DON’T STRAY AWAY FROM GOD

MEMORY VERSE: O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Matthew 23:37

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalms 86-90, Proverbs 18

BIBLE STUDY: Genesis 34:1-2

The way God protects us, His children, can be compared to how animals protect their babies. I will never forget my experience with a dog that had just given birth. My mum sent me on an errand one early Saturday morning. When i got to her friend’s house, unknown to me her dog had just given birth, i opened the gate and walked in. Immediately her dog saw me, she started to bark and run towards me. (She probably thought i came to steal her puppies). I knew something was not right so i ran for my dear my life and the dog chased me. From that experience, i knew that animals, especially dogs, passionately protect their babies. Matthew 23:37 says: “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!” Jesus compared the way He would have loved to protect Jerusalem to the way a hen protects her chickens under her wings. The mother hen keeps her chickens close to her because she knows that danger menaces them. She is aware that a cold night is a threat to their lives so she keeps them underneath her wings. She provides food, protection, warmth, and nurture.

How Mother hen protects her chickens is similar to how God protects His children. Actually, God does a far better job! The chickens respond to Mother hen’s love by staying close to her. Friend, the only way to respond to God’s love is by staying in His presence. Dinah’s parent did everything any parent could do to protect their daughter. She had everything a young girl could dream of. One day she decided to go out and have fun with the daughters of the land. She left her house, her refuge, God’s presence and strayed into strange territory. Shechem, an unbeliever, a wicked man, caught her and raped her. She had kept her flower to give it to the love of her life – her husband. Shechem, a man without a soul, forcefully took this flower from her. Dinah lost it because she strayed away from where God placed her. Many are beginning to stray away from God and His counsels. Many young men and women are straying away by watching pornography on the internet. Many sisters are beginning to stray away by taking marriage counsel from unbelievers. What do you expect to hear from them? Divorce your husband is all you will hear. Many brothers are beginning to stray away by asking their ungodly friends to show them how to make fast money maybe through fraud or something. Some have already strayed away like Dinah. I believe Dinah must have been straying out of the house to see the daughters of the land for a long time. She must have had one or two friends amongst the Hivites women. You may have strayed away too by committing fornication and adultery. You had better repent before Shechem grabs you. One of the Shechem of our time is STD.

WORD OF THE DAY: What is now sustaining you, out of the presence of God, is the mercy of God and that mercy will not last forever if you seize to return to where God placed you.

PRAYER POINT: Father, please keep me from falling.

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DANGERS OF RESTING BEFORE THE FINISH LINE

MEMORY VERSE: And it came to pass, after the year was expired, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried still at Jerusalem. 2 Samuel 11:1

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalms 81-85, Proverbs 17

One of the biggest concerns in the body of Christ today is that majority of us are beginning to take our foot off the gas. We no longer pray as we used to. We no longer fast as we used to. We longer witness about Christ to people, especially our colleagues at work and neighbours at home, as we used to. We no longer give as we used to. We now count many spiritual activities as a waste of time. The fervency with which some of us used to serve the Lord is no longer there. Many never used to joke with their quiet time. No matter how tired they are, they will read at least a chapter of the bible daily. Today, many of us cannot remember the last time we read a complete chapter of the bible. When i was younger, i remember that everyone’s New Year goals used to be to read the whole bible in a year. During that time, a man of God read the bible nine times in a year. Today, people no longer set such targets for themselves. It used to be a thing of pride to suffer for Christ or for the gospel. Today, being a child of God is no longer cool. No one wants to be like Jesus anymore. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 24:13, “But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” In other words, saying the sinner’s prayer is not enough. Being born into a Christian family is not enough. You must be upright to the very end. You must not practice sin. If you fall into sin, you repent right away, ask for forgiveness, and move on. You must run from sin until you go to be with the Lord.

