TODAY’S DEVOTION (TUESDAY 24TH MAY 2022)
“ And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.
And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved.
And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come. Matthew 24:10-14 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 144TH DAY OF OUR YEAR OF AMAZING GRACE
Glory be to God for giving us another day. The psalmist said it is a good thing to give thanks to the LORD, and let me add “for all His mercies and kindness in our lives.”
It may be out of place for others but for us it is not out of place to thank God for being able to sleep and wake up; to thank God for being able to breath in and out freely; to thank God for being able to pass out bodily waste easily.
It should not be out of place to thank God for even being able to walk and talk.
Personally, I can’t remember the last time I thanked God for being able to speak. May He forgive my ingratitude in that area. Sometimes we allow what we do not have to blindfold us to what we should be thanking God for.
This morning I woke up and decided to respond to the messages in my phone that have been waiting for me. I also checked something online. That was when I ran into a story that was featured on Citizen TV on someone with speech problem.
The man got it through smoking. It developed from a kind of cancer that is associated with smoking. He said “people talk freely, but I pay whenever I speak.”
I was awestruck because I have never heard that in my life. You mean smoking is this dangerous and many do it with reckless abandon? You mean they are passing an invitation to cancer without realizing it?
Then I read further. That was when I discovered that he uses a gadget that is worth over 120, 000 Kenyan shillings and buy batteries regularly for it to function, without which he won’t be able to talk.
I said to myself, I have never thanked God for being able to speak. I must learn to include that to my prayer of thanks giving. I counsel that you do the same if you have never thanked the LORD for being able to speak freely. Sometimes one may need to visit the hospital to know how faithful our God has been to us.
WE ARE NOT SOUND BECAUSE OF OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS BUT BECAUSE OF HIS FAITHFULNESS.
Yes, righteousness helps in keeping one healthy and safe because like earlier stated, the man lost his ability to speak freely to a kind of cancer associated with smoking.
In the same report we were told that over eight million people die annually from tobacco consumption. This is aside the number that die on alcohol consumption. And the age range is between age 30 – 69, which tell us the number of youths who are dying without fulfilling their days due to alcohol and tobacco consumption.
Sadly, some of them claim to be Christians, and some even preachers and Church leaders. But if you are truly saved and sanctified, you will not be a consumer of alcohol or tobacco. That will save you from the cancers that are associated with the vices. That is how right living prolongs a man’s life.
Life is very fragile; you can only prolong it on earth by staying away from things like that.
We have been looking at practical Christianity and today is the 24th day of the journey with the Spirit of truth on this subject. I want to submit to you that no practical Christian tolerate or accommodates vices. No practical Christian will consume alcohol or tobacco.
In the days of the early Church there was no need to even talk about it because they all knew what it meant to be born again, Paul had to recommend medicinal consumption of alcohol to Timothy when he was having a particular illness, which sadly became a defense system for alcohol consumers among Christians.
Just as a preacher who wants to steal your money, using the name of God, will quote all kinds of scriptures and twist them to convince you to give, so do Christians who show that they are unsaved and unsanctified, or have lost their sanctification and regeneration be consuming tobacco or alcohol then be quoting and twisting all kinds of bible verses to defend or justify their unclean habits.
CONSUMING ALCOHOL OR TAKING CIGARETTES MAY NOT BE A SIN TO YOU BUT IT’S A SIGN THAT YOU ARE NOT HEAVEN WORTHY.
A sinful and unclean deed not being sinful and unclean to you does not make the sinful and unclean deed righteous and pure before God. You must understand that and free yourself from the deception that says “if it is a sin to you, then it is a sin. If it is not a sin to you, it is not a sin.” You must free yourself from that deception!
People who are living in darkness (Your friends, your parents, bosses, colleagues, pastors, bishops, prophets, and etc.) will make sure that what is sinful in God’s sight is not sinful in your sight so that you may keep committing it.
We must be careful these end time. Because Satan will use those trapped in the lost world to redefine salvation to us. He will use people who are wearing GOD’s garment but have not having God’s nature or mandate to make sure what is sinful in GOD’s sight is not sinful in our sight. This is part of the deceptions of the last days. The purpose is to increase lawlessness and bring the love of many for God down.
A major part of our devotional text for today says;
“…Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. ..” Matthew 24:11-13.
There is so much in these few verses of the Bible. First, I want to point out that the scriptures did not say many false prophets shall fall. It said they shall rise. When they rise what will we see? A rise in falsehood and deception, because the scripture said “they will rise and deceive many.”
They will rise by the amazing miracles they perform and the wonders they demonstrate to look God in the sight of the spiritually blind; especially those who will be vocal in defending and financing them.
One of the major deceptions that will be on the rise as they rise is the deception of sin that we are sharing about this morning; the deception that tells you “it is a sin because you see it as a sin” partly because of no immediate visible consequences after committing the act – the deception that make Christians consume alcohol, cigarettes, and engage in other sinful and unclean things without considering them as sinful and unclean.
THAT IS ONE OF THE MANY FORMS OF DECEPTION THAT WILL LEAD TO THE LOVE OF MANY GROWING COLD.
