Category: Fire in my Bones

“Hazael went to meet Elisha, taking with him as a gift forty camel — loads of all the finest wares of Damascus. He went in and stood before him, and said, “Your son Ben-Hadad king of Aram has sent me to ask, ‘Will I recover from this illness?'” Elisha answered, “Go and say to him, ‘You will certainly recover’; but the LORD has revealed to me that he will in fact die.”” (2Kings 8:9-11NIV)

There are all kinds of Scriptures that point to the fact that God loves to reveal His will to humans and to confide in them about what He is doing or what will happen in the future. He, in fact, invites us to call to Him and that He will answer us and tell us great and unsearchable things we do not know (Jer 33:3).

Nevertheless, we also know from Scriptures and from experience that it is not everything happening in our lives or around us that God reveals to us in advance. For example, when the only son of the Shunamite woman died and she came to Elisha to protest about it, the man of God said this to Gehazi, who had wanted to drive her away: “…Leave her alone! She is in bitter distress, but the LORD has hidden it from me and has not told me why.” (2Kings 4:27NIV)

Did you see that? Even though Elisha was an acclaimed prophet of God, there was things that God would not reveal to him. The death of that woman’s son was one of them. And not only did God not reveal to him that the boy was going to die young, He also did not tell him why He would not reveal it to him.

Well, the simple reason God would not reveal these things to him was that he could not handle His revelations about them. See, the fact that someone is a prophet does not mean that he can handle every revelation God gives to him. A true prophet of God can misrepresent God’s revelation or misapply it. And that may not be because he wants to deliberately do so but because he is ignorant of God’s purpose in revealing to him whatever he has revealed to him.

Our Lord Jesus, just before He went to the cross, said this to His disciples: “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear.” (John 16:12NIV) Did you see that? Even though the Lord was addressing His mighty apostles here, apostles that had ministered with Him for some years and had been used by God for many great things, He still made it clear to them that it was not everything He had in mind to tell them that they could bear. They, then, would have to wait until they received the Holy Spirit, who would progressively guide them into all truth, before they could know all that He intended to tell them (John 16:13).

In like manner, even if God has it in mind to show us something, He may still choose not to show us, if He is certain that we cannot handle it. So, if we are praying to Him to reveal certain things to us about a matter and He is not showing us anything, it may just be that we cannot handle what He is going to show us.

For instance, as we see in our opening text, when King Ben-Hadad wanted to find out from God through Elisha whether he was going to recover for his illness, the prophet told Hazael, the army general he had sent to him, that he should tell him that he would recover. But he also went on to tell Hazael that God had revealed to him that he would not recover.

Why, then, did he tell him not to disclose the truth to his master? Was it God that told him to say that? We don’t have any express answer to that question in the account. But it is safe to assume that Elisha told him to say that so that Ben-Hadad would not rush to select his successor, who would most likely be one of his sons.

And was anything wrong with that? No! However, according to the revelation given to Elisha, God had not chosen any of Beh-Hadad’s sons to be king after him. Instead, He had chosen Hazael, his army commander, to be his successor. It is possible, then, that he may hurry to choose a different successor for himself, if he got to know that he was going to die and not live. (Cf. 2Kings 8:13)

The question, then, is this: Supposing Ben-Hadad chose someone else as his successor instead of Hazael, would that have stopped God’s word from being fulfilled? No! As we see in the bible, even though King Saul did all he could to put his son, Jonathan, on the throne instead of David, the man anointed by God as his successor, he still failed. And the word of God came to pass.

So, even if Ben-Hadad had chosen someone else as king in Hazael’s place, God would still have put Hazael on the throne at the right time. Unfortunately, even though it is hard to say whether Elisha said too much to Hazael about the matter or not, the man could not handle the revelation given to him, the revelation that his master would die and that he would be king after him. How do we know that? We know because the account further shows us that he would not wait for his master to die peacefully in his bed. Instead, he assassinated him and announced himself to be king after his death. (Cf. 2Kings 8:14-15)

Therefore, even though this man became king as God had said, he did not become king according to His plans. So, he will surely stand someday before God’s throne to answer for his crime. But what if he had not been given a revelation of what was going to happen, would he have foolishly interfered with God’s plans the way he had done? No!

