Open Heaven 10 February 2024: Follow-Up is Key to God
MEMORISE: Therefore thus saith the LORD God of Israel against the pastors that feed my people; Ye have scattered my flock, and driven them away, and have not visited them: behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings, saith the LORD. Jeremiah 23:2
BIBLE READING: Jeremiah 23:1-8 (KJV)
Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! saith the Lord.
2 Therefore thus saith the Lord God of Israel against the pastors that feed my people; Ye have scattered my flock, and driven them away, and have not visited them: behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings, saith the Lord.
3 And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase.
4 And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the Lord.
5 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.
6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, The Lord Our Righteousness.
7 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that they shall no more say, The Lord liveth, which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt;
8 But, The Lord liveth, which brought up and which led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries whither I had driven them; and they shall dwell in their own land.
Read Yesterday’s Open Heaven Devotional here
In our Bible reading for today, you will see God’s mind about follow-up; you will see He doesn’t take follow-up lightly at all.
He said pastors, and this includes anyone God has put in charge of others, should feed the sheep.
When they fail to do so, they are invariably scattering the sheep, and there are woes in store for such persons.
He said in verses 7 and 8 that He doesn’t just want to be known as the God who brought His children out of Egypt (the bondage of the enemy) but as the Lord who brought His children out of bondage and brought them to their own land (Zion or Heaven).
God is never satisfied with you just preaching to sinners. Beyond encouraging them to confess their sins and give their lives to Christ, He is more interested in you following them up until they see Him in glory.
Learn from the apostles of old; after Paul had won souls in a place, he would stay with them for a while to ensure that they become grounded in the faith (Acts 18:11, Acts 19:10, Acts 28:29-32).
Even after he left, he would keep sending them letters to strengthen them even more.
Those are the origins of the letters that we read in the Scriptures today and which strengthen us to date.
He also often made out time to visit them so that they may be further established (Romans 1:11).
In Acts 15:36, the Bible says:
And some days after Paul said unto Barnabas, Let us go again and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the LORD, and see how they do.
Relating this to modern times, after you have won a soul, get their contact details so that you can keep calling them and sending text messages to strengthen them.
You must also visit them to see how they are faring. Visit the local assembly they attend to see if they have joined the workforce there and if they are fervently serving God
Give them the opportunity to ask you questions about their walk with God.
New converts always have lots of questions to ask; be there to answer their questions and explain the Scriptures to them.
Don’t leave them to become prey to the devil; follow them up so well until they are fully established in Christ.
REFLECTION: God wants you to follow up on souls and ensure that they abide in the kingdom.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Numbers 7
Thank you for studying today’s Open Heaven – Follow-Up is Key to God – written by Pastor Enoch Adeboye
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Open Heaven 10 February 2024
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