The theme for Open Heaven Daily Devotional December 11 2023 isEmbrace His Word Completely.”
SCRIPTURE: But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” Matthew 15:9
Occasionally, particularly when I find myself amongst top academicians and theologians, they like to tell me that you can believe whatever is in the New Testament, but the Old Testament should not be believed.
This is because anytime they find something in the Old Testament that is not convenient for them, they want to brush it aside.
Malachi 3:10 for example that talks about how tithing is ignored by such people. They ignore Proverbs 3:9-10 too.
Then I ask them, what about Isaiah 54:17 which says no weapon fashioned against you shall prosper?
What about “The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want” in Psalm 23:1? What about Deuteronomy 28:13 which says you shall be head and not the tail, you shall be above only and not beneath?
I encourage you to know that every Scripture is written by the Holy Spirit and every bit of it must be embraced. Aside from Scripture, there are people who do something and say, “God will understand”.
The Bible does not say anywhere that God understands sin, but rather that He hates it. Psalm 5:4 is very clear about this: For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee.
If you call yourself a Christian, you have to stay away from sin. 2 Timothy 2:19 says: Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his.
And, let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity. If you are lukewarm, God pushes you out of Himself forcefully and if you are away from God, then you are with the devil.
He says in Revelation 3:16, “So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
”Don’t be lukewarm. If you jettison holiness during tough times, then you are not a child of God.
Open Heaven For Today 11 December 2023 Devotional: Key Point
Your claim to Christianity is not genuine if you live holy only when it is convenient for you.