Asides this, there is danger is resting before the finish line. 2 Samuel 11:1 says: “And it came to pass, after the year was expired, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried still at Jerusalem.” When David was meant to be at the battlefront - leading the armies of Israel to war, defending the nation and conquering new territories - he stayed at home to rest. While he was resting, the enemy caught up with him and set a trap for him. King David woke up from bed and decided to take a stroll around his palace. Whilst strolling, he saw Bathsheba bathing. He saw what he was not meant to see and got into trouble. Before he knew what was happening, he had already fallen into the sin of adultery. This mistake cost him all he had ever worked for even the throne. The man who used to reside in the palace now began live in pits. Friend, the enemy is making more effort than ever to get us to fall into sin. He is doing everything possible for us to make a costly mistake and lose the gifts of the Holy Spirit. This is not the time to take your foot off the gas. This is not the time to play with your salvation. This is not the time to stop witnessing. This is not the time to joke with your prayer life. This is not the time to lose your zeal for the things of God. This is not the time to relax. This is not the time to joke with your quiet time.

PRAYER POINT: Father, please revive your church.

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IT IS NOT GOOD THAT ‘THE’ MAN SHOULD BE ALONE

MEMORY VERSE: And the Lord God said, it is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. Genesis 2:18

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalms 76-80, Proverbs 16

I hear a lot of people, especially brothers, say it is not good for a man to be alone. Please, where is that written in the bible? Genesis 2:18 says: “And the Lord God said, it is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.” It is not good for ‘the’ man, not ‘a’ man, to be alone. ‘The’ man referred to in Genesis 2:18, was a particular man previously spoken about in the preceding verses. This man, which we now know as Adam, had met some criteria before the Lord said it is not good for him to be alone. Except you, single brother, meet those criteria, I think it is good for you to be alone. Sisters in Christ, the fact that a brother has beards does not mean he is ready for marriage.

There are few things you need to know about ‘the’ man who God was referring to when He said it is not good for the man to be alone. Firstly, God had formed the man. Genesis 2:7 says: “and the Lord God formed man…..” The man was a new creature i.e. a born again. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says: “therefore if any man be in Christ he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold all things are become new.” Sisters, it is not wise to marry a brother who has not given his life to Christ. The bible even says, “ be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion with darkness (2 Corinthians 6:14).” The same applies to brothers too. Also do not marry a baby Christian or a fellow who has just given his or her life to Christ. When Simon the Sorcerer accepted Jesus, as his personal Lord and Saviour, the church rejoiced. On the day of his baptism, everyone danced for joy. Bro Philip, his father in the Lord, beamed with smiles throughout that day. Within few weeks , he became personal assistant to Bro Philip. The bible said, “he continued with Philip (Acts 8:13).” Unknown to everyone, Simon had a hidden agenda – he was after something. He wanted the power of God so he that could do business with it. When he observed that through laying of hands people received the Holy Ghost, he offered money to buy the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:9-24). All these while, the church thought Simon was genuine but he was not. So sister, let us watch that brother who has just given his life to Christ to see if he is genuine. The same applies to brothers too. Secondly, the man was in Eden. Eden stands for God’s presence or a place where God comes to fellowship with man. It is good for a man who does not have an altar – a place where he talks to God in prayer, study the word of Word - to be alone. Thirdly, God gave him a work – to cultivate and keep the garden. Genesis 2:15 says: “and the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and keep it.” It is good for a man who does not have a job to be alone. Without a job, how can he provide for his family? Besides, God first gave Adam a job before He gave him a wife. To cultivate means to grow something. God told Adam to grow or develop the garden i.e. everything around him. To cultivate the garden, Adam needed to first cultivate himself i.e. develop a skill. It is good for a man who has not developed any skills or who is not working on himself to be better to be alone. To keep means to protect or preserve. If a man cannot keep something e.g. a job; If he is always changing jobs every two weeks, it is good for him to be alone. A man who can not keep a job most likely cannot keep a marriage.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: I see the bibles some brothers carry , it is all torn. Some of it do not even have a cover. If one cannot keep a bible – the word of God – I wonder if they will be able to keep a relationship.

PRAYER POINT: Father, please make our brothers, especially those who are yet to marry, real men. Please make them men who will love Your word, study Your word, practice Your word and keep Your word in their hearts.

