SIDES TO EVERY BATTLE

MEMORY VERSE: Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. 1 Samuel 17:45

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 1 Chronicles 5-8

Man is tripartite in nature. In other words, he has three parts: spirit, soul, and body. The spirit is the part of him that relates to the unseen spiritual world. The soul is the part of him that relates to the mental realm; viz., his reasoning and intellectual faculty. The body is the part of him that deals with his physical environment. The challenges we face has three sides to them; viz., the spiritual side, mental side, and the physical side.

Goliath fought David spiritually, mentally, and physically. Spiritually: Goliath attacked David using black magic and witchcraft. 1 Samuel 17:43 says: ‘And the Philistine said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.’ Thank God, David was a man of the spirit, a prayer warrior. He responded using the name of the Lord. 1 Samuel 17: 45 says: ‘Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.’ Mentally: Goliath employed fear i.e. he tried to intimidate David by issuing threats to him. 1 Samuel 17:44 says: ‘And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field.’ David responded using faith and making positive confessions. 1 Samuel 17:45 says: ‘This day will the LORD deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD'S, and he will give you into our hands.’ Most of the life’s battles are won or lost in the mind. You are defeated the moment you give into fear. Our fear can stand in God’s way of doing wonders in our lives. Peter began to sink the moment he panicked. One of the reasons why Jesus succeeded in ministry was because He was courageous; and, courage is a thing of the heart. Physically: He used a sword and shield but David’s stone brought him down.

NOTE: Had David gave in to fear, he would not have slung that stone that brought Goliath down.

PRAYER POINT: I receive divine boldness in the name of Jesus, Amen.

Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.

twitter@BroOluwatoki

DAVID KILLED GOLIATH

MEMORY VERSE: How should one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, except their Rock had sold them, and the LORD had shut them up? Deuteronomy 32:30

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 1 Chronicles 1-4

The story of David and Goliath is a popular one (1 Samuel 17). The Bible described Goliath as a champion. A champion is simply a person who has surpassed all rivals in a sporting contest or other competition. Goliath was not an ordinary fighter. He was an undefeated champion; as such, there was no blueprint for defeating him. Goliath was very successful. He had everything going for him – his height, his equipment, his strength, just name it. David, on the other hand, was the opposite of Goliath. He was inexperienced. He was not tall enough, not strong enough, had no equipment, never been to war, etc. David fought Goliath and won. The story of David and Goliath is a story of possibility. It is a story of hope.

There is a lot to learn from this story. No one is indomitable. Anyone can be defeated. No wonder the Bible warns us not to put our trust in an arm of flesh. Jeremiah 17:5 says: ‘Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD.’ Only God is indomitable. Even the indomitable lions of Cameroon were defeated by Togo, a smaller team, in 2009. Any man who is without Christ is defeat-able. David can still kill Goliath. The events in the recent 2016 UEFA European Championship that took place in France reminds us that David can still beat Goliath. One particular match that shocked the football world was the Iceland vs England match. England was the favourite. A top man in Iceland sport said, ‘if we beat England, our lives will change forever.’ According to Sky sports, the combined cost of the Iceland team was £16.4m and England XI, £131.5m. The population of Iceland was 300,000 and England as at 2011, 53.01 million. The match was a modern day David vs Goliath contest. On Monday 27th June 2016, Iceland came from behind to beat England, 2-1. I don’t know what you are going through but what I want to say to you is that ‘you are not inferior.’ Size don’t always matter neither does numbers. One thing I learnt from that match was persistence is one of the keys to success. The fact that you are defeated today does not mean you will be defeated tomorrow. Keep fighting, keep making the effort; it is God and your persistence that will bring the results. Who says you can’t be the next David who will defeat Goliath?

CONFESSION: I am not inferior because I have Christ who is superior to all things.

Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.

twitter@BroOluwatoki

FOUR INDICTMENTS AND JUDGEMENT AGAINST DAVID

Memory verse: Why have you despised the commandment of the Lord, doing evil in His sight? You have slain Uriah the Hittite with the sword and have taken his wife to be your wife. You have murdered him with the sword of the Ammonites.2 Samuel 12:9 　

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 　Jeremiah 25-27　

David was strolling around his palace one evening, he saw a naked woman bathing, he called his men to get her for him. When they brought her, he committed adultery with her and she became pregnant. To cover up his wrongdoing, he set up the husband (an army); at the end, Uriah fell by the hands of the Ammonites. David thought that was the end of the whole matter, but it was not. Our God is not a respecter of persons (Romans 2:11), He sent Nathan to David. The prophet asked him,

Why have you despised the commandment of the Lord, doing evil in His sight? You have slain Uriah the Hittite with the sword and have taken his wife to be your wife. You have murdered him with the sword of the Ammonites.2 Samuel 12:9.　

David received four indictments and each indictment carried a judgment. Indictment 1- you killed Uriah; Judgement – the sword will never depart from your house. Indictment 2- you despised Me and took Uriah’s wife to be your wife; Judgement – I will raise someone against you, he will take your wife and lie with them in the presence of the whole world. Indictment 3- you did it secretly; Judgement – someone will do the same to you in the public. Indictment 4- you allowed the enemy of the Lord to blaspheme because of your deed; judgment – the product of that illicit affair will die.

