Sunday Bulletin – 16 February 2025

Reverend Wilfred Lim | Feb 16, 2025

Dear worshipers of the Most High,

Do we realise the devil also offers encouragement?

Here in 1 Kings 22, the devil (through his false prophet community) wanted the prophet of God, Micaiah to “speak encouragement” to king Ahab. The king’s desire was to go to war against his enemy. All of the about 400 false prophets encouraged him to do what he had desired. Prophet Micaiah was not consulted because the king did not esteem him, “I hate him, because he does not prophesy good concerning me, but evil” (v8). True enough, through him, God warned the king that he would be defeated if he were to proceed with the war. Nevertheless, the king listened to his own heart’s desire, encouraged by the prophets. And he died in the battle, an avoidable tragedy.

This is still being played out today. In order to hook Christians into his lies and bondages, the devil is fabricating many attractive, motivating, encouraging, positive and uplifting sermons and messages. Many unsuspecting Christians just respond in chorus with “amen”, “hallelujah” and “praise the Lord” in such churches and conferences. They leave the meetings happy, but their lives remain largely unchanged. They are still the lying colleague, the angry husband, the quarrelsome wife, the foul-mouthed father, the worrisome mother, the covetous brother, the bitter sister, the wayward son, the daughter of the land… What have such encouraging sermons and messages done to our lives? Nothing but keeping the Christians in the devil’s lies and bondages.

King Ahab did not go to the prophets to seek God’s will. “He was looking for the stamp of approval to do what he had already decided to do. Thus, the truth (which he had) did not set him free. There are many “king Ahabs” today; Christians who religiously seek God but inwardly they lord over their own heart (Matthew 15:7-8). They do not yield to God’s truth and they are not willing to surrender to Him. They actively run around, heaping up teachers who will deliver what their itching ears want to hear (2 Timothy 4:3). They are deceiving (others) and being deceived (themselves, by the devil) (2 Timothy 3:13).

Beloved saints, do we truly seek God and His truth? May we learn and have the heart posture of king David when he approached the holy One – Search me, O God, and know my hear; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting (Psalms 139:23-24).

Shalom,
Rev. Wilfred Lim