NIGERIAN TRIBUNE - Christian News

The Hiding Place (12) (Continued from last week) David is saying here that he knows that the angel of the Lord surrounds those that fear the Almighty God to deliver them from any kind of evil. He says if you do not believe him, why not taste the Lord and discover for yourself that the Lord is good. There is a very good example in a story in 2 Kings 6:15-17. Here is security, you will never fear again. This is why Jesus Christ said you should not let your heart be troubled (Matthew 24:6). Why would God go to this extent to give us a tight security? One, we are very precious to Him. He loves us. In fact, the Bible says the reason why we are more than conquerors is because God loves us. The second reason is to encourage us to stay with Him. Three is to tell those who are outside that they are missing something. Psalm 125:1-3 says: “They that trust in the LORD shall be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed but abideth for ever. As the mountains are round about Jerusalem, so the LORD is round about his people from henceforth even for ever. For the rod of the wicked shall not rest upon the lot of the righteous; lest the righteous put forth their hands unto iniquity.” The Almighty God is saying here that He is protecting us so that the wicked will not overcome us and that we will not become discouraged and begin to try sin. The implication here is that as long as you stay with the Almighty God, you do not have to worry about the wicked. If you are on the side of the Lord, please do not forget that there is danger outside, so do not go out. If the Almighty God has been kind enough to bring you into His kingdom, please stay in that kingdom. Out there, there is trouble. Take heed lest you fall. If you are born again, you should be able to say, like Paul said in his letter to Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:18: “And the Lord shall deliver me from every work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” If you are not born again, I appeal to you to go to Him and tell Him that you want to be His child. Psalm 91 :13-14: “Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet. Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. “ What does trample mean? Talking of trampling, people trample (or walk on) green grass; and then suddenly, people create a path along it. They do this by walking on it everyday. Very soon, the grass will die and the land will appear. Provided they continue to walk on it, no grass will ever grow there again. There are many of us who have difficulties in our lives and they persist because we trample on them just for some time; and just as the problem is about to vanish, we stop trampling. Keep trampling on the problems and they will disappear and will never rise again. God is asking us to trample on the lion, the dragon and the adder. All these are referring to the devil and his agents like sickness, sorrow and difficulties. We are to keep on rebuking him in the name of Jesus. The Almighty God said that we should defeat all lions and all serpents. These two animals are different in various ways; so we will consider them separately. However, what is clear is that both the lion and the serpent are creatures of God and He has made man lord over them all. Genesis 1:26 confirms this: “And God said Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.” All these animals are actually under our feet, according to Psalm 8: 6-8: ”Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet: All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beast of the field; the fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.“ God has given us enough wisdom to tame every animal in this world. In James 3:7, the Bible says: ”For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind:” Everything that the devil can be compared to are under our feet and can be tamed. Satan and his agents are under our feet. The lion is the king of animals. The lion is strong and bold. In fact, the Bible says in Proverbs 28:1 that the righteous is as bold as the lion: "The wicked flee when no man pursues: but the righteous are bold as a lion." This shows that the Almighty God recognises the boldness of the lion. The lion is bold because there is nobody for him to fear. He is ready to tear any animal that attacks him into pieces. As a matter of fact, whenever the lion wants to kill, he announces his intention to the victim. The more he roars, the more the victim knows that death is near. The lion attacks from above and kills by force. What does the lion represent spiritually? The lion represents those who by their positions and power can attack you directly and openly. An example is your boss who says you will not be promoted as long as he remains your boss. It could be your father, mother, husband, wife or anybody who wants to attack you because they have power and authority over you. If you are born again, all these people are under you. You have authority over them. There is no power that you cannot face once Jesus Christ is by your side.

Maintaining The Flow Of God’s Blessings There are many people who, after toiling in their places of assignments, attain great success. But because they don’t know how to maintain the flow of God’s blessings in their lives, the whole thing crumbles like a pack of cards. It is not just enough to achieve tremendous success in life; it is equally important to know what it takes to maintain the flow of such blessings in one’s life. This week, I will be showing you one of the ways to maintain the flow of God’s blessings tithing. Tithing is the release of a tenth of all your increase to God. The tithe means one-tenth or 10%. God’s Word says: And all the tithes of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's: it is holy unto the Lord (Leviticus 27:30). God has made it clear that tithe is a special portion of your increase, which He has reserved for Himself. It does not belong to you. It belongs to God and must be given to Him personally, as soon as your increase comes. Abraham, for instance, was blessed by God when he was called (Genesis 12). After paying tithe, he was permanently established in his blessings. It was only when Abraham had paid tithe that the other aspects of his blessings began to appear. A woman in one of our chapels had a mysterious experience. She was used to paying her tithe. A day came when she decided not to pay. Consequently, mysterious rats invaded the bonnet of her car and ate up all the wires! She got the car fixed, but the rats appeared again and ate up all the new wires. This continued, until her eyes were opened. She rushed to the office to pay tithes and the rats mysteriously disappeared! Those were not ordinary rats. They were devourers, sent on a mission from the devourers’ agency! Malachi 3:11 says: And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts. God has promised to rebuke the devourer for your sake, when you pay your tithe. The devourer can come in various forms. Frequent car breakdowns, losses, sicknesses, etc, are all manifestations of the devourer. You can put an end to the devourer’s harassment by paying your tithe regularly. Tithing is your insurance cover against destruction and disruption of all forms. God’s Word says: Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it (Malachi 3:10). It is not God’s will that you be harassed by the devourers. That is why He calls on you today to ensure you pay your tithes, as and when due. Don’t rob God of what belongs to Him. It is tithe that opens up to heaven’s riches, which has no substitute. It helps to maintain the flow of God’s blessings on your life. Don’t let any devil confuse you; the tenth of every increase that comes your way is not your own. Don’t mix it up with yours. Instead of waiting for long before you pay it, ensure you pay it as often as the increase comes your way. That’s how to be free! Remember, there is a record on you up there. When that record is in place, the blessings will answer. It is the blessings of God that make one rich and they are without sorrow (Proverbs 10:22). Paying your tithe is a vital way to maintain the flow of God’s blessings in your life. Friend, do you want to maintain the flow of God’s blessings in your life, career, pursuits and endeavours? You must indulge in the payment of tithes. But for God to accept your tithes, you must first become His child. You become a child of God by confessing your sins and accepting Jesus Christ as your Saviour and Lord. That is how to be born again. You can be born again right now as you say this prayer: Lord Jesus, I come to You today. I am a sinner. I cannot help myself. Forgive me my sins. Cleanse me with Your precious Blood. Deliver me from sin and Satan to serve the Living God. From today, I accept You as my Saviour and Lord. Thank You for saving me. Now I know I am born again! Next week, I will show you what happens when you pay your tithes and give your offerings. You are already on Eagle’s Wings! You won’t disappoint destiny! I invite you to come and fellowship with us at the Faith Tabernacle, Canaan Land, Ota, the covenant home of Winners. Our midweek services hold on Wednesdays between 5 and 7 p.m. We have two services on Sundays. The first one holds between 7 and 10 a.m., and the second one between 10.30 a.m and 12.30 p.m. May God bless you! Every exploit in life is a product of knowledge. For further reading, please get my books – Winning The War Against Poverty, Understanding Financial Prosperity and Covenant Wealth. I know this teaching has blessed you. Write and share your testimony with me through: Bishop David Oyedepo, Faith Tabernacle, Canaan Land, Ota, P.M.B. 21688, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria; Or call 7747546-8; Or E-mail: bishopoyedepo@yahoo.com
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Columnists/Contributor

The Hiding Place (12)

Maintaining The Flow Of God’s Blessings