ESOCS Devotional 15 August 2025 – Fear Not
MEMORY VERSE: “For they all made us afraid, saying, ‘Their hands shall be weakened from the work, that it be not done.’ Now therefore, O God, strengthen my hands.” Nehemiah 6:9
TEXT: NEHEMIAH. 6:1-15
Now it happened when Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem the Arab, and the rest of our enemies heard that I had rebuilt the wall, and that there were no breaks left in it (though at that time I had not hung the doors in the gates), 2 that Sanballat and Geshem sent to me, saying, “Come, let us meet together among the villages in the plain of Ono.” But they thought to do me harm.
3 So I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down. Why should the work cease while I leave it and go down to you?”
4 But they sent me this message four times, and I answered them in the same manner.
5 Then Sanballat sent his servant to me as before, the fifth time, with an open letter in his hand. 6 In it was written:
It is reported among the nations, and Geshem says, that you and the Jews plan to rebel; therefore, according to these rumors, you are rebuilding the wall, that you may be their king. 7 And you have also appointed prophets to proclaim concerning you at Jerusalem, saying, “There is a king in Judah!” Now these matters will be reported to the king. So come, therefore, and let us consult together.
8 Then I sent to him, saying, “No such things as you say are being done, but you invent them in your own heart.”
9 For they all were trying to make us afraid, saying, “Their hands will be weakened in the work, and it will not be done.”
Now therefore, O God, strengthen my hands.
10 Afterward I came to the house of Shemaiah the son of Delaiah, the son of Mehetabel, who was a secret informer; and he said, “Let us meet together in the house of God, within the temple, and let us close the doors of the temple, for they are coming to kill you; indeed, at night they will come to kill you.”
11 And I said, “Should such a man as I flee? And who is there such as I who would go into the temple to save his life? I will not go in!” 12 Then I perceived that God had not sent him at all, but that he pronounced this prophecy against me because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him. 13 For this reason he was hired, that I should be afraid and act that way and sin, so that they might have cause for an evil report, that they might reproach me.
14 My God, remember Tobiah and Sanballat, according to these their works, and the prophetess Noadiah and the rest of the prophets who would have made me afraid.
15 So the wall was finished on the twenty-fifth day of Elul, in fifty-two days.
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Seen as false evidence appearing real: Fear is a cankerworm that seeks to disorganize a man and put him in total confusion, and set him off balance in life. Fearfulness equals unproductiveness. It is also good you note that fear is a direct attack on your faith. Having tried all means to stop the progress of the work in Jerusalem, Sanballat and the rest of the enemies resorted to making Nehemiah and other builders afraid. They sent messages across to Nehemiah just to infuse fear in him. When that was strongly resisted, they hired a prophet to prophesy fear into him.
We can therefore deduce that fear is a perfect strategy of the enemy to limit the destiny of a man. Fear cages a man and leaves him perpetually in bondage. One good way to halt a man who appears to be moving in a great direction with high velocity is to make him afraid. Fear weakens the hand from work. Often times, inductiveness and inaction is traceable to fear. A fearful man cannot act as at when necessary.
No wonder, when God brought Joshua into leadership of the children of Israel, one of the first things He told him was to disregard all manner of fear and be courageous (Joshua 1:9). In the same vain, we charge you today not to accommodate fear in your journey of life. Don’t let the devil succeed in keeping you permanently afraid. Note the following:
- Fear is not a gift from God: “for God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Tim. 1:7). Thus, it is certainly from the devil. You are not a storage house for the devils property; therefore, put it off your life. Fear does not come from God because it is not a good gift (James 1:17). Cast that spirit away today and move on in life.
- God is with you: “… for the Lord thy God is with thee withersoever thou goest” (Joshua 1:9); “… fear not, for I am with thee…” (Isaiah 41: 1). The presence of God is a great dispeller of fear. When you carry divine presence, you will not have any reason to be afraid in life. It is lack of the presence of God that gives rise to fear. Thus, we need to be very conscious of His presence with us per time in order to deal with the spirit of fear. This was Nehemiah’s exploit. He knew surely that God was with him; hence, he was not moved by the antics and the threats of the enemy (Ps. 27:1-3).
Remember that the sole aim of fear is to stop you from succeeding in life and your respective endeavours; therefore, don’t allow it.
CHALLENGES
- Deal with every spirit of fear in your life today.
- Remain conscious of God’s presence per time, as it is an answer to fear
PRAYER POINT
- Lord, thank you for the word of assurance and your presence in my life always. Grant me the grace never to be afraid any more, in Jesus name Amen.
FURTHER READING: Zechariah 6:1-15; 7:1-14; Romans 8:1-26
ESOCS Devotional 15 August 2025
