Topic: Beware Of False Prophets — Monday December 25, 2017.
Text: Jeremiah 28:1-9
Key Verse: “The prophet which prophesieth of peace, when the word of the prophet shall come to pass, then shall the prophet be known, that the LORD hath truly sent him” (Jeremiah 28:9).
The emergence of two prophets claiming to be of God but issuing contradictory messages was an embarrassing spectacle in the Bible which the Lord never failed to resolve decisively to teach us not to play pranks with His name. In this case, we have the false prophet Hananiah challenging Jeremiah, the true prophet and servant of God. Hananiah, claiming to report what God had told him, said the king of Babylon who had invaded Judah and exiled the children of Israel while desecrating the temple with the seizure of the holy vessels, would return all these in two years.
Now, this contradicted an earlier prophecy of God in Jeremiah 25:11,12 and later in Jeremiah 29:10 that the captivity would last 70 years. But strangely, Hananiah in announcing his own prophecy said: “Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel.” What an audacity! The difference emanated from the fact that Hananiah sought to please the people and the king with his popular but untrue declaration while Jeremiah’s sole objective was to deliver the Lord’s message even if it was bitter and unpopular. The true messenger of God would cease to be representing the Owner of the message the moment he submits to the whims and caprices of his audience and forges lies. As it was at that time, so it is today. Many false prophets are out there deceiving and being deceived.
They lure unsuspecting people, including believers, away from the truth. Many of them are motivated by what to eat and allure of earthly riches. But they will never escape the judgment of God. Even so, these so-called prophets are sustained by the gullible with itching ears who prefer error to sound doctrine. If there arises a people whose devotion to the true word of God is sacrosanct and treat those who peddle falsehood with disdain, surely, the ranks of false prophets will dwindle.
Thought for the day: It’s foolhardy to walk and work against God.
Bible Reading in one Year: Proverbs 12-14
DCLM Daily Manna was written by Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi; is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Life Bible Church situated at KM 42 on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Nigeria.
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