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

PRIVILEGES OF GOD’S CHILDREN II – Saturday April 29th 2017

Posted: 27 Apr 2017 01:51 PM PDT

PRIVILEGES OF GOD'S CHILDREN II – Saturday April 29^th 2017

Memorise: For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. Romans 8:14

Read: Romans 8:14-17 (King James Version)PRIVILEGES OF GOD'S CHILDREN II – Saturday April 29^th 2017

^8:14For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

^8:15For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.

^8:16The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:

^8:17And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.

Bible in one year: Numbers 26-27, Jeremiah 22:24-23:8, Hymn: Sing hymn 15

MESSAGE:

There is a song that was popular among children of God some decades ago which reveals not only privilege meant only for the children of God but also their appreciation of what privilege. It goes thus: "Something more than gold; The spirit of God in the heart of man; something more than gold." According to our memory verse, as many as are led by the spirit of God, are the children of God. In other words, only those who are children of God have the privilege of being directed and guided by the Holy Spirit. Conversely, only those who are guided by the Spirit of God are genuine children of God. If you take a look at the account of how God formed man from the dust of the earth, you will observe that in spite of the fact that every part was properly fixed and fitted, man could not fulfil the purpose of his creation until God put His Spirit in him. Genesis 2:7 says,

"And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul."

After man fell, the Spirit of the Lord departed from him, and he became a shadow of his glorious past. Open Heavens 2017 Saturday 29 April 2017:- Privileges of God's Chldren II. Man became afraid of himself. Adam and Eve lost trust in each another, so much so that they were ashamed of seeing each other's nakedness. Fear ruled the heart of man because the Spirit of the Lord had departed from him. Man lost his sense of purpose and direction. God appeared in the cool of the day and man took cover with his wife, who he now viewed as the source of his troubles (Genesis 3:12). The certainty of what tomorrow holds eluded humanity, and man groped in darkness, being tormented by different taskmasters until God decided to have mercy on us through the grace of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Open Heavens Devotional Messages 2017. The moment we accept His grace of adoption, we begin to enjoy the privilege revealed in Romans 8:15-16:

"For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:"

I believe you now understand the reason why the old-time believers sang with great excitement that the Spirit of God in the heart of a man is something more than gold. The Spirit gives us the assurance that we are children of God. This consciousness gives us the impetus to live like Him in this world, and also grants us boldness based on the assurance that with God, our Father, on our side, no evil can come near us. So, if you are yet to become a child of God, don't delay further; give your life to Christ today, and you will be adopted into the household of God.

Action Point

Thank God for His precious gift of the Holy Spirit and for all that His Spirit does in your life.

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

PRIVILEGES OF GOD’S CHILDREN I – Friday April 28th 2017

Posted: 26 Apr 2017 02:27 PM PDT

PRIVILEGES OF GOD'S CHILDREN I – Friday April 28^th 2017

Memorise: Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. Galatians 4:7

Read: Mark 7:24-30 (King James Version)

²⁴And from thence he arose, and went into the borders of Tyre and Sidon, and entered into an house, and would have no man know it: but he could not be hid.

²⁵For a certain woman, whose young daughter had an unclean spirit, heard of him, and came and fell at his feet:

²⁶The woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician by nation; and she besought him that he would cast forth the devil out of her daughter.

²⁷But Jesus said unto her, Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it unto the dogs.

²⁸And she answered and said unto him, Yes, Lord: yet the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs.

²⁹And he said unto her, For this saying go thy way; the devil is gone out of thy daughter.

³⁰And when she was come to her house, she found the devil gone out, and her daughter laid upon the bed.

Bible in one year: Numbers 23-25, Jeremiah 22:11-23, Hymn: Sing hymn 13

MESSAGE:

Without a doubt, the responsibilities associated with being a child of God in this present age of spiritual perversion are highly demanding. Nevertheless, our benevolent Father, knowing our frame, has placed several pleasant privileges at our disposal as His children, to ease our sojourn through wicked world. The first privilege we enjoy when we become children of God is that we are moved from the position of a servant or slave to that of a son and an heir of God (Galatians 4:7). This is the reason why we must have passion for evangelism, especially to Muslims, who believe that they are slaves of God. Open Heavens Devotional 2017. God did not create us in His image for the purpose of making slaves out of us. Anyone who has not come to the saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ is indeed a slave to sin and not a slave of God (Romans 6:16-18).

In the story of the Syro-phoenician woman in our Bible text, Jesus Christ did not mince words in revealing her true spiritual state to her as a slave of sin, in order to cause a change in her spiritual life. Fortunately for this woman, she admitted her spiritual poverty, and she was therefore given the hand of fellowship in adoption, so that she could be a parker of the food meant for God's children. Matthew 5:3 says,

"Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

Another striking thing in this story is that this woman was likened to a dog and she accepted it. Open Heavens 2017 Friday 28 April 2017:- Privileges of God's Children I. Do you know why? It's because this verdict came from the Way, the Truth and the Life Himself; when He speaks, He speaks with valid authority. So, when Jesus calls a sinner a dog, that is exactly what he or she is. This is why the liberal theologians who want to be 21^st century compliant would want to rewrite the Bible so that it can be "politically correct". Take note of the fact what is politically correct can be spiritually bankrupt.

In light of these truths, you can therefore see how great your privilege is when you are a child of God. Being a child of God grants you access to the food of salvation, deliverance, healing and prosperity that is meant only for children of God. If you are not yet a child of God, don't delay further; today is the day of salvation and adoption. Give your life to Christ today, admit your spiritual poverty and let Him cleanse you in His Blood.

Prayer Point

Father, I call You Father because you are a Father indeed. Make me Your own child through Jesus Christ, and bestow upon me the privileges of being Your child today.

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