THE EARTHQUAKE

READ: 1 TIMOTHY2:1-4

Today, we need to rediscover the old-fashioned revival which characterized the early church. We must pray until we are revived once again. As I read the Scriptures, time and again, I see the need for a re-enactment of the spontaneous eruption of Holy Ghost revival which was a common feature in the early church, as well as in the good old days when we were new converts. For example, in the early church, their prayers used the shake foundations. Acts 4:31testifies: “And when they have prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.” The saints prayed and there was a visible earthquake. We need to go back to the good old days. When we pray, the whole earth should shake. I know you would wonder if such things could ever happen again. You are mistaking. In 1979, I as in Mayo Hotel in Tulsa, USA praying with my late father-in-the-Lord, Pa Akindayomi, and four others. As we prayed in Pa Akindayomi’s top floor room, he told us something that led to serious prayers: that I would succeed him. It was not a very easy day. As the six of us prayed in the room, there suddenly came an urgent knock on the door. When we opened the door, it was the hotel engineer staring at us in great anxiety. He asked us what type of instruments we were playing that shook the building the way it did. We said we were not praying any instrument but were only praying. He did not believe us. He said, “But the foundation of the hotel was shaking!” We had t stop our prayers for him to search our room. When he finished searching, he still could not believe we were just praying. Mind you, this happened in 1979, and not 100 A.D. people can still pray and shake the foundations of a building. God has changed. What He did in those days, He can still do today.

MEMORIZE: 1THESSALONIANS5:17 –Pray without ceasing.

FAITHFULNESS UNTO DEATH

READ: 2TIMOTHY2:5-19

Faithfulness is an important quality of character which God expects heaven-bound saints to manifest. He expects you to remain faithful when others fail. These are perilous times. Many have denied the faith. Others have sold their souls for a morsel of bread. Compromise is the order of the day. Against this backdrop, God is looking for faithful men and women. It is easy to be faithful when believers surround you. But what happens when you come under serious pressure to deny your faith? Will you anchor hold in the storms of life? Will you stand when those whose lives are characterized by profligacy, moral bankruptcy and worldliness surround you? Will you remain faithful until death? These are questions you must answer. God is neither interested in your ability nor is He interested in your grammar. He is interested in your faithfulness. He desire faithfulness unto death. The Bible says: “Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you he crown of life.” (Revelation 2:10). God places a high premium on faithfulness. He has re served a crown for all faithful men and women. This is why the Bible says: “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.” (Revelation 12:11). If you are not succeeding against the forces of darkness, it may mean that your life is still precious to you. Maybe you are yet to lay down your life completely. The moment you are ready to die for the cause of Christ, the devil will become afraid of you. The Lord requires faithfulness unto death because every soldier is supposed to be a carbon copy of his Commander-in-Chief. 1 John 3:16 states this clearly: “By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.” The Commander-in-Chief laid down His life for us. We are to follow His example. We must be ready to lay down our lives for others. 

MEMORIZE: 1JOHN3:16–By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.

A PARADOX

READ: 1PETER4:3-11

What we behold in this present world is not what exactly we shall see in eternity. Earthly sensibilities often run contrary to heaven’s reality. Those who are wise are expected to have eternity in view in all their actions and decisions. You must do all things to the glory of God. The Bible says: “…That in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.” In all that you do, the glorification of God must be your goal. Whether you are in the choir, in the Sunday School Department, or you are a pastor, there must be only one thing paramount in your mind: that God might be glorified. You have a very good gauge, which is the glorification of God. Before you do anything, you must ask whether God will be glorified through it or not. This will serve as a guide in your decision-making process. You must always remember that those who sow in tears reap in joy. Remember, also, that weeping may endure for a night but joy comes in the morning (Psalm 30:5). Remember that it is special people that are called to become God’s partners. If God has chosen you, you must be ready to take both the pleasure and the pains of His service; the tears as well as the laughter; the weariness, the misunderstanding and the ingratitude of the people you are called to serve. You have to always remember that thevery men that He created crucified the One who made the heaven and the earth on the tree that He created. He wept at the garden of Gethsemane. The tears shed by our Saviour have granted us the joy of salvation. Although there may be confusion, emptiness, darkness, sorrow and tears, but in the morning, there will be light, joy and victory. One day, we will arrive where there will be no more nights. We will get to the city of everlasting joy. Then all our earthly sorrows will become an endless stream of joy. Our pains will become pleasure; our present shame will become indescribable glory, while our earthly trials shall be turned to triumph. What a glorious day!

MEMORIZE: 1PETER2:12–Having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.