DAILY DEVOTIONAL OF THECHURCH OF NIGERIA (ANGLICAN COMMUNION)DATE: TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2023TOPIC: DANGER OF NEGLECTING THE KNOWLEDGE OF GODREAD: HOSEA 4:1-13 (NKJV)4:1. Hear the word of the LORD, You children of Israel, For the LORD [brings] a charge against the inhabitants of the land: “There is no truth or mercy Or knowledge of God in the land.4:2. [By] swearing and lying, Killing and stealing and committing adultery, They break all restraint, With bloodshed upon bloodshed.4:3. Therefore the land will mourn; And everyone who dwells there will waste away With the beasts of the field And the birds of the air; Even the fish of the sea will be taken away.4:4. “Now let no man contend, or rebuke another; For your people [are] like those who contend with the priest.4:5. Therefore you shall stumble in the day; The prophet also shall stumble with you in the night; And I will destroy your mother.4:6. My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.4:7. ” The more they increased, The more they sinned against Me; I will change their glory into shame.4:8. They eat up the sin of My people; They set their heart on their iniquity.4:9. And it shall be: like people, like priest. So I will punish them for their ways, And reward them for their deeds.4:10. For they shall eat, but not have enough; They shall commit harlotry, but not increase; Because they have ceased obeying the LORD.4:11. ” Harlotry, wine, and new wine enslave the heart.4:12. My people ask counsel from their wooden [idols,] And their staff informs them. For the spirit of harlotry has caused [them] to stray, And they have played the harlot against their God.4:13. They offer sacrifices on the mountaintops, And burn incense on the hills, Under oaks, poplars, and terebinths, Because their shade [is] good. Therefore your daughters commit harlotry, And your brides commit adultery.THE MESSAGE:Our text this morning centres on God’s warning to the nation of Israel to amend their ways and to imbibe His fear – which is the beginning of wisdom – in order to avoid the impending judgment on the land and the inhabitants thereof. In verse three of our text, the Bible says that the land shall mourn and every one that dwells therein shall languish, both the prophets and men and women of status, because they neglected the knowledge of God (verse 6).This warning applies to us and our nation today. Our glory as a people is changed into shame. The immoral and abnormal has become the new normal. Is it not surprising how people live their lives in deceit, pleasures of sin and corruption of the highest order? Killings and wasting of innocent lives have almost become a daily routine in Nigeria. Stealing of government money without sympathy on the suffering masses is rife in governance. One hardly gets encouraging news from the media. Some Churches have been converted to business enterprises. People have neglected the word of God and live not by the commandments of God. Beloved, God is not happy with these happenings in our nation. Our glory is changed into shame by greed and perversion. The time to turn and cry unto God is now.PRAYER: Have mercy on us, O Lord and rain Your righteousness on us. Save us from our sins and bless Your people. Amen