SEEK NOT BETHEL, BUT GOD

SUNDAY, 19TH NOVEMBER, 2023

Author: PASTOR DR. SAMUEL AYORINDE – General Overseer

Topic: SEEK NOT BETHEL, BUT GOD

MEMORIZE: “But seek not Bethel, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beersheba: for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nought.” Amos 5:5.

SCRIPTURE READING: 1 Kings 12:26-30.

“And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David: If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah. Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan. And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan.” 

EXPOSITION:

Bethel, which mean “the house of God” was named by Jacob, for there the Lord met him when he was running away from his angry brother, Esau. There he slept, using a stone as pillow… “And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.” Genesis 28:12-15. 

Bethel was initially having good reference as a place where God dwells. For example, At Bethel, God appeared unto Jacob and transferred His covenant for Abraham and Isaac to him. He also promised him his presence and back up. It is written, “And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not. And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven. And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it. And he called the name of that place Bethel: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first. And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, 21 So that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the LORD be my God.” Genesis 28:16-21. Twenty years later, the Lord appeared to Jacob again and instructed him to return back to Bethel where He vowed to build the altar unto God – Genesis 31:13; 35:1-7.

At a time, the iniquities of the children of Israel pollute it and the presence of God departed from there. During the divided kingdom under King Jeroboam, son of Nebat, he forbad his subjects to go to Jerusalem to pray to the living God. He then “took counsel and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan. And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan.”  Since then, Bethel had become the high place where they sacrifice unto baal. Anyone that went there did not go to serve the living God but baal. Therefore, God detest it and vowed to destroy it.

Thereafter, the order of God was: Seek ye Me, but seek not Bethel… “For thus saith the LORD unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live: 5 But seek not Bethel, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beersheba: for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nought. 6 Seek the LORD, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none to quench it in Bethel.” Amos 5:4-6.

Dear reader, what are you building in your relationship with God? Can you remember your beginning, how you started well? You were so pleasing to the Lord. You feared God and Love to be with Him always. Adam enjoyed the same when he started with God in the Garden of Eden until iniquity destroyed his relationship with God. He was therefore chased out of Eden, the garden of God. Why did you desert your Jerusalem and built strange doctrine in your heart, your home and your church? No one could question you because you think you own your life. Today, God is still saying, But seek not Bethel, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beersheba: for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nought. Seek the LORD, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none to quench it in Bethel.” Amos 5:5-6. Bethel may look religious, but it is contaminated. God is no longer there. Repent and desist from whatever you are doing that is not giving God the glory.

PRAYER: Lord, have mercy on us and forgive us where we are seeking men and buildings instead of you, God. Lord, save us and restore us back to yourself in Jesus name. 

DAILY BIBLE READING IN A YEAR –  Acts 10 - 12.

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ANCHOR OF LIFE is the daily devotional guide written by PASTOR DR. SAMUEL AYORINDE, General Overseer, Anchor of Life & Redemption Ministry Int’l. It is an extraction of God’s word designed to draw the sincere seekers closer to God on a daily basis through an insightful exposition and analysis of God’s Word. 

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