Open Heaven 28 January
MEMORISE: Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.Hebrews 11:1
READ: HEBREWS 11:1-11
1. God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,
2. Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;
3. Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;
4. Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.
5. For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son?
6. And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.
7. And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.
8. But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever; a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.
9. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.
10. And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands;
11. They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment;
Read yesterday’s Open Heaven here
The more we trust a person, the more patient we become towards them.
If they promise to come as soon as possible, we will wait for them even more patiently because we know they mean what they say.
Romans 10:17 says faith comes by hearing the word of God.
Thus, if we would be steadfast in faith, we must constantly fellowship with God’s word so that we know Him for who He is.
Faith without patience produces people who start off well but cannot finish strong.
Patience without faith produces people who constantly suffer but have no power to change their situation.
When Satan whispers to you that God’s word is not working, faith says “It is lie” and strengthens your resolve to wait.
Faith has no fear; it knows that God’s word has never failed, so it builds patience in you to wait for the word to come to pass.
Faith strengthens patience. James 1:3 says:
Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
Faith and patience, working together, defend and protect your soul.
This is why sometimes, God tries your faith so as to build your patience.
He knows that just like Job, if both your faith and patience are strong, no matter what the devil brings your way, you will not fall.
You need both faith and patience to win the heavenly race, because it is a marathon and not just a sprint.
I got born again over forty-five years ago and it was as If Jesus was coming that same year.
Some of those who started the race with me have backslidden now. They had faith, but not patience.
When I started seeing some of these people backsliding, I was worried for my own faith, thus I cried to God to help me so that I would finish strong.
One day, I was watching the making of a movie in which the lead actor told the director that he was not sure he would be able to win the horse race that was to be a part of the movie.
The director responded “You just keep riding; I will make sure you win”.
God spoke to me through that: He said “You Just remain in the race, I will make sure you finish strong”.
Jude 1:24 says He is the only One who can keep you to the end. I believe God and His word, and that is why, today, I am still standing.
KEY POINT: Father, please keep me until the end. Don’t let me fall by the way in the course of my race to Heaven.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: GENESIS 49:1-33, GENESIS 50:1-26
Thank you for studying today’s Open Heaven – Faith and Patience – written by Pastor Enoch A.
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Open Heaven 28 January 2021
