Cdc — 14 MAY 2018

[Intro Speaker] Church and fellowships cannot be more spiritual than the individuals and families that constitute them. God rightly desires a godly home for these. These are words of restoration and instruction in righteousness from Family Life Ministry. May you be blessed as you listen. [Speaker 1] Yes, verse 8. That's the verse we want to look at. But I will take the reading from verse 6. Then we'll now go to several other scriptures. Micah 6:6-8: "Wherewith shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before the high God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with a thousand rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?" Amplified says, he has showed thee, O man, what the Lord require of thee: to do justly, to love kindness and mercy, and to humble yourself and walk humbly with your God. Now, so we see from this scripture that what God requires from us is clear. Is it in doubt? It's clear. What God requires from us is clear: to do justly, to love mercy, to walk humbly before the Lord. Having said that, let's see Samuel. First Samuel Chapter 2, verse 9. "He will keep the feet of his saints, and the wicked shall be silent in darkness; for by strength shall no man prevail." He will keep the feet of his saints. Who are the saints? We pick it from where we left: those who do justly, who love mercy, and walk humbly before him. He has showed thee, O man, what he wants from you. So anybody who does that which the Lord requires from him—now, this was Israel. Micah was a prophet to Israel. So you know that when we are talking that he has showed thee, O man, what he's required from thee, we are talking about the people of God. For people who have not met with God, it's a different ballgame. The first thing is to be born again, to repent from their sins. But he was speaking to Israel and he was showing Israel. So when we are talking about the saints of the Lord, we are talking about those people among the people of God who do what the Lord requires. He said he will keep the feet of his saints. He has his saints. He has those who defer to him. Having said that, then he will keep the feet of his saints and the wicked shall be silent in darkness. Why? The reason is in the verse. What's the reason? For by strength shall no man prevail. What does that mean? He said he will keep the feet of his saints. He will silence the wicked in darkness because, actually, for by strength no man will prevail. The saints are those that actually stand; they are not standing by their strength. It is God that is keeping their feet. While the wicked are probably trying to do this by themselves, they will be silenced in darkness because no man can prevail by strength. That's one way of looking at it. Let me just share with us what was the burden. I really trust the Lord because this morning, honestly, I was refreshed, I was reassured and encouraged. Let's look at Hannah's prayer. From verse 1 of 1 Samuel 2: "And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth in the Lord, mine horn is exalted in the Lord: my mouth is enlarged over mine enemies; because I rejoice in thy salvation. There is none holy as the Lord: for there is none beside thee: neither is there any rock like our rock. Talk no more so exceeding proudly; let not arrogancy come out of your mouth: for the Lord is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed." He has showed thee, O man, what he requires from you: to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly before the Lord. Is that not it? He says don't speak proudly. Don't let arrogancy go out of your mouth, for God is a God of knowledge. By him, what is weighed? Actions. By him, actions are weighed. "The bows of the mighty men are broken, and they that stumbled are girded with strength. They that were full have hired out themselves for bread; and they that were hungry ceased: so that the barren hath born seven; and she that hath many children is waxed feeble and is forlorn. The Lord killeth, and maketh alive: he bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up. The Lord maketh poor, and maketh rich: he bringeth low, and lifteth up. He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory: for the pillars of the earth are the Lord's, and he hath set the world upon them." Does the earth have a pillar? What's the pillar? He said the pillars of the earth are the Lord's. There's none that we know. He's the one that owns it. We don't know where it is, it's under him. I want you to relate it to what Hannah is saying. That is the striking thing this morning. We know the earth doesn't have a pillar. So what was she saying figuratively? She was saying God makes the world turn around. He does everything. She's telling you that the earth is seated upon the providence and the mercy of God. What's making the earth to stand is the providence and the mercy of God. So that that somebody has and one does not have is a function of God's providence and mercy. That somebody is great, another person is small, it's a function of God's providence and mercy. That's why he says that God resists the proud and he gives grace to the humble. Walk humbly before the Lord. Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall. That somebody is brilliant, another person is not, is a function of what? Providence. You will say it's because I read very well. It's not because you read. You forget to understand that first, the arrangement of the cells that give that was not a thing you got. It depends on the person who gave birth to you and the type of brain cells you have. I have one of the children with us whose mother was a roadside, whose father was a misfit. That determines the extent of her brain, that she could not go through secondary school. Did she have a choice as to who should be the mother and the father? Will she choose that kind of place to be the father and the mother? So that you come and you have all this intelligence move and you say it's because you read. You forget that fundamentally, what would make you read came by providence. You could even become what you become; you forget that it was just by circumstance. Imagine that if your mother was a tomato seller and could not send you to school? So she said to make something very clear: that the foundation of the earth is of who? Is of the Lord. She's talking about that the earth is seated upon what? The providence of God and the mercy of God. That is to say, it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy. She said, now I realize, I know, I come to see that the earth has a foundation. And that foundation is what? It belongs to him. It is the providence and it is the mercy of God. Now, when that was said, she now moved on. She now said he guides the feet of his godly ones, but the wicked shall be silent and perish in darkness. And that is the verse we want to look at a little closer. This morning, I had to go and pick commentaries. I was trying to understand Hannah, so I had to go and read Jewish history. I had to go and read, and that's how I got all of this I'm telling you now. Also, okay, and then the Lord was just pointing my heart to look at this thing very closely. I began to look at commentaries, I began to look at Bible stories, history among the Jews. And then I came to a realization. Brethren, there's something God requires from his people. He said he guides the feet of his saints. He guides the feet of his godly one. It is important just to remind us again that in all we do, in all that concerns us, it doesn't matter how it seems. It doesn't matter how it looks. It doesn't matter the circumstance in which we find ourselves. It doesn't matter the situation. We may not always be together. Salt is not always gathered together; you sprinkle it out to go and do the work of grace. But get something very clear: that by strength, by strength shall no man prevail. What does that translate to mean? We don't know the story. We don't know what surrounds Elkanah, Hannah, and Peninnah. But we know very well in the story that it seems that the circumstance that brought him Peninnah was a circumstance that made her to taunt and spite Hannah. We don't know how, but the circumstance that brought her is the circumstance that says, you, look at you, look at where you are. Because the Bible says that was part of what drove Hannah. It says and an arrival normally provoked her. It's a normal practice. So I'm looking at—we don't know the circumstance. We don't know why Elkanah made a choice of Peninnah. We don't know exactly what happened. But the turn of events makes it clear that Peninnah saw herself—the entrance of Peninnah into the house of Elkanah was not on a good note. It was not on a good note. The note on which she entered was a note of competition. The reason why I'm saying this is that you must bear in mind that under that culture as at then, there was nothing wrong with having more than one wife under that culture. Moses allowed them to put away one and marry another. It was when Jesus came that he was talking of a new order. Solomon had many wives. David had more than one. When David had more than one, it was not as if David was sinning under that dispensation. When Abraham had more than one, it was not as—the twelve tribes of Jacob, of Israel, is not from one wife. So you need to understand that. But what we are trying to say this evening, brethren, about the matter of let's be careful, let's be watchful. No matter how long it may take, an ungodly foundation will eventually be shaken. No matter how long, no matter how long it may take, whatever you get by ungodliness, the Lord will not keep your feet. The Lord will not keep your feet. Let's be watchful. See, the foundations of the earth is the Lord. You may seem to have gotten results by some ungodly means, by a little lie, a little compromise, a little unfaithfulness, a little deceit. You may make a little more money by some dishonesty. It may look that you are going on, but remember that by strength shall no man prevail. Because the foundations of the earth is rested upon the providence and the mercy of God. Don't forget, the mercy of the Lord is upon those that fear him. And by providence, he