Line upon line, precept upon precept

… by Dare John

Beloved, have you been in a situation or position where you felt you have stayed too long, or you are just stuck in between and what comes to mind is, you are suffering from stagnation syndrome? Any witness in the house?

Your typical line of thought goes thus, “Imagine you and Kola got employed almost at the same time but he is the only one being allowed to work on the field and enjoy the perks of working on the field while you are just stuck in the office eating file. Despite this, you are the one Kola come to for solutions whenever he runs into issues at work, and you are like:  “Baba God wetin dey occur? I have done everything expected of me as your child, yet I’m stuck here.”  

Immediately God responded to your petition by saying, “I love you too much to leave you hanging. My plans for you are greater than what you are going through now, and this is just a training ground.”

But your ears are clogged, and your heart is too occupied with the thought of how perfect you are. Your eyes opened but not able to discern his plans for you. This situation can be likened to you having a bungalow plan but in the real sense, God’s plans for you are that of a mansion. Your supposed best plan is a stepping stone to the fulfilment of a greater plan for you, but you are oblivious to the principle of line upon lines, precept upon precept. God has never been involved in an uncompleted project. You need to be grounded in all areas before His grand plan(s) for you will fully manifest.

Let’s take a brief look into the lives of a few bible characters that exemplified this principle.

1. JOSEPH

Joseph was a man who from a young age, was revealed that he would be a great man. At some point in time, the future looked bleak because the supposed great man was sold into slavery. But he didn’t give up. He understood his situation served as a training ground for the important role of a prime minister he would later take on. As a head servant, he served faithfully (Gen. 39:4). To most people without discernment, that would have seemed like destiny fulfilment but Joseph understood that was not his final destination even in the face of temptation which would have made him remain a chief servant. His fear of God and discernment that his current position was not God’s best for him made him refuse the advances of Potiphar’s wife which to an average human would have been an opportunity to gain more power and seal his position in the household.  He refused and suffered what most people will refer to as a major setback.  

Again, the ways of men are not the ways of God (Isaiah 55:8-9). His time in jail served as the final phase that prepped Joseph for the vital role he later took as a sound economist that ensured Egypt became a major hub of economic activities. As the rest of the world plunged into recession, Egypt was the only land that was self-sufficient. Joseph was able to acquire managerial/economic skills from the various experiences he had gathered all through his life journey. From being dad’s favourite, to becoming a slave boy, a chief servant, the spokesperson for the people he was in jail with and finally becoming the prime minister of Egypt answerable only to Pharaoh.

 Once again lines upon lines, precepts upon precepts.

• MOSES

Moses was the son of a Hebrew slave woman who was taken in by the princess of Egypt (Exodus 2:9-10). He enjoyed the life of royalty but at a point, he got stripped of this privilege as a result of the confrontation that led to the death of an Egyptian (Exodus. 2:11-15). Hence, he was tossed into a hard life of shepherding animals, which by human standards was a fall from grace. Then again, ‘lines upon lines, precepts upon precepts.’

It was part of God’s grand plan to ensure Moses became a well-grounded leader. He had to taste the reality of living in plenty, abundance and hardship. He was not going to be a leader who is out of touch with issues going on with his followers and this was exhibited in the way Moses led the Israelites. He couldn’t be lured into losing focus due to luxury. He has tasted the life of affluence hence he was able to stand his ground on regaining the freedom of his people.

From a prince in Pharaoh’s palace to shepherding sheep in the desert, (his training ground) where his leadership was honed.

Based on the Bible characters we have studied, it is evident that they underwent different experiences in their lives that aligned with God’s plan for them. They were obedient and willing to go through the various stages that ultimately led to the fulfilment of God’s plan for their lives – the “Mansion” plan.

Key Takeaways:

1. God’s ways are not our ways.
2. Not all situations that seem unpalatable are in the real sense bad. Sometimes they are divine training grounds meant to shape you for the greater assignment that would be committed to you.
3. There is a need to have a gift of discernment to know if whatever you have going on is divinely induced or if it’s something that’s an attack from the enemy.