Open Heaven 25 August 2023 Topic: The Blessing And The Blesser
Memory Verse: And he said unto them, Take heed and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of things which he possesses. (Luke 12:15)
Bible Reading: Deuteronomy 8:11-20 (NIV)
11 Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day.
12 Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down,
13 and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied,
14 then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
15 He led you through the vast and dreadful wilderness, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock.
16 He gave you manna to eat in the wilderness, something your ancestors had never known, to humble and test you so that in the end it might go well with you.
17 You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.”
18 But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today.
19 If you ever forget the Lord your God and follow other gods and worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will surely be destroyed.
20 Like the nations the Lord destroyed before you, so you will be destroyed for not obeying the Lord your God
Open Heaven 25 August 2023 Message:
If I were to ask you, “Which do you consider more important – the blessing or the Blesser?” you are likely to say it is the Blesser.
However, there are millions of self-professing Christians around the world today who prioritise God’s blessings above the One who blessed them in the first place.
When you begin to choose your job over God, you are prioritising the blessing over the Blesser.
I want you to do an honest check within yourself now: which one have you been prioritising — the blessing or the Blesser? The unfortunate thing about prioritising the blessing over the Blesser is that the Blesser can withdraw His blessings at any time.
In 1 Samuel 16:1, God told Samuel to stop pleading on Saul’s behalf because He had given the throne to someone else. In Genesis 48:20, we see how Jacob blessed Ephraim above his older brother Manasseh.
Ephraim eventually became ten times more successful than his brother (Deuteronomy 33:17). However, when success came, Ephraim forgot God (Psalm 78:9-11).
God kept sending prophets to Ephraim, but he refused to listen to the Blesser. After some time, God said, “Let him alone” (Hosea 4:17).
By the time we get to Hosea 5:9, God said that Ephraim would be desolate. Ephraim lost his blessings because he prioritised them above the Blesser.
When success comes, don’t forget God because He has the power to give and to take away. When I became General Overseer of The Redeemed Christian Church of God, I decided by faith that God would feed everyone that came for our annual convention.
One of the young men who was a baker said he would provide the bread for breakfast. He later on changed his mind and decided not to supply us with bread as he had promised because he didn’t like a message I preached.
God however, sent help to us and we were able to purchase the bread we required. Years later, my baker friend appeared at my house very early one morning. I said, “What can I do for you? You came very early”.
He said he would have come earlier but one of his tires got flat and he didn’t have a spare. This was a man who used to have numerous cars; now, he didn’t even have a spare tire because he placed the blessing above the Blesser.
Beloved, focus on the Blesser and not the blessing.
Open Heaven 25 August 2023
Points: God is more important than all the riches, great positions and blessings in the world. Never forget that.
Hymn: Praise To The Lord The Almighty
Bible in one year: Ezekiel 5, Ezekiel 6, Ezekiel 7, Ezekiel 8
This is a great lesson for us today. Most times ,we tend to use blessings from God as an excuse not to serve him. God help us to be more concerned about the blesser than the blessings, Amen.