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

Open Heavens Today 10 December 2017: Sunday daily devotional by Pastor E. A. Adeboye - INVITATION TO GRATER WORKS

Posted: 07 Dec 2017 12:05 PM PST

INVITATION TO GRATER WORKS - Sunday December 10^th 2017

Memorise: "Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you." Luke 10:19

Read: Matthew 14:23-29 (KJV)

^14:23And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.

^14:24But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary.

^14:25And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea.

^14:26And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear.

^14:27But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.

^14:28And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.

^14:29And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.

Bible in one year: Psalm 135-141, Zephaniah 3:9-20, Sing Hymn 14

MESSAGE:

On one of their journeys by sea, the disciples saw Jesus walking towards them on the water. Astonished to see this wonder, Peter asked the Lord Jesus Christ if he could join Him, and Lord invited him to come. Peter's fellow disciples watched in amazement as he walked towards Jesus on the water. If only too had responded to the lord's invitation, they would have partaken of this awesome experience, but they were not courageous enough to step out. Nevertheless, that invitation to do the impossible was not limited to them. It is still open to you and me today. In John 14:12, Jesus said,

''Verily, verily I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall do also.' And greater works then these shall he do; because I go unto my Father."

Beloved, the call to the works of Jesus and even perform greater works than He did is a call to the impossible. To be able to do this, you must be prepared to believe in Jesus Christ with all your heart, leaving no space for doubt. Do you believe in him? Why then do you still leave room for doubt? Don't you know that the Lord never fails?

Furthermore, Jesus invites us to follow him. John 8:12 says,

"Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."

As the light, if you follow Jesus, you will not walk in darkness, and neither will you stumble. Also, if you follow Him, He will make something great out of your life. He will make you what you never dreamt you could become. Consider a person like Peter: he would have died an unknown fisherman if he had not accepted Christ's invitation to follow him (Matthew4:18-19). Have accept that invitation to follow Jesus? Today some people give various excuses for not following him. One of such excuses is that they do not want to be disturbed distracted from their life's goal or ambition, failing to realise that if only they accepted Lord's invitation, they would have had a greater future and they would have enjoyed His backing in all their life's endeavours. Have you heeded His invitation?

Action Point:

The call to follow Jesus is a call to true discipleship. Are you His disciple?

Open Heavens Daily Devotional Lessons was 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.

Hymn 14

HYMN 14 – TAKE MY LIFE AND LET IT BE

Verse 1:

Take my life and let it be
consecrated, Lord, to thee.
Take my moments and my days;

Let them flow in endless praise.

Verse 2:

Take my hands and let them move
At the impulse of Thy love.
Take my feet and let them be
Swift and beautiful for thee.

Verse 3:

Take my voice and let me sing
Always, only, for my King.
Take my lips and let them be
Filled with messages from Thee.

Verse 4:

Take my silver and my gold;
Not a mite would I withhold.
Take my intellect and use
Every power as Thou shalt choose.

Verse 5:

Take my will and make it Thine;
It shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart, it is Thine own;
It shall be Thy royal throne.

Verse 6:

Take my love; my Lord, I pour
At Thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself, and I will be
Ever, only, all for Thee.

Open Heaven Today 9 December 2017: Saturday daily devotional by Pastor E. A. Adeboye – STOP THE PRETENCE

Posted: 07 Dec 2017 12:01 PM PST

STOP THE PRETENCE - Saturday December 9^th 2017

Memorise: "Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned:" 1st Timothy 1:5

Read: 1^st Timothy 1:5-9 (KJV)

^1:5Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned:

^1:6From which some having swerved have turned aside unto vain jangling;

^1:7Desiring to be teachers of the law; understanding neither what they say, nor whereof they affirm.

^1:8But we know that the law is good, if a man use it lawfully;

^1:9Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers,

Bible in one year: Psalm 120-134, Zephaniah 2:13-3:8, Sing Hymn 6

MESSAGE:

Salvation through Christ is such a great experience, but the devil in his characteristic manner has introduced counterfeits into people lives. The consequence of possessing a counterfeit salvation experience is a life of pretence. To guard against this wile of the devil, the Holy Spirit in 1^st Timothy 1:5, admonishes us thus:

''Now the end of the commandement is charity out of a pure heart, and of good conscience, and of faith unfeigned.''

While God wants us to show love to all, he equally cares about the source of this love. The source of a thing goes a long way in determining its quality and value. You cannot bring something good out of an evil heart. If you do, that good thing is already tainted. For instance, even though you see lots of food in dunghill, you will not go to eat from there. God is therefore saying that should do away with pretence and hypocrisy, because they taint whatever good works you are doing. He is saying that if you will show Him love, make sacrifices for His sake, or give to His cause, such actions must come out of a pure heart, with a good conscience and done with sincerity; otherwise, the doer of these works may not get any reward.

Are you saved? Is your salvation genuine or false? 2^nd Corinthians 5:17 says if you are saved, old things are passed away. This means that if you were stealing before, after experiencing salvation, you will stop stealing. You cannot continue stealing and still lay claim to salvation. While my father-in-the-Lord was alive, if you claim to be saved, he would ask you these questions. What were you saved from? ''What were you doing before that you longer do now?'' Today, people claim they are saved, and yet they still steal, lie or fornicate. What kind of salvation is that? In one of my missionary trips outside Nigeria, a man came to me and said, '' Sir, I heard that you are a prophet of God and that your prophecies are deadly accurate.'' '' is that so?'' I replied and further added, ''I am not a prophet but Pastor, but I do hear from God once a while.'' He then asked me to tell him his future. I asked him if he was born again and washed in the blood of Jesus Christ, and His response was ''No''. So I said to him, ''future will be terrible'. Alarmed, he said, ''How how do you know? You don't even know my name, and you have not even prayed!'' I told him there was no need for that because Isaiah 3:11 says '' Woe to the wicked!'' On the other hand, if are saved, your tomorrow will be alright. Are you saved? Did you genuinely give your life to Jesus Christ on particular day? If not, do it today!

Action Point:

The afterlife has no room for pretence. It's all about reality and truth.

Hymn 6

HYMN 6: DEEPER, DEEPER

1. Deeper, deeper in the love of Jesus

Daily let me go;

Higher, higher in the school of wisdom,

More of grace to know.

Chorus:

O deeper yet, I pray,

And higher every day,

And wiser, blessed Lord,

In Thy precious, holy Word.

2. Deeper, deeper, blessed Holy Spirit,

Take me deeper still,

Till my life is wholly lost in Jesus,

And His perfect will.

Chorus:

3. Deeper, deeper! though it cost hard trials,

Deeper let me go!

Rooted in the holy love of Jesus,

Let me fruitful grow.

Chorus:

4. Deeper, higher, every day in Jesus,

Till all conflict past,

Finds me conqu'ror, and in His own image

Perfected at last.

Chorus:

5. Deeper, deeper in the faith of Jesus,

Holy faith and true;

In His pow'r and soul exulting wisdom

Let me peace pursue.

Chorus.