Daily Manna 3 February
MEMORY VERSE: “And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.” – (Matthew 2:13)
READ: Matthew 2:13-23
13. And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word; for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.
14. When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt;
15. And was there until the death of Herod; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.
16. Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men.
17. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying,
18. In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.
19. But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt,
20. Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel; for they are dead which sought the young child’s life.
21. And he arose, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel.
22. But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judaea in the room of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither; notwithstanding, being warned of God in a dream, he turned aside into the parts of Galilee;
23. And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, He shall be called a Nazarene.
Read yesterday’s Daily Manna here
At the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, most countries imposed a general lockdown, restricting large gatherings and closing down worship centres temporarily. Some Christians frowned at these measures taken to curb the spread of the virus. They claimed the Church of God and Christians who worshipped in them are immune to such infections. To them, faith is seen as being able to confront dangers headlong – whether COVID-19 or any other – without a prudent retreat.
Those who hold such views will not hesitate to brand Joseph’s action here as cowardly and faithless even though God had instructed him to flee into Egypt with the mother and Child to escape Herod’s plot to kill the Child. Following the visit of the wise men, Herod saw the birth of Jesus as a threat to his throne. No doubt, the devil was at work from behind the scenes here to abort the plan of the cross.
For sure, it would not have taken God anything to keep the Child Jesus in Judea and protect Him from those who wanted to kill Him. He could also have confronted Herod directly in defense of the Child; but now, in His wisdom, He chose to make Him run to Egypt for safety. Christians then, must learn to be sensitive to the leading of the Spirit.
Faith is not cowardice or an act of unbelief. We must learn to run away or hide from danger if that is the wise and best thing to do in the face of a threatening situation. It will be foolish to face danger headlong when we can easily avoid it, be safe and remain alive to fulfil God’s plan and purpose for our lives. Let us however be careful that when we are seeking protection and safety, we do not do it outside God’s leading and directives.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Divine protection can come in different ways; be wise!
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Matthew 12-13
Thank you for studying today’s Daily Manna – Wisdom To Tackle Danger – by Pastor Enoch A.
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Daily Manna 3 February 2021
