Bible In One Year-Day 179 (Saturday, June 28, 2014)

Commentary: Ezra4-6. Eventually, the adversaries (i.e. the foreigners who occupied Judah while they were in exile) heard about the rebuilding and repairing of the Temple. They decided to cajole Zerubbabel and the elders of Judah into accommodating them in building the Temple. The Judeans refused to compromise. Then the adversaries raised serial means of discouragement against the Judeans;

Ezra 4:4-5 “Then the people of the land weakened (discouraged) the hands of the people of Judah, and troubled them in building, And hired counsellors against them, to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.”

By extension, this opposition lingered into the reign of Esther’s husband, Ahasuerus, Ez4:6. Artaxerxes reigned after Esther’s husband and a letter was sent to him by the opposition to stop the Jews from building the Temple. He approved it;

Ezra 4:21 “Give ye now commandment to cause these men to cease, and that this city be not builded, until another commandment shall be given from me.”

He responded based on the content of the letter he received and he thought the Jews might revolt if the Temple was completed which might have great effect on the king’s treasury. When the opposition got the letter from Artaxerxes, they confronted the Judeans forcefully;

Ezra 4:23-24 “Now when the copy of king Artaxerxes’ letter was read before Rehum, and Shimshai the scribe, and their companions, they went up in haste to Jerusalem unto the Jews, and made them to cease by force and power.Then ceased the work of the house of God which is at Jerusalem. So it ceased unto the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.”

Surprisingly, he was still the one who sent Nehemiah to Jerusalem.

The building only started at the instructions of God by the mouths of Prophets Haggai and Zechariah who also joined in building with them. A report was made to King Darius about this in a letter. In the letter, the king was asked to search if it was true that King Cyrus commanded the project. The truth was found, Ezra6:3. The king then sent a reply to Tattenai the governor who wrote the letter to him;

Ezra 6:7 “Let the work of this house of God alone; let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews build this house of God in his place.”

Not only did he take decision based on what was discovered from the archives, the king placed a curse as a decree on any opposition to the project;

Ezra 6:11-12 “Also I have made a decree, that whosoever shall alter this word, let timber be pulled down from his house, and being set up, let him be hanged thereon; and let his house be made a dunghill for this.And the God that hath caused his name to dwell there destroy all kings and people, that shall put to their hand to alter and to destroy this house of God which is at Jerusalem. I Darius have made a decree; let it be done with speed.”

It was the greatest mistake for the governor to refer the king to the archives. But since the rebuilding was by prophetic instructions, every creation must work along with it;

Proverbs 21:1 “The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.”

The lesson we ought to learn from this is that faithfulness to God’s course would stir up serious opposition which could take any course. However, in the face of oppositions, hold your peace and wait for God to speak;

Isaiah 30:15 “For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength: and ye would not.”

There is great profit in waiting on the Lord; it is part of the old path for us to tread in order to overcome;

Isaiah 40:31 “But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”

Let us seek for the old path where we could find rest. Let us listen to the trumpet’s sound, wherewith we could escape the calamity to come. Our reading for today is Ezra7-10. Keep the fire burning and alive.

Exodus 14:14 “The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.”

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Pastor Supo Abayode

+1-302-230-6792

Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries

Delaware, USA

Bible In One Year-Day 178 (Friday, June 27, 2014)

Commentary: Ezra1-3. Ezra gave account of the return of Judah after 70 years of captivity as prophesied by Jeremiah. Babylon carried Judah captive. While in exile, Judah built houses and had fairly good living, even with freedom of religion. At the end of the 70 years, God empowered Prince Cyrus II of Persia to overcome Babylon and set the Jews free. The same Cyrus was named in Isaiah 45. God raised him up for the freedom of His people;

Isaiah 45:13 “I have raised him up in righteousness, and I will direct all his ways: he shall build my city, and he shall let go my captives, not for price nor reward, saith the LORD of hosts.”

After taking over, he gave the Jews the grace, by the issuance of a decree, to return to their land, Ezra1:2-4. The Exodus was led by Zerubbabel who was appointed by the Persian king as Governor. However, while on exile, some foreigners from Assyria and suburbs had occupied some of the land. The Jews faced some opposition for about seven months in trying to settle down and repair the altar of the Lord as ordered by Cyrus. The first attempt they made to build the altar was in fear. They, however, continued other religious activities as commanded by Moses. They were able to lay the foundation of the Temple in the second year.

