His Voice Devotional

Text:Proverbs 17:6 Children's children are the crown of old men; and the glory of children are their fathers. *God expressly said that the glory of the children are their fathers, then when fathers are found wanting in their duties, the children's glory will be impaired.*  God's design for every family is such that a man (male) should be at the helm of affairs in the home. As a father, you are standing as God's representative over your family unit.  The main duty of every father is to protect the glory of the children in the home from the assaults and attacks of the enemy. Another duty of the father is to raise children in God's image. But if the father himself has not been raised in God's image, he cannot raise another in God's image. For instance, it was recorded in Genesis 5:1 that Adam was created in God's image and likeness, but in Genesis 5:3, it was recorded that Adam begat a son in his own likeness, after his image.  Adam could not pass down the

Text : Ephesians 6:4.  Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up by training and instructing them about the Lord.*  A lot is hanging on the neck of fathers. *As a father, you are expected to model God to your children. Many children are damaged today because the fathers are failing in their responsibilities.*  Before God told Fathers what to do, He first and foremost told them what they shouldn't do. FATHERS DO NOT PROVOKE YOUR CHILDREN TO ANGER. Obviously,  fathers have capacity to make or mar the future of their children. A father's words carry big weight in the lives of his children, hence the need to painstakingly select your words. Apart from words, the actions and inactions of the father, (both the ones done in the open and the ones done in secret) will determine to a large extent how the life of the children will be moulded. No doubt, raising children takes inner strength and might, which God is willing to supply when you allow Him to.  Psalms 127

Text : Ephesians 6:2  “ Honor your father and mother…” (This is a very important commandment with a promise). No one jumped down from heaven, we all came through a man and a woman. In as much as your parents are alive, you owe them your honour.  By divine arrangement, every human came through another human, and God's express instruction to you is to honour those through whom you were born. Even if you don't know who your biological parents are, you are to give honour to those who played the parental roles over your life.  This is the first commandment with a promise. The result of keeping this commandment is so that it may go well with you, and that you may have a long life on the earth. (Ephesians 6:3). Invariably, not obeying this commandment is to automatically forfeit  the promise.  Regardless of your age, if your parents are still alive, you owe them your honour.  Note that God didn't say you should honour your parents when they are good, responsible and wealthy, but

Text : 1Timothy 2:9.  Women, for their part, should display their beauty by dressing modestly and decently in appropriate clothes, not with elaborate hairstyles or by wearing gold, pearls, or expensive clothes. If there's any instruction given specifically to women, it is about modesty. Note that the "women" here has no age barrier, if you are a female, then, this instruction is for you.  In the name of fashion or civilisation, women have thrown their sense of decency and modesty to the air. Unfortunately,  Christian women are also not left out in this vice.  Everyone knows what modesty is but for better explanation, see how easy English version of the Bible renders this verse.   _Also, I want the women to wear proper clothes. Women should wear clothes that do not show their bodies too much. A woman should not wear clothes that cause other people to be ashamed about her. Women should not do their hair in an expensive way that takes a lot of time. Nor should they wear gold

Text : 1Timothy 2:8. I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting. God gave explicit instructions to all of His children as to how we must live our lives. Some of these instructions cut across boards, of which all of God's children must obey. However, there are some instructions that are specific to gender or portfolios. We we'll be looking at some of these instructions today.  *THE MEN* From our text, there are two distinct responsibilities God wants men to undertake, and the two are intertwined. First, God wants men to pray. The word  'men' as used in our text is not generic as to mean all human beings. It is specifically requesting that all men should pray. Yes, God expects every of His children to pray, but He specifically called men out here.  A number of times,  when prayer meetings are called, the proportion of women in attendance always outnumbered men. This is because the devil knows the import of praying men.   

Text : Psalms  34:9   O fear the LORD, ye his saints: for there is no want to them that fear him. The only fear that is clean and pure is the  fear of the Lord. The Psalmist affirms that the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever. (Psalms 19:9).   *A man who truly fears the Lord, can never and will not fear anything else.*  For instance, it is not possible that you are walking in the fear of the Lord, and at the same time fearing the devil. *You can't be walking in the fear of the Lord and be held down in fear by the devil at the same time.*  As a child of God, when you notice that you are constantly living in fear, check it. it is either you are living in sin, or you are in bondage or you are living in ignorance.  When you start to walk in the fear of the Lord, oppression will be far away from you, God's light will keep your heart from darkness (ignorance) and you will hate iniquity.  Hebrews 1:9 says Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity... Jesus Christ hated

Text : 1Corinthian 15:19. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. Living hope is what the old saints lived for. All the Patriarchs in the bible lived for a lively hope. They lived for a tangible hope that transcends their days. Today, we shall be looking at how you can start living for real hope that purifies your heart. The book of first John chapter three verse three says that everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. Firstly, to experience a hope that is lively, you must be looking forward to the appearance of Jesus Christ. This is one hope that keeps you alive and pure. When the hope of seeing Christ just as He is, and to eternally abide with Him enters your heart, you  will become more intentional in your walk with the Lord.  Many believers in recent times have become beclouded by so many hopes that they have forgotten the real hope unto which they were called.  Apostle Paul prayed for the church in Ephesus that

