OPEN HEAVENS Devotional – Monday
November 14th 2016
TOPIC: FACING TRIALS OF FAITH?
Memorize: These things I
have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall
have tribulation; but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world. John 16:33
Read: Hebrews 11:36-40
36 And others
had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and
imprisonment:
37 They were
stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they
wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted,
tormented;
38 (Of whom
the world was not worthy) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in
dens and caves of the earth.
39 And these
all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:
40 God having
provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made
perfect.
Bible in one year: Genesis 24,
Psalms 103:11-22
MESSAGE
There are several challenges
that will confront us as we progress in the journey of faith, but none of them
will dominate us. As a child of God, when you pass through the fire, the mighty
man in battle has promised that it will not burn you. At one point or the
other, your faith will be tried; your love for God will be tested. There will
be persecutions of all kinds. Because of your belief in Christ, people will say
all kinds of things against you. There will be false accusations despite your
level of commitment to your assignment. No matter how good your intentions may
be, sometimes, they may be spoken of in an evil way. Many times these
tribulations, trials and persecutions will come from quarters you least expect.
You should be bothered because the same people who hailed the triumphant entry of
Jesus were the same people, who said to Pilate, crucify him. Have you been
persecuted because of your faith and your holy living? I congratulate you,
because you are fulfilling your part of the Christian calling. You have to know
that the hostility of the world against believers in Christ Jesus is a
transferred hostility. We are not the first set of people to be hated; the
world hates us because they hated Jesus Christ. Despite the innocence of the
young shepherd boy, king Saul attempted to kill him several times. You need to
know that even in the household of faith, there are king Sauls. They are ready
to kill you, not because you have committed any crime, but because they are
uncomfortable with your standard of righteous living. On several occasions,
Jesus Christ, before his final persecution on earth, was persecuted by the
people listening to Him in the synagogue. They did not like the way He was
preaching with so much authority. And they always rose up against His good
acts. What should you do in times of trials, tribulations and persecutions? You
must rejoice in the Lord.
When Paul was going through
persecution, rather than murmur and complain, he fellowshipped. No wonder he
could say:
“Who shall separate us from
the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine,
or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Nay, in all these things we are more than
conquerors through him that loved us.” Romans 8:35,37
He said this despite the fact
that he was beaten with rods, he was stoned, he suffered as shipwreck, and he
was kept in the deep prisons. He suffered in the hands of robbers as well as in
the hands of his countrymen. False brethren also surrounded him. There were
times when situations and circumstances of weariness, hunger, nakedness and the
cares of his missionary obligation threatened to discourage him, yet he
finished well. You will finish well in Jesus’ name.
Prayer Point
Father, give me victory over
every trial I come across.
