Devotion: Lack Of Knowledge

“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children” (Hosea 4:6).

According to the scriptures, God says that his people are destroyed because they lack knowledge.  This lack of knowledge that God speaks of is not due to the knowledge being hidden or it not being available.  No, this lack of knowledge is due to his people rejecting the knowledge.  The biggest problem is that so many of us are completely satisfied, feeling totally secure in the knowledge that we have.  As long as we believe in Jesus and believe that we are saved, we see no need to deal with the irrelevant or trivial things.  We feel that since it has no bearing on our salvation, then none of those irrelevant or trivial things are important.  Is it possible that those things that have been dismissed as irrelevant or trivial are important to our survival?

“Therefore my people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge: and their honourable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst” (Isaiah 5:13).

The scriptures tell us a different story, saying that we have gone into captivity because we have no knowledge.  Our greatest enemy and the largest contributor to our destruction has been our rejection of those irrelevant or trivial things.  Why do we pay less attention to or forgo the small details contained in the scriptures?  Why have they become not so important?  Somewhere along the way, we have been convinced that the small details are not important.  Somewhere along the way, we have been convinced that the small details have no bearing on anything.  Somewhere along the way, we started rejecting the small details, dismissing them as irrelevant or trivial things.  This dismissal of irrelevant or trivial things has become a tremendous problem for us today.  But is it possible that those things that have been dismissed as irrelevant or trivial are important to our survival?  Yes, it is very possible that those things are important to our survival, more important than we may have thought.

“Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards, our vineyards that are in bloom” (Song of Songs 2:15 NIV).

Scripture tells us to pay attention to those little foxes, for those little foxes will ruin the vineyards.  They gnaw and break the little branches and leaves as well as dig holes in the vineyards thus spoiling the roots.  But what or who are these little foxes?  These little foxes are those things that creep in, mostly unnoticed and spoil the vine.  These little foxes are the collective perpetrators of the misinformation, Satan and his band of false teachers, if you will, that teach Churchianity and denominationalism coupled with a little traditionalism.  Somewhere along the way, we allowed them to infiltrate the one body and divide it.  The scriptures tell us that these guys can transform themselves into “apostles of Christ” and “ministers of righteousness.”  The scriptures even tell us that Satan can transform himself into “an angel of light (II Corinthians 11:13-15).”  And their sole purpose for existence is to deceive as many people as possible or spoil the vineyard.  They spoil the vine and take away its fruit.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance…” (Galatians 5:22-23).

Could this be the fruit, the fruit of the Spirit, that those little foxes are out to spoil and take away from us?  We are commanded to catch the foxes, to restrain them from doing harm to our vineyard and taking away our fruit.  And while the fruit spoken of in this passage appears to have little to do with our salvation, the fact that God mentions these little foxes that spoil the vineyards and takes away the fruit should be cause for us to red flag these passages as being very important.  If this is the fruit that is taken away by the little foxes, by Satan and his false teachers, then it is our walk with God that is affected.

“If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit” (Galatians 5:25).

What is it that God wants us to get out of these passages?  Most will again dismiss this as being irrelevant or trivial to their survival and to their salvation.  As we read the scriptures, we must keep in mind that God does not arbitrarily do anything that he does.  God has a reason for doing all that he does, even though the reason may not immediately be apparent.  If those little foxes that creep in unnoticed and spoil the vine affect the things we think, the things we say, and the things we do, then we need to pay attention to those irrelevant or trivial things that we think are not important.  Combine this fact with our lack of knowledge, then there should be no surprise why so many of us are being destroyed and held in captivity.  Scripture tells us that if we are living in the Spirit, living by the fruit of the Spirit, then let us follow the Spirit, let us be led by the Spirit in every part of our lives, and let us walk in that very same Spirit.  Do not allow the lack of knowledge, the rejection of the irrelevant or trivial things, lead to your destruction.

As always, we pray that our inspirational message will abundantly bless you, greatly inform you, and that you will be the better for having read it.  If blessed by this message, please share so that others may be blessed by it as well.  Amen.

Enjoy your blessings - KW

More About KWM

Kingdom Worker Ministries offers a series of products and resources to those desiring to dig deeper into the Word of God and break traditionalism to gain full truth of God’s words and principles.  Our products are designed to increase your awareness, improve your understanding, deepen your knowledge and inspire you to walk in truth.

Our desire is to impart knowledge that will enable you to discern the truths hidden in God’s word (Ezekiel 44:23) and to provide validation to those who have an ear to hear his word (Ephesians 4:29).

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Devotion: We Be A Kingdom Worker

Once, we were asked why we chose to do what we do.  We wanted to share, just in case someone else had the same question.

