Open Heavens Daily Devotional Messages, By Pastor E.A Adeboye.

BACKSLIDER-IN-HEART II – Thursday April 20th 2017

Posted: 18 Apr 2017 12:48 PM PDT

BACKSLIDER-IN-HEART II – Thursday April 20^th 2017

Memorise: For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia. 2^nd Timothy 4:10

Read: Judges 14:5-10 (King James Version)

^14:5Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath, and came to the vineyards of Timnath: and, behold, a young lion roared against him.

^14:6And the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he would have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand: but he told not his father or his mother what he had done.

^14:7And he went down, and talked with the woman; and she pleased Samson well.

^14:8And after a time he returned to take her, and he turned aside to see the carcase of the lion: and, behold, there was a swarm of bees and honey in the carcase of the lion.

^14:9And he took thereof in his hands, and went on eating, and came to his father and mother, and he gave them, and they did eat: but he told not them that he had taken the honey out of the carcase of the lion.

^14:10So his father went down unto the woman: and Samson made there a feast; for so used the young men to do.

Bible in one year: Numbers 8-9, Jeremiah 16:14-17:13, Hymn: Sing hymn 11

MESSAGE:

Yesterday, we established that backsliding is a gradual process that remains hidden in the heart and only begins to manifest after it had gotten out of hand. In today's memory verse, we discover one factor that brings backsliding: the love of the world. 1^st John 2:15-16 says,

"Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world,"

The Bible passage reveals the character of the love of this present world, by which the heart of Demas, a companion of Paul, was stolen away from the straight and narrow way (2^nd Timothy 4:10). How far have you been drawn away from the narrow path which you have been treading on for so long? Is the relativism philosophy of this present world doing great damage to the faith which you once had? How far have you been drawn away by the pleasurable things of life? My prayer for you is that the fire of the first love you had for Christ will be reignited, and that you will relate with God and the things of God like when you first believed in Him in Jesus' Name.

Taking a closer look at the life of Samson as a case study of the backslider-in-heart, one lesson we can learn from today's Bible reading is that the backslider-in-heart can still be preaching, ministering in songs, doing all kinds of work of the ministry, and even performing miracles, which in the process of backsliding. 20 April 2017 Open heavens devotional 2017. Although Samson was going down into the abomination, when a lion roared against him, he responded with the same ability of the spirit he always had. Judges 14:6 says:

"And the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he world have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand: but he told not his father of his mother what he had done."

As if marrying a Philistine was not enough, on his next trip to Timnath, he went to admire the relics of his conquest, the carcass of a lion he had killed. Behold, the devil had set up a honeycomb right there in the carcass of the dead lion to ensnare him, and Samson fell for it; even though he knew that a Nazirite must not touch the dead body of an animal (Numbers 6:2-8). Samson's stomach and taste continued to lead him on his downward slide towards destruction, just as they did to Esau (Hebrews 12:16-17). My prayer for you is that your appetite for the things for the world will not destroy you in Jesus'Name.

Prayer Point

Father, don't let what I love destroy me, and don't let me love what would destroy me.

Open Heaven Daily Devotional, written by Pastor E.A Adeboye,

The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, one of the largest evangelical church in the world and also the President of Christ the Redeemer's Ministries.
iOpenHeavens is the electronic version of the Hard Copy. The Open Heavens devotional application is available across all mobile platforms and operating systems: iOS, Android, Blackberry, Nokia, Windows Mobile and PC. Click HERE to DOWNLOAD Daily Open Heaven Devotional from January to December 2017

BACKSLIDER-IN-HEART I – Wednesday April 19th 2017

Posted: 17 Apr 2017 02:59 PM PDT

BACKSLIDER-IN-HEART I – Wednesday April 19^th 2017

Memorise: The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways: and a good man shall be satisfied from himself. Proverbs 14:14

Read: Judges 14:1-3 (King James Version)

14:1 And Samson went down to Timnath, and saw a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines.

^14:2And he came up, and told his father and his mother, and said, I have seen a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines: now therefore get her for me to wife.

^14:3Then his father and his mother said unto him, Is there never a woman among the daughters of thy brethren, or among all my people, that thou goest to take a wife of the uncircumcised Philistines? And Samson said unto his father, Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well.

Bible in one year: Numbers 7, Jeremiah 16:1-13, Hymn: Sing hymn 16

MESSAGE:

Backsliding is not an event but a gradual process that occurs over a period of time until is get to a noticeable stage. At that stage, people will begin to say an individual has backslidden, but what they fail to realise is that it did not start at that point. Backsliding begins in the heart. When a believer becomes filled with his or her own ways, that believer has begun to backslide. That person would always be right in his or her own sight, and others would be wrong. Such a person would no longer take advice from anybody, becoming a loner. In today's Bible reading, we see the case of Samson, an anointed Nazirite to the Lord, who began to backslide right from his heart. The way today's Bible reading begins is significant: "And Samson went down…." When a person begins to go down, may the Lord have mercy on him or her. As he went down, he saw an abomination that enticed him: a Philistine woman. He came to his father and mother to tell them of his intention to marry the Philistine woman. His parents counselled him against this abominable desire, but regardless of their warning, Samson said "Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well."

When a child of God begins to nurse the idea of getting engaged to an unbeliever, no doubt, he or she has started backsliding in the heart. An unbeliever should not be an attractive option for a genuine child of God. A female child of God should find it repugnant for a smoker or drunkard to become her husband; after all, such a person will get intimate with her after wedlock with smoky lips or a mouth saturated with alcohol. 19 April 2017 Open heavens devotional 2017. A Christian brother should also see it as degrading to be married to a lady operating under the influence of the spirit of Jezebel – knowing full well how Jezebel destroyed her husband (Ephesians 2:2, 1^st Kings 21:25). You are influenced by the environment you live in and the people you are intimate with. An unbelieving woman of man will act as a weight around your neck, dragging you down to the pit of hell. The different abominable things going on in the world are enough to deter a genuine child of God from marrying a person who is not under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Such a person is not restrained from doing whatever the devil suggests to his or her heart and does not share the same standard of the word of God as a moral compass for life. Today, we hear of wives sleeping with drivers and domestic staff, and we also hear of husbands sleeping with housemaids and their wife's sisters – things that are abominable in the sight of God. Do you know that an unbeliever might not find these things abominable? It is a terrible thing to be associated with an "uncircumcised Philistine" in these end times. Beware of backsliding!

Prayer Point

Father, completely destroy the works of the devil in my life and in your Church.

Open Heaven Daily Devotional, written by Pastor E.A Adeboye,

The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, one of the largest evangelical church in the world and also the President of Christ the Redeemer's Ministries.

iOpenHeavens is the electronic version of the Hard Copy. The Open Heavens devotional application is available across all mobile platforms and operating systems: iOS, Android, Blackberry, Nokia, Windows Mobile and PC. Click HERE to DOWNLOAD Daily Open Heaven Devotional from January to December 2017