Open Heaven 2 December 2021 Thursday Daily Devotional By Pastor E. A. Adeboye

TOPIC: The Cure For Shame

MEMORISE: Then shall I not be ashamed, when I have respect unto all thy commandments. – Psalms 119:6

READ: Psalms 119:1-9 (KJV)

1 Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord.

2 Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart.

3 They also do no iniquity: they walk in his ways.

4 Thou hast commanded us to keep thy precepts diligently.

5 O that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes!

6 Then shall I not be ashamed, when I have respect unto all thy commandments.

7 I will praise thee with uprightness of heart, when I shall have learned thy righteous judgments.

8 I will keep thy statutes: O forsake me not utterly.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Esther 1-5

MESSAGE:
Genesis 3:10 says that after the devil had deceived Adam and Eve, they suffered from shame. They were ashamed because the glory of the Lord had departed from them. Thus, we see that it was disobedience that brought about shame upon the first couple. God had earlier warned them against eating the forbidden fruit, but they eventually did. Disobedience to Gods word brings untold shame and agony.

To avoid or remove shame, we must return to the word of God and live according to its dictates, as we see in today’s memory verse. Our Scripture reading says those who walk in the law of the Lord are blessed because they are undefiled. It goes further to establish the blessedness of the keepers of the testimonies of the Lord and those who seek Him with their whole heart. Why are they blessed? They are blessed because those iniquities that bring about shame are kept away from them through their obedience.

It is sad that today when Pastors teach on obedience, some people shun it because according to them, we are in the grace dispensation and not that of the law. These people forget that we cannot be in sin and expect grace to abound (Romans 6:1-2). Psalm 119:9, 11 also says:

“Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed thereto according to Thy word… Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against Thee.”

Proverbs 3:35 says the wise shall inherit glory but shame shall be the promotion of fools. The word ‘fools’ here refers to people who act as though there is no God (Psalms 53:1). When a fellow behaves as if his or her wickedness shall not be brought to book, the person is indirectly saying that there is no God anywhere to judge him. When a person travels far away from a familiar environment just to commit sin, he or she is acting like there is no God because otherwise, such a fellow would know that God is everywhere. Shame is the portion of such people. You will not be put to shame, in Jesus’ name. If this prayer would be answered, you must repent and live in complete obedience to the word of God.

PRAYER POINT
Father, help me to obey all Your commandments. Lord, keep me away from shame, in the mighty name of Jesus.

HYMN 12: In Christ Alone My Hope Is Found

  1. In Christ alone my hope is found
    He is my light, my strength, my song
    This Cornerstone, this solid ground
    Firm through the fiercest drought and storm
    What heights of love, what depths of peace
    When fears are stilled, when strivings cease
    My Comforter, my All in All
    Here in the love of Christ I stand.
  2. In Christ alone, who took on flesh
    Fullness of God in helpless babe
    This gift of love and righteousness
    Scorned by the ones He came to save
    ‘Til on that cross as Jesus died
    The wrath of God was satisfied
    For every sin on Him was laid
    Here in the death of Christ I live.
    Bought with the precious blood of Christ.
  3. There in the ground His body lay
    Light of the world by darkness slain
    Then bursting forth in glorious Day
    Up from the grave He rose again
    And as He stands in victory
    Sin’s curse has lost its grip on me
    For I am His and He is mine
    Bought with the precious blood of Christ
  4. No guilt in life, no fear in death
    This is the power of Christ in me
    From life’s first cry to final breath
    Jesus commands my destiny
    No power of hell, no scheme of man
    Can ever pluck me from His hand
    Till He returns or calls me home
    Here, in the power of Christ, I stand.