So, anytime God chooses not to reveal certain things to us, it is for our good. It is so that we will not, like Hazael or Rebekah, unduly interfere with His plans and mess things up for ourselves and others. We will do well, then, to accept and respect His decision to reveal or not to reveal certain things to us, instead of trying to pressure Him to reveal to us what we cannot handle. The consequences of acting like that will surely not be palatable for us to deal with. So, let us watch ourselves.

Copyright © 2024, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministryng.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

“Now there was a man named Joseph, a member of the Council, a good and upright man, who had not consented to their decision and action. He came from the Judean town of Arimathea and he was waiting for the kingdom of God. Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body. Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen cloth and placed it in a tomb cut in the rock, one in which no one had yet been laid.” (Luke 23:50-54NIV)

You may have heard this before: “If you cannot beat them, join them.” In order words, if you cannot convince a group of people to see things or do things as you deem fit, you should forget about your own principles and join them. Why should be in the minority? Why should you stand all alone?

But nothing is with being in the minority, if the minority is right. Nothing is wrong with standing all alone, if you are convinced that you are standing for the right thing. And how will you know whether what you are standing for is right or wrong? It is by considering what God says about it. God is always the ultimate judge of what is right and what is wrong. So, if He says something is right, then, it is right, even if the whole world says it is wrong. And if He says something is wrong, then, it is wrong, regardless of what everyone else says about it.

Therefore, once you know what God has said about a matter, take your stand on it, even if it is going to make you unpopular. That is because God will never honour the majority just because it is the majority. He will only honour the majority because it is standing for what is right.

Now that, of course, does not mean that God will stop the majority from carrying out their desires. For instance, as we see in our opening text, it was the wish of the majority that prevailed when the religious leaders of the Jews sat in judgment over our Lord Jesus and not that of the minority. And did God stop the majority from carrying out their wish, even though it would result in the death of any innocent man? No! Instead, He allowed them to have their way in order to fulfil His divine purpose of salvation for humanity.

So, don’t think that God will surely stop the majority from doing what is wrong, simply because what they want to do is wrong. He may not stop them. However, He will surely take note of those who separate themselves from the majority that are bent on doing evil. And when the time of reckoning comes, it is such people who will not follow a crowd to do evil that will be praised and honoured by Him and not the hell-bent crowd.

As we again see in our opening bible text, it was not every one of the religious leaders of the Jews that condemned Jesus to death. Some would not follow the majority to do what was wrong. And one of them was a man named Jospeh from Arimathea. He publicly stood against other council men when they wanted to kill Jesus and would not cast his vote in their support. Besides, after Jesus had died on the cross, to prove that this man was utterly against the majority in killing him, he boldly went to meet Pilate to ask for his body, so that he may give him a befitting burial.

Now it is clear that Joseph’s refusal to join with other Jewish councilmen in condemning and killing Jesus did stop them from taking His life. However, it will always be on record with God and with men that he did not take sides with evil men in destroying an innocent person. And that is what God wants from each of us. The outcome of our decision to stand for what is right is not what is important to Him; rather, it is the devotion of our heart to stand for it that is important to Him. And it is that devotion that He is going to reward here in this world and also in His eternal kingdom.

So, don’t be afraid to separate yourself from a crowd or a majority that is bent on doing what is wrong, simply because the outcome will not favour you. No, don’t be afraid to ‘waste your vote’, as some will say, on what is right, as long as you are convinced it is what is right. Yes, of course, you may not have men’s praise or reward for doing that. But it will be on record with God and with men that when everyone else was going in the wrong direction, you chose to go in the right direction. And when the time is ripe, God will reward you for doing so.

Cheers!

Copyright © 2024, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministryng.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

“Now Dinah, the daughter Leah had borne to Jacob, went out to visit the women of the land. When Shechem son of Hamor the Hivite, the ruler of that area, saw her, he took her and violated her.” (Gen 34:1-2NIV)

Why did Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, go out to visit the women of the land of Shechem? It must have been because doing so seemed harmless. But by the end of that same day, she was no longer the same. She had been defiled and raped; she had been treated like a common sex slave.

Now who raped Dinah? It was a young man called Shechem. And what does the bible say about this young man? It says that he was the most honoured of all the members of his father’s household (Gen 34:19). That means he was an exception among them. It means that he was better than all of them in character and in conduct. So, in the eyes of the people of their city, he was the saint in that family, Saint Shechem.

