DATE: WEDNESDAY JULY 26TH 2017
THEME: ACCESSING DIVINE COUNSEL
Memorise:
Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. John 17:17
Read: John 17:15-17
17:15 I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.
17:16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
17:17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
Message:
Access to divine guidance is one yardstick you can use to determine whether you are a sheep in the fold of Jesus Christ, the Great Shepherd. This is very central to our walk with God, as it determines the status of our relationship with Christ. Amassing years in the faith is not as important as increasing the frequency of receiving divine guidance. This means that if you received Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour some 5, 10, 20 or more years ago, but still cannot easily be led by the Spirit of God on various matters, you are hardly growing spiritually. Romans 8:14 says,
“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.”
A close walk with the Holy Spirit is the bedrock for receiving divine guidance. In John 16:13, Jesus clearly stated one major reason why the Holy Spirit was sent to the world. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth, and so it falls within the purview of His duties to guide you along the path of truth. If you have a knotty issue that cannot be unravelled, simply go to the Holy Spirit, and He will guide you aright. He operates in the realm of truth and not necessarily facts. Some people equate facts with truth but that is not often the case. Just as lies are a distortion of the facts, facts can sometimes be contrary to truth. Facts are observations that have been subjected to interpretations based on current knowledge, and because knowledge changes, facts can also change.
What then is truth? The Lord Jesus Christ answers this question in John 17:17:
“Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.”
The word of God is truth. Also, the Godhead is an embodiment of truth. In fact, Jesus in John 14:6 declared:
“…I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”
Truth is based on faith. If you will receive divine guidance, you must be prepared to walk in God’s path of truth. The truth is ever constant. God wants His children to walk with the truth and not necessarily facts. When a child of God is ill for example, the fact is that there are physical signs and manifestations of the ailment on the individual, but the truth is that Jesus has already paid the price for the healing of every child of God. For this reason, the Bible says we walk by faith (truth) not by sight (facts) (2 Corinthians 5:7). This means, you must be a person of faith. You must live by the truth and not contradict God’s word by your lifestyle. Also, you cannot be telling lies and expect the truth of God to be revealed to you. Choose to live by truth today.
Key Point:
A liar cannot receive a revelation of the Truth until he or she is ready to dump falsehood.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
1 Kings 2
Ezekiel 16:6-22
AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE
HYMN 15: THE COMFORTER HAS COME
1. Oh, spread the tidings ’round,
Wherever man is found,
Wherever human hearts
And human woes abound;
Let every Christian tongue
Proclaim the joyful sound:
The Comforter has come!
Refrain:
The Comforter has come,
The Comforter has come!
The Holy Ghost from Heav’n,
The Father’s promise giv’n;
Oh, spread the tidings ’round,
Wherever man is found —
The Comforter has come!
2. The long, long night is past,
The morning breaks at last,
And hushed the dreadful wail
And fury of the blast,
As o’er the golden hills
The day advances fast!
The Comforter has come!
[Refrain]
3. Lo, the great King of kings,
With healing in His wings,
To every captive soul
A full deliv’rance brings;
And through the vacant cells
The song of triumph rings;
The Comforter has come!
[Refrain]
4. O boundless love divine!
How shall this tongue of mine
To wond’ring mortals tell
The matchless grace divine—
That I, a child of hell,
Should in His image shine!
The Comforter has come!
[Refrain]
5. Sing till the echoes fly
Above the vaulted sky,
And all the saints above
To all below reply,
In strains of endless love,
The song that ne’er will die:
The Comforter has come!
[Refrain:]
Prayer Points on Today's Open Heavens: (Wednesday, July 26, 2017) - ACCESSING DIVINE COUNSEL
1.Thank you, Father, for the multitude of your counsels and guidance, daily, through your word and the Holy Spirit.
2.Father, in anyway, l have fallen short of your glory, please, have mercy and forgive me, in Jesus' name.
3.Father, sanctify me through your word, your word is the truth; in Jesus' name.
4.Father, shield me from all kinds of evil, as l sojourn in this world, to accomplish your goal, in Jesus' name.
5.Father, let your counsel be the final authority that will put an end to every dispute, argument, controversy, resistance and debates, in my life, in Jesus' name.
6.Father, let everything in my life, that is saying, "No", to your counsels, be consumed by your fire, in Jesus' name.
7.Father, give me the grace to submit totally to the leading of your Holy Spirit, that l may experience rapid spiritual growth, in Jesus' name.
