Week 36: September 9th, 2018

Topic: Do not abhor the upright – Part 1

Bible Reading: Amos 5:1-10

Introduction

The upright people are the honest and honourable saints before the Lord. They are the law-abiding individuals who fear the Lord and are well respected among the children of God. The upright people are worthy to be glorified because of their good virtues and moral standards. They are the principled people who keep the statutes of the Lord to the point of death. The upright people are the righteous who never participate in any wicked act for the sake of keeping a clear conscience in the presence of God. They are the people who shun every form of evil but exhibit decency that is worthy to be emulated by the Christendom.

In the beginning, God looked at everything He had made, and He saw that it was very good. So, He was very pleased according to the Book of Genesis which says “Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was good …” Genesis 1:31. The preacher also affirmed that God made human upright and uncorrupted, but we have sought out many devices for evil. We were completely honest when God created us, but now we have twisted minds. God created people to be virtuous, but we have turned to follow our own downward path due to our desires, lusts, and ambitions/aspirations. As it is written, “Truly, this I have found: That God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes” Ecclesiastes 7:29.

The questions now are: Do you mighty people in position of authority do not

talk/speak to oppose justice? Do you ever judge fairly? Do you rulers of nations give a just decision concerning your country? Do you judge every party involved fairly? Countless judges throughout the world are not being fair in their decisions and they are not judging people with equity according to the scripture which says “Do you indeed speak righteousness, you silent ones? Do you judge uprightly, you sons of men? Psalm 58:1. If you know that you are upright, it is time to speak out and come to the aid of the poor and the needy that are being oppressed worldwide. Right now, the wicked have drawn their swords and bend their bows to bring down the poor and the oppressed; to slaughter those who walk uprightly who are opposing them. As it is written “The wicked have drawn the sword and have bent their bow, to cast down the poor and needy, to slay those who are of upright conduct” Psalm 37:14.

The wicked are presently eliminating the upright throughout the world. For this reason, the godly people who are faithful and loyal to God are perishing from the earth and there is no upright person who has good character and moral integrity among men. They all wait in ambush to shed blood; everyone hunts down their own people. The Bible says “The faithful man has perished from the earth, and there is no one upright among men. They all lie in wait for blood; every man hunts his brother with net” Micah 7:2. Isn’t it time for you to change since you know that everyone is brutal and they are eager to deceive everyone else? You need to walk uprightly before the Lord so that every spiritual and physical trap that was set for you will ensnare whoever set it.

We must realize that any upright person will avoid wicked deeds. Avoiding evil is the priority and desire of the upright because anyone who guards his/her way protects his/her life. It is evident that the path of the upright leads away from evil and whoever follows that path is safe. As it is written “The highway of the upright is to depart from evil; He who keeps his way preserves his soul” Proverbs 16:17. You need to shun every form of evil and wicked act to prove that you are upright and wise. Since foolishness brings joy to those with no sense, while the sensible people stay on the right path. Stupidity brings happiness to senseless people but a man of understanding walks uprightly according to the scripture which says “Folly is joy to him who is destitute of discernment, but a man of understanding walks uprightly” Proverbs 15:21. Therefore, do not abhor those who walk uprightly but join them to prove your wisdom. Also, it is not good to punish the righteous or strike people for their uprightness says the Bible Proverbs 17:26. Justice is perverted whenever the upright people are punished. Therefore, it is wrong to punish the godly for being good or penalized the leaders for their honesty. For this reason, “He who says to the wicked, ‘you are righteous’, him the people will curse; Nations will abhor him” Proverbs 24:24. Though it is rampant across the globe for judges to pronounce that the guilty person is innocent and punish or imprison the innocent. The judges must change and start walking uprightly before the Lord else they will be curse by many people and denounced by the nations.

