Have you ever wondered about the many wars recorded in the Bible? Those many wars are a reminder that the history of man has been a checkered one. On another note, they point to the fact that we face a much more profound war spiritually. A study of those wars can help our understanding of the enemy’s strategies. Our text is a classic example of this reality. In his days, Ahithophel had the reputation of being one of the wisest men. To his credit, it is said that hearing from him was as if one heard from the oracles. Our text captures the counsel which he gave to Absalom after he dislodged David his father from the throne. Ahithophel wanted to execute an immediate military action at a time he knew David and his men would be tired. Mobilizing the army with that strategy, he was sure David would become afraid by the sheer force of number on Absalom’s side.

Fear is a potent weapon of war in the hands of Satan …The goal of the enemy is to paralyze people and keep them from taking any action.

Fear is a potent weapon of war in the hands of Satan. The devil will seek to instil fear by covert. At other times, the seed of fear will come through manipulation and intimidation. Goliath stood on the mountain, screaming morning and evening,  and asked Saul to choose a man to face him in a fight. He was using intimidation to get Saul’s army afraid; and he succeeded for a while. The goal of the enemy is to paralyze people and keep them from taking any action. This form of fear has torment. When the devil sends in the bait of fear, he rips open through the defense line and attacks eventually. The way to ward off all forces of fear is to stand solid on the promises of God, and  never forget that He is always by our side.

Many people will find the wages of professional athletes rather ridiculous. Some of them have weekly take-home what many people cannot earn in years. What we often fail to consider is the sacrifice that goes on behind the scene. Take for example what happened at Euro 2020. Before Portugal’s first game, Cristiana Ronaldo caused some stir at a press conference. The hall of the conference was neatly arranged. Coca-Cola, one of the sponsors of the game, had their products conspicuously placed on the table. As soon as Ronaldo took his seat, he shoved aside the two bottles of Coca-Cola in front of him. Instead, he raised a bottle of water and spoke in Portuguese, “Drink water”. Those who know him well would tell you that the snub was not some publicity stunt. When it comes to what he eats and drinks, plus physical exercise, he is a maverick. His eating pattern is such as can only promote the healthiest frame. That has been the secret of his performance at the highest level in many years.

…believers should not judge what they do or allow only from the point of being lawful; we should weigh all things from the standpoint of whether they are profitable or not.

Apostle Paul gave us insight into the life of athletes. Those who are well-meaning and hope for laurels among them give up so many things. They give up some food and other physical conveniences. They delay gratification of certain human desires, including raising a family. They do all these to wear medals that will fade with time. The reasoning of Paul is that whatever sacrifice we are called to make is eternally more rewarding than what the best athlete hope to have. Millions of people across the world drink Coca-Cola, because it is not contraband. One man, however, found it injurious to his body and the bigger goal of being able to perform professionally for a long time. So believers should not judge what they do or allow only from the point of being lawful; we should weigh all things from the standpoint of whether they are profitable or not.

Sanctification goes beyond mere external piety. In our text, Peter sums up the requirements for a life of purity with two cardinal points. The first is obeying the truth. We are not talking of relative truth as being advocated by liberal schools of thought today, but truth as presented in the Word of God. Jesus said the words He spoke to us are spirit and life, and they are the truth that sanctifies. We should use the word of God as umpire to determine what is true or false. When we obey the written word of God we demonstrate that our souls have been purified. This is not hard to explain: a soul that is yet to be purified has no interest in the word of God much less obeying it. Take note that being able to obey the word of God is also the outworking of God’s Spirit in believers.

When we obey the written word of God we demonstrate that our souls have been purified …a man is no more purified than how yielded he is to the truth and love of the brethren.

The second thing that proves a soul is sanctified is sincere love of the brethren. It is not just any kind of love; it has to be sincere. Again, the love we are expected to show to the brethren must be from a pure heart. What does this mean? It is to love without any ulterior motive. This is the type of love God showed to us, and that is what He expects us to spread among the brethren. The foregoing brings us to one conclusion: a man is no more purified than how yielded he is to the truth and love of the brethren. The Colossians thought that ascetic lifestyle and punishing the body were the way to prove godliness. Now we know that all attempts to discipline the body through a rigorous regiment will be futile unless we abide in the truth and love as brethren.

