TOPIC: Beyond Good Works (DCLM Daily Manna 8 November 2023)
KEY VERSE: “A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway” (Acts 10:2).
TEXT: Psalm 92:1-15 (KJV)
1 There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band,
2 A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway.
3 He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius.
4 And when he looked on him, he was afraid, and said, What is it, Lord? And he said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God.
5 And now send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon, whose surname is Peter:
6 He lodgeth with one Simon a tanner, whose house is by the sea side: he shall tell thee what thou oughtest to do.
7 And when the angel which spake unto Cornelius was departed, he called two of his household servants, and a devout soldier of them that waited on him continually;
8 And when he had declared all these things unto them, he sent them to Joppa.
DCLM Daily Manna For Today MESSAGE:
Fanatics are those who seem to live in extremes. Many who are called spiritual “fanatics” are simply those who are more devoted than others. Some carry religion too far. They believe good works and almsgiving will take them to heaven. Others go to the extreme of punishing themselves as “penance” for sin or simply giving out their possessions to live a strictly disciplined life in a remote region.
Cornelius, the Roman Centurion in our text, prayed to the true God of heaven instead of the Roman gods he had known all his life. He feared God and gave to the needy and the poor. He was an influential man. An angel of God appeared to him in a vision to confirm that his prayers and alms giving have ascended unto the Lord; but he was yet to have the saving knowledge of God. He was then commanded to send for Apostle Peter, who arrived and showed him the way of God perfectly.
Good works and almsgiving are commendable, but only after our sins are washed away, and we come to the saving knowledge of our Lord. Both are never enough to secure us a place in heaven without faith in the atoning work of Christ.
There are pastors who erroneously teach their congregations to give and ‘sow seed’, implying that such acts will be enough to secure the favour of God and get to heaven at last. Such is false teaching. Sowing seed and giving all kinds of offerings mandated by the churches of today cannot take anyone to heaven. It requires faith and trust in the redemptive solution executed through Jesus Christ on the cross.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Our best gift to God is our hearts, washed by the blood of Jesus Christ.
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR
Jeremiah 51-52
Deeper Life Daily Manna For Today 2023 was written by Pastor W. F. Kumuyi; is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Life Bible Church situated at KM 42 on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Nigeria.
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