THE HARD TRUTH CONTEMPLATION CORNER: (Jn. 16:13) But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. Thoughts; Micah thought it a sign of Gods favour to him and his images that a Levite should knock on his door. His mistakes was that he interpreted Scripture in the light of circumstances rather than circumstances in the light of Scripture (see Jdgs. 17:1-6) Ask yourself now, had you, and have you been serving God in truth and in spirit? Have you been submitting to him in totality or are you hanging on to or creating idols for yourself? Do you ensure the Scripture is interpreted to you as required; with you doing same for others? Is your service in His house as it ought to be; or are you encouraging lawlessness/divisiveness? Part of the reason why the Holy Spirit was released unto us is, so that He can reach out to many, (serving different purposes, in different localities) at the same time; unlike was the case with Jesus before he was crucified. In actual fact, the truth into which the Holy Spirit guides us is the truth about Christ. The Spirit also helps us through patient practice to discern right from wrong. Jesus said the Holy Spirit would tell them what is yet to come - the nature of their mission, the opposition they would face, and the final outcome of their efforts (Jn. 16:13). They didnt fully understand these promises until the Holy Spirit came after Jesus death and resurrection. Then the Holy Spirit revealed truths to disciples that they wrote down in the books that now forms the New Testament. They submitted and listened to the counsel of the Holy Spirit, who in turn opened their eyes to see Scriptures above the circumstances. Today we often fail to follow these foot prints! We rather choose to follow Micahs footprints - a doctrine that is circumstance based and not Scripture based. This approach has grown from our individual life/lifestyle to our family life, social life, community life and even Christian life. Micah and his Mother seemed to be good and moral and may have sincerely desired to worship God, but they disobeyed God by following their own desires instead of doing what God wanted. The attitude that prevailed in Micahs day was this Every one did as he saw fit (Jgs. 17:6) reminiscent of what is obtained in most places of worship today! Today, as in Micahs day, everyone seems to put his or her own interest first. The people in Micahs time replaced the true worship of God with a homemade version of worship. As a result, chaos set in; the promises of God could not be inherited by the people - Rather, famine and hopelessness were unleashed on the land (Ruth 1:1-6). But God has given us standards. He has not left our conduct up to us and our opinions. We can avoid conforming to societys low standards by taking Gods commands seriously and applying them to life. Independence and self-reliance are positive traits, but only within the framework of Gods standards. Today we see congregations who do not understand as little as the principles of first fruits, tithing, thanksgiving, offering, charity, missions, seed and projects as key points to prosperity; thus causing a gap in the status-quo laid down. This like in Micahs time, has made Levites and todays Men of God device other means of livelihood - via emergency visions, prophecies and obnoxious deliverances, just to exist. •Like the Levite in Micahs time, Gods supposed servants, now accept money from questionable characters in the society and in questionable circumstances, and so mortgage their conscience(s) (see Jdg. 17:10-11). •They even accept idols as part of their work tools to be used for service in Gods house (see Jdg 18:18-20, 30-31). •They also take up employ and positions under these men with questionable or dubious backgrounds or religious inclinations; witch-craft/occultic persons, covens or groups; or contrary/magical powers, etc (see Jdgs. 17:12, 18:19); and so do things in a way that was inconsistent with Gods laws. While Micah illustrates the religious downfall of individual Israelites (and our today believers), this priest illustrates the religious downfall of priests and Levites (our present day Men of God). We therefore need to retrace our steps! We need to get back to the basics - The Word! We need to rely on the Holy Spirit to teach, remind, guide, reveal and protect us, as promised through Christ Jesus (Jn. 14:26 and 16:13-15)! We need to embrace and stick to the truth! We need NOT allow His word depart from our hearts! We have been given clues when in doubt - ...test the spirits to see whether they are from God... (1 Jn. 4:1-6); the reasons too, are not far fetched. The Word and its truth should give us great courage and patience to endure anything we might experience. As we begin a new week and match into the last month of the year; our month of completion. It is my prayer that you experience an awakening; a refrain from ungodly acts; a renewal of mind and purpose; and a re-dedication to launch you into your period of release, rehabilitation, restoration, recovery, rest and harvest! •Do you desire that change? Do you need that gift?...Ask from the Savior (Jn. 4:10) Who gives liberally! •Are you thirsty and desire a good and lastIng drink? ...take the FREE gift of the water of life (Rev. 22:17), that enriches, blesses and last (see Gal. 5:22-23). Wishing You A Spirit Filled Week Ahead!
Posted on: Mon, 25 Nov 2013 11:31:45 +0000
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