THE BENEFITS OF OBEYING GOD
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego (Daniel 1:1-3:30) were young Jewish men who served with their comrade, Daniel, in the palace of king Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon. They were exceptionally gifted, strikingly good looking and God fearing and owing to their sterling qualities, they got rapid promotion to the highest echelon of governance in Babylon.
At a time, the king made an image of gold and ordered everyone to fall down and worship it at the sound of certain musical instruments. He also ordered that whoever disobeyed his instruction, should be thrown into a burning fiery furnace. But contrary to his expectation, the young men disobeyed him, instead they obeyed God’s commandment which says: ”You shall not make for yourself a carved image …; 5 you shall not bow down to them nor serve them…” (Exodus 20:4-5). And for this reason, they were bound and thrown into the burning furnace but God saved them. This is a very popular account and it contains some model benefits that come with obeying God. Let us now examine them in turn.
1. Divine Protection
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refused to worship the gold image made by king Nebuchadnezzar. Instead, they obeyed God’s law that forbids worshipping other gods (Exodus 20:4-5). For this reason, they were thrown into the burning fiery furnace but four men, the fourth being like the Son of God, all unbound and unscathed, were later spotted in it. That is, Jesus Christ was on hand to protect them thus verifying what Isaiah 43:2 says viz.: ”…When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you”. As you walk through the ‘fires’ of life day by day, choose to obey God and He’ll protect you divinely in Jesus name. Amen.
2. Divine Promotion
For disobeying king Nebuchadnezzar and obeying God’s law that forbids the worship of other Gods, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego got summary promotion in the province of Babylon. Please note that their promotion was essentially not man made; it was divinely engineered as confirmed by the Psalmist in Psalm 75:6-7 where he said: ”… promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. 7. But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another”. So, if you desire promotion in any area of your life today please, seek God’s opinion about it and obey Him strictly too and you’ll have it in Jesus name. Amen.
3. Divine Blessings
The determination of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to disobey king Nebuchadnezzar and their willingness to obey God, as well as their resultant promotion, must have exposed them to breath-taking blessings in Babylon. This confirms as true, Isaiah 1:19, which says: ”If you are willing and obedient, You shall eat the good of the land;”. Friend, if you are willing and obedient as from now on, you too shall eat the good of your land in Jesus name. Amen.
4. Heavenly Rewards
The decision of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to obey God, made the entire citizenry of Babylon to experience His immense power first-hand and I believe a lot of people must have yielded their lives to Him unconditionally as a result. In that case, there must have been great rejoicing in heaven that day and the three young men must have been suitably rewarded thereafter (Luke 15:10, Galatians 6:7-8). In the same vein, if you win souls for God, which is always a wise thing to do (Proverbs 11:30), you too will be suitably rewarded in heaven in Jesus name. Amen.
As you can see from above, it is advantageous to obey God at all times so; I encourage you to do more in this regard henceforth so that you can partake in the resultant massive benefits. If God asks you to serve Him more, please obey Him, if He asks you to change your job, obey Him; if He wants you to start a specific business, obey Him; if He asks you to propose to a particular sister or to accept a marriage proposal from a brother; Obey Him; if He asks you to study a particular course or to learn a particular trade, obey Him; if He asks you to change your location so that you situation can change, please obey Him; etc. and in the end, you’ll have every reason to rejoice in Jesus name. Amen.
Jesus is Lord!
C Adedayo Stoney Adegbulu, 2010
Categories: Mind of Christ Tags: Benefits of obedience, God, Obedience
THE BENEFITS OF TRUSTING GOD
I received a text message containing the wordings of Proverbs 3:5-6 recently and it blessed me a great deal. It reads: ”Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths”.
