Modern Woes

Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you. And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee. (Matthew 11: 21 – 24)

I want us to look at the church, and of course us, today, to be able to get this message.

Let us however go to the Bible to understand where I am coming from.

Why did a whole generation perish in the wilderness? Why did it take forty years for Israel to complete an eleven-day journey?

Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the LORD, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you: Your carcases shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, which have murmured against me, Doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware to make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun. But your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised. But as for you, your carcases, they shall fall in this wilderness. And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcases be wasted in the wilderness. After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise. (Numbers 14:28 – 34)

You will realise as you read the story that the reasons Moses gave in his intercession for the forgiveness of Israel were the very same God used in passing judgment on them; simply that they had witnessed God’s power and love since they were in Egypt.

This means that they had seen God rescue them from slavery and take them through the experience of knowing Him at close quarters. He had even allowed them to hear His voice as well as see His form. He also walked with them through the cloudy pillar.

They could quite accurately say this.

They had seen Him guide, provide and protect them.

Yet they turned their backs on Him by seeking to go back to Egypt just because they had been fed a dish of feeble giants.

Before Moses appeared, they could have easily argued like Gideon. Where is the God our fathers talk about?

But they were then without excuse.

Their children could be excused because they were forming their experiences and were also subject to their parents.

That is why they were given the forty years to develop their own experience with God as He was dealing with their rebellious parents.

Jesus’ crowd was worse because not only had they a wider knowledge as the scriptures were already in existence (the Old Testament), they also had Christ walking amongst them.

Tyre, Sidon, Sodom had neither the experience nor the scriptures. Yet they were judged for their sin.

Had they had the experience Christ’s crowd had, they could have easily turned to God. And Jesus was talking from the position of God who knows all things.

What does our generation have?

We have the scriptures, the complete package.

We have the history of the church since the New Testament.

We have seen God at work, at least from first hand witnesses. By that I am talking about the most recent revival, the East Africa revival that transformed our region.

And some of us have even had our own unique experience since we believed and so possess first hand testimonies.

Some of us have left everything for the call of God and continue to experience His fulness in all ways.

Do we have any excuse for not walking in absolute obedience? Do we have any excuse for not building our most holy faith?

Can we be excused for doubting any of His promises? And I am not talking about the wholesale promises motivational peddlers are always dishing out for the ignorant to possess.

Can we expect a slack when we take the logical instead of the obedient way? Can we be excused for listening to people instead of following the revelation He gives us?

Remember the young prophet from Judah (1 Kings 13)?

He died because he agreed with a prophetic voice that differed from the orders he had received. And I am sure he agreed because that prophecy was so attuned to how he was feeling at that time.

You see, he was tired, thirsty and hungry due to the orders God had issued to him. No wonder he was found resting under a tree instead of walking.

Imagine the journey from Judah to Bethel without a sip or bite. And I am sure it was not a short journey. Then he probably had to take a longer journey back because he couldn’t use the first one.

It is possible he was praying for God to give him a breakthrough of sorts when the con prophet appeared.

The fact that he had accomplished over 80% of his assignment did not allow him a slack.

He still died for disobedience.

Balaam died because he sought a second opinion from God instead of following the order he had been given earlier.

Uzzah died because they sought to implement God’s orders according to Philistine practice instead of the scriptural way.

We are answerable to the orders we have received from God, not to the interpretation of those orders even by our spiritual supervisors (if there are such people).

However logical and convincing and in tune with our inmost feelings, nothing can be trusted apart from the scriptures and what they teach.

Like Jesus said, no miracle can equate with the scriptures, not even raising the dead.

This means that looking for anything and anyone else to justify your ministry or practice is spurious.

Putting anything or anyone before the scriptures is idolatry that God will judge, even if it is what God can and does do.

We completely err when we take man more seriously than God’s word, even if that man is a servant of God.

And we are completely off the path to heaven when we are more attentive to what the servant says than the scriptures he claims to be quoting from.