His Voice Devotional

Text:  Matthew 7:6 Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet,  and turn again and rend you .  Jesus sometimes use  animals and plants to drive His points home for  His disciples. At a time,  He referred to His good followers as Sheep and the bad people as goats, Matthew 25:33. Anytime He speaks like that, He was only referring to the attributes of those animals to depicts what He is saying.  Today,  let's look at some of the attributes of dogs that we may glean some wisdom from it.  1. *Dogs can't handle holy things.* : Holy things here does not imply "sacred artifacts" or objects, but spiritual words and instructions. Anyone that can't comprehend matters of holiness, bed undefiled before marriage,  separation from evil friends, evil deeds and immorality, moderacy and modesty, etc,  are exhibiting dog's character,  hence,  such(spiritual) things should not be thrust at them.  2.

Text:  MATTHEW 24:4 Then Jesus replied to them watch out that no one deceives you. When Jesus was asked about the signs of end time. He didn't mince words in His response, He said "...."Watch out that no one deceives you....  Matthew 24:4. The first signs that Jesus gave us to watch out for was the *EMERGENCE OF DECEIVERS.*  He said  many will come in His name,  saying,  "I am the Messiah, " and they will deceive many. Matthew 24:5. Now,  let's look closely at what Christ was trying to tell us.  1. *Watch out* : This means that we should be aware of or conscious of something or someone. . That is,  your first responsibility as a disciple of Christ in this end time is to be aware,  and to look closely and be conscious that no one deceives you. When you are not watchful, you could be easily deceived.  2. *Many will come* The number of deceivers that are operating on various platforms right now are so massive that if you are not watchful, you can be easily swep

August 29, TEXT: Genesis 3:17-19 "..... Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;  Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;  In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground...." If only Adam and Eve had known that a bite from the  fruit of the tree of Knowledge of good and evil would lead to curse, sorrow,wars, famine, sicknesses, diseases and all kinds of  problems in our world today; they would not have disobeyed God. If today, Adam is privy to see what his act of Disobedience has caused and still causing humanity, he may find it very difficult to be free from cycle of sorrowful remorse of his act.(Genesis 3:6) Thanks be unto our Lord Jesus(Second and last Adam)  who has redeemed us from Adamic S

Text:  2King 12:15 No accounting of this money was required from the construction supervisors, because they were *honest* and *trustworthy men*_(NLT)  king Jehoash of Israel called for Jehoiada the Priest, and the other Priests to repair the temple. As a result, money was committed into the hands of *Honest and Trustworthy men* for this project. The most intriguing thing was that no accounting of this money was required from the construction supervisors.  There was no need for accountability simply because of the honesty and TRUSTWORTHINESS of these supervisors. The word of God deliberately recorded this for our learning. Today, I often hear Christians saying they are more comfortable doing business with unbelievers than fellow brethren in the church. This simply shows that something is wrong with us (Believers). Today, we must seek and search for this lost virtue(Honesty and Trustworthiness) amongst believer.  Unlike  Academic parlance where 90% is a great score. 90% in honesty is a 

Text:  2 Timothy 3:1  This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come .  The perilous(difficult) time which Apostle Paul wrote about is already here. Perilous times are times characterize by Gross disobedience to God. The devil knows that he has but short time before his final  judgement, hence he is working hard to kill, steal and destroy. Rev. 12:12, John 10:10 The features and signs  of the last days are vividly pointed out in the scripture(2Tim 3:2-8) People will love only themselves and their money.  *They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God,disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful* .  *They will consider nothing sacred* .  *They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control.*  *They will be cruel and hate what is good* .  *They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God.*   *They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly* . 

Text:  Proverbs 17:5 The one who mocks the poor insults his Maker,  and the one who rejoices over calamity will not go unpunished.  The poor needs no definition,  when you see one you will know. Jesus Christ said, the poor you will always have with you(Mark 14:7). So, the poor are always around.  The question therefore is, what are you doing with the poor?  Don't be quick to mock anyone. Specifically, the word warns you not to mock the poor, because  that's as good as insulting your Maker. The following are God's instructions concerning the poor: 1. Intentionally leave a portion of your produce to the poor and stranger to benefit from. Leviticus 19:10, 23:22. 2. Don't oppress your employee, (or anyone who renders you service)  especially the Poor ones. Deut. 24:14.proverbs 28:27 3. Show pity to the Poor,  because in so doing you are lending to the Lord. Proverbs 19:17. 4. Don't rob a Poor man and don't take advantage of the Poor, for the Lord will take up their

