TODAY’S DEVOTION (Saturday 25th April 2020)
“You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for in Yah, the Lord, is everlasting strength.” Isaiah 26:3-4 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 116th DAY OF OUR YEAR OF REJOICING
It is actually the last week of April. What the world is going through this season is not letting some of us remember how few the days of this month are. We are just running through our days with eye set on the next move of God, in full expectation of coming through.
I do not know about you, but for me I will say God was faithful this month. Irrespective of the waves, winds and weariness, His strength was made perfect in our weakness. To Him belongs all the glory!
So many lives have been claimed within a short period because of the pandemic that is ravaging the planet. But our God has promised us victory at last. For me that is enough!
It has also been a month of sharing about divine wisdom. God has revealed things to us that if we apply our hearts to will not leave us the same. Knowledge not applied only makes one a witness of the things shared not a beneficiary. Not every witness of a thing is usually a beneficiary of the thing.
For instance, Moses saw the promised land, he witnessed it, but did not enter. Sometimes its dangerous to be used of God. The standards for you are higher than others just as the grace for you is higher also.
In the last few devotionals, God spoke to us about the four basic keys to accessing and operating in His wisdom. The first is genuine salvation experience, the second a life that is separated from sin, the third the outpouring of the Holy Ghost and the fourth making the Bible our greatest wisdom companion.
If you look across the nations of the earth, you will realize that the most peaceful nations and Cities on earth today are nations and cities where the Bible is gloriously celebrated and taught; nations where the Bible is allowed to rule and reign in the lives of men. And the most troubled nations and Cities are nations and Cities where other books that are considered “holy” rule and reign in the lives of men.
THE DIFFERENCE IS ALWAYS CLEAR!
Take a good look at the Middle East today; you will see the reality of what I just stated. You will see what happens when governments, people, and nations do not give the Bible its place in their lives.
Every nation in serious conflict today, even the conflict of Corona Virus, has no regard for the true standard that Holy Bible uphold. Standards of morality, and all that forms the core reason Jesus came to die have been trampled underfoot in so many places.
The blood of innocent Babies and other innocent souls shed cries from the earth in those places. Leading to the death of innocent people caught in the cross fire of the consequences of these abominable practices. That to me is a sign to a perishing generation that man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceed from the moth of God.
Friend, we were not created to spend our days our own ways. We are not the creators and owners of ourselves. Someone owns humanity, and that person is Jesus Christ who manifest as man over 2000 years ago. He created us to live by His ways and standard for all aspects of our lives.
The beauty of these truth is, whenever the enemy launch out assaults on the human race and we repent from our wicked ways, recognizing Him as our owner, calling on Him to come to our aid, He comes with a glorious display of His ownership of the earth. That is why we must use this period to go back to what He said we shall not live without – His proceeding word.
You see, when the creator of the universe tells you, His created beings cannot live by bread alone but by every word that proceed from His mouth, it pays to listen. If we do not listen and allow ourselves to be deceived, we will bear the consequences.
Men and brethren, no matter what you think or believe about this glorious book, the Bible, the book remains God’s Basic Instruction to humans before leaving Earth. It proceeded from the mouth of God, and was written over a period in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek languages. It was written through the lives of ancient people that walked with God, and the pre-incarnate Christ.
IT WAS SPOKEN IN GOD’S LANGUAGE AND CAPTURED IN HUMAN LANGUAGE.
One thing you should always remember is, when God speak, He does not speak a human language He speaks God. Then His prophets will pick what He said in human languages and communicate to us. So, the Bible was spoken in God’s language and captured in human languages.
In some portions, you find the mouth of God, His prophets propelled by the Holy Ghost to speak and write. Men like Moses, Samuel, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, Amos etc. Those things were canonized and became the Holy Scriptures. That is why no one can replace this eternal Book with any other book considered holy and have peace.
Wherever the Bible has been ill-treated, maltreated, ignored, and discarded with, peace does not reign there. Even in our private lives the story is the same. Check out lives that are not making the Bible the center point of their lives and see how they are faring. I have come to realize that the most peaceful people on earth, today are those who put their hope in Jesus Christ and what the Bible says.
The Bible says Jesus will keep them in perfect peace whose minds stayed on Him. I do not what other time this scripture is calling for our attention other than now, where everyone is panicking about the virus. Our minds must be on the word, the Bible and what it teaches.
