INSTANT RESTORATION: OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL, 4TH OCTOBER 2018

MEMORISE:

And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian. Luke 4:27

READ: 2 Kings 5:8-14


8 And it was so, when Elisha the man of God had heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, Wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes? let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.

9 So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha.
10 And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.

11 But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the LORD his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper.

12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage.

13 And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean?

14 Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.

MESSAGE

Instantaneous restoration is a miracle that occurs suddenly. Immediate resolution of human problems and challenges are highly desired and sought after.

The Bible contains several accounts of divine interventions that resulted in instant miracles, signs and wonders, one of which is the healing of Naaman.

Naaman had been a leper for many years, but after he dipped himself into Jordan River seven times, he was cleansed immediately and his skin became like that of a little child (2 Kings 5:14). Similarly, the woman with the issue of blood had suffered for twelve years before she met with Jesus (Mark 5:25-29).

As a matter of fact, she had exhausted all she had without any solution. However, immediately she touched the hem of Jesus’ garment, her issue of blood ceased. Another example of instant restoration is seen in 2 Kings 7:1.

After about three years of terrible famine, Elisha prophesied that there would be a food surplus in Samaria within 24 hours, and it happened as he said. In Matthew 8:3, the moment Jesus touched the leprous fellow who had been in that condition for years, the man became cleansed instantly.

Also in John 5:1-9, once the impotent man who had been at the pool of Bethesda for thirty-eight years heard the words of Jesus, he was completely made whole. Just as it happened in al these examples, I pray that whatever you are passing through at the moment will receive the immediate attention of heaven, and you will get instant restoration in Jesus’ Name.

Note however that behind every seemingly instantaneous miracle, there has been meticulous obedience, stubborn faith, perseverance, serious fasting and prayers, and sometimes prolong pain, sorrow and shame.

What appeared on the surface as instant restoration did not exactly come easy for Naaman, Joseph, Hannah, the people of Samaria, Zechariah and Elisabeth, and several others. Most of these people paid the price in perseverance, stubborn faith, fasting and prayers, etc. for example, the people of Samaria had to endure a situation where the dung of birds became an expensive delicacy and some women actually ate their own children.

In the case of Zechariah and Elisabeth, they waited for so long that they completely lost any hope of bearing a child. The impotent man at the pool of Bethesda had no hope of restoration after thirty-eight years of waiting for an opportunity that kept eluding him.

One thing that kept this people going was perseverance. Perseverance is maintaining your faith in God even in trying times .Every Christian is expected to faithfully endure hardship, persecution and trials.

Through consistent prayers, we are expected to remain steadfast in the face of opposition, attack and discouragement (James 5:13, Ephesians 6:18). I pray that God will grant you the type of endurance that can weather any of life’s storms without giving up in Jesus’ Name.

PRAYER POINT:


Father, please uphold me and see me through every storm of life in Jesus’ Name.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:  Isaiah 33-35, Luke 1:57-80

AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE

HYMN 4:  TRUST AND OBEY.

1. When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.

o Refrain:
Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

2. Not a shadow can rise, not a cloud in the skies,
But His smile quickly drives it away;
Not a doubt or a fear, not a sigh or a tear,
Can abide while we trust and obey.

3. Not a burden we bear, not a sorrow we share,
But our toil He doth richly repay;
Not a grief or a loss, not a frown or a cross,
But is blessed if we trust and obey.

4. But we never can prove the delights of His love
Until all on the altar we lay;
For the favor He shows, for the joy He bestows,
Are for them who will trust and obey.

5. Then in fellowship sweet we will sit at His feet,
Or we’ll walk by His side in the way;
What He says we will do, where He sends we will go;
Never fear, only trust and obey.