DCLM Daily Manna 6 December 2022 Devotional By Pastor W. F. Kumuyi — The Joy Of A Free Conscience
TOPIC: The Joy Of A Free Conscience (DCLM Daily Manna 6 December 2022)
TEXT: Job 11:6-20 (KJV)
6 And that he would shew thee the secrets of wisdom, that they are double to that which is! Know therefore that God exacteth of thee less than thine iniquity deserveth.
7 Canst thou by searching find out God? canst thou find out the Almighty unto perfection?
8 It is as high as heaven; what canst thou do? deeper than hell; what canst thou know?
9 The measure thereof is longer than the earth, and broader than the sea.
10 If he cut off, and shut up, or gather together, then who can hinder him?
11 For he knoweth vain men: he seeth wickedness also; will he not then consider it?
12 For vain men would be wise, though man be born like a wild ass’s colt.
13 If thou prepare thine heart, and stretch out thine hands toward him;
14 If iniquity be in thine hand, put it far away, and let not wickedness dwell in thy tabernacles.
15 For then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot; yea, thou shalt be stedfast, and shalt not fear:
16 Because thou shalt forget thy misery, and remember it as waters that pass away:
17 And thine age shall be clearer than the noonday: thou shalt shine forth, thou shalt be as the morning.
18 And thou shalt be secure, because there is hope; yea, thou shalt dig about thee, and thou shalt take thy rest in safety.
19 Also thou shalt lie down, and none shall make thee afraid; yea, many shall make suit unto thee.
20 But the eyes of the wicked shall fail, and they shall not escape, and their hope shall be as the giving up of the ghost.
KEY VERSE: “If iniquity be in thine hand, put it far away, and let not wickedness dwell in thy tabernacles. Because thou shalt forget thy misery, and remember it as waters that pass away” (Job 11:14, 16).
MESSAGE:
The story was told by a famous man of God about a lady that thought her sins were too great for God to forgive. She had lost her mother at a tender age and had gone to live with her eldest sister whom she regarded as mother. But when the sister went to deliver her last baby, Satan struck as she fell into the sin of fornication with her sister’s husband. All attempts to free herself from that relationship was frustrated by the man who threatened to reveal all to her sister. Even though she got married later and left that home, the guilt was overwhelming. But to the glory of God, when she eventually opened up to Christ and received His mercy and pardon, the joy of salvation and a free conscience flooded into her soul. When her husband who was nearby heard it, he rushed into the counselling room into the warm embrace of his liberated wife.
Zophar, one of the friends of Job who had initially come to comfort him but later turned an accuser, believed that Job was suffering for his sins and that God “exacteth of [Job] less than [his] iniquity deserveth”. He asserted that man cannot by searching find God who is beyond his understanding. He then counselled Job to prepare his heart, stretch his hands towards God and put iniquity far from him so that his life will receive a refreshing.
Truly, sin is a burden. It brings guilt and condemnation, fear and uncertainty. Though these sayings do not actually apply to Job who was righteous before God, the general application is true. The conscience is given to man to police and “arrest” him against wrongdoing. But when people continually ignore and quieten the demands of the conscience, it becomes less assertive, weak and seared. No matter how evil had affected the conscience, Jesus heals all hearts and clears all guilt.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
A free conscience is a release from bondage.
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Isaiah 18-21
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.