You must never abhor/despise the upright

Christians must first acknowledge that it is Almighty God who brought them out of the spiritual land of Egypt so that they will no longer be enslaved by the darkness. He broke the spiritual yoke of slavery from their necks so that they will obey His statutes and be freed. Do not forget that God broke bars of yoke to enable you to walk uprightly in His presence and do His will. As it is written “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their slaves; I have broken the bands of your yoke and made you walk upright” Leviticus 26:13. Remember, you are set free not to abhor those who speak and walk uprightly but for you yourself to walk uprightly before the Lord. Therefore, you must neither despise nor speak against the upright. You must never scorn the upright or turn your back on them whenever they are speaking. It is your duty as a believer never to abhor the upright or turn against them; just like what happened to Job in the Bible “Even young children despise me; I arise, and they speak against me. All my close friends abhor me, and those whom I love have turned against me” Job 19:18-19. Furthermore, you must neither mock the upright nor taunt them either by your songs or jokes. You must neither make the upright your byword nor make them a fool’s proverb. Do not abhor the upright but support and assist them during their period of difficulty, because that is the delight of God. Never desert the upright or treat them with disgust because of their situations Job 30:9-10. If you do not abhor the upright but assist them, it will prompt the Lord to quickly resolve your own situation because of your obedience.

If you want God to be merciful and gracious to you, do not abhor or make fun of the upright, make a resolution today to hate and abhor falsehood, but have undying love for the law and the instructions of the Lord. Be among the people who cannot stand liars but love the statutes of God Psalm 119:163. Do not forget that it is after you hate and detest lying that you will pray to God and He will give you a favourable reply. It is then that if you offer the following prayer, it will be meaningful to you during your period of difficulty “Do not abhor us, for Your name’s sake; do not disgrace the throne of Your glory. Remember, do not break Your covenant with us” Jeremiah 14:21. If you are honest and did not abhor the upright, God will not abhor you but He will bless you abundantly.

The statutes of God are against dishonesty

God warned the people of Israel not to follow the example of the nations which He is chasing out of the promise land because they did several disgusting things which prompted Him to hate them. The instruction of the Lord to the Israelites was “And you shall not walk in the statutes of the nation which I am casting out before you; for they commit all these things and therefore I abhor them” Leviticus 20:23. So, you must neither adopt the customs of the Gentiles who are disgusting God with their evil practices nor live according to the shameful tradition of the pagans which made God to detest them. You must live a decent and upright life if you don’t want to share the same fate like the children of Israel, according to the scripture which says, “For they provoked Him to anger with their high places, and moved Him to jealousy with their carved images. When God heard this, He was furious, and greatly abhorred Israel” Psalm 78:58-59.

It is the commandment of the Lord that you must shun the abominations and live uprightly if you don’t want Him to abhor you. Since the statutes of the Lord is against dishonesty and lying, therefore, He will destroy those who tell lies, the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man. God despises people who are violent and dishonest according to the Bible passage which says “You shall destroy those who speak falsehood; the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man” Psalm 5:6. Now that you know that God detests murderers and deceivers, and He will destroy the liars; you must live a godly and honest life without abhorring the upright.

If you live a virtuous life which is devoid of deceitfulness and corruptions, then God will neither neglect you during your period of difficulty nor ignore your suffering. He will not turn away from you but answer when you call for help. God will not ignore or belittle your suffering in time of need. He will not turn His back on you but He will listen to your cries for help. It is written that “For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; nor has He hidden His face from him; but when he cried to Him, He heard” Psalm 22:24.

For this reason, be assured that God will live among the honest/upright people and He will not despise them as it is written “I will set My tabernacle among you, and My soul shall not abhor you” Leviticus 26:11. If you want God live in you, be honest and upright, if you don’t want God to hate you, do not abhor the upright.

Week 37: September 16th, 2018

Topic: Do not abhor the upright – Part 2

Bible Reading: Amos 5:1-10

We shall continue our discussions by mentioning the uprightness of God. We will talk about how righteous and upright our Lord God is in all His ways.

The uprightness of God

Our God is upright and He wants those who believe in Him to be upright. Anyone who is not upright in his/her ways does not belong to God and whatever that is not upright is not of God, but is of Satan.

