Tuesday 9 Nov 2021

November 9: Isaiah 5:22-25
 
Key Verse: Isaiah 5:22
Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine and champions at mixing drinks,
 
Devotion:
These are a few of the warnings which go out to people who are depending on their own strengths and powers and using them against others in one way or another. I’m sure we can all relate to this through mankind's recent history where we can see how the smoking of cigarettes is now frowned upon as opposed to being the latest fad during the sixties and seventies.
 
The people in charge of those commodities knew the risks but chose to ignore them because so many people were buying into their products. We are now facing the dangers of over-drinking once again; long gone the days of prohibition! People choose to ignore the dangers because of the profit they were gaining even though it was at the expense of other people's lives.
 
The same can be said about the things which take us away from God. Too many things are much greater temptations to us and many are ignoring the dangers of these temptations simply because they can gain from the supply chain in one way or another. I like the way the prophet likens this to the flames of a bush fire.
 
If you have seen a bush fire roaring away in real life, then you will know how easily everything surrounding it gets consumed by the flames in seconds. This is like the temptations which take us away from the gospel and separate us from God. They do spread quickly and uncontrollably because they are temptations! God sees every step of this happening and it upsets Him to know people are being carried away by things outside of their control.
 
Points to Ponder:
Do you stoke the fires against God?
 
Will you try to reverse the course of the temptations surrounding you?