ESOCS Devotional 29 September
TEXT: 1 Kings 9:1-14 KJV
MEMORY VERSE: “Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people.” 1 Kings 9:7 KJV
It is said that, “To be forewarned is to be forearmed.” This means that knowledge of an imminent danger can help you overcome it. It means that you avoid the danger of being punished for disobeying a rule by not disobeying that rule, having been told ahead the consequence of disobedience.
Right from creation, God always gives the ‘dos’ and the ‘don’ts’, and the punishment for (the don’ts). For instance, God told Adam to eat every other tree in the garden (dos) except the tree of knowledge of good and evil (the don’ts), else he would die the day he eats it (Gen. 2:16, 17). Adam disobeyed and he was driven away from the garden, and death set in. Also, in Exodus 20:3-5, God commanded that the Israelites should have no other God beside Him; not even to make a graven image for themselves nor bow down for them. But in Exodus 32:7-10, we see they broke this law by making for themselves a golden calf for their god. God wanted to destroy them but for Moses’ intercession.
God appeared to Solomon the second time and told him He has heard his prayers and granted his requests and will establish his kingdom forever, as he had promised his father David, only if he kept His commandment, which He commanded him (1 Kings 9:2-5). But, God warned that if Solomon deviated, then, He will cut off Israel out of the land. The consequence and what other nations would say continued in 1 Kings 9: 6-9: “Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people.”; “people will hiss…” This was because “Israel forsook the Lord their God…”
Read yesterday’s ESOCS Devotional here
We have lessons to learn from the above. First, God’s warning is for everybody. We must heed His warning, obey His commandments, or face the consequences of our inaction or disobedience. Second, God blesses when we obey His will, and punishes where the reverse is the case. Third, when we hear the warning/word of God, we should not harden our hearts (Ps. 95: 7b-11). Fourth, God is a merciful God. Moses interceded for the Israelites many times, and God greatly pardoned. So, if a sinner confesses and turns away from his sin, which has committed and lives a new life of godliness, he shall save his soul because God will abundantly pardon (Ezek. 18:27). Fifth, it is not enough to start well but to finish well too. Solomon started well, but did not finish well. His story is a powerful lesson for us not to overlook God’s warning. He, (the wiser Solomon) said, “Let us here the conclusion of the whole matter: fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man” (Eccl. 12:13).
CHALLENGES
- Religiously list those things that make you ignore God’s warning at all times.
PRAYER POINT
- Ask God to strengthen you to overcome those things that make you to overlook His warnings.
FURTHER READING: Deuteronomy 7:1-6; 1 Kings 11
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ESOCS Devotional 29 September