normally guides the feet of his godly ones. For the ungodly, their feet are not ordered. Somehow, somehow, that thing that is gotten by ungodliness will not last. It doesn't matter how concrete it may first look like. It may look so concrete at first. It may look so certain, it may look wow, you have made it. But I want us to note: the matter of foundation. The matter of the basis for which—the basis of our prosperity. It could be marital, it could be academic, it could be career, it could be financial, it could be anything. Just anything. Eventually, the Lord will come back to ask us, how, how did you birth this thing? How? The question of how will still eventually be raised. The question of how. How? How, how? How did you get this thing? And the how we are talking about is that he has shown us, he has shown us what he requires from us. He wants us to do justly. He wants us to love truth. He wants us to walk humbly before him. He has showed us what he wants. In all our walk as we walk, let's remember that see, the Lord will keep only the feet of his godly ones. I love the word used, his faithful ones. He recognizes men. Second Chronicles 16:9. For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. King Asa did some things foolishly. He didn't follow the godly path. Instead of trusting in God, when he was attacked, he went to trust on something else. So God brought that message. But look at what the prophet said. "The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth." The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. Do you see that God is looking for hearts that are true to him? Nobody may be there. You may be the only one there. But God is looking for a heart that will be true to him. God recognizes those hearts, as he recognizes the hearts that are not true to him. He searches it. God is always on the alert, constantly on the lookout for people who are totally committed to him. To give strong support to those whose heart is blameless towards him. I'm reading from the Amplified version. What I'm trying to make you see is that the Lord knows his godly ones. He knows them. Don't think God is not recognizing the little, little faithfulness here and there. The little, little things you refuse to—saying, no, I can't do this. You may suffer some things. You may not get it fast the way others are getting it. It may look as if you are not wise enough. But because of your commitment to God, because of your heart towards God—saying, no, I don't want to prosper like this. I don't want to make it like this. No, this is not of God. This thing is not godly. This is not proper. No, I will not be faithful to God. What I'm trying to say is that, brethren, God is daily looking at the little, little things we do to show our faithfulness to him. The little, little things we do. If you are there and you are, it looks as nobody is seeing you. Nobody is recognizing what you are doing. Nobody is even appreciating you. But if you are there in that your corner, daily showing faithfulness to the Lord, daily showing truthfulness to him, daily having a heart that will be blameless towards him, daily having a heart that is committed to him—no, I want you to know something. The eyes of God is running to and fro. As he sees that heart, the Lord notes it. As he sees it, the Lord notes it. And what he's going to do is that he will show himself strong on your behalf. He'll show himself strong on your behalf. In the same way, the Lord noticed ungodliness. The Lord noticed—that is why he said why the Lord will keep the feet of his saints, he will make sure that the wicked disappear in darkness. He's doing the two together. He will make sure that the wicked disappear in darkness. The situation we are in in this country today, the stress upon people—financially, emotionally, psychologically, martially, health-wise, so many things are going on. So much stress, so much pressure today. But I'm telling you, brethren, please be on the alert. The purpose of this pressure is not to destroy. They will only help us to sieve who are the Lord's faithful. They want us to sieve. The economic pressure is just a sieve. The financial pressure is just a sieve. The academic pressure is just a sieve. The job pressure is just a sieve. The marital pressure is just a sieve. The emotional pressure is just a sieve. All those things they are just a sieve. It will help us separate. It will help us separate. It will help us put men, those men, those men whose hearts are committed to God and men whose hearts are not. And it doesn't matter how solid, how solid, how solid we might have built. I wanted to read so much about Peninnah beyond just what the Bible says. I went to start checking Jewish story. I found the story. There's this story among the Jews. I said wow, this is serious. This is serious. Then I left that, I began to take contemporary more biblical examples, particularly along the area of marriage. Then I noticed—as at this time that there was Peninnah, not as if the Lord had come and the order has changed. The correct order was set. There was a deviation from