WHEN YOU MUST BE VIOLENT. Open Heavens Devotional by pastor EA Adeboye

Open Heavens Devotional by pastor EA Adeboye

DATE: Fri, Sep 23, 2022

TOPIC: WHEN YOU MUST BE VIOLENT

MEMORISE:

“And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.” – (Matthew 11:12)

READ: Matthew 18:18 (KJV)

18. Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

MESSAGE:

Some Christians are so gentle that they accommodate the devil and his agents in their lives, claiming the Bible says we should be gentle as a dove. The Bible says that it is only the violent that can take the Kingdom of God by force. The devil will do everything to ensure you don't enter that Kingdom of God; it is with violence that you will take it. If you are at peace when you should be fighting, the devil will roast you.

You must be violent when the devil is confronting you with a situation that can kill you. Any situation that can destroy your destiny or your spiritual life is not one to toy with at all.

Many years ago, I encountered a woman who was a senior official of an Examination Council in West Africa. She was married with children that were doing well. Just looking at her, everything seemed normal, but she was a habitation of demons. She came to me one day and said, "Thus saith the Lord, you are my husband". I said, "That can't be; I'm happily married, I'm a man of God, and you know I am committed to a life of holiness". She said, "You are joking, I'm going to marry you". When we couldn't handle it anymore, the matter was reported to the police and a restraining order was issued against her, to no avail. One day, I went to London on an official assignment and didn't tell anybody I was coming. Just as I entered the house where I was to stay, the phone rang and this same woman said, "Welcome, I have been waiting for you. I know where you are staying and I will be there in fifteen minutes". I told her the British police would be waiting for her at the door. Maybe because she knew there was a police station less than two minutes' walk away from the house, she did not come, but she kept on calling. Now, I knew that I had a big problem and I needed to be violent. I went on my knees and cried to God to help me. God told me, "Son, you know the meaning of whatever you bind on earth is bound in heaven, whatever you loose on earth is loosed in heaven. You know it means that whatever you allow is allowed, whatever you forbid is forbidden". I said, "Yes Lord", then He said "It's up to you". On hearing that I said, "Okay, then this mountain must move!" and it did move. If I hadn't been violent that mountain might have killed me.

KEY POINT:

Don't handle anything that can destroy your destiny lightly

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:

Daniel 3 - 5

HYMNAL:

HYMN 22 - SWEET HOUR OF PRAYER! SWEET HOUR OF PRAYER!

1. Sweet hour of prayer! Sweet hour of prayer!

That calls me from a world of care,

And bids me at my Father's throne

Make all my want and wishes known;

In seasons of distress and grief,

My soul has often found relief,

And oft escaped the tempter's snare,

By the return, sweet hour of prayer.

2. Sweet hour of prayer! Sweet hour of prayer!

Thy wings shall my petition bear,

To Him whose truth and faithfulness

Engage the waiting soul to bless;

And since He bids me seek His face,

Believe His word and trust His grace,

I'll cast on Him my every care,

And wait for thee, sweet hour of prayer.

3. Sweet hour of prayer! Sweet hour of prayer!

May I thy consolation share,

Till, from Mount Pisgah's lofty height,

I view my home, and take my flight:

This robe of flesh I'll drop, and rise

To seize the ever lasting prize;

And shout while passing through the air,

Farewell, farewell, sweet hour of prayer.

Christ Ambassador and spiritual gifts

Topic: Christ Ambassador and spiritual gifts

Who is a Christ Ambassador?

Definitions by versions of bible. 2 COR. 5:20a

The Passion Translation: One who carry the message of Christ to the world.

The Amplified: Christ's personal representative.

The Message & Common English Bible: One who represents Christ.

The History of Christ Ambassador

The first set of Christ Ambassadors are the 12 disciples. Followed by 70 or 72 disciples in Luke 10:1 and followed by 120 disciples in Acts 1:15. The above were Jews or Hebrews but God uses Apostle Paul for Gentile (non Jews) to become Christ Ambassador.

After you become Christ Ambassador, what next?

• You start receiving instructions from the Holy Spirit which will produce fruit of the Spirit which are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness and self control. Acts 1:2 NIV & Acts 1:8 AMP. Gal. 5:22 – 23

• Responsibility and power will be giving to you during the baptism of Holy Ghost and fire which will show forth spiritual gifts. Luke 3:16. Matt. 3:12

What is spiritual gift? 1 COR. 12:1 – 11

The Amplified: Special endowments of supernatural energy.

