Open Heaven For Today 2024 Sunday Daily Devotional By Pastor E. A. Adeboye – Peer Pressure
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TOPIC: Peer Pressure
MEMORISE: "For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise". 2 Corinthians 10:12
READ: Romans 12:1-3 (KJV)
1 beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Ezekiel 9-12
Open Heaven For Today 2023 MESSAGE
Peer pressure is one of the greatest enemies of a Christian. The most dangerous thing about it is that it is not specifically listed amongst the works of the flesh in Galatians 5:19-21, and so many Christians are not careful of it.
Also, many people think that peer pressure only applies to teenagers, but it is also present among older people.
For example, when you go to a wedding, and you join your peers in dancing to worldly songs because you don’t want them to see you sitting aside, that is peer pressure making you do something against God’s will. You cannot please God and man at the same time.
King Saul tried to please men, and he displeased God as a result. He lost his throne and died a shameful death (1 Samuel 31:1-6).
Don’t try to dress like the world because you don’t want to seem ‘left out’. Don’t try to use dirty slangs to show that you are also familiar with current trends.
Many years ago, I was a guest minister somewhere, and when the man of God who was to introduce me went to the altar to do the introduction, he said that he liked everything about me except the way I dressed like a hunter with my short-sleeved suits.
I replied that I am not a hunter, I am a soldier. His remarks did not make me change the way I dress, even though my colleagues were wearing flowing agbada around that time.
Today, God has raised me very high amongst my colleagues. Children of God are not influenced by peer pressure; they are led by the Spirit of God (Romans 8:14).
When a Christian starts doing things because of what people will say or think, such a believer has stopped being led by the Spirit of God, and the fellow is already losing his or her sonship.
The word of God says in 2 Corinthians 6:17 that you must be separate. If people are to be seen as your peers, let them be people who have separated themselves for Christ.
Amongst these people, you can bow to the peer pressure of who is praying the longest, who has memorized more Scriptures, who wins the most number of souls per day, et cetera.
That is the only kind of peer pressure that is good for a Christian; pressure to please God more and draw closer to Him, not pressure that relates to carnal things.
Reflection
Are your actions influenced by other people’s perception of you or by the Spirit of God?
HYMN 31: Yet Not Temptation
1. When we walk with the Lord,
In the light of His word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will
He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.
Refrain:
Trust and obey!
For there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus,
But to trust and obey.
2. But we never can prove
The delights of His love,
Until all on the altar we lay,
For the favour He shows
And the joy He bestows
Are for them who will trust and obey. [Refrain]
3. Then in fellowship sweet
We will sit at His feet,
Or we’ll walk by His side in the way,
What He says we will do,
Where He sends we will go,
Never fear, only trust and obey. [Refrain]
Open Heaven For Today 2024 Saturday Daily Devotional By Pastor E. A. Adeboye – Know Yourself
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TOPIC: Know Yourself
MEMORISE: "But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light": 1 Peter 2:9
READ: Psalms 139:13-14 (KJV)
13 For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother’s womb.
14 I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.
Open Heaven For Today 2023 MESSAGE
Many-a-times, the devil whispers things into our ears to deceive us so that we will not walk in the identity and authority that God has given to us.
This is why it is necessary to know who you truly are in Christ. A king’s son that does not know who he is will beg for food even in his father’s palace.
You must know who you are, and you can only know this when you see yourself the way God sees you. How does God see you?
If you are confronted by a situation that seems tough and the devil is trying to tell you that you will not win, remember what the Bible says in Romans 8:37: “Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.”
Even though that situation may have conquered some people in the past, it cannot conquer you because you are more than a conqueror through Christ who loved you and loves you forever.
Sometimes, the devil will tell you that you are not good enough to be at the top or achieve your goals.
Laugh and quote Deuteronomy 28:13 to him: “And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath;..”
The Bible says that you will be above only, so there is no space for you at the bottom; the only space available for you as a child of God is above, and you will take your place, in Jesus’ name.
The devil can say whatever he wants, but when you know the truth, you will not listen to him or accept his lies.
When you know the real you in Christ, you will ignore whatever the devil says because you know that he is a liar (John 8:44). As you ignore him, your actions and thoughts will also follow suit.
