ATTACK ON LOVE

MEMORY VERSE: All the king's servants, and the people of the king's provinces, do know, that whosoever, whether man or woman, shall come unto the king into the inner court, who is not called, there is one law of his to put him to death, except such to whom the king shall hold out the golden sceptre, that he may live: but I have not been called to come in unto the king these thirty days. Esther 4:11

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Luke 11-12

Love is powerful. Lovers give gifts to each other. Because God so loved the world He gave His only begotten son (John 3:16). Because Jesus loved His friends, He gave His life for them (John 15:13). In addition, lovers love to spend time with each other. They will pay any price to be together. Jacob so loved Rachel that he was willing to pay any price to have her, by him, all the days of his life. Genesis 29:20 says, “And Jacob served seven years for Rachel; and they seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her.” King Ahasuerus chose Esther to be his queen because he loved her. Esther 2:7 says, “And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.” He could have picked any of the virgins presented to him but he picked Esther out of love .

Esther 4:11 says, “All the king's servants, and the people of the king's provinces, do know, that whosoever, whether man or woman, shall come unto the king into the inner court, who is not called, there is one law of his to put him to death, except such to whom the king shall hold out the golden sceptre, that he may live: but I have not been called to come in unto the king these thirty days.” For thirty days, Esther did not set her eyes on her husband. The king did not set his eyes on her too and he didn't bother to send for her. Why? This is unusual between two lovers. What some of our sisters are facing is similar to what Esther faced back then; it is as if they no longer exist to their husbands. It is so bad, some husbands don't even notice when their wives make a new hairstyle talk less of compliment her.

A lot 'could have' contributed to Esther loosing relevance before the king or his dwindling love for her , for instance, maybe Esther stopped putting effort into looking good for the king. Dearest sister, do you still put effort into looking good for your husband? Maybe Esther's priority changed. Her number one priority used to be to please the king but now it is something else. Maybe her number one priority used to be to serve the king but that has now changed? Beloved sister, could it be that your priority has now changed? Your career or children are now your number one priority not your king i.e. husband. It could be that Esther became familiar with the king. It could be that she took the attention he showed to her for granted. It could be that she began to treat the king as her equal not her head. Sister, do you now talk to your husband any how? Do you now shut him up and disrespect him? Esther was a good and respectful woman. She could not have been guilty of any of these. What happened was the enemy attacked her marriage. The enemy is still in the business of attacking Christian marriages. He attacks the husband's love for his wife and vice versa. The enemy wanted to destroy the Jews. He knew the only way to succeed in the task was to attack the king's love for her so that she will not be able to stop the destruction of the Jews.Thank God she prayed and the attack was repelled.

PRAYER POINT: Father, we come against every attack of the enemy on Christian marriages and courtship.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.

LET HIM DECIDE WHAT YOU WILL HAVE AND WHAT YOU WILL NOT HAVE

MEMORY VERSE: In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came unto him, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Set thine house in order: for thou shalt die, and not live.Isaiah 38:1

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalms 136-140, Proverbs 28

God is the only One who knows everything. Not only does He know the beginning from the end, according to Isaiah 46:10, He knows the end from the beginning. The Lord knew me long before my parents met each other. Jeremiah 1:5 says this: “Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.”Many a time, it appears as if the devil knows a lot but he does not. Except something is revealed in one way or the other, the devil does not know it. Do you know he does not even know the thoughts of your heart? However, God knows what you are going to say even before you think of saying it. Psalm 139:4 says this: “For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether.” Because of the volume of information before Him, He is able to guide you aright. He is able to tell you when to start something and when to stop. He is able to tell you when to hide from the enemy and when to attack the enemy. He is able to tell you when to invest and when not to. Because of the depth of riches of both of His wisdom and knowledge, He is able to give you the expected end He wants you to have (Jeremiah 29:11). He is also able to decide what you should have and what you should not have.

When God does some things, we - mere mortals- question Him as if He does not know what He is doing. May God have mercy! When He tries to take some things away from us, we fight Him and many a time, He lets us have our way not because He is weak but because He hates to force Himself on us. Hezekiah became a king at the age of twenty- five. By the time He celebrated his thirty –eighth year birthday, He had successful turned the heart of a whole nation back to God (2 Kings 18). He walked before God with a perfect heart. God saw some things in his future and decided to take him home early. Isaiah 38:1 says this: “In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came unto him, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Set thine house in order: for thou shalt die, and not live.” God wanted to take Hezekiah home early to avert what was going to become of him but he refused and the Lord kept him alive. Few months after, pride enter into his heart and he began to boast about his wealth before the servants, of the king of Babylon, who were sent to greet him after his recovery (Isaiah 39).Three years later, he gave birth to a son called Manasseh. This boy, when he became king, destroyed everything Hezekiah had built. In his 55-year reign, he single-handedly turned the whole nation back to idols. He rebuilt all the high places his father had destroyed. Not only that, he turned the house of the Lord into a place to offer sacrifices to idols. At the end, he destroyed his father’s legacy. Hezekiah's perfect record before God was tarnished in the remaining 15 years he spent on earth.

