TODAY’S DEVOTION (MONDAY 13TH MARCH 2023)
“Now while Ezra was praying, and while he was confessing, weeping, and bowing down before the house of God, a very large assembly of men, women, and children gathered to him from Israel; for the people wept very bitterly.
And Shechaniah the son of Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, spoke up and said to Ezra, “We have trespassed against our God, and have taken pagan wives from the peoples of the land; yet now there is hope in Israel in spite of this.
Now therefore, let us make a covenant with our God to put away all these wives and those who have been born to them, according to the advice of my master and of those who tremble at the commandment of our God; and let it be done according to the law.
Arise, for this matter is your responsibility. We also are with you. Be of good courage, and do it.” Ezra 10:1-4 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 72ND DAY OF OUR YEAR OF SIGNS AND WONDERS!
Glory to God that we are live again today. What a day to be alive and well. We give Him all the glory for the blood in our veins, the air in our lungs, the cells in our bodies and all His marvelous works. Amen!!!
I hope we all woke up well this morning! I want to admonish you that no matter what the case may be with you, God remains on the Throne and your life remains in His hands, if you are walking in the light of His word. Yes, if you are walking in the light of His word.
David understood that perfectly, hence making God’s word a lamp unto his feet and a light unto his path. People who do so, may fall into darkness like he did, but will definitely walk back to light.
The Bible made it clear that, in Christ, there is a connection between the light of God and the life of God. It says, in Him is life, and that life was the light of all mankind. It further says, the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. That tells us what we are really walking in when we make the word of the LORD a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path, under the covenant of grace.
I believe one of the visions of these devotionals is to help us walk in the light and life of God on daily bases. Man was designed by the LORD to get His value in life from the insights, knowledge, and understanding he gets from words. But the words he was designed to get all that from, was originally the word of GOD.
GOD USED WHAT ISRAEL LEARNED OF HIM DURING THEIR 40 YEARS JOURNEY IN THE WILDERNESS, TO ESTABLISH THAT IN HIS WORD, THE BIBLE.
The Word says;
“So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the LORD.” Deuteronomy 8:3 NKJV
Oh yes, we are designed to live or survive by what comes out of the mouth of God. We are not designed to survive by insights, knowledge, or understandings from words that are not from God. Everything from God heals, prospers, restores, strengthens, gives hope and creates a glorious future.
Making God’s word a lamp unto our feet, and a light unto our paths, is therefore the best thing to do. It is our own daily manna. It comes with a content to be obeyed, including whatever we are getting on this platform. If we therefore, obey the content, we will be walking in light; by that, no darkness will be able to overcome us. We will enjoy the dominion that light has over darkness.
We will have the Zoe life of God. We will not just have it but walk in it.
Friend, let me say again that one of the primary purposes of these devotionals, is to enable us make the word of the LORD a lamp to our feet and a light to our path, as we sail through the storms of life, face the darkness of our age, and look forward to the glorious appearing of Jesus Christ.
Yes, what is coming to us on this platform is basically words for the refreshing of the elects. They are not really for everyone!
That is not to say that we will not love everyone to feed on them. The only issue there is not everyone will be willing. It is a cry of the Holy Spirit that this world and those who are trapped in it, will find no meaning in, because a carnal mind cannot appreciate the things of the Spirit.
UNDERSTAND THAT WHEN GOD WAS SPEAKING THROUGH THE PROPHETS IN TIME OF OLD, IT WAS JUST FOR THOSE WHO BELONGED TO THE SEED OF ABRAHAM.
They alone could understand because they alone were walking in covenant with Him. They alone carried the precious word, the messianic seed, and we are going to see something today about that; about the severity of GOD when it comes to protecting His precious word or holy seed in our lives. They alone carried it, hence they alone had the prophets speaking to them.
God will always speak to those who have a heart for His word, or those who carry His holy seed or precious word for their generation.
Today we are going to see one touch way God deals with them. We are going to uncover how far He can go, and how tough He can become on us, basically to protect the precious word we carry. Sometimes, we forget that we are carrying His precious word or holy seed, and get ourselves into things or involved with people, who should not have had anything to with us in life, only for God to come like an angry mother, rip us off their grips, and drag us back home to do His will.
