9 APRIL 2015: THURSDAY DAILY DEVOTION BY PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE
TOPIC: THE WISE AND THE FOOLISH
MEMORISE: Abstain from all appearance of evil. - 1 Thessalonians 5:22
READ: Judges 16:15-21 (KJV)
15 And she said unto him, How canst thou say, I love thee, when thine heart is not with me? thou hast mocked me these three times, and hast not told me wherein thy great strength lieth.
16 And it came to pass, when she pressed him daily with her words, and urged him, so that his soul was vexed unto death;
17 That he told her all his heart, and said unto her, There hath not come a razor upon mine head; for I have been a Nazarite unto God from my mother's womb: if I be shaven, then my strength will go from me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man.
18 And when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying, Come up this once, for he hath shewed me all his heart. Then the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and brought money in their hand.
19 And she made him sleep upon her knees; and she called for a man, and she caused him to shave off the seven locks of his head; and she began to afflict him, and his strength went from him.
20 And she said, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times before, and shake myself. And he wist not that the LORD was departed from him.
21 But the Philistines took him, and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass; and he did grind in the prison house.
Bible in One Year: Joshua 1-3, Matthew 17
MESSAGE:
Imagine you are driving on an unfamiliar road, and you see a sign that reads “narrow bridge ahead”. As soon as you see this sign, you have gained the knowledge that there is a narrow bridge in front of you. What you choose to do with this knowledge will determine whether you are wise or foolish. If you are wise, you will slow down immediately. If you ignore the sign and increase your speed, you are foolish. This illustrates the state of many lives. Wisdom is the correct application of knowledge. When you begin to apply knowledge correctly, you will reach your goal. Fools always end badly even if they start well. The wise builds, while the foolish pulls down (Proverbs 14:1). All the things that happened to the generation of Israelites that did not make it to the Promised Land were written for us as examples and for our admonition, so that we will know what to do and what not to do at every given time. We are to learn from these examples and be prepared.
There are many kinds of false prophets today, even among those who call themselves Pentecostals. Despite their shallowness and heretical teachings, their churches are prospering numerically and financially. If you are not careful, the tendency is there to think “Since they are prospering so much; God must be behind them!” Such a mindset can lead to weariness and ultimately spiritual slumber. A sleeping man is at the mercy of his enemies, as was the case with Saul (1 Samuel 26:7-8). A sleeping man can also lose things that are very precious. Samson lost his hair while he was asleep, and by the time he woke up, all his power had left him (Judges 16:19-20). Samson dozed off many times before he slept. He did not act against the appearance of evil. He did not act when Delilah kept pestering him. She asked him for his weak point and Samson was so careless not to realise that her request wasn’t a joke. He kept on dozing until he finally slept off on her laps. There the enemy overcame him and plucked out his eyes. It is true that his hair grew again, but his eyes were never restored. The foolish person is careless, while the wise one is careful. The fool will want to sin and ask for forgiveness, but he who is wise will abstain from sin and everything that has the appearance of evil. You never know where your next test will come from. Once you lay your hand on the plough, you cannot afford to look back (Luke 9:62). Do not relax when you have not finished the race. Make up your mind to pray, study the word of God and fast more than others. Meditate day and night on the word of God. Be extra careful. With total surrender to God, He will carry you and make sure that against all odds, you reach your goal.
Prayer Point: Father, have mercy upon me and help me to act with wisdom at all times.
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