“After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and (by) two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come (was about to go).  Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth laborers into his harvest.  Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves.  Carry neither purse, nor scrip (bag), nor shoes (sandals): and salute (greet) no man by the way (along the road).  And into whatsoever house ye enter, first say, Peace be to this house.  And if the son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon it: if not, it shall turn to you again.  And in the same house remain, eating and drinking such things as they give: for the laborer is worthy of his hire (wages).  Go not from house to house.  And into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you:  and heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto (near to) you.  But into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you not, go your ways out into the streets of the same, and say, even the very dust of your city, which cleaveth on (clings to) us, we do wipe off against you: notwithstanding be ye sure of this, that the kingdom of God is come nigh unto (has come near) you” (Luke 10:1-11).

Devotion: Be Thankful

It has been said that the more thankful you are, the more you attract things to be thankful for.  It has also been said that those who take life day by day, those who complain very little, and those who are thankful for the things in life, tend to be happy.  Scripture tells us to “always give thanks for everything to our God and Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:20 TLB).  Maybe this is why those who are thankful for the things they have in life are happy truly.

“Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world.  If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.  And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever” (I John 2:15-17).

Devotion: What Is Faith?

Explaining faith to those who doubt the existence of faith can be summed up similar to this, which surprisingly supports the existence of faith that can be found in everyone.

A man (woman) agrees to take a job with a company.  The company tells the man that he will be paid every two weeks.  The man agrees to the terms and accepts the job.  The man reports to work the first day, works eight hours, and afterwards, he goes home.  The next day the man repeats what he did the first day.  The man does the exact same thing for one week straight.  This is a classic example of faith in action.  The man has placed his faith in the company, believing that he will be paid when he gets to the end of the pay period, which is supported by him going to work every day and not getting any form of compensation during the period.  Payday comes and the company gives the man his first paycheck.  Now that the man has his paycheck, he does not need faith anymore because the thing that he had hope for, the thing that he believed he was getting from the company is now a reality.

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1 KJV).”

“Now faith is a well-grounded assurance of that for which we hope, and a conviction of the reality of things which we do not see (Hebrews 11:1 Weymouth New Testament Translation).”

“Now faith means that we are confident of what we hope for, convinced of what we do not see (James Moffitt).”

Devotion: How Many Sons Does God Have?

Many of us are familiar with the verse John 3:16, which focuses on God and his son.  Depending on the Bible version you have, the passage will read something like, For God so loved the world that he gave his “only begotten Son” (King James Version), that he gave his “only Son (the unique Son of God) (The Living Bible), that he gave his “one and only Son” (Basic English Bible), or that he gave his “only Son” (Weymouth New Testament Translation).  As we have discussed in previous devotionals, there are varied beliefs about the son of God, so much so, that we wonder if the varied translations of this particular verse are all saying the same thing about the son of God.  From these varied translations, we see that Jesus is labeled as God’s “only begotten Son,” his “only Son (the unique Son of God),” his “one and only Son,” or his “only Son.”  In short, each of the Bible translations listed above and many others not listed, cite Jesus as being “the only son of God.”  So, is Jesus the only son of God?  To many believers and some non-believers, the traditional answer would be “yes.”  The interesting thing is that according to the Bible, Jesus was not God’s only son.  According to scripture, God had another son.

Devotion: Is All The Bible True?

When asked where “the word of God” can be found, the most popular answer is “the Bible.”  Many believe the Bible to be the inerrant and infallible word of God, but is this belief the truth?  Is the Bible actually the inerrant and infallible word of God?  First, let us define a few important words.  The first word “inerrant,” simply means “free from errors or untruths.”  The next word “infallible,” means “incapable of making mistakes or being wrong” or simply “incapable of error.”  Another definition says that “infallible” also means “absolutely trustworthy or sure.”  When combined, we see why the Bible is said to be “absolutely trustworthy or sure” because of its association with the word of God.  This has led many to consider the Bible of being “incapable of error, of making mistakes, or being wrong.”  But does all of this mean that the entire Bible is true?  That is a question that has been pondered throughout the ages.

Devotion: Is Money Your God?

Most of us have heard the phrase, “Money is the root of all evil.”  Stated this way, this phrase leads us to believe that “money” itself is “the root or cause of all evil.”

“For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows” (I Timothy 6:10).