In what ways, have you killed Uriah the Hittite (an innocent man)? In what ways, have you killed (judged) people in your heart? Someone came to report a fellow to you, without investigating, you passed judgment. In what ways have you taken "Uriah’s wife"? You are single and in a relationship with a married man or woman; you are married and in a relationship with single men or women; you are married and in a relationship with a married man or woman; these are all part of taking "Uriah’s wife". Someone else’s idea, you turn it to your own idea and colonize it. Instead giving honour to who honour is due, you are boasting about the whole place, you have taken Uriah’s wife (something that does not belong to you). In what ways, have you and I given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme? You give occasion to the enemies of the gospel to blaspheme when you do things that cause people to say and you call yourself a Christian.　 Anytime you are angry, you act in a way that causes people to wonder if truly the "pastor" before your name is a nickname or your real title in church. When it comes to the issue of money, you act in a way that cause people to doubt if you are truly saved or just pretending. What are you doing, that is making people to say, if this is how Christians behave, I will never become a Christian?

TO PONDER: am I a carbon copy of Christ or an exact opposite?　

Bro Samuel- Reaching the world for Jesus.

THE KEYS OF DAVID

 BIBLE IN ONE YEAR Gen 21, Matt 20, Neh 10, Acts 20

Revelations 3:7 and to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; these things saith he that is holy, he that is true , he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth.

Keys are used to lock and unlock doors. When a door is locked, those that are in are prevented from coming out and those that are out are prevented from going in. Specific keys open specific doors. One of the biggest mistake we make today is we try the wrong keys on the right door expecting it work. You cannot try your car keys on the door to your house and expect it to work. The key to receiving a thing is asking for it. Matthew 7:8 says for everyone that asketh recieveth. The key to success is diligence. Proverbs 22:29 says the diligent shall stand before kings. Proverbs 12:24 says the hands of the diligent shall bear rule. The key to seeing God in action in our life is Holiness. Hebrews 12:14 says follow peace with all men, and holiness without which no man shall see the Lord. Also specific keys shut specific doors. The key to shutting the door on devourers is tithing, Malachi 3:9-11. The key to shutting the door on Satanic activities in our life is submitting to God and then resisting the devil,James 4:7. From studying Revelations 3:7, we see the possibility of a door been shut or opened regardless of what we do. Jabez was a diligent man but the curse on his life shut the door of success on him regardless, 1 Chronicles 4:9-11. The reason for the poverty in the life of the woman with the issue of blood was not because she loved sleep, Mark 5:25-34. This woman started life as a wealthy lady, but she spent all trying to get a cure for her illness. The mad man of Gadara was not sick as a result of sin, Mark 5:1-16. The reason for his mental illness was because he was possessed by wicked demons.

There is a key that opens all doors and shuts all doors. Not only that, when this key is used to open any door, the door remains permanently opened and when it is used to lock any door, the door remains permanently locked.This key is called the keys of David. The keys of David symbolizes power and authority. The possessor of the keys of David is Jesus Christ. Jabez ran to Him and the door of success was opened unto him. The woman with the issue of blood touched the carrier of the keys of David and received her healing. As mad as the demonic man of Gadara was, he recognized the carrier of the keys of David and worshiped him. I remembered when I was writing my final year project. Despite every effort I missed the dead line as my project authenticator was not around to sign off my project.The project deadline was Friday at 5pm. I got it signed off few minutes past five which meant i had to wait till the next semester. I ran to the One who possessed the keys of David and He opened the door of mercy to me.The next Monday morning I went to the submissions office and told them i wanted to submit my project. Without asking any question , the lady took it off me and gave me a receipt. If there is any door before you today, run to the Jesus and He will open it.

PRAYER POINT: Father , please open every door before me .

A MAN AFTER THE HEART OF GOD

Acts 13:22 – and when He had removed him, He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.

When God wants to show how much He loves a man , He does not do it in the private but public . When He wanted to show Satan how much He loves you, He offered
Jesus on the cross of Calvary publicly for your sins. When He wanted to show the enemies of David how much He loved him ,He prepared a table publicly in the presence of the enemies of David and began to feed him, Psalm 23:5. He did not only do that, He publicly declared “I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart”, Acts 13:22. The question is what did David do to earn such a testimony from God? What did this king do to win the heart of the Almighty ?

What kind of man was David ? David was a man who loved God passionately. He loved to spend time in the presence of God. When it was time to go to the house of God , David would start rejoicing , Psalm 122 :1. He loved God to the extent that his heart began to long for God. David had a thirst for God that nothing in this world could quench. He compared his longing for God to a deer panting for the water brooks, Psalms 42:1 . Also David was a worshiper. No man could beat David when it it comes to praising God . When it was time for praise and worship, King David would dance with all his might ,2 Samuel 6:14. He was not ashamed to dance for God in public or in the presence of important dignitaries like some of us.When we talk of important dignitaries , who is more important than God anyway !. David never cared about who was looking, he would dance and jump to the extent that he was almost naked. While everyone restricted worshiping God to only Sundays , David worshiped God seven times daily , Psalm 119:164 . Another quality David had was he was a giver. When it was time to give to God , David would give until it hurts. He needed a field to offer burnt offerings to God so he approached Araunah. The fellow wanted to give the field to David for free ,but he refused . He said "no , i insist on paying the full price, for i will not take for the Lord what belongs to you or offer burnt offerings that cost me nothing". Do you know how much David gave towards the building of the temple ? One hundred thousand talents of gold and one million talents of silver , bronze and iron beyond measure,timber and stone,1 Chronicles 22:14. He also gave three thousand talents of gold, and seven thousand talents of silver to overlay the walls , 1 Chronicles 29:3-4. Experts have valued what he gave in present day currency to be at least fifty-six billion dollars ( $56,000,000,000) ! Do you think God will not at least say thank you to such a man who gave to Him until it hurts ?Proverbs 8:17 says I love those who love Me, and those who seek Me will find Me. We want to become the man and woman after the heart of God ? We need to first love God and begin to long for Him. We need to learn how to worship Him. We need to be generous to Him.If you love God , He will love you back.

PRAYER POINT: Father , thank you for opening my eyes today , I will love you , praise you and give to you , Please love me in return.