SUNDAY SERVICE SERMON NOTE. JANUARY 4, 2015.
TOPIC: WISE MEN STILL SEEK HIM.
Who is a wise man?
A wise man simply put is that man who is in Christ. A man who is born again, who has Christ as his personal Lord and saviour. One who enjoys the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, who has knowledge, who has revelation of the word of God and a vision.
A man without vision is as good as dead. Failure and death is at his door step. Such a man gropes in the dark until he is eventually consumed. For a man to have vision, he must first have revelation. Revelation comes only through the word of God. Unfortunately, many individuals seek to get revelation from elsewhere, outside the word of God.
1 Sam 28:7 Saul and the witch of Endor. Such men forget that the only true knowledge comes from God. The word of God is the mind of God and the will of God for man. So if you must get revelation, it must be from the scripture (the word of God). All enquiries must be through the scriptures. 2 Tim 3:16.
David inquired of the Lord, ‘’shall I pursue this raiding party? Will I overtake them? He answered ‘’you will certainly overtake them and succeed in the rescue’’. 1 Sam 30:8. Moses in Num 27:4-8 He was successful while Saul ended up in disaster.
How can I gain wisdom from God?
Proverbs 2:1-7, 1Cor 2: 6-16.
Today most people like Saul prefer astrologers to the scriptures. Astrologers cannot and will not give you true revelations of the mind of God. Soothsayers, fortune tellers, diviners, nwa dibia, babalawo and so on and so forth cannot. The only place you can get it is in the scriptures.
David is an example of a man who sort after God. God Himself testified to that in Acts 13:22, Cross Reference 1 Sam 13:14. There are still others like David in the Bible.
A growing number of people in our world fail to seek God for His wisdom. Instead, they strive to satisfy their passions and desires without regard to their futures or to the consequences of their decisions. This is a spiritually dangerous way to live. When we try to live apart from the counsel of God’s wisdom, we suffer disillusionment, fear, doubt, worry, and frustration. Our lives fall apart when we do not involve the Saviour in our decisions.
Today Nigeria is in a serious problem because we have leaders who has no revelation, who are visionless, leaders who cannot see beyond their nose. That is why we are confronting 1986 in 2015 and beyond. Some of us saw today before now, we talked about it. But because we are not within the corridors of power our voice did not measure up. We shouted and shouted but they were blinded by oil windfall. Today our oil minister has become the first female OPEC President and within weeks of her installation, we are being asked to consider Nigeria a non- oil producing nation. What a shame. How do we explain it to the world that a non-oil producing nation is the president of OPEC. One of the biggest and most powerful oil cartel in the world. Nigeria is ranked the 6th world oil producing nation. Apart from oil, Nigeria is richly endowed with vast natural resources but has failed to exploit them. If Nigerian economy is diversified, even if the oil price dipped to zero, it wiil not affect Nigerian economy as bad as it is today. God save Nigeria.
Revelation gives birth to vision and through both you can see into the future. When revelation is lacking, vision is lacking, when you have no vision you have no plan. And when you have no plan, you have planned to fail. The future is bleak and not secured.
Eternity is a future and you must plan for it. Seeking Christ is a conscious effort to plan and to work for eternity. Can you agree with me? There is a dare need to seek Him.
The wisest approach to life’s challenges is to seek God for His plan, direction, and spiritual insight. But how can we do that? The next time you face a challenge or an important decision, seek God’s wisdom by doing the following:
1. Seek Him—If you want to know God’s heart on a given issue or when you have to make a difficult decision, ask Him. Take time to pray—but in your times of prayer, don’t do all the talking. Listen for God’s still, small voice whispering His words of guidance and encouragement to you.
2. Meditate on God’s Word—You will gain insight into God’s mind and heart by studying Scripture and meditating on its truth. Difficult decisions become easier to make when God is the One guiding you. Joshua 1:8
3. Obey the principles of Scripture—when you set your heart on obeying God, He will teach you how to apply His truth in your life. Then you will know the way of wisdom. Malachi 3:6-8 Tithes offerings and first fruits ---- Proverbs 3:9-10, Nehemiah 10:35, Ezekiel 44:30, Leviticus 23:10-14
4. Observe the faithfulness of God—The Lord has never failed to keep a single promise He has made. The Bible is full of testimonies that celebrate His goodness and love. Learn to claim His promises as you read His Word. Jeremaiah 29:11
5. Heed godly counsel—God can use a pastor or trusted Christian friend to help you see beyond your weaknesses. Don’t hesitate to share your needs and fears with those who love the Lord and you.
6. Associate with wise people—Choose your friends wisely. Include God in every relationship, and you will establish a strong, godly base of counsellors to support you in making wise decisions. Psalm 1:1, Proverbs 1:1-7.10
Some two weeks ago, I received a message from God. In a simple language, God gave me a charge to tell the world, beginning from the Church that we have broken faith. We have failed God. The leaders, the Priests, the Levites, the workers, most of us have broken faith. We do not care for the poor, the widows and the fatherless. Instead we are more interested in our self-aggrandisement and corrupt enrichment. We forcefully take away the right of the poor. We manufacture false evidence against the weak and innocent. We fight for positions in the Church as if we are in a public conquest. We speak from both sides of our mount without blinking an eyelid and without shame.
The lord is calling us to order. We must repent and beg for God’s forgiveness. Let us seek Christ now that He can be found. My New Year message to you today is this—
Love God and His word, obey Him. Love one another and forgive each other in love. Be kind to all, both friends and enemies alike, show compassion and be someone’s angel when the need it most. Seek Christ all the days of your life until you become a saint triumphant.
