Heralds Digest

  ” Concerning the works of men, By the word of Your lips, I have kept away from the paths of the destroyer. Uphold my steps in Your paths, That my footsteps may not slip. “ ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭17‬:‭4‬-‭5‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Funnily, the psalmist’s prayer on the works of men agrees with the concept of slip irreversibility. It is the Second Law of Thermodynamics that accounts for the inevitable destruction of energy with every production of work from any system. Invariably, the human works are filled with slip steps, unless saved by the words of God, i.e., the word of His lips. Unfortunately, we are often deceived by the promotion of our carnal intelligence, technological advances, social connectivity, moral uprightness, and political affiliations. Even righteous Job had to finally bow to his plausible bends on slip steps, when he cried ” Teach me what I do not see; If I have done iniquity, I will do no more’? “ (Job‬ ‭34‬:‭32‬). Whereas, all the works and words of men in apparent disagreement to divin...

  ” O Lord, You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You maintain my lot. The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; Yes, I have a good inheritance .“ Psalms‬ ‭16‬:‭5‬-‭6‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ The experience of Job with suffering shows that life’s inheritance cannot be sustained by earthly possessions and human relationships. Those who kept earthly inheritance on the front burner of their purpose for living have always lost out at the end. Whereas, it is amazing that while Job lost all his earthly inheritance, he kept his integrity and uprightness with God. This is because he found a perfect portion in his relationship with God. However, the scripture accounts that this perfect portion only comes with gracious endurance and perseverance: ” Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord—that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful ” (James‬ ‭5‬:‭11‬). While earthly properties can be confiscated; earthly r...

  ” Joseph said to them, “Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God? But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive. “ Genesis‬ ‭50‬:‭19‬-‭20‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ If only we are always privileged to see the bigger picture of actions and inaction around us, our perspective to the burning question ‘Why ?’ will be consistently attractive. Using the ordeals of Joseph in the hands of his brothers as reference, the greater good was the fulfillment of God’s revelation to Abraham about the 400 years sojourn or preservation of the Israelites in the land of Egypt. Whereas, the minute details embodied the several misfortunes of Joseph, the mismanagement of his brothers, and the misery of Israel, among other details. Through these details, all these characters expressed tremendous transformation of character, development of professionalism, and submission to divine counsel; because Joseph took the lead to l...

  ” But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men .”“ Matthew‬ ‭16‬:‭23‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ When Jesus told Peter “ Get behind Me, Satan! …”, there is no doubt He referred to the unfruitful fellowship through Peter; and not an attack on the person of Peter. In our own Information Age and the era of social media, everyone understands how life is full of many unfruitful fellowships through the internet, socialization, workplace engagements, and relationships. Unfortunately, many people are wary of activating the “ Get behind Me, Satan! ” weapon against unfruitful fellowship. Little wonder, we are readily wired to mind the things of men, friends, and associates in our lives at the expense of focusing on the things of God. Whereas, there are always the things of God in all of life’s relationships, associations, and engagements; but only those who are passionate to acknowledge God in all their w...

  ” And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. ”“ ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭16‬:‭19‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ When Captain Chesley Burnett ‘Sully’ Sullenberger III guided the crippled US Airways flight 1549, whose two engines failed after hitting a flock of geese, to land safely on the Hudson River, New York City in 2009, he got ‘the keys ’ from the Mayor for being a heroic pilot. Likewise, Joseph in the Old Testament got ‘the keys’ to Egypt from king Pharaoh by his proficiency in the interpretation of dreams through divine revelation; and he used his keys to save posterity from poverty and starvation, especially his estranged brothers, famished extended family, and depressed father from the land of Canaan. Unfortunately, the keys to earthly resources can lead corrupt hearts into abuse, corruption, and destruction of lives, like the keys in the hands of king Pharaoh in the days of Moses. ...

  ” But I have trusted in Your mercy; My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, Because He has dealt bountifully with me.“ Psalms‬ ‭13‬:‭5‬-‭6‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ One of my favourite topics in Technical Drawing (a high school subject) is called True Length; because it draws out the students’ world of imagination, rather than direct measurement. Just like true length is not rendered by what the eyes measure, but imagined out of the comparative study of other views, true trust cannot be measured by prevailing circumstances of life. The prevailing circumstances around the psalmist had been overwhelming, leading to consistent querying the theme ‘How Long…? ’. Unfortunately, many believers are tempted to shift their trust in God to bow down to the pressure to serve other gods in times of difficulties. Going by the experiences of the psalmist and many other patriarchs of faith, it is clear that no one can truly trust God with his head and what the senses can measure. Only ...

  ” The words of the Lord are pure words, Like silver tried in a furnace of earth, Purified seven times. You shall keep them, O Lord, You shall preserve them from this generation forever .“ Psalms‬ ‭12‬:‭6‬-‭7‬ ‭NKJV‬ The revelations during the reunion of the brothers of Joseph and himself in Egypt distinguish between the beauty of tried truth and the anguish of twisted tongue. Then the twisted tongues said to one another, “ We are truly guilty concerning our brother, for we saw the anguish of his soul when he pleaded with us, and we would not hear; therefore this distress has come upon us “ (‭‭Genesis‬ ‭42‬:‭21‬). Lies and deception do not truly have a protective cover from the reality that God is all-knowing and His judgement is inevitable. Unfortunately, those who engage in this fake protection often still seek its unreliable cover at the expense of the tried truth with bold faces. Whereas, Joseph’s experiences showed the undeniable victory in the tried truth, i.e., the revealed...