TODAY’S DEVOTIONAL (Sunday 24th January 2021)
“For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
“Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.” Isaiah 9:6-7 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 24th DAY OF OUR YEAR OF HIGHER HEIGHTS
This is a unique day because it’s the also a day of corporate worship for many believers on the face of the earth. Prophetically speaking, as the number 24 represents God’s Holy Reign over creation. That is why there are 24 elders in heaven who have not ceased bowing before His throne because of His Holy reign.
One of the major things that prophetic numbers like these calls for is spiritual maturity.
A prophetic gaze into the spiritual lives of many in Church today reveals that so many (from the clergy to the laity),are still babies in the LORD in spite of how long they have been in the faith. Most of have grown in Church and become mature in religious practices and the things of men but are still Babies in the things of the Spirit.
Like I said one of those sessions, there is age in the spirit.
Age in the spirit is different from age in the flesh or in the Church. That is why we can say David was Older than Saul, and Jesus (as a 30-year-old man), older than Abraham, the very root He sprang from.
We can also say Nathan, the young prophet, was older in spiritual matters than David the old King. David had to depend on his spiritual age to transfer the kingdom to Solomon who God chose without error.
Remember Solomon was not even the first Son. There were other heirs to the throne who did all they could but failed. Your age will be revealed in the day of war! Your age will also be revealed in the days of unleashing mysteries. Jesus spoke things that the Pharisees could not decode. At 12 years of age He was older than they all.
The only thing He needed to learn was submission so that His age could be further seasoned to spew out great things. The story of Christ at the temple and young Nathan with old David, tells us that we cannot tell how old preachers are not by the color of their hairs.
We can only tell how old preachers are by the weight of their wisdom and the life that oozes out of what they preach teach and prophesy in the name of Jesus Christ.
The life of DAVID in the days he faced the giant is also revealing. It tells us the power of spiritual age. It takes older people in the spirit to confront giants.
IN OTHER WORDS, HOW MATURE YOU ARE IN THE FAITH WILL BE REVEALED WHEN GIANTS COME AGAINST YOU.
If you run into hiding or start going about looking for who to help you deal with them, irrespective of how old you may be in Church or natural age, it is a sign that you are not yet mature in the things of God.
Our age in the Kingdom is determined by how long we have lived in God’s active presence. How many years we have spent our Christian lives in deep intimacy with God. Those who have spent more years in deep intimacy with God, the realm called the courts of our God’ by David, are always older than those who have not.
David was one of such men, that was why He was Older than Saul who knew nothing about being intimate with God. He could understand that the Philistine was not defying any man but the armies of the LORD – the invisible army. And because he defied God’s invisible army, his days on earth were over.
It was David’s spiritual age acquired through countless hours of being with God that made him to know that battles with people who have defied the armies of the LORD are not fought with swords, spears and Javelins. They are fought with the name of the LORD. That was why he picked five stones, representing the five letters in the name “Jesus.”
It’s so sad that we have so many Church leaders and lay believes in the class of Saul and the soldiers of Israel today. Because of the plague of spiritual immaturity, we now have people who cannot stand against the giants of life.
We have people whose immaturity has robbed of great victories over devils and the issues of life. We have people who have been in their Churches for many years, and grown through the ranks to become pastors or other officers of their denominations, but have not spent even a day in the active presence of God – I am not referring to a Church service – I mean the active presence of God – the very realm David spent his days in, that made him older than Saul.
Most of what we look for in the Christian faith is buried in what we call “spiritual maturity.” In other words, most blessings that we need, miracles or deliverances that we seek are only answerable to spiritual maturity.
THE RULE IS, AS WE GROW UP, WE COME INTO THEM.
The Bible makes it clear that if we are not mature in the faith or the things of the Spirit, there are spiritual privileges that we cannot inherit.
In helping the Church understand the dichotomy between the law and the grace of God in the Book of Galatians, Paul the apostle revealed the role of spiritual maturity in a man’s walk with God. He made it clear that it is the only way we can come into greater things in God.
He wrote to the church at Galatia establishing that spiritual maturity is the only way we can be free from the status of a slave in the spirit realm, The Bible says;
“Now I say that the heir, as long as he is a child, does not differ at all from a slave, though he is master of all, but is under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the father.” Galatians 4:1-2 NKJV
You will never come into things you are master over until you grow up in the things of God.
You are master over things like sicknesses, diseases, demons, the satanic world, sin, suffering, poverty, witches and etc. But you will never gain mastery over them until you grow up, by spending quality time with the LORD or those He has appointed to disciple you until you grow up.
People who do not spend quality time with God like David will never acquire the age in the spirit to exercise mastery over the works of darkness.
Our devotional text this morning is full of prophetic and apostolic truths. But a devotional is too small to unpack it. It spoke about child being born and a Son being given. That was a messianic prophecy fulfilled in the day Jesus was born. It was a word God sent to that generation to reveal the true identity of the messiah long before he was born. A major highlight in the text says,
“For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder.”
Hidden in this statement is the apostolic function of the true Church (I mean the Church global).
THE BIBLE SAYS THE GOVERNMENT OF JESUS WILL BE ON US BECAUSE WE ARE HIS SHOULDER.
Don’t forget, He is the head of the body. The Bible also says He is the governor among the nations. As our Head and His shoulders we are called to carry out His governmental functions on the face of the earth.
The functions are in two folds or phases. The first is the demolition phase which involves rooting out what He has not planted in the nations, pulling down what He has not built in the lives of men, destroying every evil works and throwing down anything that exalts itself against the knowledge of GOD.
The second is the reconstruction phase which is to build lives and get His redemptive will planted or established on earth as written in Heaven. However, just as immaturity prevented Saul and the rest of the soldiers of Israel from carrying out God’s governmental function then against the giant so it is preventing so many of us in Church today from doing the same.
What is the message this morning? The message is very simple. It says, “GROW UP!”
Child of God, as a follower of Christ – the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, you are also a lion to be feared in hell and respected in Heaven by destiny. But spiritual Immaturity can turn you into a goat to be slaughtered by the devil – the enemy who goes about like a roaring lion.
You are God’s weapon of war, destined to be used in defeating hell and promoting Heaven on earth. But lack of spiritual age acquired through countless hours in God’s presence, can turn you into a man or woman to be pitied. Many in need of deliverance today are warriors of righteousness by destiny, but lack of spiritual age has kept them in spiritual prisons and satanic dungeons.
Time has come to grow up!
Time has come to be fed the word of God into stature in the spirit. Time has come to look for man and woman God can use to help you grow up in the things of God so you can begin to unleash your destiny.
If you make “GROWING UP” through proper spiritual feeding by the hands of God’s apostles and prophets, or “ACQUISITION OF SPIRITUAL AGE” through countless hours with God your passion, you will gain stature rapidly and begin to manifest as a Son of God on the face of the earth.
LET THIS SCRIPTURE BE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR THE DAY;
“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.”
“For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.”
“For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.”
“For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now.” Romans 8:18-22 NKJV