Covenant Meal II

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SCRIPTURE FOR TODAY: Mark 14:22-25

22 And as they did eat, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and brake it, and gave to them, and said, Take, eat: this is my body. 23 And he took the cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them: and they all drank of it. 24 And he said unto them, This is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many. 25 Verily I say unto you, I will drink no more of the fruit of the vine, until that day that I drink it new in the kingdom of God.

MORE LESSON: John 6:53-58

53 Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. 54 Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. 55 For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.56 He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me. 58 This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.

Monday, 22 September

Memory Verse: The Spirit can make life. Sheer muscle and willpower don't make anything happen. Every word I've spoken to you is a Spirit-word, and so it is life-making. John 6:63 (MSG)

God, being a Covenant-keeping God, has made provision of covenant meals to strengthen us as we commit to the Covenant of life in Christ Jesus. Covenant meals include: the word of God and the Holy Communion.

The written word of God contains the terms and conditions of His covenant; the spoken word releases the Spirit that sustains the covenant. We can go further and farther on the strength of God's word, following the principles of the Kingdom: righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Jesus made it clear that feeding on His word is feeding on the Spirit and Life. To annul death and its manifestations (sicknesses, disease, poverty, sorrow), we must grow our word bank, which is our life bank.

Jesus introduced Himself as the 'bread of life', and gave this bread to us to commemorate His sufferings, partake of His death and resurrection, and participate in the “victory march” against the prince of this world and the agents of darkness. Yet again Our Lord Jesus shows us a mystery in John 6:53 that eating His flesh and drinking His blood typified by the communion bread and wine indicates having faith in Jesus, His work of salvation on the Cross of Calvary, living for Him, while obtaining spiritual nourishment from Him alongside the hope of eternal life. The covenant meal goes beyond a ceremonial ritual in remembrance of Christ. When we eat, we go beyond eating with spirits (as spiritualists glory in) to eating life-giving spirit; for the life of a being is in its blood.

Life is transactional, i.e. it runs based on a system of exchange. Working/striving for the word is working for eternal life. Simon Peter said, the disciples had decided not to depart from the One that has the words of eternal life (John 6:68). Some individuals live to work for daily earthly bread, while the call of God is for “transactions” for the souls of men, fishing them out of sin of the world system and translating them into the Kingdom of God. At that level, the disciple asked God in the Lord’s prayer, to give them access to their daily bread. while contending for the things that pertain to life by feeding on God's word, meditating on it, declaring it, and partaking in the Holy Communion in faith. The Covenant meals of the Word of God and the Holy Communion bring life to us. We can eat to the point that we become so full of life, and that life swallows up.

Prayer/Action

* Thank God for His Word, His body and His blood which He has given to us.

* Receive grace to be a partaker of the covenant meals continually.

* Ask for mercy in any area you have fallen short of upholding covenants with God.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER: Every word ever spoken to me contrary to God's plan over my life begins to catch fire now, in the powerful name of Jesus.

© Strength for My Days by Bishop David Bakare - All Rights Reserved

Covenant Meal I

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SCRIPTURE FOR TODAY: 1 Kings 19:1-8

1 And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. 2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time. 3 And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there. 4 But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers. 5 And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat. 6 And he looked, and, behold, there was a cake baken on the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again. 7 And the angel of the LORD came again the second time, and touched him, and said, Arise and eat; because the journey is too great for thee. 8 And he arose, and did eat and drink, and went in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of God.

MORE LESSON: John 7:37-38 

37 In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. 38 He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

Sunday, 21 September

Memory Verse: The purpose of my covenant with the Levites was to bring life and peace, and this was what I gave them. This called for reverence from them, and they greatly revered me and stood in awe of my name. Malachi 2:5 (NLT)

A Covenant goes beyond a binding agreement to a hallowed, purposeful relationship characterised by conditional blessings or curses. For instance, in Genesis 2:16-17, the conditions for the covenant of life versus the death penalty were introduced to Adam, and tied to the sources of meals he could and could not eat. The dire consequence of contravening this changed the trajectory of man's relationship with God and introduced mortality to the human race.

