OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2024
MEMORISE:
Thus saith the Lord God; Woe unto the foolish prophets, that follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing! Ezekiel 13:3
READ: Ezekiel 13:1-6:
1 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel that prophesy, and say thou unto them that prophesy out of their own hearts, Hear ye the word of the Lord;
3 Thus saith the Lord God; Woe unto the foolish prophets, that follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing!
4 O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts.
5 Ye have not gone up into the gaps, neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel to stand in the battle in the day of the Lord.
6 They have seen vanity and lying divination, saying, The Lord saith: and the Lord hath not sent them: and they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word.
MESSAGE:
True prophecies come from the mind of God. A prophet hears from God and relays the message to the people.
Whenever a prophecy is given based on feelings, that prophecy is false, and the Bible describes people who do this as fools (Ezekiel 13:3). A true prophecy is an echo of what God has said.
When I was younger in ministry, I recall prophesying that a particular airline will never suffer loss because I was excited over their services to the church. I prophesied based on my feelings without hearing what God had to say.
Not long after, the airline suffered a plane crash. I should have just prayed for them and blessed them for their benevolence, rather than giving a prophecy in my excitement.
I learnt my lesson from that – if God has not spoken, I do not prophesy. Beloved, don’t be too much in a hurry to say ‘God said’ when God didn’t say anything.
Don’t allow pride to push you to prophesy; prophesy only according to the will of God. Push pride aside so that you can hear God clearly.
Long before the Nigerian elections in 2023, people were agitated as to who will become the next president. They put pressure on me to tell them what the outcome of the elections will be.
Even with all that pressure, I made sure not to say anything I had not heard God say because I knew that it would be a lie.
I told them a few weeks before the election, “God has still not spoken. Until God speaks, I won’t say anything.”
You must become comfortable with keeping quiet when God is quiet. If you are truly His mouthpiece, when His mouth is shut, yours will be also.
Prophecy must also be in line with the word of God.
If a prophecy does not echo the word of God in the Scriptures, it is false. A man came to me and said, “I heard that you are a prophet, and anything you say comes to pass. Can you tell me my future?” I responded, “That is easy. Are you born again?” He said, “No”.
“Then, your future will be terrible,” I responded. He asked, “How do you know? You’ve not even asked for my name.” I told him, “Isaiah 3:11 says, ‘Woe unto the wicked.’” Anyone who has not accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour is condemned already (John 3:17-18).
A true prophecy comes from God and always aligns with His word in the Scriptures.
KEY POINT:
Any prophecy that does not echo God’s word is fake. Let it not come out of your mouth.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Amos 5-9
AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE
HYMN 1: All hail the power of Jesus’ name
1. All hail the power of Jesus’ name!
Let angels prostrate fall.
Bring forth the royal diadem,
and crown him Lord of all.
Bring forth the royal diadem,
and crown him Lord of all!
2. O seed of Israel’s chosen race
now ransomed from the fall,
hail him who saves you by his grace,
and crown him Lord of all.
Hail him who saves you by his grace,
and crown him Lord of all!
3. Let every tongue and every tribe
responsive to his call,
to him all majesty ascribe,
and crown him Lord of all.
To him all majesty ascribe,
and crown him Lord of all!
4. Oh, that with all the sacred throng
we at his feet may fall!
We’ll join the everlasting song
and crown him Lord of all.
We’ll join the everlasting song
and crown him Lord of all.
