Do Not Be Deceived

I watched a movie titled “The Last Kingdom” where two groups of plunderers met in a certain Kingdom. One group made a deal with the King that if they helped him to destroy his enemies, he would pay them 400 worth of silver. On their way to accomplish this mission, they met the army they were to destroy and their leader said he want to negotiate with them. He convinced the King’s aide that since they wanted the same thing, this King’s silver, they should lure the King and his army, kill his men and spare the King, so he would tell them where he had hidden his silver. This plan appealed to this guy who was supposed to help the King and he accepted. Their plan worked. After they killed the King’s men, he told them where he had hidden his silver, though he was also killed. These new found allies headed for the palace for the silver. They found it right where the King had told them, however the terms of the game changed. The King’s enemy told the other team leader, that they weren’t going to share the plunder, it would all be his. With all the disappointment, King’s aide tried to fight but he was over powered and he and his team lost the silver. He was deceived

Right from the beginning, God’s truth has been contested and his children ensnared away to believe lies. It’s unfortunate that behind the devils’ lies, there is a hidden big cost attached to it. To Adam and Eve, he seemed to imply that it was just the fruit and the benefit of being like God. But they never knew how much this act of disobedience would change the course of their lives and rob them of valuable fellowship with God the Father.

There is another disturbing story in 1 Kings 13, about the Old Prophet and the young prophet referred to as the man of God from Judah. God sent the young Prophet to King Jeroboam to deliver a message and he was given instruction not to stop nor eat from there. However, when the Old Prophet was told what had happened, he got on his horse and followed this man of God, gave him a false prophecy that God had allowed him to eat. After he finished eating, the word of God came saying;

“20And it came to pass that as they sat at the table, that the word of the LORD came unto the prophet that brought him back: 21 An he cried unto the man of God from Judah, saying, Thus says the LORD, because you have disobeyed the mouth of the LORD, and have not kept the commandment which the Lord your God commanded you, 22 But came back ,and have eaten bread and drunk water in the place, of which the LORD did say to you, eat no bread, and drink no water; your carcass shall not come unto the sepulcher of your fathers.” (1Kings 13:20-22)

Lessons from the Story of the Man Of God from Judah

We need to understand that God held this man of God accountable for his disobedience even though he was deceived by his senior and this is why;

We need to understand that God’s word will always be disputed and tested, but we have to be alert like Jesus not to be deceived. The devil asked Eve, “Did God actually (in reality, truly, really) say, “You shall not eat of any tree from the garden”? (Gen 3:1b). When we receive the word of God, do not doubt it. Let’s be like Abraham and Mary the mother of Jesus who believed the word of God without questioning.

As a true Christian, when we get contradicting words about a similar situation, don’t be hasty to take action. Take time to ask the Lord for confirmation. When Manoah, the Father of Samson heard from his wife that an angel had visited her and told her she was going to give birth to a son who would be a Nazarite, he take her word for it, but asked God that he would resend the angel to speak to him as well and God answered his prayer. Another example is that of Gideon. When the Lord told him he would be with him in battle, he set a fleece before the Lord, to be sure God meant his word and the Lord honoured his request.

The other lesson we can get from this story is that God expects full obedience from us no matter what. King Saul had received instruction from Samuel regarding how to handle his enemies and he wasn’t supposed to offer sacrifice because he wasn’t a Priest, but pressure from his men (which from the human perspective would have been understandable), made him disobey the Lord’s instruction. When Samuel arrived he rebuked him and told him that he had done foolishly and the Lord had rejected him, because the Lord prefers our obedience to any kind of sacrifice.