Psalm 149: 5-9
Let the godly ones exult in glory; let them sing for joy on their beds. Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand, To execute vengeance on the nations and punishment on the peoples, To bind their kings with chains and their nobles with fetters of iron,To execute on them the judgment written; this is an honor for all His godly one. Praise the Lord!
In the days of Nehemiah, the exiles returned to their beloved city Jerusalem. They were tasked to rebuild the temple and the wall of Jerusalem by the king of Persia, Artaxerxes. Nehemiah and a few exiles traveled to Jerusalem with official letters to carry out the rebuilding of the temple and the city walls. However, they ran into a lot of opposition from the Samaritans and others living in the region. Nehemiah encouraged the weak-hearted exiles to continue the good work as God will stand on their side and protect them. Despite interruptions, and threats, the rebuilding of the wall continued, and breaches were being closed. This infuriated the enemies of the Israelites. They conspired to thwart their efforts by infiltrating into their ranks, destroying them and their efforts from within.
Nehemiah continued to encourage the Israelites with the Word of God, constantly reminding them not to be afraid and to remember the greatness and power of their God. He encouraged them to continue to fight for their families and their fellow countrymen. Simultaneously, he urged half of his men to take up swords, spears, shields, bows and arrows and stand guard for the other half of the men who continued rebuilding the walls. Nehemiah 4: 17 – Those who were rebuilding the wall and those who carried burdens took their load with one hand doing the work and the other holding a weapon. Thus, they continued rebuilding the wall while declaring that Our God will fight for us (Nehemiah 4: 20).
Our life is a battlefield. Our home is a battlefield. Our mind is a battlefield. Every corner we turn, there is the enemy lurking to pounce on us. We conquer one enemy; another one pops up. Many a times, we are battling more than one enemy on multiple fronts. As long as we are on this earth, we will continue to fight until our dying breath. There is not a moment of respite. We are fighting the battles of temptation, addiction, denial, health, apostasy, atheism, debt, politics, culture, social, etc. There never seems to an end to our battles.
Dear Saint of God, we must learn to equip ourselves well for the battles we face. It is not just equipping but utilizing the weaponry we have to fight. First and foremost, we must believe that our God is on our side. When we believe that, half the battle is already won. Marching ahead with the weaponry we have; we will see the victory. The Psalmist declared the praises of God with his mouth. Let the praises of God be in our mouths and on our lips at all times. When we have God on our minds, then songs of joy will erupt from our hearts. Let us declare that we are righteous through Christ. Let us buckle ourselves with the Truth. Let us be ready to defend the Gospel. Let us shield ourselves with such a faith in our Almighty that no weapon formed against us can prevail. Let us walk confidently that we are saved by the blood of the Lamb. Last, but most importantly, the only offensive weapon in our hand is the Sword – the Word of God, that we must take up to fight against the enemies.
That is all we need to march into life’s battles: Mouths filled with the praises of God and declaring the Word of God. No enemy can stand against such a deadly force. The Israelites rebuilt the city walls with one hand and held a sword in the other to fight the enemy. Even when the enemy infiltrated their ranks, they were able to fend off. Numerous times, we are fighting in a close warfare. The enemy could be someone who is close to us. If we are immersed in the Word of God, then we can use this Sword of God in close battles. Spears, bows and arrows are used against the enemy that is far off and charging towards us. If we have shielded ourselves well with faith in God, then we can charge ahead while protecting ourselves from the onslaught of the culture, social and other societal battles.
Dearly beloved, let us use our God-given weaponry. Praise Him for His goodness and faithfulness. Praise Him for His awesomeness. Praise Him for His glorious power. Praise Him for His abundant mercy and love. Praise Him for who He is. Let such praises always be on our lips, in our mouths and in our hearts. With the Sword of God in our hands, we can fight any enemy that comes against us. With the Sword of God, we can silence the taunts and boasts of the enemy. Let the Word of God be your sword. For He will give you wisdom when and how to use this all-consuming, all-powerful Word for our victory.
Practical Christian Living 