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OPEN HEAVENS DEVOTIONAL SUNDAY 13TH AUGUST 2023 – WHEN GOD ASKS A QUESTION
OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL FOR TODAY.
The Topic of Open Heavens for 13th August 2023 Is “When God Asks a Question”
MEMORISE: Job 38-42
Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind and said; Who is this that darkeneth counsel without words? Gird up now thy loins like a man, for I will demand of thee, and answer thou me.
READ: 1 Kings 19:9-14
9 There he went into a cave and spent the night.
And the word of the Lord came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
10 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
11 The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.”
Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 13 When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.
Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
14 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
OPEN HEAVENS DEVOTIONAL FOR TODAY
In our Bible reading for today, God asked Elijah the same question twice: “What doest thou here, Elijah?” God is not talkative; if He asks the same question twice, there must be a reason behind it. Usually, when God asks you a question, it is a test.
In John 6:5-7, when Jesus saw the crowd, He turned and asked one of the disciples where they would find food to feed the people. The Bible added that the question was to test him, for He already knew what He would do.
The teacher knows the answer; He only tests the student when He asks a question. In Genesis 3:1-7, when Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit and hid behind a tree, God had already seen them. Yet He asked, “Adam,where art thou?”When Adam said “We heard Your voice and were afraid because we were naked”. He asked further, “Who told you that you’re naked?” He knew already, but still He asked to see what they would say.
Unfortunately, they were pushing the blame and so they got the punishment they deserved. In Genesis 4:3-10, God asked Cain where Abel was. When Cain said he didn’t know, God responded, “His blood is crying to me from where you killed and buried him”. God knew where Abel was from the onset, yet He asked Cain where he was and sadly, Cain never told the truth. When God asks you a question, especially concerning a sin that you committed, fall on your face and beg for mercy.
That question is a test to see if you are really repentant or not. If, on the other hand, He asks you a question that is not pertaining to a sin you committed, my advice is that you ask the Holy Spirit to help you answer. In our Bible reading for today, God asked Elijah the same question twice and he gave the same answer both times. I believe God asked the second time because He had hoped Elijah would answer differently.
I feel that if Elijah had not answered the questions with frustration, he wouldn’t have been asked to anoint his replacement yet. In Ezekiel 37:3, Ezekiel was wise. God asked Him, “Can these bones live?” He did not know how to answer, so he responded, “You know, Lord”. God’s questions are tests; ask the Holy Spirit to help you answer them when they come.
Bible in one year: Jeremiah 31-32
Hymn 4 Be Glad In The Lord And Rejoice
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