Category: Gospel

[The Glory Unveiled]

“So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. ( Luke 11:9 )

Our anchor verse of Scripture begins with “So” to mean that something was earlier discussed that led to this conclusion. The speaker, Jesus, said the things he said in this verse because of a foundation he laid earlier. As such, we can only understand this verse of scripture after we have understood the foundation laid in the one sided discourse. Jesus had narrated a short parable to the people where he used them as the major characters in a situational case study. He said, assuming anyone of them went to ask his friend for help at night. And if that friend was sleeping and didn’t want to wake up to attend to them, through persistence, that friend will give them whatever they desire. The reason for the change of that friend’s mind according to Jesus is not because you’re friends but rather because of your shameless persistence (verses 5-8). Jesus used this occasion to explain the importance of persistence in prayer. We must not relent or grow tired in our prayer closet. So when Jesus said “ask and it will be given…” in our anchor verse of Scripture, He meant ask persistently until it is given. Persistence produces desired results. We must not quit until whatever we desire is delivered.

Prayer_Bead: Gracious Lord, Loving Father, thank you for access into your presence and your bounty. I resolve not to give up on your faithfulness until I have what you promised. In Jesus’ name.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. (Ruth. 1:16 )

Life will always test our resolves and determination through circumstances and situations. Whatever we do not firmly stand for, will not stand for us. Joseph’s resolve was tested when he had the opportunity to compromise with Potiphar’s wife. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego went through the same mill. Their resolve to serve God alone was tested by the Babylonian system to check for authenticity. Here, in our anchor chapter, Naomi had to test the authenticity of her daughters-in-law’s [Ruth and Orpah] resolve. Initially both Orpah and Ruth had wanted to follow Naomi but after a little explanation, Orpah decided to go back. But then Ruth clung to Naomi in spite of the convincing explanations Naomi gave them. Today, the book from which we extracted our verse of scripture is named after Ruth and not Orpah. Ruth paid the price to have her name inscribed in History’s hall of fame. The perpetual flame of her resolve continuous to burn till tomorrow. Her resolve also paved way for her to be the ancestor of Jesus even though she was not a born Israelite. We can also accomplish glorious things if we make firm resolutions to do the very things God had empowered us to. Let’s be resolute about our convictions in Christ and then the world will have no option than to opt for us.

Prayer_Bead: Our Father, who is in us, thank you for the privilege to be numbered in you, the grace to embrace your love and your life. Help us to stand for what we believe in you.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

So Joseph’s master took him and put him into the jail, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined; and he was there in the jail.( Genesis 39:20 )

Our God is so intentional about anything and everything about us. No wonder the Scriptures say that “His divine power has given us all things that pertains to life and godliness”. This is why the believer must always maintain a positive attitude at all times. Whatever happens to the believer and around the believer is working for their good. Joseph was sent to Potiphar’s house, of all the houses in Egypt. Potiphar’s wife told a lie that landed Joseph in prison but then of all the prison’s in Egypt, he was taken to where the King’s prisoners were kept. The point is that God wanted to connect Joseph to royalty and so he associated him with people who had been with royals. It was not a mistake in heaven that Joseph was imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit. Actually, it was a set up that was supposed to introduce him to his true destiny. Joseph had dreamt in his teen years that he would rule some day. But then God didn’t show him how he would get there. And because he didn’t know how God was going to do it, he had to submit to God in everything. Like Joseph, God promised us a glorious future through Christ. We may not know how the details of that destiny will be played out, but from the template of Joseph’s life, we can assume that, the safest thing to do is to trust God to get us there. Nothing is a mistake if God is the one leading us. The pains of yesterday will soon paint your story beautifully. The tears will not tear you apart. It is clearing your eyes to see clearly what H God is doing. Cheer up, your “jail” may be necessary for your eminent joy.

