His Voice Devotional

 *Text:* Mathew 10:31   *Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.*  Do you know what a sparrow looks like? Check the dictionary, one word that is common to all the definitions of sparrow is "small." Sparrow is a very small bird, so small that the Bible says you have to sell two of it before it can get a worth. Matthew  10:29 - *Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.*  Two sparrows were sold for a penny. Luke records that five sparrows were sold for two pennies (Luke 12:6). This meant the buyer received the fifth sparrow for free because one sparrow had no value. Now, why will Jesus compare human beings with sparrows? He was simply trying to tell us how very detailed and caring our Father is. *If God can care for a valueless sparrow,  then you should know He is so mindful of you.*  He said  *Fear not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.*  One of the greatest weapons the d

 *Text ;* Mathew 26:15 ISV   *And inquired, “What are you willing to give me if I betray Jesus to you?” They offered him 30 pieces of silver,*  I am sure we all know Judas; a one time disciple of Jesus Christ, popularly known as the betrayer. He should have been regarded as an Apostle today but for 30 pieces of silver.  Judas inquired (from the people seeking to  kill Jesus) how much he would be paid if he turned Jesus in. And he was offered 30 pieces of silver. I know you know how this story ended. But today is not so much about Judas Iscariot, but about you. It's easy to condemn Judas for his infamous acts but the question is, how much is the worth of Jesus in your life? For 30 pieces of silver,  Judas betrayed Jesus. What is the reason for your own disloyalty to Christ today? The 30 "pieces of silver" would be worth approximately $91 to $441 in present-day value (USD) depending on which coin was used. Do you really think this amount is worth betraying Jesus for? The re

Text Matthew 18:21-22  *Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, if my brother keeps on sinning against me, how many times do I have to forgive him? Seven times?No, not seven times,” answered Jesus, “but seventy times seven,*  Our Lord Jesus Christ sounded a very important note on the  reason you must give forgiveness from your heart to all your offender. He said in Mathew 18:35, “...That is how my Father in heaven will treat every one of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.” The  question you need to ask is, "how would God treat people who refused to forgive from their hearts?" Matthew 18:34  gave the answer "And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him." For anyone who refuses to forgive from his heart, Jesus said that such shall be handed over to the torturers(tormentors) until he is able to pay all he owes.   *Unforgiveness opens  you up to all manner of torments and tortures.*  Though

Text Matthew 18:21-22  *Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, if my brother keeps on sinning against me, how many times do I have to forgive him? Seven times?No, not seven times,” answered Jesus, “but seventy times seven,*  There is need for forgiveness because offences are bound to occur. Jesus gave a vivid illustration in Mathew 18 on  why we should always pardon our offenders. Jesus once told a profound parable on forgiveness that one must carefully consider.  A servant owing his master a debt to the tune of 10,000 talent.  1 talent is equivalent to 6,000 denarii, which means that he is owing his master 60,000,000 (Sixty Million)denarii.  _As he fell down, and worshipped his master, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay you all, his lord was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt._  One thing you need to note from this parable of our Lord Jesus Christ is that 1 denarius is equivalent to 1 day's wage. It therefore means that if the serv

Text Matthew 18:21-22  *Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, if my brother keeps on sinning against me, how many times do I have to forgive him? Seven times?No, not seven times,” answered Jesus, “but seventy times seven,*  Offences are bound to come as long as you relate and interact with people.  Jesus said in Luke  17:1  to his disciples that, it is impossible but that offences will come: but woe unto him, through whom they come! Offence are like a grenade(Bomb) that you must neither throw nor receive. Either way, it causes destruction. You must always receive grace not to be an intentional offender or a nurser of offence.  From the text, Jesus taught what your response should always be towards offenders.  You must always forgive everyone that offends you no matter the number of times they offend you in a day. Jesus' recommendation for forgiveness of offence in a day is seventy times seven. Since offence is bound to occur, we shall be looking at how you can handle offences.

 *Text :* Romans 8:2.  *For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.*  Today, we shall be looking at the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus.  Our text opens with the word 'for', meaning because.  This shows that this verse is explaining the preceeding verse, Verse one -  ```There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.```  Two things are involved in this verse: 1. *No condemnation.*  Everyone likes to claim this promise, but this is not a free for all covenant. The only people that will not be condemned are those who are in Christ Jesus and who have fulfilled the second clause in the verse.  *You are not a Christian because you go to church,  you are a Christian because you are in Christ Jesus.*  2. *Not after the flesh :* Once you are a Christian,  (someone in Christ Jesus), you are expected to desist from walking after the dictates of th

