Heralds Digest

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.” ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭3:5-6‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ http://bible.com/114/pro.3.5-6.nkjv Information is always a key resource to understanding, but it is often susceptible to a misunderstanding of the purpose of God in life. Wisdom teaches a clear difference between the understanding of man and the understanding of God. A man needs to keep the understanding of what has been in the head, while the understanding of what will remain in the heart and kept in the purview of God. No matter what has happened in the past of our career, family and ministry life, only God has the final say about our tomorrow. Therefore, it is always best to enjoy a sweet fellowship with God, even in the bitter moments of life. He knows the way out of our wilderness and the way into our wealth. An undiluted understanding of the plan of God in all of the life's moments drives the chord fo...

“For the LORD gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding; He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk uprightly;” ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭2:6-7‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ http://bible.com/114/pro.2.6-7.nkjv Prosperity and promotion at all costs favour the path of sinful smartness and a discouragement to the upright in heart. This path of wisdom always claims superiority of intelligence, political sagacity, financial prowess, and social responsibility. The major drawback of this type of wisdom is the inability to keep its bearer away from sin and unrighteousness. Obviously, wisdom inspired by material sense is not sensible to the fear of the Lord. It actually subdues the godly conscience in man and makes the way of sin attractive. Unlike material wisdom, winsome wisdom is inspired by God: from His mouth comes knowledge and understanding . Therefore, an upright man does not trust his head (or the head of his fellow man) for discretion, especially when the promotio...

“For the turning away of the simple will slay them, And the complacency of fools will destroy them; But whoever listens to me will dwell safely, And will be secure, without fear of evil.”” ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭1:32-33‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ http://bible.com/114/pro.1.32-33.nkjv Material prosperity attracts a significant sense of security from almost all the challenges of life. After all, the scripture also says ' Money answers everything ' (Ecclesiastes 10:19). The only caveat is the understanding of the type or quality of security provided. The security that deadens the sensitivity of man to the instructions of the Spirit of God is fake and complicated. It is evident that material prosperity that is influenced by the fear of the Lord cannot lead its beneficiaries away from the presence of God. Therefore, much talks about the principles of success and prosperity that are driven by gains are unreliable. Real prosperity and success in life and ministry guarantee simple security when driven by godlin...

“My son, if sinners entice you, Do not consent.” ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭1:10‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ http://bible.com/114/pro.1.10.nkjv The scriptures rightly posited that ' A sinner is not a Christian, and a Christian is not a sinner ' (1 John 3:8 paraphrased ). However, it will be right to quickly admit that the boundary between a sinner and a Christian is highly porous, with countless possibilities of cross-boundary excitation and enticement. Unfortunately, many fans of Christ are tempted to ignore the saintly counsel of not giving consent, '... if sinners entice you '. The major problem is that many often absolve self from the biblical injunction. For example, in a family comprising the father, the mother, and the children, any of the parents (father or mother) can easily get enticed, while trying to enforce the consent of the children or the counsel of an outsider. Whereas, we are all called (parents, preachers, and even principals, with their pupils inclusive) to be the forthright fan o...

“and I came to Jerusalem and discovered the evil that Eliashib had done for Tobiah, in preparing a room for him in the courts of the house of God. And it grieved me bitterly; therefore I threw all the household goods of Tobiah out of the room. Then I commanded them to cleanse the rooms; and I brought back into them the articles of the house of God, with the grain offering and the frankincense.” ‭‭Nehemiah‬ ‭13:7-9‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ http://bible.com/12/neh.13.7-9.nkjv Compromise through a partnership with unbelievers is often encouraged to be treated with great care, possibly with an exercise of strict boundaries. The scriptures even admonished complete abstinence from an unequal yoke with unbelievers, especially in all of the life projects; and where the seeking of the face of God is absolutely necessary for their day-to-day execution. For example, unequal yoke in marriage will later require desperate courage and the mercy of God in order to repair the resulting broken altar of prayer and c...

“Now the leaders of the people dwelt at Jerusalem; the rest of the people cast lots to bring one out of ten to dwell in Jerusalem, the holy city, and nine-tenths were to dwell in other cities. And the people blessed all the men who willingly offered themselves to dwell at Jerusalem.” ‭‭Nehemiah‬ ‭11:1-2‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ http://bible.com/114/neh.11.1-2.nkjv Unlike in our contemporary world, it was a significant sacrifice in the days of Nehemiah, to choose to live and raise a family in the capital city of Jerusalem. Since the major source of livelihood then is farming, city lifestyle attracts low productivity from the scarce farmstead, voluntary preferences for a low standard of living, and a significant constraint to material and physical expansions. While services from leaders of the people that dwelt at Jerusalem may attract some form of remuneration, others who voluntarily surrendered their career and professional pursuits are merely motivated by the need to live solely for humanity. Since...

“Now the rest of the people—the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, the Nethinim, and all those who had separated themselves from the peoples of the lands to the Law of God, their wives, their sons, and their daughters, everyone who had knowledge and understanding— these joined with their brethren, their nobles, and entered into a curse and an oath to walk in God’s Law, which was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of the LORD our Lord, and His ordinances and His statutes:” ‭‭Nehemiah‬ ‭10:28-29‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ http://bible.com/114/neh.10.28-29.nkjv Anyone would rightly query the decency in entering into a curse and an oath to walk in God's Law, until the penalty of interaction with the world, outside the presence of God, is properly reviewed. The remnants of the Israelites from the captivity have had the knowledge and understanding of the consequences of breaking away from the precious covenant with the Lord. Now with the privil...