DCLM Daily Manna 24 May 2021 Devotional by Pastor W. F. Kumuyi — Fellowship Or Social Gathering?

TOPIC: Fellowship Or Social Gathering?

TEXT: 1 Corinthians 11:17-22

17 Now in this that I declare unto you I praise you not, that ye come together not for the better, but for the worse.

18 For first of all, when ye come together in the church, I hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it.

19 For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.

20 When ye come together therefore into one place, this is not to eat the Lord’s supper.

21 For in eating every one taketh before other his own supper: and one is hungry, and another is drunken.

22 What? have ye not houses to eat and to drink in? or despise ye the church of God, and shame them that have not? What shall I say to you? shall I praise you in this? I praise you not.

KEY VERSE: “For first of all, when ye come together in the church, I hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it.” – (1 Corinthians 11:18)

MESSAGE:

The idea of a fellowship is to provide a forum that gives every member a sense of welcome and belonging and promotes unity. It is supposed to be a place where all forms of divisions are lost and differences settled. But there are situations in which some fellowships merely expose the shame and weaknesses of members and drive people away instead of truly getting them together.

Apostle Paul wondered what the fellowship of the Corinthian Christians was becoming. He was surprised to see the divisions and selfishness that characterised their gatherings. They used the opportunity of their feast to flaunt their wealth and shame the poor. They had different cliques and groups in the fellowship thereby fragmenting the unity of the body. As a result, their gatherings and fellowships no longer attracted the expected profits and blessings.

We find similar situations in some churches today and it is important we get rid of them quickly before more harm is done. Some are becoming too conscious of the dresses they wear to church. They dress to impress men. Some churches have become divided into several sects and groups that make it difficult for those who do not belong to these groups and cliques to stay. In summary, many of our assemblies have lost the spirit and essence of true fellowship. Such gatherings can no longer be termed as fellowships but social gatherings!

We must put away all differences in status, class, race, etc., and see ourselves as one. It is when we are thus united that the Spirit of life and power will move freely among us and our fellowships will no longer serve as covens of death but havens of rest and life.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
Play your part to make Christian fellowship real and rewarding.

THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
1 Samuel 8-9

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.

DCLM Daily Manna 23 May 2021 Devotional By Pastor W. F. Kumuyi — Whatever It Will Take

TOPIC: Whatever It Will Take

TEXT: MARK 9:42-50

42 And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea.

43 And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:

44 Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.

45 And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:

46 Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.

47 And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire:

48 Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.

49 For every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.

50 Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his saltness, wherewith will ye season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another.

KEY VERSE: “And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched” (MARK 9:43).

MESSAGE:

“Desperate situations”, they say, “require desperate actions”! There are times that actions that are considered strange or extreme are taken in order to salvage a situation. This is more pronounced when the life of a person is involved. In battling to save the life of a critically ill person, it is sometimes considered wise and expedient to cut off part of the diseased body that is seen as a threat to the survival of the individual. When this is seen as the last and best option to help the person stay alive, every other reasoning is put aside and what will matter most is to keep him alive.

In this passage, Jesus talks about the wisdom of taking such desperate action that will be required to save one from suffering eternal death in the burning fire of hell! He considers escaping hell as a desperate situation that requires a desperate action. One must do whatever it will take to escape such place of everlasting torments, even if it amounts to losing something as precious as one’s hand, leg and eye! Whatever it is that can constitute a spiritual nuisance to anyone and can serve as an impediment to escaping hell must be jettisoned.

Christ’s teaching reveals that hell is real and must be avoided at all costs. It also shows that it is such a terrible and horrible place of eternal torments. Therefore, whatever may seem useful to us now but will eventually lead us into hell must be done away with. No possession, position or relationship should be considered too precious to give up if such poses a danger to our spiritual life. Escaping hell is a personal responsibility every believer owes himself.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
Fix your gaze on Jesus everyday of your life.

THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
1 SAMUEL 6-7

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.

DCLM Daily Manna 22 May 2021 Devotional by Pastor W. F. Kumuyi — The Cost Of Greed

TOPIC: The Cost Of Greed

TEXT: 2 Kings 5:20-27

20 But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, Behold, my master hath spared Naaman this Syrian, in not receiving at his hands that which he brought: but, as the LORD liveth, I will run after him, and take somewhat of him.

21 So Gehazi followed after Naaman. And when Naaman saw him running after him, he lighted down from the chariot to meet him, and said, Is all well?

22 And he said, All is well. My master hath sent me, saying, Behold, even now there be come to me from mount Ephraim two young men of the sons of the prophets: give them, I pray thee, a talent of silver, and two changes of garments.

23 And Naaman said, Be content, take two talents. And he urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of garments, and laid them upon two of his servants; and they bare them before him.

24 And when he came to the tower, he took them from their hand, and bestowed them in the house: and he let the men go, and they departed.

25 But he went in, and stood before his master. And Elisha said unto him, Whence comest thou, Gehazi? And he said, Thy servant went no whither.

26 And he said unto him, Went not mine heart with thee, when the man turned again from his chariot to meet thee? Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and oliveyards, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and maidservants?

27 The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee, and unto thy seed for ever. And he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow.

KEY VERSE: “But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, Behold, my master hath spared Naaman this Syrian, in not receiving at his hands that which he brought: but, as the LORD liveth, I will run after him, and take somewhat of him.” – (2 Kings 5:20)

MESSAGE:

In a juvenile magazine, a story was once told to illustrate how covetousness and greed can ruin someone’s life and how it is impossible to continue to hide and cover up one’s sin for long. The story was about a snake named “Sally”, which always sneaked into a farmer’s farm to steal eggs from his pen every night. When the farmer came to his farm each morning, he always noticed that some of his eggs were missing but his pen showed no sign of someone breaking into it. Guessing that the culprit must be a snake which always sneaked in through a tiny hole in the pen, he decided to leave some boiled eggs in the pen. As usual, the snake sneaked in and helped itself. But while trying to sneak away through the tiny hole, it got stuck because of the boiled eggs in its stomach which would not break. It remained there till the farmer came and killed it. No matter how long one tries to hide his sins, he would be found out one day!

Gehazi must have considered his master, Elisha, foolish for refusing the gifts that Naaman brought for healing him of his leprosy. Determinedly, he ran after Naaman, lied to him that Elisha had a second thought about the gifts and had requested to be given some to give as a present to some young men who had come to visit him. Elisha exposed him and revealed how he planned to invest the booties. He was then cursed with leprosy.

Covetousness has ruined so many lives. Many have had their chances of greatness dashed due to eagerness to make fast gains. They falsify accounts and change prices of goods.

But as believers, we should understand that godly contentment remains the antidote to covetousness and greed.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
Be content with what you have to avoid the regrets of covetousness.

THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
1 Samuel 3-5

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.