DCLM Daily Manna 20 November 2021 Devotional By Pastor W. F. Kumuyi — No True Prosperity Outside God
TOPIC: No True Prosperity Outside God
TEXT: Ezekiel 17:1-10
1 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, put forth a riddle, and speak a parable unto the house of Israel;
3 And say, Thus saith the Lord God; A great eagle with great wings, longwinged, full of feathers, which had divers colours, came unto Lebanon, and took the highest branch of the cedar:
4 He cropped off the top of his young twigs, and carried it into a land of traffick; he set it in a city of merchants.
5 He took also of the seed of the land, and planted it in a fruitful field; he placed it by great waters, and set it as a willow tree.
6 And it grew, and became a spreading vine of low stature, whose branches turned toward him, and the roots thereof were under him: so it became a vine, and brought forth branches, and shot forth sprigs.
7 There was also another great eagle with great wings and many feathers: and, behold, this vine did bend her roots toward him, and shot forth her branches toward him, that he might water it by the furrows of her plantation.
8 It was planted in a good soil by great waters, that it might bring forth branches, and that it might bear fruit, that it might be a goodly vine.
9 Say thou, Thus saith the Lord God; Shall it prosper? shall he not pull up the roots thereof, and cut off the fruit thereof, that it wither? it shall wither in all the leaves of her spring, even without great power or many people to pluck it up by the roots thereof.
10 Yea, behold, being planted, shall it prosper? shall it not utterly wither, when the east wind toucheth it? it shall wither in the furrows where it grew.
KEY VERSE: “Say thou, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Shall it prosper? shall he not pull up the roots thereof, and cut off the fruit thereof,v that it wither? it shall wither in all the leaves of her spring, even without great power or many people to pluck it up by the roots thereof.” – (Ezekiel 17:9)
MESSAGE:
A preacher once said, “Sometime ago, we noticed that a tree planted at the sunny end of a house had large and beautiful flowers and fruits. It was a feast to the eyes but what an amazing difference in some of the branches that trained round the corner of the house where they got less sun. The blossoms were drooping and there was little promise of fruit. They had the same root and stem in common but while one part of the tree was in full glorious light, the other branches were in the shade”.
In our text, God sent Ezekiel to put a riddle to Israel after they had despised the oath in breaking His covenant in the preceding chapter (Ezekiel 16:59). Israel had enjoyed the gracious works of God in their history as a nation. They had been brought as a tender vine from Egypt to be planted in the land flowing with milk and honey. They had been nourished and protected by God until they took deep root and filled the whole land. Their shadow covered the hills and the boughs thereof were like the goodly cedars.
Israel had spread to the sea and her branches extended to the rivers. But because of idolatry and disobedience, the root was pulled up. The parable illustrated the treachery of Israel in breaking the covenant with the Lord and going into idolatry.
Many people remain cynical about the love of God for them. They only measure their success by their political, social and economic standing. If they face problems, they immediately conclude that God does not love them and seek solutions elsewhere. They forget His covenant and promises for them. Apostle Paul says only in Him we move, live and have our being. God loves you and in Him only will you prosper.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
Without God, we are nothing!
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Ezekiel 32-35
DCLM Daily Manna was written by Pastor W. F. Kumuyi; is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Life Bible Church situated at KM 42 on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Nigeria.
