Heralds Digest

  “ Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: And with all thy getting get understanding .” Proverbs 4 : 7 KJV Productivity from life’s daily engagements is not usually dictated by life’s givings. No one chooses his own givings from life’s engagements; but everyone determines his own getting from life’s givings. Speaking of wisdom as the principal thing, there are numerous counts of reasons and motivations surrounding all of life’s actions and inaction. When these reasons and motivations appear great and welcoming, the general people’s getting is fellowship, fruitfulness, and fondness. But ‘the getting’ from the atmosphere with apparent hostility and envy is usually fear, fruitlessness, and failure. Whereas, God’s design for believers is not subject to the general people’s reasoning and motivations. The revelation of His words is sacrosanct. For example, when it says “ For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind ( 2 Tim...

  “ He looketh upon men, and if any say, I have sinned, and perverted that which was right, And it profited me not; He will deliver his soul from going into the pit, And his life shall see the ligh t.”  Job 33 : 27 - 28 KJV While God absolutely delights in the deliverance of the righteous, He passionately desires the deliverance of the wicked and sinners as well. In fact, God’s redemption plan is focussed on a decisive deliverance of the sinful world through the sacrifice of His only begotten Son Jesus Christ. The decisiveness of this love of God is just as simple as “ …that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life ( John 3 : 16)”. “ He looketh upon men, and if any say, I have sinned” implies that there is no discrimination in God’s decisive deliverance. Unfortunately, many unrepentant sinners and backsliders are so deceived by their own sense of discrimination and segregation of sinners. Having profited so much from the deceitfulness of the ...

  “ He brought me forth also into a large place; He delivered me, because he delighted in me. ” Psalm 18 : 19 KJV There is no doubt that the Lord has unquenchable delight in the deliverance of His beloved, but our desire for quick freedom does often draw a self-centred perspective out of this delight. When Joshua and Caleb responded to this self-centred and rebellious perspective of their colleagues in the Old Testament with “ If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey ( Numbers 14 : 8 )”, it was aimed at highlighting the sacred uniqueness of a delightful deliverance. God’s deliverance is not primarily designed to serve the desperation of His beloved for quick freedom; but rather to satisfy the demonstration of the glory of God. Whenever the glory of God is at stake, it becomes rude and rebellious for the people of God to underestimate the potency of God’s delightful deliverance. Therefore, after the...

  “ My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go: My heart shall not reproach me so long as I live. Let mine enemy be as the wicked, And he that riseth up against me as the unrighteous .” Job 27 : 6 - 7 KJV Believers ought to know that every engagement in life offers an opportunity to meet with God, irrespective of the facial appearance and the intended agenda for the meeting. For example, Job’s encounter with evil enables several encounters and engagements including the miserable counselling from his best friends, the manipulated confrontation from his beautiful wife, and the massive calamity against the best fortune in his family. For different intents and purposes, believers’ response to Christ’s call in all of life’s engagements can either be bided, beaten or broken. Those who are bided are usually indifferent, even when physically present in response to the call. Religious people usually fall into the categories of bided believers. They follow all the rules and perf...

  “ My son, let not them depart from thine eyes: Keep sound wisdom and discretion: So shall they be life unto thy soul, And grace to thy neck. Then shalt thou walk in thy way safely, And thy foot shall not stumble. ” Proverbs 3 : 21 - 23 KJV The scriptural presentation of the concept of sound wisdom and discretion clearly suggests the prospect of falling for our weak wisdom and diplomacy. The latter is our use of the popular wisdom of the world; and many people will ply the roadmap presented by this path of human intelligence. Obviously, in this age of advances in knowledge, unlimited access to information, and social networking, there is almost no allowance to trust God for anything. Notwithstanding, wise walk remains the path of absolute trust in God or ‘faith’, especially when His call doesn’t make any sense. Invariably, FAITH or ‘Forsaking All, I Trust Him’ is the sacrifice of others’ considerations for progress and prosperity to submit to God’s commandments. Little wonder, w...

  “ I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: So shall I be saved from mine enemies. In my distress I called upon the LORD, And cried unto my God: He heard my voice out of his temple, And my cry came before him, even into his ears. ” Psalm 18 : 3 , 6 KJV The triumphant entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem teaches more than the praise of the King of kings and the Lord of lords. It actually admonishes integrity, intimacy and influence as the only trust of a lasting triumph in life, as demonstrated by the voluntary release of the tied colt of an ass and the worship outburst of babes. Unfortunately, life’s challenges often lead us mostly to the adoption of a temporary and triumphant truce instead of this rewarding and triumphant trust. Whereas, a truce is obtainable by either iniquity, ignorance or intelligence. A sinner and wicked person will advance truce for coverup, like when David committed adultery with Bathsheba and would offer Uriah the husband a break from his ...