DELIVERANCE FOR THE AFFLICTED

READ: PSALM 34:15-22

In the case of an affliction, whenever the demon in charge of that beat is not operating or is gone on break, the victim will look absolutely normal. Some years ago, a bank manager was brought to me for prayers. He was handcuffed to two policemen. No employer will accept a mad man as manager. The man was a very nice gentleman while the demon was on recess, but when the demon is at work, the man would want to go to anybody’s house and pull down the door. He was actually trying to enter a house when he was taken for an armed robber and was hit on the head. It was at the police station it was discovered that he was not trying to steal but was tormented by invisible forces. Every demon assigned to oppress you and your family is paralyzed by the blood of Jesus today. Every demonic war against you shall cease today. Through God’s mercy, somewhere in between the torments of the enemy, the man was normal enough to believe that if only he could be taken to the Redemption camp, he would be free. So he was brought to the camp. We did not have to struggle with him at all. He had expressed his faith to contact the Prince of Peace and all would be well with him. He got his deliverance right there.
“Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivers him out of them all” (Psalm 34:19). Are you going through afflictions? Count it not a strange phenomenon. You may have to go through some afflictions, but the good news is that the Lord will deliver you from every bed of affliction this period in Jesus name. Are you worrying about when that particular affliction in your life or family will cease? Fear not. You will not know when it will disappear. You will only observe that the affliction you have been suffering from has suddenly ceased. It shall be so in your life in Jesus name. Hosea 5:15 says a time of affliction is a time to seek the Lord. Look up to him and call out in faith. Every affliction the Lord destroys from your life this season shall not return in Jesus name.

MEMORIZE: JOB 30:26 –When I looked for good, then evil came to me; and when I waited for light, there came darkness.

CONFRONTED BY THOUGHTS

READ: MATTHEW 9:1-8

“Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God” (1 Corinthians 4:5).
At the judgement seat of Christ, after our works are passed through fire, and all our spoken words weighed, our thoughts will then be subjected to judgement. On that day, everything you ever thought of as well as every plan of your heart whether you physically executed them or not, will be revealed. They will be subjected to God’s judgement. Many people take delight in entertaining evil, lustful and defiling thoughts. Their argument is that it is not harmful to anyone since nobody can read their mind. Do you know that at the judgement seat of Christ, all those thoughts that were privy to you alone will be exposed before all other believers?
“Finally brethren, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things” (Philippians 4:8). Apostle Paul by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit enjoins us to restrict our thought seeds and thought lives to things that are true, just pure, lovely, of good report, virtuous, and praise worthy. If you think on such things you will never displease God. But if you think on anything that contradicts this standard, you will be planting an evil harvest for yourself on the day of judgement. A brother who met Jesus when he was taken to heaven for a visit said when Jesus looked at you, He actually looked through you. If a question comes up in your heart, He will provide the answer even before you open your mouth. This is true. In Matthew 9:1-4, after Jesus forgave the man who was sick of the palsy, the scribes who were present, without opening their mouths accused Jesus of blasphemy. The scripture says because He knew their thoughts, He answered their unasked question. Watch your thoughts. He knows and records all your thoughts. One day, your thoughts will confront you. How will it be on that day?

MEMORIZE: MATTHEW 9:4 “And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think you evil in your heart?

ABRAHAM RESTITUTED

READ: GENESIS 21:9-14

“And God said to Abraham, let it not be grievous in your sight because of the lad, and because of your bond woman; in all that Sarah has said to you, hearken to her voice; for in Isaac shall your seed be called” (Genesis 21:12).
After several years of waiting for the promise; Sarah thought of a way out. She decided to give her Egyptian slave girl to Abraham so as to help God. When Abraham copulated with her, she conceived and eventually gave birth to Ishmael. Hagar was another ‘Lot’ Abraham imported from Egypt and she has been the mother of troubles and sorrows all over the world ever since. Years later, Isaac was born and the child of the slave began to mock and reproach the child of promise. Sarah could no more stand it so she requested that the slave and her son be sent packing. Abraham could stand sending Hagar out, but not Ishmael. He was grieved. But when God came into the scene, He asked him to restitute. Every carnal attempt to assist God in fulfilling His word creates fresh problems that would linger on in years to come. Be patient and wait for God. God is not a weakling. You cannot stampede Him into action. Cast your cares upon Him and wait in thanksgiving and praises. He will hear your cry.
Abraham restituted by sending away the slave and her son. There are many who have been saved but are strongly against restitution. They would ask: How can a man with three wives before being born again send away the second and third wives and retain only the first wife after knowing the Lord? That was exactly what Abraham did. There was no record that Hagar came back to that family after she was sent away. Are you living with more than one wife? You are living in adultery – Jesus who is the end of the law says it is one man, one wife from the beginning and we should return to it (Matthew 19:3-9). Hence the early church pursued monogamy. To over come sexual temptations, believers are enjoined to be intimate with their single spouse: Every man should have his own wife (1 Corinthians 7:1-3). Church leaders must be husbands of one wife (1 Timothy 3:2, 12). This is why polygamy is a rarity in the early church. God’s marriage formula is: two shall become one flesh. Not three or more. Apart from your first wife, all others are concubines and they are the load that may hinder you from heaven. Shed them off. See your pastor or senior pastor for proper counsel.

MEMORIZE: 1 CORINTHIANS 7:2 –Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband.

