Issue 001 | Page 18

Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers , but whose delight is in the law of the Lord , and who meditates on his law day and night . That person is like a tree planted by streams of water , which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither — whatever they do prospers ~ Psalm 1:1-3 NIV
Do not make a covenant with them or with their gods . Do not let them live in your land or they will cause you to sin against me , because the worship of their gods will certainly be a snare to you .” ~ Exodus 23:32-33 NIV
On their way to Canaan , God issued the above command to the children of Israel . He warned them against associating themselves with the foreign nations because that was going to be a fatal trap for them . And today , this command still stands . God still warns us against our fellow man . We need to understand that man has been the cause of fall for his fellow man since from the beginning . It ' s not that some of us are created to be bad , far from it . It ' s because the same way God uses men to accomplish His divine plans and purposes , is the same way the enemy uses men to accomplish his own in the lives of people . This is why you must be able to discern the kind of spirit working in men before you invite them into your life .
The scriptures have warned us severally to be careful of man lest he makes us fall into sin . Man can be deceptive and he has the power to lead his fellow man astray without using much effort . It ’ s easy for us to get counsel from people rather than from God , and sometimes we choose to obey them and follow their advice rather than listen to God and or obey Him . Many are times we turn a deaf ear to God and instead fix our eyes , ears and our full attention to our fellow man ; believing and following with great loyalty whatever they tell us even if a good percentage of it is pure lie and deception . What most of us do not know is that not all people can be trusted and more often than not , those same people whom we rely so much on are the ones that lead us to the wrong direction .
Moses obeyed the Lord and from each ancestral tribe , he sent one of their leaders . They faithfully went , explored the land and came back with a report ( Numbers 13:29 ). The only problem was that they gave a bad report which caused the whole Israelite community to doubt the ability of God to deliver them from their enemies no matter how strong and powerful they were . They even saw themselves as grasshoppers and unable to conquer their enemies , except for two – Caleb and Joshua – who saw things differently .
This was the voice of the majority , and in most cases it always wins . The devil did not use foreigners or their enemies to bring them down , he used their leaders – the people they were close to ; the people they trusted . And it worked . God was angry with them and He vowed that they will never see the Promised Land , and true to His word , they all perished in the wilderness . There are many today who are struggling and suffering , while others are busy going round and round in cycles and circles simply because of listening to their fellow men . Many have missed God , their seasons and blessings because of their fellow men . It ’ s a snare that the enemy has successfully used to lead many of us astray . May God deliver us !
Understand that man is a source of constant danger and breakdown for his fellow man , and he can constantly cheat us out of our own destinies . Human philosophy and empty deceit has become the order of the day in our times and it will do us more good than harm if we ask God to approve all those people whom we associate with and to approve each and every person before entering into any agreement with them . It ’ s of great importance not to enter into any covenant with any man without first having them cleared by God .
You may have started a wonderful journey with God , but somewhere along the way you got stuck and even became stagnant in some or all areas of your life . This may have happened , not because you are unable to do or accomplish anything , but because you are carrying along the wrong people . If you want God to walk with you , you must constantly search yourself and ensure that those you associate with are acceptable before Him . Enough said .
In the book of Numbers 13:1-3 , God instructed Moses to send some men to go and explore the land of Canaan , which He was giving to the Israelites . Moses
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