God is upright: Almighty God is good and upright, He wants people to change and turn to Him. Our Lord is merciful and upright. It is His love for honesty that prompts Him to instruct the sinners to desert the destructive path and follow His path which leads to eternal life. The Bible attested to this fact that the Lord is good and does what is right at all times; He shows the proper path to those who go astray. As it is written “Good and upright is the Lord; therefore, He teaches sinners in the way” Psalm 25:8. Henceforth, emulate God by being honest in all your dealings. Remember the only antidote against dishonesty is to desert Satan and his works. Never forget that the Lord is your mighty defender, He never does any wrong and He can be trusted to bring justice. God is the Eternal Rock; His work is perfect and all His ways are just. He is a God of faithfulness without breach or deviation, just and upright is He, according to the scripture which says “He is the Rock, His work is perfect; for all His ways are justice, a God of truth without injustice; righteous and upright is He” Deuteronomy 32:4. You need to imitate God since you know that He is righteous and upright. Henceforth, let everything you do be right, fair and acceptable in the presence of God.

God does all His works in uprightness: God is always honest and fair; His laws can be trusted and His commands are dependable. The works of His hands are truth and justice, and all His decrees are established, reliable and trustworthy. They stand fast and are established forever because they are done in truth and uprightness. The precepts of the Lord are forever true, they must be obeyed faithfully and with integrity because they were enacted/given in truth and uprightness. As it is written “The works of His hands are verity and justice; all His precepts are sure. They stand fast forever and ever, and are done in truth and uprightness” Psalm 111:7-8. Are you imitating God by doing all your works in truth and uprightness? Because our Lord always do what is right and His decisions are fair. It is for this reason that the Bible says “Righteous are You, O Lord, and upright are Your judgments” Psalm 119:137. Since the regulations of the Lord are fair and His laws are just, it means He will make the spiritual path of those who obey Him to be smoothened. The way of the righteous, those living in moral and spiritual rectitude in every aspect and relationship of their lives is level and straight. You, O Lord the most upright is the One who direct aright and make level the spiritual path of the uncompromising just and righteous people, according to the Bible passage which says “The way of the just is uprightness; O Most Upright, You weigh the path of the just” Isaiah 26:7. For God to smooth out the spiritual path ahead of you, you must be upright. For your spiritual way not to be steep and rough, you need to do acceptable things before the Lord. It is then that the Lord will love you and your good deeds, and you will be guaranteed to live in His presence forever. As it is written “For the Lord is righteous, He loves righteousness; His countenance beholds the upright” Psalm 11:7. Be upright if you want God to focus His glorious face on you and direct His attentions towards your needs. Do not stray from the righteous path if you want to receive blessings from the Lord.

God will establish the upright: Although, God is mighty, He cares about every work of His hand and makes fair decisions concerning His works. Behold, God is mighty, yet He despises no one or regard anything as trivial; He is mighty in power of understanding and strength. Nevertheless, it is those who walk uprightly that will be established Job 36:5. Just like what the scripture says in the Book of John “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” John 3:16. The Book of John stated that it is only those who believe in Jesus Christ that will not perish, similarly, it is only the upright that will be established.

God demonstrated this fact by making Solomon to succeed His father David as a King in Israel. This event prompted King Solomon to say “You have shown great mercy to Your servant David my father, because he walked before You in truth, in righteousness, in uprightness of heart with You; You have continued this great kindness for him, and You have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day” 1 Kings 3:6. It can be deduced from the confession of King Solomon that God made him to sit on the throne as a king purposely because his father David walked with God in truth and in uprightness of heart. Therefore, if you want God to bless the works of your hands and established your descendants, be upright and never stray from the righteous path. The directive of the Lord to King Solomon is the precondition for anyone who wants to be established. The instruction was: “Now if you walk before Me as your father David walked, in integrity of heart and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and My judgement, then I will established the throne of your kingdom over Israel forever, as I promised David your father, saying, ‘You shall not fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.’” 1 Kings 9:4-5. Any Christian who wants to be wealthy and established, must fulfill this precondition, else, they are deceiving themselves. God is willing and ready to bless you abundantly but you need to be upright in every aspect of your life.

