WISDOM FOR LIVING DAILY DEVOTIONAL
OCTOBER 31, 2022
TOPIC: DON’T EXPOSE YOURSELF NEEDLESSLY TO DANGER
BY T. O. BANSO
“After these things Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him” (John 7:1 New King James Version).
God is committed to protecting His children but we have a responsibility not to expose ourselves needlessly or unnecessarily to danger. Psalm 27:5 says, “For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; in the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock” (New King James Version). However, you shouldn’t expose yourself unnecessarily to danger.
Psalm 121:7-8 says, “The Lord will protect you from every danger. The Lord will protect your soul. The Lord will protect you as you come and go. He will protect both now and forever!” (Easy-to-Read Version). Nevertheless, this scripture is not a licence to see danger ahead and wait for it or run into it when there is an opportunity to escape. A sane person does not stand in the way of a moving train and ask God to protect him! He has already protected him by showing him the danger ahead.
It is a presumption for any child of God to deliberately expose himself to danger and believe that God will protect him. This is not faith. Don’t expose yourself to danger needlessly. Ezekiel 33:4 says whoever hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, if the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be on his own head.
From childhood, Jesus Christ faced danger. After His birth, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph, the husband of the earthly mother of Jesus, Mary, and said, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him” (Matthew 2:13 New King James Version).
Was it that God couldn’t protect His Son? He could. Yet He said, through the angel, that Jesus must be taken far away from danger. God had done what He would do by exposing Herod’s plan before he executed it. His solution to the problem was to flee with the child and the mother to Egypt, not to protect Him in the land of Israel. Joseph obeyed God. Flee from the danger that God has exposed except He expressly tells you not to. Don’t wait for danger or run into it and ask God to protect you. It’s a different thing if you have no previous knowledge of the danger.
After Herod’s death, an angel again appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child’s life are dead” (Matthew 2:20 New King James Version). Again, Joseph obeyed the angel. Verse 22 says that when Joseph heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Archelaus was a tyrant like his father. Having been warned in a dream, Joseph turned aside into the region of Galilee. Joseph did not expose Jesus and Mary needlessly to danger.
It is not faith to see danger ahead and wait for it or go to face it. Proverbs 14:16 says, “A wise man suspects danger and cautiously avoids evil, but the fool bears himself insolently and is [presumptuously] confident” (Amplified Bible). Discretion (good sense, wise choices, or sound judgment) will protect you and understanding will guide you (Proverbs 2:11). Foolishness and presumption will expose you to unnecessary danger.
Don’t expose yourself needlessly to danger. “Be cautious and hide when you see danger – don’t be stupid and walk right into trouble” (Proverbs 27:12 Contemporary English Version). Proverbs 22:3 says a similar thing: “When you see trouble coming, don’t be stupid and walk right into it- be smart and hide” (Contemporary English Version).
When Jesus started His ministry, He avoided exposing Himself to danger despite being sure of God’s protection. He knew that His ministry provoked envy and hatred and was mindful of His movement so that He would be able to fulfil His ministry before His death.
In John 4:1-3, the Bible shows us how opposition to Jesus by the Pharisees was growing because they were envious of Jesus whom they heard was baptizing more disciples than John (John 2:22, 26). Already, they had a problem with John, whom multitudes were going to for baptism. “Therefore, when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John (though Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples), He left Judea and departed again to Galilee” (John 4:1-3 New King James Version). Note the phrase “ departed again to Galilee.” This shows that He had previously departed to Galilee. He left Judea which was in the southern part of Palestine and went back to Galilee, in the northern part.
Jesus didn’t expose Himself unnecessarily to danger. He avoided walking in Judea because the Jews sought to kill Him, and it wasn’t yet time for His crucifixion. Jesus didn’t say because He was the Son of God nothing would happen to Him if He walked into the trap of His enemy.
John 7:1 says, “After these things Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him” (New King James Version). Did you see that? After what was recorded in the previous chapter, Jesus didn’t walk in Judea because the Jewish leaders wanted to kill Him. The hatred for Him by the Jews in Judea was much. They were plotting to kill Him. He wasn’t afraid of death but it wasn’t yet time for Him to die. Jesus didn’t defy them and say they couldn’t kill Him. He withdrew from Judea and travelled around Galilee. The plot by the Jews to kill Jesus was real. Jesus asked the Jews in John 7:19b, “Why do you seek to kill Me?” (New King James Version).
