12/12/2025
*METHODIST CHURCH NIGERIA*
DAILY REFLECTION FOR
_FRIDAY DECEMBER 12, 2025._
*THEME: _SINFUL INVITATION_*
*TEXT: _ISAIAH 8:11-22_*
¹¹ For the LORD spoke thus to me with his strong hand upon me, and warned me not to walk in the way of this people, saying:
¹² "Do not call conspiracy all that this people call conspiracy, and do not fear what they fear, nor be in dread.
¹³ But the LORD of hosts, him you shall regard as holy; let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.
¹⁴ And he will become a sanctuary, and a stone of offense, and a rock of stumbling to both houses of Israel, a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
¹⁵ And many shall stumble thereon; they shall fall and be broken; they shall be snared and taken."
¹⁶ Bind up the testimony, seal the teaching among my disciples.
¹⁷ I will wait for the LORD, who is hiding his face from the house of Jacob, and I will hope in him.
¹⁸ Behold, I and the children whom the LORD has given me are signs and portents in Israel from the LORD of hosts, who dwells on Mount Zion.
¹⁹ And when they say to you, "Consult the mediums and the wizards who chirp and mutter," should not a people consult their God? Should they consult the dead on behalf of the living?
²⁰ To the teaching and to the testimony! Surely for this word which they speak there is no dawn.
²¹ They will pass through the land, greatly distressed and hungry; and when they are hungry, they will be enraged and will curse their king and their God, and turn their faces upward;
²² and they will look to the earth, but behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish; and they will be thrust into thick darkness.
*THE MESSAGE:*
Οur text follows the prophecy about the coming destruction from the Assyrians. It includes a strong warning from the Lord to Isaiah not to follow the sins of the rest of Judah. Those who reject God's Word, however, will remain in darkness. After rejecting God's plan for them, the people of Judah would blame God for their trials. Today people still blame God for their self-induced problems.
Colossians 1:13 tells us that God "hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the Kingdom of His dear Son". In God's kingdom, we reign in His glory and righteousness. Therefore, "come out from them and be separate," says the Lord, “touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you and I will be a Father to you and you will be sons and daughters,” says the Lord Almighty.
Apostle Paul's command here in Ephesians 5:11, implies that sin is a waste of time and associated with darkness, which is opposed to the light of those living for Christ. "And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them". Generally, "to be unfruitful is an all-sufficient condemnation.
Part of God's charge to Isaiah, Judah and by extension to us today, is not to return to the lifestyle of the wicked. This is what the LORD says to me with his strong hand upon me, warning me not to follow the way of these people. People you were called out from. They walk in the way of darkness and you cannot belong to that way any longer.
Don't fear what the people fear. The life of those who are God's children is to honour the Lord and fear Him. Those who treat God as holy do not ignore His words, nor dishonor His name, or fail to trust Him.
*HYMN: MHB 319* _(7.7.7.7.7.)_
1 Weary souls that wander wide
From the central point of bliss,
Turn to Jesus crucified,
Fly to those dear wounds of His:
Sink into the cleansing flood;
Rise into the life of God.
2 Find in Christ the way of peace,
Peace unspeakable, unknown;
By His pain He gives you ease,
Life by His expiring groan:
Rise, exalted by His fall;
Find in Christ your all in all.
3 O believe the record true:
God to you His Son hath given.
Ye may now be happy too,
Find on earth the life of heaven,
Live the life of heaven above,
All the life of glorious love.
_MEMORY VERSE:_
ISAIAH 8:11.
This is what the LORD says to me with His strong hand upon me, warning me not to follow the way of this people.
*PRAYER:*
Lord, I am truly sorry for my transgressions and I ask for Your merciful forgiveness. Cleanse me from all unrighteousness and create in me a pure heart. Renew a steadfast spirit within me. I reject the ways of sin and darkness and turn wholeheartedly back to You, my Lord and Saviour. Amen.
_READ:_
DAY: Heb. 1-2
NIGHT: Heb. 3-4