Good-life Daily Devotional

By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi. Matthew 9:10 -11 "And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came  and sat down with him and his disciples. And when the Pharisees saw  it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your  Master with publicans and sinners?"           The Pharisees were a religious sect with strict moral codes based on the laws of Moses; they thought it improper for a renowned prophet or priest from God to eat with members of the public or sinners to avoid being corrupted.          Jesus' approach to this was quite the opposite, He was a people's person and discouraged any form of segregation among His followers :He loves sinners and came to save and not condemn them . He was the embodiment of love which does not segregate, therefore, His reply to His critics was succinct and revealed His purpose for having dinner with sinners, Matthew 9:12-13 says "But when Jesus heard  that, he said unto

  By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi John 17:14-16" I have given them thy word; and the world  hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I pray not that thou shouldest take  them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the  world."         There are two operating systems on earth, first, the kingdom of God headed by Jehovah, administered by His son also known as "The Word of God " and empowered and energized by the Holy Ghost who also serves as the law enforcement agent of the kingdom with the uncountable number of angels and the saints.  The scriptures gives us a glimpse of what constitutes the kingdom of God also known as Zion, the city of the most high God in Hebrews 12:Hebrews 12:22-24 AMP "But rather, you have come to Mount Zion, even to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to countless multitudes of angels in fes

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi Luke 12:13 AMP "Someone from the crowd said to Him, Master, order my brother to divide the inheritance and share it with me. "      The clamor for self-determination is at an all-time high globally and this is driven by the increasing desire by communities to have control over the exploration and exploitation of resources within their domain.  The  public outcry has been that of resource control with many secessionist movements threatening fire and brimstone until their demands are met.            This was the situation between the two  brothers in Luke 12.13,  they had received an inheritance from their father with one probably having a larger share than the other. It is common for parents to will their properties based on sentimental values attached to each child. But it is not so with God, the scriptures says we are joint-heirs with Christ.     It was the  selfish disposition by one of the brother’s that informed the request by

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi  2 Chronicles 18:4-5 AMP "And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, Inquire first, I pray you, for the word of the Lord today. So King [Ahab] of Israel gathered together the prophets, 400 men, and said to them, Shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall I forbear? And they said, Go up, for God will deliver it into the king's hand."         Ahab, the king of Israel ,was at war with Samaria and he sought to make an alliance with Jehushaphat the kind of  Judah whom the lord had shown extraordinary favour by given him victory over his enemies.  Jehoshaphat always sought God’s counsel before embarking on any major venture. The scriptures says in Matthew 6:33 AM "But seek (aim at and strive after) first of all His kingdom and His righteousness (His way of doing and being right), and then all these things taken together will be given you besides." We are to put God first in our plans.              On the other han

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi Mark 2:27 AMP "And Jesus said to them, The Sabbath was made on account and for the sake of man, not man for the Sabbath; ".         The law of the Sabbath required for the seventh day of the week to be set aside as a day of rest and communion with God. The scriptures says in  Exodus. 23:12 " Six  days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and the son of thy  handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed". The disciples were accused of violating the law of the sabbath because they harvested food on the Sabbath.         The purport and intent of the Sabbath was for refreshment and this would have been defeated if the disciples had perished in hunger. This informed Jesus' response to His critics when He said the sabbath was made for man and not the other way round.             This parable underscores the importance of creating a healthy balance while seekin

 By Rev.Michael. Benson Ajayi        Luke4:7 "If thou  therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine. And Jesus answered and said unto him,  Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is  written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve."        Satan has been stripped off his authority over humanity through the power of the cross, the scriptures says in Matthew 28 : 18 "And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying,  All power is given unto me  in heaven and in earth". The powers governing the underworld and the mystical kingdoms has been given to Jesus Christ who now reigns as the supreme head of all mystical and occult groups.              The scriptures speaks of His preeminence   in  Colossians 2:9-10 AMP "For in Him the whole fullness of Deity (the Godhead) continues to dwell in bodily form [giving complete expression of the divine nature]. And you are in Him, made full and having come to fullness of life [in Christ you to

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi John 1:14” And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” KJV     God is spirit, infinite and invisible to the physical eyes while man is finite, partly spirit and part physical .We operate by physical and scientific laws such as gravity. God created these laws and therefore cannot be subject to the laws of science, that’s why it is difficult to prove God’s existence using physical laws. These laws are too limited in capacity to define an unlimited God.   For instance, you cannot predict accurately what the next ten years would be, but God can.     In order to give us a better understanding of His person, God uses the principles of     anthropomorphism. Anthropomorphism comes from two Greek words:   anthropos (man) and morphe (form).   Thus, anthropomorphism is when God manifests Himself to us in human form or using human attributes and characteris

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi Galatians 4:9-10 AMP "Now, however, that you have come to be acquainted with and understand and know [the true] God, or rather to be understood and known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and beggarly and worthless elementary things [of all religions before Christ came], whose slaves you once more want to become? You observe [particular] days and months and seasons and years!"        The debates on whether Christians should celebrate religious holidays, birthdays has elicited much confusion and guilt among believers in Christ. We shall approach this issue from both scriptural and logical perspectives in other to give a balanced understanding of the subject matter.            Firstly,  our salvation is all encompassing , nothing missing and nothing broken, the scriptures say in Hebrews 7:25 AMP "Therefore He is able also to save to the uttermost (completely, perfectly, finally, and for all time and eternity) those

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi    John4:6 "Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour. There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. "        God took on human flesh in Christ ,a phenomenon not too difficult for an all- powerful personality to do. This was in fulfillment of the prophesy in Genesis 3:15 "And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel." The word 'seed ' refers to the human sperm . This is only found in men but God demonstrated His omnipotence by causing a woman to get pregnant without the male's sperm. This is proof that  women are not as weak as commonly assumed . God’s thought was that "If humanity fell from God's grace through a woman likewise humanity will be saved by God’s grace throu

 By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi  Luke 12:15 AMP "And He said to them, Guard yourselves and keep free from all covetousness (the immoderate desire for wealth, the greedy longing to have more); for a man's life does not consist in and is not derived from possessing overflowing abundance or that which is over and above his needs.".      The world measures a person's worth based on material acquisition therefore the more of material wealth a man possesses, the more recognition such a person receives from peers and society. This is the driving force behind  self-aggrandizement .The world loves a person as long as they can receive some material wealth from him or her.            The scriptures says in Proverbs 14:20 AMP "The poor is hated even by his own neighbor, but the rich has many friends." Those who come to us because of material benefits do not truly love us: an over -attachment to material things makes one vulnerable to emotional and spirit

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi 1 Peter 4:17-18 NKJV   “ For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?”        This scripture underscores God’s approach to the issue of societal reforms; it is a process that begins with the church. There can be no true governance outside the perimeter of God’s elect. The need for societal reforms is necessitated by the fact that our prosperity individually is inter-wound with our collective prosperity. It is against this backdrop that the church should pursue a vigorous and holistic approach towards social justice and equity in the wider society. The scriptures says in Jer 29:7 “ And work for the peace and prosperity of the city where I sent you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, for its welfare will determine your welfare."            We are inter related directly or indirectly therefore our collective good should be the conc

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi  Matthew 6:10 AMP "Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."               The lord taught the disciples how to pray through what is popularly known as the 'lord’s prayer' (Matthew 6 :9) with the first statement being "our Father " meaning God is the father of all, He is not more of a Father to any one person than to another. Nobody has the monopoly of access to God. Therefore, all prayers , petitions, thanksgiving and supplication should be made directly to Him.               We have equal access to the Heavenly Father with equal opportunities. The knowledge of our relationship with the Father reveals the power of His Kingdom. The word 'kingdom' is the Greek word 'basileia '; which means ;properly, rule, a realm, bases, and it owes its origin from  another Greek word 'basis' which means to walk ; a pace ("base"), therefore, when Jesus prayed 'thy kingdom

By  Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi  Luke 14:28 "For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost,  whether he have sufficient to finish  it?   Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish  it, all that  behold it begin to mock him,   Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish."       There are lots of technical details involved in building a high rise housing complex and should not be compromised if a durable structure is to be achieved.  Most master-builders will allude to the fact that the most critical aspect in the building of a house is  the foundation stage. To correct any error at that stage may require starting the building process all over again and they are often caused by hasty conclusions.              The human life is like a building and it is very common to see a lot of uncompleted projects in the house of God. Most times such inconclusive ventures are said to have

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi  Luke 12:19-20 " And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?"           Security level is at its lowest ebb the world over and this has been further worsened by the ever-increasing activities of  terrorists . There is growing apprehension over the safety of businesses, marriages, finances as a result of the growing trend in insecurity worldwide.          Fear, uncertainty, anxiety are the effect of the neglect of God's word. The word of God is light and whenever light is turned on, darkness is repelled. In luke.12:16-18 Jesus's parable is a reflection of the failing world's security system . This system is centered on the love for money over God and man . Rather than give out his estate to those in need,

  Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi        Luke 9:48 "And said unto them, Whosoever shall receive this child in my name receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me receiveth him that sent me: for he that is least among you all, the same shall be great."        Failure is the inability to succeed .It often leads to a sense of neglect and a low self esteem. In the preceding verses of Luke 9, Jesus Christ had given a hint of His betrayal and transition and this automatically elicited a leadership tussle among the disciples .They had all abandoned their various businesses and paying jobs to follow Jesus  most of them being businessmen who understood the need for a reward system as a means of promotion. They also desired to be considered as being successful and worthy of honour         They were motivated by competitiveness :a desire to prove oneself superior in any given endeavor,field or contest . This is what drives the cooperate world and unfortunately the modern c

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi  1 Peter 1:8 AMP "Without having seen Him, you love Him; though you do not [even] now see Him, you believe in Him and exult and thrill with inexpressible and glorious (triumphant, heavenly) joy."        There is virtually no part of the world that isn't faced with social upheavals by reason of the activities of the ungodly. Jesus foretold this as part of the signs of the end times, Mathew 24:6-7 AMP says "And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not frightened or troubled, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in place after place;"     Prophet Haggai also predicted about an escalation of both human crisis and cataclysmic activities in the last days heralding the return of the lord (Haggai2:6-8). These events would lead to economic crisis and social instability . Peace shall only

  By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi  Gen.22:2 "And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of." The word 'Isaac' is the Hebrew word 'tsachaq' which means to 'laugh outright.' Abraham was ninety when he received the promise of the birth of Isaac he waited for about twenty-five years for this to come to fruition. Isaac was a source of joy ,a symbol of pride and a trophy of Abraham 's love and alloyed faith in God.        Abraham's loyalty was authenticated when God requested for the sacrifice of Isaac. His choice as the patriarch of those who shall be saved by grace through faith was informed by his understanding of the importance of sustainable development. The scriptures says in Gen 18:19 "For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him,

By Rev. Michael. Benson Ajayi      Acts2:17 "And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:"            Dream and visions are series of events that takes place in the subconscious while a person is asleep. There are two types of dreams and they are : faith-based dreams and fear-based or carnal dreams. Faith -based dreams are messages from God designed to correct ( Genesis 20:6), direct( Genesis 41:25-26,32), encourage (Matthew 1:20) or warn the receiver ( Genesis 20:3 ,Matthew 2:22) . Faith-based dreams leads to the strengthening of one's faith in the lord while seeking to fulfill divine purpose.              On the other hand fear-based dreams are ungodly and originate from self, Satan , demons and  false prophets. These dreams instills ungodly fear and a drifting away from