Topic: DON’T GET CASUAL WITH GOD’S WORD – Bishop Mike Okonkwo Devotional 8 February 2020 [The Redeemed Evangelical Mission]
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DON’T GET CASUAL WITH GOD’S WORD
“And he said, take the arrows. And he took them. And he said unto the king of Israel, smite upon the ground. And he smote thrice, and stayed.” 2 Kings 13:18 (KJV)
In 2 Kings 13:14, Elisha was sick and about to die. This was the same Elisha who had received double portion of Elijah’s anointing. He performed twice the number of the miracles of Elijah; yet, he was sick and later died. Anointed men of God fall sick too. They pass through the same challenges as others because they did not fall from heaven.
Then Joash the king of Israel came down unto Elisha and wept calling him: “my father, my father.” Israel was in battle with Syria and the King needed direction. So, he came to the man of God. Elisha was not the king’s biological father but the king saw a father figure in him. When you see a father figure in someone, then he can pronounce the father’s blessing over you.
In verse 15, Elisha said, “take the bows and arrows.” Elisha’s instruction did not really make sense, but he obeyed. Then he was asked to put his hand on the bow, and he did. Elisha then put his hands upon the King’s hands. In verse 17, Elisha asked the king to open the window eastward and then Elisha asked him to shoot.
When Elisha asked him to smite the ground, he smote the ground thrice and stopped. Elisha was angry with him and said that the king should have smitten five or six times. Elisha was upset with him because he didn’t tell him to stop but he stopped. Thus, the king had placed a limitation on his victory. He had become casual. You know why? He probably thought he already knew what to do. The worst thing you can do to yourself is to assume that you already know what God will do. One of the things that set David apart from the rest of the kings is that he always inquired of the Lord. He never assumed that he knew every way by which God will function.
Further Reading: 2 Kings 13:14-19
Daily Bible Reading: Morning- Leviticus 4-5; Evening- Matthew 24:29-51
