Isaiah 9:16 For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed.
Oh Friends, our God never ceases to amaze me! Tonight, while looking up a reference for an idea, I just happened to stop on a page of the reference section and the word ‘Err’ just shot out at me. I chuckled, because I immediately knew that’s what I was supposed to write about. But in my obstinacy, I told Him, ‘wait a minute nuh Lord, lemme check out my idea first.’ And, as he’s wont to do when we want to follow our own dictates, He let me go on to check my idea, which turned out to be interesting, but too long and complicated for our purposes. So half an hour later, I ended up right back at ‘Err’ and found the required Bit in two twos. Hn, Hn! He obviously made me go through the whole procedure just to drive home to me the meaning of the word, ‘err’ in connection with His dictates. ‘Oh Praise the Lord for His goodness to the children of men!’ That’s how easy it is to stray, to err from God’s will my Friends. And that’s just as individuals, working our simple, individual ways with God. Now can you imagine the great hue and cry, the confusion and dire consequences that can occur when a whole nation strays? As Isaiah says;’ For the leaders of this people cause them to err.’ We’re experiencing it first hand. Our leaders led us astray and now the whole unstable house has collapsed; ‘everything done crash!’ Yes my brethren. ‘And they that are led of them are destroyed.’ The evidence is right before our very eyes, while we feel it in our pockets and almost every facet of our lives. I doubt if anything besides war has ever brought the entire world to its knees like our present economic catastrophe. And even in times of war, some nations prosper, either through captured spoil or economic ‘upliftment’ starting in the armament sector. But in this current crisis every single nation involved in the world economy has felt the pinch, or rather punch, and it’s still flowing down to those on the lower end of the totem pole, even those who weren’t actively involved in the nefarious, evil schemes. And Friends, it’s sad, but leaders cause their people to err so often, whether it’s by getting them involved with oppression, suppression, strife and other inhumane activities, or through erroneous and/or greedy economic schemes; as is our dilemma right now. Listen to Isaiah: ‘As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths.’ But ‘The Lord standeth up to plead, and standeth to judge the people.’ (Is. 3:12-13) Yes my brethren, the Lord, as promised, never forsakes His people and will always stand up for the righteous. But by the same token Friends, we also bear a responsibility to keep our leaders in check. In supposed democracies we elect them and theoretically can remove them if they don’t do right. It’s not always easy to do through lawful means, what with all the red tape and methods of stringing out the process, but as the U.S and the world showed recently with the election of Pres. Obama, if a large enough segment of a dissatisfied population can be marshalled together in fairly peaceful terms, it’s very possible to remove incompetent leaders like Bush and his group of evil, corrupt henchmen. But that takes a great groundswell plus very careful management and doesn’t always work with savage, dictatorial types like those in Burma and too many other areas of our world. With that kind, it only increases the oppression and the ruthless policies. That doesn’t mean though that we should allow these cruel, predator types to run roughshod over us. And if it means taking up arms to fight for your God-given rights, then so be it. Friends, our world has erred in so many ways it’s not funny. But the biggest mistake we’ve made is trying to eradicate God from our everyday, public lives, cause, as I keep saying, it’s the very foundation upon which a prosperous, long lasting society is built. And in this respect we have to blame some of our church hierarchy for not fighting hard enough, or being sufficiently adamant when the workers of iniquity began to take God from our lives. Micah declared the Lord’s warning on the church elders. ‘Thus saith the Lord concerning the prophets that make my people err, that bite with their teeth, and cry, Peace; and he that putteth not into their mouths, they even prepare war against him.’ (Mic.3:5) Yes Friends when there’s food, they claim all’s well, but for those who give them nothing; Hn, it’s war! The rulers felt his words too. ‘Hear this, I pray you, ye heads of the house of Jacob, and princes of the house of Israel, that abhor judgement and pervert all equity. They build up Zion with blood, and Jerusalem with iniquity. The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets divine for money: yet will they lean upon the Lord, and say, Is not the Lord among us? none evil can come upon us.’ (Mic.3:9-11) Doesn’t that quite resemble our current society? It sure does! And why do we always reckon without the Lord’s judgement when we err from His will eh? Why don’t we take Him seriously, when there are numerous examples from Adam’s day to right now? It’s like when the Pharisees were offended after Jesus said that it’s what comes from within a man, not from without that defiles him. And people, please, let’s pay particular attention to this warning. Jesus told the disciples: ‘Every plant which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up. Let them alone, they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.’ (Mat. 15:13-14) Yes Friends, if the blind lead the blind, only disaster’s possible, as we’re currently experiencing. Let that be a lesson to us, and individually stay obedient to God and collectively get behind our leaders to do the same, for in the long run, we all suffer. Much LOVE!…the three watchwords of God…obedience…obedience…obedience..
