OPEN HEAVENS DEVOTIONAL : SATURDAY MAY 20TH 2023

- May 20, 2023

TOPIC: SEXUAL IMMORALITY IS FORBIDDEN l

MEMORISE:

Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. 1 Corinthians 6:18

READ: Proverbs 5:15 -23

15 Drink waters out of thine own cistern, and running waters out of thine own well.

16 Let thy fountains be dispersed abroad, and rivers of waters in the streets.

17 Let them be only thine own, and not strangers' with thee.

18 Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth.

19 Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant roe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love.

20 And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger?

21 For the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD, and he pondereth all his goings.

22 His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be holden with the cords of his sins.

23 He shall die without instruction; and in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.

MESSAGE

The phrase' sexual immorality' covers all improper sexual conducts and practices like fornication, adultery masturbation, prostitution, pornography, incest, homosexuality, rape, child sexual abuse, bestiality and so on.

There is a special relationship between these sins and human eye as revealed in 2 Peter 2:14. The eye or face is sometimes used interchangeably in the Bible and both are very important for effective communication. This is why the Bible speaks of having eyes full of adultery.

Adultery and fornication are sexual practices that are considered immoral and abominable according to the word of God. Having eyes full of sexual immorality means communicating sexual attraction or immoral interest with the eyes or face. In extreme cases, it could also mean that a person's mind is always filled with sensual or erotic desire especially towards persons other than their spouses.

The fact however, remains that the allure of a promiscuous person is centered in the eyes or face, as revealed by Proverbs 6:25 that says, "...neither let her take thee with her eyelids", and Isaiah 3:16 that talks about walking around with stretched necks and promiscuous eyes. For this reason, painting the face and eyelids was regarded as a means of amplifying beauty and sexual attraction; thus promiscuous people have used it as means of seduction since Bible days (like Jezebel in 2 Kings 9:30). Meanwhile, our Lord Jesus Christ equates looking a member of the opposite sex lustfully with adultery (Matthew 5:28). This means that those who deliberately makeup and dress to amplify their sexual attraction are in fact causing others to commit adultery on daily basis.

Since Christians must be careful not to cause others to stumble, according to Romans 14:13 and 1 Corinthians 8:9, we all must ensure that we are modest in our dressing (1 Timothy 2:9-10) and conduct so we do not become stumbling block in the path of others. This is the established will of God.

PRAYER POINT

Father, please don't let me ever be entangle in the web of sexual immorality, in Jesus name.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Ezra 8-10

AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A ADEBOYE

HYMN 28: WHAT CAN WASH AWAY MY SIN

1 What can wash away my sin?

Nothing but the blood of Jesus;

What can make me whole again?

Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Oh! precious is the flow

That makes me white as snow;

No other fount I know,

Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

2 For my cleansing this I see—