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Devotional

THE LORD GOD ALMIGHTY IS ABLE.

“And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.” 2 Corinthians 9:8

For 400 years, the children of Israel cried out to God for freedom. But when He finally delivered them out of Egypt, they could not get the Egypt out of them.

They had forgotten how to live in freedom. Pharaoh had dominated every aspect of their lives. He controlled where they worked, what they ate, where they lived, and even whether their children lived or died.

After God destroyed Egypt with the plagues, He led the Israelites out of the land. But three days into the wilderness, the children of Israel began to complain. After all the miracles they had witnessed, they began to question: Can God bring us water in the desert? Can God keep us from starving? Can God give us meat?

Have we, like the Israelites, been delivered from Egypt but still hold on to the Egypt inside of us? Do we still question His ability to deliver, to provide, and to satisfy us?

Know, with complete confidence, that God is able. He has overwhelmed us with grace, supplied all of our needs, and has equipped us to do good works. Can God? Yes, He can. God can heal your body. God can restore your marriage. God can mend your broken heart. He is able to do beyond what you can even imagine! Thanks be to God for His unspeakable gifts!

LET’S PRAY
Heavenly Father, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour open my heart to Your Word for inspiration and revelation to appreciate and trust You always that You are more than able to carry me through all life’s challenges in Jesus Name.

BENEDICTION
May the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious unto you and give you His peace. FountainπŸ˜‡

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Devotional

DIVINE ASSIGNMENT

And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord, saying, Is the Lord among us, or not? Then came Amalek, and fought with Israel in Rephidim. Exodus 17:7-8

This proclaims the fact that the smitten Rock, which gushed forth with a river of water, was not brought down because of the Righteousness and Holiness of the people, but strictly because of the Grace of God; however, for the Believer to stay on a wrong path of unbelief will ultimately bring total destruction.

The reception of the Holy Spirit, symbolised by the Smitten Rock pouring out life-giving water, immediately causes war. “Then came Amalek, and fought with Israel.” Up to this point, God had fought for them. Israel was to stand still and see His Salvation; but the Command now is to go out and fight.

There is an immense difference between Justification and Sanctification. The one is Christ fighting FOR us; the other, the Holy Spirit fighting IN us. The entrance of the new nature is the beginning of warfare with the old.

Amalek pictures the old nature. He was the grandson of Esau, who, before and after birth, tried to murder Jacob, and preferred the mess of pottage to the birthright. This carnal nature wars against the Spirit. “It is not subject to the Law of God, neither indeed can be”; and God has decreed war against it forever.

The only way that “Amalek,” i.e., the flesh, can be defeated is by the Believer ever placing his Faith in the “Smitten Rock,” i.e., “But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” Gal. 6:14. Otherwise there is no victory! “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.” Gal. 2:20-21

LET’S PRAY
Heavenly Father, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour open my heart to Your Word for revelation and direction concerning my now and future in Jesus Name.

BENEDICTION
Now the Lord of peace HIMSELF give you peace ALWAYS by ALL means. The Lord is Faithful and is with you. Fountain!πŸ˜‡

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Devotional

HE ALWAYS GIVE DIRECTION WHEN WE CALL UNTO HIM

And Moses cried unto the Lord, saying, What shall I do unto this people? they be almost ready to stone me. And the Lord said unto Moses, Go on before the people, and take with thee of the elders of Israel; and thy rod, wherewith thou smotest the river, take in thine hand, and go. Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. Exodus 17:4-6

One of the most prominent traits of the character of Moses is that, at the occurrence of a difficulty, he always carried it straight to God.

It seems strange that God, Who professed to love them should lead Israel into a desert, both foodless and waterless. But love led them there that they might learn the desperate unbelief of their own hearts and the unfailing faithfulness of God’s Heart. Only in a desert reveal what He can be to those who trust Him; for only there was Israel dependent upon Him for everything. Without God – nothing; with God – everything.

The water from the Smitten Rock foretold the Living Water, the Holy Spirit, to be sent forth by the Smitten Saviour. The Holy Spirit was shed forth as the fruit of Christ’s Sacrifice “and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ” 1 Cor 10:4. The Rock was smitten by the very same rod of judgement that smote the land of Egypt.

The “Rock” was a Type of Christ being smitten by God “Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.” Isaiah 53: 4, which was done at the Cross, and which brought forth Eternal Life at least for all who will believe. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3: 16

The fact of the Cross guaranteed the payment of all sin, past, present and future, the giving of Eternal Life, and the advent of the Holy Spirit in a new dimension, at least for all who will. In fact, Christ, the Cross, our Faith, and the Holy Spirit constitute the basis of Christianity. Read Galatians Chapter 5.