Text:  1 Corinthian 13:4 Love is patient, love is kind. Love does not envy, is not boastful and is not conceited._  Patience is the very first quality of Love as we have it in our text. And we understand from 1 John 4:8 that, God is love,  hence, one good quality of God is Patience, 2 Peter 3:9. Romans 15:5 Patience is a virtue needed mostly in difficult and unpleasant situations.  No one needs to preach patience to a man who gets everything he needs at his beck and call. So your patience is tried when you are required to wait for or on someone or something. 1 Peter 2:20, Romans 5:3-4. Patience is your ability to wait without losing your temper. For you have need of patience, that,  after you have done the will of God, you might receive the promise.Hebrews 10:36. That is,  it is possible to do the Will of God without getting the promise if you lack Patience.  To inherit the promise,  you need both faith and Patience. Hebrews 6:12. Even in the natural,  the reason people miss the plan o

Text: 1 King's 17:8-12 But she said,  "As the Lord your God lives, I don't have  anything baked only a handful of flour in the  jar and a bit of oil in the jug. Just now,  I am gathering a couple of sticks in order to go prepare it for myself and my son so we can eat and die." Everything you have right now is "eat and die". By everything I mean everything, including your certificate, your qualifications, your strength, your job, your career, your business and just anything and everything. The only thing that transcends the life of 'eat and die' are those things placed in the hands of God. That widow of  Zarephath from our text, knew that all she had was a "eat and die"* portion,  yet she didn't know how to wriggle out of the situation. In the same vein,  people know that all their efforts, labour,  achievements and otherwise couldn't sustain them beyond this earth,  yet they lack the Will Power to seek for something higher.  It'

Texts: Luke 17:15-16. But one of them, seeing that he was healed,  returned and  with a loud voice, gave glory to God. He fell facedown at His feet, thanking Him. And he was a  Samaritan .  Gratitude (thankfulness) is an attitude that you must intentionally cultivate.  We live in a world where all the good virtues and morals is fast eroding, in fact, it is a common slogan that an average African does not know how to say "thank you ". But if I may add,  ingratitude  is not just an African fever, it's a disease that has been battling with humanity from time immemorial, and this menace has eaten deep into the fabric of human race.  This explains the scenario we read about in our text.  Before I go any further,  I would like to encourage you to read all the Bible reference attached in this devotion.  The story in our text introduced us to ten lepers who out of despair  cried out to Jesus for help. Jesus gave out an instruction to them,  and as they set out to obey His instruc

Text:  Proverbs 17:28 Even a fool,  when he holds his peace,  is counted wise: And he that shuts his lips is esteemed a man of understanding_ .  Isn't it funny that even a fool could be considered wise just by keeping quiet? How many times have you regretted your actions just because you can't keep quiet or say something more sensible? Why do men have issue with bridling their tongues?  The answer is very simple : "no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil,  full of deadly poison." James. 3:8. Man has been able to tame sea creature,  reptile,  bird,  or animal,  but finds it difficult to tame his own tongue.  We all stumble in many ways, however,  if anyone does not stumble in what he says,  he is a mature man who is able also to control his whole body. James 3:2. The tongue is that powerful, though small yet capable of setting the whole body on fire. James 3:6. The book of James likened the tongue to the rudder, though very small yet, it controls a very large

Text: 2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth._  The Berea christians were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.(Acts 17:11). It is very important for christian folks in this generation to imitate the example of  The Berean Christians.  They had a testimony that they  were more noble than those in Thessalonica because: 1. They received the word with all readiness:*  The difference between someone who merely hears the word and another who receives the word is simply in their *HEART READINESS* . It can be a very tedious work for a Pastor ministering to audience whose hearts are not receiving the word with all readiness.See the parables of sower in Mathew 13:3-9. Until you open your heart  and receive the word of God with all readiness, God's word will not profit you in

Text: Matthew 5:48  Be ye therefore perfect, even as your father which is in heaven is perfect.. For so many unprinted reasons, it is believed that man cannot be perfect. Yet if it was an impossible task, Jesus would not have told us to be perfect as our Heavenly Father is perfect.   This goes to say that anyone who has accepted the fatherhood of God through Jesus Christ is saddled with the responsibility of being holy as our Father in heaven is.   In essence, It may be a task impossible for any fallen man to be perfect. But it's a lie from the pit of hell to believe that a new creation man cannot attain unto perfection. Now, let's look into what this perfection entails:   The Greek meaning of the word "perfect" is *full grown   *adult  *full of age  *mature  *finished.   That is, when Jesus was telling us to be perfect, what He is saying is grow into maturity, come of age, walk in the finished work like an adult. Little wonder Apostle Paul said in 1Corinthian

