FRIDAY, JUNE 12, 2020
TOPIC: THE DANGER OF HAUGHTINESS
TEXT: Isaiah 2:10-22
KEY VERSE:
“And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.” - (Isaiah 2:17)
The human heart is a very deep reservoir of several ideas, thoughts and actions. When the heart overvalues the man, it pushes him to overestimate who he is and what he can do. No man wishes to put himself down except if he suffers inferiority complex.
In fact, the Bible talks about every man proclaiming his own good. So, naturally, there is tendency in every man to have some elements of pride.
Our passage for meditation today, however, takes a critical look at pride that makes a man to disregard, dishonour and disobey God’s commandments as set out in the Scriptures. The picture we have in this narration captures an individual or a group of people, a nation, who deliberately decides to toe the path of haughtiness and pride, that overestimate their worth and thus downplay the place of the divine in their affairs.
But God will be God. He will not share His glory with any man nor tolerate anyone to “think of himself more highly than he ought to think”. Pride is a very grave and condemnable sin before God. It was the sin that made Lucifer to lose his place in His presence (Isaiah 14:12-15). There are several passages of the Scripture that warn us of the danger of pride. We also have several examples of people who lost God’s favour, their place in His programme, their opportunities in life as well as their lives because they became proud after God had blessed or favoured them.
What is the state of your heart? Do you often consider yourself as being more important than other people? How do you treat those who are not as privileged as you are? Remember, pride goes before a fall. Be humble.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
Don’t wait for God to humble you!
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
2 Samuel 19-20
HIGHER EVERYDAY
FRIDAY JUNE 12, 2020
BIND THE STRONG MAN
TEXT: MARK 3:20-30
MEMORY VERSE: "Or else how can one enter into a strong man’s house, and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man? and then he will spoil his house" (MATTHEW 12:29).
God's desire for a man is to be free, yet, many times man chooses to stay in bondage, pain, and in partnership with the devil, thereby allowing the ravages of sin to take control of his life and destiny. If you are a friend of the devil, and yet you want to bind him, then you are a joker. You must change your camp - be on the Lord's side to defeat the devil. Someone stated, "We dare not underestimate the power and influence of Satan, yet we need not fear him either. He is a strong man whom Jesus has bound, and he is unable to hold on to what rightly belongs to God and His people.
"We can preach the gospel with confidence, knowing that the Lord will use it to liberate sinners from the devil's snare. If we trust in Christ, we are on His side, and He will give us the victory over the devil and all his minions." Amen! Beloved, as it was in the days of old, so it is today; "...the battle is not yours, but God's..." (2 Chronicles 20:15). Therefore, to war against the strong man and be able to bind him, you must fight the good fight of faith by being in Christ and using all our weapons of warfare; including, God's Word, faith, righteousness and prayers.
QUOTE: Fight the good fight of faith.
CHALLENGE: You cannot bind the devil with human weapons.
PRAYER: Lord, deliver me from the strong man.