Saturday, 24^th June 2023

Alex Buabeng-Korsah

TOPIC: YOU ALSO, WALK WITH GOD

THEME SCRIPTURE: “And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.” – Genesis 5:24

PREPARATORY QUESTIONS:

1.     Walking with God—what is involved?

2.     Can I walk with God also?

Adam hid from God. Cain did run from His presence. But Enoch walked with God. What will you and me do? God requires man to walk humbly with Him (Micah 6:8). How should man walk with the invisible God? An excerpt from the autobiography of Ernest Gordon may help.

Ernest Gordon, commander in one of Scotland’s finest regiments, was not a follower of Christ. During the Second Word War, he became a prisoner of war (POW). In the infamous Japanese prison camp of the River Kwai, where dead bodies were as common as empty bellies, he met Christ. He transformed, and so did the entire camp. In that same camp they started a church, orchestra, a library and more. In this excerpt from his Autobiography, the Allied prisoners of war (POW) of which Gordon was among, were on a Japanese prison train in desperate conditions. In this prison train, they come to a stop. At this stop, there were trainloads of Japanese wounded, “…on their own and without medical care”. They were in a shocking state. I have never seen men filthier. Uniforms were encrusted with mud, blood, and excrement. Their wounds, sorely inflamed and full of pus, crawled with maggots. It was apparent why the Japanese were so cruel to their prisoners. If they didn’t care a tinker’s dam for their own, why should they care for us? The wounded men looked at us forlornly as they sat with their heads resting against the carriages, waiting for death. They had been discarded as expendable, the refuse of war. These were the enemy. They were more cowed and defeated than we had ever been. Without a word most of the officers in my section unbuckled their packs, took out part of their ration and a rag or two, and, with water canteens in their hands, went over to the Japanese train. Our guards tried to prevent us, bawling, “No goodka! No goodka!” But we ignored them and knelt down by the enemy to give water and food, to clean and bind up their wounds. Grateful cries of “Aragatto!” (“Thank you!”) followed us when we left.

An Allied officer from another section of the train had been taking it all in. “What bloody fools you are!” he said to me. “Have you never heard the story of the man who was going from Jerusalem to Jericho?” I asked him. He gave me a blank look, so I continued the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-36), “But that’s different!” the officer protested angrily. “That’s in the Bible. These are the swine who have starved us and beaten us. These are our enemies.” “Who is mine enemy?” I demanded. “Isn’t he my neighbor? God makes neighbors; we make enemies. That is where we excel. Mine enemy may be anyone who threatens my privileges —or my security—or my person—as well as those poor wretches who know no better. If they don’t, we, at least, should. Whether we like it or not we are the ones who make the enemy and lose the neighbor. Mine enemy is my neighbor!” He gave me a scornful glance and, turning his back, left me to my fulminations against society. I regarded my comrades with wonder. Eighteen months ago, they would have joined readily in the destruction of our captors had they fallen into their hands. Now these same officers were dressing the enemy’s wounds. God, in finding us, had enabled us to find our brother.

Later when Gordon and his team were freed, and leaning over the rail of a Dutch ship which took him back to Britain, he said:

“The experiences we had passed through deepened our understanding of life and relations with each other. We had looked into the heart of the Eternal and found Him to be wonderfully kind.”

This is what it means to walk with God in whatever situation we find ourselves—passing on to others what God has given to you, not because they deserve it. But because you live by God’s simple equation: “Blessed to be a blessing; loved to love.” Precious One, if we say we love God and hate our brother, we lie and the truth is not in us (1 John 4:20). If God is love, then walking in love is walking with God.

 

FURTHER READING – 2 Kings 2:1-11

Call to Salvation: Today is your day if you have not received salvation by turning over your life to Jesus Christ. Click here to do so   

 

QUESTIONS TO HELP YOU MEDITATE ON THE WORD:

1.     How well is your thought, words, actions situated in the love of God?

CONFESSION

Eternal King, thank you for your love so strong and so liberating. I affirm that the love of God is shared abroad in my heart by the Holy Spirit who dwells in me. I am living in this love all my days, showing the kindness of God to all. Hallelujah!

1-Year Bible Reading Plan

1 Samuel 3; Isaiah 49; Revelation 7; Revelation 8; Revelation 9