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WHO WAS CALLED BARREN

MEMORY VERSE: And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. Luke 1:36

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalms 71-75, Proverbs 15

Men love to give names to people. They may call one by his unfortunate background e.g. Jephtah the son of a harlot ( Judges 11:1-3).The knew Gilead was the father of Jephtah, yet they called him the son of a harlot simply because his mother was a harlot. They may call one by his problem or predicament e.g. blind Bartimeaus. The bible recorded his name as Bartimeaus Timaeus i.e. Bartimeaus the son of Timeaus ( Mark 10:46). Thousands of years after his healing, people are still calling him blind Bartimeaus. There was a woman called Elisabeth Zacharias, she was the cousin of Mary, the mother of Jesus. Because she had no child and had gone past child bearing, men began to call her barren. Luke 1:46 says: “And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren.” Thank God it was people who called her barren not God. It does not matter what names people call you. How the experts described your medical condition is irrelevant. What matters is God’s report. What matters is what God calls you. Men may call you ‘barren’ but God has not called you barren. The Lord said in Exodus 23:26: “there shall nothing cast their young, nor be barren, in thy land: the number of thy days I will fulfil.” What men say about you or circumstance is irrelevant. What is relevant is what God says about you. Search the scriptures to see what God says about you or your circumstances. Job 8:7 says: “though thy beginning was small, yet thy latter end should greatly increase.” Men said Walt Disney lacked creativity, some even said he lacked good ideas. God had something different to say about Walt Disney. Experts may have written your case off, God has not written your case off. It is never over until God says so.

Friend, what men say about your spiritual life is irrelevant. There are many who are humble inside the four walls of the church but ‘a tiger’ outsides the four walls of the church. Some only pray in the church, they do not pray at home. What men say about your relationship with God does not matter. To be frank only God can accurately describe your relationship with Him. Only God alone can accurately described our spiritually lives. What men say about your prayer life does not matter. What men say about your giving does not matter. Sadly, what we say about ourselves does not really matter too. 2 Corinthians 10:18 says: “for not he that commendeth himself is approved, but whom the Lord commendeth.” Men may call you a meek brother, but what does God call you? Men may call you a humble sister, but what does God call you? Samuel called Eliab the Lord’s anointed but the Lord called him a ‘cast away’ (1 Samuel 16:5- 7). Friend, what men say about your attendance does not matter. Many only attend service because they have nothing else to do at home and Champion’s league is not on until the next couple of weeks. What men say about your commitment to the things of God does not matter. You may be doing what you are doing in the vineyard of God because it is convenient. Friend, your service to God must cost you something. Whilst men look at the outward appearance, God looks at the heart. Are you an ordinary giver or a cheerful giver?

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Men changes. Those who shouted ‘Hosanna’ to Jesus were the same person who shouted ‘crucify Him.’ God is constant. He does not change.

PRAYER POINTS: Father, please open my eyes to see myself as You see me.

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LEARN SIMPLE OBEDIENCE

              

MEMORY VERSE: Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.1 Samuel 15:3

                                          

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalms 66-70, Proverbs 14

The people of Israel practiced the law of retaliation, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, in Old Testament times. This law was in place to restrict compensation to the value of the loss. Although this law provided one or two advantages, its disadvantages outweigh its advantages. For instance, this old law leaves everyone blind and toothless. The law of retaliation shuts the door of God’s mercy on us. 2 Samuel 22:26 says: “With the merciful thou wilt shew thyself merciful, and with the upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright.” The law of retaliation shuts the door of divine forgiveness on us. Matthew 6:14 says: “For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:” The law of retaliation also puts one in spiritual bondage. According to Matthew 18:21-35, the fellow who fails to forgive will be handed over to tormentors i.e. the devil and demons. To cancel out the law of retaliation, Jesus introduced the law of love. Love your neighbour as yourself. He also introduced forgiveness.

