devotional – Page 39 – Prince Chimaobim

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (9): BE COURAGEOUS

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Monday April 24, 2023

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (9): BE COURAGEOUS

Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.

Joshua 1:9 (KJV)

Courage is essential for a soldier in battle and for a soldier of the Lord Yahushua in the fight of faith (see Ephesians 6:10-18). Courage is the strength of the soul. Yahweh has no use for cowards (see Hebrews 10:38-39). Spiritual strength includes steadfastness, bravery, faith in the Yahweh and honesty. It does not come by accident. It is deliberately developed. Courage is boldness to dare anything in the harvest field. It is only the courageous that becomes the victorious. Whatever you cannot dare, you can never take. The seriousness of a man’s face or his high fence, does not scare you. Until courage is in place, conquest is not in view. To be successful in the harvest field, therefore, one must be very courageous. Courage to tell the truth. Courage to preach the undiluted word of God. Courage not to fear at the faces of the people. Jeremiah 1:8 says, ‘Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord.’ It takes courage to preach somethings the Holy Spirit will give you.

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (8): PERSEVERE AND BE PATIENT

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Sunday April 23, 2023

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (8): PERSEVERE AND BE PATIENT

And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
Galatians 6:9 (KJV)

There is no other work that require so much patience and perseverance like the kingdom business of soul winning. This is because people are not usually won to Christ in a day. There is the process of planting the seed of the Word of God, watering the seed and time for it to grow. Then in growth, there are different stages and they require time and efforts. The soul-winner needs to continue doing well because in due season, he/she will reap. To be successful therefore, in soul-winning, patience and perseverance is none negotiable. The devil does not have power but what he does is to try to weary you into abandoning the course you are pursuing. No wonder, patience is part of the fruit of the recreated human spirit because you need it in your confrontations with Satan and the gates of hell. Satan will throw many things at you to weary you. Daniel 7:25 says, ‘And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.’ If you understand the way the devil operate, you will know that patience is a vital weapon against the wearing out ministry of the devil. The devil is always seeking to wear you out. You must understand that.

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (7): BE COMPASSION DRIVEN

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Saturday April 22, 2023

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (7): BE COMPASSION DRIVEN

But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.
Matthew 9:36 (KJV)

Compassion was the energy that drove our Lord Yahushua HaMashiach (Jesus the Christ) into soul-winning. Compassion is what causes the virtue to flow and brought the people both the Word of God and healing in the ministry of the Lord Yahushua (Jesus). Compassion is coming to a deep awareness of another’s suffering and out of sympathy and empathy doing something about it. Understanding the eternal position of the unsaved soul is something that will drive any humane soul to doing something to help. Even though you are tired and needed rest, you go in search of a new convert or to share a tract or word with someone because you understand that the person can exit life at any time and then face eternity unprepared. The understanding of the state of the unsaved evokes compassion and compassion drives gospel campaign. To be successful in soul-winning therefore, compassion is very vital. You want to function in the healing anointing, then you must be compassion-driven. Matthew 14:14 says, ‘And Jesus went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them, and he healed their sick.’ The unction flows in the direction of compassion and the preaching of the gospel is unction-driven. ‘For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance;’ (I Thessalonians 1:5).

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (6): POSSESS ETERNITY DESTINATION CONVICTION

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Friday April 21, 2023

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (6): POSSESS ETERNITY DESTINATION CONVICTION

when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, 8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
II Corinthians 1:7-8 (KJV)

For you to be successful in soul-winning, you must have a firm conviction that anyone that does not obey Jesus and His gospel is lost in eternity in the lake of fire. That is what our opening text is saying in essence. Jesus Christ is the way to eternity in heaven. There is no alternative whatsoever. You must be fanatical to this conviction that the gospel is the only escape route from the destruction that awaits every unsaved soul. If it is, then you hold the key to someone’s eternity in heaven. That is a grave realization. It is that understanding that drives one to attack the task of the gospel with reckless abandon. Think about it, all the people you know now that do not obey the gospel are hell bound unless they repent and obey the gospel. And to think that this same gospel of salvation has been committed to your trust is so sobering to think about. No wonder Apostle Paul said that he was made all things to all people so that he might by all means save some (see I Corinthians 9:22). See what Apostle Paul says in II Corinthians 5:11, ‘Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in your consciences.’ He understood that humanity is lost without the gospel. This gave him the temerity to persuade men into the Kingdom of Yahweh.

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (5): POSSESS A FIGHTING SPIRIT

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Thursday April 20, 2023

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (5): POSSESS A FIGHTING SPIRIT

No man can enter into a strong man’s house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strong man; and then he will spoil his house.
Mark 3:27 [KJV]

A fighting spirit is a spiritual disposition of not taking a “NO!” for an answer. It is developing a victor’s mentality. It is coming to a point of only having triumphs or nothing. Instead of not winning, let the fight continue – that is a fighting spirit. What we are saying today is that it takes a fighting spirit to be successful in the soul-winning business. This is so because our text associates the unsaved as the captives of Satan, the strong man. To let go his captives, you must put up a fight that will result in binding him. II Corinthians 4:3-4 says, ‘3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: 4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.’ The god of this world being referred to is Satan. He is responsible and behind every unbeliever’s blindness to the light of the glorious gospel. For you to succeed in letting the unsaved to see the light of the gospel you must take care of the strong man Satan. This is done in intense intercessions.

