OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL: SATURDAY JUNE 29TH 2024

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TOPIC: WHO DO PEOPLE SAY YOU ARE? MEMORISE : “When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?” - (Matthew 16:13) READ: Matthew 16:13-16 13 When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? 14 And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. 15 He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? 16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. MESSAGE : Today’s topic is a question you must be conscious of. In today’s Bible reading, Jesus asked His disciples whom people said that He was. He wasn’t confused about His identity; He knew who He was, but He was concerned about how people perceived Him. You must be conscious of how people perceive you too. People will only relate with you based on what they think about you and not what you th

OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL. DIVIDENDS OF HOLINESS – Sunday July 26th 2015

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;

Read: Lamentations 3:22-25

Message:
Everyone saved by the precious Blood of the Lamb is called to a lifestyle of holiness (1 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 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.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: EZRA 1-3, JOHN 4:46-5:18

Author: Pastor E.A. Adeboye

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