The return of the Judeans was a testimony to God’s faithfulness. Whatever vision we receive from God, we can only honor Him by believing, trusting and waiting on Him. The vision is to give us strength when going weary and to build our faith. God is never late. In His plan, no one could hasten Him. His promises are as good as His covenant to him that is in Christ;

2 Corinthians 1:20 “For all the promises of God in him are yes, and in him Amen, to the glory of God by us.”

To enjoy God fully, do not depart from the old land mark. Abraham won God’s heart by believing in what He told him; honoring God by His word, i.e. not regarding Him as a liar or an unfaithful God. In the same way, we can honor God by believing in the vision he has shown you knowing that He is not a liar, but a faithful Father worthy of trust. Man can fail his promises, kings can change their mind, friends can disappoint you, but God is faithful to His word given to you either in visions or dreams. Those who had testimonies in the scriptures are those who took God at His word. Believing His Word is believing in Jesus Christ.

Let us seek for the old path where we could find rest. Let us listen to the trumpet’s sound, wherewith we could escape the calamity to come. Our reading for today is Ezra4-6. Keep the fire burning and alive.

Pastor Supo Abayode

+1-302-230-6792

Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries

Delaware, USA

Bible In One Year-Day 177 (Thursday, June 26, 2014)

Commentary: Lamentation4-5. Judah, who used to be admired and respected among nations found herself in an unfortunate condition just like a queen becoming a slave. Imagine the pre-state of Judah according to the questions in the this verse;

Lamentations 2:15 “All that pass by clap their hands at thee; they hiss and wag their head at the daughter of Jerusalem, saying, Is this the city that men call The perfection of beauty, The joy of the whole earth?”

The spirit and the valor the Israelites had while entering the Promised Land was so admirable and full of glory. But she got herself involved in another thing that changed her state to the point that she became a ridicule to the enemy and a shame to God; a queen became a slave with hard work.

Lamentations 1:3 “Judah is gone into captivity because of affliction, and because of great servitude(under affliction and hard servitude, NKJV): she dwelleth among the heathen, she findeth no rest: all her persecutors overtook her between the straits.”

Her sin and neglect of God led her into unfortunate captivity. The Bible made a statement against her which is worth considering;

Lamentations 1:9 “… she remembereth not her last end; therefore she came down wonderfully: she had no comforter. O LORD, behold my affliction: for the enemy hath magnified himself.”

Here is the NKJV interpretation of the above;

“… she did not consider her destiny; Therefore, her collapse was awesome; she had no comforter. “O Lord, behold my affliction, For the enemy is exalted””

When a man neglects or refuses to consider destiny, the first thing that happens is a broken relationship with God. The consequence of such is that the enemy is exalted because the enemy’s mission is to kill and destroy destinies.

There are two remarkably beautiful physical places in the Bible; the Garden of Eden and the nation of Judah. These two places were prepared for and occupied by the people of God. Unfortunately, sin drove these occupants out of the places and the beauties of the places faded away. A man’s life could only be beautified by the glory of God. But if the same God is neglected and ignored, His glory leaves with Him. When one forgets God the soul of such is removed far from peace and real prosperity is out rightly forgotten.

Isaiah 48:18 “O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea:”

Unfortunately, the spiritual leaders were attributed as major part of the problems of the Judeans because they prophesied lies and saw false visions;

Lamentations 2:14 “Thy prophets have seen vain and foolish things for thee: and they have not discovered thine iniquity, to turn away thy captivity; but have seen for thee false burdens and causes of banishment.”

Lamentations 4:13 “For the sins of her prophets, and the iniquities of her priests, that have shed the blood of the just in the midst of her,”

When those who are supposed to correct and/or make things right are in the acts of sins and iniquities, sanity will be lost, respect for them will not be there again and many things will go wrong.

Lamentations 4:16 “The anger of the LORD hath divided them; he will no more regard them: they respected not the persons of the priests, they favoured not the elders.”

