“Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise” (Proverbs 6:6).
TEXT — Proverbs 6:6-9
Message
There is a famous quote on ants by an entrepreneur and motivational speaker, Jim Rohn. Obviously, taking a cue from the Bible, he says: “I think everybody should study ants. They have an amazing four-part philosophy: Never give up, look ahead, stay positive, and do all you can.” Ants can never be idle any time of the day with such engaging schedule. Even in winter, they are busy constructing shelter against the inclement elements.
Long ago in the Garden of Eden, God revealed His dislike for laziness when He taught man the dignity of labour. He settled him there and asked him “to dress it and to keep it.” The Lord abhors the sluggard who takes for granted the skills He has given us to work for our benefit. Even when He freely gave manna and flesh to Israel in the wilderness, He still needed them to go into the fields to gather the food. God, in our passage, condemns laziness and slothfulness and challenges all to learn from the ants.
To enjoy God’s blessings and His invaluable promises, man must be up and doing to legitimately exploit the environment and the innumerable opportunities the Creator has built into it.God has played His part in providing for our needs. We must complement the process by going for them with ant-like guts that does not entertain idleness.
There is a larger spiritual demand from God as we “Go to the ant… [and] consider her ways.” He wants us to keep busy with winning souls, as we adopt the principles of this small but wise and organised creature. We must never give up in the midst of intimidating circumstances; we must do all we can to draw sinners away from the broad way to the narrow path of His kingdom.
Listed among “500 most powerful people on the planet” by the Foreign Policy magazine in 2013, Pastor (Dr.) William F. Kumuyi is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Christian Life Ministry (DCLM) headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria. DCLM started in 1973 as a 15-member Bible study group right in Kumuyi’s apartment at University of Lagos where he was a lecturer. His revolutionary Bible teaching on personal holiness and commitment to evangelism soon gained so much traction and resulted in a widespread revival.
