OF HIM SHALL BE MUCH REQUIRED

MEMORY VERSE: And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul. Deuteronomy 10:12

 

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 1 Peter 1-3

God is love (1 John 4:8). John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” However, He does not love all equally. The same God who created Jacob and Esau said: “Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated (Romans 9:13).” He loved Jacob more than Esau. Joseph had two sons: Manasseh (senior) and Ephraim (junior). He took them to his father,Jacob, for prayer. He put Manasseh, the older one, at his father’s right hand and Ephraim, the younger one, at his father’s left hand. When it was time to pray, the old man crossed his hands, and put his right hand on Ephraim, the younger one, and his left hand on Manasseh, the older one. When Joseph saw this, he was displeased. He tried to move his father’s hand from Ephraim to Manasseh but the old man refused. Genesis 48:19 says, “And his father refused, and said, I know it, my son, I know it: he also shall become a people, and he also shall be great: but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of nations.” The Lord loved these two boys but He loved Ephraim more than Manasseh. 

The measure of love He dishes out to individuals varies. For example, Jesus Christ said, “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day (John 6:44).” You are in Christ today because the Lord, out of His great love, drew you to Him. The same message you heard that made you give your life to Christ, others heard it and continued in their life of sin. Out of the several billions on the face of the planet today, He drew you to Christ. This is a proof that you are in receipt of a greater measure of His love. He drew you to Christ to give you a glorious future (Isaiah 3:10). He drew you to Christ to turn your shame into glory. Colossians 1:27b says, “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” He drew you to Christ so that you will reign with His son in Heaven (. John 3:3-5). The more the measure of love He dishes out to a fellow, the more the amount of love He expects back from the fellow.  Luke 12:48 says, “But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.” The Lord is beginning to pour out of His love in great measure to some of us. He is beginning to use some of us in various ways – ways beyond our wildest dreams. He is beginning to open doors to some of us. He is beginning to turn our lives around. He expects us to reciprocate those love back to Him.  Deuteronomy 10:12 says, “And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul.” The Lord loved Solomon and blessed him. When he asked for wisdom, the Lord gave Him wisdom and riches. What did Solomon do? He reciprocated that love back to God. He offered a sacrifice of 22,000 cattle and 120,000 sheep and goats (2 Chronicles 6:42). Ephraim,on the other hand, did not reciprocate it back. Instead, he began to follow after idols and the Lord abandoned him (Hosea 4:17). 

NOTE: If for one reason or the other, maybe due to sin,  He has turn His attention away from you, there is still something you can do. You can repent,  rededicate your life to Christ and start afresh. Judah became His favourite because Reuben, Simeon and Levi misbehaved badly. But one day, the whole Israel sinned and Moses said "whoever is on the Lord’s side come to me". Only the children of Levi went to him (Exodus 32:26). From that day, the Lord drew Levi back to Himself. Only Levi was allowed to come near the ark of God. If you demonstrate your love to Him, He will draw you to Himself. 

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world

PRESERVED BY FOCUS

MEMORY VERSE: Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrew 12:2

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Haggai

Vision (the ability to see) is very important. Why? The man who cannot see will inevitably end up in a ditch. Matthew 15:14 says, “Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.” What a man sees can either make him or break him. For instance, Isaiah “saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple” and that changed him (Isaiah 6). Isaiah, like many of us, used his environment as a yardstick to measure his holiness. Whenever a man uses his environment or people fornicating and committing adultery around him as a yardstick to measure his holiness, he will always come out very holy. On that faithful day, he saw his holiness and God’s holiness and cried “woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts” (Isaiah 6:5). That singular event turned him into a broken man for the Lord. What John, a very hard man, very violent, nicked named son of thunder by Jesus (Mark 3:17), saw in Revelations 1 broke him completely. Revelations 1: 17 says “And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last.”

