Tuesday Open Heavens Devotional - Tear That Garment!

MEMORISE: That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; Ephesians 4:22.

READ: Colossians 3:8-10.
8.But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. 9.Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; 10.And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:

MESSAGE
After experiencing salvation, the heart cry of every child of God should be to live above sin. The Bible teaches that glorious victory over sin is available for every believer (Romans 6:14). The moment we are serious about tapping into the grace that Christ has made available to us, all that was evil in us will remain permanently buried. Some Christians have never even heard of the victorious life of holiness, so they continue sinning and confessing their sins from day to day. You need to know that God has made us triumph always in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 2:14). However, recognise the fact that despite the provision of victory over sin, you still have your own free will. You can choose to accept or reject a life of victory over sin. If you yield to Christ, you will be free from the power of sin (Romans 6:7-8), but if you yield to sin, you will go down from iniquity to iniquity (Romans 6:19). Temptation is one of the most familiar experiences of a true child of God, and no one can totally escape from it. This is why the Lord taught us in Mathew 6:13a to include this petition in our daily prayer: 'And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:'
Temptation is not sin until you yield to it. When Joseph found himself cornered by Potiphar's
wife, he ran away, tearing his garment (Genesis 39:12). Thank God his destiny was not torn.
Tear off the garment of those things that can cause you to backslide. The salvation of your soul is worth more than all the wealth of this world. The devil is aware of this and that is why he wants you to lose your salvation. From 1 John 2:15-17 we understand that, the root of all besetting sins is the love of the world. This is expressed through the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life. Lust runs against God's expectation. Lust will not allow us to see the One leading the way. Concerning pride, the Bible says that those who exalt themselves shall be abased (Mathew 23:12). We must be wary of gossip and those who make it their past time. There is danger in idle words. God is not against laughter and humour as some wrongly believe, but he frowns at jestings, which are unholy jokes (Ephesians 5:4). Following in the Lord's footsteps requires self-denial, which is an exercise that must be done daily. We must acknowledge that we are helpless and hopeless without the mercy of God, and confess our sins no matter how numerous and terrible they are (Proverbs 28:13). We must seek God's face for pardon to give room for the Blood of Jesus which alone can do the
cleansing.

PRAYER POINT: Father, as I yield myself to your Spirit, tear away every garment that makes me susceptible to sin.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: JOSHUA 12:7-14:15 AND MATHEW 20:29-21:17.