Text : 1Corinthian 15:19. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. Every single person on the face of the earth is living for a hope. Hence, anyone  struggling with suicidal thoughts is one who has lost grip on the rope of hope. Such has lost reason for living on earth. *When all hope is gone, then life is not worth living anymore, but the living hope in Christ Jesus can always give you fresh reason to hope again.*  Parents suffer and sacrifice so much for  the upbringing of their children with the hope that such child(ren) will grow up and become someone that will make them proud one day. Students study hard with the hope of graduating in flying colours. The groom and the bride joyfully walk down the aisle. They stand before the pastor in the presence of many witnesses to say "I do wed thee," simply because of the hope that their union will always thrive in bliss till death do them apart. A business man goes into commercial enterprise or

Text : 1Corinthian 15:19. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. First,  let me point out here that the above verse did not say there is no hope in this life (life on earth) at all.  To blind your eyes and pretend that there's no hope here at all is to live in denial.  The other extreme are those who build their hopes only on this earth. Note that our text above was not addressing unbelievers, as a matter of fact,  an unbeliever do not have options as far as 'hopes' are concerned. All their hopes, and aspirations are only in this passing,  dashling and vain world.  This verse is addressing believers in Christ. It says if only in this life we have hope in Christ... So it is clear that this is talking to people who already have hope in Christ.  Since the fall, man,  has  been cultured to live within the visible realm. That is the reason people do say-  "seeing is believing".  Man can only relate with what he can see.  However,

Text : Acts  6:3   Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. Being honest could be difficult, especially in this perversed generation, where wrong is being celebrated as good. But you must resolve to stay honest.  To lead a honest life, note that you will not be in the good book of dishonest people.* When people want you to tell a lie on their behalf,  and you decline because you know it's not just wrong, but it is a sin, you obviously will not be their best of friends.  Hebrews 12:4 says _you have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin._ You are not called to be in the good book of people but to please God with your life. Once your aim is to please the Father,  you would have lived above the laws of man. And don't forget that Proverbs 16:7 says When a man's ways please the LORD, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.  The system of this world is de

Text : Acts  6:3   Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. In those days, as the number of the disciples was growing larger and larger, a complaint was made by the Hellenistic Jews against the Hebraic Jews that their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of food. So, the twelve disciples called the whole group of disciples together and said, “It is not desirable for us to neglect messages from God in order to wait on tables. The Apostles proposed to the whole assembly to appoint seven men among them who will be saddled with this responsibility. However, there are basic criteria these men must fulfil and the number one on the list is honesty.  The Apostles told them, "chose people  who have honest report, who are full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, and we’ll put them in charge of this work." Does it not amaze you that to qualify as workers in the house of t

Text : 1Thessalonians 4:17.  Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up in the clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. *Everything will not end here, the big picture is-there's life after death,and the big question is-are you prepared for that life?*  A number of people get preoccupied with their lives here on earth and pay no attention to the life after death. The truth is, man is an eternal being, your life here on earth is just an infinitesimal fraction of your whole life. However, God expects you to use this little fraction of your life to choose where you will spend the rest of your life. After death, man will either end up in eternal condemnation or in eternal life. The reality of this eternal dimension of man is seldomly preached in our churches today, yet the Bible is clear about this very important topic.  Everything in this world has expiration dates, and this earth too has expiration date.(2 Peter 3:11-13).

Text : Matthew 24:44 You also must be ready therefore, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not expect Him. I have asked many good church goers and workers a very simple question about their preparedness towards the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. Their responses are majorly in the negative.  Let me ask you the same question as well: *"If Jesus should come right now, are you sure you will go with Him?"*  The responses I receive often saddens my heart. While about 90% of the responses are outright No, more than 2% will say something like, "I cannot judge, only God can determine if I will be raptured with Christ or not."  Then the remaining 8% will answer in the affirmative. The truth is, many believers today are not getting ready for the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. To know if you are ready or not, just examine yourself with the following parameters:  1.Check out the fruit you bear. Are you increasingly growing in bearing the fruit of the Spirit o

Text : 1 Thess.  5:6  Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. If you are not watchful and live soberly unto Christ's coming, then you might miss His coming.  Jesus Christ, while narrating the events of the end time to His followers emphatically said, "Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is. Watch therefore, for you do not know when the master of the house is coming—in the evening, at midnight, at the crowing of the rooster, or in the morning- lest, coming suddenly, he finds you sleeping. And what I say to you, I say to all: Watch!" (Mark 13:33,35-37). Jesus concluded His discourse about the end-time in Mark chapter 13 by  stressing the key word,: "Watch". One major question you need to ask yourself is: Am I watching or sleeping?  As a believer who is awaiting the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, you must stay awake and sober like the five wise Virgins. (Mathew 25).  *To stay awake and sober is to b