The classic edition of the amplified version puts the same scripture this way;
“And many false prophets will rise up and deceive and lead many into error. And the love of the great body of people will grow cold because of the multiplied lawlessness and iniquity,
But he who endures to the end will be saved. Matthew 24:11-13 AMPC
This scripture has become very true in our days. Don’t you see how many are being deceived by prophets and their members to lead many into error? Sadly, it is not just false prophets that are leading people into error but true servants of God who were not circumcised with apostolic truths before going into ministry.
They are allowing the teachings of Simon the sorcerer to be enthroned in their ministries; the drinking of oil, use of same to pour in places, and all that.
You ask yourself how and why are they doing that? It is because they connected the ‘working’ teachings of sorcerers and sorceresses and embraced them. Pushing them down the throats of their members who look up to them for guide.
As a result Lawlessness and iniquity have multiplied, leading to the love of a great body of people growing cold.
What is the meaning of the love of people growing cold?
To start with, let me submit to us that one major thing that will be required of practical Christianity this end time is that we endure to the end, because there is so much that will be against it. It is to keep our love for God on fire, because loving the LORD is not going to Church daily and serving as many take it. That could be great and can be beautiful if one is driven by the LORD but We must learn what Jesus teaches about the expression of love for GOD.
To many it is all about religious activities and being busy and churchy.
BUT JESUS TAUGHT SOMETHING DIFFERENT. HE SAID;
“If you [really] love Me, you will keep (obey) My commands. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, and Standby), that He may remain with you forever— John 14:15-16 AMPC
Jesus taught that the expression of God’s love is by keeping His commandments. He said “If you really love Me, you will keep, or obey My commands.”
Now, What are His commandments? Someone will say the ten commandments. Its much more than that. The command to come to Him, renounce our sinful ways, and embrace His own sanctified ways and walk like He walked on earth when He was here is the first command.
Do not forget, Jesus turned water to wine but it was none alcoholic. He was called a wine bibber and a glutton not because he took alcohol but because he ate with those the Pharisees considered sinners. He walked in purity all His life.
The commandment is also a call to be made Heaven worthy by the LORD and to remain Heaven worthy. It is a command to stand with all the LORD teaches in the Bible; a command to stand with the Spirit of Truth and follow the Testimony of Jesus Christ and the Spirit of Prophecy. The command to spend our days fearing God and departing from evil.
We express our love for GOD by obeying His command. Not by being busy in Church but out of touch with the Spirit of Truth, the Testimony of Jesus Christ, the Spirit of Prophecy or the fear of God.
Now, having understood what it means to love the LORD, let us see what it means for the love of someone to grow cold.
Again, the Bible says;
“And many false prophets will rise up and deceive and lead many into error. And the love of the great body of people will grow cold because of the multiplied lawlessness and iniquity,”.
The love of many growing cold is the desire of many to obey the LORD fading away due to the hyper deception and rise of false prophets. The desire to fear Him, to hold on to His true word in the Bible that screams against all forms of immorality and lawlessness (testimony of Jesus Christ by the Spirit of prophecy) and to walk humbly before Him, submitting to his will and ways will fade away.
PEOPLE WILL PREFER OBEYING THE FALSE PROPHETS AND ALL IN-GOD’S GARMENT INSTEAD OF OBEYING THE LORD.
A typical example for following what a prophet or prophetess said instead of what the LORD teaches can be seen in some experiences we have had here in ministry.
For instance, I have met ladies who took other people’s husbands because the prophet or prophetess said so. They told them that the married men were not God’s will for their wives but for them, and they snatched or fooled the men to marry them, abandoning their wives. But the Bible is against that. And it is a typical example of replacing what the LORD said with what the prophet said.
There are many other examples. People do not really care when prophets tell them to do things that will meet there needs but not put them in right standing with God. That is the state we find ourselves today.
A lot are trapped in sin, iniquity and trespasses but are not seeing any of them as sin, iniquity or trespass. We are in a very dangerous spiritual state. There is need for urgent help from the LORD.
We began this discourse by sharing with us the need to be practical in our Christianity and desist from things like alcohol and tobacco consumption.
Consuming alcohol or tobacco may not be sin to you but in the kingdom of God it is a sign that you are not Heaven worthy. In fact, every life of sin and uncleanliness is a sign that the person (except forgiven, sanctified and made pure) is not Heaven worthy.
When we are forgiven, we will be sanctified. When we are sanctified, we will be made pure. When we are made pure, we will be Heaven worthy. That is the golden rule!
It is important, therefore to note that no truly saved and sanctified person will have the desire to consume alcohol or tobacco. If you find yourself in those vices, you are yet to experience genuine regeneration of your spirit.
You are yet to be sanctified. Or you were sanctified but have lost your sanctification and regeneration.
It is my prayer that God will use these words to build us up and give us an inheritance among they that are sanctified in Christ Jesus! Amen
MAKE THIS SCRIPTURE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR TODAY!
“The words of Lemuel king of Massa, which his mother taught him: What, my son? What, son of my womb? What [shall I advise you], son of my vows and dedication to God?
Give not your strength to [loose] women, nor your ways to those who and that which ruin and destroy kings.
It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine, or for rulers to desire strong drink,” Proverbs 31:1-4 AMPC