All through the Old Testament, God wanted the house of Israel to be obedient to Him by the men He chose to deliver His word. What the house of Israel could not understand was God’s blessing came through obedience. Israel had a short memory when it came to the things of God. They constantly fell into idolatry. Christians today have the same problem. Once we are blessed we quickly forget. This is one of the reasons our lives are filled with disappointments and discouragements.
The adversary, who is cunning, knows he can’t stop God’s plan of having Christians build God’s kingdom. But Satan can stay the plan, by discouraging us too turn against one another. Then the work of kingdom building will slow down or be put off. Most Christians don’t realize that disappointments and discouragements are the devil’s favorite tools. He uses these tools very effectively in the lives of God’s people.
God wanted the children of Israel to remember His blessings and be obedient to His word by making their priorities the same as His priorities. These same principles are very true today. Our priorities must be the same as Christ’s. If we fail to study the word of God and remember what Jesus did for us on the cross, the adversary will discourage us by breaking up families, causing our children to fail, affecting the work place, and most certainly bringing about confusion and dissension in the church—staying or stopping God’s Kingdom building.
Christians who believe that God is in charge and in control of all things should never be discouraged. “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore, be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is,” Ephesians 5:15-17. We should never have a short memory when it comes to the things Jesus has done in our lives, always giving thanks to the Father in the name of Jesus Christ and submitting ourselves one to another in the fear of the Lord.
My weekly prayer is that the reader of this commentary becomes spiritually inspired of God.
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