the correct order. The order never changed. What God set on the beginning—Jesus said it was not so at the beginning. So the order never changed. Men only deviated from the order. Then Jesus Christ called us back to "it has been said, but now I'm telling you this is the correct one." Now, so let's check some biblical stories so that we want to compare this case of Peninnah with some other stories so that you can understand this matter of the foundation of the things that you are doing. Let's look at the same Rachel and her sister. That was the story of Jacob. How did Leah come into the life of Jacob? Again, the whole story we did not know. But we have some background stories. The background story we had was that Jacob was interested in Rachel. But the night, the conjugal night, something happened that night. Don't think of flashlight and electric light the way you have it now. So somehow that Jacob could not recognize—don't wonder too much that he could not recognize her. I think it's a family decision. That's what I—please, these are just assumptions. We don't have this written in the Bible. These are assumptions. So we may think, because while the Bible is silent, we must be silent. We speak where the Bible speaks. Now, so perhaps, let's say perhaps, it was a family decision. Perhaps it was an agreement when the father said, you know our tradition now. He said it's true. No, my sister, you first go. Or maybe they had to take Rachel, I don't know exactly what happened. But that night Leah came in. Now, but what I want to make you see was that as much as we don't know exactly the whole circumstance, one thing I want to make you see was the Bible said, when God saw that Leah, there was hatred for her, God closed the womb of Rachel. He looked at the foundation upon which that lady came. It was not a thing that had to do about her deceiving her sister. She found—it was on some circumstance that is unknown to her. God rose to defend her. It was not a polygamous arrangement. But God rose to defend her. Telling that it was not by deceit that she came in. It could be based on some circumstances that is unknown to her. It shows that there was something, there was something about her foundation, even though it looks shaky, there was something about her foundation that was correct, that God had to defend her. What I'm trying to say is that God knows the faithful. It doesn't matter how the thing turn, how the thing looks like. Sometimes even people may say, yeah, yeah, you are correct, you are doing well. God knows the story. God knows the details. He understands how that thing came into your life. He's the one who can say whether I will rise to defend you by my providence and mercy, I will leave you to disappear in darkness. But that God rose for Leah, you know that Leah would have been desolate in that marriage. Jacob would not have slept with her. Rachel was not a barren woman. It was God that did what he did. God just deliberately did something to shift the attention of Jacob to Leah. God just did that. God shut some—so it's not because a woman is fertile that she has children. It's because God have mercy on her. And it's not because a woman is not fertile that she does not have children. It's because God have withheld that same mercy. These are very, very serious things about life. And that's why the Bible says the battle is not to the strong, the race is not to the swift. When it looks as if the strong did something and it wins, it's because by that means God have appointed that the strong should win. But the foundation of the earth lies on what? The providence and the mercy of God. God rose to defend her. That's also a polygamous arrangement. And you see that God defended that. What I'm trying to say is that God knows the details of how you step into what you are inside now. God knows all the detail stories. God knows the details, and the how we are talking about is how, how did you birth this thing? How? The question of how will still eventually be raised. The question of how. How? How, how? How did you get this thing? And the how we are talking about is that he has shown us how what he requires from us. Can we see Jeremiah 17:9? The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? I the Lord search the heart. I try the reins, to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings. verse 11: As the partridge sitteth on eggs, and hatcheth them not; so he that getteth riches, and not by right, shall leave them in the midst of his days, and at his end shall be a fool. May we not be a fool at the end. At the end, he shall be a fool. What was Peninnah? Not a fool at the end. The heart is hopelessly dark and deceitful, a puzzle that no one can figure out. But I, God, search the heart and examine the mind. I get to the heart of the true man. I get to the root of things. I treat them as they really are, not as they appear, not as they pretend to be. Not as they pretend to be. Brethren, is it not enough instruction for our heart? Is it not enough to make us fear God and keep his command? Search the heart. Do you see that God is