Consider the work of God: for who can make that straight, which he hath made crooked?In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider: God also hath set the one over against the other, to the end that man should find nothing after him. Ecclesiastes 7: 13-14.
The creations and the atmospherical were perfectly good from the commencement of time until the very day and moment the first parents ate the forbiden fruit of knowledge of good and evil to discover the sadness and the evil of disobeying God. From the beginning, God has generously given us life to enjoy, but man made life unstable for himself, not by God’s will, but by man’s own choice from the Garden of Eden.
The days of adversity was man’s evil choice for himself against the days of prosperity given freely from God. The days of adversity on earth was indirectly from Satan, the adversary of man. God established days of adversity as part of the judgement against man having listened to the suggestions of Satan that he will become like God. But, if he has indeed become as God in power, he should be able to determined for himself not to see evil after knowing evil and good like God. Genesis 3:22.
Commit your ways into the hands of God, let him be your guide and counselor through prayers and his truth – the word. The choices you make daily shape your life with positive rewards or negative consequence of regrets. In accordance to choice made by man, the eternal law of sowing and reaping to manifest the days of adversity was activated. In the word was life, but whenever we sow or act against the word of God, death, instead of life will be at work. So, man instantly died spiritually after disobeying God, alienated from the life of God, while physical death was later pronounced against him that nothing will last forever on earth after the fall: thereby, eternity is set before all, righteous or sinner, good or bad, to the end that man should find nothing after him here on earth. Ecclesiastes 3:11.
After the fall, every day and year shall never be the same on earth for anyone again. But by the grace of God in Christ Jesus, the redeemed of the Lord who are spiritually broken, are made to weather any storm of life victoriously, they’ve been taught and prepared by God against the days of adversity – blessed is the man whom thou chastenest, O Lord, and teachest him out of thy law; that thou mayest give him rest from the days of adversity, until the pit be digged for the wicked. Psalms 94: 12-13.
Not like king David which failed and fell in the days of prsoperity, at the times the king goes for battle, he chose to stay back at home to relax and enjoy himself, but he sin and fall in the matter of Uriah and Bathsheba. In the days of prosperity, the spiritually broken believers are expected to (a) enjoy the dew of heavenly blessings which enriches man without sorrow (b) without breaking the rule of godliness which is profitable in all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come. 1 Timothy 4:8.
And, though, man should find nothing after him on earth; naked as he come, naked shall he go, but the righteous knows that they have an inheeritance incorruptible, reserved in heaven for them: this is the reason they continue laying up in store for themselves in heaven, a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life. Good days or bad, plenty or want, surplus or needy, physically strong or weak, healthy or sick, the spiritually broken believers are able to do all things, to adjust themselves, to cope with life in Christ Jesus without murmuring or compromises, to adapt to any situation, through Christ which gives them strenght. Philippians 4:13.
The spiritually broken Christians are able to see God’s will and purposes in any event of life from divine perspective. They know that nothing can happened, if God permitted it not for a reason, whatever reason best known to him. They don’t question oe challenge divine wisdom, but they submmit to divine providence while they commit themselves to his care – but he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. My foot hath held his steps, his way have I kept, and not declined. Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food. But he is in one mind, and who can turn him? and what his soul desireth, even that he doeth. For he performeth the thing that is appointed for me: and many such things are with him. Therefore am I troubled at his presence: when I consider, I am afraid of him. Job 23:10-15.
As when the adversary lied and deceived man that everything should turn around him or be about him in the Garden; now in Christ Jesus, either of the days, prosperity or adversity, everything should turn around God or everything should be about him – it’s not about us.
But, if we are not submissive to the will of God in whatever day is presented before us – prosperity or adversity, the evil days here on earth are nothing in comparison to the sorrowful eternal sojourning awaiting the unrepentant sinners and backsliders after death: it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God – remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them. Ecclesiastes 12:1-3.
Therefore, let us chose to live in the present for eternity which God has set before us in Christ Jesus, for our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal. 2 Corinthians 4:18-19.
Sometimes in life, bad things inexplicable happens to good and rightoeus man according to the work of the wicked (Ecclesiastes 8:14): but let none of the beloved brethren in the Lord fear the days of adversity on earth, the Lord will turn those days and period into days of memorable testimonies of faith on earth for them, if they will fully trust in his word that all things – good or bad, shall work together for their good – if they love God – if they are called according to his will.
