A bait refers to something used to lure someone into a trap. Baits are typically used to lure fish into nets or a fish unto a single hook. The term has commonly been used in conversations, to warn people about being duped or lured into a trap or an ambush.

The scripture reference above comes from a story we have discussed before regarding Nehemiah. While he built the wall, Sanballat and Tobiah perceived that he was a godly man. As such they felt that he may listen and heed the words of a prophet. The trap was to lure him into the temple to hide out of fear of being killed (Nehemiah 6:10).

Nehemiah refused to go into the temple with Shemaiah. It did not make sense to Nehemiah, to abandon the work which God had commissioned him to do, to go in hiding in the temple. “And I understood and saw that God had not sent him, but he had pronounced the prophecy against me because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him” (Nehemiah 6:12). Nehemiah was perceptive enough to discern, that this prophet had been hired to make him afraid and to cause him to act in disobedience.

Nehemiah continued to ignore the distractions and soon after, successfully completed the work. I believe that we have entered a time, when there are so many contrary voices among us. It is extremely important that we make time to study and understand the scriptures for ourselves. Be sober, be vigilant, be watchful and give careful attention, prayer and thought to discern the voice of God from the voice of the devil.

“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (John‬ ‭10:27‬).

A.P.-Y.

In Numbers 13 after the spies returned from spying out the land, 10 of the 12 spies gave an evil report. “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are”(Numbers 13:31). At the words of the 10 spies the people rebelled against Moses. “And they said to one another, “Let us choose a leader and go back to Egypt”” (Numbers 14:4).

Despite the frustration expressed by the people and their angry threats, Joshua and Caleb maintained their report regarding the land. “If the Lord delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey” (Numbers 14:8). Joshua and Caleb were the only two men brave enough to stand with Moses. They refused to go along with the majority of the other spies and offer a bad report.

“Then all the congregation said to stone them with stones. But the glory of the Lord appeared at the tent of meeting to all the people of Israel” (Numbers 14:10). God was so angry with the rebellion of the people that he promised that they would not live to see the promised land. None of them except Caleb and Joshua would live to enter the promised land.

That entire generation of people died in the wilderness due to their rebellion and it was their children who made it into the promised land. Joshua took over leading the people after Moses’s death and together, he and Caleb led the people into the promised land. That was their reward for staying in faith and having the integrity and the strength of character to maintain a godly perspective.

Joshua and Caleb taught us the importance of having an independent mind. In other words having a mind of your own and being willing to maintain your perspective despite the disagreement of others. Caleb and Joshua were not concerned about the majority. They were confident about what they had seen and were willing to maintain a different perspective. This is even if their perspective attracted the anger from the crowd. You don’t have to bend your conviction to fit in with others. Standing out is what we have been called to do for God.

A.P.-Y.

In Paul’s second letter to Timothy, he urged him to preach the word at all times. This meant whether the time seemed favourable or not. It is sometimes useful to teach about things that are socially relevant. However, teaching the gospel is not to gain popularity in order to wet people’s appetites. Preachers and teachers need to be led by the Holy Spirit and commit to teaching sound doctrine. By sound I mean wholesome teaching and words which help to edify. Edification builds people up spiritually, helps them to grow and mature in God to fulfil their God given assignment.

Paul warns that in the last days, people will seek after teaching that suits their own ideas and fallacy. “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions” (2 Timothy 4:3). How do you decide who to listen to and which teachers and preachers you can trust? Listen to those who teach the tangible word of God and help you to understand and interpret scriptures. The word of God should convict you of sin and spur you on to repentance and righteousness.

Some modern day teachers have become like fortune tellers, touting prophecies about world events. What is the purpose of their prophesying and teaching? Is it so that they can say that they saw it first, heard it first or had the most accurate prophecies? The bible says that the spiritual gifts are for the edification of the church (1 Corinthians 14:12). If God has called you, ordained you, anointed and appointed you, your gift will make room for you. The anointing on your life will attract people and God will create an audience for what you have to offer. In fact, God does not give you a gift and calling without sending you to an audience.

We are in a season where God will hold people accountable for their gift and assignment. Go where you are sent and speak what God has asked you to say. “For thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak. Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord”(Jeremiah 1:7-8).

A.P.-Y.

Yesterday we started to discuss how God views false prophets who use his name to prophesy falsely. We see other accounts of false prophets in the Old Testament and one story of significance relates to a young prophet and an old prophet.

There was a King at that time in Israel who built golden calves for the people to worship and an altar for the people to sacrifice. A young prophet came out of Judah and prophesied against the altar. The King stretched out his hand to give the commandment for his men to seize the prophet. The King’s hand dried and the altar was torn down just as the man of God foretold (1 King 13:1-5).

The King begged the prophet to pray for his hand to be restored and he did and his hand was healed. The King was so grateful that he begged the prophet to return to his house for a meal and to be refreshed. The prophet declined and explained to the King that God had warned him not to eat or drink with anyone, but to return to his own home.