According to scripture, it “the love of money” that is “the root or cause of all evil.”  The actual wording brings to light a slightly different interpretation where “the love of money” is the root cause of all kinds of evil and not money itself.  It is this “love of money,” this desire in people to be rich that is the first step of a downward spiral that causes all kinds of wrongdoings just to acquire this money.  Those who covet after money, fall into temptation, and do all kinds of unwise, destructive, and malicious things that eventually hurts them, all to satisfy this desire to gain access to money.  Because of their “love of money,” these same people have turned away from God, have been led astray from the faith, and have inflicted themselves with countless sorrows that eventually lead to their ruin and destruction.

Devotion: Magnify God

The Bible says, “The just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:17), but most believers do not live there, that is to say that they do not “live by faith.”  What we do instead is, we visit there from time to time.  Yes, we live by faith on occasion, but we never dwell there, nor do we take up residency there.  And though we see things that causes us to believe that anything is possible with God many times over, we fail to constantly maintain that belief, that level of faith that the scriptures say, “we should live by.”  Because we fail to live there, to take residency, we tend to be “carnally minded,” which the scripture says is “death” (Romans 8:6).  Carnally mindedness is being focused on the things of this world from a human emotional standpoint.  Carnally minded people fail to focus on God, fail to focus on his word, and fail to focus on the things of God.

“Because when they knew and recognized Him as God, they did not honor and glorify Him as God or give Him thanks.  But instead they became futile and godless in their thinking [with vain imaginings, foolish reasoning, and stupid speculations] and their senseless minds were darkened” (Romans 1:21 AMPC).

Devotion: God Gave Us Dominion

One of the most misunderstood gifts that God has ever given to mankind was “the original dominion” he gave to the first man.  When man was created, God gave man authority or “dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth” (Genesis 1:26-28).  God told man to subdue the earth and have dominion over everything.  He was to reign over God’s creation.

“When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?  For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honor.  Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:  all sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field; the fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas” (Psalm 8:3-8).

Devotion: Train Your Children

Scripture tells us “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6).  We kind of like the way “The Living Bible”translates this verse.

“Teach a child to choose the right path, and when he is older, he will remain upon it” (Proverbs 22:6 TLB).

We see here that not only are we to train up a child in the way he or she should go, but we are to teach a child to choose the right path and when the child is older, the child will not depart from that right path but will remain or stay on that path.  “The Amplified Bible” translates the passage this way:

“Train up a child in the way he should go [teaching him to seek God’s wisdom and will for his abilities and talents], even when he is old he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6 AMP).

Devotion: God Gives Seed

Most of you are familiar with “The Parable Of The Sower.”  Jesus explains the parable to his disciples this way.

“And his disciples asked him, saying, What might this parable be?  And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand.  Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.  Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.  They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away.  And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.  But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience” (Luke 8:9-15).

Devotion: Prosperity God’s Way

Here we go once again, talking about prosperity and how it is God’s will for his children to prosper.  In the past, we have shared several passages of scripture that show it is God’s will for his children to prosper.

“But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day” (Deuteronomy 8:18).

We have continually used Deuteronomy 8:18 as the anchor to our message to make clear the specific purpose for this wealth, which is “that he may establish his covenant,” a covenant “which he sware unto thy fathers.”  God gives us the power to get wealth to fulfill his promise, that agreement he made with our ancestors.

“Let the Lord be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant” (Psalm 35:27)

Devotion: God Sees Ahead

Throughout the scriptures, we see where God has always provided for man.  Nowhere is this more evident than in the beginning, when God first created the heavens and the earth.

“And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.  And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.  And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night.  And the evening and the morning were the first day” (Genesis 1:3-5).  “And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:  and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.  And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.  And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness:  and God saw that it was good” (Genesis 1:14-18).

Devotion: God Is Rich In Mercy

Most of us have heard of God’s grace and of his mercy, but did you know that God is rich in his mercy?

“But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us (made us alive) together with Christ, (by grace ye are (have been) saved); and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:  that in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.  For by grace are ye (you have been) saved through faith; and that not of yourselves:  it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:4-9).

Because of his great love for us, God showed his mercy towards us.  When we were still sinners, dead through our own offences, God showed great compassion for us by giving us our lives back when he raised Christ from the dead.  Because of his grace, his unearned, unmerited favor, we have been saved, raised up together with Christ from the grave and into glory, where we sit with him in the heavenly places because of all that Jesus did.  Now with all that he has done for us through Christ, God can forever point to us as examples of just how rich his mercy truly is.  It is by God’s grace that we have been saved through our faith in what Christ has done, which was not something that we were able to do for ourselves.  Our salvation is not our reward for the good works we have done or for us being good.  No, our salvation is truly a gift from God, given to us by the grace of God.  It is not something that we were able to earn; therefore, none of us can take any credit for it.