LET’S PRAY
Heavenly Father, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour open my spiritual eyes and ears in Your Word to build my Faith to trust You always. Open my heart for understanding Your Word for revelation and inspiration concerning my life, ministry and current situation in the glorious name of Jesus Christ.

BENEDICTION
May the God of HOPE fill you with all JOY and PEACE in believing, so that by the POWER of the Holy Spirit you may abound in HOPE. May you have Faith in Christ and what He did at the Cross be established, well grounded with His peace and tranquility by all means. πŸ˜‡

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Devotional

TRUST THE LORD COMPLETELY

And Moses said, Eat that today; for today is a sabbath unto the Lord: today ye shall not find it in the field. Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the sabbath, in it there shall be none. And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none. Exodus 16:25-27

Man has little heart for God’s rest. His nature is bad. He can neither rest with, nor work for, God. If God makes a rest for him, he will not keep it; and if God tells him to work, he will not do it. In this Chapter, Israel at least to a certain degree refuse the Sabbath as a gift.

The Sabbath, the day of rest, here suddenly reappears after a silence of more than 2,000 years. Redemption being accomplished, the Sabbath a gift to Israel.

The Sabbath was to be a day of “rest,” symbolising the “rest” which one finds in Christ, and only in Christ. Hence He says “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Mat. 11:28.

Since the”Sabbath” is only a symbol of the “rest” that one finds in Christ, once the reality had come, the symbolism is no longer needed. Hence, the strict observance of this ritual was not carried over into the New Covenant. And yet, when one accepts Christ, following Him by placing one’s Faith entirely in Christ and the Cross, this is the same as “keeping the Sabbath,” because the Sabbath prefigured Christ and the Rest. Hebrews 4

LET’S PRAY
O Lord, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour open the ears of my heart to Your Word with clear understanding for inspiration and revelation concerning my situation to do Your Will in Jesus Name.

BENEDICTION
And the very God of peace SANCTIFY you (me ….) WHOLLY; and I pray God your WHOLE spirit and soul and body be preserved BLAMELESS unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is he that calleth you (me …), who also will DO it.

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Devotional

DEVELOP YOUR APPETITE FOR HEAVENLY THINGS ONLY

And it came to pass, that at even the quails came up, and covered the camp: and in the morning the dew lay round about the host. And when the dew that lay was gone up, behold, upon the face of the wilderness there lay a small round thing, as small as the hoar frost on the ground. And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which the Lord hath given you to eat. Exodus 16:13-15

The mention of the “dew” in this manner implies that, which looked like dew was, in part, dew, but not wholly so. The next verse explains it to a greater degree.

The Manna prefigured the descent of the True Bread, of which if a man eat he shall live forever ” I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” John 6:51. It was a test of appetite and obedience. In Egypt, Israel had slave food; in the desert, Angel’s food. The test quickly revealed that the natural man has no appetite for Heavenly things. The people soon called it “light food.”

The Manna was so precious that it could not bear contact with the earth. It fell upon the dew and had to be gathered ere the sun was up, and freshly every morning. Yesterday’s Manna did not do for today, nor today’s for tomorrow (Numbers 9). Thus the Christian feed upon Christ every day, as He reveals Himself in the Scriptures. “And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.” Luke 9:23-24

Israel in the desert presents a striking picture! Egypt behind them, Canaan before them, the wilderness around them and the Manna above them. They were a Heaven-born people and a Heaven-bound people; they ate Heaven-baked Bread.

In looking back toward Egypt, they murmured; when looking forward toward the Wilderness, they saw the Glory of the Lord.

Jesus as the Bread of Life, and He alone is, can only be had by virtue of the Cross. As l have repeatedly stated, Christ is the Source, while the Cross is the means. Read Ephesians 1.

LET’S PRAY
Ever Faithful Father, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour, tune my heart to Your Word to hear what You want me to hear, see what You` want me to see, do what You want me to do and say what You want me to say in the name of Jesus Christ.

