Anglican Devotional 10 June 2023 – Worship The One True God

The Daily Fountain Devotional of the Church Of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) 10 June 2023 – Worship The One True God

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TOPIC: Worship The One True God

READ: 2 Kings 17:24-41 (KJV)

24 And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Ava, and from Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel: and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof.

25 And so it was at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they feared not the Lord: therefore the Lord sent lions among them, which slew some of them.

26 Wherefore they spake to the king of Assyria, saying, The nations which thou hast removed, and placed in the cities of Samaria, know not the manner of the God of the land: therefore he hath sent lions among them, and, behold, they slay them, because they know not the manner of the God of the land.

27 Then the king of Assyria commanded, saying, Carry thither one of the priests whom ye brought from thence; and let them go and dwell there, and let him teach them the manner of the God of the land.

28 Then one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Bethel, and taught them how they should fear the Lord.

29 Howbeit every nation made gods of their own, and put them in the houses of the high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in their cities wherein they dwelt.

30 And the men of Babylon made Succothbenoth, and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima,

31 And the Avites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burnt their children in fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim.

32 So they feared the Lord, and made unto themselves of the lowest of them priests of the high places, which sacrificed for them in the houses of the high places.

33 They feared the Lord, and served their own gods, after the manner of the nations whom they carried away from thence.

34 Unto this day they do after the former manners: they fear not the Lord, neither do they after their statutes, or after their ordinances, or after the law and commandment which the Lord commanded the children of Jacob, whom he named Israel;

35 With whom the Lord had made a covenant, and charged them, saying, Ye shall not fear other gods, nor bow yourselves to them, nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them:

36 But the Lord, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and a stretched out arm, him shall ye fear, and him shall ye worship, and to him shall ye do sacrifice.

37 And the statutes, and the ordinances, and the law, and the commandment, which he wrote for you, ye shall observe to do for evermore; and ye shall not fear other gods.

38 And the covenant that I have made with you ye shall not forget; neither shall ye fear other gods.

39 But the Lord your God ye shall fear; and he shall deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies.

40 Howbeit they did not hearken, but they did after their former manner.

41 So these nations feared the Lord, and served their graven images, both their children, and their children’s children: as did their fathers, so do they unto this day.

THE MESSAGE:

The Assyrian policy for conquering lands was to deport the conquered people from their native lands and resettle them in foreign lands. In our text today, they used the same policy on Israel and resettled the land with captives from other nations. These foreigners did not know nor fear God, they corrupted the land with their idols. God therefore sent lions to kill some of them. The King sent one of the Israelite priests to teach the foreigners how to serve the Lord. However, they continued to make and serve their own gods. God reminded the Israelites of the covenant He had made with them not to bow down to any other god and then He would deliver them from all their enemies.

God is a jealous God and does not share His glory with any other god or man (Isaiah 42:8). All God desires from His children is total obedience, springing out of love. When we walk in the path God has set for us, we shall prosper and conquer all our enemies. But when we live in rebellion and disobedience, we face the dire consequences. Joshua made a conscious decision to serve the Lord, alongside his family (Joshua 24:15). Determine today, going forward, to serve the only true God.

PRAYER: O Lord, there is no God like You, I will worship and obey You all the days of my life, in Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

The Daily Fountain Devotional of the Church Of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) provides daily scriptural readings and reflections to help individuals deepen their relationship with God. This edition for 9 June 2023 focuses on the theme of forgiveness and explores how we can receive and extend forgiveness to others as Christ did for us. Join us in this enriching journey of faith and discover the power of forgiveness in your life.