DIVIDENDS OF HOLINESS : Sunday July 26th 2015

Topic:DIVIDENDS OF HOLINESS 

Memorise: Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you. Hosea 10:12

Bible Text: Lamentations 3:22-25

Bible in one year: Ezra 1-3, John 4:46-5:18

Everyone saved by the precious Blood of the Lamb is called to a lifestyle of holiness (1^st Thessalonians 4:7). Believe it or not, a lifestyle of holiness pays great dividends. Proverbs 11:19 says:

“As righteousness tendeth to life: so he that pursueth evil pursueth it to his own death.”

There is therefore a link between righteousness and life, just as there is a link between sin and death (Romans 6:23). Although God has promised you long life in Psalm 91:16, it is only when you live holy that this promise can be fulfilled in your life (Psalm 91:14). If you look close enough, you will discover that most of God’s promises have conditions attached to their fulfilment. If you live holy, you will easily have access to long life, but if you live in disobedience or secret sin, you have moved from life to death. Are you holy? Are you still secretly living in sin? Repent today and turn a new leaf!

Another dividend of holiness is mercy. If you sow holiness, you will reap a harvest of God’s mercy. Hosea 10:12 says:

“Sow to yourself in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.”

Holiness is a seed. If you sow holiness, mercy will definitely be part of your harvest. If there is one thing all men need at all times, it is the mercy of the Most High God. Lamentation 3:22 says we are alive today not by our efforts or power but by the mercy of God. Just as holiness is a seed, sin is also a seed. If you sow sin, you will reap judgement and death (2^nd Corinthians 5:10). Mercy makes God to relate with you not on the basis of your sins, but on the basis of Christ’s sacrificial death and shed blood. Mercy makes God not to give you the punishment you deserve, but sin ensures you are served what you sowed. Sin ensures God relates with you only on the basis of your crimes or evils. God has said that the soul who sins shall die (Ezekiel 18:20). If God were to relate strictly with us on the basis of our sins, everyone on earth would have died by now (Psalm 130:3). If you want to live long and enjoy God’s mercy on a continuous basis, live holy. Live to please God and God alone.

Key point:The wisest people on earth are those who live according to God’s commands.

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HOLY LIVING & HEALTHY LIVING : Saturday July 25th 2015

Topic: HOLY LIVING & HEALTHY LIVING

Memorise: The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. 1^st Corinthians 15:567

 Bible Text: 1^st Timothy 4:6-9

Bible in one year: 2^nd Chronicles 35-36, John 4:16-45

At the time of man’s creation, there was no notion of sickness. There was indeed nothing like sickness. There was no expectation of death either. The human body was created to be self-sustaining through regular contact with God’s glory, and maintained by the foods provided by God. But when man fell, he lost so much, most importantly, the sustaining power of God’s glory. He had to begin to virtually rely on food for sustenance. As good as food is, it is limited in its ability to keep a man healthy. Although a daily diet of good food, vegetables, fruits and exercise is very important to living healthy, the final result will depend largely on the spiritual lifestyle of the fellow involved. For instance, if an individual is born-again and living a righteous life, this healthy lifestyle will work well for him, but if a fellow is living in sin, the result may be in bad taste. The reason is because sin itself is a killer (James 1:15). Sin does not often kill drastically but subtly, gradually and surely. Sin kills spiritually by sending the sinner to Hell, and it also kills physically.

“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Romans 6:23

Never underestimate the power of sin! Believe it or not, sin serves the sinner a cup of death. Every sin an individual commits dishes the fellow a dose of death, working against his or her health and gradually killing him or her. Take for instance a believer who eats the best meals but refuses to pay tithes; such a person will provoke God to curse him. No medicine or healthy meal can cure the effects of such a curse! Always remember that the spiritual always controls the physical. What unhealthy meal did Miriam eat that made her leprous for seven days (Numbers 12:5-15)? She only spoke against Moses, and that sin served her leprosy. Beloved, to consistently live in good health, it is important you place spiritual considerations side by side with healthy lifestyle choices. If you want to continue in sin, you are not serious about staying healthy. While some sicknesses are caused by poor eating habits, others are caused by sinful indulgences or violation of divine laws. Ensure both sides are properly taken care of. It is well with you. 

Key Point:Healthy meals + exercises + holy living = Good health

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SETTLED :Friday July 24th 2015

Topic:SETTLED 

Memorised: for he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast. Psalm 33:9

Bible Text: 33:8-11

 Bible in one year: 2^nd Chronicles 33:10-34:33, John 3:22-4:15

Whenever God says a thing, you can be sure that it is already done. That is why Psalm 33:8 commands the whole earth to fear this great and awesome God: whatever He declares is done, and His commandments are always established. For Instance, when John the Baptist by divine revelation announced Jesus as the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29), he was only announcing something that had already been planned, decided and concluded before the foundations of the earth. The Bible clearly states this truth in Revelations 13;8

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THE SPIRITUAL MARATHON:Thursday July 23rd 2015

Topic:THE SPIRITUAL MARATHON

Memorise: But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. Mathew 24:13

Bible Text: Hebrews 12:1-3

Bible in one year: 2^nd Chronicles 32:1-33:9, John 3:1-21

The day you genuinely gave your life to Christ, you began a race. It is a spiritual race. The race to Heaven is not a sprint but a marathon. It is not something you run with all your strength for just one day and it ends there. Unlike the regular marathon that goes through streets and paths already marked out, you may have to take unmarked routes and paths hitherto unknown while running this race. Also, unlike in regular marathons where you can meet someone who has successfully finished the race for tips, those who have run this peculiar race to the end are definitely not around on earth for people to consult with.

