TODAY’S DEVOTIONAL (Wednesday 21st July 2021)
“If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?”
“No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven.”
“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:12-15 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 202ND DAY OF OUR YEAR OF HIGHER HEIGHTS!
God have been faithful to us and His arms have been carrying us from minute to minute, hour to hour, day to day, week to week, and month to month as always. That is why we have seen 202 days of the 365 days of this year. I believe we will see other days also.
The most important thing that goes on in the Kingdom of Heaven is the revelation of God to the 24 elders, the angels and the saints in Heaven. But the most important thing that is going on in the kingdom of God is the revelation of God’s will and ways to those who are perishing and those who are being saved. It is an integral part of the great commission.
Yes, God’s will and ways are constantly being revealed and those who humble themselves to be schooled are constantly being taught and transformed from day to day and from glory to glory. The reason is to get every human established in God’s own will and ways for the coming of the LORD!
That is why Irrespective of how difficult, impossible or costly what we know to be God’s will is, it is the safest thing to do in every season of Life. That is what will determine how our lives turn out both in time and eternity.
Jesus so limited Himself to doing God’s will that the Devil could not find a place in His life to sabotage. Even when he thought he had eliminated Him when he took Him to the cross and got him buried, he and his host of demons were shocked when they saw that the same man they instigated men to kill and burry three days ago has resurrected.
NO FORCE ON EARTH CAN SUCCESSFULLY BURY THOSE WHO ARE ESTABLISHED IN GOD’S WILL AND WAYS!
They are the greatest worry on Satan on the face of the earth. People living their lives according to God’s will and ways are His greatest headache, marriages established in God’s will and ways are His greatest concern, Churches running in God’s will and ways are His greatest fear.
Any people or thing established in God’s will and ways is Satan’s greatest fear because it carries the capacity to paralyze his works anywhere and anytime. If he kills such things or people, they resurrect and come back to life in higher dimensions that eyes have not seen or ears heard. His attacks on such things or people leaves them stronger and more terrific.
The Bible made it clear that if Satan had known what the death of Jesus will do to his kingdom, he would have become Jesus greatest body guard on the face of the earth. Paul, in his first letter to the Church at Corinth, put it this way;
“But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” 1 Corinthians 2:7-8 NKJV
God releases so much on people or things that are established in His will and ways. Under the New Covenant, one major thing you He releases is apostolic power. The book of Acts is full of what apostolic power can do in the lives of the perishing and those who are being saved.
A lot of things that makes like sweet and excited are powered by God’s apostolic power that is why it is good to be established in God’s will and ways so that it will be ever present in your life.
I have come to realize that hardship and all manner of evil works in the life of a Christian are always as a result of supernatural power failure. In other word, if there is not apostolic power in the life of a Christian, everything about him or her will go dark – marriage, finance, faith, and etc. When apostolic power is restored in the life of a Christian, everything dead will come alive; starting from his or her spiritual life.
When you see your spiritual life being restored, after coming under God’s apostolic power, it is a sign that the restoration of other aspects of your life is on the way, because there are seven aspects of life. The spiritual aspect is the foundation of all other aspects.
IT IS THE DEATH OF A MAN’S SPIRITUAL LIFE THAT USUALLY RESULTS IN PROBLEMS IN OTHER ASPECTS OF HIS LIFE.
So to fix a man’s life, God will begin to restore him from the spiritual aspect of his life. He will teach the man or woman His will and ways, and get his or her spiritual life established in His will and ways.
When it is established then He releases His apostolic power on that aspect of life, leading to the release of Same power to other aspects over time and over the person’s effort to respond to the word and align those aspects of life (also) to the will and ways of God.
I have never seen people in problems who met God for solution getting a permanent help until they become interested in submitting to Him to work on their spiritual lives. Those who know how to take their eyes off whatever they may be going through to the cross, for the purpose of strengthening their relationship with God and becoming strong in faith, will wake up one morning looking for their problems and not finding them. Jesus said;
“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” Matthew 6:33 NKJV
The Kingdom of God is different from the kingdom of Heaven. The kingdom of God is a method but the kingdom of Heaven is a place. The kingdom of God is an extension to, or the manifestation of the kingdom of Heaven on the face of the earth. It is the governing influence of God over a territory (especially a man’s heart), affecting it with His will, purposes, visions, plans, and intentions.
The purpose of Church ministry is actually to turn men into God’s kingdom Citizens not some Church members representing the carnal interest of their Pastors.
SEEKING FIRST THE KINGDOM IS SEEKING FIRST THE GOVERNING INFLUENCE OF GOD OVER YOUR LIFE.
That governing influence is the Spirit of the LORD Himself bringing us into alignment with God’s will and ways and getting us established in them.
In other words, whatever we may be going through, God wants us to first submit our hearts to be influenced by the Holy Spirit through revelation of His will, ways, plans, visions, and purposes, then we respond to it by getting established in God’s will and ways. When that happens, we will begin to lead a life called “righteousness” and all other things shall be added to us!
This was the principle He taught the Church in the wilderness (the nation of Israel).
The Bible says they disobeyed God at one time and serpents came in to bite them. In other word, their disobedience caused the protective edge of God’s glory around them to be lifted, letting in the serpents.
People began to cry unto Moses and died as a result. But in His Mercy God responded with a principle of “divine rescue.” He said to Moses;
..”Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live.” Numbers 21:8 NKJV
The fiery or brazen serpent Moses made represents the cross of Jesus and the power thereof. The serpents that bit them represent sin, Satan and the evil systems of this world. God was simply saying that whatever sin, Satan or the evil systems of this world has brought upon us, we can only be saved or permanently delivered from them when we take our eyes off the troubles and fix them on the cross.
In other words, when we seek first the kingdom and His righteousness, getting our spiritual lives established in God’s will and ways, the things we need form GOD will be added to us. That is the gospel.
Therefore, no matter what you are going through, the only way to permanently come out of it is to take your eyes of it and fix on the kingdom of God. Look for a church that will function as a construction site that will get you established in God’s will and ways.
Yes, seek the establishment of the governing influence of God over your life and allow Heaven to impact your heart with the revelation of God’s will, ways, visions, plans, purposes, and intents for your life. Jesus would later reiterate this principle in the New Testament with these words from our devotional text for the day;
“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.”
What is the message of our devotional this morning? The message is simple; learn to do God’s will and follow His ways in every situation you find yourself. Get yourself established in them and you will be receiving a constant flow of God upon your life that will make your life glorious on the face of the earth.
Stop putting “you” first in your quest for divine help in any area of life. Put God first! And how do you do that? Pursue His Governing Influence and submit to His Spirit to impact your heart with the revelation of His will, ways, plans, visions, purposes, and intentions. If you do, your visitation could come slow but will come big.
May your heart be firmly established on the word of the LORD to us this morning, in Jesus precious name! AMEN!!
LET THIS SCRIPTURE BE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR YOU TODAY;
“Though the fig tree may not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines; though the labor of the olive may fail, and the fields yield no food; though the flock may be cut off from the fold, and there be no herd in the stalls — Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.”
“The Lord God is my strength; He will make my feet like deer’s feet, and He will make me walk on my high hills.” Habakkuk 3:17-19 NKJV