The Ability Is In The Instruction · Thursday 21

RHAPSODY OF REALITIES DAILY DEVOTION

 

By Pastor Christ Oyakilome

 

Receive my instruction, and not silver; and knowledge rather than choice gold (Proverbs 8:10).

Spiritual instructions may come to you in the most unexpected or unusual way, but be prompt to obey. Never try to rationalize spiritual instructions with your mind; the wisdom of God is foolishness to men.

Consider the Lord’s instructions to Joshua for instance. After the death of Moses, God instructed Joshua to take over and subdue Jericho: "And the LORD said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valour. And ye shall compass the city, all ye men of war, and go round about the city once. Thus shalt thou do six days. And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of rams’ horns: and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow with the trumpets. And it shall come to pass, that when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when ye hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall fall down flat…" (Joshua 6:2-5).

From the natural standpoint, God’s instruction was an impossible feat for Joshua and the children of Israel. The thickness of the walls of Jericho was such that houses were built on them. But Joshua followed the Lord’s instructions and the result was victory for the children of Israel.

Our opening verse says to receive instruction and not silver. The Word of God is God’s instruction manual for an extraordinary life of glory, dominion, and victory; so don’t neglect the Word. The Bible says, "Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life" (Proverbs 4:13). Don’t complain when you receive spiritual instructions, because with such instructions, come the ability to accomplish whatever God tells you to do.

Be conscious of this when responsibilities are given you, especially in the house of God. Once you’ve received the instruction to do something, recognize that you’ve received the ability for that task. Stir up the wisdom of God in you through speaking in tongues, and you’ll see pictures of possibilities and visions of success; the Holy Spirit will show you what to do, and how to accomplish the task.

Prayer  

Thank you dear Father for your divine power at work in me to accomplish every task that you’ve planned for me. I recognize the working of your Spirit in me, and thus declare that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. He’s my ability; therefore, I make progress by the power of the Spirit, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Further Study: 1 Samuel 15:22-23; 2 timothy 3:16-17

1 Year Bible Reading Plan : 1 Corinthians 6 Psalms 119:1-112

1 Year Bible Reading Plan : Colossians 1:9-18 Jeremiah 6

Life Through Jesus Christ · Friday 01

And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son (1 John 5:11).

If you’re born again you have the God-life in you; this is a statement of fact; God has set His seal to this. Notice the tenses in our opening verse: "And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life…." He isn’t trying to, hoping to or planning to; He’s already done it. You have eternal life now.

This life isn’t the human life, but the God-kind of life; the essence of divinity. The Word of God is definite and emphatic as to where this life is and how to get it: it’s in Christ Jesus. Anyone who has received Christ has received the God-life. This life can’t be found in any of the religions of the world. Until you confess the Lordship of Jesus over your life, and are catapulted into the glorious realms of salvation, you don’t have the God-life. What you have is the human, biological life (Greek: psuche). This human life is subject to satanic influences, sickness, disease, and the elements of this world.

However, if you have the Son, happy are you! It means you have His indestructible and incorruptible life in you. You don’t ever have to be afraid of the devil or his cohorts. The Son of God, whom you’ve received, destroyed the works of the devil in your life, family, job and physical body (I John 3:8). He paralyzed Satan, rendered him helpless, and gave you a life that’s superior to him.

Meditate on this truth. Having received Christ, you’ve received the Light of life; the darkness is gone forever. Your life is now supernatural; therefore, rule over circumstances. Walk tall. Talk bold. Reign as a king in life: "For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:17).

Prayer  

Dear Father, I thank you for imparting the divine life into my spirit through your Son Jesus Christ. That life in me destroys, paralyzes, and renders ineffective the works of the devil and his attempts in my life, family, finances, and business. Thank you for making me the dispenser of your glory, wisdom, grace, and excellence, in Jesus’ Name. Amen

Further Study: 1 John 3:8; John 3:16

1 Year Bible Reading : Romans 6:1-14 Psalms 56-59

2 Year Bible Reading : Ephesians 5:1-8 Isaiah 52

Be Truthful · THURSDAY 03

Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds (Colossians 3:9).

Lying is one habit you ought to eschew because of its dangerous consequences. Truth always eludes liars, and the Word of God is truth (John 17:17). The Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of Truth (John 16:13), and He builds up a resistance against those who don’t celebrate the truth. The more they lie, the more He resists and avoids them.

A liar isn’t merely someone who told a lie; he is one who makes a habit of lying; he constructs lies. Revelation 22:15 says, "For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie." Notice the Bible doesn’t say, "whosoever telleth lies," but "whosoever loveth and maketh a lie." The liar plans or strategizes his lies. He knows what he is doing is wrong but still goes ahead to do it, because he’s self-centred; selfish.

liar is also one who says something contrary to God’s Word. The Bible says, "…yea, let God be true, but every man a liar..." (Romans 3:4). As long as a man’s confessions are inconsistent with God’s Word, then they’re lies. For example, the Word says in Romans 5:1, "Therefore being declared righteous by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (CKJB). If you’re born again, you must accept and walk in His righteousness. If you keep saying, "no one can really be righteous before God," that would be a lie, because it’s inconsistent with what God has said.

1 Peter 3:10 tells us something instructive: "For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile." You can’t be speaking God’s Word, and at the same time lying. That’s a contradiction. The New King James Version renders the latter part of 1 Peter 3:10 thus: "…let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips from speaking deceit." The man who deceives others never realizes his own deception. He suddenly "wakes up" and discovers life has passed him by. He doesn’t deserve truth because he doesn’t tell the truth.

If you’re a man of truth, truth will promote and protect you. The Bible says, "…His truth shall be your shield and buckler" (Psalms 91:4). Form a habit of speaking the truth always; this doesn’t just mean desisting from unwholesome communication, but speaking in consonance with the Word. That’s a key principle on how to prosper and have good days.

Prayer  

Dear Father, thank you for teaching and instructing me through your Word how to live successfully. Thank you for the Holy Spirit who leads and guides me to walk in truth. I’m lifted to a higher level of glory, where I manifest your excellence and righteousness, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Further Study: Isaiah 44:25; Proverbs 12:19

1 Year Bible Reading : acts 16:16-40 Job 1-2

2 Year Bible Reading : 2 Corinthians 12:11-21 Isaiah 22