Priests/Shepherds and Leaders of Christianity

Priests and the leaders of Christianity need to be upright in all their ways so that the name of the Lord will not be blasphemed through them. They must make honesty their watchword in order not to end their journeys in Satan’s camp after saving several souls.

Pastors and elders must not pervert justice: Listen to my message, you leaders of Christianity! You who hate justice and twist the truth, honesty is essential to success in Christianity. Hear this, you elder of Christianity and the shepherds/pastors in charge of the Churches, who abhor and reject justice and pervert all equity. You make cruelty and murder a way of life in your churches. You expand your churches with blood and iniquity. You are so corrupt to the extent that you are building the house of the Lord on a foundation of murder and injustice. You leaders accept bribes for dishonest decisions. You Pastors and prophets teach and preach only for money. And you continue to say ‘The Lord is on our side. No harm will come to us.’

Nowadays, the leaders of Christianity are pronouncing judgment for a rewarded and a bribe. The shepherds/priests teach for hire or for a fee. The prophets divine or give revelation for money; yet they falsely claim that ‘the Lord is among them, no tragedy or distress will come to them, according to the scripture which says “Now hear this, you heads of the house of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel, who abhor justice and pervert all equity, who build up Zion with bloodshed and Jerusalem with iniquity: Her heads judge for bribe, her priests teach for pay, and her prophets divine for money. Yet they lean on the Lord, and say, ‘Is not the Lord among us? No harm can come upon us.’” Michal 3:9-11. Stop all your disgusting behaviours that is making the children of the kingdom of God to be misled or stray from the righteous path. You leaders cease governing or making decisions based on bribes. You pastors/priest refrain from preaching or teaching for a price. You prophets do not wait until you are paid before you prophesy. We need to be upright and work as a team for the name of the Lord to be glorified. Remember that woe to anyone who twist the truth to suit their purpose or stomp on the justice. Those of you who are perverting justice and cheating people out of their right must change immediately. Many leaders of Christianity and pastors/priests have turn justice into the bitterness of wormwood and cast down to the ground the upright together with the people who are in right standing with God. As it is written “You who turn justice to wormwood, and lay righteousness to rest in the earth.” Amos 5:7. Henceforth, repent and stop treating the righteous people like dirt but be a good leader/pastor/elder that is worthy to be emulated by the Christendom.

Do not defraud the Church: The leaders, shepherds and the elders of the Church must lead by example. They must be virtuous, so as to transform the lives of their congregation. They must neither appropriate to their own use what is consecrated to God nor embezzle the Church funds. They must neither convert any church property to their personal property nor divert the Church funds. They must be people who can be trusted to keep their words, and must not commit sacrilege according to the Bible passage which says, “You who says, ‘Do not commit adultery; do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob the temples?” Romans 2:22. It is time for the leaders, pastors and elders to lead by examples and stop detesting people who criticize their wrongdoings together with those who speak out against the injustice they have committed. They must neither abhor people who speak the truth with integrity nor hate those who are correcting their corrupt behaviours as it is written “They hate the one who rebukes in the gate, and they abhor the one speaks uprightly.” Amos 5:10. They must neither regard as unreasonable nor reject the reprimand of the people who are trying to correct them.

They may jeopardize their callings: Any pastor/shepherd, leader or elder who plans wrongdoing, set himself/herself on a path that is not good, and neither reject nor despise evil will jeopardize his/her calling. The calling of anyone who is thinking and executing mischief will be nullified because they follow the wrong path and refuse to turn from sin. The scripture says, “He devises wickedness on his bed; He sets himself in a way that is not good; he does not abhor evil” Psalm 36:4. If you don’t want to lose your calling, stop hatching sinful plots and make sure you turn away from evil. It is inevitable that God will annul the calling of anyone who fail to take care of the flocks of the Lord. The Bible attested to this fact by saying “I dismissed the three shepherds in one month. My soul loathed them and their soul also abhorred Me” Zechariah 11:4-8. God will eliminate the calling of any shepherd or elder who fail to perform his/her duties. The calling of such person will be cancelled because of his/her atrocities. If you don’t want God to neither nullify your calling nor abhor you, you must be honest/upright and tend His flocks. We pray that God will count you worthy of your calling.