BENEDICTION
Now, the Lord of peace HIMSELF give you peace ALWAYS by ALL means. The Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Fountain πŸ˜‡

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AN ANSWER IS ALWAYS GUARANTEED

And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah. And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink? And he cried unto the Lord; and the Lord shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet: there he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them, Exodus 15:23-25

Marah means “bitter.” While the wilderness may and will make manifest the weakness of God’s Saints and as well, our failures, this is only to magnify the Power and Mercy of Him Who brought us into the place of testing. Further we must understand, God always has in view our ultimate good. The bitter waters of Marah typify life and its disappointment.

We find here that God tests faith in order to strengthen and enrich it. The test can come at anytime, either before a great victory or after a great victory. Israel journeyed three days in the wilderness and found no water. When water was found, there was an added trial – the water was bitter.

The “bitterness” typified life’s journey. At times, it’s not a pleasant journey. There is only one answer to the episodes of bitterness that comes to every Believer; it is the Cross of Christ. As “bitterness” represented the pitfalls of life, which cannot be escaped, likewise, the “Tree” represents the Cross.

Facing the “bitter waters,” Moses “cried unto the LORD.” That is what every Believer should do. An answer is guaranteed. It is found here in God’s Word.

The Lord told Moses to cut down a “Tree” which was growing nearby. It was to be “cast into the waters.” That being done, “the waters were made sweet”

In this episode, the Lord is telling us that the Cross is the answer to every problem. If the “Tree” would be placed into the vicissitudes of life, we will find that the Lord will turn the bitterness into sweetness. As here enjoined, the answer is the Cross, always the Cross! “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.” 1 Peter 2:24-25

LET’S PRAY
Heavenly Father, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour connect my heart to Your Word for inspiration and revelation to trust You more in every situation in Jesus Name.

BENEDICTION
Now the Peace of God, the Sanctifying Peace which passes all understanding beyond the pale of human comprehension, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus our Lord and Saviour always. Fountain πŸ˜‡

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THE LORD IS MY STRENGTH AND SONG

Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the Lord, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. The Lord is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father’s God, and I will exalt him. The Lord is a man of war: the Lord is his name. Exodus 15:1-3

There was no singing in Egypt; there was groaning; singing only follows Redemption; Moses began and ended his wilderness life with a song. That of Deuteronomy 32:1-43 is the one referred to “And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints.” Revelation 15:3. Christ is our King by virtue of what He did at the Cross and our Faith in that Finished Work.

The Red Sea and the Jordan River typify the death and Resurrection of Christ. The Red Sea pictures death to sin; the Jordan River, death to self. The one separates from Egypt; the other, from the wilderness.

This, the song of Exodus 15, is the oldest song of praise in existence. The greatest poets unite in admiration of its surpassing beauty and sublimity. It is a song of praise; it’s theme is Jehovah-Jesus; it praises Him for His destruction of the enemy. It begins with Redemption and ends with Glory. In fact, this is the first of ten songs of praise recorded in the Bible; the last is “And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.” Revelation 14:3. They were Redeemed by trusting Christ and what He did at the Cross, which is the only way anyone can be Redeemed.

LET’S PRAY
Ancient of Days, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour open my heart to Your Word for revelation to appreciate Your Wonders. Lace my lips with new songs in praise and thanksgiving for all You continue doing in my life in Jesus Name.

BENEDICTION
Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, surround you with His peace ALWAYS by ALL means. Fountain πŸ˜‡

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THE LORD IS FAITHFUL

And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever. Exodus 12:13-14

Salvation from the “plague” of Judgement is afforded only by the shed Blood of the Lamb, and Faith in that shed Blood.

All sinners are justly doomed by God to death. But He loves them as He loved the firstborn; therefore, the Lamb of God has suffered that death. His Precious Blood, that is, His Priceless Life poured out, attest the fact.

The Word of God promises eternal safety to anyone who will seek Salvation in that Atoning Saviour. The Believer in Christ knows, therefore, that he shall never perish; and this knowledge is based on two facts outside of himself, which are:
1. The preciousness of Christ’s Blood to God.
2. The Faithfulness of God to His Own Promise.

Israel was to keep the Passover “for a memorial,” and was to do so “forever.” This referred to the fact that their Salvation, prosperity, freedom, and strength all were derived from “the Blood of the Lamb.” It has not changed for the modern Believer. Everything we are, and l speak of Righteousness, can only be credited to the Shed Blood of the Lamb.

All of this represented the Cross, which means that it must ever be the anchor and the Object of our Faith.

Ephesians 2:13-18 The Sacrificial Atoning Death of Jesus Christ transformed the relations of God with mankind. In Christ, God reconciled not a nation, but “a world” to Himself.