 *Text:* Rom 8:2.  *For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.*  It is common to hear believers say we are no more under the law, and yes, that is true,we are no more under the law.  Romans  6:14 says For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. It's unfortunate that some have however blown this verse out of  proportion.   *Grace is supplied so you can live above sin,not so you can keep sinning.*  The truth is that no one is free from the law, it's just matter of the type of law you are operating with. From our text, it's obvious that there are two types of law that man can operate under : 1: The law of the Spirit of life. 2. The law of sin and death. Now, between these two laws, there is no middle ground.  *It's either you are under the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus or under the law of sin and death, no middle ground.*  The verse one of Romans 8 is such a pop

 *Text:* Proverbs 19:24.  *The lazy person buries his hand in his dish and doesn’t bother to bring it back to his mouth.*  While Jesus was addressing the one-talent man in the parable of the talent,  He referred to Him as an evil and lazy person. Mathew 25: 26.That is, whoever refuses to do his assignment in God's kingdom is not only lazy but also evil. Eventually, when verdict was passed on this man, I'm sure it was more than he bargained for- Jesus said "throw this useless servant into the darkness outside! In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’” Mathew 25:30 ISV.  *Laziness is not just a vice that can make life unpalatable for her host here on earth,  it's a sin that can lead one to hell.*  James  4:17  says *Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.*  A lazy person cannot inherit the promise of God. Hear this submission from Hebrews 6:11 &12 -But we want each of you to continue to be diligent to the very

 *Text:* Proverbs 19:24.  *The lazy person buries his hand in his dish and doesn’t bother to bring it back to his mouth.*  A wise man once said "a problem known is half-solved."  *The most difficult set of people to help are those who are ignorant of the fact that they need the help.* They are the ignoramus.  In order not to fall in this category,  you need to examine yourself to know if you are a lazy person or not. Below are some of the characteristics of  lazy persons: 1. *They are full of excuses :*   *The lazy person says, There is a lion outside! I will be killed in the street!*  Proverbs 22:13.  When you start giving excuses why things cannot be done, just know that you are exhibiting laziness trait.  There's someone out there who has more reasons (excuses) than yours  yet prevailed where you have failed.  Excuses are man made fabrics manufactured to cover your lapses for not doing what you have power to achieve.  Have you ever wondered why full able-bodied couldn&

 *Text:* Galatians  6:9  *And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.*  Yesterday, we saw that you can either sow to the flesh or to the Spirit. And you are guaranteed harvest for either of this sowings.  You sow to the flesh, you reap corruption, you sow to the Spirit, you reap life everlasting.  The verse 7 of Galatians chapter 6 warned us about self-deception, the verse 8 talked about the results of our sowing and verse 9 is encouraging you not to be weary in sowing the right seed. 'Well doing' is simply the act of sowing to the Spirit.  As you keep following the voice of the Spirit, you must avoid any form of weariness on your path. Hence, you are encouraged not to be weary.  To be weary is to allow yours feelings set in the way of your breakthrough and eventually the  harvest.  Are you obeying the Lord? Does it look like you are not seeing the result of the obedience(seed) you are sowing? Don't be weary, just set your gaze o

 *Text ;* Galatians  6:7    *Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.*  Yesterday, we looked at deception from the angle of self-deception  in relations to the kind of association we keep.  Today, we shall be looking at deception as it relates to sowing and reaping. Isn't it amazing how man expects to reap something different from what he sows. In agriculture, you don't expect to reap mango from orange tree. The same law applies in life generally.  Jesus said in Luke 6:44 that every tree is known by its own fruit. People don’t gather figs from thorny plants or pick grapes from a thorn bush. Trees produce after its kind. That is, your harvest is precipitated on the kind of seed you have sown.  *Each day is an opportunity to sow a good seed that will count for you in eternity.*  Now, when people hear about sowing and reaping, the first thing that comes to mind is money. Yes, money could be sown but it's just one item out of man

 *Text:* 1Cor. 15:33   *Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.*  A number of times,  we tend to deceive ourselves, and self-deception is one of the greatest forms of evils anyone can do against himself.   *Don't overestimate yourself,  if God warns against self-deception,  it means everyone has that tendency.*  Today, God wants you to look into your league of association-  the different people in your life and to check if their influence over you is positive or negative.   *Everyone in your life is either adding to you or taking from you, there's no middle ground.*  If as a student your league of friends are those who lightly esteem good grades and quality education, don't deceive yourself by thinking they can't influence you, evil communications will ultimately corrupt good manners.  Don't be deceived,  if the company you keep is having bad influence on you, then change company, else they will change you negatively.  2 Corinthians  6:17 says Whe

 *Text*: Isaiah 50:7  *For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.* From our text, the following truths can be deduced : 1. It is clear that the reason you will not be confounded   ( disgraced ) is because the Lord God will help you. That is,  whoever is not helped by the Lord will be disgraced. *It is only the Lord's help that can shield a man from disgrace.*  2. *For you to receive God's help, you must recognise Him as your only help.*  God is not one of the options, He's the only option. Your face must be set like a flint on Him alone.  3. Shame will be far from you. You have to come to a point where you are fully convinced that God can never disappoint you.  Psalms  37:25  says I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. *He is our very present help in trouble, Psaims 46:1.*  Those who put their trust i

 *Text ;* Isa 50:7  *For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.*   *Everyone needs help,  that's how life is wired for us as humans.*  There's nothing like a self-made man. Anyone who claims to be self-made is either an ungrateful fellow or an ignorant bunch or a combination of both.  The fact that you didn't jump down from heaven but have to be born through someone's womb  (after two individuals have part with their sperms and eggs) is a proof that God wants us to be interdependent. As you progress in life, you'll discover you'll need someone's help at one point or the other. It doesn't matter your class, age or status, you can't exist alone because no one is created an island. Having said that,  I want you to know that no man can actually help you if God has not helped you.  Psalms  60:11 says Give us help from trouble: for vain is the help o

TEXT : Romans 8:2  For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.*  Soteria is the Greek word from which the word Salvation is coined. It does actually include preservation, safety and  deliverance from the molestation of enemies. (The essence of Jesus's coming to the earth was to save, deliver, preserve) man from that which has been molesting him since the fall in the garden. Hence, John introduced Jesus as the lamb that takes away the sin of the world.  *"...Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world"John 1:29*  You must know that the devil is not our major problem; the problem of man majorly is that the seed (sin)which the devil  had sown in man. Sin is the problem not the devil. If sin can be gotten rid of, the holdings of the enemy (devil)will be destroyed.   *Sin is not just an offence that  you commit. It is a law that is at work in you.* It is called the Law of Sin and Death. Romans 8:2.  Jesu

 *TEXT* : Job 8:7   *Though  your beginning was small, yet your latter end would increase abundantly.*  The word of the Lord came to Zerubbabel in Zechariah 4:10 asking him "For who has despised the days of small things...?" I believe the Lord is still asking the same question from you today. This is because it is easy to always despise small things and small beginnings. Small things often does not attract any form of applaud, praise or attention.  They are often negligible.  It is always good to start small and grow big, than start big and suddenly come into  decline . God's word has assured us that your beginning may be small but your latter end would  increase abundantly.(Amen). You must be confident that  your small business will grow big, that small marriage will grow to provide home to many, the  small child in your hand will become great, that small relationship will become great. Your small church under a small tent today will soon  become a cathedral.  Everything

 *TEXT* :  Zechariah 4:10   *_For who hath despised the day of small things?_ for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth.*  God is always interested in little  things that people easily dispise on the basis that it is small or little.  People erroneously believe that it is when things have become big that God starts paying attention. No! God always pay attention to little things. Infact, He takes delight in little things for one reason: "that He might be glorified when He might have turned little to Great." For instance,  He takes pleasure in giving his little flock his great kingdom.  Luke  12:32  Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. He is not willing to share his kingdom with the high and mighty of this world but only with those who will be converted into little children.  Jesus said "Except

 *Text ;* Eph 6:2.   *Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;)*  The matter of dishonoring parents is not a new phenomenon. In Matthew 15, we saw how Jesus was challenging the traditions of the elders of that time.  He asked them  “Why do you also disregard the commandment of God because of your tradition?  Because God said, ‘You are to honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘Whoever curses father or mother must certainly be put to death.’ But you say, ‘Whoever tells his father or his mother, “Whatever support you might have received from me has been given to God,” does not have to honor his father.’ Because of your tradition, then, you have disregarded the authority of God’s word. Matthew 15:3-6. This goes to show that from time immemorial,  man has been grappling with evil traditions which contradicts the laws of God. And this is also happening even within the four walls of the church.  Also,  from the texts above, Jesus gave us a clue into what

Text: Ephesians 6:2.   *Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;)*  One commandment that is fast eroding from our society today is this all- important command - Honour your father and mother.  The book of Ephesians say this is the first commandment with a promise. What is the promise you might ask? Well, the answer is in the next verse :    “…so that it may go well for you, and that you may have a long life on the earth.”Ephesians 6:3. This verse is very explicit. Invariably,  whoever fails to obey this command had forfeited the promise attached to it. That is, to do well in life and to have long life is directly proportional to how you treat your parents.  Now, you'll notice that the command did not say Honour your parents when they are reasonable and responsible. *You Honour your parents not just because they  deserve it but because God commands it.*  Admittedly, some parents don't really deserve to be honoured, but honouring them is first a