You will not let his lies dictate what you do or what you don’t. His words must not shape your thoughts concerning what you believe about yourself or not.
The devil is too small to control the thoughts and actions of a believer. Your living, moving and being must be in God and not in any other counsel as we see in Acts 17:28: For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.
Key Point
When you know your true identity in the Scriptures, the devil will not be able to deceive you again.
HYMN 6: I Am So Glad That Our Father In Heav'n
1 I am so glad that our Father in heaven
Tells of His love in the Book He has given;
Wonderful things in the Bible I see,
This is the dearest, that Jesus loves me.
Refrain:
I am so glad that Jesus loves me,
Jesus loves me, Jesus loves me;
I am so glad that Jesus loves me,
Jesus loves even me.
2 Jesus loves me, and I know I love Him;
Love brought Him down my poor soul to redeem;
Yes, it was love made Him die on the tree;
Oh, I am certain that Jesus loves me!
3 In this assurance I find sweetest rest,
Trusting in Jesus, I know I am blest;
Satan, dismayed, from my soul now doth flee,
When I just tell him that Jesus loves me.
4 Oh, if there’s only one song I can sing,
When in His beauty I see the great King,
This shall my song through eternity be,
“Oh, what a wonder that Jesus loves me!”
5 If one should ask of me, how can I tell?
Glory to Jesus, I know very well!
God’s Holy Spirit with mine doth agree,
Constantly witnessing Jesus loves me.
Open Heaven For Today 2024 Friday Daily Devotional By Pastor E. A. Adeboye – Preserve The Sheep
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TOPIC: Preserve The Sheep
MEMORISE: "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves". Matthew 7:15
READ: Acts 20:28-31 (KJV)
28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.
29 For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
30 Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.
31 Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.
Open Heaven For Today 2023 MESSAGE
A shepherd can fail his sheep in two major ways. One of the ways is by not giving them food and making them starve to death, while the other is by not protecting them from predators.
If you are a leader in the body of Christ whom God has placed over some of His sheep, you must ensure that you preserve them by feeding them with the accurate word of God and protecting them from false teachers who are actually wolves in sheep’s clothing.
In Acts 20:28, shepherds are told sternly to feed the flock in their care. If you are not teaching the people that God has put in your care the true and complete word of God, you are killing them spiritually, and God will not spare you for that.
No human being can live long if he/she is malnourished, so also, the souls of the people in your care will perish if they are malnourished.
As you teach them prosperity, also teach them holiness. As you teach them about Christ’s love, don’t leave out the fact that He is also the consuming fire.
Don’t worry about the church’s growth, do what God has called you to do, and He will grow His church.
The apostles regularly warned the sheep about false teachers and their teachings (2 Corinthians 11:13-2 Peter 2:1). They were protecting them from wolves, and we must do the same.
There are all sorts of doctrines going around these days that are completely opposite to God’s word. Don’t ignore them; tell your people never to listen to such teachings.
If you don’t tell them to stay away from such teachings because you don’t want to offend anyone, you will leave them to be devoured by wolves.
Social media has created many opportunities for false teachers to confuse some of the sheep with their teachings.
The sheep may see someone working miracles and believe that he or she is a genuine minister of God.
They might start listening to the fellow’s teachings, so you must ensure that what they are listening to is not the lure of a wolf.
Teach your followers to be like the Berean Christians who always checked any teaching they heard against the word of God (Acts 17:10-11).
Whether you are a pastor, head of a department, house fellowship leader, or parent, if you have been placed as a spiritual leader over some people, it is your responsibility to ensure that the devil does not devour them.
Key Point
Leaders: Teach the undiluted word of God Followers: Confirm all teachings like the Berean Christians.
HYMN 20: Stand Up! Stand Up! For Jesus
1 Stand up! stand up for Jesus!
Ye soldiers of the cross;
Lift high His royal banner,
It must not suffer loss:
From vict’ry unto vict’ry
His army shall He lead,
Till every foe is vanquished
And Christ is Lord indeed.
2 Stand up! stand up for Jesus!
The trumpet call obey;
Forth to the mighty conflict
In this His glorious day.
Ye that are men, now serve Him
Against unnumbered foes;
Let courage rise with danger.
And strength to strength oppose.
