His Counsel Stands -By Pastor William Kumuyi

DCLM Daily Manna Sunday 7th August 2016

Key Verse: "But Abner the son of Ner, captain of Saul's host, took Ishbosheth the son of Saul, and brought him over to Mahanaim; And made him king over Gilead, and over the Ashurites, and over Jezreel, and over Ephraim, and over Benjamin, and over all Israel"
- 2 Samuel 2:8,9

Text: 2 Samuel 2:8-11

God's plans and purpose will always stand, the machinations of men notwithstanding. Those who rebel against God's will have always been the ultimate losers.

God is infinitely superior to many and therefore His counsel will always prevail. nEven after his master, Saul, died prematurely and shamefully without succeeding in his fight against God's divine plan for David, Abner yet continued where his fallen master stopped by going ahead to unilaterally appoint a new king over Israel. He ignored the fact that only God anoints the rightful kings over Israel and that it would be futile to circumvent the will of God for the whole nation.

For the short period of Ishbosheth's ignominious reign, he was probably not more than a figurehead king. He was never a God-anointed king and so the rule he bore was derived from the strength of his carnal supporters.

God eventually turned the table against him and his self-styled ‘kingmaker' who turned against him and decided to toe the path he had always known to be right. At last, both Abner and Ishbosheth died and David moved into Jerusalem and centralized his government and the faith of Israel in Jehovah.

It is always a huge surprise to see men fight against God's counsel. It is at once a dramatic irony seeing puny man fighting against his Maker. Joseph's brothers fought against God's counsel for the lad but failed miserably. If you are in Christ, who on earth or underneath it can truncate the plan of God for your life? Fear not, you will always prevail.

Thought for the day: The counsel of God, not man's, prevails ultimately

Bible Reading in one Year: NEHEMIAH 11 - 13

Comments

His Channels

Rom.1:20 For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God [with emphasis]. So far we have examined three channels God uses to speak to us. If you are not reading your Bible consistently, if you are not listening to messages over and over again, and if you are not accountable to other believers, you do not have believers that are speaking into your life, you have already missed three main channels God speaks through. Channel #4: God speaks to us through His Creation. Ps.19:1 The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship. 2 Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known. 3 They speak without a sound or word; their voice is never heard. 4 Yet their message has gone throughout the earth, and their words to all the world [with emphasis]. God’s cre...

Setting Prisoners Free

Our Daily Bread Devotional 4th October, 2016 Read: Psalm 146 Bible in a Year: Isaiah 20-22; Ephesians 6 The Lord sets prisoners free. (Psalm 146:7) When my wife and I visited the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force near Savannah, Georgia, we were especially moved by the prisoner-of-war exhibit, with its re-creation of a German prisoner-of-war camp’s barracks. Marlene’s dad, Jim, served in the Eighth Air Force, the “Mighty Eighth,” as they flew missions over Europe during World War II. During the war, the Eighth Air Force suffered over 47,000 injuries and more than 26,000 deaths. Jim was one of those shot down and held as a prisoner of war. As we walked through the exhibit, we recalled Jim telling about the absolute joy he and his fellow prisoners felt the day they were set free. God’s care for the oppressed and liberation of the imprisoned are declared in Psalm 146. The psalmist describes the one who “upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the ...

Not For Destruction

DCLM Daily Manna October 19th, 2016 Text: 2 Corinthians 10:1-11 Key Verse: “For though I should boast somewhat more of our authority, which the Lord hath given us for edification, and not for your destruction, I should not be ashamed” (2 Corinthians 10:8). Lord Acton was not wrong when he said: “Power corrupts, but absolute power corrupts absolutely”. In our society, we often see the reckless use of power by those who are privileged to be vested with power to serve the people. Instead of exercising the power for the benefits of the common man who they are expected to serve and defend, they turn the power to an object of oppression with which they victimize and oppress the poor. Paul consciously reminded himself and his congregation that the authority the Lord has given him and his team was not for the destruction of the people but for their edification. Even in the face of obvious provocation by the people, ministers must not turn around to use their authority to vex the pe...

The Insights

Search This Blog