*Text :  Gen 41:40 ISV*   *So you are to be appointed in charge over my palace, and all of my people are to do whatever you command them to do. Only the throne will have greater authority than you.”*  There was no time in the life of Joseph when someone announced to him that "Now, is your period of preparation. This is the time for capacity building." Don't wait for a special time to prepare yourself for the big platform, now is your time for preparation.  It turned out that on a fateful day, Joseph was taken from the prison to the palace and before the end of the day, he became the second in command in the land of Egypt ( Egypt was the world power then). That Joseph is gifted is no hidden truth. By reason of his gift, he was able to interpret the King's dream, a feat no other person could perform in Egypt. But it wasn't his gift that gave him the technical know-how of solving the nation's problem, It was a skill he developed over the years.  *It's God'

 *Text :  Gen 41:40 ISV*   *So you are to be appointed in charge over my palace, and all of my people are to do whatever you command them to do. Only the throne will have greater authority than you.”*  I'm sure you are familiar with the story of Joseph, the dreamer. He was called because he wouldn't be silent about the spectacular dreams God was showing him about himself.  You don't have to be silent about the vision God has called you to do. Surely, not everyone will agree with you from the beginning. But note that  *you don't need everyone's approval before you obey God.*   *The truth is your  critics today will celebrate your success tommorrow if you used their criticism as a stepping stone and not as stumbling block.*  Habakkuk 2:2 says ```And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.```  So Joseph announced his dreams and it fetched him plenty enemies.  You may be going through challenging

Text: Matthew 4:1  *Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.*  We saw yesterday that God was not pleased with many israelites that left Egypt for the promised land  (Corinthians 10:5).  A good percentage of the Israelites were overthrown in the wilderness.   Wilderness experience is not what any child of God desires, but it is an experience God sends or allows his children go through. In Deuteronomy 8:2, God says that He *LED* the Isrealites through the wilderness for forty years to humble them, to prove them, and to know what was in their heart whether they would keep his commandments or not.  Our Lord Jesus Christ was also *LED* into the wilderness by the Spirit of the Lord to be tempted by the devil. You will  notice there is a similar feature of the number *40(forty)* between these two wilderness experiences. That is, that of the Israelites and our Lord Jesus Christ. The Israelites spent 40years, Jesus spent 40days and 40 nights in the wil

Text: Matthew 4:1  *Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.*  Sometimes, we are faced with hard and nutty situations that we are almost at the verge of breaking, and losing hope. At such times, it feels like God is far away or that He is not concerned about you. When you find yourself in such situations as a true child of God, one thing you need to know is that "God never neglect His own" You must be rest assured in His promise:   *".......for he hath said, I will never leave you, nor forsake you" (Hebrews  13:5)*  You must hold on to this promise and assurance of  "Divine Presence" of God tightly.  You must be well settled in this word of assurance from the unfailing Father. He has given a sure word that His presence will always be with us (in every situation and at all time)  *When you pass through the waters, I [will be] with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the f

Text : Ephesians 5:16  *Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.*  The scripture has described the days we live in as evil days. It is such a difficult  and perilous time. Hence, the need to redeem the time. The word redeem means: _payment of a price to recover from the power of another, to ransom, buy off_ Redeeming the  time therefore, is to buy off the present times from evil  days (and from the power of the devil). Since time cannot be rewind or re-use, we can only make the most use of the opportunity it offers. While time is an unrenewable resource, it also offers you the  opportunity to invest in eternity. Another reason the days are evil is because the devil is working round the clock to cause the fall of many and take them along with him to lake of fire. Devil understands  the shortness of TIME.  *".......for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.* Revelation  12:12. The moment a  timeless being (Devil)

Text: Isa 64:8.  *But as for you, O LORD, you are our Father; and we are clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hands.*  David waited for thirteen (13)years before he could sit on the throne he had been anointed for. Within this waiting period,  he went through a series of processes.   *What you do during your waiting period determines if you will emerge as a winner or not.*  Two exemplary steps David took during his waiting period were. 1. *Service* :  In 1 Samuel 16:13, David was anointed by Prophet Samuel to be the next king of Isreal. Immediately after,  he was called upon to serve the sitting king. At this point, we could say David was gainfully employed. An anointed man with one of the most juicy work in town still deem it fit to attend to menial jobs at home. 1 Samuel 17:12-18.  *If you can't be counted on to carry out negligible assignments,  you can't be trusted with big ones.*   *If you are too big to serve, then you are too small to lead.*  2. *Sub