OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL.
THURSDAY AUGUST 20 2015.
THEME : THE WORD AS A WEAPON.
MEMORIZE : For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Hebrews 4 : 12.
READ : MATTHEW 4 : 1 - 11.
1 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungered.
3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.
4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;
9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR : GENESIS 29 - 30 AND JOHN 17 : 1 - 19.
Message
Besides shouting, praising God, the Name of Jesus and the Blood of Jesus, another very important weapon available to believers in Christ is the word of God. Psalm 1 : 2 - 3 reveals that the word of God is a weapon against physical and financial dryness. Psalm 1 : 3 says : "And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that
bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper."
This is simply great. The word of God fights against every anti-progressive element it comes in contact with. If you delight in God's word and meditate daily on it, you create the opportunity for it to work for your prosperity. How often do you spend quality time feasting on God's word? Some people think they are doing other people a favour by reading the Bible. No! You are only doing yourself a favour. If you fail to create time for the word, you are only doing yourself a disservice.
Moreover, the word of God is a very powerful weapon against the devil. When the devil came to tempt the Lord Jesus, He overcame him using the word of God. He kept saying "It is written...". Whenever you engage the devil, use the word. Some people think that the Bible is becoming too old-fashioned to combat modern schemes of the devil. That is a lie from the devil himself! The Bible is ever relevant and never loses its power, message and effectiveness, irrespective of the times. Always apply the word; it always works!
After becoming the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), I went on a familiarisation tour. The youths rejoiced over God's choice to place me in that position. One day during the tour, we were heading towards my village when the devil said to me, "You are now very popular; it is better you die when you are popular than when you become unpopular." Immediately, this word of God in Psalm 118 : 17 came out of my mouth: "I shall not die but live, and I will declare the works of the Almighty God." Five minutes later, we narrowly escaped a horrible accident. At that time, the entire congregation of the RCCG was below 1000. If the word of God had not come forth to deal with the devil, he would have had me for breakfast.
He could anticipate an explosion of God's move in the church and he wanted to stop it, but the word of God stopped him. Never neglect opportunities to know more of the word.
ACTION POINT :
Know the word, believe it, apply it and expect it to work, and it will work wonders.
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