LESSONS ON
VOWS – Friday May
12th 2017
Memorise: That
which is gone out of thy lips thou shalt keep and perform; even a freewill
offering, according as thou hast vowed unto the LORD thy God, which thou hast
promised with thy mouth. Deuteronomy 23:23
Read: Judges
11:29-36 (King James Version)
29 Then the Spirit of the Lord came
upon Jephthah, and he passed over Gilead, and Manasseh, and passed over Mizpeh
of Gilead, and from Mizpeh of Gilead he passed over unto the children of Ammon.
30 And Jephthah vowed a vow unto the Lord,
and said, If thou shalt without fail deliver the children of Ammon into mine
hands,
31 Then it shall be, that whatsoever
cometh forth of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from
the children of Ammon, shall surely be the Lord's, and I will offer it up
for a burnt offering.
32 So Jephthah passed over unto the
children of Ammon to fight against them; and the Lord delivered them
into his hands.
33 And he smote them from Aroer, even
till thou come to Minnith, even twenty cities, and unto the plain of the
vineyards, with a very great slaughter. Thus the children of Ammon were subdued
before the children of Israel.
34 And Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his
house, and, behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with
dances: and she was his only child; beside her he had neither son nor daughter.
35 And it came to pass, when he saw her,
that he rent his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me
very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me: for I have opened my mouth
unto the Lord, and I cannot go back.
36 And she said unto him, My father, if
thou hast opened thy mouth unto the Lord, do to me according to that which
hath proceeded out of thy mouth; forasmuch as the Lord hath taken
vengeance for thee of thine enemies, even of the children of Ammon.
Bible in one
year: Deuteronomy 16-17, Jeremiah 29:24-30:9, Hymn: Sing hymn 14
MESSAGE:
Sometimes,
some people promise God one thing, but when the time comes to redeem the
pledge, they bring something else. Do you think that God does not have records
in Heaven? Once you make a pledge to God, don’t try to change it. Ecclesiastes
5:6 says,
“Suffer
not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before the angel,
that it was an error: wherefore should God be angry at thy voice, and destroy
the work of thine hands?”
After you
have committed yourself to a particular thing as a vow, if you later return to
say, “It was a slip of the tongue, God will understand”, you are only deceiving
yourself. Such an excuse is not acceptable to God. God expects you to stand by
your word. Hence, as part of the requirements to stand in God’s holy place, Psalm 15:4 says if
you make a vow, you are expected to do everything possible to redeem it, no
matter the cost, sacrifice or inconveniencies involved. Do you have this
quality? It is part of the integrity we must have as believers.
Another
lesson on vows is that you must be extremely careful before making a vow. Think
very well before pledging a commitment to do a particular thing, because once
it has gone out of your mouth, you may not be able to beat a retreat. Open
Heavens 2017 Friday 12 May 2017:-Lesson on Vows. Some people get carried away
with zeal and make a mouth-watering vow but later find it difficult to redeem
it. Be careful! Only vow to give up what is within the limit of your capability
and not what you know you cannot cope with! The story of Jephthah is a very
touching one. He needed victory so badly that he vowed to sacrifice to God
whatever first came out of his house to meet him on his return. After the
battle was over, as he returned home with great joy, it was his only child –
his virgin daughter – that came out first to welcome him. He felt so bad. He
realised the rashness of his vow, but he could not turn back from his promise.
Finally, one more lesson on vows is that God does not like to hear the voice of
vow-defaulters, and He would ultimately destroy their efforts (Ecclesiastes
5:6). Is God fighting you over a vow you have defaulted on? Repent now and
restitute. If need be, seek the guidance of a Spirit-filled Christian counsellor
or pastor.
Action Point
Unpaid vows
are debts that can hinder you from making heaven. Prayerfully recall your
unpaid debts and redeem them fast.
Open Heaven Daily Devotional, written by Pastor E.A Adeboye,
The General Overseer of the Redeemed
Christian Church of God, one of the largest evangelical church in the world and
also the President of Christ the Redeemer's Ministries.
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