Walking The God Led Paths

KJB Daily Devotion – Following Jesus Through Every Chapter
Date: Friday, July 08, 2016
Chapters: Proverbs 4-6
Message: Walking The God Led Paths

Hello My Friend,

As I sat in Wednesday night Bible study listening to the preacher talk about how everything we do, think, or say ever escapes God I pondered the thought of being disappointing to God. Then it hit me, God does know everything about me, He made me, He knows my strengths, weaknesses, talents, skills, demeanor, my heart, my spirit, what I feel, and what I am going through. I often ask God why He allowed me to learn something that perhaps was never intended for me to learn, His response, “To give me glory through it.” Our past experiences were never meant to condemn us, although all sin leads to death, they were meant to bring glory to God as we come to know His Son.

“And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.” - Romans 8:27-30.

“Moreover whom he did predestinate,” God had a plan for us from conception, it is our freewill that enables us to choose the paths that has been predestined for us or follow our own. Some of us do pretty good following our own paths for a while, but if you ever wondered why there were so many obstacles it was because He was trying to get you on His path. If God wanted to, He could give us anything we wanted, when we want them, no exceptions, no questions, no motives, no work, and while He does do that occasionally, the majority of the time it involves action on our part, particularly in the paths He leads us on, which by the way are quite crooked. We must not mistake God’s paths of faith and loyalty with the devil’s paths of wickedness and deception. Proverbs 4 teaches us that it is by living under God’s commandments that keeps us from stumbling on His paths.

“He taught me also, and said unto me, Let thine heart retain my words: keep my commandments, and live. Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth. Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee: love her, and she shall keep thee. I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths. When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straitened; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble. Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life. Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away. For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall. Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.” - Proverbs 4:4-6,11-16,26,27.

“unless they cause some to fall.” Oh my, do these words hit home. Did you know that the devil will put some people in your life, perhaps someone from your past or even a new person to try and get you to make a detour on the path God gave you? They claim they follow Christ, and for a while even appear to be doing so to get you to trust them, once you do they reveal their true selves after you have given in to them. We can thank God for His mercy and grace on this, because we are going to take some detours on His path, but He is always there to put us back in place.

“And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief. Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting. Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.” - I Timothy 1:14-17.

You know, taking the path that God chose for us was never meant to keep us from living a joyful, and prosperous life, it was meant to keep us from unnecessary suffering as we pass through. If anyone knew a thing or two about taking wrong paths it was Solomon, with all his women and religions he got himself caught up in he sure does have the wisdom to tell us what not to do. God pointed out to me that it was time to talk about something that is quite taboo, the intimate relationship between a husband and wife, married or not, we are reminded to love and be faithful to the one we are with, of course, all intimacy must be sustained until we are married.

“I was almost in all evil in the midst of the congregation and assembly. Drink waters out of thine own cistern, and running waters out of thine own well. Let thy fountains be dispersed abroad, and rivers of waters in the streets. Let them be only thine own, and not strangers' with thee. Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth. Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant roe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love. And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger? For the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD, and he pondereth all his goings.” - Proverbs 5:14-21.

“and he pondereth all his goings.” It is God who ponders the things that we do, what are our motives for doing the things we do. Are we doing something just to fulfill the lusts of our flesh or are we doing it to give God the glory. A true, godly relationship between a man and woman glorifies God, and gives Him pleasure to see them walking His godly path in courting and marrying one another.

“Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman. Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband. Let the husband render unto the wife due benevolence: and likewise also the wife unto the husband. The wife hath not power of her own body, but the husband: and likewise also the husband hath not power of his own body, but the wife. Defraud ye not one the other, except it be with consent for a time, that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again, that Satan tempt you not for your incontinency.” - I Corinthians 7:1-5.

As we consider the paths that God leads us on we must think about who we are walking with, are we fully complying to His ways with them or are we going the wrong way on a one way road. To be froward means not willing to yield or comply with what is required. God keeps us away from certain people to keep us from getting hurt, and while we may think we can turn them on the right path, the majority of the time they are the ones who change our paths. Proverbs 6 tells us why we are to stay away from those who are not willing to walk God’s path.

“A naughty person, a wicked man, walketh with a froward mouth. He winketh with his eyes, he speaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers; Frowardness is in his heart, he deviseth mischief continually; he soweth discord. Therefore shall his calamity come suddenly; suddenly shall he be broken without remedy. These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him: A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.” - Proverbs 6:12-19.

“feet that be swift in running to mischief,” How often do you come across someone who says, I’m going to do what I want because I am saved? They may even throw Bible verses at you in an attempt to justify what they are doing. Being saved does not justify our living in sin, if you are only walking certain paths for God and not all of them you are going to suffer. If anything has come out of the tragedy that happened in a gay nightclub it is that people realize they are not walking godly paths. We cannot avoid tragic things all the time, some things just happen, like disease, storms, and unexplained death, but we can avoid things that lead to more suffering. The only way we can do that is by getting on God’s paths and staying on them, if you make a detour, turn around and let God lead you back. While God’s paths are often crooked, they are pretty straight and narrow. “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” - Matthew 7:13,14.

Jesus Christ Magnified: “But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.” - Proverbs 4:18. Jesus is our shining light that leads us on every good path. “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.” - I John 1:7.

Today's Prayer: God, You tell us time and time again that if we want a blessed and prosperous life we need to follow Your commands. While we are saved by grace You still want us to follow Your commands and live, and it is really the only way we can truly enjoy the gifts that You gave us. Lord, lead me and guide me on the paths that You have for me, search my heart, try me, and see if there be any wickedness in me. Let me ponder all the paths I take and if they are not led by You, turn me around and get back in the right direction. Fill me with Your wisdom, understanding, mercy, grace, and let me never become forward in my actions. I ask these things in the name of Jesus. Amen.

God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina

Are You 100% Sure You Are Going To Heaven?: http://imfollowingjesus.com/follow-Jesus.html
Receive The KJB Daily Devotions In Your Email: http://eepurl.com/2WMzT
Missed A Message: http://imfollowingjesus.com/Biblestudy/
Visit I'm Following Jesus: http://imfollowingjesus.com/index.html
Like I'm Following Jesus On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/byhisstrength
Copyright © 2016 I'm Following Jesus, All rights reserved.