A good way to remain upbeat even when things appear negative is to learn to put a new construction on them. There is a story of a pastor I always recall whenever I teach about thanksgiving. His attitude every Sunday before launching his sermons was to thank the Lord profusely. On one occasion, there was a bad weather which almost paralyzed everything and led to low attendance. Someone who had noticed his attitude of thanksgiving thought that he would find nothing for which to thank God on such a day, but he came home disappointed when the pastor said, “Lord, I thank You because it has not always been like this.”

We also can find beauty in virtually every seeming disaster if only we will adjust our gaze and allow God to work everything out after the counsel of His will.

Having a good construction over issue was what one Louise adopted to handle situation when she was raped. Louise was raped by someone who should be protecting her. Things got worse for her when she discovered that she got pregnant from the assault. Feminists often make a strong case for abortion in such circumstance; but Louise would have none of that. She said, “When people say abortion is needed in cases of rape, I feel that is very unfair. If your body has already started to create life, undoing that process seems very detrimental. I also knew that there’s already a heart beating. There’s already a life there. And for me to go and intentionally take away someone’s intent to life, that wouldn’t sit well with me for the rest of my life.” For her, aborting the baby would amount to letting an innocent life pay for the rapist’s crime. She would later describe her child at birth as “beauty in the disaster.” We also can find beauty in virtually every seeming disaster if only we will adjust our gaze and allow God to work everything out after the counsel of His will.

A spreading error among those who profess faith in Jesus is seeking to fight spiritual battles with physical weapons. I have seen people, in the name of prayer, come to church with cutlass and gun to fight the devil. Such practice would have been laughable if not that it is pitiable. Peter was once caught in such error. As the hordes of Jews came to arrest Jesus, he brought out his sword and chopped off a man’s ear, ostensibly to defend the Master. He definitely had a different idea of how the battle of his Lord should be fought. Meanwhile, Jesus had wrapped up the battle in the garden of Gethsemane in that powerful session of intercession. It was a battle of the spirit meant to be fought in the realm of the spirit; and He had done that.

If you fight in the flesh, you will fail miserably; but reliance on the name and the blood of Jesus will spell victory.

Many believers know that we are at war; but few know the nature of the war. Paul gives us insight into both the nature and the means of prosecuting our warfare. “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds” II Corinthians 10:4 NKJV. Our weapons are not physical, because the warfare is not physical either. The enemies we confront are the principalities and powers, the unseen rulers of darkness. You cannot take aim at them with your physical swords. Comprehensive faith in Jesus and His accomplished work on the cross, and a life of consistent intercession is what guarantees victory. If you fight in the flesh, you will fail miserably; but reliance on the name and the blood of Jesus will spell victory.

It would appear that God deals with us based on knowledge or the light that we have over any issue. There are two ways to demonstrate this, one from each of the testaments. When Uzzah touched the ark of God, he was killed instantly. The ark was hurriedly abandoned in the house of Obed-Edom and he was not slain even though there are chances that he touched the ark while in his custody.

Who was Obed-Edom? We understand that he was a Gittite. For the record, a Gittite was an inhabitant of Gath, one of the chief Philistine cities. Obed-Edom probably was one of the Philistines who had emigrated to Judah. Why was Uzzah killed and Obed-Edom spared? Uzzah was a native Israelite who ought to know the protocol of God concerning the ark. A stranger to the ways of the God of Israel was not put under the same demand as those who knew Him well enough.

A stranger to the ways of the God of Israel was not put under the same demand as those who knew Him well enough …to whom much is given, much is expected.

A New Testament parallel to this would be the case of Mary and Zechariah. Mary questioned the angel about his word to her. She wondered how she would be able to give birth without knowing a man. The angel did not smite her, but only explained that the Holy Spirit would see to it. The same angel smote Zechariah with dumbness when he questioned how realistic it was for Elizabeth to give birth to a son when they were both old. He must have been smitten because, as a priest, he ought to have known better that there was nothing impossible with God. Moreover, it was the thing he had prayed to get for a long time. The summary of this is that to whom much is given, much is expected.