In Exodus 17:8, without being provoked in any way, shape or form, the Amalekites attacked the children of Israel and killed many of them – young, old, pregnant, nursing mothers, lame, weak, etc. As the law of retaliation demands, the Amalekites had to be paid back in their own coin. (Remember it was an eye for an eye and a tooth for tooth in those days). The Lord sent Saul, through Samuel, to destroy the Amalekites i.e. child killers, nursing mother killers, etc. 1 Samuel 15:3 says: “Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.” The instruction that Saul received was quite simple. It was unambiguous, easy to understand and simple. God told him, “go and destroy all.” When he got to Amalek, he kept Agag (the king of Amalek), the people with him kept the best of the sheep, oxen, fatlings, lambs and all that was good and destroyed the rest. When he returned to Israel, he received the shock of his life. 1 Samuel 15:23 says: “………..because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.” Anyone God rejects is doomed for life. When we say God has rejected a fellow, what we are saying is God has banished the fellow from His presence. In the presence of God is fullness of joy (Psalm 16:11), outside of His presence is sadness. We run into problems when we disobey God. Doing God’s work does not exempt us from the rewards of disobedience. Majority of the problems we find ourselves in today has its root in our disobedience to God’s words. Some years back whilst sharing tracts from house to house, the Lord drew my attention to some groups of young boys who were walking towards me. The Lord told me to greet them nicely but I did not. Since I was older, I expected them to greet me first not the other way round. I walked past them, they did not say a word to me, and I did not say a word to them. I thought that was it. As I walked into a street, I saw these boys standing outside a property I wanted to drop some tracts into their letter box. As I opened the gate, I greeted them nicely and they started to swear at me. They even threatened to attack me. God foresaw this, that was why He instructed me to greet to them earlier. Thank God they did not attack me.

QUESTION: Friend, has God asked you to do something?  Has He told you to go and make up with a sister you are not in talking terms with? Has He told you to apologize to your wife? Has He was warned you to stop walking with some group of people? Repent today and do what He has asked you to do.

PRAYER POINTS: Father I repent today, please forgive me and give me a second chance to put things right.

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IT IS A BIG PRIVILEGE

MEMORY VERSE: for I speak to you gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the gentiles, I magnify mine office. Romans 11:13

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalms 61-65, Proverbs 13

One of the secrets of Paul’s success in life, especially in ministry, is found in Paul’s epistle to the church in Rome. Romans 11:13 says: “ for I speak to you gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the gentiles, I magnify mine office.” Paul was a seasoned preacher of the word. He was in the ministry for donkey years. His children in the Lord were the likes of Titus and Timothy who later became great men of God. He was a mentor to great teachers like Priscilla and Aquila. These great teachers, Paul mentored and discipled, mentored other great teachers. (Priscilla and Aquila mentored and discipled Apollos - another great teacher of the Word in Acts 18:24-28). Through Paul’s ministry, many who were sick – mentally, physically, emotionally – were healed. Acts 19:11-12 says: “And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul: So that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them.” In terms of revelation, Paul was miles ahead of those he met in the ministry. Peter said this of Paul, “As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction(2 Peter 3:16).”

In all ramifications, Paul was considered a success yet he said, “I magnify mine office.” In other words, I see my office as a big privilege so I bring honour to my ministry. Paul saw his position, especially in the body of Christ, as a privileged position. How we see things inform our attitude towards things. Our perception of a thing informs our attitude towards that thing. Paul saw everything God had given to him, including his achievements, as a privilege. God has brought ‘helpers of destiny’ to some, but because they did not see them as a privilege, they began to speak to them anyhow and take them for granted. At the end, these ‘helpers of destiny’ left without being able to do what God brought them to do. Church members that go out of their way to support the ministry are a privilege. Pastors whose priority is the well-being of their church members is a privilege. A good wife is a privilege. A good husband is a privilege. A well behaved child is a privilege. A well paid job is a privilege. A good mother in law is a privilege. So also is a good father in law. A supportive wife is a privilege. That friend that is always there when you need them is a privilege. All these things are privileges. There is someone out there who will literally give an arm to have them. Your good health is a privilege. Your life is a privilege because many die daily. Paul never for once thought that he deserved anything; he saw everything, even his success, as a privilege. The reason why many get godly counsel and still go and do what they want is because they do not consider that godly counsel as a privilege. Action they say speak louder than words. It is easy to tell a fellow who sees his job or post as a privilege from a fellow who does not see it as a privilege. If you see your job as a privilege you will not play with it. You will channel everything you have into it. You will do everything not to loose it. A fellow who sees his marriage as a privilege will do everything to make it work. It is easy to tell if a fellow sees a godly counsel as a privilege or not. Those who see godly counsel as a privilege usually act on the counsel given almost immediately.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: One of the biggest privileges is the death of Christ on the cross for mankind. Today, you and I can repent and give our lives to Christ, fallen angels can not because God did not make provision for their redemption.