Sugar-coated messages are now prevalent and the society is becoming decadent at an uncontrollable rate. Things and issues that seem shameful and due for rebukes are the garments of honor while the perpetrators are heroes or role models. More laws are being promulgated to give right to wrong doings. The pulpit has become the platform lead people to sin contrary to God’s law; same-sex marriage is preached on God’s pulpit in a convincing manner, satanic wisdom. Many consider their ways and not their destinies. The Lord warned the Judeans by the mouth of Jeremiah before their woes and Jeremiah remarked it in his lamentation;

Lamentations 3:40 “Let us search and try (examine) our ways, and turn again to the LORD.”

Sin rips off ones glory and removes one from the place of peace. The signboard of sin leads into captivity. Know this about our God;

Lamentations 3:33 “For he doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men.”

This is very true. It is the work of our hand that determines the next level or state. No matter how glorious a destiny, ministry, calling or whatever you could think about is, once compromise is made to sin, the beauty is affected. The Judeans were in serious unpleasant state that they desired the old ways;

Lamentations 5:19-21 “Thou, O LORD, remainest for ever; thy throne from generation to generation.Wherefore dost thou forget us for ever, and forsake us so long time?Turn thou us unto thee, O LORD, and we shall be turned; renew our days as of old.”

Let us seek for the old path where we could find rest. Let us listen to the trumpet’s sound, wherewith we could escape the calamity to come. Our reading for today is Ezra1-3. Keep the fire burning and alive.

Pastor Supo Abayode

+1-302-230-6792

Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries

Delaware, USA

Bible In One Year-Day 176 (Wednesday, June 25, 2014)

Commentary: Lamentation1-3. When Prophet Jeremiah was called, God encouraged him against fear of the people He sent him to, knowing that they were stiff necked and difficult to deal with..

Jeremiah 1:8 “Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD.”

We need to be careful how we minister; where has He sent you to, to whom and what is the message? These are what God will deliver to you at the point of the covenant and it is in this AUTHORITY you go, not in your zeal which carries no authority; remember the children of Sceva.

Romans 10:13-15 “For whoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!”

When you set forth in this grace, your leg will leave beauty in that place. I love God’s sealing statement in His assignment “I WILL BE WITH YOUR MOUTH” or “I WILL BE WITH THEE” Without this statement, it is better you remain under a mentor, faithfully and obediently, until you are found faithful to be sent out on another mission. However, if you are driven away, be sure that you do as much as possible to make peace; if you are under punishment, observe it faithfully. If error or mistake is from you, be sober and remorseful for a change and correction. There is no glory in suffering for ungodly mistakes. However, if you do well and you are being tortured unjustly, be patient, God takes it upon Himself to vindicate you;

1 Peter 2:20 “For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God.”

1 Peter 3:17 “For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing.”

For many years, Jeremiah prophesied concerning the judgment of the Lord, he warned them to repent and turn from their evil ways. The people despised him and it seemed, at a point, that God was deceiving him. His life faced a lot of ministerial discomforts; a thorn in his flesh. God’s faithfulness was proved at the ruin of the pillar of the nation Judah, Jerusalem, when it was seriously attacked, damaged and the people that mattered were taken into captivity in Babylon. When Jeremiah saw what he had been prophesying come to pass before his own eyes, he declared the faithfulness of God in poems;

Lamentations 3:22-26 “It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.”

At the ruin of Jerusalem, Jeremiah realized God’s faithfulness and preached to us all reading this commentary that “It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.”

The salvation of God is discovered when we patiently wait for Him; no matter what we are going through. The lamentation is not for the ruin but for God’s faithfulness. All Jeremiah prophesied came to pass before his eyes and this made him to honor God the more. What prophecy or dream have you had in the past and you are thinking God is not conscious of anymore? I will like to tell you that “GREAT IS HIS FAITHFULNESS” The prayers you are praying are not in vain, beloved, because GREAT IS HIS FAITHFULNESS. If the prophecy is ordered by God’s Spirit through His anointed one, then GREAT IS HIS FAITHFULNESS. Are you about giving up? GREAT IS HIS FAITHFULNESS.

Psalms 30:5 “For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”

His FAITHFULNESS is in that which He has declared to you.

Let us seek for the old path where we could find rest. Let us listen to the trumpet’s sound, wherewith we could escape the calamity to come. Our reading for today is Lamentation4-5. Keep the fire burning and alive.