Samuel Paty was a 47-year-old French History and Geography teacher who was brutally beheaded by a jihadist on October 16, 2020. The attack was a result of a fierce online smear campaign started by a 13-year-old Muslim student. She claimed that the teacher had, during the class on free speech, asked all Muslim students to leave the classroom to enable him show controversial caricatures of the Prophet Muhammed. She invented the story to provide an alibi for her suspension the previous day due to absences. It was not until 2024 during police investigation that she confessed that all was a ruse and apologized to Samuel Paty’s family for destroying their lives.

Invariably, behind every conflict is some measure of deceit… The only way to escape the lie of the devil and the tragic consequences it brings is to be grounded in the truth which is encapsulated in the word of God. 

In our text, Jesus described Satan not just as a liar but the father of it. It should be no stress to admit that all who are his will make lies their stock in trade. The Bible speaks of a thousand years of uninterrupted peace on earth. Coincidentally, it is during that same period that Satan will be bound and unable to deceive people. Invariably, behind every conflict is some measure of deceit. If a family is in disarray, one or more members are subscribing to lies of the devil. That the devil is going about to cause havoc is an open secret. What many people have not come to terms with is how he is executing his war with so much effectiveness. Apostle Peter portrays him as a lion seeking who he might devour (1 Peter 5:8). Knowing his modus operandi is critical for our escape. The principal way by which the devil preys on people is deception. He goes about lying to people. The only way to escape the lie of the devil and the tragic consequences it brings is to be grounded in the truth which is encapsulated in the word of God.

Peter Munyasya speaks to the root of our world’s problem when he said, “We are stuck where we are now because we live in a materialistic world where all attention is only given to men with deep pockets while we ignore men with deep thoughts.” Being heard and seen are basically tied to having deep pockets, and this has led to insatiable quest for money. The spiraling evil we see today is fueled by the love of money. No time is the word of Jesus more needed than now: “And He said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.” Luke 12:15 NKJV

The spiraling evil we see today is fueled by the love of money…Physical riches are good, if obtained in the way of righteousness. Even at that, physical riches do not compare to being rich towards God.

On the surface, it would seem as if Jesus condemned abundance in all ramifications. Not at all, His warning was against covetousness. The parable following the warning also helps to put things in perspective. He told of a man whose ground produced abundantly and decided to greedily hoard everything for his use alone. Then his soul was taken from him that same day. He drew the parallel to that as the lot of those who are not rich towards God. Physical riches are good, if obtained in the way of righteousness. Even at that, physical riches do not compare to being rich towards God. It is those who are rich towards God that will inherit the earth. Not the earth as presently constituted, but the new one that shall descend from heaven. Its length, breadth and height are all equal. That speaks of perfection! That ought to be the ultimate longing of all.

Our team had ministers’ conference cum restoration seminar at Akinima, Rivers State, Nigeria sometime in July this year. Before the flag off of the meeting, it was suggested that we should pay a courtesy call on the paramount ruler. On our way, I asked for guidance as to the proper conduct in the palace as custom may demand. That was born out of an experience I had in the palace of a traditional ruler in Mubi, Adamawa State some years ago. Palace etiquette at that place demanded that we remain seated and clap our hands when the king approached.

Purity of heart or motive is one of the conditions to stand before God…Coming to God behooves you to know that He exists and that He can hear and reward those who serve Him.

Now, if earthly kings have ways of approaching them, it should not be considered strange if the King of kings also has guidelines for those who must come to Him.  Thanksgiving is a requirement. “Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.” Psalms 100:4 NKJV. By this, murmurers have effectively cut themselves off from God’s presence. Next is purity of motive. Psalm 24:3-4 states: “Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, Nor sworn deceitfully.” Purity of heart or motive is one of the conditions to stand before God. Finally, faith is required to walk with God or obtain from Him. Our text lays it bare. Coming to God behooves you to know that He exists and that He can hear and reward those who serve Him.