An old prophet was told the story about the young prophet. He went on his way to meet him, convinced him that he was also a prophet who had heard from God. He told him that God said it was ok for him to eat. The young prophet agreed and while he was eating in the old prophet’s home, God spoke to the old prophet. The revelation was that the young prophet would die on his way home because of his disobedience (1 King 13: 6-22)

As it turns out, the young prophet was killed on the way home by a lion. The story reinforces the point that we need to hear from God for ourselves. Did the old prophet lie or was he testing the young prophet to see whether he would obey God or listen to man? The reality is that the scripture does say that the word of the Lord came to the old prophet concerning the young prophet’s disobedience. Either way, he had clear instructions from God concerning what he needed to do and he caused an old prophet to tempt him into disobedience.

Forget about people’s titles because none of that impresses God. “It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man” (Psalm 118:8).

Today we look again at David’s statements in Psalm 16. Here he spoke about a beautiful inheritance which God had prepared for him. We recall in the bible how David came from humble beginnings. He was a shepherd, a musician who played in the King’s court, a Psalmist and worshipper. David went on to slay Goliath and to kill up to ten thousand men on the battlefield. He was also anointed by Samuel as the next King of Israel. How does someone from such humble beginnings, rise to a place of prominence and take the place of a King?

No wonder David offered glory to God and reflected on the blessings which had been bestowed on him. David has been referred to in the bible as a man after God’s own heart. “The Lord has sought out a man after his own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be prince over his people”(1 Samuel 13:14).

It was Nathan who prophesied to David about God’s plans to establish his descendants. “And I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may dwell in their own place and be disturbed no more. And violent men shall afflict them no more, as formerly” (2 Samuel 7:9-10).

David gave glory to God for blessing him and recalled all that God had done to bless his people Israel. David was of the seed of Abraham, who God had promised to bring into a land of blessing. “And you established for yourself your people Israel to be your people forever. And you, O Lord, became their God” (2 Samuel 7:24).

As children of God, we are of Abraham’s seed and have been grafted into the promise. We walk in the blessing of that inheritance and we declare that we have a beautiful inheritance.

A.P.-Y.

In the book of Matthew chapters 10 and 11, Jesus taught his disciples and others about the trials and persecution that Christians would experience. It was at that time that John was put in prison by King Herod. John had spoken out against the King for taking his brother’s wife. The only reason why the King didn’t kill John at the time was due to the fear of the people (John 14). While John was in prison, he sent his disciples to ask Jesus if he was the Messiah or, if we were to expect another to come. Jesus’s response was to tell John, of the miracles that had flowed through his ministry and for him to decide if he was the Messiah or not.

Jesus would have known about John’s arrest and that the King would eventually execute him. He would also have in mind, the time appointed for his own crucifixion and death. After Jesus sent his disciples out to minister in Matthew 10, he spoke to them saying. “Don’t imagine that I came to bring peace to the earth! I came not to bring peace, but a sword” (Matthew 10:34). Jesus’s teaching was never a conventional peace loving, all is right with the world kind of message. Jesus also told his disciples, that they would be handed over to the courts, flogged with whips, stand trial before Kings and Governors. “But this will be your opportunity to tell the rulers and unbelievers about me” (Matthew 10: 17-19).

Imagine most of us being sent out to preach the gospel with the promise of whipping, arrests and persecution. ‘No thank you very much mister Jesus,’ is what most of us would have to say. But the trials will give us an opportunity to tell people about Jesus. To what end would we want to subject ourselves to such suffering and persecution? “Don’t be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul. Fear only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28).

Jesus does bring the teaching to a close, with a word of comfort despite the trials and difficulties. “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light” (Matthew 10:28-30).

The enemy have caused suffering and distress on the earth. Our resolve is to remember that this life and body is temporal, but the soul and spirit are eternal. One day we will have a new body and this earthly body will return to the dust. So we live for a life after this and we regard not this life as our final destination. We have a better life prepared and a home away from this earth.

A.P.-Y.

In John 1, after Jesus’s baptism, he calls his first disciples to follow him in carrying out his mission. Some of the disciples called their brothers to join Jesus once they learnt about him. One such disciple was Phillip, who Jesus called and he called his brother Nathaniel. Nathaniel’s response was not a favourable one as he questioned whether or not anything good could come from Nazareth (John 1:43-46).

In this case Nathaniel did not even acknowledge Jesus as the person to whom Phillip referred. But reducing his significance, referred to him as a thing. To Nathaniel’s surprise, the next day when he does meet Jesus, he made reference to distinguishing characteristics about Nathaniel. He goes further to share that he perceived in his spirit, the conversation which Nathaniel had with Phillip and where he had this conversation. “Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel””(John 1:49)!

Jesus does not allow Nathaniel to get away with the statement he made before, but calls him out on his scepticism. “Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these””(John 1:50). Some people hold fast to the notion of, “seeing is believing,” and are so doubtful and cynical that it’s off putting.