In John 5, after Jesus, at the pool of Bethesda, healed on the Sabbath the man who had an infirmity for thirty-eight years, the Jews tried to kill Him. Verse 16 says, “For this reason the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill Him, because He had done these things on the Sabbath” (New King James Version). When Jesus said that His Father had been working until then and He had been working, this further angered the Jews. “Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God” (verse 18 New King James Version).
Jesus also exercised discretion in Matthew 12:14-15 when He knew that the Pharisees wanted to kill Him. He withdrew from danger. “Then the Pharisees went out and plotted against Him, how they might destroy Him. But when Jesus knew it, He withdrew from there. And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them all” (Matthew 12:14-15 New King James Version). Mark 3:6-7 says a similar thing. Jesus withdrew from danger.
It is not cowardice to avoid danger; it is consistent with the teaching of Jesus to escape from danger if you can. Jesus said, “When they persecute you in this city, flee to another. For assuredly, I say to you, you will not have gone through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes” (Matthew 10:23 New King James Version).
Jesus didn’t expose Himself needlessly to danger. John 10:39 says that the Jews sought again to seize or arrest Him, but He escaped out of their hand. Jesus didn’t hand over Himself to them to be killed until the appointed time of His crucifixion had come. The Jews eventually crucified Jesus out of envy (Matthew 27:18; Mark 15:10).
Don’t expose yourself to danger. If you see danger, avoid it. If you can flee, do so. In Acts 9:22-25, Paul, in Damascus, escaped from the Jews who plotted to kill him. The disciples took him by night and let him down through the wall in a large basket. They didn’t wait for the Jews to seize him and kill him.
David also escaped from danger. 1 Samuel 18:11 says, “And Saul cast the spear, for he said, ‘I will pin David to the wall!’ But David escaped his presence twice” (New King James Version). Note the phrase “David escaped.” Also, 1 Samuel 19:10 says, “Then Saul sought to pin David to the wall with the spear, but he slipped away from Saul’s presence; and he drove the spear into the wall. So David fled and escaped that night” (New King James Version). Also, note the phrase “David fled and escaped that night.”
Saul was desperate to kill David. He sent messengers to David’s house to watch him and kill him but Michal, his wife, who was also Saul’s daughter, let him down through the window and he escaped (verse 12). David ran away from danger. He never returned to Saul again.
Don’t expose yourself unnecessarily to danger. Don’t tempt or test the Lord (Matthew 4:7; Luke 4:12; Deuteronomy 6:16). Faith is different from foolishness and presumption. Don’t be presumptuously confident to face the danger that you know of ahead and God has made it possible for you to escape. It’s only wise to flee except God tells you otherwise!
TAKE ACTION!
If you are not born again, you need to give your life to Jesus now. I urge you to take the following steps: *Admit that you are a sinner and you cannot save yourself and repent of your sins. *Confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. *Renounce your past way of life – your relationship with the devil and his works. *Invite Jesus into your life. *As a mark of seriousness to mature in the faith, start attending a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church. There they will teach you how to grow in the Kingdom of God.
Kindly say this prayer now: O Lord God, I come unto You today. I know I am a sinner and I cannot save myself. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross to save me and God raised Him on the third day. I repent of my sins and confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. I surrender my life to Jesus now and invite Him into my heart. By this prayer, I know I am saved. Thank You, Jesus, for saving me and making me a child of God.
I believe you have said this prayer from your heart. Congratulations! You will need to join a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church in your area where they will teach you how to live your new life in Christ Jesus. I pray that you flourish like a palm tree and grow like a cedar of Lebanon. May you grow into Christ in all things and become all God wants you to be. I will be glad to hear from you. The Lord be with you.
PRAYER POINTS: Holy Spirit, reveal to me any danger around me and in my way in life. Help me to perceive danger and not run into it. I shall be cautious and hide from danger; I won’t be stupid and walk right into trouble in Jesus’ name. The Lord will protect me from every danger. He will protect me as I come and go; He will protect me now and forever. I pray for divine escape for everyone currently in danger in Jesus’ name.
(For over 800 in-depth and powerful messages by T. O. Banso, visit www.cedarministry.org).
T. O. Banso is the President of Cedar Ministry International, Abuja, Nigeria.
Phone No: +2348155744752, +2348033113523
WhatsApp No: +2349081295947
Email: cedarministryintl@yahoo.com,
cedarministryng@gmail.com
Website: www.cedarministry.org