Above is a very popular passage amongst Christians and being one of my favourites; I have read it several times before. But this time around, I felt a strong urge to study it more closely and in the end, I unearthed some mouth-watering benefits open to those who trust God whole heartedly. Please permit me to share a few of them with you here trusting that they’ll motivate you to trust Him more. They are:
1. Divine Confidence.
Many times, the Psalmist’s life was laden with fears and each time, God expunged and replaced them with divine confidence; just because he trusted Him. He referred to one of such occasions like this: ”…In God I have put my trust; I will not fear. What can flesh do to me?” (Psalm 56:3). God is still in the business of replacing people’s fears with divine confidence if they trust Him. You too can join them and He’ll give you divine confidence to confront and subdue all the challenges you are facing presently in Jesus name. Amen.
2. Divine Direction.
The renowned King Solomon, having enjoyed divine direction several times in his life, recommended trusting the Lord to everyone as follows: ”Trust the Lord with all your heart….And He shall direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6). Consequently, if you sincerely want to succeed in life then, you need divine direction and the only person who can honestly give it is God. However, you must be prepared to ask and trust Him for it first.
3. Divine Strength.
God is willing to give people enduring strength if they put their trust in Him at all times, . Prophet Isaiah gave credence to this view when he said: ”Trust in the LORD forever, For in YAH, the LORD, is everlasting strength” (Isaiah 26:4). So, if you are desirous of enough strength to triumph on earth, then you need to ask and trust God for it and He’ll give it to you without qualms in Jesus name. Amen.
4. Divine Victory.
In confirming the availability of this benefit, the Psalmist said: ”Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass” (Psalm 37:5). Perhaps you desire outstanding victory in certain areas of your life e.g. your relationship with God, your health, business, education, family set up, etc. then you need to trust God for it and it will come to pass in Jesus name. Amen.
5. Divine Deliverance.
Again, the Psalmist assured us that divine deliverance is available to all who trust God. He said: ”And the LORD shall … deliver them from the wicked, And save them, Because they trust in Him” (Psalm 37:40). As from today, pray to God to deliver you from the vice-like grip of the Devil then, trust Him that He’ll do so and He will in Jesus name. Amen.
As you can see, the benefits of trusting God are stunning and I believe no right thinking person would spurn them for any reason. Therefore, pray to God to give them to you straight away. Also, make sure that you do not stop trusting Him even if you have to repeat your prayer time and again because He will surely reward you at some point (Hebrews 11:6). May the good Lord fill your heart with joy and your mouth with praise as you trust Him continually in Jesus name. Amen.
Jesus is Lord!
Categories: Mind of Christ Tags: God, Hope, hope in God, Trust in God
Categories: Words of Faith Tags: Proverbs
Categories: Words of Faith Tags: Proverbs
1 Peter 2:9
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
Categories: Words of Faith Tags: Peter
Daily Light for October 24
Morning
“I am driven away from your sight; yet I shall again look upon your holy temple.”
Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me; my Lord has forgotten me.” “Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.”—I have forgotten what happiness is; so I say, “My endurance has perished; so has my hope from the LORD.”—Awake! Why are you sleeping, O Lord? Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever!—Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the LORD, and my right is disregarded by my God”?—“In overflowing anger for a moment I hid my face from you, but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,” says the LORD, your Redeemer.
Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.—We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.
Jonah 2:4; Isa. 49:14, 15; Lam. 3:17, 18; Ps. 44:23; Isa. 40:27; Isa. 54:8; Ps. 43:5; 2 Cor. 4:8, 9
Evening
When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue is parched with thirst, I the LORD will answer them.
There are many who say, “Who will show us some good?”— What has a man from all the toil and striving of heart with which he toils beneath the sun? For all his days are full of sorrow, and his work is a vexation. Even in the night his heart does not rest. . . . All is vanity and a striving after wind.—“They have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.”
“Whoever comes to me I will never cast out.”—“I will pour water on the thirsty land.”—“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”—O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
Isa. 41:17; Ps. 4:6; Eccl. 2:22, 23, 17; Jer. 2:13; John 6:37; Isa. 44:3; Matt. 5:6; Ps. 63:1
Excerpted from Daily Light on the Daily Path ©2002 Crossway Books, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Luke 12:15
And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”
Categories: Words of Faith Tags: