Where are God’s challengers?

PRIDE, they say, goes before a fall. And God hates pride. James 4v6 says, “…Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble.” God who lifts people up is the same God that brings people down. He resists the proud but gives grace to the humble hence He will not tolerate a proud look and heart. God created everything, both visible and invisible, and no creature can challenge his/her creator, whosoever does that, lacks knowledge and desires death because you cannot challenge God and live. The theory of evolution of man from ape as propounded by some scientists, does not hold water because the proponents of that theory have not answered satisfactorily how ape came into existence prior to man evolving from it. God created man including animals and power to do all things belongs to Him, hence, man who has nothing except given to him by God does not have the capacity to challenge God.

When a mortal man despises and intimidates or even kills people of God, the person is directly or indirectly challenging God. Whoever does that ends up in a miserable and pitiable manner.

In the lead scripture, the Egyptians led by their king, Pharaoh were maltreating the Israelites in their land. The people cried unto God and He intervened by sending Moses and Aaron to demand for the release of His people from serving the Egyptians. Unfortunately, Pharaoh in his arrogant and fearless manner replied that he did not know God, as a result, would not release the Israelites. God visited the Egyptians with different plaques, culminating in the death of every first-born son of every family in Egypt. It proved to Pharaoh that God owns every man’s life on earth and can take it when He so desires. The Bible, therefore, reveals the end of Pharaoh and his army in Exodus 14:26-28 saying, “And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the sea, that the waters may come again upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen. 27: And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled against it; and the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. 28: And the waters returned, and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, and all the host of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them; there remained not so much as one of them. 29: But the children of Israel walked upon dry land in the midst of the sea; and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.30: Thus the Lord saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the sea shore.”

Egyptians pursued the Israelites after Pharaoh granted them the permission to go, but unfortunately, they ended up being drowned in the Red Sea. The Almighty God with eagle’s wings saved Israelites from the hands of the Egyptians. The word ‘saved’ is a translation of the Hebrew word yasha the origin of the name Joshua, which in turn is an abbreviation of Jehoshua meaning Jehovah saves. Joshua is the Hebrew form of Jesus. Our Lord was named Jesus because He shall save the people of the world from their sins (Matt 1v21). And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus; for he shall save his people from their sins). The divine deliverance to which this verse refers is a remarkable illustration of the redemption provided by our Lord Jesus Christ. The Israelites were saved both from the hands of the Egyptians and from being drowned in the Red Sea. On the contrary, the Egyptians and their Pharaoh who in his arrogance challenged God, all perished in the sea.

It is likely, the Israelites would have left Egypt quietly and peacefully if not that Pharaoh subjected them to forced labour, killing their new born males, and taking their women for marriage without due traditional process. When God sent Moses to demand for their release he declared he did not know God and would not let Israel go. The challenge he threw to God resulted into his destruction.

Again, King Sennacherib of Assyria proudly told the messengers of King Hezekiah of Israel that their God would not be able to deliver them from his hands. He sent a letter to King Hezekiah boasting how his formidable army has destroyed other nations, the gods of those kingdoms could not save them from his invasion. He demanded tributes from Israel or he would invade them. King Hezekiah had faith in God, believing strongly that God will never forsake His people and allow them to be put to shame. He pointed out that the nations King Sennacherib destroyed served man-made gods that has no power. After the prayers he got a message from God through Prophet Isaiah that Sennacherib will not enter the city, rather, he will go the same way he came and his own hands will destroy him. The word of God was made manifest in 2Kings 19:32-37 declaring thus, “Therefore, thus saith the Lord concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with shield, nor cast a bank against it. 33: By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and shall not come into this city, saith the Lord. 34: For I will defend this city, to save it, for mine own sake, and for my servant David’s sake. 35: And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the Lord went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses. 36: So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh. 37: And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword: and they escaped into the land of Armenia. And Esar-haddon his son reigned in his stead.”

God fought the battle for King Hezekiah and his people, Israel by mysteriously killing all the soldiers that camped in readiness of attacking the Israelites. King Sennacherib ran back to Nineveh. In order to prove to him his own god has no power his two sons came where he was worshipping his god and killed him. This is indeed a shameful death. God has proved to him that his life could be taken any time the owner and creator desired and the same Almighty God can deliver who He wants to save.