The Message: The various ways God Spirit gets worked into lives.

Spiritual gift is power given to function. It is special abilities. “With great power comes great responsibility “ Spiderman quote.

What are spiritual gifts? 1 COR. 12:1 – 11

There are nine Spiritual gifts just as there are nine fruit of the Spirit.

• Word of wisdom

• Word of knowledge

• Discerning of spirit

• Gift of faith

• Gift of Healing

• Gift of working of Miracles

• Speaking in tongues

• Interpretation of tongues

• Gift of prophecy

These gifts can be categorized into three.

• Revelation gifts

• Power gifts

• Speaking gifts

Three facts about these gifts

• The gifts comes from God. 1 COR 12:1

• Different gifts, same Spirit 1 COR 12: 4-6

• Spiritual gifts are for helping others. 1 COR 12:7

Circumstances where spiritual gifts were given to people in bible times and our present time.

Bible time: Acts 2:4; 8:15-17; 9:17; 10:44;19:6

Present time: My personal experience

Conclusion

The evidence of baptism of Holy Spirit is speaking in tongues. The evidence of spiritual gifts show forth in your worship to God and service to humanity.

Further Explanation of Spiritual gifts.

Closer Look at Each Gift

There are many ways to categorize the 9 gifts described in 1 Corinthians 12, but we will divide them up for the sake of understanding like this:

Revelation Gifts

The revelation gifts include Word of Wisdom, Word of Knowledge, and Discerning of Spirits. These gifts reveal what is unknown or hidden in order to bring understanding or explain God’s intentions or desires.

• Word of Wisdom: Individuals with this gift have the ability to make wise decisions and to advise others similarly. This wisdom isn’t just from trial and error in their own lives but through supernatural understanding from God. They see clearly through confusing circumstances and direct themselves and others toward God’s will and direction, closely adhering to the Word of God, of course.

• Word of Knowledge: People with this gift have a deep understanding of the will and ways of God, personally and through scripture. Supernaturally, they can discern truths about spiritual matters in order to teach or direct the church. Sometimes God gives a word of knowledge about a particular situation or person in order to protect, warn, or guide.

• Discerning of Spirits: This gift is also referred to “distinguishing between spirits.” People with this gift have the ability to discern whether a situation, person, or event is good or evil, right or wrong, heavenly or demonic. This gift is important because it can help protect God’s people and lead them in the right direction.

Power Gifts

The power gifts include Faith, Gifts of Healings, and Working of Miracles. These gifts visibly demonstrate God’s power.

• Faith: This gift is different than faith unto salvation (which all believers enjoy). The gift of faith involves the supernatural ability to believe and trust God in extenuating circumstances for extraordinary results. This gift of faith often brings about incredible miracles and is closely related to the other Power Gifts.

• Gifts of Healings: God works through a person with this gift to heal and restore people’s bodies, minds, and emotions. This person has a level of faith to believe God for healing in any situation and is willing to try even non-conventional methods if God leads.

• Working of Miracles: A person with this gift can be used by God to do any type of creative miracle from using physical strength to move a car to regenerating a body part to affecting the weather. There is no limit to what God can do, and the person with this spiritual gift has the faith to believe God for anything.

Speaking Gifts

The speaking gifts include Speaking in Tongues, Interpretation of Tongues, and Prophecy. God uses these gifts to audibly communicate with us.

• Speaking in Tongues: Speaking in tongues is a gift that is a sign to unbelievers (1 Corinthians 14:22). A person with this gift will supernaturally speak in an unknown language and get the attention of everyone nearby. If this gift is used in a corporate setting, the message in tongues must be interpreted.

• Interpretation of Tongues: A person with the gift of interpreting tongues has a supernatural ability to understand and explain to others the message given in tongues. The result is that God is glorified and the church is edified.

• Prophecy: Believers with the gift of prophecy don’t necessarily tell the future as much as they build up, encourage, and redirect the church body. They help the church understand the heart and desires of God and urge the church to wholeheartedly pursue God and holiness.

Source: https://faithisland.org/faith/the-9-spiritual-gifts-explained/