In comparison to the days of prosperity, day of adversity is never a good thing. It is bad-luck, misfortune, loss, harship, distress, difficulty, opposition, sorrow, defeat, etc days of adversities are never days of good things happeneing to us, but God knows out soul in adversity, afflicted in all our afflcitions, and the angels of his presence will saves us (Isaiah 63:9): I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy: for thou hast considered my trouble; thou hast known my soul in adversities; and hast not shut me up into the hand of the enemy: thou hast set my feet in a large room. Psalms 31-7-8.
Here is a short summary of the book of Ruth when Naomi went down to the land of the Moabites with her husband to enjoy prosperity of the land because of the draught in the land of Bethlehem Judah. Unfortunately, she lost her husband and her two grown up sons in the foreign land, thus her days of adversity was set in in the midst of the prosperity of the land where she went to sojourned for a better life. Afterwards, she heard that God had visited her natal land, and she decided to go back home, though empty handed, having lost her husband and two adults married sons. But the seasons of prosperity and adversity in the life of Naomi was to send Ruth, her daughter in law, to the people and place where her destiny should be fulfilled in God. Despite that Ruth had lost her husband, one of the sons of Naomi, she decided to cleave and hold fast to the God of Israel in her days of adversity, chose to follow after Naomi back to Bethlehem Judah for the continuation to serve true and the living God known through her marriage to the Jewish family.
Wasn’t God indeed known our souls in adversity? Ruth was rewarded for her love and devotion to God by the gift of marriage to an honourable man, Boaz – Naomi’s latter end was blessed by God because her daughter in law – Ruth which loveth her, which is better to her than seven sons, hath born him a grand son, the lineage from which our Lord Jesus Christ came into world.
In this world, while some are in prosperity, others are in adversity. Some laugh while some cry. The same persons at one time are in great prosperity; and at another time in great adversity. One event prosperous and another bitter experience may occur to the same person at the same time. Both are permissible on earth since the fall in the Garden of Eden and God has set the one over against the other – in the day of prosperity, rejoice! But in the day of adversity, consider! For God made one in place of another so that mortals cannot find out what will happen in the future. While some wise people thinks and reflects on their life to get things right with God in the days of adversity, many hardens and refused to be broken, instead, they acts like the wife of Job, ready and willing to curse God and die, or totally forsake God for another god, to multiply their sorrows – because to every purpose there is time and judgment, therefore the misery of man is great upon him. For he knoweth not that which shall be: for who can tell him when it shall be? Ecclesiastes 8:6.
In prosperity, the virtue of moderation empower to prepare us against unforsee days of adversity, so that in prosperity we may rejoice as though we rejoiced not, and in adversity, may weep as though we wept not. Though it seems we’re in an unpleasant season, we seems not to be moved by it because God does not change, neither have we changed for the worst in the days of adversity. Whatever happen or change, we have not changed, nothing has changed in us, we can live to face tommorrow because our God live and reigns over all things, beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, our joy in adversity and prosperity – my soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defense; I shall not be moved. In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God. Psalms 62:5-8.
The text before us remind to warn us to consider the work of God from any false attempt to manipulate spiritual events which has been deternimed by God. Who can make straight, which he has made crooked? Some believers are foolishly and spiritually inquisitive for unduly inquiring into those things which are not given or revealed to them from God. Was this not the beginning of the problem of human race enmity with God and destruction before him, when Adam and Eve determined to know evil and were certainly caught up and devoured by the evil suggested by Satan and accepted by them? Genesis 3:4-5.
As Adam and Eve listened to the voice of Satan, likewise are some believers consulting the horoscopes, tarot reading or they consult false and deceitful prophets and prophetess and those with familiar spirits to be deceived and defiled by them in their quest and curiosity to know the unknown not revealed by God to them. They want to know tomorrow and what the future holds for them, but how many are the failed revelations, prophecies and false instructions about tomorrow – then I beheld all the work of God, that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because though a man labour to seek it out, yet he shall not find it; yea farther; though a wise man think to know it, yet shall he not be able to find it. Ecclesiates 8:17.