Be upright and abhor evil: It is essential that you love your neighbor as yourself according to the command of the Lord. Therefore, you must have sincere love for everybody. Hate anything that is wrong and everything that is evil, but hold on tightly and cling to whatever that is good Romans 12:9. If you follow these instructions, then you will inherit the kingdom of God as it is written “Lord, who may abide in Your tabernacle? Who may dwell in your holy hill? He who walks uprightly, and works righteousness, and speaks the truth in his heart” Psalm 15:1-2. You must be upright and righteous before you can abide in the tabernacle of God and reside in His holy temple, else, you are deceiving yourself. Make every effort to establish your calling and be among those who will worship forever before the heavenly throne of God. We pray that God will assist you to achieve this divine task and your works will not be consumed by fire in Jesus Name. Amen.

Week 38: September 23rd, 2018

Topic: Do not abhor the upright – Part 3

Bible Reading: Amos 5:1-10

We shall continue our discussions by mentioning that there is no fellowship between uprightness and wickedness. Uprightness is against wickedness and wickedness is against uprightness so no one can claim to be upright while executing wicked activities.

There is no fellowship between uprightness and wickedness

The scripture warned the believers that we must not make mismatched alliances with unbelievers because there is no partnership between righteousness and lawlessness. Therefore, no fellowship can exist between the light and the darkness. As it is written “Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?” 2 Corinthians 6:14. Since there is no partnership between right and wrong likewise there is no partnership between uprightness and wickedness. For this reason, the upright must stop forming inappropriate relationships with the wicked, so that the wicked will not influence them and defile their spiritual garments.

Uprightness and wickedness are against each other: We must realize that an unjust person is against the righteous, and anyone who lives uprightly is against the wicked. The righteous people despise the unjust and the wicked people despise the godly. ‘In a nutshell’, it means good people and criminals cannot stand each other according to the attestation of the Bible which says “An unjust man is an abomination to the righteous, and he who is upright in the way is an abomination to the wicked” Proverbs 29:27. Since you know that the righteous hate the wicked, and the wicked hate the righteous, do not work together as equals with the wicked in manners that is inconsistent with your faith.

The words of the upright and the wicked is against each other. The words of the wicked are like a murderous ambush, but the words of the upright save lives. The words of the wicked are ‘accuse and kill’ while the speeches of the upright will defend and save lives. As it is written “The words of the wicked are ‘Lie in wait for the blood; but the mouth of the upright will deliver them” Proverbs 12:6. Since it is clear that the words of the wicked are murderous and deadly trap while the advices of the upright are like shields and/which rescue those who are threatened. Do not team up with the wicked to compromise your virtues and faith. Therefore, do not abhor the upright, instead care for them and save their lives. Since it is the wicked/murderers who hate the honest and the upright. The Bible confirmed this fact by saying “The bloodthirsty hate the blameless, but the upright seeks his well-being” Proverbs 29:10. Remember you must neither join yourself to the wicked to commit atrocities nor abhor the upright. For you to prove your uprightness, you need to imitate God, live a godly life and do what pleases the Lord at all times.

The proud is not upright for the upright fear the Lord: If you observe the proud, they usually/always trust in themselves and their lives are crooked, but the upright will live by their faithfulness to God. So, the proud are unacceptable to the Lord, but the upright who live by faith are the ones acceptable to Him. As it is written “Behold the proud, his soul is not upright in him; but the just shall live by faith” Habakkuk 2:4. Not only that the proud is inwardly/spiritually not upright, but the Lord detests the proud, and they will surely be punished for their atrocities. Anyone who is proud and arrogant in heart is disgusting to the Lord and it is guaranteed that they will not go unpunished according to the scripture which says “Everyone proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord; though they join forces, none will go unpunished” Proverbs 16:5. From this Bible passage, it is clear that God abhors every arrogant person. He will also rebuke them because the proud people are the accursed ones, who err and wander from His commandments according to the scripture which says “You rebuke the proud —the cursed, who stray from Your commandments” Psalm 119:21. For this reason, God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble people says the Bible James 4:6. Therefore, do not abhor the upright, but resist the wicked and the arrogant people. Any proud/arrogant person who is claiming to be upright is deceiving himself/herself.

