Tuesday – January 26, 2016
Let us all open wide for our Tuesday portion of God’s Word. We must all be reminded to pray for the many governments of these United States of America. Today I am highlighting Louisiana. Pictured you will see the Capital building located in Baton Rouge, the map locating Louisiana within the United States, and the State flag all from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. I am also presenting a portion of the Constitution of Louisiana to continue to demonstrate that we are a nation in Covenant with Almighty God.
CONSTITUTION OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA OF 1974
PREAMBLE
We, the people of Louisiana, grateful to Almighty God for the civil, political, economic, and religious liberties we enjoy, and desiring to protect individual rights to life, liberty, and property; afford opportunity for the fullest development of the individual; assure equality of rights; promote the health, safety, education, and welfare of the people; maintain a representative and orderly government; ensure domestic tranquility; provide for the common defense; and secure the blessings of freedom and justice to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this constitution. (Bold added)
Colossians 2:1 (KJV)
1 For I would that ye knew what great conflict I have for you, and for them at Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh;
I will now continue with our discussion of Spiritual Warfare. We left off yesterday talking about repelling the Devil, temptation, with the Word of God and not deviating, not even by one word from the Word of God. Let us look at an account of one of the many ways the enemy comes which is through other Christians. In 1 Kings the thirteenth chapter we find a man of God who came from Judah to Bethel and prophesied, King Jeroboam was present and did not like the prophesy and stretched out his hand commanding that the prophet be taken. Immediately the King’s hand withered because of his treat against the man of God, a Prophet. In addition, the alter blew up just as the man of God had prophesied. As you might imagine, suddenly the King is singing a very different tune.
1 Kings 13:6 (KJV)
6 And the king answered and said unto the man of God, Intreat now the face of the LORD thy God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored me again. And the man of God besought the LORD, and the king’s hand was restored him again, and became as it was before.
Now the King wants the man of God to come home with him for he wants to give him a reward. Listen to response from the man of God.
1 Kings 13:8-10 (KJV)
8 And the man of God said unto the king, If thou wilt give me half thine house, I will not go in with thee, neither will I eat bread nor drink water in this place:
9 For so was it charged me by the word of the LORD, saying, Eat no bread, nor drink water, nor turn again by the same way that thou camest.
10 So he went another way, and returned not by the way that he came to Bethel.
He seems very clear that he has heard from God what to do which he has done and then he is to return home a different way and he is not to eat bread or drink water in that place, so he heads home a different way and did not go to the palace. The story goes on to tell us there is an old prophet in Bethel who finds out about the miraculous things that have happened and he goes to the man of God.
1 Kings 13:14-16 (KJV)
14 And went after the man of God, and found him sitting under an oak: and he said unto him, Art thou the man of God that camest from Judah? And he said, I am.
15 Then he said unto him, Come home with me, and eat bread.
16 And he said, I may not return with thee, nor go in with thee: neither will I eat bread nor drink water with thee in this place:
So the old prophet wants to visit with the man at his house over lunch. The man of God repeats what God told him which was to go home a different way and to eat no bread nor drink any water in that place. Now here comes the trap from another man of God, the old prophet.
1 Kings 13:18-19 (KJV)
18 He said unto him, I am a prophet also as thou art; and an angel spake unto me by the word of the LORD, saying, Bring him back with thee into thine house, that he may eat bread and drink water. But he lied unto him.
19 So he went back with him, and did eat bread in his house, and drank water.
The old prophet lied to the man of God and for whatever reason the man of God went with the old prophet and ate bread and drank water in that place. The man of God has been very clear on what his instructions were but here, just like Adam in the Garden, is doing just the opposite. The old prophet is the real thing but he is a man with a flesh and he indulged his lust to visit with the man of God and sinned in the process. As we will see this will have devastating consequences for the man of God. The man of God had a choice just like when the King made his offer. When you know the Word of the Lord for you, do not be diverted by anyone. Let’s continue with the story for the old prophet now gives a real prophecy.
1 Kings 13:21-22 (KJV)
21 And he cried unto the man of God that came from Judah, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Forasmuch as thou hast disobeyed the mouth of the LORD, and hast not kept the commandment which the LORD thy God commanded thee,
22 But camest back, and hast eaten bread and drunk water in the place, of the which the LORD did say to thee, Eat no bread, and drink no water; thy carcase shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers.
Wow, first the Devil uses the old prophet to speak a lie and then God speaks the Truth through the old prophet.
1 Kings 13:23-24 (KJV)
23 And it came to pass, after he had eaten bread, and after he had drunk, that he saddled for him the ass, to wit, for the prophet whom he had brought back.
24 And when he was gone, a lion met him by the way, and slew him: and his carcase was cast in the way, and the ass stood by it, the lion also stood by the carcase.
Romans 6:23 (KJV)
23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Devil first tried to corrupt the man of God through an ungodly King and when that did not work, he worked through an old prophet. Each of us must obey the Word of God exactly.
By Pastor David R. Wood
