OPEN HEAVENS DEVOTIONAL : WEDNESDAY MARCH 29TH 2023

TOPIC: WHO DO YOU LISTEN TO?

MEMORISE:

My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not. Proverbs 1:10

READ: 2 SAMUEL 13:1-15, 2 SAMUEL 13:23-28

1 And it came to pass after this, that Absalom the son of David had a fair sister, whose name was Tamar; and Amnon the son of David loved her.

2 And Amnon was so vexed, that he fell sick for his sister Tamar; for she was a virgin; and Amnon thought it hard for him to do any thing to her.

3 But Amnon had a friend, whose name was Jonadab, the son of Shimeah David's brother: and Jonadab was a very subtil man.

4 And he said unto him, Why art thou, being the king's son, lean from day to day? wilt thou not tell me? And Amnon said unto him, I love Tamar, my brother Absalom's sister.

5 And Jonadab said unto him, Lay thee down on thy bed, and make thyself sick: and when thy father cometh to see thee, say unto him, I pray thee, let my sister Tamar come, and give me meat, and dress the meat in my sight, that I may see it, and eat it at her hand.

6 So Amnon lay down, and made himself sick: and when the king was come to see him, Amnon said unto the king, I pray thee, let Tamar my sister come, and make me a couple of cakes in my sight, that I may eat at her hand.

7 Then David sent home to Tamar, saying, Go now to thy brother Amnon's house, and dress him meat.

8 So Tamar went to her brother Amnon's house; and he was laid down. And she took flour, and kneaded it, and made cakes in his sight, and did bake the cakes.

9 And she took a pan, and poured them out before him; but he refused to eat. And Amnon said, Have out all men from me. And they went out every man from him.

10 And Amnon said unto Tamar, Bring the meat into the chamber, that I may eat of thine hand. And Tamar took the cakes which she had made, and brought them into the chamber to Amnon her brother.

11 And when she had brought them unto him to eat, he took hold of her, and said unto her, Come lie with me, my sister.

12 And she answered him, Nay, my brother, do not force me; for no such thing ought to be done in Israel: do not thou this folly.

13 And I, whither shall I cause my shame to go? and as for thee, thou shalt be as one of the fools in Israel. Now therefore, I pray thee, speak unto the king; for he will not withhold me from thee.

14 Howbeit he would not hearken unto her voice: but, being stronger than she, forced her, and lay with her.

15 Then Amnon hated her exceedingly; so that the hatred wherewith he hated her was greater than the love wherewith he had loved her. And Amnon said unto her, Arise, be gone.

2 SAMUEL 13:23-28

23 And it came to pass after two full years, that Absalom had sheepshearers in Baalhazor, which is beside Ephraim: and Absalom invited all the king's sons.

24 And Absalom came to the king, and said, Behold now, thy servant hath sheepshearers; let the king, I beseech thee, and his servants go with thy servant.

25 And the king said to Absalom, Nay, my son, let us not all now go, lest we be chargeable unto thee. And he pressed him: howbeit he would not go, but blessed him.

26 Then said Absalom, If not, I pray thee, let my brother Amnon go with us. And the king said unto him, Why should he go with thee?

27 But Absalom pressed him, that he let Amnon and all the king's sons go with him.

28 Now Absalom had commanded his servants, saying, Mark ye now when Amnon's heart is merry with wine, and when I say unto you, Smite Amnon; then kill him, fear not: have not I commanded you? be courageous, and be valiant.

MESSAGE

There is tremendous power in what you allow through your ears into your life. Believe me honestly, what you listen to has the power to shape your beliefs and actions. That is why Romans 10:17 says that faith comes by hearing. Interestingly, fear also comes by hearing. What you hear can determine what you become. This is why you must choose who you listen to carefully. When you notice that there is someone whose words leave your heart worse than it was before you listened to him,or her, please stay away from that fellow immediately.

There are many preachers out there who leave holiness out of their messages; please stop listening to them. Anyone who only talks prosperity and things that excite the crowd will lead people to hell.

There are also people around you whose advice you may want to seek from time to time. Please be careful who you choose to advice you. In our Bible reading for today, Amnon went to the wrong person for advice; this led to a great crisis in his family and his eventual death (2 Samuel 13:23-29). While it is good to receive advice – after all, Proverbs 11:14 says in the multitude of counsellors is safety, you must also be selective of the kind of people you seek counselling from. Check that fellow’s life first; check how close he is to God because he will only advise you based on his beliefs. Are his beliefs inspired by the word of God or by flesh?

After we had bought many hectares of land for the Redemption Camp, I was counselled not to buy any more land and to build a fence around what we had purchased. Unfortunately, after listening to these counsellors, I did not check with God before I started building the fence. After a while, God asked me, “Who told you to build a fence? Did I give you a limit to how large the camp should be?”

Thank God He spoke, and we continued to expand. Today, the camp has become a city. Before you take any advice, be sure that it does not contradict the word of God and also ensure it aligns with God’s will for your life.

REFLECTION

Who are you listening to?

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 1Samuel 22-24

AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A ADEBOYE