DEVOTION – DAY 331

Acts 12:21-24 “Never Mock God”

Acts 12:21-24 On the appointed day Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his throne, and delivered a public address to the people. They shouted, “This is the voice of a god, not of a man.” Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died. But the word of God continued to spread and flourish.

The above incident in Acts 12:21-24 was also separately recorded by the historian Josephus. During a festival in honor of the emperor Claudius Caesar, Herod led the celebrations wearing a silver robe that was dazzling bright before the crowds of people. After his speech, the crowds praised him as a god. Being vain, Herod accepted the praise and did not deny that he was divine. Herod’s actions showed that he mocked God and he was immediately punished. An angel of the Lord struck him down. Suddenly, Herod experienced violent pains and was carried away from the celebrations. He died five days later in great pain. God punished Herod for his claim to divinity and for his persecution of the church at that time.

In Dec 8, 1980, John Lennon, one of the band members of the famous Beatles pop group left his apartment for a walk. He was shot dead by Mark David Chapman who had harbored jealousy at Lennon’s fame and lifestyle and also that Lennon had publicly claimed that he was more popular than Jesus. John Lennon had mocked God and he died, just as King Herod did. In Brazil, some years ago, in the Presidential elections, Tancredo Neves said that if he was able to garner at least 500,000 votes from his own party, even God would not be able to remove him from the position as President. During the election, Tancredo Neves secured more than 500,000 votes but a few days before he was appointed President, he died suddenly. The famous actress Marilyn Monroe was introduced to Billy Graham, the famous missionary. Billy told Marilyn he had a special message from the Lord to give to her. She replied that she did not need Jesus. A week later, Marilyn Monroe was found alone and dead from a drug overdose. These are just some of the many examples of people who show disrespect to God and they died prematurely. We must give all honor and respect to God, and not mock Him.

Let us pray: Heavenly Father, we want to say, “Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever.” Please help us to always guard our tongue to praise and honor you and never mock you. We humbly ask this in the Holy name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Questions

  1. Why do some people resort to mocking God, or to take glory from God? Discuss.
  2. Looking at the lives of King Nebuchadnezzar and Moses, what lessons did they learn from God when they made the mistake of taking glory from God? What lessons can you and I learn from their mistakes?
  3. How can you give praise and worship God this week?