looking for a heart that is true to him? You may be the only one there. But God is looking for a heart that will be true to him. God is daily looking at the little, little things we do to show our faithfulness to him. The little, little things we do. He knows them. He notices it. The Lord knows his godly ones. He knows them. Don't think God is not recognizing the little, little faithfulness here and there. The little, little things you refuse—no, I can't do this. It may look as if you are not wise enough. But because of your commitment to God, because of your heart towards God—saying, no, I don't want to prosper like this. I don't want to make it like this. No, this is not of God. This thing is not godly. This is not proper. No, I will not be faithful to God. What I'm trying to say is that God knows the details of our works. He knows the details. Even in our promotion, God knows how we got it. Whether it was by hijacking some people's publications and now associate professor. We weigh, "ah, let's celebrate, God has promoted our brother!" Baba knows the details. He knows how the promotion came. While we are busy dancing, dancing, dancing, God is taking time to make sure that the wicked disappear in darkness. What I'm saying is that God knows the details of our story. God knows the details. I was telling a friend, I said look, even our promotion, God knows how we got it. He knows the everything, God knows. And you wonder that it was through Leah—you know Judah came through Leah. And it was through Judah that the Lord came. The point is that it is not how the circumstance look like. I'm showing you two scenarios. In one scenario, as one gave birth to a Samuel, the other one buried two children. As she had five, she buried the rest. In another scenario, God rose to defend her. Which means God knows the intricacies of our stories. He knows the details that are hidden from us, that is hidden from men. For some men, their sin goes before them. For some, it comes after them. Do you know what that means? For some men, their sin goes before them. For some, it comes behind them. What it's trying to say is this: for some people, the one that goes before them, right here on earth you will see their foolishness. It goes before them. Before they would die, we will see how foolish they are. For some, they will die. We will say "oh, sister or brother, what happened? Oh, has gone back home." Our beloved brother. People will be praying, "Father make my life like the life of Brother That." I wish you can see beyond. You will say "God, I don't want to be like Brother That." Because you don't know the story. For some people, God will seem to leave them. It will come behind them to judgment. It is behind them; it's not before them. Some of them will die. Nobody will even talk, nobody will ever know such a thing happened. Everything will go well. Their children will live, everything will—they say ah, God has not judged this person. But that is the ways of God. But God will bring every work to judgment, whether they be good or evil. Even the secret ones. There are some things that will remain secret until Judgment Day. A little lie, it could be fornication, it could be morality. You will prosper in ministry. Everything will go on well, till you will die. Nobody will know anything. You could have slept with your office secretary, and nobody will know anything till you will die as a minister. But we need to fear God. We need to fear God. His ways are unsearchable. His judgment, they are past finding out. But he has showed thee, O man, what he requires from you. He has shown you what he wants from you. Consider the latter end of what you want to do now. Consider how it will end. Be wise about decisions. Respond to the Lord. The pressure in the society today is just a sieve. It's only sieving those that will be faithful and those that will not be faithful. I don't know where you stand. But I'm only saying this, that the Lord challenged my heart again today. That son, I keep the feet of my godly ones. Go and check. He says his, he knows his own. The Lord knows his own. That "his" was a challenge, was the burden this morning. "His." Not just the godly. "His." That is, he knows them. And as he's doing that, he will make sure that the wicked among his people also disappear in darkness. Let us pray. I want you to talk to the Lord. I don't know what encouragement you receive from this or what challenge to your heart you received. But that was just the burden that the Lord wanted us to share this evening. And I want you to look inward. If there are areas you need to amend your ways, you amend. If there are areas you need to say Lord, oh Lord, thank you. Maybe you have been doing that. God, thank you. I'm encouraged the more to continue. For some it may be to encourage you the more to say don't give up. Don't give up. Don't at the end be a fool. Consider how it will end. Be wise about your decision. Respond to the Lord. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Sister Comfort, please close the meeting. 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