It’s one thing to be doubtful, but Nathaniel’s remarks were borderline derogatory and discriminatory. We do not have the right to look down on other people, because of their place of birth or origin. No one determines where they are born, or other characteristics such as nationality, race or even our families of origin. God allowed Jesus to be born in a manger, in a town of no significance, to parents without much notoriety to teach us a lesson in humility.

Your beginning does not determine your ending and God can do great things with small beginnings. “But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are” (1 Corinthians 1:27-29).

Meditation is mentioned a few times in the bible in relation to keeping in mind the word of God. Modern meditation has been linked to eastern religions and most christians don’t consider the benefits of this practice. I learnt about the use of deep breathing exercises and meditation to calm anxiety and this led me to do some further reading on the topic. “Meditation is the act of remaining in a silent and calm state for a period of time, as part of religious training, or so that you are more able to deal with the problems of everyday life” (Collins.com).

Meditation has been found to relieve stress and fatigue and promotes discipline and helps to regulate emotions. I also read before that meditation and deep breathing opens up the spirit man and the physical senses. So when I do practice deep breathing and meditation, I am conscious about what I am taking in through my physical senses. Using instrumental worship is the most effective method for me, because then I can guarantee that I am taking in the word of God. Some people use scriptures or other God centred activities in the background such as prayer to focus their spirit man.

“Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day” (Psalm 119:97). David made several references to meditating on the word of God and we know that David had an early career as a musician in Saul’s court. David’s music helped to keep Saul calm when he was troubled by an evil spirit. “And whenever the harmful spirit from God was upon Saul, David took the lyre and played it with his hand. So Saul was refreshed and was well, and the harmful spirit departed from him” (1 Samuel 16:23).

Music has often been linked to meditation and it is interesting how David’s music helped to bring deliverance to Saul. In Joshua 1, meditating on the word of God was linked to prosperity and success. Incorporating meditation into your daily routine and especially during your quiet time of prayer and reading the word, can help you find inner peace, help you to hear the voice of God and help you to focus on the word to bring you good success.

A.P.-Y.

God appeared to Moses in a burning bush in Exodus 3, because of his concern for his people who were suffering in Egypt. The Israelites travelled to Egypt during Joseph’s time as Prime Minister to pass the drought which affected their region. We see in chapter 3 where a new King was in power who did not know Joseph. This King was threatened by the large and increasing number of Israelites. His intention was to oppress them so that they would no longer increase.

The King even ordered the midwives to kill the male children and when this didn’t work he had the people to throw the babies into the river. But Moses was born and his mother spared his life and he was raised by Pharaoh’s daughter. Moses became overzealous once he discovered that he was Hebrew and runs away to the wilderness after killing an Egyptian. What Moses didn’t realise was that his anger, although misplaced at the time, was a signal of the desire which God had placed in him.

Now the appointed time came for Moses to carry out his assignment of leading God’s people out of Egypt. God explains to Moses that he had heard the cry of his people. “and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites” (Exodus 3:8).

Moses’s assignment was to be a mouthpiece for God and to show his wonder to the Egyptians. God knew ahead of time that Pharaoh would not listen to Moses and he would need to use signs and wonders to bring about his purpose. Either way, God would not allow the ongoing oppression of his people. The assignment was twofold; tell Pharaoh to let them go so that they can worship me; to bring them into a good land full of good things.

This is God’s response to oppression. To avenge the oppressor of his people, to demonstrate his power and to recompense his people for the wrong done to them. The end result would be restoration to a place of abundance to repay for the season of suffering and pain.

A.P.-Y.

John wrote the book of revelations from the Isle of Patmos where he was sent on exile because of his faith. John had visions of heaven and had revelations concerning the seven spirits or angels of the seven churches. The exhortation to the church in Ephesus was that they had abandoned the love they once had for God and the things of God. John encouraged the church to remember the way they used to be before and how much zeal they had for God. They are urged to return to their place of love and reverence (Revelations 2:1-7).

We tend to have great zeal and passion when we first discover the things of God and when we make that first commitment to serve God. As time goes by the challenges and cares of life can cause us to abandon that first love and our commitment can wane. If we recognise that we have lost that first love, then we have recommit to pursue God with the passion and zeal we once had. We talk about human relationships and the work that it takes to maintain these connections. In the same way that we maintain our human relationships, we have to also maintain our commitment and love for God and the things of God.

We love God because he first loved us and he offers us an unconditional love that comes without ulterior motives. We often worry about loving some people who are not good for us and can cause us pain and harm. But the love we have for God casts out all our fears and worries. We have the assurance that God loves us with an everlasting love that does not change depending on how good we are.

God created us for love and fellowship and he does not stop loving us even when we drift away from him. He is calling us back into fellowship with him and we have assurance that being in his will brings safety and peace. “Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent” (Revelation‬ ‭2:5).

A.P.-Y.