OPEN HEAVEN 6 JUNE 2021 – IDENTIFY YOUR ENEMIES I
OPEN HEAVEN 6 June 2021 TOPIC: Identify Your Enemies I
MEMORISE: We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not. – 1 John 5:18
READ: 1 Judges 16:16-21 (KJV)
16 And it came to pass, when she pressed him daily with her words, and urged him, so that his soul was vexed unto death;
17 That he told her all his heart, and said unto her, There hath not come a razor upon mine head; for I have been a Nazarite unto God from my mother’s womb: if I be shaven, then my strength will go from me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man.
18 And when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying, Come up this once, for he hath shewed me all his heart. Then the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and brought money in their hand.
19 And she made him sleep upon her knees; and she called for a man, and she caused him to shave off the seven locks of his head; and she began to afflict him, and his strength went from him.
20 And she said, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times before, and shake myself. And he wist not that the LORD was departed from him.
21 But the Philistines took him, and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass; and he did grind in the prison house.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 1 Samuel 1-3
Open Heaven 6 June 2021 MESSAGE:
There is an adage in my mother tongue that says “When God has revealed your enemies to you; they can no longer kill you.” The belief is that once you identify your enemies, you would be able to relate with them with caution such that there would be no loopholes through which they can harm you.
Today, many people become victims of the plots of their enemies because they cannot identify them. David knew this and that was why he did not leave any stone unturned to identify his enemies throughout his lifetime.
1 Kings 2:5-6 says:
“Moreover thou knowest also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two captains of the hosts of Israel, unto Abner the son of Ner, and unto Amasa the son of Jether, whom he slew, and shed the blood of war in peace, and put the blood of war upon his girdle that was about his loins, and in his shoes that were on his feet. Do therefore according to thy wisdom and let not his hoar head go down to the grave in peace.”
Beyond identifying his enemies however, David was always quick to go to God in prayer for deliverance. It is wisdom to hand over someone you cannot handle to the One who can deal with them on your behalf.
There can be internal and external enemies; the former are more dangerous than the latter. This is because if the internal enemy does not open the door to the external one, you cannot get hurt. As we see in our Bible reading for today, Samson never identified his internal enemy – lust, which led him to succumb to his external enemy – Delilah.
Sin is the greatest enemy of man and resides in everyone yet to be born again. Apostle Paul described this in Romans 7:18,23. He however did not just lament about it, he dealt with it. Sin is the enemy within; it must be identified and dealt with decisively.
How do we deal with this dangerous enemy? The only way to deal with sin is to confess it, forsake it and ask Jesus to use His Blood to cleanse you from it after accepting Him as your Lord and Saviour. If you do, you will be forgiven and made free from all the consequences of sin.
Open Heaven 6 June 2021 PRAYER POINT:
Prayerfully identify your enemies – both internal and external. Ask God to deal with them on your behalf.
Open Heaven 6 June 2021 HYMN 8: Ho, My Comrades! See The Signal
1. Ho, my comrades, see the signal, waving in the sky!
Reinforcements now appearing, victory is nigh.
Refrain:
“Hold the fort, for I am coming,” Jesus signals still;
Wave the answer back to Heaven, “By Thy grace we will.”
2. See the mighty host advancing, Satan leading on;
Mighty ones around us falling, courage almost gone!
3. See the glorious banner waving! Hear the trumpet blow!
In our Leader’s Name we triumph over every foe.
4. Fierce and long the battle rages, but our help is near;
Onward comes our great Commander, cheer, my comrades, cheer!
Open Heavens 2021 Daily Devotional guide was written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, one of the largest evangelical church in the world and also the President of Christ the Redeemer’s Ministries. The Open Heavens devotional application is available across all mobile platforms and operating systems: iOS, Android, Blackberry, Nokia, Windows Mobile and PC.
1. Admit that you are a sinner. "For all [humans] have sinned, and comes short of the glory of God....[and] the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 3:23)
2. Repent now. "Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out ...[for] if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness " (Acts 3:19, 1 John 1:9)
3. Believe that God loves you and Jesus died for you. "God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet Sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8)
4. Invite Jesus into your life through prayer of faith. Jesus says, "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me" (Revelation 3:20)
