1 Sam 11-12 1 chronicles 1; 2 Cor 11

20 "Do not be afraid," Samuel replied. "You have done all this evil; yet do not turn away from the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart. 21 Do not turn away after useless idols. They can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless. 1 Sam 12:20-21


The problem with us (mankind) is we respond to guilt in a very crazy way. At first we feel the guilt and then we get angry and turn our back on the ones we have hurt. What a crazy way to respond instead of going back to them with repentance or at the very least an apology, we turn our back on them and seek other relationships that will not make us feel guilty. When Adam and Eve ate of the tree they hid themselves, instead of seeking the Lord with repentance. When God confronted their guilt they blamed each other or Satan. Adam even blamed God for giving him Eve in the first place. Samuel and Paul were having the same problem (nothing is new under the sun). Samuel says “"You have done all this evil; yet do not turn away from the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart.” Paul’s problem was they were chasing other preachers that would not make them feel their own guilt. Paul said (2 Cor 11:4) For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough. In verse 13-15 Paul says “For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.

My prayer today is I (we) when faced with guilt have a repentant heart that seeks the Lord of truth. That I (we) might humbly seek His loving grace instead of ”useless idols. (things or bad relationships) They can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless.”

May God bless you and keep you this week seeking His love and Grace with a repentant heart.

Pastor Jack

Next reading 1 Sam 13; 1 chronicles 2-3; 2 Cor 12