Pastor Supo Abayode

+1-302-230-6792

Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries

Delaware, USA

Bible In One Year-Day 175 (Tuesday, June 24, 2014)

Commentary: 2Chronicles34-36. King Josiah was a pleasant king who loved the Lord, the God of his ancestor, David, with the whole of his heart.

2 Chronicles 34:2 “And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the ways of David his father, and declined neither to the right hand, nor to the left.”

When he heard the word of God, his heart was troubled, knowing very well that his fathers had wronged the Lord and the repercussion would be terrible. He humbly sought the face of the Lord for what to be done to avert His judgment. His attitude made him to win favor in the face of the Lord;

2 Chronicles 34:27 “Because thine heart was tender, and thou didst humble thyself before God, when thou heardest his words against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, and humbledst thyself before me, and didst rend thy clothes, and weep before me; I have even heard thee also, saith the LORD.”

Josiah’s attitude was a positive attitude; this is what we call “born again” He never trivialized God and His instructions afterward. He made all his subjects submit to God and cleansed the land of all abominable objects.

2 Chronicles 34:33 “And Josiah took away all the abominations out of all the countries that pertained to the children of Israel, and made all that were present in Israel to serve, even to serve the LORD their God. And all his days they departed not from following the LORD, the God of their fathers.”

Josiah delighted in the word of God than giving worship to the ark of the Lord. He preferred the people to be taught the word of God. The purpose of the word of God is to change us and the first place it works on is the heart. Once the heart is circumcised the whole body would be changed and dedicated to the Lord.

Hebrews 4:12 “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

The greatest weapon for the Holy Spirit to work with is the word of God. Carrying the Bible about without reading will not make one to be holy or qualified to be a candidate of heaven, but regarding the content in the heart. To regard is to heed and observe according to Deut28:13 and this is what carries the blessings. Josiah loved the old path. We read that no king ever observed the Passover as he did;

2 Chronicles 35:18 “And there was no passover like to that kept in Israel from the days of Samuel the prophet; neither did all the kings of Israel keep such a passover as Josiah kept, and the priests, and the Levites, and all Judah and Israel that were present, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.”

Josiah did good jobs in the land. Unfortunately, his death was not of good report and this caused Jeremiah the prophet to lament over him. God can use anybody to carry out His assignment. Neco was the king of Egypt then and the Lord wanted to use him to fight Carchemish in Babylon He asked for favor to pass through Josiah’s jurisdiction, but Josiah, instead, went into war against him. Neco told Josiah that he was answering God’s calling but Josiah did not turn back from fighting him. This was what killed Josiah. The message of Neco to Josiah was this;

2 Chronicles 35:21 “But he sent ambassadors to him, saying, What have I to do with thee, thou king of Judah? I come not against thee this day, but against the house wherewith I have war: for God commanded me to make haste: forbear thee from meddling with God, who is with me, that he destroy thee not.”

This warning was clear enough. There are some things we need to know and understand about God; God is not a respecter of persons, He could use anybody for His work and He does not need anybody’s permission to call or send anyone on errand. However, any hindrance to His course could lead to self destruction just like Josiah. Neco was a gentile. Perhaps Josiah thought God has nothing to do with him being a gentile or it was not possible for God to relate with a gentile. The moon and the sun are over all people of the earth. Christians, pastors, bishops, overseers and superintendents who run down other callings are absolute doing the wrong work which is outside their assigned job. God does not need to contact or take permission from any of them before He assigns His job to another person. Whoever answers a call is answerable to God only. Any ministry not under the administration of the Holy Spirit will not last. Josiah really did a good job but was not sensitive to God in another person’s ministry. All other kings after his untimely death did wrong in the sight of the Lord also and this led to their captivity in Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar;

2 Chronicles 36:20-21 “And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia:To fulfil the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfil threescore and ten years.”

It is a dangerous mission to stand against God’s course.

Let us seek for the old path where we could find rest. Let us listen to the trumpet’s sound, wherewith we could escape the calamity to come. Our reading for today is Lamentation1-3. Keep the fire burning and alive.

Romans 10:10 For with the heart man believeth to righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made to salvation.

2 Corinthians 3:3 Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.

NOTE: THE LAMENTATION OF JEREMIAH AND THE PEOPLE OVER JOSIAH ISN’T THE SAME AS THE BOOK OF LAMENTATION.

Pastor Supo Abayode

+1-302-230-6792

Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries

Delaware, USA