Counsel from heaven vs counsel from hell
By Ivan Ho 21 Sept 2016
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the Lord , and in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.
Psalm 1:1-3 NKJV
I wonder who are your counsels in life, who do you consult with about things you go through, major decisions you face in life? Who do you surround yourself with, who do you spend time with everyday? Who is speaking into your life? Oprah? or your heavenly Father?
Counsel from hell
When someone gives you advice that contradicts God’s word, that’s an ungodly counsel you need to reject. I don’t care who that person is, what position he holds, if his advice is not agreeing with God’s word, ignore him and go along with what God has spoken. Listening to and following wrong counsels from the wrong people will cause you much harm in life.
Wrong counsel does not have to come from wicked people, but sometimes they can and will come from people within the church. Peter once tried to counsel Jesus not to take the path of the cross, but Jesus said to him: “Get behind me satan, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of man“. (Matthew 16:21-23)
When Jesus said: “Get behind me satan” it wasn’t a figure of speech, for Jesus knew satan was involved. Satan often uses people close to you to sabotage your destiny in God. The devil is a master of giving nice messages that appeal to the soul of man, messages that compromise what God has spoken.
Basically, what the devil tried to advise Jesus (through Peter) was: “God loves you! He is a good God. Surely he would never let you suffer these things!”
When satan speaks, just tell him to nick off in Jesus name!
If the devil can’t get to you directly, he will try to get to you through the people closest to you, including your loved ones.
The book of Genesis describes a classic example of how the devil brought wicked counsel first to Eve who in turn transferred the contaminated message to her husband Adam, leading to the fall of man into disobedience against God. The process of decline began when Eve naively entertained the devil who disguised himself in the serpent at the garden of Eden. (Genesis 3)
Walk not in the counsel of the ungodly
The Bible says in Psalm 1:1 “Walk not in the counsel of the ungodly” (or wicked in other translations), that is an all-important godly counsel right there!
You cannot afford to walk with ungodly people, for you cannot relate with people without listening to what they say, and what they say and suggest may sometimes sound right and reasonable from humanistic standpoints, but are ungodly counsels in the eyes of God. An ungodly counsel, put simply, is a counsel without first hearing from God. It may be a logical counsel, but an ungodly counsel nevertheless. If you tune your frequencies to people carrying wrong spirits or wrong mindsets, you will make wrong decisions that will lead you to the wrong destiny in life.
An ungodly person may be a good and nice person in the eyes of the world, but he is a person who either has no God in his life, or someone who tunes his frequencies to all kinds of ungodly sources. A man or woman may be a “nice” person, but if that person is not tuned in with God and follows after God’s heart, he or she is not a godly person. King Saul was a “goodly” person, but he wasn’t godly.
Saul, in the latter days of his life, consulted familiar spirits when he could not hear directly from God, and ended his life in a tragic way. Ungodly counsels often come from people who are “spiritual” but their spirits are connected to the wrong spiritual sources. They have been listening to the wrong messages and tuned into all kinds of false spirits. If you follow their ungodly advices, you are doomed, unless you change channel and listen to godly voices instead!
Counsel from heaven
Not listening to wrong advices is important, but that is not enough. We also need to listen to and follow godly counsels.
There are 3 major channels through whom God gives us His counsels from heaven.
1. The written Word of God
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the Lord , and in His law he meditates day and night.
Psalm 1:1-2 NKJV
The law of the Lord refers to the word of God being written in the Bible. It is the written word of God. That needs to be our first and final source of counsel. We need to meditate on God’s living word day and night, and apply it in our life consistently. The written word of God gives clear instructions and counsels for our life without leaving any room for our imagination or private interpretation. If the word of God says it, it’s the final authority! Any counsels that don’t align with the word of God must be rejected! We must not allow other words that compromise the word of God into our life!
2. The counsel of the Holy Spirit
God not only speaks through the Bible, He also speaks through the Holy Spirit who dwells in the born again believers of Christ. The Holy Spirit reveals the heart and mind of Jesus who is always in line with the will of the Father. The Father, Son and the Holy Spirit are one. When the Holy Spirit takes what is revealed in heaven and delivers that message to us in a personal way, we need to take heed what God says and carefully follow the instructions from heaven for our life. The message from heaven is not just given to an individual for his personal agenda, but when a person hears from heaven through the Holy Spirit, it is a kingdom message that he receives that will impact the world! When the Holy Spirit guides a person, He is leading him or her to follow God’s kingdom purposes that are in line with the perfect will of the Father. The Holy Spirit conveys the heart of Jesus and brings into remembrance all that Jesus says.
These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.“These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.
John 14:25-26 NKJV
3. Godly people God puts in our lives
The third major way by whom God speaks to us are godly people He puts in our life. I would never be where I am without the godly counsels of people God puts into my life, who compliment what God speaks to me through the Bible and the Holy Spirit. Godly people are those people who know God intimately, know His word, His ways, and are relatively mature in the things of God. They are people who have gone ahead of us in their experience of walking with God. They have a track record of hearing and speaking God’s words accurately. We need to listen to and follow their counsels. They will help us fast track our process of maturity in Christ. They are like an experienced coach in a sports team who use their experience and knowledge to help us win in life and reach our destiny in God.
Thank God for our parents, our teachers and our spiritual father who bring godly counsels into our life!
In saying that, no advices from man are infallible. Everything that we hear from people must be checked against the written word of God and the inner voice of the Holy Spirit.
We need the Bible and the Holy Spirit to give us guidance. We also need to surround ourselves with people who speak the truth to us even if it may offend us, rather than people who reinforce our mistakes. We need godly people around our life who will coach godly principles to us and help us connect with our destiny in God!
Let His word light up our path
Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.
Psalm 119:105 KJV
Always make decisions based on God’s words, be it the written word or spoken word of God. The Bible and the Holy Spirit is your best Counsellor.
The word of God is like a lamp that lights up our path and show us the way forward. It brings clarity into our situation instead of confusion and frustration, and most of all, leads us to God and His plans and purpose for our life. We need the fresh word of God in our life to sustain us and propel us forward.
When a person cannot see what God is doing, he will be like Peter casting the net here, there and everywhere, but with no success. But when he heard God and followed the specific direction of Jesus, he had great success. That is the difference between winning and losing in life.
Walk humbly before God and keep your heart soft so that God can speak to you. Without his word you are just a religious person like everyone else. Without God’s specific guidance, man cast off restraint. Without God’s word, people wake up early but they labour in vain.
But if you hear God’s word, and act accordingly today (instead of harden your heart and walk in rebellion), you will experience God’s love and faithfulness manifest in your life!