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

20 October 2016 Open Heavens:- I know your works V

Posted: 17 Oct 2016 02:07 PM PDT

I KNOW YOUR WORKS V – Thursday October 20^th 2016

Memorise: Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. Matthew 26:41

Read: Revelation 3:1-6, (KJV)

1 And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.

²Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God.

³Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.

⁴Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.

⁵He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.

⁶He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

Bible in one year: Joel 1-3, Psalms 82

MESSAGE

Our Lord Jesus Christ is the most practical personality that has ever lived on the earth. This should not be surprising, since He is both God and man; He came to show us the way to live a victorious and fulfilled life. He affirmed that He came that we may have life and to have it more abundantly (John 10:10). Open Heavens 20 October 2016:- I know your works V

In the Lord's letter to the Church at Sardis, He told the Church that they were living in self-delusion; that they thought they were vibrant and full of life, whereas, they were half dead and something must be done urgently to preserve the remaining half of their lives, because their works were not perfect before God. They were to watch and pray to rejuvenate their spirituality. Our compassionate Lord, who would not want anyone, particularly those who have confessed Him as Lord to perish is here in today's reading appealing to and warning the Church to remember how they started and hold fast the Word of truth. One lesson here is that God is not interested in the death of a backslider but that the backslider should repent and be saved.

"Turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord; for I am married unto you; and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion."

Jeremiah 3:14

Another interesting lesson we must learn from today's reading is that the Almighty God knows the state and details of our lives, both spiritually and physically. In spite of the indictment of the imperfect works of the Church at Sardis, the Lord still revealed the truth that not all the members of the Church were corrupt. . 20 October 2016 Open Heavens.

"Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy."

Revelations 3:4

The accurate judge said that there are names (though few) that are worthy! I pray that you will be declared worthy in Jesus' name. However, you have to watch over your soul in this pervert generation and pray always if you will be worthy at the end of the age. Moreover, the Lord promised that He would judge individuals in the church, according to each person's deeds. There shall be no collective responsibility when it comes to spiritual accountability. 20 October 2016 Open Heavens.

"The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father; neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him."

Ezekiel 18:20

Action Point: Since the Lord knows your works; take a self-examination of yourself and see where you need to repent, watch and pray for restoration.

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

19 October 2016 Open Heavens :- I know your works IV

Posted: 17 Oct 2016 01:51 PM PDT

I KNOW YOUR WORKS IV – Wednesday October 19^th 2016

Memorise: This is a true saying, if a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work. A bishop then must be blameless… 1^st Timothy 3:1-2a

Read: Revelations 2:18-24, (KJV)

¹⁸And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write; These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass;

¹⁹I know thy works, and charity, and service, and faith, and thy patience, and thy works; and the last to be more than the first.

²⁰Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols.

²¹And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not.

²²Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds.

²³And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works.

²⁴But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden.

Bible in one year: Hosea 11-14, Psalms 81

MESSAGE

It is amazing and at the same time fearful to realise that the Almighty God takes note of the so-called minor misses of the Church as seen in today's Bible reading. Open Heavens 19 October 2016:- I know your works IV God is mindful of those who occupy His altar and He will hold in contempt, not only those who climb the altar with profanity but also those who allow them to climb. In Revelation 2:20, God said:

"Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols."

The first lesson to be learnt from today's reading is in verse 18. The One that is assessing the Church in Thyatira has eyes like unto a flame of fire! In other words, He sees everything done in secret and in public. Absolutely nothing is hidden from Him. Psalms 139:11-12 says:

"If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the light shineth as the day; the darkness and the light are both alike to thee."

As we have mentioned over and over, the Almighty God knows the details of our service. This should always be a consolation to us, especially when it seems our services in the Church are not being appreciated. Know this, your Father in heaven who sees in secret will always reward you in the open. If you are a Deacon and you labour for the church like the General Overseer, it will amaze you that the reward of a General Overseer will pursue, overtake and stay with you. David was fighting like the commander-in-chief of the hosts of Israel and God rewarded him handsomely in many respects even before he was crowned. The greatest lesson with a strong warning is that your service is not perfect when it is laden with immorality and any form of evil. A Church is in danger when she allows profanity to take over the sanctuary. The Lord is warning someone using this devotional that has been using service to cover up his or her immorality and greed. Please, repent today and stop polluting the sanctuary of the Lord. The consequence of your defiant attitude to this warning are severe as seen in Revelation 2:22-23. May the Almighty God have mercy in Jesus' name. . 19 October 2016 Open Heavens.

Prayer Point

Father, wherever I have been missing it in my service to You, please help me make amends.

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