Open Heaven Devotional 9th November 2023 (THURSDAY)

TOPIC: WHEN GOD COMMENDS YOU

MEMORISE: “The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.” – (Psalm 145:8)

1 O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens.

2 Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger.

3 When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;

4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?

5 For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.

6 Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:

Open Heaven Devotional 9th November 2023 MESSAGE:

Every now and then, God commends His children; He tells them that He is pleased with them. When this happens to you, don’t become full of yourself because He is only being gracious. The Bible says that God is perfect and He expects perfection (Matthew 5:48). Ephesians 5:25-27 makes it clear that Jesus Christ is coming back for a bride without blemish or wrinkle. Are you perfect yet? If God says, “Well done, my son, you are doing great”, He is only being gracious.

In Job 1:8, He said Job was a perfect and upright man, but then in Job 30:1, Job said things that a just man shouldn’t. When God scored him as just, He was only being gracious to him. In Numbers 12:3, it is written concerning Moses that he was the meekest man on the earth, but he was well known for his violent temper. God’s commendation is only an extension of grace. You must never let it get into your head; if you do, you would soon realise that you were nowhere in the first place.

The Bible says clearly in Romans 9:15-16:

For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.

It is not the works and effort you put in that will make you justified. It is true that you must put in the effort; if not, you may not even get a chance at being commended at all, but the effort does not justify you. It is only God’s mercy that justifies you. Never forget that. When God commends a person, the fellow’s efforts will yield greater results than his or her actions. When you start seeing this happening to you, you must remember that it is only because God decided to have mercy on you. Don’t begin to think that you are perfect, because you are not. Rather, thank Him for His mercy. Acknowledge your weakness before Him and even before people. Ascribe all glory to Him and not to your efforts because without Him, you can do nothing (John 15:5).

KEY POINT:
God’s commendation is a call to be more humble and to work harder.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
John 18-19

HYMNAL:
Hymn 31 – Wonderful story of love