As we met to pray over our city, I brought a short Bible lesson to consider
Who did this? A mother may
ask, and all the children in a chorus say, “Not me.”
Were you ever accused of
something and it wasn’t you?
Just one look at recent headlines and you’ll see the
world is full of accusations. So many
are quick to believe the worst of what they hear.
What will you do when your friend is falsely
accused?
In the Bible we will take a
look at some who were falsely accused.
2 Kings 5: Through no fault of her own, a young Hebrew maid was taken captive and
carried to another place. There she became
a slave to Naaman’s wife. The young girl
made the best of her situation and was faithful in her duties. She bravely declared to her mistress, that if
her master would go to the prophet he would be healed. The result was Naaman was healed of his
leprosy.
Genesis 39: Joseph: As a servant, he
was falsely accused of raping the wife of his master, Potiphar. The wife held up Joseph’s coat as evidence,
and she was believed. Joseph was thrown
in prison. This was just one of many ways he suffered unjustly. However Joseph was faithful where ever he
found himself and he prospered.
Numbers 11-14 God
and Moses were blamed by the Children of Israelite for bringing them into
the wilderness to die, (they said.)
Moses protested; this job is too hard for me - -. God had him chose 70 wise, mature men and his
spirit was placed upon them. These men
now had authority to council and judge the people. Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to be in us, and
had given us authority. We must step up
and take our position where God places us.
1 Samuel 22-23 David:
Was falsely accused by King Saul (who was insecure and jealous) of trying to
dethrone him. David proved himself to
have courage and integrity and waited for God’s timing.
Job’s Job was innocent, but he was falsely accused
by his friends who believed him to be guilty of sin.
Jeremiah 37 Jeremiah was falsely accused of being a
false prophet, and was imprisoned and thrown into a cistern which is like a
dungeon.
Jesus hung on the
cross because of false accusations. As
our High Priest - - If you have ever been falsely accused, know that Jesus
sympathizes. Jesus is the one who
intercedes on our behalf to the Father.
In our city we view homeless people on the street; some
through no fault of their own, some because of wrong choices. Does God care? Is Jesus concerned about those who are cold
and hungry? Does God want something
better for them?
As we meet our citizens, we must be careful not to accuse
them. If the Holy Spirit reveals
something to you, be very cautious and use wisdom in dealing with the
situation.
We come to pray over our city, because it is God’s WILL
that no one perish. We pray for their enlightenment,
for eyes and hearts to be opened, and for God to move over our city with power.
2 comments:
You are so right about needing to pray over our cities. I just learned today that there is a new homeless city near a friend of mine. Our church has made up packets of small items like soap, shampoo, comb, brush, a gift cirtificate for mcdonalds and a few other items so we may start there on what to do. But need to pray first. Thanks Hazel for the reminder to be cautious and use wisdom.
A lot of great examples of unjust accusations. This is a good reminder to seek grace for others before justice. We all need grace.
Post a Comment