OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL. DATE: FRIDAY 24th APRIL 2015.......

THEME: SIN: CONSEQUENCES &

CURE.

MEMORISE: For all have sinned, and

come short of the glory of God -

Romans 3:23

READ: EZEKIEL 18:20-24

20 The soul that sinneth, it shall

die. The son shall not bear the

iniquity of the father, neither shall

the father bear the iniquity of the

son: the righteousness of the

righteous shall be upon him, and

the wickedness of the wicked shall

be upon him.

21 But if the wicked will turn from

all his sins that he hath committed,

and keep all my statutes, and do

that which is lawful and right, he

shall surely live, he shall not die.

22 All his transgressions that he

hath committed, they shall not be

mentioned unto him: in his

righteousness that he hath done he

shall live.

23 Have I any pleasure at all that

the wicked should die? saith the

Lord GOD: and not that he should

return from his ways, and live?

24 But when the righteous turneth

away from his righteousness, and

committeth iniquity, and doeth

according to all the abominations

that the wicked man doeth, shall he

live? All his righteousness that he

hath done shall not be mentioned:

in his trespass that he hath

trespassed, and in his sin that he

hath sinned, in them shall he die.

MESSAGE

Sin is disobedience of God or a

deviation from His ways. From the

account in Genesis 3, we understand

that sin cannot be hidden. Every

secret sin will always be discovered;

it’s only a matter of time (Numbers

32:23). When sin comes in, there is

a loss of relationship with God.

When we house sin in our lives, no

matter the amount of time we spend

in the place of prayer, the heavens

will remain shut. Sin is not a lifter;

rather it leads to demotion. It

brings shame and reproach to

someone with a glorious future as

seen in the case of Samson. Proverbs

14:34 says,

“Righteousness exalteth a nation:

but sin is a reproach to any

people.”

Although Samson was born great, by

including in sin, his destiny was

truncated (Judges 16:20-21). God has

been warning a lot of people about

the consequences of their actions,

but they have refused to depart from

the path of iniquity. Some people

remain in disobedience until they

experience a negative turning point

in their lives. King Saul was a king

who happened to be handsome, rich,

healthy, powerful and prominent.

His word was law, but he disobeyed

God and kept going contrary to God’s

divine will until tragedy struck.

“If my people, which are called by

my name, shall humble themselves,

and pray, and seek my face, and turn

from their wicked ways; then will I

hear from heaven, and will forgive

their sin, and will heal their land"

2nd Chronicles 7:14.

The only way a lost relationship with

God can be restored is obtaining

pardon for sin through genuine

repentance. The good news is that

the death of Jesus on the cross has

made adequate provision for the

remission of our state of

hopelessness against sin. We must

be convinced of the need for pardon

and be willing to confess our sins,

no matter how numerous and

terrible they are. God is ever willing

to grant pardon to a genuinely

repentant soul.

Genuine repentance involves a

change of mind that leads to a

change of conduct. This change of

conduct will lead to a life of

holiness, through which the

repentant soul becomes a vessel

unto honour for the Master’s

effective use. Such a person will

then begin to work towards the

attainment of perfection in Christ

Jesus. Having done all these, there

is a guarantee of an inheritance in

Christ and an assurance of

everlasting life.

PRAYER POINT:

Father, I thank you for the Blood of

Jesus that was shed for the

remission of my sins. I accept this

provision of Yours, and ask that it

washes away all my sins.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR : JUDGES

8:29-9:57 and MATTHEW 26:6-25.

AUTHOR: Pst E. A ADEBOYE.