When you hear people say, “Your attitude will determine your altitude”, it is not just a rhyme.  Attitude has been linked to the past, present, and future. Speaking on attitude, John Maxwell said, “It is the librarian of our past. It is the speaker of our present. It is the prophet of our future.” Too frequently, people scout around for someone who would give them a prophecy or speak into their future. As good as that seems, nothing prophesied on you will make any significant difference with a poor attitude. From a person’s attitude you can fairly predict their future. Great, positive attitude will lead to great future; a negative one will ruin the best of chances.

…nothing prophesied on you will make any significant difference with a poor attitude…Great, positive attitude will lead to great future; a negative one will ruin the best of chances…We all need an open heart so that the Spirit of God can show us where we need attitude change.

An important lesson about attitude is that it never stays static. It can be poor, fair, good, or great. The good thing, however, is that wherever we might be today on attitude scale, we can choose to work on it. The latter end of Joseph is usually painted in glowing words. However, he had to undergo a restructuring in his attitude. You can hear a note of pride when he declared his dreams to his brothers and fathers. He seemed quite enthused with the idea of his brothers, father, and mother bowing to his sheaves and stars. The hunt that his brothers launch after him may not be unconnected to his cockiness. After years of process under God, it was a different Joseph who stood before Pharaoh. He clearly said that the answer that Pharaoh was looking for was not in him, praying that God would give the king an answer of peace. By the time he became a ruler, he had imbibed the attitude of humility. We all need an open heart so that the Spirit of God can show us where we need attitude change.

The parable in Judges Chapter 9 is a classic lesson on purpose. It is designed to teach us how to jealously focus on our calling and avoid all distractions no matter how well packaged. The setting of the parable showed how the trees went on a mission to anoint a king over them. Their first port of call was first the Olive, but it refused because it found satisfaction in its product being used in honour of God and man. Next to be approached was the fig which was also jealous of its sweetness and would not want to abandon that. The invitation was then given to the vine. On its part, the vine spoke of its wine that brings cheer to God and man and subsequently turned down the offer.

…not all opportunities should be accepted, and not all open doors are to be explored. When an opportunity presents itself, assess it in the light of what God has purposed for you…Distracted people don’t accomplish much.

The first thing to take to heart is that not all that glitters is gold. On the surface, the invitation given to these trees was an opportunity. Who would not want to be a king with all the attendant honour! However, these trees realized that becoming king would take them away from the core of what God created them to do. To accede to the request would mean moving from significance to irrelevance; therefore, they rejected the offer immediately. The moral of this parable is that not all opportunities should be accepted, and not all open doors are to be explored. When an opportunity presents itself, assess it in the light of what God has purposed for you. What has God called you to do? Will that opening enhance your essence and calling or stand as an obstacle? Go only for the openings that will add up one way or another in the overall plan of God for your life. Distracted people don’t accomplish much.

In 2010, 50 Cent was 35 years of age. At that time, he had a body build like that of a heavyweight boxer with imposing ultra-muscular physique. He gave all that up for one mission – a movie role in THINGS FALL APART. That role required that he portrayed himself as a promising college football player diagnosed with cancer. Subjecting himself to an extreme 9-week transformation, the rapper shed about 55 pounds or 25 kg. He shrank from 214 pounds to a skeletal 160 pounds. He achieved this feat by adopting a strict liquid-only diet which he combined with three-hour daily treadmill sessions. The result made him look like a real patient.

We trade off something for something else considered of a greater value…Whenever you have a great goal set, find out what price you need to pay to attain it. A goal without the accompanying sacrifice is nothing but a daydream.

Though the movie did not enjoy the huge success he had sacrificed enormously for, it leaves us with one undeniable lesson. When people have a compelling mission, they are willing to go for the broke to achieve it. This underlies a primary principle of the kingdom of God – losing to gain. We trade off something for something else considered of a greater value. Jesus told a number of parables to illustrate realities of the Kingdom, some of which buttressed the underlying sacrifices required of us. ““Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field” Matthew 13:44 NKJV. Whenever you have a great goal set, find out what price you need to pay to attain it. A goal without the accompanying sacrifice is nothing but a daydream.

