REMAIN UNDER HIS COVERING 2
For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish: - (2 Corinthians 2:15)
READ: 2 Kings 5:20-27
Years ago, when I was a younger Christian, many people would come to me and say, d say, "Young man, we see the way you are on fire for the Lord. Make sure you don't backslide." Whenever I heard that, I would smile because I had made up my mind that I would not be a fool and return to the fear, sickness, and bondage Jesus took away from my life when I became born again. I thank God for His grace, which has kept me all these years. Remembering where God brought me from has been one of the ways I have stayed on course. When you constantly remember what Jesus saved you from, no one will need to preach to you to remain in Christ. I pray that you will not yield to satan's temptations to depart from the cover of the shadow of God's wings, in Jesus' name.
Anyone who departs from the cover that the shadow of God's wings provides is open to all kinds of sicknesses and diseases. Today's Bible reading tells us the story of Gehazi, who decided to leave the shelter of God's wings. Within a day, the fellow who could have ended up as the next prophet, because he was Elisha's servant, ended up becoming a leper. Sometimes, it only takes a brief moment for people who decide to leave God's covering to forfeit all the blessings they have enjoyed under His cover. I pray that your story will not move from glory to shame, in Jesus' name.
People who wander from the shadow of God's wings expose themselves to death. Proverbs 21:16 says, "The man that wandereth out of the way of understanding shall remain in the congregation of the dead." When people are in the congregation of the dead, their lives stink. People who decide to backslide have accepted an open invitation to a stinking life. They have decided to invite rottenness and disfavour into their lives. No matter how beautiful a house may be, guests will avoid it once a rat has died inside and begun to decay. They might not want to wine or dine with the owner of the house until the pungent smell has been taken care of. In (2 Corinthians 2:14-15), however, Apostle Paul describes the believer as a sweet savour of Christ.
Beloved, when you abide under the shadow of the Almighty, you will continue to increase in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man (Luke 2:52).
KEY POINT:
Wandering from God's covering is extending an invitation to shame, sickness, and death.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Jonah 1-4
Open Heaven Devotional by Pastor E A Adeboye
GREATER IS THE END
Though thy beginning was small, yet thy latter end should greatly increase. - (Job 8:7)
READ: Ecclesiastes 7:8
In life, the end of anything must be given more attention than its beginning. I am the son of a farmer, who was so poor that poor people called him poor. For the first 18 years of my life, I didn't own any shoes, but God has transformed me into someone who is celebrated all over the world today.
Child of God, what is essential in life is not how your life began, but how it progresses and ultimately ends. No matter how rough your past may have been, you must forge ahead and not allow it to weigh you down. If you were a terrible sinner, for instance, you must note that you are now born again, and you must not think that God cannot use you like He is using others. Your former nature is gone; you are born again, and you are a new person altogether (2 Corinthians 5:17).
Some may have believed that Elisha had already reached his peak as a prosperous farmer in (1 Kings 19:19), but in truth, God's greater purpose for his life had only just begun. When the hand of the Lord came upon him, he became a renowned prophet with access to kings, nations, and economies. When you truly walk with Jesus, your past achievements will pale in comparison to the glory God will reveal through you. (2 Corinthians 3:1-18) discusses the ministry of condemnation and the ministry of righteousness. Here, Paul was comparing Moses' ministry with Jesus' ministry. Although Moses' ministry was temporary, it was still described as glorious, but its glory was nothing compared to the eternal and enduring glory of Jesus Christ. Whatever glory you think you have experienced in your life up until now pales in comparison to what God has in store for you.
Beloved, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain when you surrender to Jesus. In Acts 2, after the Holy Spirit came upon Peter and the other apostles, he preached the gospel and warned his listeners to save themselves from the corrupt generation in which they lived (Acts 2:40). I also urge you to save yourself from this corrupt generation. Just as those who heard Peter received his word gladly and were baptised (Acts 2:41), I encourage you to receive this word gladly. I pray that the Almighty God will keep leading you from glory to glory, in Jesus' name.
KEY POINT:
No matter how your past has been, God has designed a glorious end for you.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Amos 5-9
Open Heaven Devotional by Pastor E A Adeboye