the nature of God's judgement – REALITIES MINISTRIES

The judgment of deceit | Pst. J.O. Lawal

Date: August 15, 2021 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 10, No. 15

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be multiplied to you from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am delighted to welcome you into another week of the month of August 2021. My prayer is that your heart will always be strengthened by the Spirit of God to walk in love and sincerity with all the people of God in your life, so that you won’t expose yourself to God’s judgment instead of enjoying the fullness of the joy of Christian fellowship. Amen.

The bible says, “Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.” (Col 3:9-10NIV) Did you see that? Lying, deception or deceit is an offspring of the nature of death that God removed from us, when we got born again. So, we must not allow it in our lives or in our dealings with one another. Otherwise, we may expose ourselves to God’s judgment. And who knows how He is going to judge? Nobody!

For example, if Ananias and his wife Sapphira had thought God could judge them with death for acting in deception towards the people of God, they most likely would not have acted the way they did. But because they had no idea that He could do so, they lied about their giving and were immediately and seriously punished for it. Both of them were judged and killed by God the same day. (Cf. Acts 5:1-11)

Now someone may say, “But many of God’s people still act in deception every now and then. Yet they don’t get killed by Him each time they do so. How come Ananias and his wife’s case was treated differently by Him?” Well, first, we need to understand that the fact that people are not judged immediately with death by God for acting in deceit or for doing any wrong thing does not mean they are not being judged at all. There are different ways He judges people. And if they are not sensitive to His things, they may never know they are being judged.

Second, we need to understand that it was not that God was treating Ananias and his wife differently. Rather, He was merely using them as scapegoats to warn others that may want to follow in their steps. And I pray that you won’t ever take any step that will make God use you as an example of how He judges wickedness, in Jesus’ name. Amen. But why did God have to use Ananias and Sapphira as scapegoats for others to learn from? It was because they tried to introduce deceit into His church. And we too should watch what we introduce into God’s church, for He is watching us and will reward us accordingly.

At any rate, as bible accounts show us, what happened to Ananias and his wife happened at a time that the love of Christ was truly reigning in the lives of all the brethren and over their affairs. This love so much dominated their lives that those who had properties among them were selling them off and bringing the money they made from their sales to the apostles to distribute to others who had need. And that, in fact, was what eradicated poverty among them, for the bible says, “There were no needy persons among them at that time.” (Cf. Acts 4:32-35)

So, all the brethren at this time, whatever their number was, were truthful and loving towards one another. And God wanted it that way, for that was what would show the world that they were true disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ. Unfortunately, during that same period, Satan somehow succeeded in getting Ananias and his wife to start thinking and acting differently. How long they carried on like this we would not know. But we do know that, at some point, they too, like some other brethren, pledged to sell a property of theirs and bring the money to the church. And they did.

However, they were not willing to bring all the money they made from the sales of the land to the church. So, they kept a part of it for themselves. Was that a problem? No! The money was theirs in the first place, as Peter would later tell them. So, they had the right to choose how they used it. But to try to deceive other people of God, who loved them and cared about them, and give them the impression that they were giving more than they were actually giving was unacceptable to God. That was why He judged their deceit, giving others like them an opportunity to learn and change their ways.

In like manner, if we too will not walk in love and sincerity with our brethren, whether in the use of our resources or spiritual gifts or in other matters, we may just be exposing ourselves to God’s judgment, which could be as terrible as physical death. Therefore, let us allow the word of God to cleanse us of all forms of insincerity and hypocrisy while we still can. And may the Spirit of God enable you and me to do what is right in this matter, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Do have a lovely week.

Copyright © 2021, 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)

Title: The nature of God’s judgment – July 26, 2020

Beloved: grace and peace to you from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. Welcome to the last week of the month of July 2020. My prayer is that none of the good things that are meant for you in the month will elude you, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Now, as one considers the terrible situation of things in this country, especially in the light of the recent allegations of fraud and corruption against some of our leaders, there is every tendency that he will be moved to ask God to swiftly judge all those who are involved and several others who are making it difficult for the nation to progress. And it is clear from scriptures that God will certainly judge people for all such acts of wickedness, not just at the end of this age but also right here on earth (1Sam 3:13; 1Kings 14:7-11). But those of us who are believers and who are also probably wishing that God will be quick to set things right in the country must also not forget that God does not judge things the way people do.

For instance, as bible points out, even though God is a God of justice, He does not delight in the death or destruction of the sinner. This is why He demonstrates patience with everyone, so that they may come to repentance and not be destroyed in judgment by Him. (Cf. Ezek 18:23&32; 2Pet 3:9) Then, even though God is determined to judge someone for his wickedness, He has His own set time for doing so. We can, therefore, not hurry Him to judge people before the time He has set to do so. In fact, from what we see in Scriptures, there are times that God waits for people’s wickedness to reach a certain limit before He deals with them in judgment. So, the full judgment or punishment for some individuals’ sins may not come on them, when they are alive, but on their descendants after them. (Cf. Gen 15:12-15; Ex 34:7; 2Pet 3:8)

Another thing we need to note about God’s judgment is that it often starts with His people. When there is so much wickedness in the land and we want it jugded, it is always our desire that God will start with those who are obviously wicked, perhaps the cruelest among them. But the bible tells us something different about this. It tells us that God often starts His judgment among His people.

For instance, when God was giving instructions about the judgment of the people of Judah, as Ezekiel records in his book, He said to those He had appointed for the work, “Follow him through the city and kill, without showing pity or compassion. Slaughter old men, young men and maidens, women and children, but do not touch anyone who has the mark. Begin at my sanctuary.” (Ezek 9:5-6NIV) Also, Peter, in his first epistle, says, “For it is time for judgment to begin with the family of God; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God?” (1Peter 4:17NIV)

Did you see that? If God wants to set things right in a place, He will start by first dealing with His own people, who ought to know better. Think about it yourself. If He does not first deal with His own people who know the right thing to do but won’t do it, will He have any moral right to deal with those who don’t believe in Him at all and are doing wickedness? No! So, in order to stand just, He must first set His own house right before dealing with those outside it.

Now since that is the case, those of us who are calling on God to judge wickedness in our land should start by first judging ourselves and setting our own lives right before God. Otherwise when the judgment we are calling for starts, it is certain that we will be the first to taste it. So, let us begin to take seriously Paul’s admonitions that say, “But if we judged ourselves in the right way, God would not judge us. But when the Lord judges us, he punishes us so that we will not be destroyed along with the world.” (1Cor 11:31-32NCV)

Do have a great month end.

Copyright © 2020, 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 alaythiabiblechurch@gmail.com/alaythia4all@gmail.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)