The commandment of the Lord was “You shall fear the Lord your God and serve Him, and shall take oaths in His name” Deuteronomy 6:13. Whoever obeys this commandment is upright and such person lives with integrity. It is either you are honest and show that you have reverence for the Lord or you are dishonest/wicked and show that you do not fear Him, but despise Him. As it is written that “He who walks in his uprightness fears the Lord, but he who is perverse in his ways despises Him” Proverbs 14:2. Since you know that only those who walk in uprightness and follow the right path, fear the Lord; do not stray from the right path because the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding Proverbs 9:10.

Examples from the Bible

There are several examples of the things that the Lord abhors, and the people who abhorred the upright that were mentioned in the Bible. Though the scripture also stated numerous examples of the people who caused abhorrent things but we will only discuss few of them.

You must abhor carved images and idols: The instructions of the Lord to the people of Israel when they are going into the promise land to possess it was: “You shall burn the carved images of their gods with fire; you shall not covet the silver or gold that is on them, nor take it for  yourselves, lest you be ensnared by it; for it is an abomination to the Lord your God. Nor shall you bring an abomination into your house, lest you be doomed to destructions like it. You shall utterly detest it and utterly abhor it, for it is an accursed thing” Deuteronomy 7:25-26. Heed the voice of the Lord, do not abhor the upright instead utterly detest and abhor the carve images and the idols throughout your lifetime.

The children of Eli caused abhorrent of the Lord’s offering: The children of Eli were scoundrels who had no respect for the Lord or for their duties as priests. In fact, they were so corrupt to the extent that they were treating the Lord’s offerings with contempt. The Bible stated that “Therefore, the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord, for men abhorred the offering of the Lord” 1 Samuel 2:12-17. In what ways have you led people astray and made them to abhor Christianity faith? How many people have taken oaths to abhor the Church (House of God) due to your behavious? Are you ready to stop doing abhorrent things that is blaspheming the name of the Lord? Today, is the day that you should change and reconcile with Your Creator.

The tribulation of Job: Job was a man of integrity and full of virtues. The Bible described him as a blameless and upright person who feared God and shunned evil Job 1:1. However, during his period of difficulty and test of his faith, people abhorred him, forgetting that they must never abhor the upright. The scripture attested to this fact by saying “All my close friends abhor me, and those that I loved have turned against me” Job 19:19. Never behave like the friends of Job who abhorred and deserted him during his tribulation. Whenever you see the upright going through turbulent period, please assist and support them.

The parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector: You need to know that if you are upright, you must not abhor others. Your uprightness is not a license to scorn, or despise or look down on other people. Jesus Christ told this parable to some people who trust in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others. He said two men went up to the temple to pray, one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector. The Pharisee prayed by boasting about his self-righteousness and scorning the tax collector. But the tax collector humbled himself and prayed to God to be merciful to him because he is a sinner. Jesus Christ concluded the parable by saying that the tax collector returned home justified because he was forgiven the guilt of his sin and placed in right standing with God Luke 18:9-14. If you want to please the Lord, you need to be upright and you must not abhor others.

Michal despised King David: When King David was bringing the Ark of Covenant into the City of David, Michal the daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, she despised him in her heart. When David returned to bless his household, Michal said “How glorious was the King of Israel today, uncovering himself today in the eyes of the maids of his servants, as one of the base fellows shamelessly uncovered himself”. David replied by saying “It was before the Lord, who choose me instead of your father and all his house, to appoint me ruler over the people of the Lord, over Israel. Therefore, I will play music before the Lord. And I will be even more undignified than this, and will be humbled in my own sight. But as for the maidservants of whom you have spoken, by them I will be held in honor”. Immediately the authority of the Lord passed over the speech of King David.

