DCLM Daily Manna 20 May 2021 Devotional By Pastor W. F. Kumuyi — Give Up Your Old Beliefs

TOPIC: Give Up Your Old Beliefs

TEXT: Luke 18:32-34

32 For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on:

33 And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again.

34 And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.

KEY VERSE: “And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.” – (Luke 18:34)

MESSAGE:

There are many factors that hinder people’s understanding and acceptance of new facts. One is to hold strongly to a preconceived idea, belief, tradition and practice. Prejudice blinds one’s eyes and affects his sense of judgment. It can make one to fight so blindly against what is meant for his own good.

The disciples of Jesus found it difficult to understand and accept Jesus’ predictions of His suffering and eventual crucifixion because of their long held belief of who the Messiah was and what He was expected to accomplish for them. They had no problem believing and accepting Jesus as their Messiah but they had serious problem expecting Him to die in the way He was predicting. All along, the Jews had expected a very powerful political messiah who would liberate them from the rule of the Roman Empire and establish for them a free and independent state like they used to have.

So many people receive the Christian faith whilst still holding on to their long held traditions and beliefs. There are those whose idea of becoming a Christian means that they will be forever insulated from suffering. They feel they are guaranteed a problem-free life. And find it difficult to understand teachings on Christian trials, sufferings and persecution. This is why many soon get disappointed and give up the Christian faith once they begin to see things happen contrary to what they had believed and expected.

To make progress in our Christian life and enjoy the full benefits we have in Christ, we must be willing to give up those customs and traditions that run contrary to Bible teachings. We must be willing also to open up our minds to accept and believe the truths of the Bible that are capable of setting us free from all forms of bondage and limitations.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
Give up your old beliefs for the new life in Jesus.

THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Ruth 3-4

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 19 May 2021 Devotional By Pastor W. F. Kumuyi — Mixed Faith, Weak Faith

TOPIC: Mixed Faith, Weak Faith

TEXT: 2 Kings 17:24-41

24 And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Ava, and from Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel: and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof.

25 And so it was at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they feared not the LORD: therefore the LORD sent lions among them, which slew some of them.

26 Wherefore they spake to the king of Assyria, saying, The nations which thou hast removed, and placed in the cities of Samaria, know not the manner of the God of the land: therefore he hath sent lions among them, and, behold, they slay them, because they know not the manner of the God of the land.

27 Then the king of Assyria commanded, saying, Carry thither one of the priests whom ye brought from thence; and let them go and dwell there, and let him teach them the manner of the God of the land.

28 Then one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Bethel, and taught them how they should fear the LORD.

29 Howbeit every nation made gods of their own, and put them in the houses of the high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in their cities wherein they dwelt.

30 And the men of Babylon made Succothbenoth, and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima,

31 And the Avites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burnt their children in fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim.

32 So they feared the LORD, and made unto themselves of the lowest of them priests of the high places, which sacrificed for them in the houses of the high places.

33 They feared the LORD, and served their own gods, after the manner of the nations whom they carried away from thence.

34 Unto this day they do after the former manners: they fear not the LORD, neither do they after their statutes, or after their ordinances, or after the law and commandment which the LORD commanded the children of Jacob, whom he named Israel;

35 With whom the LORD had made a covenant, and charged them, saying, Ye shall not fear other gods, nor bow yourselves to them, nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them:

36 But the LORD, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and a stretched out arm, him shall ye fear, and him shall ye worship, and to him shall ye do sacrifice.

37 And the statutes, and the ordinances, and the law, and the commandment, which he wrote for you, ye shall observe to do for evermore; and ye shall not fear other gods.

38 And the covenant that I have made with you ye shall not forget; neither shall ye fear other gods.

39 But the LORD your God ye shall fear; and he shall deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies.

40 Howbeit they did not hearken, but they did after their former manner.

41 So these nations feared the LORD, and served their graven images, both their children, and their children’s children: as did their fathers, so do they unto this day.

KEY VERSE: “So these nations feared the LORD, and served their graven images, both their children, and their children’s children: as did their fathers, so do they unto this day.” – (2 Kings 17:41)

MESSAGE:

In many cases, there is no way of telling between genuine and fake products from their look until they are put into use. No matter how good it may look, the fake cannot in any way work like the genuine. The same is true with our faith and worship. Mixed faith is weak faith!

The passage focuses on the nations that were brought to replace the children of Israel who had been carried away into captivity by the Assyrian empire. The new nations now occupying Samaria ran into serious problems. Since they did not know about the ways of the God of Israel and could not worship Him acceptably, they were attacked by lions. When they complained to the Assyrian king, he sent one of the deposed priests of Israel to teach them the ways of God. But even though they professed to fear and serve God in the public, they still had their idols and gods which they served. It was a syncretism of religions which did not profit them.

Many claim to believe in Jesus but have not sincerely forsaken or given up their old and false ways of worship. They delight in worship and show much zeal for prayer, but do not have genuine love and faith in God. It is as a result of this that many ‘Christians’ are still defeated by sin and suffer the attacks and oppressions of demonic powers.

