November 24, 2018
Hello John Wesley members and friends,
I was trying not to use I Samuel 8:4-8 as the basis of my thoughts tonight but the Holy Spirit kept urging me to do so. I wanted to share something about thankfulness given Thanksgiving Day was a few days ago, I wanted to remind you that we have so much for which to be thankful. But as I think about what I just said, perhaps that is why the Holy Spirit lead to me to this passage. The point seems to be that people are still rejecting God in favor of earthly kings – both people and things. It matters not your political persuasion or your economic status, God is a jealous god and wants your undivided loyalty. Whenever you prioritize anything above God, you have rejected God and are saying, give me what I want; that is exactly what the Israelites did in I Samuel 8:4-8. The Israelites rejected God in spite of all that God had done for them, in spite of all that God had given them, because they wanted to be like the other nations around them. How shortsighted the Israelites were. It matters not your reasons for rejecting God, it is a dangerous thing to reject God. Like the Israelites, it is only a matter of time before you experience the consequences of your rejection of God. Don’t choose the path that leads to destruction regardless of how popular it is, but instead choose the path that leads to righteousness lead by Jesus Christ our Lord. Be grateful for all that God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit have done for you, though you may not have all that you want, you have life and a reasonable portion of health and strength. This is not to be taken for granted, but thankful for your God who loves you so much that God gives you that which you can’t give yourself.
Blessings,
Pastor Woods-Barrant