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

18 October 2016 Open Heaven:- I Know your works III

Posted: 15 Oct 2016 01:32 PM PDT

I KNOW YOUR WORKS III – Tuesday October 18^th 2016

Memorise: Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; 1^st Timothy 4:1

Read: Revelation 2:12-17, (KJV)

¹²And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;

¹³I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan's seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth.

¹⁴But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication.

¹⁵So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes, which thing I hate.

¹⁶Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.

¹⁷He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.

Bible in one year: Hosea 6-10, Psalms 80:8-19

MESSAGE

In the Bible reading, Jesus Christ commended the Church in Pergamos, reassuring them that nothing about them is hidden from Him. The interesting thing about this Church is that in spite of the nearness of the Church to the seat of Satan, they still held on to the Name of Jesus Christ, they never denied their faith even in the face of terrible persecution. However, Jesus Christ had a serious allegation against them. They tolerated in their midst those who were holding on to and practising false doctrines. This is a food for thought for Christians of the 21^st century. In this end-time, we compromise a lot of the apostolic orthodox in the name of civilization and fundamental human rights. We have forgotten that just as God is not a democrat, He is also not a human activist. He has His set of rules that we must abide by, however, we compromise this divine standard because we think we can through that, win these blasphemers into the Kingdom. Open Heavens 18 October 2016:- I Know your works III As a matter of fact, because we have tolerated them so much, they now see themselves as Christians too, setting worldly standard for the Church as they dangle their wealth at the saints.

Will Jesus not hate such a compromise in the name of magnanimity when it becomes a stumbling block to the saints? The saints are living their first love because of the doctrine of Balaam. This compromise spoiled the good works of the Church in Pergamos. In Revelations 2:16, Jesus warned the Church:

"Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth."

One major revelation in this passage is that the message of repentance was preached to the Church in Pergamos. We are hereby encouraged to heed this warning too, so that we can overcome these temptations through genuine repentance. When we overcome, our reward will be the hidden manna and a testimonial of perfection written on precious stone. 18 October 2016 Open Heavens.

Beloved, do not be deceived by your longevity in Church. God knows your works and He will reward you accordingly.

Prayer Point

Father, help me to disassociate myself from worldly pollution.

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

17 October 2016 Open Heaven :- I Know your works II

Posted: 15 Oct 2016 01:23 PM PDT

I KNOW YOUR WORKS II – Monday October 17^th 2016

Memorise: He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the Churches. Revelation 2:29

Read: Revelation 2:8-11, (KJV)

⁸And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive;

⁹I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.

¹⁰Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.

¹¹He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

Bible in one year: Hosea 1-5, Psalms 80:1-7

MESSAGE

The Almighty Father knows all that we do, nothing we do is hidden from Him. This should make us rejoice because it means that our Master knows our works, (assuming that our works are good) and He will appreciate and commend us for them. In other words, even if people don't appreciate us or if they misunderstood us, God never misunderstoods. Open Heavens 17 October 2016:- I Know your works II. In Revelation 2:9, the Lord sent a message of goodwill to the Church in Smyrna:

"I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.

There are beautiful things to note from the above scripture: Jesus knows about the tribulation we are passing through. Little wonder one of the saints of old wrote a hymn titled: "There's not a Friend like the Lowly Jesus." The Chorus reads:

Jesus knows all about our struggles,

He will guide till the day is done;

There's not a friend like the lowly Jesus,

No, not one! No, not one!

Another interesting thing about today's Bible reading is the courage that the Master gave to the Church in Smyrna. He said: "Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer….be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life." Beloved, this is a message from Jesus, the Lover of your soul. Before this time, in John 16:33, Jesus made a categorical statement void of ambiguity.

"These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."

Jesus further assured us of the great reward of escaping the second death if we will strive to overcome (Revelation 2:11). May the Lord help us to overcome in Jesus' name. 17 October 2016 Open Heavens.

Prayer point

Father, strengthen my inner man so that I may stand strong till the very end.

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