Open Heaven 5 July 2019 Daily Devotional by Pastor E.A Adeboye
TOPIC: Evading Your Responsibility?
MEMORISE:
“And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son.” – (1 Kings 17:13).
PREV: It Doesn’t Matter
READ: John 6:5-13 (KJV)
5. When Jesus then lifted up his eyes, and saw a great company come unto him, he saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat?
6. And this he said to prove him; for he himself knew what he would do.
7. Philip answered him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little.
8. One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, saith unto him,
9. There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes; but what are they among so many?
10. And Jesus said, Make the men sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand.
11. And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as they would.
12. When they were filled, he said unto his disciples, Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost.
13. Therefore they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, which remained over and above unto them that had eaten.
OPEN HEAVEN 5 JULY 2019 MESSAGE:
As Christians, we need to recognize that the privilege of God’s grace does not absolve us of our responsibilities. It is true that for anyone to succeed in life, God’s grace has come into play. Nevertheless, we must also understand that by God’s design, all good things come at a cost. In other words, to get a good output from any endeavour, God expects you to give a tangible input in form of effort, which His grace will multiply. Indeed, it is our works that lubricate the wheels of grace.
Even the Omnipotent God did not form us from nothing: man was formed from the dust of the ground. When we understand this truth and act on it, we create room for God’s grace to be multiplied in our lives. This was what happened in the life of the widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17:9-16). For her to have food throughout the period of famine, she needed to put in something that would cause God’s grace to work on her behalf. Giving her last meal provided God’s grace an object to act on and multiply. In God’s divine economy, multiplication does not occur in the place of emptiness.
Today’s Bible reading is a testament to how the divine economy works. While the disciples worried about how to feed five thousand hungry people after their retreat, the Master knew that all He needed was something that God’s grace could act upon in order to unleash God’s miraculous provision. All it took was a boy’s lunch of five small barley loaves and two fish.
Open Heaven 5 July 2019 – Evading Your Responsibility?
Jesus took the meal, gave thanks and distributed it to the multitude through His disciples. There is a lot we can learn from this story. First, our God is not presumptuous; rather, He is orderly and intentional. Second, though there is nothing He cannot do, there are many things He will not do except we play our part as carriers of His image and collaborate with Him. For example, unless a farmer puts something in the ground, there can be no harvest, not because God cannot do it but because He will not do it. In the same way, unless a man comes together with his wife, reproduction will not take place.
Couples waiting on the Lord for the fruit of the womb should know that they have a part to play in this regard for God’s grace to be activated in their lives. Those who keep robbing God of His tithe should also realise that they are preventing God from unleashing His blessing over their lives. May the Lord grant you understanding of His ways in Jesus’ Name.
OPEN HEAVEN 5 JULY 2019 ACTION POINT:
Examine your life to find out those areas where you have been running away from your responsibilities, and make amends.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Deuteronomy 16-17, Ezekiel 11:14-12:6
OPEN HEAVEN 5 JULY 2019 HYMNAL: Hymn 3 – When we walk with the Lord
1. When we walk with the Lord,
In the light of His word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will
He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.
CHORUS:
Trust and obey!
For there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus,
But to trust and obey.
2. Not a shadow can rise,
Not a cloud in the skies,
But His smile quickly drives it away;
Not a doubt nor a fear,
Not a sigh nor a tear,
Can abide while we trust and obey.
3. Not a burden we bear,
Not a sorrow we share
But our toil He doth richly repay;
Not a grief nor a loss,
Nor a frown nor a cross,
But is blest if we trust and obey.
4. But we never can prove
The delights of His love,
Until all on the altar we lay,
For the favour He shows
And the joy He bestows
Are for them who will trust and obey.
5. Then in fellowship sweet
We will sit at His feet,
Or we’ll walk by His side in the way,
What He says we will do,
Where He sends we will go,
Never fear, only trust and obey.
Open Heaven 5 July 2019 Daily Devotional guide was written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, one of the largest evangelical church in the world and also the President of Christ the Redeemer’s Ministries.