“A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing” Devotional #26

 

            Have you heard, “be careful for the wolf in sheep’s clothing.”  Meaning that the way a person presents themselves may not necessarily be who they really are and in so doing may be harming you or someone you love in some way, either physically, emotionally or financially.  I have been taken advantage of as I’m sure many of you, my dear friends have too. 

            There’s this one time about four years ago that I was deceived by a “wolf in sheep’s clothing.”  My husband and I were presented with a business opportunity that was supposedly only new to our area but up and coming in the United States.  The person sharing this business opportunity with us presented himself to be a Christian.  He spoke and acted like a Christian.  We asked questions and felt comfortable working with this Christian and agreed to invest and share in this new endeavor.  It was not until my husband and I invested time and money that the truth came out.  He was not a Christian and the opportunity that was presented was not much of an opportunity. 

Success that would be long lasting with this “opportunity” was next to impossible.  Here’s the thing my dear friends.  We prayed about this decision before getting involved but, it was a one sided prayer, meaning that we had already made the decision before consulting with the Lord.  Three months into this very busy but unproductive endeavor the truth came to light.  There’s a story in the Bible that is found in the book of Joshua that has to do with deception. 

With the Lords blessing Joshua and the rest of the people of Israel were in the middle of a long war against the nations in Canaan that comprised “the Promised Land.”  They had already defeated several nations and the biggest battle they had won was against the nation of Jericho.  The Lord had made it clear to the Israelites that they could not make any treaties with anyone from the land of Canaan.  In Exodus 23:32 the Lord’s instructions were, ‘“Don’t make any deals with them or their gods. They are not to stay in the same country with you lest they get you to sin by worshiping their gods. Beware. That’s a huge danger.” (MSG)  The reason why?  Numbers 33:55, “But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land, those that are left will be as troublesome as splinters in your eyes and thorns in your sides, and they will fight against you.” (GNT) 

Joshua 9:3, “The people of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai and cooked up a ruse. They posed as travelers: their donkeys loaded with patched sacks and mended wineskins, threadbare sandals on their feet, tattered clothes on their bodies, nothing but dry crusts and crumbs for food. They came to Joshua at Gilgal and spoke to the men of Israel, “We’ve come from a far-off country; make a covenant with us.”’ (MSG)  Joshua and his advisors asked key questions to verify if their story was true.  They asked where they were from.  They checked their bags and saw the molded bread and dried out wineskins.  They also saw the worn out clothes and sandals.  Due to the information given to them they believed these men were telling the truth. 

Joshua 9:14-15, “The men of Israel looked them over and accepted the evidence. But they didn’t ask God about it.  So Joshua made peace with them and formalized it with a covenant to guarantee their lives. The leaders of the congregation swore to it.”  (MSG)  When did they find out the truth?  Joshua 9:16, “And it came to pass at the end of three days after they had made a covenant with them, that they heard that they were their neighbors, and that they dwelt among them.” (ASV)

When the people of Israel found out about what happened they “grumbled” against the leaders but by then there was nothing that could be done about it.  Joshua 9:19-20, “The leaders were united in their response to the congregation: “We promised them in the presence of the God of Israel. We can’t lay a hand on them now. But we can do this: We will let them live so we don’t get blamed for breaking our promise.” Then the leaders continued, “We’ll let them live, but they will be woodcutters and water carriers for the entire congregation.”  And that’s what happened; the leaders’ promise was kept. (MSG)

There were consequences for this mistake.  They not only had to let them live they also had to defend them from five Amorite kings and their respective nations that joined forces to fight against Gibeon, an important city in that region (Joshua 10).  A very important lesson can be learned from Joshua’s experience.  It is important to go to the Lord with all kinds of requests so that His leading will guide us.  With the Lord as our guide who can take advantage of us?  Even a “wolf in sheep’s clothing” can’t deceive us with the Lord as our guide.     

 

My dear friend, thank you for taking the time to visit my blog and read this devotional.  I’d love to read your thoughts in the comments below about this devotional or any of the others that I have written so far.  Also, would you be so kind as to pass this blog on to your friends and family?  I appreciate you and am constantly praying for you.  

*If you would like to read this same devotional in Spanish or know of someone that would please visit my Spanish blog at www.ministerioreflejandolaverdad.blogspot.com