OPEN HEAVENS DEVOTIONAL - 08/05/2013 - IS PEACE DWINDLING? BY PASTOR E.A. ADEBOYE

WEDNESDAY 8 MAY, 2013

IS PEACE DWINDLING?

MEMORY VERSE

O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea   Isaiah 48:18

READ

Isaiah 48:17-19

Isa 48:17 Thus saith the LORD, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am the LORD thy God which teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth thee by the way that thou shouldest go.

Isa 48:18 O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea:

Isa 48:19 Thy seed also had been as the sand, and the offspring of thy bowels like the gravel thereof; his name should not have been cut off nor destroyed from before me.

MESSAGE

If you are able to take care of the problem of sin, it means you have succeeded in shutting the door against poverty, sickness, defeat, etc. In Joshua 7:10-12, Israel suffered defeat from a weak enemy and Joshua went to the Lord to find out the cause. The Lord told him Israel had sinned and that if they got rid of the sin, victory would be regained. Are you a victim of defeat? Have you fallen face down before your enemies? Have you been unable to pass a particular test or examination? Examine yourself carefully and be sure that sin is not the cause. If it is, repent, and restitute where necessary and go for a return match. The Lord will give you victory in every battle in Jesus name.

When sin is gone, peace will come. Hence, Isaiah 48:18 says,

“O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea.”

This tells us that disobedience is what is robbing many of God's children of their peace and joy. Isaiah 48:22 says,

“There is no peace, saith the LORD, unto the wicked.”

This scripture is not restricted to only unbelievers; it also covers believers who venture into acts of wickedness against others. Every time you engage in an act of wickedness, you erode your peace. If you oppress your subordinates, you diminish your peace. And if you persist, your peace will continue to decrease until it gets to a point where there is no more peace in your reserves. At such a point, it will be very difficult to distinguish such a believer from the wicked who does not know God. This means that even though the Lord Jesus has given you peace when you accepted Him according to John 16:33, whether that peace will remain, increase or decrease is dependent on you. Lack of peace can affect one in any area of life. Cheating your fellow brother in a business transaction is at the expense of your peace. Breaking covenants, denying people their rights or entitlements are at the expense of your peace. If you steal what belongs to your neighbour, it is at the expense of your peace. Why lose peace when it can be multiplied by doing good to others and increasing their joy?

ACTION POINT

If your peace is giving way to trouble, there might be some wicked spot in your life. Look diligently at your life and make amends.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR

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