Text: Galatians 6:9 Do not be weary in well doing, because in due time you will reap it if you faint not._*  While growing up as a little child, my mother told me a lot of life-changing stories that I thought were real Bible stories. But as I grow, I realised that the stories were not in the Bible, but none the less impactful. Permit me to share one of those stories with you today:  Two  men were living in a story building. One was living up while the other was living downstairs. The one up was a righteous man, who was always doing good. The one down was the exact opposite. One day the evil man downstairs said to himself "despite my riches and affluent, I don't have the peace and joy that this Godly man upstairs has." So he decided to go meet the man and tell him to show him the way to true joy and peace. Meanwhile, the good man upstairs felt what's the point of being good and faithful after all. Despite his holy living and good deeds ,he is not as rich and comfortabl

Text:  John 4:34 Jesus said unto them,  My meat is to do the Will of him that sent me and to finish his work .  Jesus was clear about what his occupation was. He was so occupied with it that He referred to it as His meat(food). In essence,  the meat was His occupation. He was not just set to do it,  but to also finish it.  Occupation is what you do. People define their occupation basically by what they do. Your job,  work,  calling,  business etc are different ways of describing your occupation in the natural. However,  as a disciple of Christ,  what would you say your occupation is?  Just as Jesus' occupation was clear to Him,  He equally made ours clear to us.  He said only those who DO THE WILL OF THE FATHER can enter into the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 7:21. Invariably,  your occupation as a disciple of Christ is to do the Will of the Father. To do His will is to do righteousness. 1 John 2:29 says anyone who does righteousness is born of God.  Your occupation is to do His Will.

Text: Matthew 6;32 For after all these things do the Gentiles seek: for your Heavenly Father knows that ye have need of all these things* .  First, let's look into what the Gentiles seek.  Basically,  the Gentiles seek these three things according to Matthew 6:31: 1. Food.  2. Drink.  3. Clothes.  Now,  the good question to ask is, are these three things highlighted above wrong?  Was Jesus trying to say we should not eat,  drink or wear clothes? Of course,  you know the answer is No.  So what then is Jesus saying?  Man was not created to seek for survival. When Adam the first man was created, he was never designed to seek after food,  drink or clothings. Everything he would ever need was created before he(Adam) was created.  The only thing man was created to seek is God. When Adam fell, man departed from the presence of God, and started hiding from Him. Genesis 3:8 Ever since the fall,  God has been waiting for man to come back to Him. He left the invitation opened that if you seek

Text: Mathew 6:25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?_*  Yesterday the Lord was speaking to us not to take thoughts on what to eat (Food) and Drink. Today, He shall be speaking to us about *RAIMENT*  After the fall of man in the garden of Eden, we saw that man is no longer satisfied with the coverings (raiment)earlier provided by God.  Adam and Eve had to go consult a tree for coverings. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.Genesis 3:7 This invention of sewing fig leaves to cover their nakedness was not from the Lord. It was from the knowledge of the tree of good and evil they took. God's initial plan was to provide coverings(HIS GLORY) for man. And this He did until the fall of man.  Today, raiment can be seen as any

Text: Matthew 6:25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?_*  One of the most difficult things for man is not to take thought. Both the young and the old are preoccupied with  thoughts about Life. Jesus warned His disciples not to follow the pattern of this world's system.   If you critically consider how the world system runs, you will realise that its arrangements is such that exhaust man's energy on *Food* ,  *Drink* and *Cloth* .Please do not take these on the face value. Every man who takes thoughts are procccupied and pinned down by these 3 things-Food, Drink and Cloth :  1&2 . *FOOD,DRINK* : Jesus quoted Moses in Mathew 4:4 that Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. This shows us that God wouldn't want you to live for bread alone.Though, your natu

Text; Psalms  60:11 Give us help from trouble: for vain is the help of man . Every help you will ever receive from a man has an end. True help only comes from God. In fact, no man can help you if God has not helped you.  A woman in Samaria once approached  the King of Israel for help, the King responded, "If the LORD do not help thee, whence shall I help thee? out of the barn floor, or out of the winepress? 2King 6:27 The truth is that if God has not helped you, you cannot be helped by any man. All of your help comes from the Lord (Psalm 121:1-2) Any help you receive from man outside God is vain. The help of man is always vain because man himself is helpless. So when you receive or give help without God's input, such will be a vain help. Though God can use anything or anyone as a medium of delivering help to you, but you must not allow  your gaze to be on the medium.  Even if you give or seemingly receive help outside God, such help will not truly be helpful in the long run. Y