Michal the daughter of Saul had no children to the day of her death. There was no one barren throughout the Bible that God did not opened their womb and gave them child/children except Michal the daughter of Saul because she abhorred King David whom the Lord considered to be upright 2 Samuel 6:16-23. Therefore, be cautious, do not abhor the upright if you do not want to be barren of good things of life. Never abhor anyone during your lifetime else, similar fate may befall you.

Week 39: September 30th, 2018

Topic: Do not abhor the upright – Part 4

Bible Reading: Amos 5:1-10

We shall continue our discussions by mentioning the outcomes of the wicked people who are neither upright in their ways nor please the Lord.

Outcomes of abhorring the upright

Today, the Lord God of your ancestors is sending warning to you, just like how He has done in the past, by sending His messages through the prophets because He wanted to spare you. You are receiving this message because God felt sorry for you and He was concerned about your situation. So, instead of destroying you, He sent His messengers to warn you about your sins. For this reason, do not mock the messengers of God. You must neither despise the words of the Lord nor scoff at His prophets. In order to avoid the wrath of the Lord which can be without remedy 2 Chronicle 36:15-16. Since you are assured of the compassion of the Lord, change today before it is too late. Do not abhor anyone but walk uprightly before the Lord so that the following evil will not be your portion.

Those who abhor the word of the Lord shall be destroyed: Listen to the word of the Lord and never fail to carry out His directives. Whoever despises the word and the counsel of God will bring destruction upon himself/herself, but those who fear and respect the commandment of God will be rewarded. If you reject the teaching of the Lord, you will pay the price, but if you obey His commands you will be rewarded Proverbs 13:13. The choice is yours, but we advise you to harken to the instructions of the Lord which says you must not abhor the upright, else you will bring destruction upon yourself. Only fools do not care if they are wrong, and anyone who mocks at sin is a fool, depart from sin and join the upright that are the delight of God. Do not forget that whoever that is making fun of guilt is a fool but the upright will acknowledge their sin and seek reconciliation with God Proverbs 14:9. Do not join the foolish people who do not care if they sin, but forsake sin by not abhorring the upright so that you will be forgiven. For this reason, you must neither ignore instruction nor disregard correction.

You only hurt yourself by rejecting instruction, but you will acquire understanding if you listen to instruction. As it is written that “He who disdains instruction despise his own soul, but he who heeds rebuke gets understanding” Proverbs 15:32. If you are not ready to ruin your life or hate your soul, then follow the instructions of the Lord today.

Perverseness destroys: The contrariness of the wicked people will ruin their lives and the deliberate desire of anyone to behave in ways that are unacceptable to the Lord, will bring destruction upon the person. It is evident that the crooked people will be trapped by/in their own dishonesty. People who have obstinate desire to behave in unreasonable way despite the consequences shall be destroyed Proverbs 11:3. Meanwhile, you know that perverseness brings destruction, do not be adamant but change today so that you will not become an abomination in the presence of the Lord. The scripture says that the perverse are extremely disgusting and detestable to the Lord, but His secret counsel is with the upright Proverbs 3:32. Since you know that the devious are repulsive to the Lord, repent and be upright so that you will be intimate with your Creator. For this reason, walk uprightly if you do not want your prayer and sacrifice to become an abomination before the Lord. It is written that the sacrifice of the wicked is hateful and exceedingly offensive to the Lord, but the prayer of the upright is His delight Proverbs 15:8. You need to change if you do not want the Lord to be disgusted by your gifts and accept your sacrifice.

The way of the Lord is destruction to the workers of iniquity, but strength to the upright. It is ruin to the evil doers but stronghold to the upright Proverbs 10:29. Change before the grace period passes so that they way of the Lord will be your refuge.