Prayer_Bead: Deliverer from the lions, protector from the venomous serpent, thank you for the working of your grace in my life, leading me to my destiny. I am walking on preordained path. I am fulfilling the decrees of God concerning my life.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

She caught him [Joseph] by his garment, saying, “Lie with me!” And he left his garment in her hand and fled, and went outside. ( Genesis 39:12 )

The devil usually likes to sow where God sows. A parable is told by Jesus of a sower sowing good seeds but then the enemy also came to sow weeds among the good seeds (Matthew 13:24-30). The enemy came to sow weeds (bad seeds) where God, the sower also sow His seeds (good seeds). In today’s verse of scripture, Joseph was “planted” in Potiphar’s house but then the enemy also planted Potiphar’s wife against Joseph. They were in the same house, but they didn’t have the same source. The devil had wanted to use her against Joseph but then he did the needful. It is okay to flee sometimes, when we must. It is not a show of weakness nor cowardice but rather a manifestation of wisdom. Today, we see people who embrace the devil’s offers in the name of being strong in faith. If it has to do with iniquity, it is better to flee than to lose one’s graceful position in the scheme of God’s agenda. Joseph lost Potiphar’s house because he stood for righteousness but then the whole of Egypt was given to him as a result. Righteousness is an eternal rewarder, iniquity may only give temporary pleasure. Let us choose the life of God. And remember, it is okay to flee sometimes when what is coming at you is aiming at your destiny.

Prayer_Bead: Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for procuring righteousness for me through the cross. Help me to stand for what righteousness represents on a daily basis. May I flee from iniquity even when it will portray me as weak and unwise. So help me God.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. ( Romans 1:21 )

The Creator, seem to have hardwired the human vessel to follow a particular course and pattern. Any deviation from that preset design is detrimental to that human and consequently, their environment. In our verse of Scripture, we read that there are some people who have the knowledge of God. And yet, refuse to glorify God with that knowledge nor give thanks. The sole responsibility of man is to bring glory to God by making the world see that aspect of God that He has deposited in them. But that aspect can only be made known through the special revealed knowledge of God. And so, for anyone to know that and yet refuse to glorify God with it, they will become conceited with arrogance and rebellion. A typical example is the devil. He refused to glorify God and to give Him thanks. Instead, he sought to take the place of God. That is what happens when anyone refuses to glorify God and to live a life of continuous thanksgiving and acknowledgement of the goodness of God. The continuous acknowledgement of God deletes pride and arrogance. Our thoughts will not be futile if we are conscious that the life we have and live is not ours but God’s. Let this mindset of utter dependence on God remain in us.

Prayer_Bead: Lord over everything, Master of the universe, in You consist all things and nothing exist independent of you. Thank you for the grace to be humbled by this knowledge and to let the world see your glory through my life.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! ( Ezekiel 37:4 )

Ezekiel was occasioned to visit the valley of dry bones by the Spirit of God. In that valley, there was everything but life. The stench of death had taken over the valley and all one could find was the symbols of death. But God wanted to invade that valley with life. And so He sought for an opportunity to carry out that life giving experiment. Usually, God will always do something on earth through a human host. And so now that He had found Ezekiel, the first requirement seem to be met but then it does not end there. Now, there was the need to bring about that which God intends to see done. And that can only be a reality when God’s voice comes on the scene. So, God asks Ezekiel to convey the word of God, which is the voice of God to the dry bones. In the book of Acts; in the third chapter we see a recreation of these events, where Peter and John met a lame man [“dry bones”]. The only way that man’s situation could change was for the man to hear the voice of God through the word of God. And so Peter said, “in the name of Jesus of Nazareth, rise up and walk”. “In the name of Jesus” suggests that the command was coming from Jesus and not Peter. The word of God is the agency for creation and recreation on earth because everything was founded by the word of God. They can only be recreated by that same word. So, instead of complaining like the man at the pool of Bethesda, (John 5:5-7) let us search for the voice of God, and then our dry bones situations will change.

Prayer_Bead: God over everything, Lord over anything, thank you, for your voice is not scarce in my day. Please give me the ear to always hear your voice in every situation of life. And thank you as you recreate the challenging situations of my destiny.