However, what David saw in 2 Samuel 11 almost destroyed him. When David was meant to be at war fighting the Lord’s battle, he tarried back at home and slept. When he woke up, he saw a naked woman bathing and that was it. He committed adultery with her and killed the husband to hide the truth. What you see is important, but more important is what you focus on. Two people can see the same thing but focus on two different things. The twelve spies Moses sent to Canaan saw the same thing - the land of Canaan, the big fruits of Canaan, the men of Canaan, etc- but focused on different things (Numbers 13&14). Ten of them focused on the size of the men of Canaan and the other two focused on the word of God and God Himself. What the ten focused on informed their confession. Numbers 13:33 says, “And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.” What the ten focused on informed their decision and actions. Numbers 14:4 says, “And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.” All these led to their destruction. Numbers 14:30-30 says, “Doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware to make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun. But your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised.” Do you know that what you focus on, at times, informs your dreams when you sleep? If you spend the whole day watching horror movies and all that, don’t be surprised if you sleep and find strange creatures chasing after you in your dreams. Or if you indulge in pornography, don’t be surprised if you sleep and find yourself making love to strange people in your dream. Ecclesiastes 5:3 says, “For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool's voice is known by multitude of words.” Your focus will preserve you. What kept Jesus going despite the rejections He received was His focus. Luke 23:18 says, "And they cried out all at once, saying, Away with this man, and release unto us Barabbas." The bible records “who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame” (Hebrew 12:2). What made Jesus say “Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42), was His focus. If you focus on your present situation you will be discouraged, and if care is not taken you may fall into sin. Focus on the promises of God for your life, as recorded in the bible, and you will be greatly encouraged. What will keep you going during times of trial is your focus.

NOTE: If you focus on the work to be done to achieve something you will be discouraged, but if you focus on the rewards on completion of that task, you will be strengthened.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world

TEN CHEESES

MEMORY VERSE: And carry these ten cheeses unto the captain of their thousand, and look how thy brethren fare, and take their pledge. 1 Samuel 17:18

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Ecclesiastes 5-6

BIBLE READING: 1 Samuel 17:16-19

Noah Webster’s dictionary 1828 defines a key as “an instrument for shutting or opening a lock, by pushing the bolt one way or the other. Keys are of various forms, and fitted to the wards of the locks to which they belong.” Today, due to technological advancements, the definition of a key has changed slightly. A more general definition of a key is anything that grants one entry into a place or something. The moment we hear the word “key” what comes to mind is a door. Then, what is a door? A door is simply anything that is used to restrict access into a place/something or out of a place/something . You need a key to open or lock a door. Certain keys open certain doors. The key to my front door should only open my front door. The same thing with yours. If your front door key suddenly opens my front door then something must be wrong. Actually, it means i need to change my front door lock. The bible contains several keys to open certain doors in our lives. For example, the key to promotion is diligence. Proverbs 22:29 says, “Seest thou a man diligent in his business? he shall stand before kings; he shall not stand before mean men.” The key to heaven is salvation . John 3:3 says” Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Romans 10:9-10 say, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

The key to reaping is sowing. Galatians 6:7 says, “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” A man who sows nothing will reap nothing. The key to abundance of resources is giving. Proverbs 11:25 says, “The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself.” Be a giver. Give to God and give to men also. You can pray from today till tomorrow, if you don’t sow you will not reap.One thing i have found with most billionaires -if not all- is that they give to charity a lot. I am talking of genuine billionaires, those who worked for it not those who stole from the government. The Lord is always prospering 'givers'. He is always opening doors for them. Your gifts will open doors for you. Proverbs 18:16 says, “A man's gift maketh room for him, and bringeth him before great men.” Please we are not talking of giving bribes or accepting bribes. A true child of God will neither give bribe or nor accept one. Your gifts will bring you favour before God and before man. Your gifts will open doors to your  children and bring them favour also. What granted David access to the battle ground was his father’s gift to that captain of thousand. 1 Samuel 17:18 says, “And carry these ten cheeses unto the captain of their thousand, and look how thy brethren fare, and take their pledge.” No civilian is allowed into the camp except he has a personal message for the king or the general and in the case of David, he had a message for the captain of thousand. They allowed him in to deliver his message to the general who was at the battlefront. (Generals are always at the battlefront giving out instructions and cordinating things). Whilst there, David heard Goliath boasting, fought him and won the price. Those ten cheeses brought him favour before the captain of thousands. It is possible that it was this captain that granted David access to Saul when he volunteered to fight Goliath.   

NOTE: It is one thing to want to give; it is another to have the resources to give. Pray that God will put resources in your hand so that you can be a giver.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world

BE FOCUSED

MEMORY VERSE: For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed. Isaiah 50:7 

 

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalms 128-130

The importance of having a godly vision cannot be overemphasized. There are visions and there are visions. Any vision that does not line up with the scriptures is not a godly vision. For instance, the vision to create a super race that would rule the world for a thousand years is not a godly vision. Why is having a vision so important? Firstly, everything starts with a vision. The planet we live in started with a vision. God had a vision of this world in His mind and He spoke it out. He spoke the vision in His mind into existence. The house you live in is a product of someone’s vision. Someone conceived the design in his mind and passed it on to an architect who put it on paper. Secondly, without vision you will seize to exist. Proverbs 29:18 says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.” The first thing a man needs to succeed in life, after giving his life to Christ, is a vision. Not just an ordinary vision but a clear one – a vision that can be described to the smallest details. And this vision must come from God and must be in line with the scriptures. Without vision, success in any endeavour is impossible. Without a God-given vision, one will spend his time doing secondary things while the primary things are left undone. Someone said her vision is to marry a rich tall handsome black guy. Is there any bible verse to support such a vision? Someone said his vision is to marry the daughter of a rich politician. Is that a biblical vision?  

 Another important ingredient for success is “focus”. One of the reasons why many of us are not where we ought to be, despite the fact that we have a vision, is because we lack focus.  Today, you want to be a chartered accountant so you study and prepare for ACCA exams. Tomorrow, you change your mind and go into Networking. You start preparing for CCNA & CCNP. You even buy books and all that. The day after tomorrow, you change your mind again and go into project management. You book for Prince 2 training and all that. What do you really want? Or you decide to go into business. Today, you sell clothes. Tomorrow, you branch out and go into spare parts business. After a while, you change your mind and start selling phone accessories. A focused person does not change career every other day or does not jump from one business into another.  A focused person does not do things because everyone is doing them. He does things because he was led by the Spirit of the Lord to do them. A focused person does not attempt too many projects at the same time. If you want a degree, face your studies and forget about relationship. One of the reasons why many of our youths graduate with very low grades is because of lack of focus. They want to party and study at the same time which is impossible. You have to choose one – it is either you party hard or study hard. Recently, a man of God, whist preaching shared with us how he had turned down so many speaking engagements abroad because of his vision to build his young church and secure a church building. That is focus. A man of focus is consistent. His messages are consistent. If he is into marriage counselling and discipleship he will stick to it. A man who is not focused is into marriage counselling and discipleship today; tomorrow he is into deliverance and healing; day after tomorrow he is into leadership training and youth development. A man of focus does one thing at a time. Isaiah 50:7 says, “For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.” A man who is focused will never be put to shame. Whilst a man who is not focused tries his hands at so many things, at the same time, thereby wasting his resources, a man of focus tries one thing at a time. 

Note:  Asides from focusing on one thing at a time, focus on the right things. Your focus determines your reality. What you focus on, you move towards. 

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world

THE ANOINTING OF THE HOLY GHOST

MEMORY VERSE: Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah. 1 Samuel 16:13

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: II Chronicles 33-36

BIBLE READING: 1Samuel 16:13 -23

The Most High God is the best friend any man can have. According to 1 John 4:8, He is love. One thing every loving person enjoys doing is giving gifts especially to those they love. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” God, being the definition of love, give gifts to His friends. The costlier the gift is, the greater the love. John 15:13 says, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” It is very difficult to give one’s life for an innocent person not to talk of a worthless sinner like you and i. Yet, He gave His precious life for us. Romans 5:8 says: “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” He is the best friend any man can have, He is also the worst enemy any man can have. He is a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29). According to Psalm 97:3 says,” A fire goeth before him, and burneth up his enemies round about.” To be an enemy of the One who fire goes before and consumes His enemies is suicide. As such, He is an enemy no one wants to have. 

The last thing you want to do is rebel against Him. King Saul became a rebel and the Lord  abandoned him (1 Samuel 15:23). 1 Samuel 16:14 says, “But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD troubled him.” To calm him down whenever the evil spirit tormented him, they searched for a skilful harp player and found David – a man anointed with the Holy Ghost (1 Samuel 6:13). A look into a David’s life from the day he was anointed reveals some of what the anointing of the Holy Ghost does in a man’s life. The anointing will attract attention to you –  it can be embarrassing at times. As the Lord began to move in David’s life people began to notice him even Saul’s servant. The anointing will differentiate you from your peers. There were several skillful harp players in Israel but David stood out. He was the only one invited to the palace. The anointing turns a man into an instrument of deliverance. David would play an ordinary harp and demons will run. Through the anointing one becomes a solution. When the king had mental problems the Lord used David to heal him. When Goliath terrorised the people of God, the Lord used David to solve that problem. The anointing will also cause a divine relocation. David who used to reside on hills and in caves with sheep began to live in the palace. The anointing causes a shift in circumstances or a change of position. David ,a shepherd boy, became the king’s boy and dined with the king. The anointing attracts favour.

NOTE: Just as the anointing will attract the attention of man, it will also attract the attention of demons. Just as it will attract favour, promotion, and other good things, it will attract challenges – unusual challenges. The moment David was anointed several wild animals began to appear – lions, bears, etc. After the animals came Goliath. The reason why you are facing unusual challenges could be because of what you are carrying within. However, the power to tear lions apart, blow bears to death, cut off the head of Goliath comes with the anointing. 

PRAYER POINT: Father, please fill anoint me with the Holy Ghost.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world

“AND CHOSE HIM FIVE SMOOTH STONES”

MEMORY VERSE: And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd's bag which he had, even in a scrip; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine.  1 Samuel 17:40

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Deuteronomy 10-12

In 1 Samuel 17 is one of the most popular stories – if not the most popular - in the world: the story of David and Goliath. It is a story of good conquering evil. It is a story of possibilities.The story is about a little boy who took on a big man and defeated him. David was a little shepherd boy. One day his aged father, Jesse, sent him to the battlefield to deliver some food supplies to his brothers who were fighting alongside Saul. When he got there, he saw this big strong giant challenging the armies of Israel. 1 Samuel 17:8- 10 says, “And he stood and cried unto the armies of Israel, and said unto them, Why are ye come out to set your battle in array? am not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me. If he be able to fight with me, and to kill me, then will we be your servants: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall ye be our servants, and serve us. And the Philistine said, I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.” The giant’s name was Goliath. He was a Philistine. He was an undefeated champion as such no one knew his weakness. His voice terrified everyone; his presence caused everyone to run. He was a terror! On hearing his boastful words, David decided to take him on. The small man, an ordinary civilian, a youth with no military experience, decided to take on the big tall man – probably the tallest in the word at that time - a war veteran, a decorated soldier. 

