“Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall”- Proverbs 16:18 (NIV)
One of life’s sad ironies, is to find a person who begins so well in life, but has a bitter end. From the Bible we can contrast the life of King Saul who starts out as a heroic figure, only to descent into devastating wars that ultimately lead him to suicide, along with his three sons (I Chronicles 10:4-6).
King David starts out heroically too as the killer of Goliath (1 Samuel 17); then his life is on the run, but ultimately ends well, triumphantly passing on his kingdom to his son, Solomon whom he instructs to build a temple of the Lord (1 Chronicles 22).
One might be interested to figure the difference between two kings. For Saul, his descent starts when he turns away from God, “I regret that I have made Saul king, because he has turned away from me and has not carried out my instructions” (1 Samuel 15). Eventually Saul turns to spirit mediums seeking answers for his doom, though to no avail (1 Samuel 28).
David was not perfect either. He, too, had moments of lapse, such as when he fell into the sin of adultery with Bathsheba and the subsequent murder of her husband, Uriah (2 Samuel 11). Where David rises above the rest is his humility which we see in his acknowledging his sin and repentance (Psalm 51). Saul was consumed with pride that blinded him from being dependent on God and hence not following through with the Lord’s instructions.
In life there are many episodes of those who have started out so well and met a tragic end as Saul. Sometimes it is loss of power or fortune. At other times all that they accomplished is quickly torn apart and dismembered even before there are completely gone.
To safeguard against this pitfall, humility is the key. Let us walk humbly with the Lord. For when one starts to boast of his greatness and accomplishments, as Nebuchadnezzar did, such may only end up living with wild animals and eating grass like ox (Daniel 4:32).
Prayer for today: Lord Father God of Abraham, maker of heaven and earth, what a loss to start life’s journey so well and end tragically; today I pray that I walk humbly ever with you, to know of a glorious end in Christ Jesus!
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16/04/2024 - 17/04/2024 All day“But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day” (2 Peter 3:8)
Have you had a moment when you felt you were out of time? It is “too late” is perhaps what went through Martha and Mary when life slipped out of their brother Lazarus. But when news got to Jesus he did not drop whatever he was doing to rush to their rescue. “So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days” (John 11:7). Later he decided to go and, “On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days” (vv 17).
Yet in spite of this delay Jesus found Martha’s faith apparently not shaken. “Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask” (vv 21-22).
Meanwhile Mary who had stayed in the house on hearing of his arrival came out wondering if there was any hope. “When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died” (verse 32). She felt it is too late.But it was not too late. “Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” (vv 40). Thus, “When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.. Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go” (vv 43-44).
If you believe in the Almighty God, then there is nothing like too late! Perhaps you too have a matter that has not only been ailing for a while but by all physical appearance is dead. Well, if you believe, it is not too late. It was against reality and quite laughable to think that a man who had been dead for four days could be restored to life. Well, the Lord did it. What more is it with you that the Lord can’t restore to life?
Prayer for today: Lord Father God of Abraham, maker of heaven and earth. you who raised Lazarus from the dead even after four days of being in the tomb, I bring to you all my affairs even that which appears dead, that you restore it to life, for nothing is too late with you, because of the faith have in your son, Lord Jesus