Adversity can come to us in two forms or for two reasons: (a) for correction for sin like in Adam in the fall – Eli and his two sons which died on the same day for their sins, – and in David’s case, for his adultrous and murderous sin – remove thy stroke away from me: I am consumed by the blow of thine hand. When thou with rebukes dost correct man for iniquity, thou makest his beauty to consume away like a moth: surely every man is vanity. Psalms; 39:10-11: (b) second, sent not for correct for sin, but all of a sudeen, troubles could happens unexpectedly as the trial of faith like it happened to Job, saying, when I looked for good, then evil came unto me: and when I waited for light, there came darkness. My bowels boiled, and rested not: the days of affliction prevented me. I went mourning without the sun: I stood up, and I cried in the congregation (Job 30:26-28): although affliction cometh not forth of the dust, neither doth trouble spring out of the ground; yet man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward. The book of Job 5: 6-7.
Though the upright in heart shall be delivered from all troubles, but walking uprightly does not spare or keep any of the saints away from the troubles of life – though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou wilt revive me: thou shalt stretch forth thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies, and thy right hand shall save me. Psalms 138:7-8.
Those keeping and maintaining intimacy with God, though might have troubles, but are in a priviledge position by the Spirit of God in order to be made aware for preparation before it befalls them to prepare them for it – And now, behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there: save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me. But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God. Acts 20:21-24.
Without hearing from God, some foolish brethren acts with Satan to persecute you, always at rush to judge and counsel you to repent for the sin you knows nothing about, just because they see or found you in different problems – count it all joy when you fall into divers temptations.
The days of adversity shows our true character, the strength of it, the pretentious or the true love in relations to God and man. The problems we might face today or tomorrow is not the failure of purpose, but challenges and obstacles that are meant to drive us to the fulfilment of our purposes in life – if you fail in the days of adversity, your strenght is small. Proverbs 24:10. Let us earnestly ask and beg God for grace to make us stronger than the problems that want to drag us down, so that we can endure till the end. We should prepare our heart for the good and the worst on earth, nothing is assured, anything can happen at any time on earth, but our safety and deliverance is assured, if we shall possess our soul in patience, though there shall be many afflictions, the Lord will deliver us from them all – but we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us. We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. For we which live are always delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh. 2 Corinthians 4:7-11.
God blesses his children, but true spiritual growth and maturity is not based or judged by what you have ior don’ t have. In the sight of God, the life of man consisnt not in the abundance of the things he possess – that’s the false spirituality of the prosperity Christians and false preachers of prosperity. Today, many churches are in a deplorable state, everything about the majority in them is about money, prosperity and giving. Some believers will even go the extent to borrow money to give to the church, which is biblically wrong, for if there is first a willing mind, it is accepted according to what one has, and not according to what he does not have. 2 Corinthians 8:12.
Man is born unto troubles, though in Christ Jesus he maketh sore, and bindeth up: he woundeth, and his hands make whole. He shall deliver thee in six troubles: yea, in seven there shall no evil touch thee. In famine he shall redeem thee from death: and in war from the power of the sword. Thou shalt be hid from the scourge of the tongue: neither shalt thou be afraid of destruction when it cometh. At destruction and famine thou shalt laugh: neither shalt thou be afraid of the beasts of the earth. The book of Job 5:18-22.
Sadly to say, many believers are only taught that the way to heaven shall be all fun to the end. They don’t know that sometimes, the Son of man may not have someplace to hide his head, though he has all things in possession. They know nothing about the afflictions of the gospel – the days of adversity, except the false prosperity and Christ of all pleasure which was preached unto them by false teachers and apostles. 2 Corinthians 11:4. Though Jacob shall be saved out of his troubles, but some brethren were never been taught about the days of Jacob’s troubles in the kingdom (Jeremiah 30:6-8), – to be prepared for troubles and earthly dissapointments because of the gosple. This is the reason many falls away and are offended in Christ when affliction and persecution arises because of the word. Mark 4:17.
It is because there is a night and day season of time, that make weeping to endure till night, but joy will always come in the morning, there will be light at the end of tunnel. When men says it is all over, concluded the situation is irreparable, then shall the Lord do a new thing, bring you into a new season, to put a new song in your mouth – I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord. Psalms 40: 1-3.
Many believers failed while waiting because they will not wait enough as long as ot takes God to end his own waiting in them according to the time previewed for a change of season – therefore the Lord will wait, that He may be gracious to you; and therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for Him. Isaiah 30:18-19. Those that are afflicted should pray and wait patiently (James 5:13), for the Lord will make them glad again according to the days they’ve been afflicted, and according to the years their eyes have seen evil – O satisfy us early with thy mercy; that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. Make us glad according to the days wherein thou hast afflicted us, and the years wherein we have seen evil. Psalms 90-14-15.
