For Your Own Good
Deuteronomy 10:13 To keep the commandments of the Lord, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good?
Deuteronomy 10:13(NLT) And you must always obey the lord’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good.
Introduction: Glory be to God who has kept us to see last week of the eleventh month as we hear Scriptures speak.
I pray for continuous revelation of His words in our lives in Jesus name.
🛑 Obeying God’s command, desirously reading His words and willingly attending Christian fellowship is for our own good.
Some years ago, my wife was on the case of one of my children preparing for WAEC. With close monitoring and pressure on him, he exclaimed one day “Mummy, I am reading for you now”. My wife then appealed to him that he should continue to read for her. When the results came out with good grades, it was his name on the certificate NOT mummy’s name whom he read for.
▶️ Most times, we think going to church or doing something in the house of God is a favour to pastors or God Himself.
Many are lackadaisical when it comes to Christian conduct, keeping and obeying God’s commandments.
🛑 Just as it is difficult to forsake pleasures for academics, so also is forsaking worldly living for Christian living is difficult.
Success in Christian living requires determination and force until Christ comes or departure from this world whichever comes first.
Matthew 11:12(NLT) And from the time John the Baptist began preaching until now, the Kingdom of Heaven has been forcefully advancing, and violent people are attacking it.
Obeying God’s command and studying Bible requires determination and force for our own good.
Whenever we deny our children of certain things that we know can jeopardize their destiny, we become wicked and old fashion. Sometimes it becomes too late before they realise we do what they dislike for their own good.
Academic honours cannot be in the name of father or mother. Salaries and emoluments cannot be collected by father or mother on their behalf. It is for their own good. Likewise, blessings from God through obedience is for our own good.
Jesus Christ knew benefits at stake through obedience to painful death of the cross when He came in form of man.
Philippians 2:8-9 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
For His own good, and because Jesus knew accruals of divine blessings from God the Father, He rejected Satanic offer of service.
Matthew 4:8-10 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
I watched a post of some Yahoo boys saying getting wealth through rituals is good and cannot cause insanity. There is also a YouTube channel that teaches on how to do rituals for money, that’s where young boys that killed a lady in Ogun State got recipe for money rituals. These are invitations from Satan for eternal destruction. I don’t know what Satan has shown you for acquisition to substitute righteousness and be in his service, send Satan away for your own good.
Jesus again for His own good to receive what is extremely better than worldly titles and positions, He refused worldly kingship but went to be alone with God on the Mountain.
John 6:15 When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take him by force, to make him a king, he departed again into a mountain himself alone.
Rejecting Satanic offer during dare needs is for our own good. Jesus our perfect example was hungry when He rejected Satanic offer with the knowledge that better blessings are ahead. It is for your own good to reject Satanic offer.
Peter knew the joy ahead of his calling and rejected monetary offer to turn power of the Holy Spirit into merchandise for his own good.
Acts 8:18-20 And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money, Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost. But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.
🛑 Several ministers of the gospel this end times have turned power of the Holy Spirit into merchandise thereby submitting to Satanic temptation of turning stones to bread which Jesus our Saviour rejected amidst hunger.
As ministers of God, it is for our own good to know that salvation is free gift and must not turn ministry into business to avoid shame as it is common these days.
Hear Paul’s warning to Philippians
Philippians 3:18-19(NLT) For I have told you often before, and I say it again with tears in my eyes, that there are many whose conduct shows they are really enemies of the cross of Christ. They are headed for destruction. Their god is their appetite, they brag about shameful things, and they think only about this life here on earth.
It is for our own good to avoid destruction by paying attention with obedience to the word of God at all cost.
▶️ Job knew it is Foolishness to curse God for his predicaments and for his own good, he rejected his wife’s suggestion and maintain his integrity in the service of God.
🛑 It is for your own good to avoid sin because wages of sin is death.
Job 2:9-10 Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die. But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.
▶️ Devil targets Christians because of wonderful things received from God. Christian living is a purposeful venture NOT a life by chance or proxy. Everyone will be judged by the word of God with rewards from his/her doings.
Jeremiah 17:10 I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.
Daniel knew he must not be enticed by king’s delicacies to avoid defilement for his own good.
Daniel 1:8 But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself.
✍ Finally brethren, obedience to God’s commandments is for your own good. Some become Christian for others, attend fellowship for others, some study the Bible for others, some may even want to please parents or pastors by acting to be Christian.
Being mindful and concerned about what people say about you rather than what God says about you will NOT be for your own good. For some people, your own will be “too much”, for some, you are “too loud”, for some, you are “too soft”, people will have different judgment concerning you. For your own good, seek to know what God says concerning you.
Anyone without knowledge of why he/she is a Christian will surely fall into error of unbelievers and his/her Christian journey cannot be steady. It is for your own good to search the Scriptures daily more than anything else.
2 Peter 3:17-18 Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness. But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.
For your own knowledge; Do you just glance through messages from Speaking Scriptures and other Biblical messages without meditation and study like the Berean Christians who received the word of God with readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so according to Acts 17:10-11?
To study and meditate daily on the word of God is for our own Good NOT for mummy, daddy, pastors or God.
God’s words do good to Christians that are upright.
Micah 2:7 O thou that art named the house of Jacob, is the spirit of the Lord straitened? are these his doings? do not my words do good to him that walketh uprightly?
✋ Maranatha.
