Good-life Daily Devotional

 Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi John 13: 34-35 "A new commandment I give unto  you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.  By this shall all  men know that ye are  my disciples, if ye have love one to another."         The sign of a true disciple isn't in our religious garments,  tone of speech,  strict dietary principles and all manner of rules and regulations prescribed by religion. The world seem to be getting more confused on what constitutes a wholesome church . After making a commitment to serve the Lord, the next step  is to identify with a Christian group : this is necessary for healthy spiritual growth.             Through our fellowship with other Christians we experience a warmth that makes the period of trials and temptation  bearable.  It is the love from the brethren that gives us the assurance needed to face whatever challenge we are faced with.          Preachers are more effective in their work when in partnership w

Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi Col 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 too are filled with the Godhead — Father, Son and Holy Spirit — and reach full spiritual stature]. And He is the Head of all rule and authority [of every angelic principality and power].”       If you listened to your inner self this moment , you can clearly hear a conversation going on within you , the question now is who is speaking to who? and with what are they speaking since you need a mouth to speak? How many persons are involved ? Is there a mouth other than the physical mouth ? This is what happens whenever you ponder on the question on the son-ship of Jesus Christ : the Word of God (John 1:1).          The mind generates will-power which in turn generates actions often manifested in creativity. Before an artist

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi  -HE WAS SILENT WHEN ACCUSED, Prophesied by prophet Isaiah ( BC ) Isa 53:7 NIV “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.” Confirmed  in  Matt 26:62-63 NKJV “And the high priest arose and said to Him, "Do You answer nothing? What is it these men testify against You?"  But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest answered and said to Him,"I put You under oath by the living God: Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God!" -HE SUFFERED IN PLACE OF HUMANITY Prophesied by prophet Isaiah (700-681BC) Isa 53:4-5 NKJV “Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted.  But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. “ Confirme

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi        The Holy Spirit speaking through prophet Jeremiah whose ministry was approximately 627-586 BC prophesied about the massacre of infants during Jesus’ incarnation Jer 31:15 NIV This is what the Lord says: "A voice is heard in Ramah, mourning and great weeping, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because her children are no more." This was confirmed in Matt 2:16 NIV  “When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi’ -FLIGHT TO EGYPT Prophesied by prophet Hosea (753-715BC) Hos 11:1 KJV  “When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt.” Confirmed in Matt 2:14 NIV “ So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt,” -AS A PROPHET Prophesied by prophet Moses (1407BC) Deut 1

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi         There are scriptural proofs with regards to the person of Jesus Christ that allude to him being the Son( embodiment of the mind of) of God . The bible describes this as a mystery 1 Tim 3:16 NKJV says   “ And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Preached among the Gentiles, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory. “  There are messianic prophesies with regards to the divinity of Jesus Christ : saying He -WOULD BE THE “SEED OF A WOMAN” Gen 3:15 KJV ” 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.” This was fulfilled in  Gal 4:4 NKJV ” But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law,” -THE PROMISED SEED OF ABRAHAM : Gen 18:18 KJV ” Seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, a

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 (John3:16-17). He is the embodiment of God's love which does not segregate, therefore, His reply to His critics was succinct revealing His purpose for having dinner with sinners, Matthew 9:12-13 says "But when Jesus heard  that, he sai

  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 ruled 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 festal gatherin

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. "   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 the other for the sharing of the inheritance.Jesus knew that conceding to the request of being an arbiter between the brothers would be an endorsement of self-centeredness . This therefore, informed His reply to that request "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 ma

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 made an alliance with Jehoshaphat; 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 hand Ahab had no personal relati

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 seeking

   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 kingdoms and spiritual domains (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 fullnes

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    Jesus Christ is the Word (mind) of God . 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.God also created human knowledge and is above human comprehension , He reveals himself to us progressively that is why its difficult to understand how He functions.   Scientific  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 

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi      “for the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost”. Rom 14:17        This teaching is not intended to encourage alcohol abuse nor condemn those who drink alcohol beverages but rather gives a balanced view on the issue of the consumption of alcoholic beverages by Christians. The essence of the born again experience is beyond festivities but to be at peace with God.          God created alcoholic beverages for beneficial purposes such as sterilization in the hospitals and others, as with other things the abuse of alcohol comes with unpleasant consequences.  Alcohol abuse brings about disorderly conduct and death (Ps. 78:65) leads to poverty (Prov. 21:17) it also results in shame, contentions, babbling, wounds, and vision impairment.  The scripture also speaks of the benefits of alcohol drink such as being a shock absorber to disaster victims (Prov. 31:6-7) the ability to eat and drink com

  By Michael Benson Ajayi  Col 2:20-23TLB “why do you keep right on following them anyway, still bound by such rules as 21 not eating, tasting, or even touching certain foods? Such rules are mere human teachings, for food was made to be eaten and used up. These rules may seem good, for rules of this kind require strong devotion and are humiliating and hard on the body, but they have no effect when it comes to conquering a person's evil thoughts and desires. They only make him proud.” What does the scriptures say about consuming alcoholic beverages  The word “Wine” occurs 231 times in the bible and it’s from the Hebrew word ‘yayin’. It means fermented drink, banqueting wine. Genesis 9:21, 24; 14:18, 19:32-35, 27:25, 28. It also means rarely fermented wine (Hb. Tiyrosh) as in Gen. 27:28,37. - Priests were not allowed to drink before service Lev. 10:9 - God requested intoxicating drink (Heb. yayin) as part of the daily offerings in the Old Testament Lev. 23:13 - Nazarenes (He