MEMORISE:
Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. Proverbs 4:7
READ: Matthew 13:1-9
1 The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the sea side.
2 And great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that he went into a ship, and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.
3 And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow;
4 And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:
5 Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth:
6 And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.
7 And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them:
8 But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.
9 Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.
MESSAGE
If you have heard or read the Parable of the Sower as told by our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, you must have learnt some lessons from it. However, if the Lord tarries, the Holy Spirit will be teaching us some more lessons from the parable over the next few days. The first lesson is that the sower was not prudent enough in the business of sowing. He sowed carelessly and in so doing, wasted a lot of good seed on inappropriate ground. This situation applies to the lives of many people who waste their energy and resources on unprofitable ventures because they are not wise enough to identify the appropriate business, places and people to invest in. It is unimaginable but true that some people sentimentally site their bakery in a village of less than a hundred inhabitants. Among such inhabitants, hardly would twenty people buy a loaf of bread in three days because not only are they used to their local foods, they are also not rich enough to afford a loaf of bread. The story was told of a poor fellow who was very loyal to his king's business. Whenever the king called for volunteers to work on his farmland, this fellow was the first to show up and the last to leave; he was indeed very hardworking and dedicated. One day, the King decided to help him out of his poverty. He disguised a huge some of money in a big loaf of bread and gave it to him. "Take this bread home and let me see how it will transform your life for the better," said the king. Incidentally, the value of the bread was enough to pay for the food that the poor man could eat for five days. To the disappointment of the king, the poor man sold the loaf of bread, not knowing what was in it, and that was how he lost the fortune of a lifetime.
Some ventures are like sowing among thorns or on stony ground. Initially, such ventures may appear as though they have prospects, only for diminishing returns to set in later. It is one thing to be hardworking and another thing to work wisely. It is one thing to keep busy and another thing to be busy doing something profitable. Even as minister of the gospel, you need God's wisdom in the business of Church planting. It is counterproductive to build a three thousand-seater capacity auditorium in a community of 500 people. It is true that the souls of men are more valuable than money and that those souls in the village are not inferior to the souls in the city, but wisdom dictates that a congregation cannot grow beyond the number of people living in the community where it is located. This is the reason why the Holy Spirit inspired the words of today's memory verse. Wisdom enables the soul-winner to engage in profitable methods of evangelism and church-planting. Praying for a miracle of any kind for an unrepentant sinner, apart from the miracle of salvation, may be equivalent to sowing by the roadside. I pray that the wisdom you need to experience breakthroughs in all dimensions of life will be given to you in Jesus' Name.
PRAYER POINT:
Father, I ask for wisdom that is rooted in Your word for all aspects of my life in Jesus' Name.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Matthew 6-8, Isaiah 2:6-22
AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE
HYMN 3: TRUST AND OBEY
1. When we walk with the Lord
In the light of His word
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will,
He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey
Chorus:
Trust and obey,
For there's no other way
To be happy in Jesus,
But to trust and obey.
2. Not a shadow can rise,
Not a cloud in the skies,
But His smile quickly drives it away;
Not a doubt nor a fear
Not a sigh nor a tear,
Can abide while we trust and obey.
3. Not a burden we bear,
Not a sorrow we share
But our toil He doth richly repay;
Not a grief nor a loss,
Not a frown nor a cross,
But is blest if we trust and obey.
4. But we never can prove
The delights of His love
Until all on the altar we lay;
For the favour He shows,
And the joy He bestows,
Are for them who will trust and obey.
5. Then in fellowship sweet
We will sit at His feet,
Or we'll walk by His side in the way;
What He says we will do
Where He sends we will go
Never fear, only trust and obey.
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