Israel remains a template for this kind of move of God.
For instance, in our devotional text, you can discover that God who is against divorce, sat down and watched as His word went forth to Ezra, and directed him to carry out a mass divorce exercise in Israel. It was shocking! The text says;
“Now while Ezra was praying, and while he was confessing, weeping, and bowing down before the house of God, a very large assembly of men, women, and children gathered to him from Israel; for the people wept very bitterly.
And Shechaniah the son of Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, spoke up and said to Ezra, “We have trespassed against our God, and have taken pagan wives from the peoples of the land; yet now there is hope in Israel in spite of this.
Now therefore, let us make a covenant with our God to put away all these wives and those who have been born to them, according to the advice of my master and of those who tremble at the commandment of our God; and let it be done according to the law.
Arise, for this matter is your responsibility. We also are with you. Be of good courage, and do it.” Ezra 10:1-4 NKJV
One can clearly see here that, though God hates divorce, but when it comes to protecting the holy seed, He will allow such redemptive divorces to take place. He will allow what He hate to happen, in other to save what He love.
THE FIRST DAY I READ THE FIRST VERSES OF THIS CHAPTER THE BIBLE, I WAS AWESTRUCK AND ASKED WHAT EZRA WAS REALLY CRYING, AND CONFESSING ABOUT?
I wondered what he was prostrating in an open square for hours for, according to Bible history. I thought the people committed the sin of idolatry, immorality, or any other terrible thing God frowns at, until I found out that he was doing all that because of marriages.
Should a man be lying down on the threshing floor repenting before GOD because people married? The answer to that is no! That is, so long as the present Church and the society at large is concerned. But Ezra was not repenting for ordinary marriages, Ezra was at the threshing floor of repentance because of marriages that were a threat to the Holy Seed the nation of Israel carried. The Bible says;
“When these things were done, the leaders came to me, saying, “The people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands, with respect to the abominations of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites.
For they have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and their sons, so that the holy seed is mixed with the peoples of those lands. Indeed, the hand of the leaders and rulers has been foremost in this trespass.”
So when I heard this thing, I tore my garment and my robe, and plucked out some of the hair of my head and beard, and sat down astonished.
Then everyone who trembled at the words of the God of Israel assembled to me, because of the transgression of those who had been carried away captive, and I sat astonished until the evening sacrifice.” Ezra 9:1-4 NKJV
Look at that statement again,
“For they have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and their sons, so that the holy seed is mixed with the peoples of those lands. Indeed, the hand of the leaders and rulers has been foremost in this trespass.”
God does not want His holy seed in our lives mixed.
It could be a tradition to marry whoever you want, but it is a trespass in His justice system, if it will cause His holy seed in your life to be mixed. He does not want His anointing in our lives mixed. He does not want His calling in our lives mixed. He does not want His mantle, mandate, and precious word in our lives mixed. He wants them to be as He had pre-determined.
BUT MANY OF US DO NOT KNOW THAT, HENCE ENTERING INTO THINGS THAT ALLOW HIS PRECIOUS THINGS IN OUR LIVES TO BE MIXED.
There are so many things we can do with our lives that will allow God’s holy seed in our lives to become mixed, but within context, wrong alliances are the worst. Wrong marital alliances were the case with the Ezra generation. They married into nations, that we not sanctified or set apart by the LORD yet, and the holy seed became mixed.
In the New Testament, those who carry the precious word, were warned not to marry unbelievers; either unbelievers in church, or outside the church, because it will get the precious word in our lives mixed.
As a carrier of the precious word, you must understand from these scriptures, that there are marriages and other forms of alliances that may look good to the Church, and to the world at large, but are a terrible threat to God’s holy seed in the lives of God’s precious word carriers.
You must not forget that the word of GOD that we carry is a holy seed, and that when we get ourselves involved with those in or outside the church, that fall into the “peoples of other lands” description of GOD, there are chances that the holy seed we carry will become mixed.
Once it is mixed, the purity and accuracy of its fulfilment will come under threat. That was why GOD told Israel to separate from everyone who is not part of His covenant with Abraham, especially in marriage matters. Sadly, there are people who carry amazing precious word today, who will never fulfil them because of the kind of wives or husbands they married.
