Open Heaven 13 September 2024: The Power of Service
MEMORISE: 1 John 5:3
“For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.”
READ: Luke 11:27-28 (KJV)
27 And it came to pass, as he spake these things, a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said unto him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked.
28 But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.
Read Yesterday’s Open Heaven Devotional Here
When God gives a commandment, many people think that it is for His own good, whereas every commandment that He gives is for our good. When you disobey God, you are actually hurting yourself; He remains God whether you obey Him or not. Those who choose to disobey God are the ones that are actually losing, not God.
When God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son to Him, it was not because He wanted to eat the boy for breakfast; it was because He wanted Abraham’s obedience to open the door to irreversible blessings for him and his seed. If Abraham had disobeyed, he would have missed out on such a great blessing. When Elisha told Naaman to go and wash in the river Jordan, it was not because he wanted to humiliate him, it was because he wanted him to be healed of leprosy. Naaman almost missed his healing because of his pride. If he had not gone to wash, Elisha would not have lost anything, but Naaman would have died a leper. When God gives you an instruction, no matter how difficult it seems, you stand to gain a lot more from obeying it.
God gave man a special gift, and that is free will. This free will is one of the things that makes us more special than all His other creations. You can decide to obey or disobey Him if you want. However, to justify any blessing that He wants to give to you, He wants you to obey Him out of your free will. If you disobey His instruction, you are using your free will against Him, and that will disqualify you from receiving the blessings that are attached to the instruction. When God sent Elijah to the widow of Zarephath for food, he told the woman to give him her last meal. It was not Elijah who needed a miracle; God had already been feeding him supernaturally up until that time. God wanted to test the widow to see if she would use her free will for herself or Him. She passed the test, and in return, she had more than enough food to last her through the famine. Also, when her son died in (1 Kings 17:17-22), because she had obeyed God, Elijah was there to bring him back to life.
Beloved, obeying God is always for your good.
KEY POINT:
Never miss an opportunity to show God that your free will is for Him.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Hosea 1-4
Open Heaven 13 September 2024
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