The writer of the hymn WHAT A FRIEND WE HAVE IN JESUS noted that believers forfeit their peace because they neglect to carry everything to the Lord in prayer. If there is any mistake close to that it would be refusal to take God’s word at its face value. Take for instance our text. Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit will teach us all things. Most believers have reduced the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit to the Bible alone, whereas what was promised is all-round instruction. The Holy Spirit is as divine as Jesus and the Father. So He has comprehensive knowledge of all things and can be of help if we call on Him. I remember a couple of awkward moments that I needed to cry out. First one was when everybody in our house travelled. I found myself struggling to do routine things that I wasn’t used to. I struggled to open a lock for so long until I, in my frustration, asked the Holy Spirit to help me. Second time was when I was to embark on international trip and could not locate my passport. When I called on the Holy Spirit, my eyes were opened to where it was.

It is one thing to know what ought to be done, but it is quite another to know how to go about it successfully…If we company with the Holy Spirit, there is no reason to be stranded in life.

We are often confronted with different challenges in life. However, there is not a single moment that we are left to wander alone. “I will not leave you as orphans [comfortless, desolate, bereaved, forlorn, helpless]; I will come [back] to you.” (John14:18 AMPC). It is one thing to know what ought to be done, but it is quite another to know how to go about it successfully. To win in life, we all must subscribe to the instruction of the Holy Spirit who is the Chief Coach. Apart from teaching us and reminding us all things, the duties of the Holy Spirit also include guiding believers into all truth. If we company with the Holy Spirit, there is no reason to be stranded in life.

An eight-year old boy had a dream which he relayed to his father. He saw Jesus coming down from heaven to earth. Upon landing, the earth turned into heaven! There are so many things to unpack from this boy’s dream. Firstly, it reiterates the words of the angels on the day in which Jesus went to heaven. “And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.” Acts 1:10-11 NKJV

If believers will be like Jesus upon His return, there is no reason to doubt the possibility of the earth being like heaven…The thought of Jesus returning to earth is a clarion call for sinners to repent, but it should be the greatest source of hope for the believers.

Secondly, the dream also validates the great transition that is clearly prophesied in the Bible. John wrote that when Jesus returns we shall be like Him. If believers will be like Jesus upon His return, there is no reason to doubt the possibility of the earth being like heaven. Jesus taught us to pray for the arrival of the kingdom and that the will of God be done on earth as it is in heaven. Once His will is done here, the earth invariably will become a replica of heaven as God intended from the beginning. In our text, we see New Jerusalem made from heaven descending to the earth. The sinners and all the wicked ones will have no part in God’s new earth. It shall be the heritage of the saints forever. The thought of Jesus returning to earth is a clarion call for sinners to repent, but it should be the greatest source of hope for the believers.

I stood waiting for my order at a fast food joint in Toronto, Canada late July when a gentleman walked in. He must be in his 60s. He picked the menu list, trying to figure out what they had. The attendant promptly notified him that they didn’t have pizza and went ahead to show what was available. “Let me go and ask my wife” he said, adding “I do not know what she wants.” On that note, he left to go and confer with his wife who was somewhere else in a nearby shop. Before he returned, I began to process how many times my wife had asked me for what I wanted for lunch or dinner in our 38 years of marriage. It occurred to me that marriage cannot thrive on presumption. It is one institution where the couples continue in a life-long commitment to doing what their partner wants. That’s a tough one, but there is no alternative way to a successful marriage. When you are done pleasing your spouse, you have indirectly signed out of your relationship.

…marriage cannot thrive on presumption…It is one institution where the couples continue in a life-long commitment to doing what their partner wants…Just as physical marriage cannot thrive on presumption, even so can our union with Christ never flourish if we presume on God’s will.

Now, the Bible employed the metaphor of marriage to describe our union with Christ. Just as physical marriage cannot thrive on presumption, even so can our union with Christ never flourish if we presume on God’s will. There is no alternative to asking God on a daily basis concerning what He wants in everything. A line in what is generally known as the Lord’s Prayer is, “Give us this day, our daily bread”. We should take our understanding of that phrase beyond physical bread. Jesus said that His meat was to do the will of the Father. So also must we make God’s will the bread we ask for on a daily basis.

