Memorise: But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. Acts 1:8
Read: Jonah 3:1-10
1 Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time:
2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.”
3 Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very large city; it took three days to go through it. 4 Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.”
5 The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.
6 When Jonah’s warning reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust.
7 This is the proclamation he issued in Nineveh: “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let people or animals, herds or flocks, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink. 8 But let people and animals be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence.
9 Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.”
10 When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.
Bible in one year: Joshua 20 – 21, 2 Thessalonians 3
AS REVEALED BY PASTOR E.A ADEBOYE IN TODAY’S DEVOTIONAL
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1. The Lord’s decision to make us His witnesses is a divine set up for blessings, just like when He asks us to give Him, in spite of the fact that He owns everything (Psalm 50:9-11). In the same vein, the Lord does not need our publicity, just as the sun does not need to be announced. When the sun rises in the east, it is seen as far away as the west, and we know Jesus is the Sun of Righteousness (Malachi 4:2).
2. It is an honour to be a witness of the Sun of Righteousness, because by virtue of this status, the world will see the grace of God upon our lives.
3. When Elisha agreed to abandon his farming business to become Yahweh’s prophet, little did he know that the king would later refer to him as “my father” (I Kings 19:21, 2 Kings 13:14).
4. What are the characteristics and responsibilities of Christ’s witnesses? The Lord hints us on some of these in Mark 16:15-18: “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.”
5. The primary character of the Lord’s witnesses is that they follow Him sincerely, and their primary responsibility is preaching the gospel. This responsibility is even more serious than what was committed to Jonah, because a very high price has now been paid for the redemption of mankind, which must not be allowed to go to waste.
6. Another responsibility is to cast out devils. If we will take territories for the kingdom of our God, we must be ready to cast out demons that currently reign over such territories.
7. Speaking in tongues enables every witness of Jesus Christ to be an effective mouthpiece of God with man and mouthpiece of man with God in place of intercessory prayer.
8. Taking up serpents as referenced in Mark 16:18 could mean dealing with serpents that come in human clothing, deceiving people just like the old serpent did. The Lord’s witnesses must challenge such lies with the Master’s true message.
9. When we do all these as witnesses of Jesus, souls shall be rescued from eternal damnation. This is our joy and goal.
10. Are you an effective witness of Jesus?
SHORT REFLECTION BY THE LIGHT POINTERS
The ministry of reconciliation has been left in our care and we should not abandon I f any reason whatsoever. We were saved and groomed so that we can also save others and groom them in the things of God. Witnessing Christ and his love has become very difficult for many due to fear, ignorance or. Selfishness. There is a purpose for our being and thi must be fulfilled by us. God will rekindle the fire within us for us to carry out our mission as His true ambassadors in Jesus name. We are daily refreshed as we study the Open Heavens devotional. May God continually uphold and increase Pastor E.A Adeboye on every side in Jesus name.
Prayer Point:
Father, please make me an effective witness of Your Son from now onward in Jesus’ Name
HYMN
WONDERFUL STORY OF LOVE
1. Wonderful story of love;
Tell it to me again;
Wonderful;
Wonderful story of love;
Wake the immortal of love;
Wake te immortal strain!
Angels with rapture announce it,
Shepherds with wonder receive it;
Sinner, oh, won’t you believe it?
Wonderful story of love.
Chorus:
Wonderful! Wonderful! Wonderful, wonderful story of love.
2. Wonderful story of love;
Though you are far away;
Wonderful story of love;
Still He doth call today;
Calling from Calvary’s mountain,
Down from the crystal-bright fountain,
E’en from the dawn of creation,
Wonderful story of love.
3. Wonderful story of love
Jesus provides a rest;
Wonderful story of love;
For all the pure and blest,
Rest in those mansions above us, with those who’ve gone on before us,
Singing the rapturous chorus,
Wonderful story of love.
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