Text: Revelation 4:11 Thou at worthy oh Lord, to receive glory, honour and power, for thou hath created all things and for thy pleasure, they are and were created. All things were made by Jesus and without Him was not anything made that was made. John 1:3. All things (yourself inclusive) were not just created by Jesus, they were created for Him. If you have been wondering why you were created, or what exactly your primary purpose was. Well, here is the answer. YOU WERE CREATED TO BRING HIM PLEASURE. God said concerning Jesus in Matthew 3:17 that He is a Son that brings the Father much pleasure. Matthew 17:5. This is exactly what God is looking for in you - Pleasure. Why is it difficult for men to give God pleasure? 1. Pleasure of sin. The reason people are so attached to their sins is because sin has pleasure.  The bait of sin is the pleasure, but the end of sin is death.  The wages of sin is death,  but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23. 2. Bec

Text: Luke 10:42 "But only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."NIV Can you imagine you having a VVIP guest like a President in your home on a Sunday evening. Having just your sister at home to help do few errands to prepare for this important guest, you were a bit at rest. You discussed with her what she would do for you once the president comes around. The work has been shared in such a way that your guest would be maximally entertained. Now on the D-day, the president arrived. You welcome him and swing into action. While you start running up and down, your sister Mary just sat down charting with the president.  Now it seems to you that your sister is not keeping up with the agreement. Having given her several signs which she neglected; you decided to talk to the president yourself. “Please Mr. President sir, can you command my sister to join me prepare a delicacy for you”   Surprisingly,  the president answered you by

Text: Ecclesiastes 12:1 Remember now your Creator in the days of your yputh: Before the days of evil come,  and the years approach when you will say,  "I have no delight in them". One good reason you are told to remember your Creator in the days of your youth is because of the evil days. That the evil days will come is not negotiable, but what you do before the evil days come is all that counts.  Now, the evil days does not mean some external evil or unfortunate events will befall you. Rather, the evil days is your old age, or your night times.  That is why Jesus said in John 9:4 that He must work the works of Him that sent Him while it is day,  because the night comes when no one can work.  With that simple statement, we can deduce what the day time is meant for.  It is to do the works of Him who sent you.   The night for some, may not  necessarily mean old age,  but the day of death.  Jesus died in the flesh before he was 34years. He understood the shortness of the time  to

Text: Ecclesiastes 12:1  _Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth: Before the days of evil come,  and the years approach when you will say,  "I have no delight in them_  There are so many schools of thought to the classification of who a youth is. And my duty is not to define who a youth is.  But if you still have strength in you,  then you are a youth, because Proverbs 20:29 says the glory of the youth is their strength.  What is required of you now in the days of your youth: 1. Be intentional: The first word in our text says  'Remember'. You are enjoined to remember because there's high tendency that you will forget. People only remember they were young when they are old. If you wait till that time before you remember your Creator, you will only be filled with regrets.  One salient truth about your youthful time is, YOU CAN ONLY BE YOUNG ONCE. Because the devil understands this truth,  he specializes in helping youths to waste their time,  their strength

Text : Deuteronomy 30:19-20 Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live!You can make this choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and committing yourself firmly to him. This is the key to your life. And if you love and obey the Lord, you will live long in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob."_ (NLT) One of the greatest gifts God has bestowed on mankind is the ability to choose (Will Power). Simply because God has created us in His likeness and image, He gave us this priviledge to choose between two or more options. From the scripture above, God was addressing the Israelites through Moses to choose between life and death, Blessings and curses. God, unlike the devil does not force anyone to follow Him, rather He simply gives us options to choose from. While

Text:John  14:13   And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son_ . The name of Jesus is not an ordinary name. It is the name that is full of Power and Grace. It works all the time. The name of Jesus is our code and password to accessing solutions and answers. When you ask and receive in that name,  God is glorified in Jesus. My prayer for you today is that His name will not be impotent on your lips in Jesus name.  Jesus who is not a liar says to us that whatsoever you ASK in His name you shall RECEIVE.  The question for many therefore is: Why have I been asking and I don't receive? These are the key points you must take note of: 1. Do not call His name in Vain : We must learn not to call the name in vain. That is, calling it without any expectation, in a disdain or demeaning manner(Exodus 20:7).  Some joke with that name. People are now so much In a hurry to type the full name, they simply write "IJN"(In Jesus Name) a