Fast-forward to around 2,630 years later, Elijah was commissioned as God’s prophet to uphold the covenant between God and Israel, turning them away from the worship of Baal. 1 Kings 19:1-8 gives a narrative of Prophet Elijah's experience as he fled from Jezebel. The day's journey (estimated at 18-30 miles), the wilderness experience, being alone, resulted in the dissipation of strength to the point that he became so weary and slept under a juniper tree. The tree of the cedar family, is one of the oldest living tree species, surrounded by several myths and believed to represent a place of renewal, rejuvenation and healing. Unfortunately, his weariness went beyond the physical to the fabric of his spirit (his intellect, awareness and consciousness of God as his source). Alas, rather than cry to God for help, he cried to God for death.

God did not lead Elijah into the wilderness; he chose to move to escape for his life. We should navigate negative experiences by running into the Strong Tower (the name of the Lord), for therein is sustained strength. Loneliness is more than a physical experience, for you can be alone but not feel lonely. Elijah felt alone, not only physically but also spiritually (verse 10). There is indeed strength in companionship, both physical, mental, and spiritual.

The journey of life cannot be accomplished without adequate spiritual strength. We must continually feed on meals to sustain our strength. Therefore, the angel woke up Elijah a second time to eat and in the strength of that meal supplied to the Prophet by God, he journeyed 40 days and 40 nights. Imagine a man who was wearied after a day's journey on normal food but could travel 40 days and 40 nights on a divinely supplied meal. You can not feed on grass and manifest grace. Receive wisdom to feed fat on divine resources.

Prayer/Action

* Thank God for the privilege of covenants.

* Thank God because you are a part of the covenant of Abraham and also the New Covenant.

* Ask for grace to fulfil your obligations in your covenant with God and never be a covenant breaker.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER: I prophesy to the giant in me to rise today and begin to do greater things, in the matchless name of Jesus.

© Strength for My Days by Bishop David Bakare - All Rights Reserved

Dimensions of Power

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SCRIPTURE FOR TODAY: Isaiah 55:11

11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

MORE LESSON: Isaiah 40:28-31

28 Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. 29 He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. 30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: 31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Saturday, 20 September

Memory Verse: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. Isaiah 55:11

Power has been defined as the ability or capacity to do something or act in a particular way. Power goes beyond the capacity to do or perform. The Greek word “dunamis” refers to power, miraculous works, and specific spiritual gifts manifest in believers through the Holy Spirit anointing. We will examine several dimensions of power.

Power to be/become. systems come into existence with vested power. Life itself is powered into existence. No greater multifaceted dimension of the power to be is displayed than that by the “I AM” He is both deity and man, a father and a friend, the Lion and the Lamb, a Creator domiciled in his creation yet self-existing. The power to be was showcased in Genesis 1:3 when God said: Let there be light," and there was light. The one that calls the things which are not, as though they were (Romans 4:17). Being seated in Christ in the “I AM”, share in His multifaceted power to be. Power to translate and transform you from helplessness, lack, pain, sorrow, rejection into the person you desire to become is available by the anointing of the Holy Ghost.

Power to do or perform. Performance counts in the spiritual realm; the capacity to promote or hinder performance lies with God. The one who watches over his word to perform it (Jeremiah 1:12), accomplish its sent purpose (Isaiah 55:11), and disappoints the devices of the crafty (Job 5:12), will step into your matter and enforce the all-round victory He enacted at Calvary. Apostle Paul in Philippians 4:13 declared that he could do all things through Christ who strengtheneth him. Receive strength to perform valiantly in Jesus' name. Might is imputed through experiential knowledge of the ALMIGHTY, (Daniel 11:32).

