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Topic: Be Watchful!
(Open Heaven 30 December 2019)
Memorise: “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:” – 1 Peter 5:8
Read: 1 Peter 5:8-10 (KJV)
8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
9 Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.
10 But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.
Bible in One Year: Songs of Solomon 1-4, Malachi 2:17-3:15
Open Heaven 30 December 2019 Monday MESSAGE:
The topic of today’s devotional is not a piece of advice that can be ignored; rather it is an express command to be taken seriously if we want to cross the finishing line of our Christian faith. In Matthew 26:41, during His hour of distress, our Lord said unto His disciple:
“Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
A quick lesson here is that temptation is a reality of life. The only way out of it is to watch and pray to ward off the tempter and his agents. Today’s Bible reading tells us why we must be vigilant and watchful: our adversary, the devil, is busy looking for whom to devour. He is described by the Lord as a thief with a threefold mission: to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10). In spite of the fact that we have an indomitable Ally in the person of our Lord, He himself laid down an example for us by watching and praying. We can therefore not do without being watchful and prayerful in our Christian calling.
What are we to watch out for? We need to watch out for the tempter’s tricks, some of which can take the form of lust of the flesh. Samson did not watch enough to see the ditch his flesh was leading him into. Even when his parents warned him against the Philistine maidens, he refused to heed their words of reason, choosing instead to follow the leading of his flesh. Judges 14:3 says:
“Then his father and his mother said unto him, Is there never a woman among the daughters of thy brethren, or among all my people, that thou goest to take a wife of the uncircumcised Philistines? And Samson said unto his father, Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well.”
Another thing we must watch out for is the lust of the eyes. The world is full of abominable scenery nowadays. We must be careful of what we look upon and what we see around us. The unfortunate thing is that these horrible images are creeping into the Church nowadays – first to the pew and now to the altar. Lastly, we must watch out for the pride of life. Pride destroyed the devil and he is introducing it into people’s lives today to destroy them. The Church is becoming too flamboyant these days, and this is distracting us from our core assignment. Please don’t be caught in this trap of the devil. 1 Thessalonians 5:6 says:
“Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.”
Let all your actions be guided by sobriety and watchfulness, so that you don’t become a champion of yesterday.
Open Heaven 30 December 2019 Monday Prayer Point:
Father, help me to live soberly in this perverse generation, and guide my feet not to be caught in the devil’s traps.
Open Heaven 30 December 2019 Monday Hymn 4: Take My Life
1 Take my life and let it be
Consecrated, Lord, to Thee.
Take my moments and my days,
Let them flow in endless praise.
2 Take my hands and let them move
At the impulse of Thy love.
Take my feet and let them be
Swift and beautiful for Thee.
3 Take my voice and let me sing,
Always, only for my King.
Take my lips and let them be
Filled with messages from Thee.
4 Take my silver and my gold,
Not a mite would I withhold.
Take my intellect and use
Every pow’r as Thou shalt choose.
5 Take my will and make it Thine,
It shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart, it is Thine own,
It shall be Thy royal throne.
6 Take my love, my Lord, I pour
At Thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself and I will be
Ever, only, all for Thee.
