Being Watchful

“The fool speaks folly, and his heart is busy with iniquity, to practice ungodliness, to utter error concerning the LORD, to leave the craving of the hungry unsatisfied, and to deprive the thirsty of drink” (Isaiah 32:6). What a horrifying description of a fool that is! Have you ever thought of a fool as someone who practices ungodliness? Someone busy with iniquity? Someone who can see a need and has the ability to fulfill it and does not? This is certainly not how I ever viewed the fool in my head. I have a lighter and more acceptable view of the fool compared to Isaiah. Indeed, my understanding of a fool is someone who acts stupidly unknowingly or because of some mental disfunction but that is not who the Bible portrays as fool. Sadly, according to the Bible, a fool is not just someone to not imitate but he is a wicked person, going against the will of God. A fool defies the Lord knowingly. The book of Proverbs warns us repeatedly to not act foolishly but rather to act with wisdom. This is the same counsel I would like to repeat to us through this post so that we would be watchful and live lives that honour the LORD.

Isaiah tells us that “the fear of the LORD is Zion’s treasure” and elsewhere we are told that “the fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Proverbs 1:7). So, fearing the LORD brings about knowledge, wisdom, and instruction. This is what the Lord wants us to be about. Meanwhile, for the fool, knowledge, wisdom and instruction are despicable. Indeed, the fool and the wise do not share an inheritance, they are very opposites in nature. Just as light does not have anything with darkness, so it is with those that fear the LORD and those that do not. It is the same idea we see with the gospel, which is the power of God to those who believe but to those who perish it is pure folly (1 Corinthians 1:18). There are many contrasting views that are polarizing like that in the Bible to establish a clear difference between the “wheat and the chaff”. How do we then recognize the fool or fool-like behaviour? By matching the behaviour to the word of God. The word of God is our compass as believers to evaluate everything and everyone we encounter including our own behaviour and actions. This is why it is important to not let the book of the Law depart from our mouth, meditating on it day and night (Joshua 1:8). More than ever, it is important to remain in the word of the LORDas we get infused on a constant basis with different gospels that are contrary to the gospel of Jesus Christ. They are the gospel of self, the gospel of wickedness, the gospel of money, and everything that is sinful under the sun. Unfortunately, this infusion with what is false is done so subtlety that we do not realize we have become corrupt. Practising the spiritual disciplines of loving the LORD with all our heart through prayer, Bible intake, confession, fasting, and others are the sure way to keep us alert. We cannot become complacent in these times. Let us always check our attitudes and actions against the word of God, let us invite the Holy Spirit to reveal hidden patterns in our lives that are against the LORD. As long as we live in this sinful world, we ought to be vigilant, we ought to be ready because we know our enemy the devil, has infiltrated our camps, he prowls around like a roaring lion seeking whom he will devour and make no mistake, he is only here to kill, steal and destroy (1 Peter 5:8; John 10:10). Let us live lives that are conscious of the presence of God around us and in us. The more we are aware of the Emmanuel with us, the more we will be sober-minded. Moreover, the more our view of God changes, the better we will be at being alert. Therefore, let the word of God dwell in you richly (Colossians 3:16). This is the key, the word of God has to dwell richly in us. We cannot fight without a proper view of who this great God we claim to follow is. Let me give you a quick reminder of who He is and why that should be your anchor: first, He is the alpha and omega, the beginning and the end. He is the First and the Last. The creator of heaven and earth who created everything by His word, He spoke, and things came to pass. No other god does that, He alone is God. Second, He is love and His love is eternal. His love extends even to sinners like you and me. Because of His love, we are beneficiaries of His grace and mercy manifested in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. Because of the love of God, we have been redeemed from our sins, from our old ways and we have been brought into the kingdom of God, we have been given a new life, eternal life even in Christ Jesus; we have been clothed with the righteousness of God so that when God looks at us, He no longer sees filthy creatures but He sees righteous ones; we have been upgraded in this life and for eternity, our status has changed from sinners to saints! He is glorious! The beauty of His love is that we cannot comprehend it, it is so deep, it loves the sinner, the one we cannot love ourselves and it teaches us to be like Him. Third, He is powerful, a mighty God. The book of Isaiah talks a lot about the power of God as displayed in His judgement and wrath. When God comes to punish His enemies, you know this is not a God you want to play with. We are told in the Bible that God does great exploits, and no other God saves the way He does. He commands the winds and the water (Luke 8:25), He instructs the earth to open its mouth and swallow the wicked and it does (Number 16:32), He holds the king’s heart in His hands and wields it as He pleases (Proverbs 21:1). There is nothing too difficult for Him (Jeremiah 32:27). Indeed, He has triumphed over sin and death, He is before all things and all things were created by Him and for Him (Colossians 1:16-17). Four, He is holy. We serve a holy God who does not dwell with corruption, nor tolerates it. Our sinful nature does not understand His holiness well that is why we often frown at Him when He enacts His justice. God’s holiness permeates into everything that He does, He is set apart. No wonder His ways are not ours. His holiness brings us to our knees, we see our filthy selves truly when we approach Him. Five He is good. The goodness of God cannot even be explained. He is just too good, and His goodness is not based on what we do or do not do. His goodness is based on who He is. The blessings He bestows on us; undeserving sinners who slander His name are incredible. There is always something that the LORD blesses us with, but it is so common that we take it for granted. Take some time and thank the LORD for His goodness. Six, He is a Father. If there is a distinctive character of God that separates Him from the god of other religions, it is that God is a Father. As a Father, He cares for His children whom He loves so much. He gives them good gifts (James 1:17), He protects them, He guides them in the path they should go, He is there for them. Honestly, we cannot trade this God for anything or anyone else. There is no one like Him. He is set apart. I have only scratched the surface when it comes to who God is, but I hope this helps you to get to know Him more so that you can grow in being watchful as the schemes of the devil are flaunted in your environment.

Remember, you are loved with an everlasting love so before trading this great love for a love that fails, know who your Father is. Go back to His word and read about His great love for you. Remember that the pleasures of this world are fleeting, so ephemeral and only bring destruction “for the wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our LORD” (Romans 6:23). Therefore, do not fall into the trap to embellish sin, to make it look cute, to embrace it or to call it by a different name. Let us be people who love the LORD and his truth, not being foolish but calling out sin and corruption for what they are, calling out unrighteousness for what it is and not being afraid of the Prince of this world because we have the LORD of Hosts by our side. Amen!