except the Lord keep the city, the watchman keeps awake in vain” (Psalm 127:1). At the same time, they did not pray alone; they also watched. Very often, children of God fail in the area of watching. They are carefree, but this is not the will of God for our lives. God wants us to be vigilant, so that together with Him, we will continue to frustrate the counsel of the wicked. In addition, Nehemiah also did something strategic, as seen in Nehemiah 4:16-17:
“And it came to pass from that time forth, that the half of my servants wrought in the work, and the other half of them held both the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the habergeons; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah. They which builded on the wall, and they that bare burdens, with those that laded, everyone with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand held a weapon.”
There was precise division of labour, with everyone knowing his or her responsibility. Everyone of them also had their weapon of war ready, even as they engaged in the work of building. To frustrate the counsel of the wicked, we must be sensitive to the Spirit always and be ready to engage in spiritual warfare at all times. Beloved, let us comfort ourselves in such a way that our Father in heaven will know that we mean business, and He will not allow the counsel of the wicked against our destiny and our endeavours to stand in Jesus’ Name.
Prayer Point
Father, strengthen my hands in battle and frustrate the counsel of my enemies.
Open Heavens Daily Devotional Lessons was written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, one of the largest evangelical Churches in the world and also the President of Christ the Redeemer's Ministries.
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