THOUGHTS OF THE DAY: If you had all the information God has, you will make the decision He makes.

PRAYER POINT: Father, please let me never have what you do not want me to have.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.

‘POTIPHAR’S WIFE’ – THE STRATEGY

MEMORY VERSE: And it came to pass about this time that Joseph went into the house to do his business; and there was none of the men of the house there within.And she caught him by his garment, saying, lie with me: and he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out, Genesis 39:11-12.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 2 Sam 21, Gal 1, Ezek 28, Ps 13-14

‘Potiphar’s wife’ represents enemies whose sole objective is to destroy men and women with great potentials before they are discovered. There are one or two things we need to know about her. She is subtle and very cunning. I have always wondered how she managed to seduce Joseph day by day and no one around noticed. She is also very patient and persistent. She never takes no for an answer. Joseph would say no today, the next morning she would return with a smile saying , “dear Joseph what about what we discussed yesterday”, and this continued for days. ‘Potiphar’s wife’ never gives up until she accomplishes her mission. Despite the fact that Samson kept on saying no, Delilah kept coming back. At a point Samson got tired and gave in, before you know it he was in chains (Judges 16:4-23). 

‘Potiphar’s wife’ attacks when one is most vulnerable. She kept an eye of Joseph’s movement, she watched him for many days. The bible records that and it came to pass about this time that Joseph went into the house to do his business; and there was none of the men of the house there within. And she caught him by his garment, saying, lie with me: and he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out (Genesis 39:11-12).

Potiphar’s wife attacks when no one is watching. This is why the bible admonishes us to walk circumspectly (Ephesians 5:15). How does one deal with ‘Potiphar’s wife’? How does one deal with a brother or sister who is always pestering one to go into sin with them? The answer is flee! 1 Thessalonian 5:22 says flee from all appearance of evil. Don’t rebuke Potiphar’s wife because it is ineffective; don’t abuse her because she knows no shame; don’t threaten her because she is determined. The only solution is flee from her. If you are in a relationship where the other party is asking you to lie with them carnally , flee from them! If you remain in that relationship he or she will continue to pester you and one day you will fall. Many instead of fleeing, remain in the relationship and keep saying no. At a point they become tired and give in, few days after that the relationship breaks down and before you know it is over. If you have been in that position, I pray that the Lord almighty will heal you in Jesus name, amen.

ACTION POINT: Rebuke demons but flee from ‘Potiphar’s wife’

Bro Samuel – Reaching the world for Jesus

BEWARE OF POTIPHAR'S WIFE

MEMORY VERSE: And he left all that he had in Joseph’s hand; and he knew not ought he had, save the bread which he did eat. And Joseph was a goodly person, and well favoured, Genesis 39:6

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 2 Sam 20, 2 Cor 13, Ezek 27, Ps 11-12

The enemy is always after individuals with great destinies – prime ministers, heads of state, presidents, kings, queens, governors, lawyers, bishops, CEOs, pastors, entrepreneurs, scientists, inventors’ e.t.c in the making. So if you are always experiencing challenges, it could be that you are a great man or woman in the making.  Potiphar’s wife represents enemies whose sole objective is to destroy men and women with great potentials before they are discovered. The wife of Potiphar recognized the potential in Joseph and began to lure him to bed in other that he might sin against God. Thank God Joseph was wiser.

Out of all the young men serving under Potiphar she picked Joseph, why? Firstly, Joseph was in a position of authority and trust. His master entrusted him with all that he had. Genesis 39:6a says and he left all that he in Joseph’s hand; and he knew not out he had, save the bread which he did eat. Potiphar’s wife is always after people (especially young men and women) who are in the position of authority or people who are holding a position of trust. She is always after youths who the Lord has entrusted great assignments into their hands. She is aware of their potential and would do anything to ensure that she destroys them before they are discovered. This is why I always warn young people occupying positions of authority to be wary of the opposite sex.

Secondly, Joseph was a goodly man, Genesis 39:6b. Portiphar’s wife is always looking for young innocent youths to destroy. They are present in the church.They are not ready to give their lives to Christ. They only come to get a brother or sister to marry. Thirdly, Joseph was well favored and things were working for him, Genesis 39:6c. ‘Potiphar’s wife’ is always invisible when one is struggling, the moment things begins to work in one’s favor they begin to appear. When Joseph was a nobody, she didn’t trouble him but immediately he became the head she tried to befriend him. I want you to know that the Lord who protected Joseph is still alive and He will protect you in Jesus name, amen.

PRAYER POINT: Father, protect me from the hunters of destiny.

Bro Samuel – Reaching the world for Jesus.