In the days of adversity of the Psalmist, consider the two pains he goes through in his horrible pit experience before the Lord’s intervention. First was the pain of mockery, when many says there is no help of God for him: the shameful treatments he endured in the miry clay situation. The second was his waiting, the patience before the Lord in spite of his sufferings.
Waiting is sweet when we know how long it’s going to take for God to intervene; but the problem is that the expiration of our waiting time is kept secret to God that we may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing (James 1:4): be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities are overpast. I will cry unto God most high; unto God that performeth all things for me. He shall send from heaven, and save me from the reproach of him that would swallow me up. God shall send forth his mercy and his truth. Psalms 57:1-3.
The day of adversity is here on earth, the days of intense and strange trials, persecutions and troubles for the saints; but as our troubles increases in Christ, so his consolation and comfort for us also abounds by him – be of good cheer, our Lord has overcome the world. The Lord has also gone through the days of adversity for you on earth, rejected and despised by men, while should you withdraw back on the days of adversity in the Lord? But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man. For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. Hebrews 2: 9-10.
In the day of prosperity and adversity, God is always good. Learn to speak well of him at all times, not allowing adversity to redfine you or change your word, but to recreate your world and situation by good and positive confessions of his word, assuring the time of your change while going through the day of adversity – and it was so, that after the LORD had spoken these words unto Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, my wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends: for ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job hath. Job 42;7. The way to eternal crown and glory is combative, full of challenges. While none is excluded, we can be sure that our trials and adversities shall be according to the measure of our faith. The believer’s in Christ Jesus are predestined from eternity before the foundation of the world to be saved and programmed to undergo trials of different kinds and in different ways and times in life, but the Lord is faithful, who shall establish you, and keep you from evil. 2 Thessalonians 3:3. No matter what, a true friend and brother will be there for you in the days of adversity. Proverbs 17:17.
When men are in trouble, they tend to be spiritually, mentally and physically stressed up by the unexpected reactions from others (to him who is afflicted, kindness should be shown by his friend. Job 6:14), though the spiritually broken Christians will not be quick-sighted or quick-scented in apprehending and resenting affronts, but to wink at many of the injuries that are done to them by others, and act as if they did not see them – take no heed to all the words that are spoken. For oftentimes also thine own heart knoweth that thou thyself likewise hast cursed others. Ecclesiastes 7:21-22. Therefore should we not solicitous or inquisitive to know what people say of us, if they speak well, it might feed our pride; if otherwise, it may as well stir upon our passion. What is that we occupied ourself with, that which has nothing as to how the Lord sees us or what he says of us? Are not the reproaches of him that reproached us not fall on him? Romans 15:3.
Whatever the cause or causeless of your adversity, you should not allow it to vex you, nor be vexed by men’s irritating and annoying reflection on you, or their assumption of you. How do you live and walk in your days of adversity –troubles? How do you handle your problems? He that handleth a matter wisely shall find good: and whoso trusteth in the Lord, happy is he. Proverbs 16:20.
Wealth attracts many friends, in the days of prosperity, you’ll have many people around you (Proverbs 19:4), but it is in those days of adversity, you will really know who is for you or is against you, by what they say, how they say it, and how they stand by you, and you were been treated respectfully, arrogantly or conptemptuous because of what you are going through – but now they that are younger than I have me in derision, whose fathers I would have disdained to have set with the dogs of my flock. The book of Job 30:1.
Your rejoicing should be the testimony of your conscience in godly sincerity, while your sole objective should be the answer of a good conscience which is void of offense towards God and man in the days of your adversity. If you have committed sin, confess and forsake them, that you might obtain mercy for your tranquillity – if iniquity be in thine hand, put it far away, and let not wickedness dwell in thy tabernacles. For then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot; yea, thou shalt be stedfast, and shalt not fear: because thou shalt forget thy misery, and remember it as waters that pass away: and thine age shall be clearer than the noonday: thou shalt shine forth, thou shalt be as the morning. And thou shalt be secure, because there is hope; yea, thou shalt dig about thee, and thou shalt take thy rest in safety. Also thou shalt lie down, and none shall make thee afraid; yea, many shall make suit unto thee. But the eyes of the wicked shall fail, and they shall not escape, and their hope shall be as the giving up of the ghost. The book of Job 16:14-20.