BEWARE OF SYCOPHANTS!

Dearly Beloved, BEWARE OF SYCOPHANTS! “Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did. But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man” (John 2:23-25 NKJV). A dictionary defines a sycophant as “a person who tries to please someone in order to gain a personal advantage.” Such a person is not reliable, but only the discerning ones would discover him/her and relate with him/her accordingly. Gullible people easily fall into the deceit of sycophants and later regret such action. Jesus Christ knew this well, and He did not allow people to mislead Him by their eye services. Twice, in the Gospel of John, Jesus Christ did not entrust Himself to the people. On the first occasion, during a Passover festival in Jerusalem, many people started following Him, but He knew who they were (see John 2:23-25). On another occasion, because of the miraculous signs that Jesus Christ did, many people began to praise Him as the expected Prophet. They even intended to make Him their king forcefully. However, He withdrew from them and went to another place (see John 6:14-15). Interestingly, the crowd in Jerusalem that honoured Jesus Christ as He rode triumphantly on a donkey into Jerusalem (see John 12:12-18) were the ones less than a week later crying “Crucify him! Crucify him!” They opted for the release of a criminal and insisted that Jesus Christ should be crucified (see Luke 23:13-25). This is a great lesson for everyone, especially those in a leadership position. Not everyone singing your praise or seemingly loyal to you has your interest at heart. Many people are loyal to people in a leadership position because of what they can get from the leaders. Only discerning people will act wisely and do not allow sycophants to deceive them with their false praises. People that are shouting “Hosanna” today may cry, “Crucify him! Crucify him!” tomorrow. Beware of sycophants! In His service, Bayo Afolaranmi (Pastor). Prayer Point: Pray for a discerning spirit to know people that are praising you falsely and act wisely with them.