By the grace of God, as young as I am in Christ, I have been running this race for more than forty years now, and I am yet to reach the finishing line. There are people who joined this race some fifty or sixty years ago, and they are still on it till now. Every race has its peculiar nature. If you need patience and a lot of tact while running an earthly marathon, you will need much more of these while running the heavenly race. No wonder Hebrews 12:1 says,

“Wherefore seeing we also are compassed, about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us”

However, just like it happens in earthly marathons, there are several casualties in the heavenly race. Some people start a marathon like a sprint. They run far ahead of others, but after some time, they lose steam and begin to retrogress while those they left behind overtaken them. Also, there are those who fall and injure themselves, ending up in an ambulance. There are also those who out of exhaustion are unable to continue the race, and so they drop out. There are even those who after running for a while, gradually step out of the path, and are disqualified. All these scenarios are applicable to the spiritual marathon. Since you started the race to Heaven, have you been affected by any of these?  Have you stepped out of the path of the race? Have you run out of steam? Have you fallen and refused to rise up? Get up today! The Lord will give you strength. Persist some more. Take it one day at a time. Call on the Lord to help you. Never give up. Each day that passes draws you closer to the finished line. You will make it in Jesus’ Name!

Prayer Point:Father, grant me grace to run the race to Heaven with wisdom, patience and perseverance.

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UNFORGIVENESS & ITS RESTITUTION : Wednesday July 22nd 2015

Topic:UNFORGIVENESS & ITS RESTITUTION 

Memorise: Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. 1^st John 3:15

Bible Text: 1^st John 2:9-11

Bible in one year: 2^nd Chronicles 30-31, John 2

As children of God, we must always be watchful of pitfalls capable of nullifying all our efforts towards making Heaven. For example, God expects you to make restitution when you have told a lie incriminating an innocent person. In the same vain, if you have injured someone, you need to restitute. An example of this can be found in Acts 16:33-34, where the jailor who had contributed to the predicament of Paul and Silas took them to his house, treated their injuries and gave them decent food. Have you injured someone physically, emotionally or psychologically? Restitute your ways. In addition, if someone offends you so hard that you promised never to forgive the fellow, there is a need to forgive and release that individual so that you can make Heaven at last. Anyone who hates his brother has stepped out of God’s light into darkness and is seen as a murderer in the sight of God (1^st John 3:15). If you are in hatred, you are out of eternal life. Has anyone offended you to the extent that you resolved not to forgive? You must change that decision now if you do not want it to hinder your trip to Heaven. I once hated a particular man very much, because of the way he maltreated my family and I. But after I gave my life to Christ, I did not only forgive him, I also went to tell him he was forgiven. It was not an easy thing for me to do, but by the grace of God, I did it.

Is there un-forgiveness in your heart over some hurt or offence done to you? If you love yourself, forgive today. Forgiveness must be communicated to the one you have forgiven except it is done without sincerity. Some people say, “I have forgiven my offender but I will not tell him so.” How will the fellow you forgave know that he or she is forgiven? When a person is offended, it is like being owed some kind of debt. It is when forgiveness is released that the debt is paid. Refusing to forgive your offender sustains the debt, and we are commanded not to owe any man anything but love (Romans 13:8). The irony of un-forgiveness is that the one who refuses to forgive hurts himself or herself the most. The offender may be going about with a free mind, but the offended carries a heavy heart. Also, by begrudging the offender, the offended cannot move beyond where he or she is. Un-forgiveness ties the offended to the same spot. I hope you are not the one pegging your rise by not releasing your offender?  

Action Point:List the names of people you hold a grudge against or who hold a grudge against you, and prayerfully reconcile with them immediately. 

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THE PRINCIPAL PERSONALITY : Tuesday July 21st 2015

Topic :THE PRINCIPAL PERSONALITY

Memorise: Wisdom is the principal thing: therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understand. Proverbs 4:7

Bible Text: Proverbs 4:5-9

 Bible in one year: 2^nd Chronicles 28:5-29:36, John 1:29-51

Today’s Bible reading defines wisdom as the principal thing in life. Wisdom is most important because you need it to relate effectively with God, the devil and his cohorts. You also need wisdom to govern your relationship with friends and foes. At work, at school and in the ministry, you need wisdom. With wisdom, you can successfully handle all your life’s pursuits. Wisdom connects everything you do. Wisdom can mean the difference between life and death, success and failure, wealth and poverty, growth and retardation. Everything you can ever ask for will come to you if you have wisdom. There are different types of wisdom operation in the natural and spiritual realms. There is devilish wisdom, human wisdom and divine wisdom. Jesus Christ is declared to be the Wisdom of God in 1^st Corinthians 1:24

“But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.”

If wisdom is the principal thing, and Jesus Christ is the Wisdom of God, it therefore follows that Jesus Christ is the Principal Person. There is a link between the principal thing and the Principal Person. But why is wisdom so crucial? Proverbs 3:35 says,

“The wise shall inherit glory: but shame shall be the promotion of fools.”

Your pursuit of wisdom will deliver you glory. No wonder the Bible says if you have Jesus Christ, you automatically receive glory (Colossians 1:27). Conversely, if you lack wisdom, shame will be waiting at around the corner for you. There is a direct link between wisdom and a glorious future. Glory is the opposite of shame. Sickness, disease, failure, defeat, barrenness, stagnation, disappointment are all products of shame. When you have Jesus, you receive wisdom, and when you get wisdom, you have access to glory, which makes every token of shame disappear. As the principal thing, getting every other thing without getting wisdom amounts to a waste of time. In the same vain, acquiring material wealth, academic degrees and attaining heights in any field without having a personal relationship with the Principal Person converts one’s gains into one big loss! In all that you strive for, never stop seeking for more of Jesus and His wisdom!

Key Point:Having Jesus can deliver every other thing to you, but getting every other thing cannot give you Jesus.

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