TODAY’S DEVOTION (SUNDAY 3RD MARCH 2024)
“And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” 1 Corinthians 2:4-5 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 63RD DAY OF OUR YEAR OF IMPACT.
We give God the glory for His marvelous deeds. We thank Him for His mercies that are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness.
It is another first day of a week, this one happens to be the third day of the third month of the year, and we are grateful. Three in prophetic or Bible numerology,it is first of all, a number that represents conformity to the image of Christ.
To conform means to comply with rules, standards, or laws.
In the Bible, the word conform describes the action of working into our outward life, the inner change of nature that might have happened in our hearts by the power of the Holy Spirit, especially at regeneration.
All of us are expected to conform to the seed of righteousness transmitted into us at Salvation. We are expected to lead our lives in such a way that they reflect outwardly that inward change that may have taken place in our hearts. We are expected to conform.
We conform to the image of Christ through obedience, yielding to the Holy Spirit to imitate the LORD, and seeking to be like Him. That makes the number three the number of likeness.
The number three, is also the number of the third person in the God head, Jesus Christ. It also represents His resurrection. Jesus was crucified and buried, but on the third day He rose again.
Resurrection is the bedrock of the Christian faith! That is why there cannot be genuine salvation until a man encounters the resurrection power of Jesus Christ.
The power of the Holy Ghost is a resurrection power. It can bring a dead marriage back to life. It can bring dead organs in anyone’s body back to life.
It can revive a business, a backsliding soul, a dying Church, or family.
Resurrection power, is God’s tool for dealing with the gates of hell, death, and grave. And since these three gates are the major gates responsible for all human problems, the resurrection power of Jesus Christ can deal with all human problems.
I HAVE SEEN THIS POWER MAKE EVEN DEAD AND BARREN WOMBS CONCEIVE.
It was the power that brought Lazarus back to life after being in the grave for four days. It was the same power that healed the sick, and casted out demons in the early church.
It was the same power that touched a young Roman soldier, the only Son of his mother, who died in battle field and was put in a coffin on the way to be buried. The power touched him when Jesus touched the coffin and he came back to life.
When Jesus stood beside that coffin, He was full of that power, that was why the boy came back to life when He touched the coffin.
History has it that this young man had been embalmed. In those days, virtually all vital organs of the body were removed during embalmment. So, what was in that coffin was like a shell of human flesh.
But the one who created man and breathed into Him to become a living being was the very person that touched the coffin, and the resurrection power brought the man back to life!
It replaced all vital organs and gave him his life again.
You see, with God all things are possible, but with men nothing is possible. God’s resurrection power is the answer to all our problems. That is why God wants our faith to be built on His power, not on the wisdom of men. Our devotional text said;
“And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God”.
These were the blessed words of God, that flowed out of the pen of His apostle of grace, Paul.
Whenever I take a closer look at the book of Acts and the letters, I see how far our church generation has departed from the faith that was once delivered to us.
I see how we have become different from the early church.
The apostles were not preaching the gospel most of us preach today. They were not preaching persuasive words of men’s wisdom or secular humanism.
THEY WERE DEMONSTRATING THE SPIRIT AND THE RESURRECTION POWER OF GOD.
But today, when most of us preach, we demonstrate the flesh and a form of godliness that has no resurrection power. That is why at best, people will fall under the anointing and get up without anything happening to them.
Yes, there are people whose lives are full of breaches; folks that will not let God’s power do a work in them because their hearts are not right towards Him or others. But when we display a form of godliness that has no power, even true seekers of God will remain the same if they fall under our version of the anointing.
If your life is barren, poor, sick, sad, oppressed, dead or dying, there is one answer God made available in His word.
It is not olive oil in a bottled, holy water, prayer clothes, candles, praying salt, or mats. It is not any prayer chalets, given by charlatans and impostors behind pulpit. It is the resurrection power of Jesus Christ!
The good news is, that power is available every day, even right now as you read this.
That is the power you need to plug into to quench the evil flame that may have been kindled in your health, marriage, finances, ministry, family, destiny, or even your relationship with God.
Yes, an evil flame can be kindled in a person’s relationship with God.
Samson had an evil flame of carnal passions and concern for the things of this world kindled in his relationship with God. The result was lost of his sight and public humiliation.
When an evil flame of carnal passion or the cares of this world is kindled in your relationship with God, you will begin to live in sin.
You will not be able to maintain a close walk with God. It will become a threat to your divine destiny. But God’s resurrection power is available to quench any evil flame in your life. Just ask for it. Develop your faith for it. If you are truly hungry and thirsty for it, you shall be filled.
When Jesus manifest Himself to you as the resurrection and life, power will be released into your life, extinguishing any evil flames.
It is therefore important that you seek to be intimate with Him. It is important that you do that by seeking Him daily. Yes, you must seek Him with all your heart; not with some of your heart.
The Bible is clear that if we seek Him with all our hearts, we will find Him.
I commend you this glorious day to God, and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among they that are sanctified! Amen!!
MAKE THIS SCRIPTURE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR THE DAY
“Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” John 11:25-26 NKJV