Tuesday, 15 June 2021
FOLLOW PROPHETIC INSTRUCTIONS
Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life (Proverbs 4:13).
In 2 Kings 13, we find a very interesting story concerning the Prophet Elisha and Joash, King of Israel. Joash was having trouble with the Syrians and wanted victory over them. So, he came to the man of God, Elisha. Part of their ensuing dialogue was Elisha instructing Joash to take some arrows and smite them upon the ground.
The Bible says Joash did it three times and stopped (2 Kings 13:18). Elisha, the man of God was furious (the Bible says wroth) with King Joash (2 Kings 13:19) because he stopped. He should have kept on shooting the arrows until the Prophet told him to stop. Shooting the arrows only three times meant he was only going to defeat Syria three times; whereas, God’s plan was something far better. Joash didn’t know that it mattered how many times he shot the arrows. The prophet didn’t ask him to stop, but he stopped by himself.
Here’s what I want to get across to you: Sometimes, many ignore very important things without knowing it, such as paying attention to prophetic instructions, which is part of God’s guidance for His children. A prophetic instruction is an instruction of the Spirit that’s given to you by the Spirit; it’s directed to you, for you. It could come to you directly by the Spirit of God from within you or through someone whom He’s given some leadership influence over your life.
For example, the Lord may be asking you to fast for a certain period of time, but you don’t think it’s important; so, you either didn’t fast at all or you didn’t meet the duration, and then something unpleasant happens. You may not realize that it’s connected to the instruction that you didn’t follow. Such things matter; so, don’t take them lightly. It could be some spiritual instruction from your Pastor, to you or to the congregation of which you’re a member. These are all important.
When God gives you a prophetic instruction or guidance, it’s in your interest to follow through. Your entire destiny or the next level of your success, promotion and greatness may depend on it.
PRAYER: Thank you Lord for the privilege of being guided, counselled and instructed by the Holy Spirit, and to receive your guidance through those whom you’ve chosen and placed over me to bring me your Word. Thank you for leading me in the path of greatness as I yield to, and follow the specific instructions to me from the Holy Spirit, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.
FURTHER STUDY:
Proverbs 4:13 NIV; 1 Corinthians 1:24-25; Proverbs 8:10
1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN: Acts 5:12-42 & 2 Chronicles 23-25
2 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN: Luke 1:57-66 & Deuteronomy 13