The wicked will be a ransom for the upright: The wicked can only cause chaos in a nation or city, they can never make the nation/city to progress. If you have the dream of making your nation/city to flourish, then you must cease all your wicked activities. As it is written “By the blessing of the upright the city is exalted. But it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked” Proverbs 11:11. It is clear that a city can only be built up and honored by the blessing of the upright. Be upright so that you will be a source of blessing to your community instead of a source of destruction. You will also be punished in place of the upright, which means you will suffer instead of the upright according to the scripture which says “The wicked shall be a ransom for the righteous, and the unfaithful for the upright Proverbs 21:18. Repent and turn to God if you don’t want to be a ransom for the upright.

Benefits of uprightness

There are unlimited benefits that will accrue to anyone who is walking uprightly, such people will live a peaceful life in this world and inherit the kingdom of God when they sleep in the Lord. The following are some of the benefits written in the Bible:

· The righteousness of the upright will deliver them from their miseries and rescue them from their enemies Proverbs 11:6. If you want to be saved from your adversaries, you need to be upright.

· Light will shine in the darkness for the upright and they will never walk in darkness throughout their existence. The upright will be a light in the dark for others just as Jesus Christ is the Light of the world Psalm 112:4. Be upright if you want to be a shining example that others will emulate and follow.

· The divine light of the Lord will shine on the upright and they will be filled with joy. God will plant light along their spiritual pathway so as to illuminate their path and make them to be glad Psalm 97:11. Uprightness is needed for the Lord to grant/give a light to show you the way and bask in His light.

· The future of the upright is peace; they will live a peaceful life in this world and have a bright future Psalm 37:37. You must be upright to have a peaceful and good future.

· The upright will have every cause to rejoice because of what the Lord has done and what He will do in their lives. They will find protection and safety in Him, and glory in the Lord forever Psalm 64:10. If you want to be glorified and glory in the Lord, you must be upright.

· God will endow/bestow wisdom, knowledge and understanding on the upright. He will protect and defend them from evil Proverbs 2:7. For the Lord to assist you and make you to be successful, you need to be upright.

· God will be good to the upright, and He will give them enduring goodness Psalm 125:4. Be upright if you want God to have compassion on you and give you goodness that is beyond the comprehension of humans.

· Your household will flourish and you will be successful in every department of your life. Your household will never become desolate, but thrive throughout your existence Proverbs 14:11.

· God will be sensitive to your issues and He will rouse Himself on your behalf and restore you to your prosperous state. He will help and rescue you, and restore you to your place of honour. God will awake for you, He will restore all your captivities and make your home flourish/thrive Job 8:6.

· You will be blessed and your descendants will be mighty on earth. Your offspring will be powerful in your nation/land and you will be a source of blessing to people around you. Your children will be successful everywhere and they will be blessed Psalm 112:2.

· God will be your spiritual sun and shield. He will give you grace and glory, and no good thing will be withheld from you. You will have abundance of good things of life, and God will give you favour and splendor. You will be treated with kindness and honour, and God will neither deny you any good thing nor hold them back from you, but He will freely give them to you Psalm 84:11.

· You will inherit the promise land and dwell in it. You will live in the land of your sojourn in peace, you will keep it and remain in it Proverbs 2:21.

· God will take care of you day-by-day, and you will receive an inheritance that lasts forever from Him. God knows your future and He will take charge of it in manners that will make the heritage which you receive from Him to abide forever. God is in control of your future and He will give you eternal inheritance Psalm 37:18.

· You will dwell in the presence of the Lord and you will live with Him eternally Psalm 140:13.

· Only the upright will live eternally in the presence of God. They will dwell on high among the heavenly beings. The Rock of Ages will be their defender. They will never lack, but their needs will be guaranteed Isaiah 33:14-16.

Finally, the upright shall flourish like a palm tree, they shall grow like a cedar tree in Lebanon. Those who are planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; they shall be fresh and flourishing, to declare that the Lord is upright; He is our rock and there is no unrighteousness in Him Psalm 92:12-15. Therefore, I beseech you O Lord “Let integrity and uprightness preserve me, for I wait for You” Psalm 25:21,

The Seal: Isaiah 49:7: “Thus says the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, their Holy One, to him whom man despises, to him whom the nation abhors, to the servant of rulers: ‘king shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the Lord who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel; and He has chosen You.’”