AND HE RESTRAINED THEM NOT’

MEMORY VERSE: For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not. 1 Samuel 3:13

BIBLE READING: 1 Kings 13-16

Eli: The Accepted. Eli was a priest who walked with God. He was indeed God’s servant. He prayed a simple prayer for a barren woman and nine months later, she gave birth to a son. 1 Samuel 1:17- 20 says: ‘Then Eli answered and said, Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of him…and Elkanah knew Hannah his wife; and the LORD remembered her. Wherefore it came to pass, when the time was come about after Hannah had conceived, that she bare a son, and called his name Samuel, saying, Because I have asked him of the LORD.’ God approved of Eli by answering his prayers just as He approved of Jesus of Nazareth by miracles and wonders and signs. Acts 2:22 says: ‘Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know.’
Eli: The rejected. Eli’s sons were 'sons of Belial'; viz., the most wicked, vilest, and most profligate wretches. They abused their position as priests (1 Samuel 2:22). Also, they abused women who came to offer sacrifices in the temple. At the end, God wiped out the family of Eli. 1 Samuel 4:19 says: ‘And his daughter in law, Phinehas' wife, was with child, near to be delivered: and when she heard the tidings that the ark of God was taken, and that her father in law and her husband were dead, she bowed herself and travailed; for her pains came upon her.’

What happened? How did ‘the accepted’ become ‘the rejected’? We need to know what happened for the following reasons: firstly, so that we do not end up like Eli ( 1 Samuel 3:12-13); secondly, so that we do not exhaust God’s mercy like Eli ( 1 Samuel 3:14); thirdly, so that we do not perish like Eli; and fourthly, so that we do not miss heaven at the end. What happened is documented in 1 Samuel 3:13: ‘For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not.’ The Lord rejected Eli simply because his children dishonoured God and he didn’t discipline them. If the Lord rejected Eli because he didn’t discipline his children, I don’t think He will spare us if we don’t discipline our children.

NOTE: Children must be taught the fear of the Lord if we don’t want God to destroy them because God is a not respecter of persons.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world.

HE GAVE THEM UP

MEMORY VERSE: But my people would not hearken to my voice; and Israel would none of me. So I gave them up unto their own hearts' lust: and they walked in their own counsels. Psalm 81:11-12

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:  Proverbs 28

BIBLE READING: Psalm 81:8-12

One way God demonstrates His love to us (His children) is by chastening us when we do something wrong or go off the line. Proverbs 3:12 says, “For whom the LORD loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.” So if the Lord has ever rebuked you over a matter maybe through a sermon or a post you read on internet, don’t get angry at the pastor or the author of the post. Rejoice because He only rebukes those He loves. He did that because He does not want you to perish. You must not take the Lord’s rebuke for granted. As such, repent immediately He rebukes you. Revelations 3:19 says, “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.” One of the ways God rebukes us, His children, is through our conscience. For instance, if you record your time of arrival at work as 07:20am when you actually arrived at 07:52am, your conscience will prick you. Saul had been chasing David, to kill him, for ages unsuccessfully. One day, God put Saul in his hand to test him – to see whether he would touch the Lord’s anointed. David found King Saul fast asleep in a cave (1 Samuel 24:1-8). He walked to him as gently as possible and cut off the tip of King Saul’s robe just to show the king later that he had the opportunity to kill him but he didn’t. Immediately, the Lord rebuked him for that. 1 Samuel 24:5 says, “And it came to pass afterward, that David's heart smote him, because he had cut off Saul's skirt.”

If your conscience convicts you when you do something wrong, it is a sign of God’s love. Remember to thank Him for that love. However, if you lie and you don’t feel anything – your conscience does not prick you – it could be a sign that you are no longer His child. Worse is if you suddenly begin to feel like fornicating or committing adultery, friend if i were you I will run to God and ask why He hates me that much? The reason being that the bible says “the mouth of a strange women is a deep pit and only those God hates will fall into it (Proverbs 22:14)". In other words, when a man’s cup is full before God and He wants to finish such men off, He will allow them to commit adultery or fornication so that they can perish completely. When God begins to rebuke a man over certain things and the fellow refuses to repent and change, the Lord will leave the fellow alone to continue doing what will destroy him. In other words, the Lord will give up on the fellow and say “do as you please”. After several warnings, the people of Ephraim refused to change so the Lord gave up on them. Hosea 4:17 says, “Ephraim is joined to idols: let him alone.” God literally said “I give up on Ephraim; i will no longer send any prophets to warn them again.” This is why you can no longer delay the day of your salvation if you have not given your life to Christ. This is why you can no longer delay the day you of your repentance if you are yet to repent of certain things. Several times the Lord warned the people of Israel but they refused to repent and change.  Psalm 81:11-12 says, “But my people would not hearken to my voice; and Israel would none of me. So I gave them up unto their own hearts' lust: and they walked in their own counsels.” At the end they entered into captivity. Proverbs 29:1 says, “He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.” Friend, as the Lord being urging you to repent and you are postponing it? This may be your last warning. Have you been stealing from the offering basket? This may be your last warning. Have you been fornicating secretly and going up to minister on the altar of God? Repent because this may be your last warning.

PRAYER POINT: Father, please open my eyes to see areas where you want me to repent today.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world