3 Stand up! stand up for Jesus!
Stand in His strength alone;
The arm of flesh will fail you;
Ye dare not trust your own.
Put on the Gospel armor,
And, watching unto prayer,
Where duty calls, or danger,
Be never wanting there.
4 Stand up! stand up for Jesus!
The strife will not be long:
This day the noise of battle,
The next the victor’s song;
To him that overcometh
A crown of life shall be;
He, with the King of glory,
Shall reign eternally.
Open Heaven For Today 2024 Tuesday Daily Devotional By Pastor E. A. Adeboye – Handling Success
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TOPIC: Handling Success
MEMORISE: "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour": 1 Peter 5:8
READ: 1 Samuel 18:6-15 (KJV)
6 And it came to pass as they came, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with tabrets, with joy, and with instruments of musick.
7 And the women answered one another as they played, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.
8 And Saul was very wroth, and the saying displeased him; and he said, They have ascribed unto David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom?
9 And Saul eyed David from that day and forward.
10 And it came to pass on the morrow, that the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as at other times: and there was a javelin in Saul’s hand.
11 And Saul cast the javelin; for he said, I will smite David even to the wall with it. And David avoided out of his presence twice.
12 And Saul was afraid of David, because the Lord was with him, and was departed from Saul.
13 Therefore Saul removed him from him, and made him his captain over a thousand; and he went out and came in before the people.
14 And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways; and the Lord was with him.
15 Wherefore when Saul saw that he behaved himself very wisely, he was afraid of him.
Open Heaven For Today 2023 MESSAGE
I discussed handling failure properly yesterday, the factor that can affect success in life; there is also the need to learn how to handle success correctly.
Many people have eventually failed in life because they did not know how to handle their success.
In 1957, a man won £75,000 in a lottery. In those days, you could buy a flat in London for a tiny fraction of that sum.
One day in the early 1980s, somewhere in Western Nigeria, I saw a man that was wearing rags, sitting beside a building that had collapsed in half.
I asked the fellow who was driving me,
“Who is that fellow?”
He said,
“That is the man who won £75,000 in 1957.”
The man had great prosperity but did not know how to handle it, so he ended up poor.
A popular proverb inspired by Proverbs 21:20 says that a fool and his prosperity are soon separated.
If a fellow is not wise enough to handle success, it can turn out to be the beginning of great failure.
Don’t get over-excited when success comes. Many people start rejoicing and partying after a victory, forgetting that the devil never relaxes.
What actually happens is that the devil becomes more determined to bring such people down. Don’t miss prayer meetings or your personal devotion because you are celebrating a victory.
Yes, you won the battle, but the enemy is not dead yet; he is still roaming, looking for whom to devour (1 Peter 5:8).
You should increase your commitment to God after every victory and not the other way around.
The devil knows that after successes, people are likely to relax, so he usually attacks them during such periods.
After David killed Goliath, he raised King Saul up against him. It was after Elijah called down fire from heaven that Jezebel swore to kill him (1 Kings 19:1-3).
When you attain success in a particular thing, you must not relax. You must remain alert and ready for battle. Don’t let success distract you from the end goal that God has called you to achieve.
One great success we had in RCCG was a programme called Lekki ’98, where over six million people gathered in one place to worship God.
Immediately after that programme, we doubled our missionary efforts, sending missionaries to new territories.
We immediately started planning the next edition of the programme, and today, we have held much bigger programmes because we doubled our efforts and did not relax after our success.
Key Point
When success comes, that is the time to work more, not the time to relax.
HYMN 26: There Shall Be Showers Of Blessing
1 There shall be showers of blessing:
This is the promise of love;
There shall be seasons refreshing,
Sent from the Saviour above.
Refrain:
Showers of blessing,
Showers of blessing we need;
Mercy drops round us are falling,
But for the showers we plead.
2 There shall be showers of blessing,
Precious reviving again;
Over the hills and the valleys,
Sound of abundance of rain.
3 There shall be showers of blessing:
Send them upon us, O Lord!
Grant to us now a refreshing;
Come, and now honour Thy Word.
4 There shall be showers of blessing,
Oh, that to-day they might fall,
Now, as to God, we’re confessing.
Now as on Jesus we call!
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