The Devil’s devices!

God gave us an opportunity to visit Petra in Jordan in Sep 2014 along with brother Mohan C. Lazarus when we visited the Holy Land. The city of Petra was carved directly into vibrant red, white, pink, and sandstone. The towering rock faces were a magnificent sight to see! This Jordanian city of Petra was "lost" to the Western world for hundreds of years. Only in the early 1800s did a European traveler discover this place. Now it has been named as one of the new seven wonders of the world!

The Edomites were those who descended from Esau. Esau did not value his birthright as he ought to have. We read about Esau in the first book and the last book of the Old Testament. The Bible says in Malachi 1:2,3, “… … Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?” says the LORD. “Yet Jacob I have loved; but Esau I have hated, and laid waste his mountains…”. Whenever I read this portion of the Bible, I used to feel very sad for Esau. It somehow made me feel that God was a bit unreasonable. But the explanation is in the book of Obadiah.

God did not say that He hated Esau at the beginning. It was not until Esau became a nation and revealed the thing that caused God to hate him:

“The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who dwell in the clefts of the rock, whose habitation is high; you who say in your heart, ‘Who will bring me down to the ground?’ (Obadiah 1:3) It was his pride! Esau, like Jacob, had become a great nation. The children of Esau had gone to the south and east. The city of Petra was an impregnable fortress that just a handful of men could guard. The Edomites were living in a false security. In their pride, they felt that they did not need God anymore. When a mere man, gets to the place where he says, “I don’t need God,” God says, “That’s what I hate.”

My friend, beware of the devil’s devices. ‘Pride’ is the tool of the devil. Remember there is nothing that we have that has not been given to us by God – every talent, every resource, and every opportunity has been given to us by God for a purpose. Always, always give God the glory.

Categories: Weekly DevotionalsAuthor: Hephzibah StephenDate: 19th June 2018 Share: newsletterDisplay date: 20th June 2018

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