8.Father, empower me to maintain a close and righteous walk with you, in Jesus' name.
9.As from today, l choose to walk by faith and not by sight, in Jesus' name.
10.Father, purge me of every spirit of lying and falsehood, in Jesus' name.
11.Father, give me constant access to your divine counsels, guidance and truth, in Jesus' name.
12.Your Personal petitions.
( Philippians 4:6)
13.In Jesus' name I pray.
(John 14:13-14; 15:16)
14.Thank you Father for answered prayers.
(1 Thessalonians 5:18).
#GodBlessOurNation
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR REFERENCE
1 Kings: 2. 1. Now the days of David drew nigh that he should die; and he charged Solomon his son, saying, 2. I go the way of all the earth: be thou strong therefore, and shew thyself a man; 3. And keep the charge of the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersoever thou turnest thyself: 4. That the LORD may continue his word which he spake concerning me, saying, If thy children take heed to their way, to walk before me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail thee (said he) a man on the throne of Israel. 5. Moreover thou knowest also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two captains of the hosts of Israel, unto Abner the son of Ner, and unto Amasa the son of Jether, whom he slew, and shed the blood of war in peace, and put the blood of war upon his girdle that was about his loins, and in his shoes that were on his feet. 6. Do therefore according to thy wisdom, and let not his hoar head go down to the grave in peace. 7. But shew kindness unto the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be of those that eat at thy table: for so they came to me when I fled because of Absalom thy brother. 8. And, behold, thou hast with thee Shimei the son of Gera, a Benjamite of Bahurim, which cursed me with a grievous curse in the day when I went to Mahanaim: but he came down to meet me at Jordan, and I sware to him by the LORD, saying, I will not put thee to death with the sword. 9. Now therefore hold him not guiltless: for thou art a wise man, and knowest what thou oughtest to do unto him; but his hoar head bring thou down to the grave with blood. 10. So David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David. 11. And the days that David reigned over Israel were forty years: seven years reigned he in Hebron, and thirty and three years reigned he in Jerusalem. 12. Then sat Solomon upon the throne of David his father; and his kingdom was established greatly. 13. And Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bath-sheba the mother of Solomon. And she said, Comest thou peaceably? And he said, Peaceably. 14. He said moreover, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And she said, Say on. 15. And he said, Thou knowest that the kingdom was mine, and that all Israel set their faces on me, that I should reign: howbeit the kingdom is turned about, and is become my brother's: for it was his from the LORD. 16. And now I ask one petition of thee, deny me not. And she said unto him, Say on. 17. And he said, Speak, I pray thee, unto Solomon the king, (for he will not say thee nay,) that he give me Abishag the Shunammite to wife. 18. And Bath-sheba said, Well; I will speak for thee unto the king. 19. Bath-sheba therefore went unto king Solomon, to speak unto him for Adonijah. And the king rose up to meet her, and bowed himself unto her, and sat down on his throne, and caused a seat to be set for the king's mother; and she sat on his right hand. 20. Then she said, I desire one small petition of thee; I pray thee, say me not nay. And the king said unto her, Ask on, my mother: for I will not say thee nay. 21. And she said, Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah thy brother to wife. 22. And king Solomon answered and said unto his mother, And why dost thou ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? ask for him the kingdom also; for he is mine elder brother; even for him, and for Abiathar the priest, and for Joab the son of Zeruiah. 23. Then king Solomon sware by the LORD, saying, God do so to me, and more also, if Adonijah have not spoken this word against his own life. 24. Now therefore, as the LORD liveth, which hath established me, and set me on the throne of David my father, and who hath made me an house, as he promised, Adonijah shall be put to death this day. 25. And king Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he fell upon him that he died. 26. And unto Abiathar the priest said the king, Get thee to Anathoth, unto thine own fields; for thou art worthy of death: but I will not at this time put thee to death, because thou barest the ark of the Lord GOD before David my father, and because thou hast been afflicted in all wherein my father was afflicted. 27. So Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being priest unto the LORD; that he might fulfil the word of the LORD, which he spake concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh. 28. Then tidings came to Joab: for Joab had turned after Adonijah, though he turned not after Absalom. And Joab fled unto the tabernacle of the LORD, and caught hold on the horns of the altar. 29. And it was told king Solomon that Joab was fled unto the tabernacle of the LORD; and, behold, he is by the altar. Then Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, Go, fall upon him. 30. And Benaiah came to the tabernacle of the LORD, and said unto him, Thus saith the king, Come forth. And he said, Nay; but I will die here. And Benaiah brought the king word again, saying, Thus said Joab, and thus he answered me. 31. And the king said unto him, Do as he hath said, and fall upon him, and bury him; that thou mayest take away the innocent blood, which Joab shed, from me, and from the house of my father. 