A farmer does several things during harvest. Firstly, there is threshing. This process involves beating the stalks to lose the grains from the plant. Following this is winnowing. This is the process by which the grain plus the chaff is tossed into the air. The wind blows the chaff away, being lighter, and the heavier grains fall into a receptacle. I think there is a sense in saying that “winnowing” is an essential aspect of effective leadership. In reality, everyone who wants to make the most of life must master the art of “winnowing”.

Unless we know how to separate truth from lies, fact from fiction, genuine concern from sheer sycophancy, we might end up destroying what we are building…You cannot afford to take to heart everything you hear.

Different kinds of information that come to us are seldom in their pure state. Some are unverified and unverifiable hearsay. Others are absolute lies or at best exaggeration. Unless we know how to separate truth from lies, fact from fiction, genuine concern from sheer sycophancy, we might end up destroying what we are building. In my role, I can’t fully recall how many conflicting information I get on a situation or some persons. If I were given to impulsive reactions to everything I hear, I would have caused damage to individuals and to the ministry. You cannot afford to take to heart everything you hear. The best thing to do is to tell God about everything you are told. His Spirit will help you to sieve and shift things appropriately. His wisdom will also help you to know what to dismiss and what requires further action.

The wretched plight of a leper is easily noted in scriptures. A clear distance was maintained from anyone with the plague for two reasons. Firstly, it was contagious at that time. For fear of spreading the disease, a leper was quartered far away from the rest of the society. Secondly, it was averse to the purity advocated under the law. Someone who, though free from the plague, comes in contact with a victim becomes immediately unclean for a certain period of time. So, apart from the physical discomfort that a leper suffers due to his body eating away, there was the emotional toll of loneliness by being secluded to the outskirts of the community. From these, one can understand the desperation of the leper who came and fell before Jesus and said, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.” Luke 5:12 NKJV.

Love will win where power fails. Again, not everybody requires a touch of power, but a touch of love is a daily need in every life and in every place.

In response to this, Jesus reached out His hand and touched him. That was a touch of power as the man got healed immediately. Beyond this, it was a touch of love. No one knows exactly how long the man had been afflicted with leprosy. What is clear is that he had not received a touch of love and affirmation for as long as the disease lasted. Due to its dramatic effect, many people are eager to have power gifts. We want the blind to see, the deaf hear, and the dead raised. As important as this is, it will fall short unless it is accompanied by a touch of love. Love will win where power fails. Again, not everybody requires a touch of power, but a touch of love is a daily need in every life and in every place.

The choices we make do a couple of things. Firstly, they reveal our level of maturity. The son of our Resident Pastor in Lagos, Uyi, has the habit of stealing away from his mother to come to my office anytime I am around. He did just that on the third Sunday of July this year. The mother, as usual, trailed him to my office. On my both hands, I held out to him two things and asked him to choose one. The first had a thousand Naira, while the other had a wrap of sweet. He went for a wrap of sweet. His innocent, young heart could not understand that the money I offered could purchase dozens of the sweet he chose. Immature choices often fail to see the potentials and possibilities in the alternative forgone.

The choices we make… reveal our level of maturity…Immature choices often fail to see the potentials and possibilities in the alternative forgone…Choices also reveal value… making good choices is a learned behaviour.

Choices also reveal value. Esau returned from the field one day, famished. He saw his brother, Jacob, who had just prepared a meal. He did not hesitate to exchange his rights as the firstborn for a mess of food. In his words: “And Esau said, “Look, I am about to die; so what is this birthright to me?” Genesis 25:32 NKJV. Esau had value for the satisfaction of physical appetite than spiritual heritage. By the time he realised what he had lost, it was already too late. Choices never leave us the same way. It has been said that a life is the sum total of all the choices made. Being so, we must exercise great caution in this regard. One last thing to note is that making good choices is a learned behaviour. The Easy-To-Read Version (ERV) of our text says, “He will eat milk curds and honey as he learns to choose good and refuse evil.” Pray that the Spirit of God will teach you to always choose aright.