Reigning by Grace

Sunday 24 June
READ: 1 Kings 1: 5 – 39
MORE LESSON: Romans 5: 15 - 17

It is only through grace that a man can reign in life because by strength shall no man prevail (1 Sam. 2: 9). The opposite of grace is merit. It is either a man merits the throne of life through his works or he receives it through God's unmerited favour. It is only those who have decided to receive the throne through the grace that is in Jesus Christ that will reign in life. If you must qualify through works for everything you get in life, you will never get by in life and eternity. We must put our faith in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and reign through Him.
Even in the Old Testament, the throne was by grace and not by works. This is perfectly portrayed by the story of Solomon. He was born by Bathsheba, the woman about who there was a lot of wrong doing and controversy surrounding her becoming David's wife. There were many other 'more legitimate' sons of David who deserved the throne more than Solomon did. Solomon was young, inexperienced and born through the back door' into the family of David. Absalom, the handsome and charismatic son of David, had rebelled against his father and fought to reign as king but he didn't get it, rather, he lost his life. Adonijah was another of David's sons who tried to set himself as king. He connived with some bigwigs in the kingdom to be made king but he also didn't get it. Solomon didn't deserve the throne but King David set him as king to reign because of a covenant he had made that Solomon would reign after him.
Solomon was not qualified for the throne but he ended up on the throne; what is more, his reign surpassed all reigns before and after him in glory. Grace is the way to the throne. This is the reason Rom. 5: 17 says that those who have received the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness will reign in life through Jesus Christ. Through the finished work of Christ on the cross, we have access to all that pertain to life and godliness. Salvation is by grace, healing and prosperity are obtained by favour. Dominion and reigning in life are accessed by grace. It is only through the work of grace that we can be sure of making Heaven. According to Heb. 4:16, Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

Prayer/Action
* Ask the Lord to break protocol and place you where your merit cannot.
* Ask the Lord to confound the devices of your enemy and cause you to reign by grace.
* Declare that by the grace of Jesus, you have access to all that pertain to life.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER: Good news angels, visit me this sixth month as you visited Elizabeth and Mary in the sixth month and end every delay and shame in my life as You did for them, in Jesus’ name.

The Man-Child

Wednesday 27 June
READ: Isaiah 66:7
MORE LESSON: Isaiah 66: 7 - 11

The Bible talks about the man-child in several places. There are a lot of meanings attached to a male child. First, it represents continuity of a family name. It also denotes strength and joy. The man-child is therefore anything you birth that brings joy, celebration and excitement. It is what gives you courage and strength and creates an assurance of a secure tomorrow. The man-child represents glory, fame and a worthy achievement. These meanings are not to affirm the superiority of the male child over the female. All children are from God, and can be used mightily in the hand of God and worthy of celebration, irrespective of gender. If God has blessed you with female children, then celebrate. They will fulfill destiny and make you proud. However, in the spiritual context, we use the man-child to represent a major achievement which is worthy of celebration. It is not limited to childbearing but includes feats of all kinds in all areas of life. In the name of Jesus, it is time for your man-child to be born.
Isaiah 66:7 says, Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child. Travail stands for the labour pangs a woman experiences when she is about to deliver a child. The intense pain and sorrow of the labour is always swallowed up by the joy of the child that is born. This shows that no matter how hard and painful the labour process is, there is always joy that something substantial came out of it. For every effort and labour you put in to any project, the Lord expects a joyful result to come out of it. You shall no longer labour in vain, in Jesus’ name. Something tangible and worthy of celebration shall come out of every effort you exert, in Jesus’ name.
In the text, God said that even though there is sorrow in labour, when the man-child is born, the joy swallows up the memory of the pain. This shows that there is something that the Lord can do in your life that will make you forget all the pain and hardship of yesterday. Your joy will be born today, in Jesus’ name. The Lord says in Isa. 66: 9, Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth? saith the LORD: shall I cause to bring forth, and shut the womb? saith thy God. This shows that barrenness, miscarriage and abortion of all kinds are not from the Lord. In the name of Jesus, every area where you have suffered barrenness and miscarriage, whether in your vision and dreams, in productivity and finance, in your spiritual life or in giving birth to a biological child, the power of the Word of God break that siege. Go and bring forth your man-child, spiritual and physical.

Prayer/Action
* Declare that the due season to birth your man-child is now.
* Ask for strength to bring forth your man-child.
* Declare that you will not labour/travail in vain, you will bring forth.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER: I am not a dumping ground for demonic activities; Holy Ghost fire burn them to ashes in my life, in the mighty name of Jesus.

