TODAY’S DEVOTIONAL (Wednesday 29th December 2021)
“Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.
Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.” James 1:13-15 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 363RD DAY OF OUR YEAR OF HIGHER HEIGHTS.
God has kept us alive this and given us 363 days of the 365 to fear Him, live in Christ and serve our generation according to His will. I don’t know how many of us fulfilled this. But His faithfulness remained strong despite our unfaithfulness.
Sadly, many of us spend some of the 363 days the LORD gave us without the fear of God. Some of us spend some of the days living in sin instead of in Christ. While many others spend the days serving their flesh instead of serving their generation according to the will of GOD.
Next year is going to be so hot that if we repeat our folly, as the Bible calls it, we may not survive the year. That is why today we want to look at kingdom matters that will helps us live right and not repeat our folly. It is important that we give attention to these truths and make proper decisions for the new year.
To start with, I want to submit that the most dangerous network in the world is not among the drug barons, business cartels, prophets who prophesy on same frequency to steal from GOD’s people, arms dealers, or international criminals. As dangerous as these groups can be, we cannot find the most dangerous network in the world among them.
The most dangerous network in the world is not among witches, wizards or warlords; not even among predators. The most dangerous network in the world is within every man. It is the internal network between the flesh, the devil, and the evil and corrupt system of this world. That is the network or system that works together to destroy the human soul eternally in hell.
If you recognize other networks but do not recognize and deal with this internal one, you may enjoy peace in this life but will not escape eternal punishment in the life to come. This is the network that is responsible for all our woes as humans.
IT IS RESPONSIBLE FOR NOT FEARING GOD, FOR LIVING IN SIN OR FOR DOING ANY ABOMINABLE ACT AND NOT GRIEVING ABOUT IT.
Every fall in life is traceable to this network. Every sin is traceable to it.
For instance, it is the network between the flesh, the devil and the evil and corrupt system of this world that is responsible for the many young people that are ruining their lives with premarital sex, pornography, wild living, and release of vile passions.
Don’t forget, the same network destroyed the redemptive ministry of Samson in Judges 16. It has remained a threat to our lives today. Many of us who desire to live holy and pure lives are finding it difficult because of this network.
The network was responsible for the near ruin of David, when he slept with a man’s wife to satisfy his flesh and killed her husband to cover it up. This dangerous network has broken down marriages, shut down very powerful ministries, locked up promising lives in spiritual prisons, and done much more than human words can describe.
Eternally, the network is responsible for every soul found in hell; it took many from Christianity to insanity, from purity to impurity, from consecration to desecration, from Holiness to filthiness, and etc. Finally, they died without repentance and ended up in hell.
Friend, if we can conquer this terrible network, then we can have rest in this life and the life to come.
Many people are single today because the network is keeping them single. Others are sick and have no hope of healing because the network is keeping them sick. Incurable diseases are caused by this network.
JESUS HEALED ONE MAN IN JOHN 5:1-14 AND SAID TO HIM “SIN NO MORE LEAST A WORST THING COME UPON YOU.”
Jesus made it clear that the man’s incurable happened because of sin, and that a worst one could come, if after being healed he goes back to his sins. In other words, his submission to the internal network was responsible for his health situation that had defied medical science. After God healed him, God had to warn him to desist from networking with the flesh else a worst thing come upon him.
Many of us sinned in 2021 severally and God kept healing us. We submitted to this dangerous network and fell into terrible sins severally. Now, God is saying to us
“in 2022 sin no more least a worst thing come upon you.”
In other words, He is saying “do not continue living the kind of life you lived in 2021, least a worst thing come upon you in 2022.” I hope someone will take this as their rhema word and run with it all through 2022. I wish someone will print this devotional out and keep it in view all through 2022 before we get ourselves into things that even prayer cannot handle.
Sin is a form of lawlessness that results when a man submits to, instead of rebelling against this destructive network within every man. God expects us to resist the network not submit to it. It is this resistance that many of us do not have the righteous habit of building against sin.
The Amplified version of Hebrews 12:3-4 said;
“Just think of Him Who endured from sinners such grievous opposition and bitter hostility against Himself [reckon up and consider it all in comparison with your trials], so that you may not grow weary or exhausted, losing heart and relaxing and fainting in your minds.”
“You have not yet struggled and fought agonizingly against sin, nor have you yet resisted and withstood to the point of pouring out your [own] blood.”
What truth can we glean from this? Firstly, the battle against this internal network is real. It requires more strength than many have thought to conquer.
Secondly, God wants every of His Child not to grow weary, lose heart, relax or faint in mind concerning the network, especially when it moves against us.
HE WANTS US TO ALWAYS PUT UP A FIGHT OR STRONG RESISTANCE AGAINST IT.
That is why the Bible said “You have not yet struggled and fought agonizingly against sin, nor have you yet resisted and withstood to the point of pouring out your [own] blood.” Some of our Bible fathers died as martyrs because they resisted the sin of Idolatry.
They poured their own blood because they will not bow to the network. Concerning one of them, Our LORD and Savior Jesus Christ said;
“And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;
I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan’s seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth.” Revelation 2:12-13 NKJV
Antipas poured his blood because he will not bow to idolatry. He resisted to blood striving and seeded his life in the process. I wanted to say he lost his life, but in Christ we do not loss our lives when we pour our blood to defend a righteous course. We seed it into the soil of God’s will and ways.
