Redeemed Christian Church Of God International Choir

12/01/2019

RCCG OPEN HEAVEN DEVOTIONAL
12 JANUARY 2019
THE GAINS OF PAIN II
BY PST.E.A. ADEBOYE

MEMORISE:
Also I say unto you, Whosoever shall confess me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God: Luke 12:8

RAD: Matthew 19:27-29

27 Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore?
28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
29 And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.


MESSAGE

Unless we want to engage in self-deceit, carrying one’s cross to follow Christ is very costly.

We thank God that our Lord Jesus Christ did not hide the truth about this for us. As part of His Sermon on the Mount, He said in Matthew 5:10-11:

“Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.”

Furthermore, in today’s memory verse, He puts us on notice that it is possible for a person to deny Him in the face of persecution.

He also said that whoever identifies with Him in this wicked generation is the fellow He would identify with in the Kingdom of God.

Hearing Him say these words, Peter asked Jesus what the reward will be for those who sacrifice all to follow Him. It is interesting to read Christ’s response in Matthew 19:28:

“…Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”

One grave lesson to learn from this scripture is that Judas Iscariot was numbered among the twelve destined to sit on one of the twelve thrones, but unfortunately he did not end well. I pray that you will finish well in Jesus’ Name.

Another lesson is that Jesus Christ did not assure the disciples of gains only in the distant future of the afterlife. In Mark 10:30, He also said:

“But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.”

If you are ever in doubt as to what the Lord Jesus Christ promised in this scripture verse, just try and read the story of my life.

I am a living testimony of God’s faithfulness to His word. At a time in my ministry, my wife and I had to sell our cars in order to fund the preaching of the gospel.

Today, you will not believe the number of cars the Lord has blessed us with. In fact, there was a time we received so many cars as gifts that we had to redistribute them to our pastors who are in need of cars to do the work of the ministry.

At a point in my life, I have had to give up a big house to live in a servants’ quarters for the sake of the gospel, but a time came when I started rejecting houses being donated to me.

Beloved, I can assure you that there is abundant gain in the pains endured for Christ’s sake.

What is that pain you are currently experiencing for the sake of the gospel? The good news is that it has its expiry date; Jesus will recompense you beyond your wildest imagination here and hereafter.

PRAYER POINT:
Father, grant me the grace to endure the necessary pain for the sake of the gospel and Your kingdom, and please don’t let me miss out on the gains You have in store for me.

Open Heaven January 12, 2019 is written by pastor E A Adeboye. We sincerely hope you’ve been blessed by today’s devotional message.

HYMN 8:
MY FAITH LOOKS UP TO THEE

1. My faith looks up to Thee,
Thou Lamb of Calvary,
Saviour divine!
Now hear me while I pray,
Take all my guilt away,
Oh, let me from this day
Be wholly Thine!

2. May Thy rich grace impart
Strength to my fainting heart,
My zeal inspire!
As Thou hast died for me,
Oh, may my love to Thee
Pure, warm, and changeless be,
A living fire!

3. While life’s dark maze I tread,
And griefs around me spread,
Be Thou my guide;
Bid darkness turn to day,
Wipe sorrow’s tears away,
Nor let me ever stray
From Thee aside.

4. When ends life’s transient dream,
When death’s cold, sullen stream
Shall o’er me roll;
Blest Saviour, then in love,
Fear and distrust remove;
Oh, bear me safe above,
A ransomed soul!

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Matthew 24-25, Isaiah 10:5-19

Please, Share The Word Of God To Others:

04/12/2017

How much more would we enjoy life, how
much longer and healthier would we live if
we kept a song of praise on the inside?
Start a lifestyle of being thankful, looking at
what’s right, constantly thinking about
what God has done, and how blessed we
are.

30/11/2017

Get ready for a bright future knowing that
Christ will open and shut the right doors
for your provision and protection (see Rev
3:7)!

12/09/2017

“…those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God” (Romans 8:14, NIV).
Who are the sons of God? Who are the sons and daughters of Abraham? It is “those who are led by the Spirit of God”. Glory to God!
The unsaved cannot be led by the Spirit of God because they are not of the Spirit. They, however, might eventually become of the Spirit. On the other hand, the saved need to seriously think about Paul’s statement in Romans 8:14.
A Christian should always be attentive to the Holy Spirit’s direction.
We need, as Christians, to keep our antennas high and searching, so that we remain in touch with the thinking of the Spirit at every point of our lives.
Consider the radar; it’s always on the alert. Once an airplane gets into the radar’s area of coverage the radar immediately shouts, “An airplane has just entered my airspace!” That’s exactly how alert Christians should always be!
We should never miss the Spirit’s mind concerning our lives, not even once. A Christian who is always attentive to the Spirit is able to capture the thoughts and guidance of the Spirit at every turn.
It doesn’t mean that one should necessarily hear a voice, although some people do hear God’s voice. Even without hearing a voice, one would know what God’s thoughts are with respect to any area of their life, if they are attentive.
You might decide to go somewhere, but before you go, you need to ask yourself the question: “What does the Spirit of God say about my plan?”
You might have been wronged by somebody and you are in the process of considering your options; you should ask, “What does the Spirit of God expect me to do under these circumstances?”
You might be in a clothing shop, trying to grab some fashion. Before you buy, you should be in a position to tell what the Spirit’s mind is regarding any item of clothing that you might be admiring.
God is a God of a Christian's entire life ; not just a part of it. We therefore shouldn’t surrender just a portion of our lives and affairs to God; instead, we should surrender every aspect of it! God should have the final say on everything concerning our lives.
I do not believe people who say God approves of everything that we might decide to do or to be; if He did then to me He wouldn’t be God. Does your earthly father approve of everything about you? Hasn't he directed you at one point to change certain things concerning your life? What more the Heavenly Father, the Father even to your father!
We should never confuse our will for God’s will. Under all circumstances, it should be very easy for a Christian to come to a decision. All one has to do is ask themselves, “What is the mind of the Spirit on this?” The mind of the Spirit becomes the decision!
Some of God's children are in not so good a shape. These people allow God to direct them only in some areas of their lives and keep certain areas exclusively to themselves. They reach certain decisions and stay put even if God were to direct them otherwise. That is disobedience!
Several Christians disobey the Lord in certain respects. Even when they know too well what God’s direction is regarding something about their lives, these people proceed as if they knew nothing. Just because they like it that way, they say, in effect, “Even God will not shift me from this.” What do you make of it?
The Bible mentions some people who ‘wandered from the faith” (see 1 Timothy 6:21). I wouldn’t be surprised if any of the disobedient Christians eventually wander from the faith, because their conduct is already inclined that way. They might end up disobeying the Father in everything!
I implore you to act and react only in a manner that’s consistent with the direction of the Spirit. There might be something that you love to do, or a behaviour that you might find irresistible, or gatherings that you are weak to avoid. The bottom-line is, “What is the mind of the Spirit regarding this?”
You should always be convinced that your conduct in life is exactly what the Spirit ordered.
“What is the mind of the Spirit on this? What does the Spirit instruct me to do? Would God be pleased if I were to do it this way?” That’s how Christians make decisions.
I have met Christians who say, "But I do not know the will of God regarding this aspect of my life." In response I normally say, "Do not worry about what you do not know now. What are you doing about that which you know?"
If one did their best regarding the will of God that they know, they are in a good place. I think going forward, the more such people learn about the will of God, the more they adhere to it. In addition to advising them about their situation, I also urge such people not to remain a minute in a state of ignorance because nothing stops them from searching the scriptures for answers!
Just as I was about to fall asleep one day, the thought of writing this message entered my mind. Because I was tired and wanted to rest, I decided to postpone the writing until the next day. However, when I asked myself the question, “What does the Spirit say I should do?” I realised that the Spirit wanted me to wake up and write the message straight away. So I did.
I sure hope this sermon has helped you in some way. If it has, then it was worth my writing. Remember that you will never mature if you don’t give the Spirit free reign in your life.
God bless!

07/11/2016

An Unspoken Bible
Author Billy sikes
His name is Bill. He has wild hair, wears a T-shirt with holes in it, jeans and no shoes. This was literally is wardrobe for his entire four years of college. He is brilliant. Kind of esoteric and very, very bright. He became a Christian recently while attending college.
Across the street from the campus is a well-dressed, very conservative church. One day Bill decides to go there. He walks in with no shoes, jeans, his T-shirt, and wild hair. The service has already started and So Bill starts down the aisle looking for a seat.
The church is completely packed and he can't find a seat. By now people are really looking a bit uncomfortable, but no one says anything. Bill gets closer and closer and closer to the pulpit and, when he realizes there are no seats, he just squats down right on the carpet. (Although perfectly acceptable behavior at a college fellowship, trust me, this had never happened in this church before!
By now the people are really uptight, and the tension in the air is thick. About this time, the minister realizes that from way at the back of the church, an Elder is slowly making his way toward Bill. Now the Elder is in his eighties, has silver-gray hair, and a three-piece suit. A godly man, very elegant, very dignified, very courtly. He walks with a cane and, as he starts walking toward this boy, everyone is saying To themselves that you can't blame him for what he's going to do.
How can you expect a man of his age and of his background to understand some college kid on the floor? It takes a long time for the man to reach the boy. The church is utterly silent except for the clicking of the man's cane.
All eyes are focused on him. You can't even hear anyone breathing. The minister can't even preach the sermon until the Elder does what he has to do. And now they see this elderly man drop his cane on the floor. With great difficulty he lowers himself and sits down next to Bill and worships with him so he won't be alone.
Everyone chokes up with emotion. When the minister gains control, he says, "What I'm about to preach, you will never remember. What you have just seen, you will never forget. Be careful how you live. You may be the only Bible some people will ever read."

13/08/2016

Proverbs 14:30 says, “A relaxed attitude lengthens life.” Give no place to the negative. Get in a habit of emptying out the worry. If you’ll get good at emptying out the negative, you’ll live a strong, vibrant, joyful life.

23/06/2016

To every article .... We all want to see the best.... My 1st publishing rest on what comes naturally... Here about Life ... I know fully that You may not be able to alter reality, but you can alter your attitude towards it, and this, paradoxically, alters reality.“But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!” -Galatians 5:22-23

02/09/2015

Blissfulness thats God's wish for you this month if you belive it then it urs cause he said that he would supply all your needs according to his riches in glory through christ jesus .. Let God control September For you.. For no aircraft ..vehicle ...ship ...or Train.. has ever landed better that the one the master himself captained or piloted.. Driven.. So get it all packed and in whole for his love is eternal

22/05/2014

As the sun desends know ye that your trobles and problems goes with it and as it rises in the morning, be sure to smile cause your burden has been lifted for ever

21/05/2014

Your testimony has been doomed to make ways for you all you need do is add up your words of God' miracleous wonders in your life and you will see how it works

21/05/2014