TO DO: Thank God for making provision for your redemption.

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THE MOST CARELESS MAN THAT EVER LIVED 2

MEMORY VERSE: And she said unto him, How canst thou say, I love thee, when thine heart is not with me? thou hast mocked me these three times, and hast not told me wherein thy great strength lieth. Judges 16:15

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalms 56-60, Proverbs 1

BIBLE STUDIES: Judges 16:15-20

In our devotional titled ‘THE MOST CARELESS MAN THAT EVER LIVED 1,’we looked at how Bro Samson’s carelessness almost cost him his life. Shortly after God delivered Samson in Judges 15:10-16, he started a relationship with a strange woman. Despite all the sermons, despite all the marriage counselling, despite all he had heard in single’s meeting, Bro Samson still went ahead and started a relationship with Delilah. I believe some brothers in his fellowship must have quoted 2 Corinthians 6:14, which says, “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness,” to him but he did not listen. I believe the pastor must have called Bro Samson into his office and shared stories of great men like Solomon who married strange women and got into trouble. Bro Samson said to the pastor, “Delilah is different, she cannot hurt a fly.” Because God loved Bro Samson a lot, He must have spoken to one or two brothers in the dream and sent them to Samson. When those ones delivered the message to Samson, he told them that they were only jealous of him because Delilah was a beautiful young girl. Samson thought within himself, “it is my life, it is no one's business”. One morning, he packed his bag and moved in with Delilah. She accepted him into his house and they began to live as husband and wife.

After a week or two, Delilah said to Samson, “Tell me, I pray thee, wherein thy great strength lieth, and wherewith thou mightest be bound to afflict thee” (Judges 16:6). Without mincing words, she asked Samson to tell her how he could be harmed. Why would anyone ask such questions if not to cause harm? She literally told him, i want to destroy you, tell me how to go about it. Brother Samson replied jokingly, “bind me with seven green withs that were never dried, then shall i be weak, and be as another man (Judges 16:7).” He said this hoping that would be the end of the conversation. Few days later, Delilah got seven green withs, bound him and shouted “the Philistines be upon thee.” Samson got up and broke the withs, thus his strength was not known. After this, i thought Bro Samson would sense danger and withdraw from Delilah. I expected him to go to God in prayer and ask for wisdom on how to end the relationship. No, Bro Samson remained in the relationship. From time to time, she would asked Samson for his secret and that one would lied to her. She would try what Samson said and fail. Yet, Samson did not see in anything wrong in his relationship with Delilah. At a point, “And she said unto him, How canst thou say, I love thee, when thine heart is not with me? thou hast mocked me these three times, and hast not told me wherein thy great strength lieth” (Judges 16:15).  At last, Samson told her the secret and she arranged for the seven locks on his head to be shaven. After this, his enemy grabbed him and took out his eyes. Many of us are like Samson in that we see trouble and we pass on into it. You are in courtship with a sister and anytime she gets angry she turns into a beast. What do you think will happen when she gets angry after marriage? You know that sister is uncontrollable, she listens to neither God nor man. Whatever she purposes in heart is what she would do regardless of what anyone says. You know it is her way or no way. Anytime she does not have her way, trouble will start. What do you think will happen after marriage? Brother, do you not know that those little white lies she is always telling will not stop after marriage?

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: If you are unable to fix it before marriage, you may never be able to fix it after marriage.  

PRAYER: Let us commit our single brothers into the hands of the Lord that they will not choose wrongly.

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