LET’S PRAY
Ever Faithful God, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour open my heart to Your Word for inspiration and revelation concerning my now and future in Jesus Name.

BENEDICTION
Now the Lord of peace HIMSELF give you peace ALWAYS by ALL means. The Lord is Faithful and is with you. Fountain!πŸ˜‡

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ONLY BELIEVE EXCLUSIVELY IN CHRIST AND HIS FINISHED WORK AT THE CROSS

For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord. And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. Genesis 12:12-13

The words “pass through” could be translated “go through,” since the word used is entirely unconnected with the “Passover.” The Lord did not personally go through the land of Egypt that particular night, but rather that He used an Angel.

He said, “When I see the blood,” not “When I see your particular Church,” or “your good works,” or “your particular Denomination,” or whatever. It’s “When I see the blood, l will pass over you.”

The worthiness of the person is not taken into question, simply because, in the eyes of God, there is no worthiness. The goodness of the person is also not taken into question, simply because, in the eyes of God, no one can really be called “good.”

That which characterizes acceptance by God is that the Blood of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, which refers to what He did for us at the Cross of Calvary, be applied to our hearts and lives, which is done by Faith. “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:” Romans 5:1 and Ephesians 2:8-9.

This simply means that both the believing sinner and the believing Christian are to place their Faith exclusively in Christ and what Christ did for us at the Cross. Romans 6:1-14

The Holy Spirit states “Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:” 1 Cor. 5:7 that the Passover pictured Christ’s Sacrifice of Himself in order to save sinners sentenced to die.

Two great facts appear in the first Passover: the certain doom of the firstborn and his certain Salvation. He was doomed to death by God, not because of his conduct, but because of his birth. This latter fact, he could not alter; and he was therefore, hopelessly lost. He was absolutely saved, because of the value of the life sacrifice for him.

He knew he was saved because God had pledged Himself to most certainly save all who sprinkled the shed blood upon the door posts, all a Type of the price Jesus would pay on Calvary’s Cross in order that we might be saved. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16

LET’S PRAY
O Lord, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour open the ears of my heart to Your Word with clear understanding concerning my situation to do Your Will in Jesus Name.

BENEDICTION
And the very God of peace SANCTIFY you (me ….) WHOLLY; and I pray God your WHOLE spirit and soul and body be preserved BLAMELESS unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is he that calleth you (me …), who also will DO it.

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SALVATION IS ALL OF GOD AND NONE OF MAN

Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house: And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of the souls; every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats: Exodus 12:3-5

The whole system, spiritual, political and ecclesiastical was received by Divine Revelation, commanded by God, and merely established by the agency of Moses and Aaron. This proclaims the fact that Salvation is all of God and none of man.

In Genesis 4, it is a lamb for each person. Now it is a lamb for each house. Upon the giving of the Law, it would be a lamb for the entirety of the nation. But when Jesus came, He would be the lamb for the entirety of the world. John 1:29

The lamb, and all that pertained to it, symbolised Jesus in His Atoning Work.

1. “Your lamb shall be without blemish:” Jesus was without blemish.
2. “A male of the first year”: Jesus was the Second Man, the Last Adam. 1 Cor. 15:45, 47

3. “And you shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month”: This was for further inspection in order that no blemish be found. For 33 1/2 years no fault was found with Christ. Satan had no part in Him.

4. “The congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening”: Jesus would die at the time of the evening Sacrifice, 3 p.m.

5. “And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door posts of the houses”: As the blood of the lamb was shed, Christ shed His Life’s Blood. As the blood of the lamb was to be applied to the houses, likewise, and by faith, it is to be applied to our hearts and lives. Ephesians 2.

6. “And they shall eat the flesh, and let nothing of it remain”: One must partake of all of Christ, which refers to believing all He did for us at the Cross.
7. “The lamb was to be eaten with unleavened bread”: This typified the perfection of Christ. There was no evil, i.e., “leaven” in Him.

8. “And you shall eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hands”: As Israel was leaving Egypt, (and they were to be prepared to leave at a moment’s time), likewise, the believing sinner, upon accepting Christ, is to leave the world and its system behind, and do so forever.

LET’S PRAY
Ever Living Father, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour open my heart to Your Word for inspiration and revelation to do Your Will daily and not my will.

BENEDICTION
The peace of God, that’s the Sanctifying Peace, which transcends all understanding that’s beyond the pale of human comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds through what Christ did at the Cross. Fountain πŸ˜‡