TODAY’S DEVOTIONAL (Tuesday 13th April 2021)
“A wise woman builds her house, while a foolish woman tears hers down by her own efforts. To do right honors God; to sin is to despise him.” Proverbs 14:1-2 TLB
WELCOME TO THE 103RD DAY OF OUR YEAR OF HIGHER HEIGHTS!
Daily as I look at things that are happening around us, it gets clearer and clearer that we humans are trapped in a war that most of us know nothing about. Yes, we are trapped in a war between the kingdom of a dark world and the kingdom of the living God.
In this war, there are stray bullets being fired in the spirit realm.
This stray bullets are gunning people down and destroying lives, sometimes beyond redemption. If you walk carelessly they will get you down. If we follow the passions of the flesh they get us down. If we spend our days sowing to please the flesh, they take us out.
If we walk in secrecy of things we ought to unfold to the right ears, they get us down. If we walk in the ignorance of God, they gun us down. If we allow the spirit of lawlessness to influence us, they stray bullets get us down. If we lack spiritual understanding of things, the stray bullets take us out.
That is how dangerous the unseen world is influencing the seen realm; yes, that is how dangerous it is influencing the physical to become. We must realize that and wake up from any spiritual slumber or ignorance and learn to walk in divine wisdom.
I have come to discover that, for a child of God, personal foolishness should not be given any room to thrive. It is an enemy we must all lunch an all-out attack against. If we allow an ounce of it into our lives, we will be destroyed even in God’s presence.
Personal foolishness has a way of allowing bad things happen, even when God does not want them to happen. Yes, it has a way of positioning us on the path ways of the stray bullets being shot in the spirit realm between the kingdom of the living God we belong to and the kingdom of the dark world many others belong to.
I HAVE SEEN PERSONAL FOOLISHNESS DESTROY, IN PEOPLE’S LIVES, WHAT A DEMON COULD NOT DESTROY.
It has destroyed so many marriages, friendships, families and finances. It is the greatest destroying instrument of Satan. That is why Satan will first Baptize us with foolishness before coming against us.
Sometimes, he will give someone a baptism of personal foolishness and allow the person to go, knowing well that it will kill the fellow without him touching the person.
I have come to discover that, the enemy is really on rampage to kill, steal and destroy but before we blame him or move out against him, we should check our level or quality of wisdom that may be guiding us in decision making.
Most people make decisions from the fountain of a low wisdom quality, while others from the fountain of outright foolishness, especially on a personal level. They walk in personal foolishness and blame others for the problems created by it.
For instance the person foolishness of being disrespectful to your employer can wrecked your financial destiny. The personal foolishness of not knowing how to talk or answer a person of honor or higher authority can return you back to the village as a financial burden to others.
Personal foolishness will make a man or woman to inflict himself or herself with the wounds of life. And when a man or women persistently inflicts himself or herself with wounds, it will be very difficult for him or her to live a life that is free of pains.
Most of what we go through in life is self-inflicted that is why I feel, today’s devotion is important to someone out there.
We do so much harm to ourselves through personal foolishness and most time do not live to tell the story. God does not want us to be destroyed by another decision based on personal foolishness hence this word to us today.
For instance, the personal foolishness of not going for regular body checkups, especially when you notice certain symptoms in your body, can be very fatal. People have walked in this kind of personal foolishness calling it faith and ended up either cutting their lives short or destroying it beyond redemption.
The personal foolishness of taking another man’s wife or another woman’s husband has destroyed so many lives. God has not given anyone a medal for taking another person’s spouse or even sleeping with them. There have only being judgment.
REPENTANCE HAVE BEEN THE ONLY WAY IN SUCH CIRCUMSTANCES.
The personal foolishness of not being at peace with your parents or those God used to raise you up in life, has been a ruin to so many. It has even cut short the lives of people. The personal foolishness of allowing a man to sleep with you while he has not taken you to the altar has ruined so many marital destinies.
It was the personal foolishness of sleeping with a woman you are not in a marriage covenant with the killed Samson. We are not designed by God as men, to sleep with any woman we are not in marital covenant with.
Sadly, a lot of people are in MARITAL CO-HABITATION instead of MARITAL COVENANT. The two look alike but not the same.
The personal foolishness of doing terrible things in the past and not addressing them in the present properly has destroyed so many people. They twist innocent scriptures to their destruction and do not meet people of deep spiritual understanding to speak to them for their rescue.
Friend, there are terrible things we do in the past that need to be dealt with in the presents for our peace to reign on earth. An assurance of forgiveness is not always enough in some cases. It all depends on the weight of the act and the breach that was created by it.
There is also the personal foolishness of not denying your body whatever it desires. This has ended many lives in their prime. There is the personal foolishness of borrowing money you know you cannot pay, or living a life of debt.
There is also the personal foolishness of acting rich while you can hardly pay your rent. It is called the pride of life.
There is the personal foolishness of speaking ill of those who have no hand in your problems. It is a very dangerous type my friend. The Bible says we will give account of every word that proceeds out of our mouths.
You see, there are so many aspects of personal foolishness but there is an aspect I want to address extensively at this point – the aspect of not living your earthly life with eternity at heart.
This aspect of Personal foolishness is actually the root cause of most problems men face in this life and all problems they will face in the life to come.
THIS IS THE MOST DANGEROUS TYPE OF PERSONAL FOOLISHNESS.