Devotion: Don't Be Afraid To Die

It is amazing to find people who claim to be believers, who are afraid to die.  This is not meant to be a criticism of anyone.  We are merely pointing out an observation that these same people who claim to be believers actually do believe in life after death, but still have this fear of death.  The unknown has always produced some amount of fear in all of mankind and death is one of those unknown things that we all will have to go through.  Not knowing, being unsure of, and having no control over the future tends to bring out a little anxiety in even the best of us.  Please do not get us wrong, we are not so naive to suggest that every believer shares in this fear of death for the same reasons.  Some are just selfish.  They love themselves and the things of this world more then they love God and the things of God.  They are not interested in pleasing God but solely interested in pleasing self.  They fear death because it would cause them to lose the things that they have come to cherish most in this life: their money, their status, their popularity, and themselves.  Even though they claimed to be believers, they have no hope for the future because they be not in Christ.

“Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.  For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.  For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?  or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul” (Matthew 16:24-26)?

Devotion: Always Be Thankful

We know that this world will eventually fade away and everything in it, everything on it, and everything around it will fade away as well.  The things that people have placed so much importance on, those things that so many crave, all those evil forbidden things that people seem to be drawn to, each and every one of them will also fade away as the world fades.  But those who are pleasing God and doing the will of God will live forever.  Therefore, for this reason, we should be thankful.  God is working things out for us, even when we don’t see it or feel it.  We just need to keep our faith in God and be thankful for all that he has given us.  There is always something to be thankful for, if we would just look.

It has been said that the more thankful we are, the more we attract things to be thankful for.  Those who take life day by day, complain very little, and are thankful for the things in life, for they are happy.  Scripture tells us to “always give thanks for everything to our God and Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:20 TLB).  Maybe this is why those who are thankful for the things in life are happy.

Devotion: Rest A While

When we are tired or worn out, most of us know what it means, “to rest a while.”  Most of us would define this “rest” as a period where we would take a break from our labors in order to relax and regain our strength.  We would use it as a time to refrain from all strenuous or stressful activities so that we could refresh or rejuvenate ourselves.

“And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.  And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made” (Genesis 2:2).

Following his six days of creation, God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it because he rested from all the work of creating he had done.  When we think of God resting, we should not confuse this “rest” with being worn out where he could not do, make, or create one more thing.

Devotion: Be An Encourager

Are you an encourager?  Or are you a discourager?  Most people are discouragers and do not even know that they are.  Don’t get us wrong, there are some very negative, very disgruntled, and very unhappy people in the world.  Normally, the things that they say can identify them.  But, when was the last time you checked yourself to see what kind of things you say?

“And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man.  For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: all these evil things come from within, and defile the man” (Mark 7:20-23).

Scripture tells us that it is what comes out of us that contaminates and makes us unclean.  From inside of us, within our hearts flow evil thoughts, fornication, sexual sins, thefts, murders, adultery, covetousness, greed, wickedness, evil actions, deceit, licentiousness, unrestrained immorality, envy, reviling, insults, pride, arrogance, reckless folly, and foolishness.  All these wicked things come out from within our heart to contaminate and make us unclean.

Devotion: God Has Already Given

Most believers do not understand what the statement, “God has already given” actually means.  Some believers have accepted religion’s definition of “the sovereignty of God” and believe that nothing happens without “the approval of God.”  They make God responsible for any and every thing that happens, whether it be good or bad, and completely removes our responsibility as to what happens in our life.  Other believers have accepted the other side of the coin, where the belief is that we control what happens to us.  They believe that we can motivate, convince, or even persuade God to move on our behalf through our persistent prayer, by our obedience to God’s laws, and even because of the good works that we do.  They make us responsibility for any and everything that happens, whether good or bad, and make God’s response subjected to our performance.

“According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” (II Peter 1:1-4).

Devotion: Jesus Never Fails

Most people, both believers and non-believers know the story of how Adam’s disobedience allowed sin to enter into the world and come upon the human race.  When sinned entered, death caught a ride and spread throughout the world causing everything to grow old and to die.

“For this one man, Adam, brought death to many through his sin.  But this one man, Jesus Christ, brought forgiveness to many through God’s mercy.  Adam’s one sin brought the penalty of death to many, while Christ freely takes away many sins and gives glorious life instead.  The sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to be king over all, but all who will take God’s gift of forgiveness and acquittal are kings of life (reign in life ) because of this one man, Jesus Christ.  Yes, Adam’s sin brought punishment to all, but Christ’s righteousness makes men right with God, so that they can live.  Adam caused many to be sinners because he disobeyed God, and Christ caused many to be made acceptable to God because he obeyed” (Romans 5:15-19 TLB).