Oh Friends, our God never ceases to amaze me! Tonight, while looking up a reference for an idea, I just happened to stop on a page of the reference section and the word ‘Err’ just shot out at me. I chuckled, because I immediately knew that’s what I was supposed to write about. But in my obstinacy, I told Him, ‘wait a minute nuh Lord, lemme check out my idea first.’ And, as he’s wont to do when we want to follow our own dictates, He let me go on to check my idea, which turned out to be interesting, but too long and complicated for our purposes. So half an hour later, I ended up right back at ‘Err’ and found the required Bit in two twos. Hn, Hn! He obviously made me go through the whole procedure just to drive home to me the meaning of the word, ‘err’ in connection with His dictates. ‘Oh Praise the Lord for His goodness to the children of men!’ That’s how easy it is to stray, to err from God’s will my Friends. And that’s just as individuals, working our simple, individual ways with God. Now can you imagine the great hue and cry, the confusion and dire consequences that can occur when a whole nation strays? As Isaiah says;’ For the leaders of this people cause them to err.’ We’re experiencing it first hand. Our leaders led us astray and now the whole unstable house has collapsed; ‘everything done crash!’ Yes my brethren. ‘And they that are led of them are destroyed.’ The evidence is right before our very eyes, while we feel it in our pockets and almost every facet of our lives. I doubt if anything besides war has ever brought the entire world to its knees like our present economic catastrophe. And even in times of war, some nations prosper, either through captured spoil or economic ‘upliftment’ starting in the armament sector. But in this current crisis every single nation involved in the world economy has felt the pinch, or rather punch, and it’s still flowing down to those on the lower end of the totem pole, even those who weren’t actively involved in the nefarious, evil schemes. And Friends, it’s sad, but leaders cause their people to err so often, whether it’s by getting them involved with oppression, suppression, strife and other inhumane activities, or through erroneous and/or greedy economic schemes; as is our dilemma right now. Listen to Isaiah: ‘As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths.’ But ‘The Lord standeth up to plead, and standeth to judge the people.’ (Is. 3:12-13) Yes my brethren, the Lord, as promised, never forsakes His people and will always stand up for the righteous. But by the same token Friends, we also bear a responsibility to keep our leaders in check. In supposed democracies we elect them and theoretically can remove them if they don’t do right. It’s not always easy to do through lawful means, what with all the red tape and methods of stringing out the process, but as the U.S and the world showed recently with the election of Pres. Obama, if a large enough segment of a dissatisfied population can be marshalled together in fairly peaceful terms, it’s very possible to remove incompetent leaders like Bush and his group of evil, corrupt henchmen. But that takes a great groundswell plus very careful management and doesn’t always work with savage, dictatorial types like those in Burma and too many other areas of our world. With that kind, it only increases the oppression and the ruthless policies. That doesn’t mean though that we should allow these cruel, predator types to run roughshod over us. And if it means taking up arms to fight for your God-given rights, then so be it. Friends, our world has erred in so many ways it’s not funny. But the biggest mistake we’ve made is trying to eradicate God from our everyday, public lives, cause, as I keep saying, it’s the very foundation upon which a prosperous, long lasting society is built. And in this respect we have to blame some of our church hierarchy for not fighting hard enough, or being sufficiently adamant when the workers of iniquity began to take God from our lives. Micah declared the Lord’s warning on the church elders. ‘Thus saith the Lord concerning the prophets that make my people err, that bite with their teeth, and cry, Peace; and he that putteth not into their mouths, they even prepare war against him.’ (Mic.3:5) Yes Friends when there’s food, they claim all’s well, but for those who give them nothing; Hn, it’s war! The rulers felt his words too. ‘Hear this, I pray you, ye heads of the house of Jacob, and princes of the house of Israel, that abhor judgement and pervert all equity. They build up Zion with blood, and Jerusalem with iniquity. The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets divine for money: yet will they lean upon the Lord, and say, Is not the Lord among us? none evil can come upon us.’ (Mic.3:9-11) Doesn’t that quite resemble our current society? It sure does! And why do we always reckon without the Lord’s judgement when we err from His will eh? Why don’t we take Him seriously, when there are numerous examples from Adam’s day to right now? It’s like when the Pharisees were offended after Jesus said that it’s what comes from within a man, not from without that defiles him. And people, please, let’s pay particular attention to this warning. Jesus told the disciples: ‘Every plant which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up. Let them alone, they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.’ (Mat. 15:13-14) Yes Friends, if the blind lead the blind, only disaster’s possible, as we’re currently experiencing. Let that be a lesson to us, and individually stay obedient to God and collectively get behind our leaders to do the same, for in the long run, we all suffer. Much LOVE!…the three watchwords of God…obedience…obedience…obedience..
SCRIP-BITS 