Open Heaven for Today 22 October 2019 – Divine Encounter

 Open Heaven for Today 22 October 2019: [Tuesday] – Divine Encounter

DIVINE ENCOUNTER – Tuesday October 22^nd 2019

Memorise: For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole. Mark 5:28

Read: Matthew 8:5-13 (KJV)

⁵ And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him,

⁶ And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented.

⁷ And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him.

⁸ The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.

⁹ For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.

¹⁰ When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.

¹¹ And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.

¹² But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

¹³ And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.

Open Heaven for Today 22 October 2019 – Divine Encounter

Bible in one year: 2^nd Chronicles 24-25, Revelation 17:1-14, Hymn: Sing hymn 8

Message

I am pleased to announce to you today that just one encounter with the Almighty, with whom there is no impossibility, is all that you need to make all your problems a thing of the past. 

Open Heaven for Today 22 October 2019 – Divine Encounter

Not only will your problems be dealt with through an encounter with Him, you will also receive the mother of all blessings, which is eternal life. The story of the centurion who encountered Jesus Christ is a good example of the possibilities that a divine encounter brings. Incidentally, this centurion was not a Jew. Nobody can tell how he got to know about Jesus, but suffice it to say that he was singled out for this encounter by divine arrangement. Typical of a soldier, he went straight to the point in his communication with Jesus, and the Lord offered to come to his house to grant his request. Amazingly, even though he was not a Jew, this centurion demonstrated great faith in the Messiah of the Jews. He declined Jesus’ offer to come to his house, saying that the Master just needed to speak a word and his servant would be healed. He believed that whatever Jesus said would definitely come to pass. The Lord was touched by this demonstration of faith, commending it as the sort He had not seen in Israel.

Beloved, let us learn from the centurion. He was out to get healing for his servant and this led him to Jesus. This encounter produced results because he had great expectations. Whenever you come before the Lord’s presence, you will be wise to come before Him with pure heart that expects significant things from Him. Go before the Lord believing like the centurion did. You will notice that the centurion applied what he knew about authority as a soldier to connect with a profound spiritual principle. 

 Open Heaven for Today 22 October 2019: [Tuesday] – Divine Encounter

It is unfortunate that instead of allowing God to use their professional background to help them understand divine principles, some people rather allow the devil to convince them that there is no God. The reality of human efforts being futile without God was what convinced Peter, an experienced fisherman, that his catch of fish at the Lord’s direction was not ordinary (Psalm 127:1, Luke 5:8). 

 Open Heaven for Today 22 October 2019 Tuesday: Prayer Point

He therefore bowed to the divine supremacy of the preacher who knew more about fish than any experienced fisherman. The encounter changed Peter’s life permanently, making him famous in almost all the nations of the world. The woman with the issue of blood, who declared the words of today’s memory verse, also had a divine encounter with Jesus, which put an end to pain, shame and waste in her life. In order not to miss your day of visitation by the Lord, never get too familiar with His works. Always appreciate His miracles and let your heart be full of expectation of a divine encounter at all times. I pray that you will not miss your day of visitation, like the children of Israel did, in Jesus’ Name (Luke 13:34-35).

Prayer Point:

Father, cause me to encounter You in a special way today.

Open Heavens Daily Devotional Lessons was written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, one of the largest evangelical Churches in the world and also the President of Christ the Redeemer's Ministries.