TODAY’S DEVOTION (THURSDAY 22ND SEPTEMBER 2022)
“Now as he traveled on, he came near to Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him, and he fell to the ground.
Then he heard a voice saying to him, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me [harassing, troubling, and molesting Me]?
And Saul said, who are You, Lord? And He said, I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is dangerous and it will turn out badly for you to keep kicking against the goad [to offer vain and perilous resistance].
Trembling and astonished he asked, Lord, what do You desire me to do? The Lord said to him, But arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.
The men who were accompanying him were unable to speak [for terror], hearing the voice but seeing no one.
Then Saul got up from the ground, but though his eyes were opened, he could see nothing; so, they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus.
And he was unable to see for three days, and he neither ate nor drank [anything]. Acts 9:3-9 AMPC
WELCOME TO THE 265TH DAY OF OUR YEAR OF AMAZING GRACE!
Moses said “LORD, you have been our dwelling place in all generations.
Before the Mountains were brought forth, or ever You had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, you are God.”
If we all look at our lives, we will realize this same truth the man of God Moses penned down. If God has not been our dwelling place, many of us would have prematurely rested among the dead today.
The things some of us face daily are stronger than we can bear. It takes God being our dwelling place to survive a world ridden with much evil and pain – much more than man can bear.
As I look at people who are facing mental breakdown, hear their stories and compare them with what some of us are facing in critical fronts of our lives, I see the necessity of making God our dwelling place.
If God was not our dwelling place, and if His Holy Spirit had not deposited a sustainer anointing in our lives, we would have also had mental breakdown like those precious lives.
There is a session for world leaders going on in New York as we write this. I read a portion of what the United Nations Secretary general said in his address and saw why Jesus had to come as the Prince of peace.
He said “the world is in great peril” warning world leaders about it. But we are not in the dark of those things.
The Bible contain a more accurate description of the peril our world is, and the way out. It is just that mankind has classified the Bible as a religious book and kept the solution to the worlds problem in the shelve of people they call “followers of Christ.”
If the human race had given the Bible its place as the ultimate source of information for surviving an earth mankind never created, we would have had a better world.
I hope it will not be too late before these world leaders realize that Jesus (not as presented by perverted preachers) remains the answer to all the world’s problems, and that the Bible is not a religious book full of stories, but God’s blueprint for our eternal survival and redemption.
PERSONALLY, I LOOK FORWARD TO THE NEW HEAVEN AND THE NEW EARTH WHERE RIGHTEOUSNESS DWELLS.
On the flip side, it is really impossible for most of these world leaders to believe our God because of the kind of lives we live as Christians. If those among them who claim to be Christians live more like criminals than how do you expect them to come to the LORD.
The leaders cannot see God in many of us hence staying with what they know.
I have come to realize that until one led a very righteous, ethical and godly life, it will be impossible for sincere people to believe the gospel he preaches or follow the faith he profess.
We had believed that if we preach powerful sermons, despite the godless lives we live, we will still change the world; it’s the word they need not our living in alignment with the word. Consequently, we now lead very immoral lives, but preach for the immortal GOD.
We lead very religious but wicked lives, and preach for the righteous God.
We do not realize that it is not powerful and inspiring sermons that will change or pull people to Christ but righteous lives lived by those with powerful and inspiring sermons.
There will always be a loss of potency to change the moral climate of our world if we preach great messages without living Godly lives to match the messages.
There is a Bible verse that perfectly described many of us who call ourselves Christians today. In case you have not seen it before, you need to see it. The verse says;
“They profess to know God [to recognize, perceive, and be acquainted with Him], but deny and disown and renounce Him by what they do; they are detestable and loathsome, unbelieving and disobedient and disloyal and rebellious, and [they are] unfit and worthless for good work (deed or enterprise) of any kind.” Titus 1:16 AMPC
Professing to recognize, perceive and be acquainted with God, while denying, disowning, and renouncing Him by what we do, is one of the highest forms of deception on earth.
IT MAKES US DESPICABLE IN GOD’S SIGHT.
We are counted by Him as unbelieving, disobedient, disloyal and rebellious. Which makes us unfit and worthless even if the greatest sermons are on our lips.
