OPEN
HEAVENS Devotional – Friday April 1st 2016
TOPIC: DIVINE ALTERNATIVE
Memorize: And Samuel said unto him,
The Lord hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this
day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou. 1st
Samuel 15:28
Read:
Acts 1:15-26,
15 And
in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the
number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,)
16 Men
and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy
Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to
them that took Jesus.
17 For
he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry.
18 Now
this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong,
he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.
19 And
it was known unto all the dwellers at Jerusalem; insomuch as that field is
called in their proper tongue, Aceldama, that is to say, The field of blood.
20 For
it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no
man dwell therein: and his bishoprick let another take.
21 Wherefore
of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went
in and out among us,
22 Beginning
from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must
one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection.
23 And
they appointed two, Joseph called Barnabas, who was surnamed Justus, and
Matthias.
24 And
they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew
whether of these two thou hast chosen,
25 That
he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by
transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.
26 And
they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered
with the eleven apostles.
Bible
in one year: 1st Samuel 3-5, Proverbs 3:13-27
MESSAGE
Many people do not know that God has alternatives for all
His plans. This is why they behave as if God exists at their mercy. Such people
cannot be more wrong in their perception of the Almighty God. The truth is that
God cannot be held to ransom on any issue or event. This is why He always
provides alternatives that are more often better than the original plan. Our
memory verse for today confirms this, as we read about how God saw David as a
better alternative to the first king of Israel, Saul. When a child of God
becomes swollen-headed and he begins to disobey God in matters that seem very
little like tithing and offering, first fruits and soul winning, he or she is
on the way to being replaced. My prayer for someone using this devotional is
that you will not be replaced in the scheme of divine projects in Jesus’ name.
In the Bible reading for today, there is a great revelation
of God’s foreknowledge of all things and how this attribute makes Him provide
alternatives beforehand. The replacement of Judas Iscariot was predicted by the
mouth of King David who was also a prophet in his right. The implication of
this revelation is that before Judas Iscariot chose to be a betrayer which in
turn disqualified him among the twelve, God had planned an alternative for him!
Another lesson we can learn from this as children of God is that whenever a way
seems blocked, God has more than a thousand alternative ways to replace the
blocked one. The Bible says:
“And we know that all things work
together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according
to his purpose.” Romans 8:28
Beloved, learning from the story of King Saul and Judas
Iscariot, we must be very careful about the way we lead our lives, so that what
happened to them does not repeat itself in our lives, 1st
Corinthians 10:6 says;
“Now these things were our examples,
to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.”
As I was growing up in my father’s house, I learnt to be
obedient through the experience of my elder brother with our disciplinarian
father. My elder brother was a very strong young man with a good physique,
strength and wresting prowess. Only a few young men among his contemporaries
could dare challenge him to a fight. However, the day our father disciplined my
elder brother and this so called ‘hero’ cried like a baby, I decided never to
do anything that would make our father think of punishing me. God has
alternatives to any child of His that is not law-abiding. Let us therefore
beware of doing things that will make God replace us with someone else.
Prayer Point
Father, help me never to do that
which will make You replace me in Your Kingdom.
No comments:
Post a Comment