FOOLISH ACTIONS!

WISDOM FOR LIVING DAILY DEVOTIONAL

MAY 22, 2022  

TOPIC: FOOLISH ACTIONS!

 BY T. O. BANSO

“For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him. In this you have done foolishly; therefore from now on you shall have wars” (2 Chronicles 16:9 New King James Version).

Earlier in the reign of King Asa of Judah, he trusted God against the army of Zerah the Ethiopian. Therefore, Asa’s army of 580,000 men defeated Zerah’s army of one million men and three hundred chariots.

But in the thirty-sixth year of his reign, Asa didn’t trust God. When Baasha, king of Israel, came up against Judah, Asa entered into a military alliance with King Benhadad of Syria (2 Chronicles 16:2-6). The alliance worked and Israel didn’t attack Judah. Nevertheless, God wasn’t pleased with what Asa did. He sent Hanani the seer to Asa to condemn what he had done and pass His judgment on him.

2 Chronicles 16:7-9 says, “And at that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah, and said to him: ‘Because you have relied on the king of Syria, and have not relied on the LORD your God, therefore the army of the king of Syria has escaped from your hand. Were the Ethiopians and the Lubim not a huge army with very many chariots and horsemen? Yet, because you relied on the LORD, He delivered them into your hand. For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him. In this you have done foolishly; therefore from now on you shall have wars’” (New King James Version).

If God had protected King Asa and Judah for thirty-five years, Asa should have continued to trust in Him. But, as Hanani the seer said, Asa acted foolishly. “For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him. In this you have done foolishly; therefore from now on you shall have wars” (2 Chronicles 16:9 New King James Version).

To have done foolishly means to be foolish or be a fool. It means to have acted without a good sense of judgment. If Asa had put his trust in God rather than in man, he would have had the entire army of Syria delivered to his hands. But he lost the opportunity.

What Hanani told King Asa was similar to what the Prophet Samuel told King Saul when he intruded into the office of a priest by offering a sacrifice to the LORD, which wasn’t his duty. “And Samuel said to Saul, ‘You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the LORD your God, which He commanded you. For now the LORD would have established your kingdom over Israel forever’” (1 Samuel 13:13 New King James Version). To have done foolishly means to be silly. It means to have done what was stupid. And that was the beginning of the end of Saul.

David also did foolishly when he conducted a census of the Israelites against all efforts by Joab to discourage him from doing so. God didn’t ordain that census. It was Satan who stood up against Israel and moved David to number Israel (1 Chronicles 21:1). David thereafter condemned his own action, describing it as very foolish. “And David’s heart condemned him after he had numbered the people. So David said to the LORD, ‘I have sinned greatly in what I have done; but now, I pray, O LORD, take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have done very foolishly’” (2 Samuel 24:10 New King James Version). 1 Chronicles 21:8 says a similar thing.

Because of that very foolish action of David, seventy thousand innocent Israelites died from the plague God sent. Proverbs 19:3, “The foolishness of a man twists his way, and his heart frets against the LORD” (New King James Version). Bible in Basic English renders the verse thus: “By his foolish behaviour a man’s ways are turned upside down, and his heart is bitter against the Lord.”

We can also learn from the error of Moses’ sister, Miriam, and his brother, Aaron, who spoke against Moses. After Miriam had become leprous, Aaron begged Moses: “Oh, my lord! Please do not lay this sin on us, in which we have done foolishly and in which we have sinned” (Numbers 12:11 New King James Version). Miriam paid dearly for her foolish action but because of God’s mercy in accepting Aaron’s plea, he was spared.

Moses was also guilty of speaking foolishly. Psalm 106:33 says, “They [the Israelites] made Moses angry, and he spoke foolishly” (New Living Translation). Moses spoke unadvisedly, recklessly, rashly, thoughtlessly, or without thinking. That foolish action of Moses abruptly terminated his forty years of glorious ministry. This time, Aaron, Moses’ brother who was Israel’s first high priest, wasn’t spared. His ministry ended too. He died at Mount Hor before Moses was called home.

David said, “O God, You know my foolishness; and my sins are not hidden from You” (Psalm 69:5 New King James Version). The children of God, especially leaders, should avoid and pray against foolish actions that can have serious repercussions on them, their families, the people and organizations they lead, their destinies, etc. This includes speaking foolishly. They should learn from Asa, Miriam, Aaron, Moses, Saul, David, and others in the Bible or others in contemporary history who acted foolishly.

Proverbs 27:22 says, “Though you grind a fool in a mortar with a pestle along with crushed grain, Yet his foolishness will not depart from him” (New King James Version). The wisdom of God, not the wisdom of the world, will deliver one from foolishness. 1 Corinthians 3:19 says, “The wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, ‘He catches the wise in their own craftiness’” (New King James Version).

You need the wisdom of God. According to Psalm 111:10, the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all those who do His commandments have a good understanding. Also, Proverbs 9:10 says that the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. The wisdom of God is in His Word. As you study and obey His Word, you receive divine wisdom and you will not act foolishly. Obedience to God’s Word will deliver you from foolishness.

Proverbs 9:6 says to forsake foolishness and live and go in the way of understanding. Ask God for divine wisdom. The Bible tells anyone who lacks wisdom to ask God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him (James 1:5). This is another way to access divine wisdom and avoid foolish actions.

 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 the palm tree and grow like the 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: Father, deliver me from foolishness; let me not continue to act foolishly. Save me from foolish actions that can make me be fighting avoidable wars or battles. Help me to always act with a good sense of judgment. I shall not replace trust in You with trust in man. Father, your Word says if I ask for wisdom, You will give it to me liberally and without reproach. Baptize me with wisdom from above. Please deliver all Your children, including those in leadership, from foolishness; help us to always act wisely 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, Cedar Ministry International, Abuja, Nigeria.
Phone No: +2348155744752, +2348033113523
WhatsApp No: +2349081295947
Email: cedarministryintl@yahoo.com,
cedarministryng@gmail.com
Website: www.cedarministry.org