Power for sustenance: strength becomes dissipated over time, and therefore, their need for renewal. Failure to do so can turn a champion into a caricature. Power went out of Jesus in Mark 5:29-30, through the hem of His garment to instantly terminate a 12 years demonic and chronic flow of blood. Jesus was aware of the importance of sustaining power through renewal when it was dissipated. Strength is imputed to the weary by the ALMIGHTY the Owner of power who increases the power of the weak (Isaiah 40:29). For our strength to be sustained; we must wait on God for renewal (Isaiah 40: 28-31).

Another vestry of strength is “the Joy of the Lord”; we must guard our hearts with all diligence, ensuring that our joy isn't broken and our strength sapped. When God is our strength, a very present help in trouble (Psalm 46:1), and we hook and look up to Him perpetually, we remain strong; we can be referred to as “the helped of the Lord”. We must train for power and build stamina to handle an hour of temptation and a day of spiritual battle.

Prayer/Action

* Thank God for being powerful and making available that power to you.

* Ask the Lord for a higher endowment of power in your life, family, etc.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER: I fan every God-given flame of my life into fire from today on, in the wonderful name of Jesus.

© Strength for My Days by Bishop David Bakare - All Rights Reserved

Acceptable Service II

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SCRIPTURE FOR TODAY: Hebrews 12:28

12 Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:

MORE LESSON: John 4:23-34

23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. 25 The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. 26 Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he. 27 And upon this came his disciples, and marvelled that he talked with the woman: yet no man said, What seekest thou? or, Why talkest thou with her? 28 The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men, 29 Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ? 30 Then they went out of the city, and came unto him. 31 In the mean while his disciples prayed him, saying, Master, eat. 32 But he said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know not of. 33 Therefore said the disciples one to another, Hath any man brought him ought to eat? 34 Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.

Friday, 19 September

Memory Verse: Let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. Hebrews 12:28

TODAY’S FASTING FOCUS: Satan, your time is up; Isaiah 10:27, Revelations 12:12

Serving God is a privilege and a form of worship. Note that for it to be accepted in heaven, it must be done God's way, with godly heart, and for God's glory. It requires specific qualities. You cannot serve God in any way and expect a divine reward. So, let us look at the biblical standards for acceptable service:

1. Serve with Deep Love for God

In John 15:13-16, Jesus teaches that accurate service flows from a heart of love. You can't serve God well if you don't love Him deeply; your drive must come from an intimate relationship with God. Service without love is empty labour.

2. Serve as a Pure Vessel

2 Timothy 2:20-22 paints a picture of God's house where some vessels are made of gold, some of silver and others clay. However, only the pure are used for noble purposes. You must cleanse yourself to be useful. Isaiah 52:11 says, Be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the Lord. You must separate yourself from compromise to be consecrated for impact. Purity is intentional consecration; it will position you for divine use.

3. Serve in Spirit and Truth

John 4:23-24 makes it clear—God is not looking for performance, but for worship in spirit and truth. That means sincerity, honesty, and a motive to please God, not man.

If your service is a stage act, it's not acceptable. If it's about being seen, it's already disqualified. God sees through performance—He responds to purity.

4. Serve Faithfully

1 Corinthians 4:2 declares, It is required in stewards that a man be found faithful. Faithfulness is not measured by public recognition, but by private obedience. Moses was faithful in all God's house— not popular, but faithful (Hebrews 3:2,5). That's what God rewards.

5. Serve Without Strife

2 Timothy 2:24 admonishes: And the servant of the Lord must not strive.... You cannot be quarrelsome, bitter or toxic and expect your service to be fruitful. God uses vessels that are clean, peaceful, and patient. God doesn't just count your hours—He weighs your heart. Purify your vessel, and serve with fear, love and truth.

Prayer/Action

* Ask the Lord to cleanse you and use you for His glory.

* Pray that you will not serve for attention or approval but in love, in truth and holiness.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER: Over my life, family and work, Satan, time up for you, in the powerful name of Jesus.

© Strength for My Days by Bishop David Bakare - All Rights Reserved