Calendar

A MIND TO WORK AND PRAY (VII)
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 28
Nehemiah 4:12-23

Psalm 19:7-14

 

“O LORD,

my strength, and my redeemer.”

 

A MIND TO WORK AND PRAY (VII)
 
The value of watchfulness and precaution when serving God is highlighted in Nehemiah 4:12-23. The builders pressed on in the work, facing the challenges and the burden of the work and making progress by faith. They started the work after they had heard of the good hand of God and knew this work was God’s work. They were not presumptuous in their faith; they did not extend their “faith in God” beyond what God had revealed.
 
Be not ye afraid of them: remember the Lord (Neh 4:14). The difference between faith and presumption is knowledge. Faith is “…the evidence of things not seen” (Heb 11:1), and as such is based on and rests on what is revealed by God. When one acts in faith, one acts on the basis of assurance from the revealed Word of God. Nehemiah exhorted them to “remember the Lord” (Neh 4:14). Presumption, on the other hand, is what we can term as “fake faith.” While faith knows what God has promised, presumption assumes that God promises and acts on what He had not promised. Nehemiah called on the people to take courage and take action on behalf of their brethren (“remember the Lord… and fight for your brethren”). He did not presume that since they were doing the Lord’s work, and they were making progress, God would not allow anything to happen to them, and therefore they could ignore the present threats. Neither did he presume that since Moses told the people in Exodus 14:13 to “Fear ye not, stand still and see the salvation of the LORD,” they too needed to just stand still and let God deliver them as He did the Israelites under Moses. Instead, Nehemiah took precautionary steps by setting up watchers. The workload was heavy and the threats were repeatedly brought to their attention. Nehemiah did not assume that the people would be just fine and that this too would pass as the mocking did and they would continue with the same spirit. He took precautions to speak to the men, to encourage them and strengthen their faith and resolve, as they faced very trying times. They had been prayerful through it all, but they also had to make use of natural means. Trusting God to fight for them meant taking the steps they had taken to secure their safety.
 
THOUGHT: Matthew 7:22-23 shows the danger of presumption.

PRAYER: (Use Psalm 19:13.)

Search