DATE POSTED Friday, 2022-10-21
WRITTEN AT: Okeechobee, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: 1 Kings 11:38
TRANSLATION: The Message (MSG)

BIBLE TEXT:  If you listen to what I tell you and live the way I show you and do what pleases me, following directions and obeying orders as my servant David did, I’ll stick with you no matter what.

APPLICATION: Having done a little in programming, I became educated on the purpose and use of conditional statements, so this promise to Jeroboam immediately caught my attention. We must also remember that God is always right, and He is always on time, all the time. We are the created, so we have no room to question the Creator when it looks like He went back on His word. I believe that we too are blessed by the mercies of God and that it is only through the grace of God that He sent us His Son so that we might seek forgiveness of our sin. We seem to follow very much in line with David and his son Solomon, for we are on fire for the Lord while in church, but hardly identifiable as a Christian during the week. We make promises, like marriage, before God and man, but then when the novelty wears off, many are back to their lifestyles before marriage. A preacher who’s on fire for the Lord, might preach a sermon where God, through His Holy Spirit, will nudge us to put away our evil ways and instead, stay true to the One who gave His life for us. But unless we stay connected, we will soon give way to the temptations of the world that bombard us endlessly. Friends, there are many who have chosen to play Russian-roulette with the promise of God that He will come again to take His church home to glory where He and the Son rules for ever and forever. Many will play recklessly with trying to second-guess when the day of Christ’s return will be, for they want to play Satan’s games until the hour before Christ returns. I believe that the promise made to us is very similar to what God made to David, Solomon and Jeroboam. If we accept the gift of salvation – Jesus Christ, and we live like we are His child, by obeying His commands and applying His teachings to our lives, then I believe that God’s promise to us is no different to that given to the aforementioned kings. For Jesus told us that He has gone to prepare a place for us, where we will live eternally with the Father and the Son. Please allow me to recommend that you recognize the King of all kings, the Great I Am, the Author and Finisher of our faith, and that you accept His precious Son Jesus as Lord of your life. Once you have done this, commit to acting like the Holy Saint of God that you are, and commit daily time to spend time with Jesus as you seek reminders from His Word and speak with Him as your Father. You then owe nothing to the advisory, for you are a child of the King. Show the world what your Father looks like through the way that you speak and live. Jesus promised never to leave you alone, when you live like His child!

BLESSING(S) NOTED: But for the grace of God, we would all be traveling the same path followed by David and Solomon. I want to follow a close and dedicated walk with my Master each and every day, God being my everlasting Helper, Guide and Deliverer.

PRAYER: Having created us in Your likeness, I can’t imagine the disappointment You must feel when you see us disregard the greatest gift ever given to mankind and still cave-in to the wickedness of the enemy, Satan. I have no doubt that You foreknew how we would suck at staying true to our decisions and our commitments, but I can’t imagine You ever thinking it would be this bad. Lord, please touch Your people once again. For those who have always turned a deaf ear to Your Word, and a blind eye to the goodness of God, I pray that You will soften their heart today and once again invite them to surrender their sin and the evil desires within them to the all-powerful Son of God, Jesus Christ. For those who once surrendered their life to Jesus, but then fell back into their sin, please Lord, re-invigorate their innermost desires and lead them wholeheartedly towards the Kingdom each and every day. May others see You and want to know You. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog might indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. You may also visit me on Spotify and listen to Nuggets while you’re out and about. I would encourage you to find a church home near by your home, and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God, and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!