Nevertheless, Saint Shechem was a rapist. Saint Shechem was not a man that would exercise patience and follow due process in securing the hand of a woman in marriage before having anything to do with her. If he wanted to have a woman, then, he must have her, even if raping her was the only way. Yet he was the most honourable of all the members of his family. What kind of people, then, would other members of his family be? Murderers! Assassins! Kidnappers! Drunkards! Robbers! Thieves! Homosexuals! Lesbians! Swindlers!

Well then, if someone has these kinds of people in his life as his family members, will it not be foolish or naïve of us to think of him as a good and honourable person? It will be. Yes, he may appear smooth, sweet and honest in talking and in showing care. But unless we have known him for a while as someone that takes God seriously and have also watched him consistently demonstrate godly character for a reasonable period of time, it will be naïve of us to think he is harmless.

Dinah was naïve to have thought of Saint Shechem as harmless. Truly, he may have been a smooth and cool young man. But the fact that all the members of his household were wicked and godless people was enough to make her stay away from him until she knew who he truly was. Yes, everyone in town spoke highly of him and thought of him as an exception in his father’s household. But who were these people that were speaking highly of him? Pagans! Lawless people!

If the town’s people of Shechem had not been idolatrous and lawless, they would have arrested and judged him the moment he raped another man’s daughter. But what did they do when they learnt of what he had done? Nothing righteous! They were all probably laughing among themselves and wondering how enjoyable raping Dinah must have been for him.

So, while it was utterly wrong of Saint Shechem to rape Dinah, it was Dinah’s own naivety that made what he did possible. Truly, her brothers later intervened and made sure she got justice for the harm she had suffered. But how did that change anything. The harm had already been done and she had to live and die with the consequences. (Cf. Gen 34:5-31)

What is the point of all this? Don’t be naïve. Don’t be ignorantly trusting. Someone may look charming and outwardly alright by all standards. It does not mean they cannot hurt you terribly. And people may be praising someone as the exception among their peers or counterparts. It does not mean they cannot injure or corrupt you.

See, the quality of a testimony is directly related to the reputation of the one giving it. So, when someone is being praised or recommended to you, look beyond what is being said about the person to the character of the one saying it. That is what will tell you how seriously you should take their testimony. Otherwise, you may have your life ruined on the basis of a corrupt testimony.

Now understand that it does not take forever to ruin a life. A few seconds are enough to ruin it, especially on this valentine day. So, look out for yourself.

Copyright © 2024, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministryng.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

“But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”” (1Sam 16:7NIV)

Who is the Lord referring to here, in our opening text? He is referring to Eliab, Jesse’s eldest son and David’s eldest brother. And what does the Lord say about him to Samuel? He says I have rejected him. What has He rejected him for? He has rejected for kingship over Israel.

Now I am sure you know that you cannot say that you have rejected someone, if you have not yet considered him. So, the reason God freely said to Samuel that He had rejected Eliab as king over Israel was that He had already considered him. When did He consider him? We would not know. But it is clear from this text that God often carries out hidden examination on people. And when He is done, the result is what will determine whether He will exalt us, leave us where are, demote us or even extinguish us.

Remember King Belshazzar. Remember that on his last day here on earth God told him the following:

“Mene: God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end.
Tekel: You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting.
Peres: Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.” (Dan 5:26-28NIV)

When did God start numbering the days of this man’s reign? We would not know. And when did He begin to weigh his life and performance? We would not know. Everything was hidden from him and everyone else until the last few hours of his life. And even when it was made known to him that his time was up and that his kingdom and authority would be given to someone else, did he do anything to change God’s mind? No!

Why did he do nothing to change God’s mind and verdict concerning him? Did he not believe the words of Daniel, the man of God that explained this revelation to him? He believed them. Otherwise, he would not have celebrated and exalted him that day. Why, then, did he make no move to save himself? Perhaps he thought he still had more time to repent. Or perhaps he was ignorant of the forgiving nature of God. Whatever the case may be, he perished that same night because he had failed God’s examination. (Cf. Dan 5:29-31)

Well, the point of it all is that we all are under God’s examination, whether we are aware of it or not. And what He finds in us is what will determine what He does to us or with us when He is ready to judge. So, we need to constantly work towards being successful when examined by Him. Otherwise, God forbid, our fate may end up being like Eliab’s or Belshazzar’s.

