TODAY’S DEVOTIONAL (Thursday 13th May 2021)
“How could one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, Unless their Rock had sold them, and the Lord had surrendered them?”
“For their rock is not like our Rock, even our enemies themselves being judges.” Deuteronomy 32:30-31 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 133RD DAY OF OUR YEAR OF HIGHER HEIGHTS!
We have seen 133 days of this year because God have been mindful of us. I believe we will see the rest of the days because His compassion fails not. To Him belong the glory for everything He have been doing in our lives.
Talking about God’s compassion, I have come to realize that it is beyond human comprehension. But from the story of the earthly life of Christ, we can learn a bit about the power of His compassion and how not to put ourselves in a position where we defeat it, or paralyze its power from working in our lives.
For instance, the Pharisees and Sadducees defeated the compassion of the LORD extended to them by their hypocrisy and rebellion. Even when the LORD tried to take them out of that position so that they could benefit from it, they were too arrogant and full of themselves to be impacted.
Matthew 23 tells us what finally came out of Christ after years of trying to make them believe and come out of their terrible spiritual disposition. Remember, He started reasoning with them when He was only 12 years Old, right in the temple, yet they could not be convinced. Friend, those guys were as terrible as some of us today.
But every sinner, blind person, sick and dying that cried unto Him attracted His compassion and got divine intervention. Christ never thought of their sins or carry out an investigation about the demons that may be responsible for their case, or the curses in their fathers houses and all that.
They were never told to pay this or do that. None was told to raise an altar of sacrifice, or had their cases blamed on some evil altars. God knew that would have been a scam. He just extended His compassion to them, healed and delivered them all. The Bible says;
“When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick,” Matthew 8:16 NKJV
The Bible did not say He cast out the spirits by asking them to drink oil, use water, pray with salt or handkerchiefs (as some do today using Paul to argue their case).
The Bible did not say He cast out the spirits by asking them to pray with sands from their villages, or to take Him to uproot things from their father’s houses. The Bible says He cast them out with His word.
THAT TELLS US THAT EVERYONE WHO IS DOING THE OPPOSITE TODAY IS NOT FROM OUR LORD AND SAVIOUR, JESUS CHRIST.
It also implies that the best way to be delivered from the works of the enemy today is to go for the word not the deliverance inventions and demonstrations we see in so many metaphysical power centers ran as Churches.
Now, apart from delivering us from the powers of the enemy and our sins, God’s compassion also gives leaders or shepherds to people according to His heart.
If His compassion falls on nations, He will raise for them good political leaders to bring strategic interventions to the nations. If it falls on us, His children, especially when we have no ideal shepherd or any shepherds all over our lives, He will give us spiritual leaders that will be used by Him to bring timely Heavenly visitations to our lives.
You see that in what He asked the disciples to do as documented by Matthew. The Bible says,
“Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.
But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.
Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore, pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” Matthew 9:35-38 NKJV
This scripture made it clear that God’s solution to people who are weary in life or scattered by devils is the gift of shepherds. Jeremiah 3: 15 tells us, shepherds after His own heart.
Meaning, one other thing He does whenever He is moved with compassion is to give us shepherds.
God will give us shepherds to serve His purpose in our lives like Elijah did for Elisha and Samuel Did for David. Blessed are you if you are given one. They will serve as ideal leaders, laborers or servant leaders;
PEOPLE WHO WILL NOT EXPLOIT US BUT HELP US TO BECOME ALL HE HAS CALLED US TO BE.
That brings us to one of the major reasons God place people under shepherds.
Apart from covering them from the winds of life, it is to give them spiritual capacity to either overcome whatever maybe against them in life, or become what He created them to be. You see that in what He told Elijah to do to Hazael, Jehu and Elisha in 1st kings 19. He also mentioned those who have not bowed their knees to Baal.
The Bible says,
Then the LORD said to him: “Go, return on your way to the Wilderness of Damascus; and when you arrive, anoint Hazael as king over Syria.
Also you shall anoint Jehu the son of Nimshi as king over Israel. And Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel Meholah you shall anoint as prophet in your place.
It shall be that whoever escapes the sword of Hazael, Jehu will kill; and whoever escapes the sword of Jehu, Elisha will kill.
Yet I have reserved seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.” 1 Kings 19:15-18 NKJV
From this scripture, it is clear that God gives us shepherd to anoint us. To anoint means to be empowered. It does not just mean to pour olive oil on people’s heads like some disabled ministers presents it.
When you are empowered, you increase in spiritual capacity. You are brought to point where you have the spiritual capacity to chase a thousand when alone with God, and ten thousand when partnered with one other person by the LORD.
I believe the man of God was given to be a prophetic authority over even the seven thousand who did not bow their knees to Baal, but they lacked the revelation to come to him. Elijah had to start schools of the Prophets to attract those who will be sensitive. It was made a school to align with one of the major purposes for having a shepherd over your life; spiritual capacity building.
SADLY, ONLY FEW RESPONDED. MANY DO NOT HAVE THE REVELATION TO RESPOND.
Those who responded, grew up to become some of the prophets God used to write the Bible.
I was told that Jonah was a student from that school. Also, the prophet who told another prophet to strike him in 1 Kings 22 or so, the one who refused to strike him, and the one who did, all came from that school. The prophet from Judah also came form that school.
Some of the prophets called minor or major prophets by Theologians came from that school. People like Micah and the rest of them. The truth remains, no one can become what God created them to be without having a shepherd God will use to build their spiritual capacity to become what He created them to be.