King Herod of Israel was foolish enough to think that only his lineage has the right to be kings in Israel and saviour of the world must come from his family tree. When Jesus Christ was born, the wise men came and inquired from him where the messiah was born. He searched from his family and none of his wives gave birth to a baby boy. He planned to kill the baby but the wise men did not come back to him. In attempt to kill Jesus, he murdered all children born within two years and below. He challenged God’s decision of where the messiah should come from.

Again, he wanted to stop the spreading of the gospel by persecuting the disciples of Jesus Christ. He killed James and put Apostle Peter in detention pending the time he will kill him. God miraculously released Peter from the prison. He wanted to take the glory meant for God but he was visited in a negative way. The Bible reports his mysterious death in Acts 12:20-24 saying, “And Herod was highly displeased with them of Tyre and Sidon: but they came with one accord to him, and, having made Blastus the king’s chamberlain their friend, desired peace; because their country was nourished by the king’s country. 21: And upon a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat upon his throne, and made an oration unto them. 22: And the people gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man. 23: And immediately, the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost. 24: But the word of God grew and multiplied.”

King Herod died a mysterious death after challenging God’s people by trying to stop the spread of the gospel.
In his own case, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon arrogated himself to the level of gods that he made a golden image of himself and commanded all the people under his watch to worship it. The Almighty God brought him to the level of animal by driving him into the bush to live with beasts for one year. He was eating grass until he humbled himself to realise that the Almighty God rules in the kingdom of men. His son, Belshazzar who succeeded him as king, in his pomposity and power drunken state took the golden and silver vessels his father brought from the temple of Jerusalem and started drinking from them alongside his wives and concubines. He became troubled in mind on seeing a strange handwriting on the wall, Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin. The interpretation given by Prophet Daniel revealed Mene means, God has numbered his kingdom and finished it, Tekel that he, king Belshazzar has been weighed in the balance and found wanting, Upharsin (Peres) the kingdom has been divided and given to Medes and Persians. He was slain that same night. That had been the end of people who challenged God in the past. It will be the same fate for whoever that challenges God in the present day. Forces, which afflict the people of God will all perish. Whoever challenges God does that out of ignorance but the person must suffer for it. People who are angry hearing the gospel will face the judgment of God. The same fate is applicable to them who kill and maim people who serve the living God, telling them they can do nothing. The judgment of God is coming for every action against God and His people.

How God Frustrated Plans Of Enemies Against Me

MY name is Sister Chinyere Nwabuo. I joined the Lord’s Chosen in 2007 and l thank God for making me a member. On March 15, Tuesday to be precise, I was in my shop when a group of people entered with police.

They said that they came from NAFDAC and that someone reported me to them, based on that they came to do their job. They advised that the next day being Wednesday, I should report at their office. Along the line, the chairman of the market came; he told me that I should pick whatever is important to me in the shop because they are going to seal it. So, I picked up my invoice and other things and they locked the shop, put their key and sealed it. This matter lasted for three weeks.

The following day, Wednesday, my husband and I went to their office with chairman of the market. As we entered the office of the man, who is in charge, with that invoice and product, he asked if I knew about it and I said yes. The man said that someone brought it to them and I told him that I was there when this person came to buy the product but I didn’t have them. So, I searched for the products in the market and got them for him. I was not the original owner of the products. He told me to go and make statement, after the statement, they asked us to go and come back the following day. When we came the next day, they told me that I should bring the person that produced the products. I replied, how could I bring the person that produced the products? I did not know the producer, the case continued until I sent a message to our G.O, and explained my predicament to him.

On the last Sunday of March during our combined service, our G.O, in the course of his prayers, made a declaration, saying, “you, that they locked your shop and they are laughing at you, I give the people that locked the shop from now till Friday to open the shop, if they fail, whatever happens to them, they should take it.

On Monday, my husband and l, went to NAFDAC office and we got there before the chairman arrived. We went straight to the office of the man in charge. Immediately, he saw us, he said we should to go and write a letter requesting for the shop to be reopened.

After submitting the letter, NAFDAC gave us their men to accompany us to the market to reopen the shop. There was even rumour that it would cost us about N500, 000 before it could be reopened. But to the glory of God, we paid nothing. Praise the Lord!

However, I promised God that if He intervened and they opened my shop without collecting kobo, I would give him a little token, which I brought today to appreciate Him. Praise the Lord! 

My second testimony is that I woke up one early morning and found out that my left leg was paining me severely. As we came to the last Sunday service, our G.O mentioned the case, and I thanked God that after the service the pain disappeared. Praise the Lord!