Adulterated things may look cheap but in the long run, they are very costly. The same is true with mixed and adulterated faith. It may come cheap and easy without paying the price of genuine repentance, restitution and separation from the world. But it is a weak and powerless life. Genuine faith may seem costly because it will demand that you totally give up sin and all allegiance to the devil to fully embrace and serve the Lord. If you will be a Christian, be a genuine one.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
Adulterated faith easily crumbles when the devil strikes.

THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Ruth 1-2

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 18 May 2021 Devotional By Pastor W. F Kumuyi — Undeniable Supplication

TOPIC: Undeniable Supplication

TEXT: Psalm 119:145-152

145 KOPH. I cried with my whole heart; hear me, O LORD: I will keep thy statutes.

146 I cried unto thee; save me, and I shall keep thy testimonies.

147 I prevented the dawning of the morning, and cried: I hoped in thy word.

148 Mine eyes prevent the night watches, that I might meditate in thy word.

149 Hear my voice according unto thy lovingkindness: O LORD, quicken me according to thy judgment.

150 They draw nigh that follow after mischief: they are far from thy law.

151 Thou art near, O LORD; and all thy commandments are truth.

152 Concerning thy testimonies, I have known of old that thou hast founded them for ever.

KEY VERSE: “Hear my voice according unto thy lovingkindness: O LORD, quicken me according to thy judgment.” – (Psalm 119:149)

MESSAGE:

Prayer is one of the most potent means by which saints or sinners can have access to God and receive His attention. Sinners can receive pardon for their soul through prayer of penitence. Believers need fervent and continuous prayer to remain in the faith and to progress in life.

The psalmist in our passage is an importunate, fervent supplicant that would not let go until his request received God’s attention and answer. There are certain elements in his method of praying that are worthy of note by anyone who desires to have his or her prayers answered. The prayer is with full readiness to obey all the statutes and commandments of God, not choosing only the convenient ones. He desires God’s salvation above all other things.

Prayer indeed has great powers to change situations and circumstances. The weary will find rest only through prayers. Prayer will move our mountains and fill our valleys, turn sorrow to joy, failure to success, replace sickness with sound health, destroy yokes and oppression, deliver from the most ferocious enemy, guarantee breakthrough and bright future and secure for us a place in heaven. However, prayer alone is not enough. Obedience to the word of God is required to complete the weapon for daily victory. Prayer should be offered at all times. It is an essential companion of a heaven-bound pilgrim.

Although prayer is very essential, it is not all prayers that receive God’s attention. Prayers offered in sin without repentance; offered contrary to God’s words; offered without fervency and faith will all be exercise in futility.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
A man of fervent prayer lives a daily life of victory.

THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Galatians 4-6

DCLM Daily Manna was written by Pastor William Folorunso 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 17 May 2021 Devotional By Pastor W. F Kumuyi — Knowing The Signs Of The Times

TOPIC: Knowing The Signs Of The Times

TEXT: Luke 19:41-48

41 And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it,

42 Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.

43 For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side,

44 And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.

45 And he went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold therein, and them that bought;

46 Saying unto them, It is written, My house is the house of prayer: but ye have made it a den of thieves.

47 And he taught daily in the temple. But the chief priests and the scribes and the chief of the people sought to destroy him,

48 And could not find what they might do: for all the people were very attentive to hear him.

KEY VERSE: “And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.” – (Luke 19:41,42)

MESSAGE:

From the text, Jesus Christ saw the spiritual state of Jerusalem and wept over it. The city was busy with empty religious services and commerce when actually there was an imminent and impending doom hanging over her and her citizens. Whilst they were more interested in buying and selling in the magnificently built temple, they were ominously blinded and failed to recognise their time of visitation. They rejected Christ.

Men, like flowers in the morning, blossom and bloom with life’s fragrance. Then comes sunset; everything that glitters becomes gloomy. The hood of ignorance hanging over humanity usually makes it impossible for anyone to know just exactly what is coming next and how it is coming. But God does not only know every beginning, He also knows every ending. He is aware of everyone’s last moments and minutes. He is aware of a thousand years from today.

This sober truth should bring us closer to God who knows all things and holds all things together. We must live and prepare for the imminent; having repented of our sins and reconciled with our Maker. This is in effect, the very thrust and central theme of the gospel of Christ which must be urgently preached to all without compromise. How helpful would it be, if the saving truth is told to a man who would have perished the next moment even without knowing it. That man may enjoy the grace like the thief on the Cross who died by the side of the Saviour.

When we are familiar with the gospel of Jesus Christ, we are empowered with the knowledge of the signs of the times. In their day, the children of Israel were bereft of the hidden treasure of the gospel. Thus, they lacked knowledge of the signs of the day. Present-day believers should avoid such fatal ignorance.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
Live every moment with eternity in view!

THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Galatians 1-3

DCLM Daily Manna was written by Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi; is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Life Bible Church situated at KM 42 on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Nigeria.