The Devil's Apple

 STRENGTH FOR MY DAYS 
A Daily Devotional by Bishop David Bakare

The Devil's Apple

Wednesday, 4 September

 

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. James 1:17

SCRIPTURE FOR TODAY: James 1:13-17 Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: 14 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. 15 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. 16 Do not err, my beloved brethren. 17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

 

MORE LESSON: Hebrews 10:35-39 Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward. 36 For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. 37 For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. 38 Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. 39 But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.

 

Today’s text says, Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. The flip of this scripture could be Every bad and every imperfect gift comes from the devil the father of lies and darkness with whom there is no stability or guarantee. In line with James 1:17, we can safely conclude that the devil's apple always has worms. This means that you must not look to the devil to meet any of our needs because even if he does answer you, he will add sorrow to his blessing. It is only the blessing of God that makes one rich without adding sorrow (Proverbs 10:22).

It is foolishness to look to the devil to give you anything. This is because he sinned in the beginning and was thrown out of Heaven. He wanted to become like God, therefore God sent him out of His Kingdom and made man out of clay and invested in man the essence of God. The very thing that the devil wanted from the beginning was now put in a mortal man. This marked the beginning of enmity and hostility between the devil and man. So every believer is by default an enemy to the devil because inherent in man is the very nature and likeness of God.

So, if your enemy told you he had a very special gift for you, won't you be suspicious and even reject the gift at once? What makes us think then that receiving gifts from the devil will make our lives better? It is a trick that you must never fall for. Satan is in the business of making the life of the believer hopeless and making it look as though God is not faithful so that he can offer you his apple. However, you must never forget that no matter how beautiful the devil's apple appears, it is always infested with worms. The devil's contribution always leaves a man worse off than he ever was. In fact, after receiving the devil's gift, a man would wish he didn’t take it. You remember the saying that when you want to dine with the devil you use a long fork? I counsel you not to even give it a thought at all because whether you dine with a long fork or a short one, the fact remains that you are eating the devil's food and it is always worm infested. So, look up to God to meet all your needs and do not give up even if help tarries. The Bible encourages us to wait. When you feel discouraged, speak to yourself and find strength in the Word of God. You must never give up and go for the devil's gift because along with it comes unimaginable sorrow.

 

Prayer/Action

* Pray that you will not be tempted to receive the devil's gifts.

* Ask the law to satisfy you with good things in life.

* Ask the Lord to bless the works of your hand.

 

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER: From this new month, I command the season of poverty and lack to cease in my life and business, in the wonderful name of Jesus.