Amazingly, some I have seen who fall into this category, do not even care. Its really sad. They have carved out religious purposes as the reasons for staying with the strange men or women.
Some have said, “God brought me here to get her saved.” Others have said, “God made me to marry him to be a light to him and his family.” Really? Did God really made you to marry that man or woman, who falls into His description of the peoples of other lands, that are a threat to His holy seed in your life? Really? Give me a break, do not be stupid!
Then why is the precious word of the LORD in your life mixed? Why is it not even speaking? Why are the things GOD told you years ago about what He wants to do with your life not coming to pass?
WHY ARE YOU NOT PROGRESSING? YOU THINK IT’S A DEMON?
It’s clear Satan has blinded your eyes, you are not even seeing these things. I was there and had to break myself free to fulfill my destiny. I tell everyone who care to listen that there would have been no Cry of the Spirit Ministries today, if I had not applied the sword to stop the precious word I carry, from being mixed; I mean the Ezra sword in our devotional chapter. Go read the entire chapter (Ezra chapter 9) and see what Ezra led Israel to do.
Mine was not even a proper alliance like that of Ezra’s generation. It was just a carnal joining. So, applying the sword was more than necessary. I applied his sword, and people called me all kinds of names, but I did not care. Today, majority have changed their minds. It was painful and shameful, but it saved my life.
I almost died during the application of the sword, because it separated me from people I loved with my life; but today I am alive and we are all fine, but the unholy alliance is gone and God’s holy seed in my life no longer mixed or hindered. I carry the scar every day, but it’s better than having my holy seed mixed.
God’s holy seed or precious word in my life is now being fulfilled even globally, though not as I know it would have been if I had wholly followed the LORD; because when we make such mistakes, recovery is never 100%.
Whenever I remember these things, I weep like Moses, who made his own mistakes and could not fulfill the 100% of his own holy seed – he could not take Israel into the promise land. Joshua, who was not part of the job did. whenever I remember that there are portions of the glory of my destiny that are gone forever, because of the mismanagement of my life, it breaks my heart and make me regret all my actions.
So, you who say God made it to happen, so that you will be a light to that man you call husband, or woman you call wife, why are you diminishing in kingdom value every day if you are indeed in God’s will? Why are you up this day, and down the other day if God’s holy seed in your life is fine?
WHY IS YOUR LIFE NOT SMOOTH? WHY ARE YOU IN EXPLAINABLE PAIN SOMETIMES?
It is because the holy seed is being mixed with the people of the land you joined yourself with, and you know it, it’s just that you ignore it.
Sadly, you are diminishing in kingdom value, yet you do not know it.
The people of our generation do not know how to measure kingdom value, hence many of us cannot tell when we are diminishing in it. But one sign that you are diminishing in kingdom value is the lost of dominion over devils and certain circumstances of life. The circumstances will be the ones dominating you.
You will be living in a realm of “glorious light out” where Isaiah 60 cannot be fulfilled in your life. There is so much that we cannot share on this platform because of space. But enough have been shared already.
God is calling on us to live a Christian life, especially in matters of relationship, with our hearts on His holy seed in our lives. Our greatest passion should be, to prevent it from being mixed.
I will advise every youth to be careful of their decisions, so that they will not get married to, or join themselves with what will cause God’s holy seed in their lives to be mixed. The application of the sword to come out of it is usually painful and shameful, not everyone has come out well, so they may not come out well or even come out at all.
There are those who have even destroyed their holy seed completely trying to come out, either too late, or without proper guide. It is a mistake one should not even make.
Now, it is not just destiny destroying marriages that trap the holy seed of the precious word, get it mixed or hinder it from being fulfilled, there are churches, or preachers that if you sit under, the same thing will happen. I am a witness. When we return tomorrow, we will share about that.
LET THIS SCRIPTURE BE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR US ALL TODAY!
“Do not say, ‘a conspiracy,’ concerning all that this people call a conspiracy, nor be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.
The LORD of host, Him you shall hallow; Let Him be your fear, And let him be your dread.
He will be as a sanctuary, But a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense To both the house of Israel, As a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.” Isaiah 8:12-16 NKJV