But can we work towards passing God’s examination, if we don’t even know what He is looking for? What is He looking for in our lives? What is it that He wants to see in us in order to elevate us, prosper us or prolong our days here on earth? Is it our beauty, our colour, our language, our education, our wealth or our social status? No!

As we see in our opening text, it is man that looks at outward appearances – what God looks at is the heart. So, what is your heart? What is in my heart? When God saw pride in the devil, He brought him down. And when He saw greed in King Saul, He rejected him as king. We are not told what He saw in Eliab too that made Him reject him as king. But certainly, He must have seen in him something that should not be there or He must not have seen in him something that should be there.

My prayer, in any case, is that your heart will be rid of everything that may make God reject or cast you down and instead filled to overflowing with everything good and precious enough to make Him continually honour, lift and protect you. Amen.

Copyright © 2024, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministryng.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

“Saul said to David, “Here is my older daughter Merab. I will give her to you in marriage; only serve me bravely and fight the battles of the LORD.” For Saul said to himself, “I will not raise a hand against him. Let the Philistines do that!” But David said to Saul, “Who am I, and what is my family or my father’s clan in Israel, that I should become the king’s son-in-law?” So when the time came for Merab, Saul’s daughter, to be given to David, she was given in marriage to Adriel of Meholah.” (1Sam 18:17-19NIV)

What did King Saul have in mind, when he told David that he was going to give him his daughter, Merab, in marriage? His death! It was not his happiness or his own daughter’s happiness that he sought. Rather, he just wanted to keep David close enough to him, so that he may have his opportunity to destroy him. And you may have heard the saying, “Keep your friends close but your enemies closer.” That was the evil principle that Saul was employing against David at the time.

Now did David know what Saul was up to? No! How, then, did he escape his trap? He escaped simply because he would not lie to himself about the situation at hand. The young man would simply not think of himself more highly than he ought to. How?

Well, David knew that becoming the king’s son-in-law was not a small thing. Where would he get the dowry that would be set for him? Where would he get the money to entertain all the important dignitaries that would grace their wedding, seeing that it was a princess’ wedding? What about the place the princess would stay after their wedding? Did he have the resources to put up a befitting place for her?

As we see in the bible, this young man did not start out in life as a wealthy person. Instead, he started out as a poor shepherd boy. Yes, at the time in question, God had elevated him and built him up to be a mighty and well-respected warrior in the land of Israel. That, however, did not change the fact that his family was not wealthy, influential and politically powerful enough to marry from the king’s family.

To accept that offer, then, was to place a heavy burden on himself and on his family members, a burden which they not be able to carry without experiencing disgrace or which may throw them into years of debt. So, he respectfully rejected it and moved on with his life.

Now did heavens fall down because of this? No! On the contrary, sometimes later, he was presented with another opportunity to marry another princess from Saul’s family. And this time around, he accepted the offer and married the girl involved. Why? First, the bride price had been set even before Saul’s men began to talk to him about it. Second, the bride price set was something that he and his men could handle; it was something that placed no immediate or future burden on his family members. Third, the young lady involved was truly in love with him and was ready to marry him, even though he was not a rich man at the time. So, marrying her was like a piece of cake for him. (Cf. 1Sam 18:20-29)

What is the point of all this? Well, it is that you should never lie to yourself about what you can really handle in life and what you cannot handle. See, all kinds of opportunities will surely come our way in this life. But it is not each of them that we can handle or that is meant for us. And what will keep us from going for opportunities that are beyond us or that are not meant for us at all is a possession of a true estimation of who we are and what we can truly handle in life.

If it is clear to us, then, that an opportunity is beyond what we can handle, it will only be wise of us to let it pass, as David did in Merab’s case. Yes, we may like that opportunity. It may even be a once in a lifetime opportunity. Nevertheless, inasmuch as it beyond what we or those in our lives can happily handle, we should not drive ourselves or anyone else into poverty, debt or disgrace because of it.