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (4): LIVE IN HOLINESS

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Wednesday April 19, 2023

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (4): LIVE IN HOLINESS

Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity. II Timothy 3:19 (KJV)

This is one factor that impede the commitment of many to the gospel – a life of unrighteousness and iniquity. Soul-winning demands that the participant is delivered from a lifestyle of sin before he/she can qualify to be used to deliver others. Soul-winning is bearing the everlasting gospel to the next person and it is required that those that bear the vessels of the Lord must be holy and clean. Isaiah 52:11 admonishes, ‘Depart ye, depart ye, go ye out from thence, touch no unclean thing; go ye out of the midst of her; be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the Lord.’ You cannot be meddling with sin and still be free to carry the everlasting gospel. The gospel is holy and uncleanness disqualifies one from bearing it. Living in sin and preaching the gospel is hypocrisy. If what you are preaching is effective, it should save you first. If the gospel you are preaching has not saved you, it would be impotent to effect any change in the life of the person you are witnessing to. Forever, guilt cannot allow you to be effective and successful in the gospel that is why you must clean up. No matter how good an apple is, if you handle that apple with a hand that you used to apply sniper (poison), that apple will be contaminated and can cause death. It is a good apple, the problem is the person bearing it. Same is true about the gospel.

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (3): BE COMMITTED

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Tuesday April 18, 2023

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (3): BE COMMITTED

And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.
Luke 9:62 [KJV]

It was Che Guevara who said, “We cannot be sure of having something to live for unless we are willing to die for it.” Martin Luther King Jr. says, ‘A man who does not have something for which he is willing to die is not fit to live.’ Until you are willing to die for something you are not worthy to live. We are talking about commitment to the gospel. Commitment is the trait of sincere and steadfast fixity of purpose. It means that you focus on a purpose steadfastly no matter what comes. To be successful in soul-winning you must be committed. It would take your time to pray, preach, follow-up and your money too. Everything you have got must be involved in order to see success. First, recognize that this is kingdom business. Like every other business, you must plan, budget, execute, evaluate outcome and restrategize. Which group of people are you aiming at reaching out to? The group will inform your strategy. For instance, if you are reaching out to teenagers, then you will have to think and behaviour like a teenager yourself to be able to reach them. You must be very patient and a good listener. No matter the group you are reaching out to, commitment is a must. If you give the gospel 30% of the attention you give your career/business, you will see such result that will amaze you. The results that have eluded us is only a function of lack of commitment on our part.

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (2): MORTIFY FLESH

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Monday April 17, 2023

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (2): MORTIFY FLESH

But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.
I Corinthians 9:27 (KJV)

The greatest enemy of the recreated human spirit is not the devil. When you were born again, you had dominion over the devil and his gates of hell. The greatest enemy of the born again person is his/her flesh. Self is the greatest enemy of the born again person. There are three forces at war in the life of the born again person: the Holy Spirit, the Flesh and the devil. The flesh is always cooperating with the devil that is why you must put it under. Flesh talks about the cravings of the sinful nature. To be useful and usable in the hands of the Lord of the harvest, you must mortify your flesh. You must come to the altar of burnt offering and lay your body at the altar as a living sacrifice. The reason is that you must be salted with fire to be useful in the hand the Lord (see Mark 9:49). If you are still alive in your flesh, you are not useful and usable for the work of the gospel. With your flesh still alive, you cannot represent the Lord and the gospel in your lifestyle which is the most primary form of evangelism. A self that is still alive is full of pride, easily angry, boastful and self-centered.

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (1): BE SURE OF YOUR SALVATION

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Sunday April 16, 2023

TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS PARTNERSHIP (1): BE SURE OF YOUR SALVATION

The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God,
Romans 8:16 (KJV)

From today to the next couple of days, we shall be examining what it takes to be successful at soul-winning. There are certain ingredients that must be in place for us to make a success at our soul-winning drive. Today we shall be considering assurance of salvation. Assurance of salvation means that you are sure of your salvation. The person that must be successful in winning souls must be very sure that he/she is genuinely saved. You must have had that encounter yourself. There is no substitute to that. You are called to be a witness. How can you witness to what you never saw or knew? Being a witness presupposes that you have experience of what you are talking about. You can never appear in court as a witness of what you never knew anything about. The soul-winner must be a person that had encountered the Lord Yahushua genuinely with evidence of a changed life. Like the blind man in John 9, your testimony should be “I was blind but now I see. I used to do this and that, but now I do not.” One of the outstanding thing about Apostle Paul was his conversion testimony. It was so profound that at the slightest chance he recounts how he became the man he had become.

PARTNERING WITH THE LORD INVOLVES (6): LIVING OUT THE GOSPEL

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Saturday April 15, 2023

PARTNERING WITH THE LORD INVOLVES (6): LIVING OUT THE GOSPEL

Then, even if some are disobedient to the word, they will be won over without a word by the way you live, when they see your pure and reverent conduct.
I Peter 3:1B-2 (KJV)

Everyone of us has the privilege to live out the gospel in our day to day operations. With most people that are close to you, lifestyle evangelism is normally the most effective. It is normally a contradiction when you see one that is vocal about the gospel but whose lifestyle is directly the opposite. There is nothing that turns off children than to see parents that proclaim the gospel in words but their lifestyle at home is opposite the gospel. This is the reason so many children from Christian homes turn away from the Lord as soon as they left home. You have parents that are Christians in the Church but devils at home. No matter what you tell children, what they see you doing is what they are going to imbibe. Lifestyle evangelism is so critical at home, office and with close associates. People that relate with you on a daily bases will be drawn to the Lord more with your lifestyle than with words. When you have shown Christ-like character, it is easy to preach and be heard. So, as a Christian, your lifestyle is critical to the success of the gospel in your sphere of contacts. Your colleagues are watching you. You cannot take bribe, lie and cheat and then turn around to preach Yahushua to them. It is not possible to take such a person seriously. You will regard the person as a religious fanatics. But when someone has challenged you with a solid life of integrity, and the person talks to you about Yahushua, you are quick to listen.