David and Goliath stepped forward. Goliath came dressed for war. He wore a bronze helmet, an impenetrable coat of mail, and shin armour on his legs. David wore a simple shepherd’s cloth made of wool. Goliath came with a massive javelin, a sword strapped to his sheath and the widest shield available – so big that he employed someone to carry it for him. David on the other hand came with a sling and 5 stones. 1 Samuel 17:40 says, “And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd's bag which he had, even in a scrip; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine.” David chose "five" stones not "six" or "four". Why? The number 5 symbolizes God’s grace, goodness and favour toward humans. As Goliath drew near to him, he took one of the stones and slung it, and it struck Goliath, sinking to his forehead, and he fell on his face to the earth. David took Goliath’s sword and cut off Goliath’s head. David accomplished -in hours- what others could not accomplish in forty days using five stones (grace). To accomplish what others could not accomplish, whether in ministry or in your personal life, you need the grace of God. To do the impossible, you need the grace of God. David with the five stones proved the doubter’s wrong. Friend, you will need the grace of God to proof the doubters wrong. It is not enough to be a Christian. After all, there were several Israelites that day but none could take on Goliath except the brother with the grace (Brother David). To come into a team and make so much impact in a very short time takes the grace of God. That’s exactly what happened to David. Within few hours of arriving at the battle front, Goliath was already on the floor. David did not pick any-how stones. He carefully selected five smooth stones. Why? God only uses smooth stones not rough ones. You see, a stone is rough by nature but the ones David chose had been worked on. Those stones had weathered the storm. Rain had fallen on them. They had been kicked about as a result of human activities. They have been through a lot and as a result, all the rough edges had been eroded away. The Most High God will not use a rough man to bring down Goliath. He will always use a smooth stone – a man He has trained and worked on. 

QUESTION: What kind of stone are you? A rough one? Or a smooth one? Have you laid your life so that He can work on you or you are busy running after things?

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world

YOU SHALL HAVE WHAT YOU CONFESS

MEMORY VERSE: For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned. Matthew 12:37

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Acts 13-14

We live in a “word” world/ planet. This planet was framed by the “word of God”. Hebrews 11:3 says, “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.” Whatever God spoke came to pass. Genesis 1:3 says, “And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.” Genesis 1:9 says, “And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.” If you read through the account of creation, Genesis 1, after you read, “And God said,” you will read, “and it was so”. What God says happens! If He said it, you can bank on it. For instance, He said in His word,” Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings” (Isaiah 3:10). Whether the devil likes it or not, it shall be well with you because the Most High said so. He says in Isaiah 54:15: “Behold, they shall surely gather together, but not by me: whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake.” Because He said so, you can bank on it. In Genesis 1, the Most High God used His words (spiritual things that are not seen) to create the physical universe (natural things that are seen). The Most High God created man to operate the same way He operates. Man was supposed to use his words to accomplish God's plan by being fruitful, multiplying, replenishing, subduing , and taking dominion over the Earth ( Genesis 1:26,28). After the fall of man, his nature changed but the mandate from God remained the same so did the power of his words. Whatever man spoke still had the power to determine his destiny and affect the destiny of everything around him – whether he served God or the devil, whether he spoke words of life or words of death.

Words are the most powerful things on this Earth. They can change and rearrange anything – for good or for evil. Matthew 12:37 says, “For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.” Because of the value of words, every man will give account of every idle word he spoke. Matthew 12:36 says, “But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.” Watch your words, asides from the fact that they can hurt people, you will give account to God one day. Just as God's words (spiritual things that are not seen) created the physical universe (natural things that are seen), you own words too (spiritual things that are not seen) will create things ( natural things that are seen). I heard the story of a man who always joked that the tiny growth on his face was cancer. "Na cancer o my brother " meaning it is cancer my brother , was his response whenever people ask what the little growth on his face was. Several years later, he was diagnosed with cancer and he died. Watch what you call yourself. There was a man who used to call himself “Mr Popular”. He began to call himself “Mr Popular” from a tender age. Forty years later, he became very popular. So popular that wherever he went, within minutes people will fall in love with him and want to be his friends and sometimes do business with him. You will always have what you say or confess. The woman with the issue of blood said, “If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole (Matthew 9:21). When she touched the hem of Jesus' garment she was made whole as she prophesied. David told Goliath, i will kill you and cut off your head (1 Samuel 17). When he said so, all he had on him was a staff, a sling and five stones. That’s all he had, but Goliath had a big sword, shield, and all the military gear. What happened? David cut of his head as he had confessed.

NOTE: What God hears you say is what He is going to do for you. Numbers 14:28 says, “Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the LORD, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you.”

ACTION: With your mouth, confess what you want the Lord to do for you in the remaining months of this year.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world