OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL
DATE: SUNDAY DECEMBER 1ST 2024
TOPIC: YOUR HOMETOWN MUST BE SAVED
MEMORY VERSE:
“And they departed, and went through the towns, preaching the gospel, and healing every where.” - (Luke 9:6)READ: GENESIS 18:16-33 (KJV)
16 And the men rose up from thence, and looked toward Sodom: and Abraham went with them to bring them on the way.
17 And the LORD said, Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do;
18 Seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?
19 For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do justice and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him.
20 And the LORD said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous;
21 I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come unto me; and if not, I will know.
22 And the men turned their faces from thence, and went toward Sodom: but Abraham stood yet before the LORD.
24 And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?
25 Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein?
26 That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?
27 And the LORD said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.
28 And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, which am but dust and ashes:
29 Peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty righteous: wilt thou destroy all the city for lack of five? And he said, If I find there forty and five, I will not destroy it.
30 And he spake unto him yet again, and said, Peradventure there shall be forty found there. And he said, I will not do it for forty's sake.
31 And he said unto him, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Peradventure there shall thirty be found there. And he said, I will not do it, if I find thirty there.
31 And he said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord: Peradventure there shall be twenty found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for twenty's sake.
32 And he said, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this once: Peradventure ten shall be found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for ten's sake.
33 And the LORD went his way, as soon as he had left communing with Abraham: and Abraham returned unto his place.
MESSAGE:
In today’s Bible reading, Abraham was walking towards Sodom with the three ‘men’ who had visited him. On their way, the Lord told him of His plan to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah because of their numerous sins. I believe that God told Abraham His plan because He wanted him to intercede for the people in those cities.Abraham interceded, and God accepted everything that he said. However, there were not enough righteous people in Sodom and Gomorrah, so they still ended up being destroyed. This shows that even when God calls for intercessors to pray against destruction in a particular nation or city, if He cannot find enough Christians there, the land may still be destroyed.
When Abraham was interceding for Sodom, his nephew, Lot, must have been on his mind. I am sure that he quickly did a little bit of Arithmetic and counted Lot, his wife, and his daughters. He also probably assumed that Lot’s daughters had fiancés whose parents were also there. After his quick calculation, he must have come to the conclusion that there must have been at least ten children of God in the city. That must have been the reason he settled with God and said, “Lord, if you get to Sodom and find ten righteous people, will you spare the city because of them?” God accepted, but unfortunately, there weren’t up to ten righteous people in the city. I pray that whenever God visits your hometown, He will find more than ten righteous people there, and His mercy will prevail over judgment.
This is why you should do something urgently about your hometown. You must make sure that the light of the gospel shines there so that even if some people commit evil acts that should ordinarily draw the wrath of God, He will consider His children and spare the land. Ensure that you regularly preach the gospel to the people of your hometown so that you can turn as many souls as possible to the path of righteousness. The Bible says that if you do this, you are wise, and great glory lies ahead of you (Daniel 12:3).
Jesus specifically told His followers to start preaching the gospel from their hometowns when He said in Acts 1:8 that they shall be witnesses unto Him in Jerusalem first before progressing to Judea, Samaria, and the rest of the world.
Beloved, preach and teach the word of God to the people in your hometown. This is God’s will, and as you obey, you and your hometown will be blessed tremendously.
ACTION POINT:
Preach the word of God and start a fellowship in your hometown to ensure that the light of God shines there.BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 1 CORINTHIANS 14-16
AUTHOR PASTOR E A ADEBOYE
HYMNAL: 20 - STAND UP! STAND UP FOR JESUS
Representative Text
1 Stand up, stand up for Jesus
ye soldiers of the cross;
lift high his royal banner,
it must not suffer loss.
From vict'ry unto vict'ry
his army he shall lead
till ev'ry foe is vanquished
and Christ is Lord indeed.
2 Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
the trumpet call obey;
forth to the mighty conflict
in this his glorious day.
Ye that are men now serve him
against unnumbered foes;
let courage rise with danger
and strength to strength oppose.
3 Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
stand in his strength alone;
the arm of flesh will fail you,
ye dare not trust your own.
Put on the gospel armor,
each piece put on with prayer;
where duty calls or danger,
be never wanting there.
4 Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
the strife will not be long;
this day the noise of battle,
the next, the victor's song.
To him that overcometh
a crown of life shall be;
he with the King of glory
shall reign eternally.