Text : 1 Thessalonians 5:6  Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. I recall the early morning cry of those days, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"  This early morning cry has a way of stirring the believers and making them sober, while inviting the unbelievers to repentance. Although, the kingdom of heaven(God) came with Christ's resurrection, yet the period between Christ's resurrection and His second coming is the time of ingathering into the kingdom of heaven. While, the chanting of, "repent for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand" had always brought many souls into the kingdom of God; I believe that our declaration in this season should be: *"...the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer" (1 Peter  4:7).*  Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last t

Text :  Isaiah 1:19. If you’re willing and obedient, you’ll eat the best that the land produces; *Willingness is the strength of obedience, if you are willing, obedience will come to you naturally.*  One thing God has blessed humanity with is the will-power. This can however be either a blessing or a curse.  Your will-power is your power of choice. God didn't create man like robots, He created us and gave us the freedom of choice. But His desire is that we'll willfully chose Him. Like Joshua,  I  want to re-echo it in your ears that you should use your will-power to chose the Lord and His way.  _And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD._ Joshua 24:15. Undoubtedly, the choice is yours. But *once your choice is made, you have inevitably chosen the

Text : Mathew 20:27 And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: "If you are too big to serve, you are too small to lead," so goes the popular saying.  Our Lord Jesus Christ, during His earthly ministry propounded so many ideologies and belief systems that are at variance with the norms, and values of this world's system. Being a maverick leader, Jesus Christ our Lord still expects His disciples today never to conform to this world and its system. While the world says that a  leader is to be served, Jesus says that a leader is to serve. The parameter for leadership as far as Jesus is concerned is SERVICE. A song writer rendered it thus: "If you want to be great in His Kingdom, learn to be servant of All". Contrary to the world's  pattern, God's kngdom has spelt out servanthood as the pathway to greatness.  Though, servanthood  is synonymous to service in a way, but it is much more than service. Greatness in the kingdom of God is not ac

Text: Matthew  18:4  Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Jesus' disciples asked Him about who will be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Without mincing words, Jesus gave them a very straightforward response: Calling a little child forward, Jesus had him stand among them. Then he said, “I tell all of you with certainty, unless you change and become like little children, you will never get into the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 18:2-4. From His response, it's clear that humility is not just the way to greatness in the kingdom of God, it is also the key to entering into the kingdom.  He said, *unless you change and become like little children, you will never get into the kingdom of heaven.*  Regardless of your age or status, until you develop and maintain a childlike heart, you have no part in the kingdom of G

Text:1 Timothy  1:5 Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned. Apostle Paul asked Timothy, his son in the faith to stay back in Ephesus in order to charge some of the teachers there not to teach other doctrine.  He further said to him;  "Don't let them waste their time in endless discussion of myths and spiritual pedigrees. These things only lead to meaningless speculations, which don't help people live a life of faith in God." (1Timothy 1:4, NLT). The whole essence of these instructions is to help Timothy and others focus on the most important things, which are; "LOVE and FAITH"  _Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, [from] a good conscience, and [from] sincere faith._  (1 Timothy 1:5). Love is the fulfillment of the law. (Romans 13:8). This is the reason Jesus Christ summarised the whole law into 2:  Foremost, love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with

Text: Proverbs 13:20 He who walks with wise men will be wise, But the companion of fools will be destroyed. Knowing that your companionship with the wise makes you wise, then you must choose your company wisely.  Today, influence has gone beyond physical contact with your immediate community. There is another force that is influencing people either in a positive or negative way. We live in time and season where Internet and technology is influencing a whole lot of people in a meaningful and dramatic way. Internet and Technology  has a big stronghold on an average person that has access to computer or phone device. For instance, you cannot imagine how social media has led to many suicidal attempts, depression, time and financial wastages, and all manner of unthinkable immoralities. This is not just limited to young people alone; the adults are not left behind as well. So, if you are not careful, you may find yourself in the company of fools through social media platforms. God is remindi

Text: Proverbs 13:20 He who walks with wise men will be wise, But the companion of fools will be destroyed. Whether you know it or not, your life is being directly or indirectly influenced by visible or invisible forces.  For instance, you are either under the influence of God or devil. There is no middle ground. But should anyone claim to be half on God's side and half on devil's, such one is certainly on the devil's side. God never shares His glory with any.  This is the reason Jesus said in Revelation 3:16 "...because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth."  The Lord cannot condone a lukewarm follower.  If your walk with the Lord is lukewarm, you had better decide wether you want to serve Him or the devil. The Lord will never share anything with the devil.  *If He is not Lord of All, then He is not Lord at all. Jesus wants all of your life and not some portion of it.*  You have to be very careful and deliberate about the p