DCLM Daily Manna 2023: DCLM Daily Manna 12 May 2024: No Gang Up Against Us
KEY VERSE: Isaiah 8:12 “Say ye not, A confederacy, to all them to whom this people shall say, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid.”
TEXT: Matthew 16:13-19 (KJV)
9 Associate yourselves, O ye people, and ye shall be broken in pieces; and give ear, all ye of far countries: gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces; gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces.
10 Take counsel together, and it shall come to nought; speak the word, and it shall not stand: for God is with us.
11 For the LORD spake thus to me with a strong hand, and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying,
12 Say ye not, A confederacy, to all them to whom this people shall say, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid.
13 Sanctify the LORD of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.
14 And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
15 And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken.
A number of times when man is faced with challenges, he hardly decodes the workings of the finger of God to enthrone His good purpose. He is quick to trace his crisis to conspiracy theories, with the devil and his agents said to be calling the shots. This is not always so. God Himself could allow corrective, disciplinary chastisement when man exhibits contempt for His laws. He is capable of deploying nature (earthquake, storm, drought, etc.) or human institutions (governments, military, etc.) to achieve His goals.
This was what played out in the days of King Ahaz of Judah, some 740 years before the era of Christ. The monarch had been unfaithful to God. He put his trust in the Assyrian military, instead of the Lord. God said He would punish this faithlessness by using the Assyrians, not only to defeat Syria and Israel but also to overrun Judah. God warned Isaiah the prophet not to be swayed by the views of those who would conclude that there was a confederacy against Judah.
It is a mark of faithfulness and a lack of knowledge of the omnipotent power of God to fight our battle for us when, instead of trusting Him, we resort to seeking human help. God frowns at it when His children soon forget His promises in the face of human threats. This act of cowardice leads to compromise and eventual defeat.
True Christians ought to fear the Lord rather than so-called conspirators and confederates raised by the devil. If we walk faithfully with God and obey all His statutes uncompromisingly, no force on earth will upset us. They may discomfit others without the badge of Jesus Christ, but they will always flee from us.
THOUGHT OF THE DAY: It does not matter how many or formidable our foes are if the Lord leads our battles.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 2 Samuel 1-3
Thank you for studying today’s Daily Manna – No Gang Up Against Us – by Pastor W.F Kumuyi
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Daily Manna 12 May 2024
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