The sad part is, when we become unfit and worthless by God’s definition, we could still be treated as fit and worthy by men, further sinking us down.
In fact, the Bible made it clear that when people become abominable in God’s sight, they will become celebrities in men’s sight. That is why it is dangerous to take the treatment of men as the measuring stick of our approval ratings before God.
The Bible says;
“But He said to them, you are the ones who declare yourselves just and upright before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted and highly thought of among men is detestable and abhorrent (an abomination) in the sight of God.” Luke 16:15 AMPC
People who take the approval of men as the approval of God, will always be on the losing side when face to face with the eternal God. It is very important to lead our lives according to God’s justice system not man’s approval rating. Biblical fasting will help us do that perfectly.
Which brings us to the word focus of our 30-day journey of faith; the Cry of the Holy Spirit on Biblical Fasting.
We have been looking at absolute fast of late. Absolute fast by scriptural design will help a man live a better Christians life.
Though fasting has been used as an instrument of hypocrisy by so many, Biblical fasting is different. It cannot be used an instrument of hypocrisy because of its nature and origin. It is the Holy Spirit that initiates it and it brings power and other blessings to our lives as a result.
IF WE USE FASTING AS AN INSTRUMENT OF HYPOCRISY, AT BEST WE WILL GET THE PROSPERITY OF THE WICKED.
Those who know what it really means can attest to the truth that Biblical fasting is an instrument for Godly living, especially when we do the absolute type.
Our devotional text is about the conversion encounter of one of the choicest servants of God who ever lived; apostle Paul. He was on his way to executing another round of wicked intent against God’s people when the LORD Himself met him and got him saved. The text says;
“Now as he traveled on, he came near to Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him, and he fell to the ground. Then he heard a voice saying to him, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me [harassing, troubling, and molesting Me]?
And Saul said, who are You, Lord? And He said, I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is dangerous and it will turn out badly for you to keep kicking against the goad [to offer vain and perilous resistance].
Trembling and astonished he asked, Lord, what do You desire me to do? The Lord said to him, But arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.
The men who were accompanying him were unable to speak [for terror], hearing the voice but seeing no one.
Then Saul got up from the ground, but though his eyes were opened, he could see nothing; so, they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. And he was unable to see for three days, and he neither ate nor drank [anything]. Acts 9:3-9 AMPC
As we can see in this scripture, the encounter thrust Him into an unscheduled three days and three nights absolute fast. Clearly, the cloud of glory Jesus came with sat over his life and his body’s need for food and water was suspended for those days and three nights, just as Moses’ own was suspended for 40 days and 40 nights.
The fasting experienced prepared his heart for the foundation for the LORD to be laid in his spirit.
THAT EXPLAINS WHY HE WOULD LATER WRITE;
Nevertheless, the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.” 2 Timothy 2:19 NKJV
The life and times of this man of God was a proof that absolute fasting in God’s design is a key to leading a Godly and Christ centered life. It is one way we surrender ourselves to the LORD to lay His foundation in our lives; spiritual foundation of His will and way that enables us to know Him intimately and lead lives that departs from iniquity.
As we bring this to a close. I want to submit that God hates hypocrisy.
The world is sick and tired of itself and is in need of a savior. But the Church have lost the potency to help it. We have lost the potency to change its moral landscape because of our hypocrisy.
If we will be able to change the moral climate of our world, we must move from being hypocrites to becoming true children of GOD. And if we are to move from being hypocrites to becoming true Christians, we must embrace so many kingdom forces, one of which is the force of absolute fast in God’s design.
LET THIS SCRIPTURE BE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR US TODAY!
“So be subject to God. Resist the devil [stand firm against him], and he will flee from you.
Come close to God and He will come close to you. [Recognize that you are] sinners, get your soiled hands clean; [realize that you have been disloyal] wavering individuals with divided interests, and purify your hearts [of your spiritual adultery].
[As you draw near to God] be deeply penitent and grieve, even weep [over your disloyalty]. Let your laughter be turned to grief and your mirth to dejection and heartfelt shame [for your sins].
Humble yourselves [feeling very insignificant] in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you [He will lift you up and make your lives significant]. James 4:7-10 AMPC