32. And the LORD shall return his blood upon his own head, who fell upon two men more righteous and better than he, and slew them with the sword, my father David not knowing thereof, to wit, Abner the son of Ner, captain of the host of Israel, and Amasa the son of Jether, captain of the host of Judah. 33. Their blood shall therefore return upon the head of Joab, and upon the head of his seed for ever: but upon David, and upon his seed, and upon his house, and upon his throne, shall there be peace for ever from the LORD. 34. So Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up, and fell upon him, and slew him: and he was buried in his own house in the wilderness. 35. And the king put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada in his room over the host: and Zadok the priest did the king put in the room of Abiathar. 36. And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said unto him, Build thee an house in Jerusalem, and dwell there, and go not forth thence any whither. 37. For it shall be, that on the day thou goest out, and passest over the brook Kidron, thou shalt know for certain that thou shalt surely die: thy blood shall be upon thine own head. 38. And Shimei said unto the king, The saying is good: as my lord the king hath said, so will thy servant do. And Shimei dwelt in Jerusalem many days. 39. And it came to pass at the end of three years, that two of the servants of Shimei ran away unto Achish son of Maachah king of Gath. And they told Shimei, saying, Behold, thy servants be in Gath. 40. And Shimei arose, and saddled his ass, and went to Gath to Achish to seek his servants: and Shimei went, and brought his servants from Gath. 41. And it was told Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and was come again. 42. And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said unto him, Did I not make thee to swear by the LORD, and protested unto thee, saying, Know for a certain, on the day thou goest out, and walkest abroad any wither, that thou shalt surely die? and thou saidst unto me, The word that I have heard is good. 43. Why then hast thou not kept the oath of the LORD, and the commandment that I have charged thee with? 44. The king said moreover to Shimei, Thou knowest all the wickedness which thine heart is privy to, that thou didst to David my father: therefore the LORD shall return thy wickedness upon thine own head; 45. And king Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David shall be established before the LORD for ever. 46. So the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; which went out, and fell upon him, that he died. And the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.
Ezekiel: 16. 6. And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live; yea, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live. 7. I have caused thee to multiply as the bud of the field, and thou hast increased and waxen great, and thou art come to excellent ornaments: thy breasts are fashioned, and thine hair is grown, whereas thou wast naked and bare. 8. Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of love; and I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord GOD, and thou becamest mine. 9. Then washed I thee with water; yea, I throughly washed away thy blood from thee, and I anointed thee with oil. 10. I clothed thee also with broidered work, and shod thee with badgers' skin, and I girded thee about with fine linen, and I covered thee with silk. 11. I decked thee also with ornaments, and I put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain on thy neck. 12. And I put a jewel on thy forehead, and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thine head. 13. Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver; and thy raiment was of fine linen, and silk, and broidered work; thou didst eat fine flour, and honey, and oil: and thou wast exceeding beautiful, and thou didst prosper into a kingdom. 14. And thy renown went forth among the heathen for thy beauty: for it was perfect through my comeliness, which I had put upon thee, saith the Lord GOD. 15. But thou didst trust in thine own beauty, and playedst the harlot because of thy renown, and pouredst out thy fornications on every one that passed by; his it was. 16. And of thy garments thou didst take, and deckedst thy high places with divers colours, and playedst the harlot thereupon: the like things shall not come, neither shall it be so. 17. Thou hast also taken thy fair jewels of my gold and of my silver, which I had given thee, and madest to thyself images of men, and didst commit whoredom with them, 18. And tookest thy broidered garments, and coveredst them: and thou hast set mine oil and mine incense before them. 19. My meat also which I gave thee, fine flour, and oil, and honey, wherewith I fed thee, thou hast even set it before them for a sweet savour: and thus it was, saith the Lord GOD. 20. Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne unto me, and these hast thou sacrificed unto them to be devoured. Is this of thy whoredoms a small matter, 21. That thou hast slain my children, and delivered them to cause them to pass through the fire for them? 22. And in all thine abominations and thy whoredoms thou hast not remembered the days of thy youth, when thou wast naked and bare, and wast polluted in thy blood.
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