Why? There will be other suitable opportunities for us to live out God’s dreams for us in life. And all we need is to be building up ourselves to be ready for them. But if we have already ruined our lives or dragged everyone in our lives into disgrace because we want to utilize at all cost certain opportunities that are not meant for us, when those ones meant for us eventually come, we may not be alive or in the right frame of mind to utilize them.

So, calm down, my friend, and don’t lie to yourself. Not every opportunity is meant for you.

Copyright © 2024, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministryng.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

“…and that in this matter no one should wrong his brother or take advantage of him. The Lord will punish men for all such sins, as we have already told you and warned you.” (1Thess 4:6NIV)

In what matters are we not to wrong or take advantage of our neighbours? In matters relating to sex! Paul starts his admonition in the passage from which our opening text is taken by telling his readers that the will of God for them is to abstain from sexual immorality. And how are we to do that, seeing that we are living a world that is saturated with all kinds of immoral acts? According to him, it is by learning to control of bodies in ways that are holy and honourable, as those who know and fear God. (Cf. 1Thess 4:3-5)

But then, we have to deal with the fact that there may be times in which we have to relate to people who are weak in controlling their sexual appetites or who are ignorant of what could lead them into sexual sins or who are going through situations that could expose them to sexual sins. And what are we to do at such times? Are we to see in them opportunities for free or cheap sexual relations? No! Instead, we are to show that we fear God by refusing to take advantage of them.

For example, as we see in the bible, Potiphar’s wife was an emotionally weak woman. Otherwise, she would not stoop as low as to want to have sexual relations with her husband’s slave. But did Joseph take advantage of her? No! Did he see her weakness as an opportunity to have some cheap sex? No! Instead, he did all he could to make sure that they were never alone together. And even when the woman attempted to rape him, he lost no time to make good his escape. Why? He feared God. Therefore, he was eventually honoured and elevated by Him, even though he had to suffer unjustly for a while. (Cf. Gen 39)

In like manner, if you are dealing with someone of the opposite sex that is emotionally weak, always wanting your sympathy or wanting to hold, touch, embrace or be with you for no legitimate reason, don’t get carried away and take advantage of the situation. You can already see that they are weak. So, if you cannot help them, then, don’t abuse or take advantage of them. Otherwise, God, as Paul shows us in our opening text, will not fail to punish you accordingly.

Also, don’t use people’s desperation, loss or low position in life to take advantage of them. You know that they need your help, healing or comfort or that they cannot move to another level of success without you. So, instead of truly helping, healing or comforting them or instead of making their trip to higher grounds easy for them, you begin to seek how to take advantage of them sexually. You are wrong and are sinning against God. And that will surely come with grave consequences.

Mind you, it is not only in sex matters that we can take advantage of others. Even in matters concerning material things, we can take advantage of them. If, for instance, we know that someone is weak in saying ‘No’ to us, whether out of respect for us or out of deep affection for us, we can take advantage of that and be taking from them things we have no right to take from them or be pressuring them to do things their hearts don’t want to do. That is evil, a sort of witchcraft. And God will judge sooner or later, if repentance is delayed.

Also, we can take advantage of people’s miseries to receive from them what we don’t deserve to have. Our Lord Jesus, for example, rebuked the Jewish religious leaders of His time for devouring widows’ houses. How were they devouring their houses? By playing on their emotions! We all know that widows are bound to have moments of loneliness, moments in which they may want someone, anyone, to comfort them. And that is what those Jewish religious leaders often capitalised on. They would go to widows’ houses in the name of bringing them comfort and have long prayer sessions there. But they weren’t really there to comfort them, as our Lord points out, but to devour their wealth or inheritance. (Cf. Matt 23:14; Mark 12:40; Luke 20:47)

Think about it yourself. Would you allow a man of God, who had spent two or three hours praying with you in your house, to go empty-handed? No! Instead, you would want to find something for him. And if you happened to be rich, you would do your best to load him money and other things. That, of course, was what those Jewish religious leaders were looking forward to by visiting the widows of their time. They were simply looking for ways to take advantage of their emotional situations to extort them or to even sleep with them. And our Lord Jesus says that people who do such things will receive greater condemnation.

Well, the point I am making is that we should watch ourselves in our dealings with those who are weak emotionally or in character and those who are desperate, so that we don’t take advantage of them for any reason. Otherwise, the condemnation that will follow may ruin everything good in our lives.

Copyright © 2024, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministryng.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)