David could not kill the giant until God empowered him using Samuel. You will need to be empowered by a God given shepherd over time, to become all that God has called you to be.
The lone ranger syndrome must be defeated. It is a child of the spirit of lawlessness.
People do not understand the purposes of fathering. Most of it is for accountability and spiritual capacity building. That is why God sets the solitary in spiritual families to build their spiritual capacity and make them accountable to divine authority.
He does not set them in crowds called churches. He set them in true Churches that operates as spiritual families to be accountable to. It is when you are accountable that you carry the authority or spiritual legitimacy to cause changes in the lives of others safely.
Yes, safely because of the devils that will come after you during the war. Remember the sons of Sceva in Acts 19 and what happened to them for doing things without accountability.
Though they were sons, but their lack of accountability to proper spiritual authority, and spiritual capacity to do what they attempted doing, threw them into problems. They were beaten by devils the way many are being beaten today. They could not unleash the divine destiny safely.
Let me tell this; because of the devils parading the planet, it is when you are accountable that you carry the spiritual legitimacy to function and be successful on earth. Also, it is when your spiritual capacity has increased that you can conquered the giants of life and unleashed your divine destiny.
WE CAN GO ON AND ON. THAT IS WHY BEING ALONE IN LIFE IS NOT GOOD.
You could be with people but without a proper spiritual authority to be accountable to, you are still alone. Alone means, all in one. You will be very powerful but very unsuccessful all at the same time.
You will lack the spiritual capacity to become what God has called you to be. Spiritual capacity acquired through proper fathering and legitimacy acquired through accountability, will give you what it takes to be a person of exploits in God’s kingdom.
That is why you must never allow the devil to use your pride or over estimation of yourself to isolate or keep you away from shepherds after God’s heard, sent and equipped to give you the spiritual capacity and legitimacy of the Spirit to unleash your destiny.
If the devil isolates a man or woman of destiny, he has killed him or her.
Isolation from a spiritual leader God has raised to raise you, will keep you at the bottom of life forever despite your struggles to get to the top. You will just be toiling like Peter until he shows up in your life.
The 12 disciples would have remained unknown on earth if Christ had not located them when He came physically on earth.
Timothy would have just remained a mama’s boy until death if Paul had not located and raised him. Paul himself would have remained Saul, despite his encounter with Christ, if Ananias had not been directed by the LORD to locate him.
You will need someone higher in kingdom ranking to locate and raise you to become all that God has called you to be. You only need to be humble before God, so that He can do the connection. That is the principle of the Kingdom.
We all know of Great King David today, but he would have remained in the backside of the wilderness if not for his connectivity to Samuel. We all know of Elisha today, but he would have died a mechanized farmer if God had not spoken to Elijah to locate him.
Your greatness will need a spiritual capacity building shepherd to be unleashed. It is through divine connection you will find him.
STOP OVERESTIMATING YOURSELF, BECAUSE IT WILL HINDER YOU.
There are people of great destinies I have seen, especially among the youths who are found of over estimating themselves. Most times God will tell me, “I brought this one to be adopted but they are too proud. Leave them for now.” Then I will give them materials or counsel and then allow them to go with their over estimation of self.
There are people of great destinies who I see will die in their wilderness without unleashing it, because they are either too arrogant, ignorant or rebellious to be given a Samuel. They over estimate themselves too much, putting God in a position where He cannot give them a Paul, a Samuel or an Elijah to raise them.
That is how Satan Isolates them from training and spiritual capacity building.
Our devotional text this morning is full of insights. But we will limit ourselves to the insights that relate to what we are sharing about this morning.
A major line in it says,
“How could one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, and the Lord had surrendered them?”
First of all, it says one Israeli will be able to chase a thousand and two ten thousand, simply because of the presence of God in their midst using men and women of high kingdom ranking to build in them the capacity to do so.
Ordinarily, one soldier cannot kill a thousand if armed with the same weapons. It will take a supernatural presence for him to do so. And two soldiers armed with similar weapons cannot take down ten thousand soldiers, except they are given superior weapons.
You see, if God finds one person who can walk with me in humility and submission to His will, He will give that person a spiritual capacity building shepherd to be accountable to, and then use that person after their commissioning to chase a thousand.
As they keep following Him in humility of heart, He will increase the person’s capacity to chase ten thousand. That is how things work in His kingdom.
What is the message this morning? The message is simple. Among other things the LORD may have spoken to you, God sent this word to tell you to stop over estimating yourself in anything.
If you are David, you will need to be connected to a Samuel by God. If you are an Elisha, then you need an Elijah. If you have not bowed down your knees to Baal, you will need to be connected to an Elijah by God to raise you. It is called divine connection. Over estimation of self will hinder the connection from taking place.
It’s a new day for you in Jesus precious name! Amen!
LET THIS SCRIPTURE BE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR YOUR TODAY:
“So he departed from there, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he was with the twelfth. Then Elijah passed by him and threw his mantle on him.
And he left the oxen and ran after Elijah, and said, “Please let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you.”
And he said to him, “Go back again, for what have I done to you?”
So Elisha turned back from him, and took a yoke of oxen and slaughtered them and boiled their flesh, using the oxen’s equipment, and gave it to the people, and they ate.
Then he arose and followed Elijah, and became his servant. 1 Kings 19:19-21 NKJV