Open Heaven 8 November
MEMORISE: “Depart ye, depart ye, go ye out from thence, touch no unclean thing; go ye out of the midst of her; be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the Lord.” – (Isaiah 52:11)
BIBLE READING: 1 Timothy 3: 1-7 (KJV)
3 This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work. 2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach; 3 not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous; 4 one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence 5 (for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God?); 6 not a novice, lest being puffed up with pride he fall into the same condemnation as the devil. 7 Moreover he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.
Read yesterday’s Open Heaven Devotional here
One thing a man or woman that God would use should bear in mind is that he or she must be blameless. This is the prerequisite for a child of God who wants to serve God as a worker or minister, at any level. The Bible says:
This is a true saying, if a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work. A Bishop then must be blameless… – (1 Timothy 3:1-2)
When a person volunteers to serve the Lord, it is dangerous if the fellow is not clean in and out because the holiness of God could kill such a person. The Bible says that Isaiah admitted his sinful state and God purified and cleansed him of his iniquity so that he could qualify as a true prophet. After this, the angel of the Lord came and touched him with a live coal from heaven and he was purged of his iniquity (Isaiah 6:5-7). Here we see the mercy of God upon the vessel He decided to use for His glory.
However, there is a lesson we must learn from this Scripture. The prophet admitted his sinful state and God came to his aid for cleansing. How often do we seek the Lord for cleansing? In addition, for a fellow to be used by God, the life of such a person must glorify the Lord. God must be honoured in the life of such a fellow. The Lord will show off such a fellow among His holy angels, then ultimately prosper and protect him or her eternally.
And the Lord said unto Satan, Has thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? – (Job 1:8).
Though Job suffered many trials, the latter part of his life was much better than the former. Job 42:12 says “So the Lord blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning…” Job had exactly double of the possessions he had lost to the attack of the devil.
God also gave him seven sons and three daughters, as before, but this time, his daughters were the most beautiful women in the land (Job 42:15). Job experienced this promotion because he remained blameless before God (Job 1:22). Do you want divine promotion? Do you want to be used for the glory of God? Begin to walk blamelessly before Him (Genesis 17:1) from today and He will not only use you for His glory, He will also promote you beyond your expectations.
PRAYER POINT: Father, please help me to live a life of complete obedience to Your word, in the mighty name of Jesus.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Isaiah 18-22
Thank you for studying today’s Open Heaven – The Blameless Vessel – written by Pastor Enoch A.
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Open Heaven 8 November 2021