OPEN HEAVENS DEVOTIONAL - FRIDAY - 04/04/2014 - WHY THE WORLD RAGES BY PASTOR E.A. ADEBOYE

WHY THE WORLD RAGES

MEMORISE

And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake.
Luke 21:17

READ

Luke 6:22-23

22 Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake. 

23 Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for, behold, your reward is great in heaven: for in the like manner did their fathers unto the prophets.

MESSAGE

The Psalmist in Psalm 69:8 wrote:

“I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother’s children.”

Why this sorry situation? He gives the reason in Psalm 69:9:

“For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me.”

This is equally the lamentation of those who would live a righteous life in this world. The world is becoming more ungodly than ever before. Wickedness is becoming the accepted norm of our society. Worldliness is the order of the day in present day Christianity. Ruminating on this reality, one cannot but ask the following questions: If this continues, is there any hope for godly living? For how long would the wicked continue to hold sway in our society? The answers to these questions are: this ugly situation will not continue perpetually, there is hope for those who are on the Lord’s side, and a doomsday of judgement awaits the ungodly.

When you decide to live a godly life, there is bound to be persecution from the ungodly. The most painful aspect of this is that, the ungodly who once were outside the Church are not just in Church today, but are also taking positions and are “persecuting” those who are trying to go the extra mile for the Master. The Lord in our Bible reading foretold the persecutions, shunning and reproach that will befall those who will live godly lives in this world. He did this in order to comfort us. The Psalmist also was perplexed by this situation until he received insight from God.

“Behold, these are the ungodly, who prosper in the world; they increase in riches. When I thought to know this, it was too painful for me; Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end. Surely thou didst set them in slippery places: thou castedst them down into destruction.”
Psalm 73:12&16-18

Our Lord Jesus Christ explained to us the reason why the world will hate us in John 15:19:

“If ye were of the world, the world would love is own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.”

Beloved, in spite of all these, keep your eyes on the Lord. Every persecution ends at His coming. To someone using this devotional, the Lord is encouraging you to endure the present persecution you are facing. The next phase of your life is all-round promotion. Praise the Lord.

PRAYER POINT

Father, give me the grace to identify with you in this evil generation in Jesus’ Name.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR

Ezekiel 42:1-44:14; 

Psalm 76