OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL
DATE: MONDAY APRIL 8TH, 2024.
THEME: JUDGING THE ANOINTED?
MEMORISE:
Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he stande th or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.
Romans 14:4
READ: Numbers 12:1-16
1 And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married: for he had married an Ethiopian woman.
2 And they said, Hath the LORD indeed spoken only by Moses? hath he not spoken also by us? And the LORD heard it.
3 (Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.)
4 And the LORD spake suddenly unto Moses, and unto Aaron, and unto Miriam, Come out ye three unto the tabernacle of the congregation. And they three came out.
5 And the LORD came down in the pillar of the cloud, and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam: and they both came forth.
6 And he said, Hear now my words: If there be a prophet among you, I the LORD will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream.
7 My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house.
8 With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the LORD shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?
9 And the anger of the LORD was kindled against them; and he departed.
10 And the cloud departed from off the tabernacle; and, behold, Miriam became leprous, white as snow: and Aaron looked upon Miriam, and, behold, she was leprous.
11 And Aaron said unto Moses, Alas, my lord, I beseech thee, lay not the sin upon us, wherein we have done foolishly, and wherein we have sinned.
12 Let her not be as one dead, of whom the flesh is half consumed when he cometh out of his mother's womb.
13 And Moses cried unto the LORD, saying, Heal her now, O God, I beseech thee.
14 And the LORD said unto Moses, If her father had but spit in her face, should she not be ashamed seven days? let her be shut out from the camp seven days, and after that let her be received in again.
15 And Miriam was shut out from the camp seven days: and the people journeyed not till Miriam was brought in again.
16 And afterward the people removed from Hazeroth, and pitched in the wilderness of Paran.
MESSAGE
Yesterday, I made it clear that the anointed is not to be dishonoured for any reason. Now, the question someone may have in mind is, "What do we do with ministers of God who we believe to be erring?" This is a very delicate situation that requires God's wisdom and direction. For example, in our Bible reading today,
Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of something they believed he did wrong. At the end of the day, Miriam became leprous and Moses had to pray to God for her to be healed.
It is not in your place to judge God's servants; leave their judgments to their Master. In Romans 12:19, the Bible says clearly that vengeance is His, just report the matter to God, and He will deal with His anointed as He pleases.
Anointed ministers of God cannot hide under the canopy of being God's anointed and begin to treat His sheep the way they like. Hebrews 10:31 says that it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God; believe me, a fellow should not experience God dealing with him or her Himself. The reason we discipline erring workers is to shield them from God doing it Himself. When a pastor misbehaves, and the General Overseer suspends him, it is so that the consuming Fire Himself will not be the one to do it. So, if a pastor overlooks a fellow's wrongdoings because of his or her contributions to the church treasury, that pastor is doing more harm than good because God Himself will come in, and nobody wants to fall into the hands of the living God.
In 2 Samuel 11, David used his position to snatch another man's wife and also got him killed. Nobody could punish him as there was no one who was superior to the king. God had to step in to punish him. From that point on, there was no peace in David's home. Not long after, one of his sons, Amnon, raped his half-sister, and then another son, Absalom, killed him. Later, Absalom rose up against his father. To date, the sword has not departed from lsrael on account of the Lord 's judgement over David (2 Samuel 12:9-10).
When a person is anointed by God and uses that anointing to cheat others, when God punishes that fellow, the punishment might last throughout his or her lineage from generation to generation.
KEY POINT
Leave the judgement of anointed ministers who cheat you to God.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 1 Kings 1-2
AUTHOR: PASTOR E.A. ADEBOYE
HYMN 31: YIELD NOT TO TEMPTATION
1 Yield not to temptation,
For yielding is sin;
Each vict’ry will help you,
Some other to win;
Fight valiantly onward,
Evil passions subdue;
Look ever to Jesus,
He will carry you through.
Refrain:
Ask the Savior to help you,
Comfort, strengthen and keep you;
He is willing to aid you,
He will carry you through.
2 Shun evil companions,
Bad language disdain;
God’s name hold in rev’rence,
Nor take it in vain;
Be thoughtful and earnest,
Kindhearted and true;
Look ever to Jesus,
He will carry you through.
3 To him that o’ercometh,
God giveth a crown;
Through faith we will conquer,
Though often cast down;
He who is our Savior,
Our strength will renew;
Look ever to Jesus,
He will carry you through.