A New Name in Glory

Saturday 23 June
READ: Rev. 2:17
MORE LESSON: Rev. 20:10-15

It is obvious that in many cultures, names are not ordinary. Some do not like the names they bear, but like Jabez, you can ask God to change your name. Why do we desire a new name? It is amazing how in newspapers some people change all their names without any explanation. For some, you can guess that the change is due to marriage/divorce, conversion from one faith to another, or just mere conviction that the name no longer suits them. While these changes may be sincere and true, they do not free one from the liabilities or encumbrances of previous names.
In the Bible, some people changed their names. Examples include: Abram to
Abraham (Gen. 17:5-10), Sarai to Sarah (Gen. 17:15-16), Jacob to Israel (Gen. 32:28-32) and Saul to Paul (Acts. 13:9- 12). Each of these instances signified a turning point and an establishment of a new covenant relationship between God and the bearers of the names. No wonder when a person gets born again, he becomes a new creature (II Cor. 5:17; Rev. 3:20, 21:17), old things are passed away (Psa. 103:12). God becomes your Father by a relationship with Christ who paid the price for our redemption by His sacrificial death on the cross. He is our repudiation for adoption into sonship and a relationship with His Holy Spirit; God seals us as His property. We become God's stewards for every good work. He writes our new names in the Lamb's Book of life,
He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it Rev. 2:17.
Do you have a new name in glory before the Father? Whatever name you bear on the earth (negative or positive, good or bad) must end here one day. There is only one place where the enlisting of your name is most important, and that is in the Lamb's Book of life. The qualification for this new name is cleansing and forgiveness by the Blood of Jesus. This is made possible by personally acknowledging your sins, asking God for forgiveness and accepting Jesus as the Lord and Saviour of your life. Let me remind you that no matter who you are and what you have done, God loves you and wants to give you a new name written in the Lamb's Book of life.

Prayer/Action
* Pray that you will not miss a new name in glory.
* Pray that everyone in your family, whose name may not be in the Lamb's Book of Life, will find mercy and grace before it is be late.
* Pray that God will change your old name to a new name in glory.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER: I refuse to labour in vain or bring forth for trouble, in the glorious name of Jesus.

Who is Hurt?

Friday 22 June
READ: Exodus 9:22-35
MORE LESSON: 2 Kings 5:20-27

There is a saying that a man's deceptive practice reaches its peak the day he succeeds in deceiving himself. In our text, Pharaoh played hide and seek with Jehovah. When he hardened his heart against releasing the Israelites and a plague stroke, he quickly soft-pedalled and invited Moses for a talk. As soon as the plague ceased, he went tough again. Who was hurt in the long run? It is sad that some people play with their life as Pharaoh did, thinking they are smart. They don’t pray or go to church, or do what is right and holy until they have a problem. Then, they suddenly remember God; and run to men of God for prayer and observe other religious rites. But as soon a solution to their problem comes, their spiritual commitment stops. They will give a thousand and one excuses why they are not able to meet up with their spiritual commitment. When they have a problem, they put those excuses aside and seek for help from God, and the cycle continues. Such people seek to use God to meet their needs but never allow God to use them to meet His needs.
Pharaoh did not prosper in his hide and seek game with Moses. Although he knew very well the powers of the gods, he chose to play on the God of Moses. At first, he was seemingly successful in playing on the intelligence of Moses' God to the admiration of his people. But Pharaoh lost everything at the end, including his firstborn. If he were straight in his dealings with Moses and God, he would have spared himself the unwarranted losses.
I counsel you to love and serve the Lord with all your heart, might, soul and all your strength. Those who do so are always honoured by God. He will deliver them from their enemies, and in the days of famine He will keep them from destruction. Stop the deception now and seek after God with all your heart. Learn from Cain who offered an unacceptable offering, became jealous of his brother, and even when God warned him about falling into sin, he didn’t listen. He bluffed God even after killing his brother; and when God pronounced judgement on him, he protested that the judgment was too harsh. Why wait for your house to be on fire before calling for help when you have the opportunity to stop someone from putting the fire on your roof? Even if men come to your aid to put off the fire, you would have lost your roof top. Be diligent in business, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord (Rom.12:11).

Prayer/Action
* Receive grace to follow the Lord in all seasons, in Jesus name.
* Ask the Holy Spirit to pour upon your heart the love of God to do His will.
* Pray that God will not use judgment or enemies voice to communicate His mind to you.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER: I connect with the grace and favour upon Daniel and I receive the Spirit of excellence to excel above my equals, in the mighty name of Jesus.