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GLORY NEWS BROADCAST

Saul replied, “You [David] are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth.” ( 1 Samuel 17:33 )

At the time of this Biblical account, warriors were respected by the number of victories won in battles and the experience they had accrued from their many years of fighting and being exposed to battles. Here in our verse of Scripture, David, a young man, had applied to fight against the champion and giant of the day, Goliath. To the trained soldiers, this was pride and even an insult to their uniform. Even the King, Saul, couldn’t handle the fact that a young untrained boy would break the status quo. And so in the proceeding verses, even after he was a little convinced that the young man wanted to commit suicide, he offered him his uniform and arsenals. From Saul’s perspective, Goliath was that military giant and a champion because of his many years of experience and exposure. He was not aware that God could train a young boy at the back of the desert to defeat a giant who was trained in the most rigid and disciplined military academy of the Philistines. Beloved, we don’t necessarily need to go through the laid down system of the world to be mightily used by God. God in these days is training the untrained to do what the trained cannot do. God is enlisting people into His academy for the announcement of His glory and grace. Will you align to be chosen? God needs our obedience and commitment. And then it cannot be imagined what He will do through us. Join the new breed of warriors.

Prayer_Bead: King of Zion, Judah’s Lion, Chief of our clan and tribe, thank you for enlisting me into your army of untrained soldiers. I discipline myself through the knowledge of your word. Use me to defeat the Goliath of our day.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. ( Isaiah 40:31 )

Our verse of Scripture is one of the Scriptures that should be read slowly and thoughtfully. But unfortunately, it is possible not to pay attention to the word “wait”. Before one renew their strength, mount up with wings, walk, run and not faint nor grow weary, there is the prerequisite of WAITING upon God. Waiting upon God is the incubation moment of entering into the atmosphere of God and having enough stamina to endure that glorious presence. Waiting upon God does not mean idleness and faithless wishes. It is an act and an art of faith and absolute trust and dependence on God. Walking in the Spirit is a privilege of born-again Spirit filled Believers. We walk in the Spirit by making the presence of God our habitation and the first thing to do is to wait upon the lord. And then leaning on the provisions of faith, we can expect to hear God and look for His desires in the secret place. The spiritual man who waits on God then is that man that is qualified for the benefits of the verse of Scripture above. We will now understand why many people declare this Scripture everyday but they do not experience the resulting effect. The reason is because the prerequisite of waiting is not fully met. Wait upon the Lord. Again, wait.

Prayer_Bead: Gracious Lord, Father of all Spirits, thank you for your word and the opportunity and grace to wait upon you in the secret place. Help me to make your presence my habitation.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

One person gives freely, yet gains even more;
another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty. ( Proverbs 11:24 )

In the Kingdom of God where the Believer came from and is a citizen of, we operate by principles that are inconsistent with the principles of this world. For example, this world teaches us to hoard things if we don’t want to be poor. But Heaven, our home country teaches that we give freely in order to gain more; the principle in our anchor verse. The verse of scripture talks about two distinct people. One is from the kingdom above and the other is from the earth. The earthly man thinks in line with earthly principles and limitations but the spiritual man who is a citizen of Heaven understands that heaven makes provision for all his needs; all that pertains to life and godliness are secured for him. There are two pools of resources. We partake in one by the principle of giving and the other by hoarding and making one’s one. One (the earthly pool of resources) is depletive, the other (heavenly pool) is not. To have a continuous supply of resources, we need to be like the man spoken of in the verse above who gives freely. And then, the resources that do not deplete will begin to flow towards us.

Prayer_Bead: Father and Source of all things, thank you for the provisions made available for kingdom citizens. I partake in the resources of Heaven through the principle of giving.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position ( 2 Peter 3:17 )

To be forewarned is a good reason to be forearmed. The introductory statement of the verse of scripture suggests that a provision has been made for something inevitable. “Since we have been forewarned….” there is a course to take action against what we were warned about. It is easy to be carried away by the error of the lawless. The error which also works in children of disobedience. The Bible speaking of this error, says God exalts the humble and opposes the proud (James 4:6). This error which now carries many away as a result of their trust in the secular knowledge they have acquired is pride. The destruction of pride is constant though it may linger and stall. Another thing about pride is that it pulls down. It is the reason for the fall of many great people; pride in plain sight or concealed pride drains. For this reason, we must be on guard against this crafty destroyer so that we will not fall from our secure position in Christ. Let’s remain in the confine of God’s grace for us.

Prayer_Bead: Gracious Lord, thank your to the opportunity of your grace. Thank you for forewarning us through your word to be on guard against the destruction of pride. Keep me in this time through your wisdom.

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