HOW FOOLISH WE ARE, TO EVER STRAY FROM GOD’S WORD
Psalm 81:8
8 Hear,
O my people, while I admonish you!
O
Israel, if you would but listen to me!
Are you not amazed with the patience of God? The LORD God spoke
to Israel many times; they listened for a time, but then stopped. God had to
punish them to get their attention, and again they returned for a season, only
to turn away and listen to other people’s gods again.
Psalm 81:9
9 There
shall be no strange god among you;
you
shall not bow down to a foreign god.
God used the prophet Hosea to graphically describe their
behavior.
Hosea 1:2
When the LORD first spoke through
Hosea, the LORD said to Hosea, “Go, take to yourself a wife of whoredom and
have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the
LORD.”
God goes on, by the word of the prophet Isaiah, to charge
the children of Israel with refusing the knowledge of God by not listening to
Him.
The Israelites followed other gods and refused to listen to the
true God.
Psalm 81:11-13
11 “But
my people did not listen to my voice;
Israel
would not submit to me.
12 So
I gave them over to their stubborn hearts,
to
follow their own counsels.
13 Oh,
that my people would listen to me,
that
Israel would walk in my ways!
As the children of Israel sang this psalm, they were to
remember the desolation and the consequences of not heeding to God, despite His
yearning for them to remain faithful to Him.
As we read this, we must assess our own hearts: are we
listening to God? Or are we allowing other gods to distract us or drive us away
from God?
We, too, are prone to be this foolish!
James 1:22-25
But be doers of the word, and not
hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word
and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a
mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was
like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and
perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed
in his doing.
The first step of a wise person is to listen to God’s word.
Are you taking time to feed your soul with the Word of God?
Are you attending a church where the Bible is central? That means that the
preacher is explaining the text and not voicing his own moral opinions. A church
where the preaching is clear, where the Bible has not been replaced with
entertainment and programs? Are you participating in Bible Studies?
The second logical step is to then apply what you learn from your
study. God speaks through His word and expects us not overlook the
truths we read or hear.
Are we careful to ask ourselves how we can change because of
what we have learned? Are we surrounding ourselves with godly believers who can
observe our lives and lovingly encourage us in our Christian walk?
We certainly should not want to replicate the sins of the
children of Israel! Are there times when we stray? Certainly yes, but knowing
that God desires for us to repent and return to Him is a great encouragement to
do that. The history of Israel portrays for us a God Who would not overlook
sin, but was merciful and forgiving when they repented.
God desired that they
would listen and walk in His ways, so that He could bless them.
Psalm 81:14-16
14 I
would soon subdue their enemies
and
turn my hand against their foes.
15 Those
who hate the LORD would cringe toward him,
and
their fate would last forever.
16 But
he would feed you with the finest of the wheat,
and
with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”
When believers feed themselves in the Word and apply it to
their lives, they find much satisfaction. May this be our resolve today! May we
ask God for the strength to make appropriate decisions for our spiritual lives!
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