Text: 1 John 3:1  Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not._  One of the schemes and strategies of the devil is to make you believe that you are not loved by God.The devil projects this thought into your heart and even shows you evidences. The devil shows you all the challenges and mountains around you, so you can believe that you are not loved by God. So many have been deceived and bought into this BIG LIES from the pit of hell.  God's word says that the Father has Loved us with  an everlasting love. (Jer 31:3). You must believe the unconditional Love of God towards you today. Whatever the circumstances around you might be, I want to announce to you today that you are LOVED by God. Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed upon us. God's Love  bestowed upon you can be proven by the following: 1. He sacrificed His only begotten Son for you. It was

Text: Isaiah 43:19 Behold, I will do a new thing: now it shall spring forth: shall ye not know it?  I will even make a way in the wilderness,  and rivers in the desert.  Our God is a God with uncountable names. Each of His names spelt out His different dimensions of Strength and Power. From His words,  we understand that He is the Way-maker. Isaiah 43:19. This dimension of His name or His Person, is beyond what man could think or fathom. When the Israelites were leaving Egypt for the promised land,  God, the Way Maker showed up for them. He intentionally led them by the way of the wilderness and made a  way for them through the red sea.  Exodus 13:18. Now, the Way Maker is saying to you that  He will do a new thing. This new thing is such that man considers as impossible,  but He is the God that delights in making the impossible possible. Matthew 19:26. Now it shall spring forth,  it shall no longer delay. You shall see it, and it shall be marvelous in your eyes. Psalm 118:23. Furtherm

Text: Matthew 24:13  But he that shall endure unto the end, shall be saved. The book of Ecclesiastes  7:8  says: "Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof...." Many folks know how to initiate a good beginning but do not know how to finish well. An athlete  only get rewarded for finishing a race and not for starting one. Enduring to the very end therefore, is the key to our ultimate salvation and Reward. For instance, a student must endure the stress involve in attending lectures, coping with tough lecturers,sleepless night of studying, writing assignments and projects in order to graduate in a flying colours. If a student runs out of school because of all these, such automatically forfeits the crown of glory awaiting him(reward of being a graduate). In the same manner, God never rewards a "quitter" Only those that endure the tribulations and persecution of this  present time shall be ultimately saved.  The verse preceeding our text says that because i

Text: Matthew 21:21 Jesus answered and said unto them, verily I say unto you, if ye have faith,  and not doubt, you will not only only do what was done to the fig tree, but even if  you tell THIS  MOUNTAIN,  'Be lifted up and thrown into the sea',  it will be done_ .  Everything created by God has ears,  both animate and inanimate things. Jesus in Matthew 21:18 spoke to a tree and the tree obeyed,  because the tree too has ears.  When the disciples saw how fast the tree responded to our Lord's verdict on it,  they were amazed. And they voiced out their observation, to which Jesus gave them further clarification. He made it clear that they can equally do what He did and even more,  but only on the following three conditions.: 1. You must be His disciple.: Obviously,  Jesus was addressing His disciples in that text,  Matthew 21:20-21. 2. You must have faith.: Personal trust and confidence in Him.  3. You must not doubt.: Not allowing yourself to be drawn in two directions.  O

Text: Exodus 23:2 Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil : neither shalt thou testify in a lawsuit so as to follow the majority and pervert justice_ .  Multitude is the mass of ordinary, faceless, and nameless people. Though faceless, yet   they have capacity of leading people in the wrong direction.  Jesus couldn't do anything tangible with  multitude other than give them general sermons and food. Matthew 14:18-21. As a matter of fact,  He doesn't even speak to them in plain language but in parables. Matthew 13:10-14. When He was asked why He always speak to the multitude in parables, His answer was direct and simple -" Because the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has not been given to them. Matthew 13:11. In other words, anyone who falls into the category of multitude is not permitted to have the  things of the kingdom. In fact,  in Matthew chapter five,  it was recorded that when Jesus saw the multitudes,  He went up to a mountain. He knew the multitude does not h

Text: Proverbs 3:6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths_  Something happened to me yesterday that taught me a fresh lesson on the need to acknowledge God in all our ways.  I jotted down some  important nuggets/thoughts on a piece of paper and dropped the paper on the desk in my office. Few days later, I needed to add to the nuggets. I started looking for the paper but couldn't find it. I called all the family members together and demanded that they help look for the paper. While searching, I kept insisting that the paper was kept on the office table. I pushed the responsibility on my family members.  In the midst of this confusion, our first son kept reiterating that we should ask God where the paper is. That was about the last thing I wanted to hear because I was so sure they had mistakenly swept the paper from the house and possibly discarded it.  I reluctantly ask that we pray. So we ask the Holy Spirit to help us find the paper. The younger boy who has