FORCES BEHIND THE SCENE

READ: 1 SAMUEL 23:19-29

The Ziphites came to offer king Saul information on where David was hiding among them. Saul thanked them but asked them to verify the exact place he was hiding. Obviously, he was tired of hitting and missing. He wanted to make sure that the next hit will see David in his trap. Every plan of your enemies to ensnare you will fail. Don’t be too quick to tell everyone your secrets. Whether you like it or not, agents of Satan come to church just like everyone else. Such people are devoted to sell you into the hands of those who will destroy you. If you are flippant, they will gain access to your secrets and use it against you. This is why you should not testify to half-baked miracles until they are complete. Every miracle God has started in your will not be terminated in Jesus name.
Another lesson here is the need to correctly diagnose the problem to get the appropriate antidote. What many Christians see as their problem is really not the problem. If a fellow believer is deliberately working against you, the tendency is to see him as your enemy. No, he is not. He is only a tool in the hands of demons. If you pray against him, and by chance he dies, the demons will simply enter another brother and continue from where they stopped.
Stop attacking the effect: face the cause. Satan, through his demons, is responsible for quite a number of unpleasant behaviours. When a demon of lust comes to a prayerless or powerless believer, he will yield to lustful thoughts. When your business partner suddenly becomes very greedy and is almost tearing the business apart, he is only responding to the spirit of greed. Is your marriage almost falling apart through misunderstanding, frequent quarrels and fights? It is an evidence home-breaking demons have made your home their headquarters. Don’t make the mistake of fighting your spouse. When you attack the effect, it is like taking malaria drugs for high blood pressure. It cannot work. From today, do not react instantly to situations. See beyond the immediate events and actors and pray against the unseen forces pulling the strings behind the scene and your victory will come.

MEMORIZE: JOB 1:9 –Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, Does Job hear God for nothing.

HIS ROBOT

READ: JOHN 3:25-36

Do you want to increase and have your coast enlarged beyond measure? If your answer is yes, how much are you ready decrease? God’s method of increase is through decrease. John 3:30 says, “He must increase but I must decrease.” Before you can be filled with the fullness of God, you have to empty yourself of the fullness of flesh and Satan. The degree to which flesh is crucified is what creates room for God in your heart. Your flesh must decrease for God to increase in your life. How? You must dethrone pride from your heart. Your personal ambition must be surrendered at the feet of Christ. You must be completely given up to Him. What you like to do, where you like to go must be replaced with what He wants you to do and where He wants you to go. It means you must not only become is servant but His robot.
The more of this dying process in your life, the more like Jesus you would become. A time will come when people look at you and they will not find the old you. They will look at you and will see somebody else – Jesus Christ. That is when you will wave your hands and the sick will be healed. To what extent do you resemble Jesus? Are you like Him in speech, taste, passion, conduct, forgiveness, love, power, glory, commitment to the Father, relationship with the Holy Spirit? The Lord will make you like Him from today.
A child went home after Sunday school one day, and told his mother he saw Jesus in their church. He said the laces of his shoes were loose and Jesus bent down to tie it for him. So his mother asked for a description of this Jesus and it fitted the pastor of the church. If you are willing to decrease, to go down and serve those God has put under you, before long the Jesus in you will be what they will see and no more you. A robot has no personal desire or goals other than what has been programmed into it. God has a glorious heavenly programme for your life, but as long as the flesh is there, it will fight against God’s programme. But if you can leave yourself in His hands as a robot, He will easily programme you to conform to His heavenly software. If you are still full of yourself you can be sure there is no space for God in you. Make adjustment today.

MEMORIZE: JOHN 3:30 –He must increase, but I must decrease.

RECEPTIVE TO COUNSEL?

READ: PSALM 1:1-3

In the head, you have eyes. The head also harbours ears. This tells us that the head of any organization, family, church, business concern, government, etc. should be the ears of that organization. Proverbs 11:14 says “Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counselors there is safety.” As head, you must listen to advice. Some men refuse the advice of their wives because they think nothing good can come out of a woman. Sometimes, some refuse such advice even when they know it is better than what they can offer, just because they think it makes them less of a head. It doesn’t. The success or failure of an organization is attributed to the head. The head does not know it all hence he should be open to counsel – especially godly counsel. The quality of your decision is not better than the counsel received. If you want to make good and impeccable decisions, seek counsel from those who know better.
“Blessed is the man that walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful” (Psalm 1:1). Adam wanted to be like God but went to Satan for counselling. At the end, he became like Satan. You become like the person advising you. This is why believers must shun unbelieving counsels and counsellors. Any counsel that negates God’s Word must not be accepted, because its target is to break your relationship with God in the process of solving the problem at hand.
The head must be able to listen to the suggestions of his subordinates and adopt the proven ones without feeling less of a head. A head must be a good listener. Many pastors are having problems today because they hear only their own voices. Some leaders are dying under the yoke of an unresolved issue yet feel too big to go for counselling. If you cannot find somebody to rub minds with or to share your problems with, it may that you are too high up. You need to come down. Also, in 1 Kings 18:41, there was no sign in the clouds when Elijah heard the sound of abundance of rain. As a leader, or head, you must be able to hear what is barely audible. Ask God for ears to hear the voice of God clearly. Your success depends on it.

MEMORIZE: PSALM 1:1 –Blessed is the man that walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful.