KHANDIE'S KORNER - "DECEMBER 21, 2003" | |
Timely Insights into God's Word from Khandielese Reyes | |
This Weeks Message- (scripture taken from King James Version) "BETTER TO SERVE GOD, NOT MAN" Wherefore
at that time certain Chaldeans came near, and accused the Jews. They spake and said to the king Nebuchadnezzar, O
king, live for ever. Thou, O king, hast made
a decree, that every man that shall hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut,
psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, shall fall down and worship the golden
image. And whoso falleth not down and
worshipeth, that he should be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. There are certain Jews whom thou has set over the
affairs of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; these men, O king,
have not regarded thee: they serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou
has set up. Then Nebuchadnezzar in his rage
and fury commanded to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Then they brought these men before the king. Nebuchadnezzar spake and said unto them, Is it
true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden
image which I have set up? Now if ye be ready
that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and
dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the image which I have made;
well: but if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning
fiery furnace; and who is that God that shall deliver you out of myhands? Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and
said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to
deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O
king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O
king, that we WILL NOT serve thy gods, NOR worship the golden image which thou has set
up. (Dan 3:8-18) Most
every Christian knows of the story of the 3 Hebrew boys: Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego
who were tossed into the fiery furnace by king Nebuchadnezzer and yet who walked away from
what should have been a complete disaster, with not a hair on their heads singed nor
smelling of smoke! This message is preached
by many Ministers of the Gospel, as a testimony of the young mens faith in the Lord
God. But, there is an even more powerful
message in their testimony, more greater than walking out of the furnace untouched by the
flames, one that speaks a lot about their character, their dedication and Love by the
choice they made. That message is, It is Better to Serve God, NOT man. King
Nebuchadnezzar had an image of pure gold made of approximately 90 to 100 feet high, and
had commanded ALL that upon hearing the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and
psaltery, they should fall down and worship the golden image, and anyone found not doing
so would be cast into the fiery furnace. Everyone
adhered to this command with the exception of three Hebrew men of God who choose to defy
king Nebuchadnezzars decree, and continued to serve the ONE and ONLY God, The God of
Abraham, Issac and Jacob. When they were
brought before the king, they had all opportunity to make excuses to him as to why they
refused to bow the knee to his gods in hopes of their lives being spared, yet
instead they spoke boldly and fearlessly proclaiming: our God
whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us
out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it
known unto thee, O king, that we WILL NOT serve thy gods, NOR worship the golden image
which thou has set up. Even
when facing death, they REFUSED to back down declaring that it is their belief the Lord
would deliver them, but EVEN IF HE DIDNT they would NOT worship nor bow down to king
Nebuchadnezzars idol! Their dedication
to The Lord was evident by their refusal to submit to any other man made god. They honored The Lords commandments in which He
declared: Thou
shalt have none other gods before me. Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any
likeness of anything that is in the heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that
is in the waters beneath the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor
serve them: for I the lord THY God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the
fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, And
showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments
(Deut 5:7-10) and because they choose to serve GOD and submit to the commandments
of the LORD, and not man, The Lord delivered them from the fiery trial of the furnace. How
many within the Church, (The Body of Christ), would be AS dedicated as these
three were? How many if faced with even death
would choose to DIE rather than DENY The Lord? Many
would say Lord, I would die for you, I would die for my faith and yet, even
Peter spoke these words which he sincerely believed until he was tested by being placed in
that very position, thus
He fled and denied ever even knowing The Lord. Many professing believers today have
reacted in the same manner as Peter. Perhaps
in a more subtle way, but nonetheless, STILL denial.
In the midst of attempting not to offend the unbeliever, or
other faiths, some Christians have kept their Love for the Lord hidden so as
not to appear pushy, or labeled fanatical by some, rather than
share this Love with others whove as yet have not had opportunity to KNOW the
Love of Christ. But, the Lord has declared to
such: But whosoever shall deny me before men,
HIM will I ALSO DENY before my Father which is in heaven. (Matt 10:33) There
have also been many who have kept silent when they should have spoken fearing tainted
reputations, loss of job security, and loss of friends. Although their lives may have not been threatened,
perhaps jobs, reputations and friends were, thus theyve CHOSEN to remain silent of
their faith believing it to be easier to follow the dictates of man. They feel that The Lord knows the truth
thats in their hearts and he would understand if they choose not to speak of their
faith and love of him to others, for if they do, they may lose everything! But, the Lord has declared to such: If any man will come after me, let him deny
himself, and take up his cross and follow ME.
For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his
life for my sake shall find it. For what is a
man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his
soul? (Matt 16:25-26) Many have said they would not serve idols and yet they are
doing this very thing. For an idol is not
just a graven image made out of stone, wood, gold or silver, but is ANYTHING
or ANYONE that has been placed in a position ABOVE God!
This could be ones job, wealth, reputation, family, friends, and YES even a
ministry! For if there is ANYTHING in this
world that has a greater importance in the heart of a believer over the Lord, this IS an
idol! And the Lord has declared to such who
do so: He that loveth father or mother MORE
than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter MORE than me is not worthy
of me. And he that taketh NOT his cross, and
followeth after me, is not worthy of me. (Matt 10:37-38) Many
have heeded to the voice of man rather than God, and have chosen to submit to the word of
man rather than the word of God. For when God
speaks, his words are questioned, but when man speaks his words ring truth to the hearer,
and are readily received, thus they follow him. Yet,
man does not possess the ability to grant one Eternal Life. Nor, does man have the power to wash and cleanse
the sinner of all iniquity and unrighteousness. ONLY
CHRIST JESUS, possess these free gifts offered to ALL who would repent and receive. Knowing this as TRUTH, knowing who holds the key
to eternal life, knowing who freely gives unconditional love to ALL, knowing who loves us
MORE than anyone in this world, KNOWING WHO IS COMING AGAIN
It is BETTER TO SERVE GOD, NOT MAN! I
Love you all so very much. Have a blessed
week in the Lord and remember: Whatever we do, do ALL for the GLORY of GOD, who ALONE
is worthy of the GLORY and the PRAISE! The Lord be with you this day and always! Shalom Uvracha (Peace and Blessings)
.. Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh, Holy,
Holy, Holy
KhandieleseLord God Almighty Daughter & Servant of the Lord God |
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