So, this father of faith seeded his life to resist Idolatry. And God is saying, when it comes to resisting sin, many of us have not seeded our lives in the process, we just bow to the network and fall into sin, and eventually start living in it.
obviously, many of us are not even facing half of what men like Antipas faced, yet we cannot resist even sexual temptation to the point of pouring our own blood or seeding our lives. We cannot stand in righteousness once the flesh come calling.
Though Christian believers in the Middle East are doing that now, many of us in the most parts of Africa and the Western world are just a shame to the kingdom!
Glory be to God who have being supplying these brethren in the Middle East and some parts of Africa with the grace to offer their necks to be slaughtered, seed their lives into GOD’s will by pouring out their own blood just to make sure they do not sin against God.
THE NETWORK OF OUR FLESH WITH THE DEVIL AND THE EVIL AND CORRUPT SYSTEM OF THIS WORLD TO TAKE US TO HELL IS REAL.
We must understand how it functions to be able to conquer. Our devotional text made it clear that it begins from within. The devil and the lost world try to seduce our flesh to go in their direction, to bring us to ruin. The text began by saying God is not responsible for temptations. He could allow trials but He is not responsible for any of them. Meaning, God is not part of the network.
It went further to say “But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.”
What is it that entices our desires and draws us away from the right path into temptations? The devil and the lost world networking with our flesh!
Meaning, if we can resist or endure the temptation and not submit to it, we will be victorious. And talking about endurance, Jesus made it clear to the end time Church that, endurance will be the survival key of the Kingdom these last days because of the horrors of the last days.
Sadly, many no longer now how to endure pains, temptations, trials, and all that life throws at us that is why we are living very defeated lives! We will go into marriages, and if something that needs endurance springs up, we back out of the marriage saying it is no longer God’s will.
We will enter into a covenant relationship with a man of God; a relationship we know God initiated, and when something that we need to endure spring up, we disengage from it as quickly as possible, saying it’s no longer God’s will. We will join a spiritual family we know God raised for us, but when a rebuke, a teaching, or a call for Holiness that we need to heed to through endurance comes, we disembark saying it is no longer God’s will.
FRIEND, THE ONLY WAY TO BREAK THE NETWORK OF THE LOST WORLD AND THE DEVIL WITH OUR FLESH TO DESTROY US, IS TO ENDURE!
We must make endurance part of our Christian faith for 2022 and beyond if we have not. We must learn to endure trials, pains or temptations and not submit to them. The Bible made it clear in James 1:12-14 that
“Blessed is the man who ENDURES temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him” (paraphrased mine) NKJV.
We must endure temptation by not going in the direction that we are being driven to go by our flesh as it networks with the devil or the evil and corrupt system of this world.
A generation that therefore, do not know how to endure the temptations, trials, or pains that are necessary for kingdom gains will doubtlessly endure what will never bring reward to them at the end. If you refuse to endure what is God, you will end up enduring what is not God, and getting what is not good at the end.
Whenever we endure things in God’s will, the result is always pleasant. The Bible says blessed will we be.
God made it clear in His word that enduring temptation will bring the crown of life. Meaning, enduring temptation and overcoming it brings unspeakable joy and peace into a man’s life; it brings amazing grace. May we cultivate the righteous habit of enduring temptation in Jesus precious name. Amen!
As we bring this to a close, I want to bring to our attention a particular truth on endurance. There are things we are not to endure. The Bible admonishes us to endure trails and temptations but there are things we are not to endure.
Anything that is not part of God’s will should not be endured. We are to seek the LORD to take it away from us. We are not to endure sickness. We are to seek the LORD for healing or go for medical help where necessary.
WHATEVER IS NOT GOD SHOULD NOT BE ENDURED.
If we endure what in God’s will should not be endured, there will be sudden destruction at the end not a crown of life!
Talking about enduring things that are not God, I want you to understand that many are presently enduring things that will never bless them at the end. They are enduring relationships and marriage God never sent them into in the first place.
Some are enduring sinful pastors and money-making prophets and churches God never gave them. People are enduring so much that God is not involved in. They are enduring a lot that is either ruining them or will suddenly destroy them one day; sadly, they do it calling it faith.
We must not enter the new Year enduring what is not God’s will for our lives. Enduring anything outside divine will is a labor in vain. It is a blind endurance.
God has said in His word “we shall not labor in vain or bring forth for trouble.” You reverse this promise in your life if you endure things that He has not ordained for you to endure.
Enduring anything that is not part of God’s will for our life is foolishness. I call that “foolish endurance.” My prayer this morning is that God speak to your heart through this devotional and take you away from enduring the wrong things of life.
There is a network between our flesh, the devil and the lost world to destroy us but if we endure within divine plan, we will conquer that network and come out victorious. That is the message of today’s devotion.
MAKE THIS SCRIPTURE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR THE DAY;
“They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit. They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat; For as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people, and My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.”
“They shall not labor in vain, nor bring forth children for trouble; For they shall be the descendants of the blessed of the Lord, and their offspring with them.” Isaiah 65:21-23 NKJV