For instance, it is this aspect of personal foolishness that makes a man not to accept Jesus Christ as His LORD and savior after being exposed to the true gospel most of his life. When he finally dies and goes to hell, who will he blame? Of course himself, because we are the ones who will be held responsible for our actions in the next life, not even the devil.
It is this aspect of personal foolishness that makes a woman to take over a man, who is having problems with his legally married wife, and even go ahead to marry him. Even if she lives happily with him for many years after that, everything will become vanity when she finally dies and stand before GOD to give account of her life on earth.
This aspect of personal foolishness is what makes men exalt the temporal above the eternal, the mundane above the spiritual, and the legitimate above the ultimate. Speaking about these things, Jesus said,
“You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.
And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. Matthew 5:27-30 NKJV
This statement is not from any other person other than the GRACE of God Himself – Jesus Christ. Friend, the grace of God is a person, and that person is Jesus Christ. He will be the one we will all face in the Day of Judgment.
WHAT YOU JUST READ IS HIS STANDARD – THE VERY STANDARD MANKIND WILL BE JUDGED BY.
Plucking off your eye, or cutting off your arm is figurative. Jesus was not saying we do it literally. He was calling for strict discipline to be applied to any part of our lives that will not let us live a clean Christian life. It is also referring to cutting off from people, places and circumstances that will not allow us to maintain a walk with God in the narrow way that leads to life.
It is divine wisdom at a personal level to bring any aspect of your life that is unruly under control. It is personal foolishness not to do so. I have taught this repeatedly that the flesh basically craves for sex, food, and comfort. It does not know boundaries. That is why to turns people into perverse men and women if they make it their friend.
I grew up to discover that the flesh will destroy us if we make it our LORD.
For instance, it will ask you to sleep with any man or women that twinkles its fancy; either you know him or her or not, or married to him or her or not. It will drive you to take another man’s husband or wife. To it, there is no problem.
That is why true sons of God are led by the Spirit not the flesh!
The flesh is not born again neither can it be born again. It is our human spirit that can be born again and our souls renewed! The flesh cannot be renewed or born again. That is why it is a display of personal wisdom to spend our days bringing it under subjection.
Paul would later write to the Church at Corinth saying;
“Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air.”
“But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.” 1 Corinthians 9:26-27 NKJV
It is because of the many battles the flesh plunge men into that Jesus said we must bring it strictly under subjection.
A MAJOR HIGHLIGHT IN OUR DEVOTIONAL TEXT TODAY FURTHER BUTTRESSES THE POINT. IT SAYS;
“A wise woman builds her house, while a foolish woman tears hers down by her own efforts. To do right honors God; to sin is to despise him.”
If you look at this scripture on the surface, you will just conclude that it is just talking about marriage. But it transcends marriage!
However, many women have pulled down their marriages with their own hands blaming it on other people. They have disrespected, injured, betrayed, destroyed, and insulted their husbands until there was no more remedy. The same is applicable to men.
Some men have so mangled their wives that they only way to save the poor women is to ask them to leave. God did not create man for marriage He created marriage for man. When marriage becomes a means of destruction, He pulls it down by Himself or allow men or devils to do it.
I believe that is why Jesus made it clear to us that “WEDLOCK IS NOT PADLOCK.”
If adultery set in and the spouse involved refused to repent, the marriage is cancelled. If you remain in it, you are on your own. You will bear the consequences of your personal foolishness.
But let’s look at things that are beyond marriage – let’s look at eternal things. To pull down your house by your own self is the highest display of personal foolishness.
Your house is your life, your family, or your sanctified human spirit. Born again makes our spirits God’s temples; if we pull it down by allowing defilement to set in and live in us, we are being foolish.
For instance, if you are involved in pornography, you are pulling your house down.
If you are involved in alcoholism you are pulling your house down. If you feed your flesh with all it needs outside God’s boundaries, you are pulling your house down with your own hands. If you take another man’s wife and sleep with her, you are pulling your house down.
IF YOU SLEEP WITH ANOTHER WOMAN’S HUSBAND, YOU ARE PULLING YOUR HOUSE DOWN.
If you sleep with a man or woman you are not legally married to, you are pulling your life down. If you masturbate, you are pulling your house down with your own hands. Anything you do that is sinful is pulling your house down the drains of darkness. And when you finally get there, you will become a casualty of sudden destruction.
The Bible admonishes that we build up our spirits and not pull them down.
It says we build ourselves up in our most holy faith by exposing ourselves to preachers who are not just preachers but kingdom builders; God’s servants whose messages carries the capacity to build us up, and establish us in the faith – implanting the grace to live godly in a perverse and crooked generation.
However, personal foolishness will not let us do this. It will rather push us to look and run after preachers with quick fixes; accurate but lying prophets who use magic to solve problems.
As we bring this to a close, I want to ask, is there any way you are pulling down your life with your own hands?
Do you feed your flesh to the detriment of your spirit – the real house where God ought to dwell? Do you have a kingdom builder for a pastor or just an inspirational preacher who excites you with lofty messages that satisfy your carnal cravings?
Your life will never become glorious if there is no kingdom builder to submit to as a father in faith.
MAKE THIS SCRIPTURAL PASSAGE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR THE DAY!
“I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.”
“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.”
“But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.” 2 Timothy 4:1-5 NKJV