If you read church history, you will discover people who were persecuted for believing and making the Bible the center point of their lives, but the persecutions could not take away the peace of the LORD from their lives. They were at peace despite the storms that raged against them. They were at peace despite the evil winds that blew against them.
Honestly, I do not know either am normal because of the peace of God that is in my heart in this corona virus panic season. Sometimes I feel as if am an alien. I say this with all sense of humility and gratitude to God. His mercies have been maintaining peace within our borders. I remember trying to manufacture fear but could not. Friend, Jesus is real.
I KNOW THIS IS THE SAME WITH SO MANY CHILDREN OF GOD ON EARTH TODAY.
When you give the Bible its place in your life, it will form an anchor of peace or hedge of protection around your soul not to be afraid. A major Highlight in our devotional text today says, “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.”
The amplified version rendered the same scripture this way, “YOU WILL GUARD HIM AND KEEP HIM IN PERFECT AND CONSTANT PEACE WHOSE MIND [BOTH ITS INCLINATION AND ITS CHARACTER] IS STAYED ON YOU, BECAUSE HE COMMITS HIMSELF TO YOU, LEANS ON YOU, AND HOPES CONFIDENTLY IN YOU.” God will not keep you in perfect and constant peace if the inclinations of your mind are not stayed on His word.
His word is Him because the Bible says in John 1:1 “…and the word was God.” That points to the Bible so long as our times and season are concern. Friend, I want to state again that if the Bible is not the anchor of your soul, you will not experience perfect peace, especially during trouble times like these.
The Bible being the word of God, has the inherent force to make the presence and peace of God manifest in our hearts as we read it, meditate on it and put our minds in what we read and meditate on. It is not the book itself that cause these kinds of changes but the content of the book.
Satan himself is so afraid of the contents of the Bible that he usually does everything possible to make sure that its content is either miss read, misapplied, or misunderstood completely. He knows that if mankind gets to know what God is really saying in it, the earth will be too hot for him.
As we bring this to a close, I want to admonish you to cherish the Bible. Make it the CENTER of your life. Believe what it says not what your feelings say. The world system wants us to operate by feelings.
You need to listen to the international media and hear how it is reporting the Corona Virus pandemic. They do not celebrate the healing and cures but the number of those who are dying or death. Most major in contoversies around what Trump said or did not say and all political nonsense using the pandemic. It is to help the enemy recruit more souls that will spend eternity with him, by rushing the unprepared to hell.
FRIENDS, I HAVE SEEN THE SONS OF SATAN AT THEIR VERY BEST FOR THE DEVIL THIS CORONA VIRUS SEASON. IT IS HORRIBLE!
Satan is great at using the media to manipulate us to be led by fear. He wants us to be feelings led and not faith led. Feelings can be very misleading. People who live by their feelings will not last on the scene but those who live by the word will abide forever. Jesus said even if they die, they shall live again.
If you follow your feelings, you will be fooled. But if you follow your faith in the word of the LORD you will be wise. You will beat foolishness in all fronts.
People who follow the word are automatically doing the will of God, because the word of God is the will of God; they will receive eternal life, but in this life they will see the glory of God and will be honored. Do not forget, the Bible says, “He will give eternal life to those who patiently do the will of God, seeking for the unseen glory and honor …” (Romans 2:7 TLB)
LET THIS SCRIPTURE BE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR YOU TODAY!
“Since Christ suffered and underwent pain, you must have the same attitude he did; you must be ready to suffer, too. For remember, when your body suffers, sin loses its power, and you won’t be spending the rest of your life chasing after evil desires but will be anxious to do the will of God.
You have had enough in the past of the evil things the godless enjoy-sex, sin, lust, getting drunk, wild parties, drinking bouts, and the worship of idols, and other terrible sins.
Of course, your former friends will be very surprised when you don’t eagerly join them anymore in the wicked things they do, and they will laugh at you in contempt and scorn.
But just remember that they must face the Judge of all, living and dead; they will be punished for the way they have lived. 1 Peter 4:1-5 TLB
“Remember what Christ taught, and let his words enrich your lives and make you wise; teach them to each other and sing them out in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing to the Lord with thankful hearts.” Colossians 3:16 TLB