TOPIC: Conversion without Conviction (Mountain of Fire and Miracle Ministries Saturday, 11 August 2018)
FIRE SCRIPTURE: Acts 5:1-4
MEMORY VERSE: “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” – 2 Corinthians 5:17
The MESSAGE:
The beauty of our faith is in its simplicity, for the Bible says, “If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Romans 10:9-10).
This means that we must first believe that Jesus is the only way to salvation and with this conviction in our hearts, make a confession of what we have believed. This conviction is what makes the difference between one converted soul and another and it is what will make the one converted to stand in the day of temptation.
With the heart, you believe every word of God and your heart is continually being nurtured unto righteousness by the word of God. It is conviction that makes you surrender all to Jesus as your Lord and Saviour.
When you surrender all to Jesus, you cannot live a life of your own again but as directed by the Master. Conviction makes you burn the bridge and you can never turn back again, meaning that backsliding is not an option for you.
Peter made a statement of conviction in John 6:68-69 when he said: “Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life. And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.” This is a statement of conviction which leads to commitment and it is what every believer must strive to achieve in the faith, not mere confession of the name of Jesus but a conviction in the heart.
Ananias and Sapphira confessed the name of Jesus and joined the believers.
As it is today, their souls were believed to have been won for the Lord. When they saw the commitment being demonstrated by those who were convicted as they were selling off their properties to finance the gospel, they also wanted to show that they were committed so they decided to sell their land.
But unlike others, they were not convinced in their hearts that they should surrender all to Jesus so they kept back part of the proceeds of the land
. Unfortunately for them, the Holy Ghost exposed them and imposed instant judgement of death on them. This is the danger of conversion without conviction.
The experience today shows that there are many converted souls who are yet to be convinced in their hearts that Jesus is the all-sufficient God for them. They sing “I surrender all”, but it does not come from the heart. They hear the word of God but do not allow it to sink into and remain in their heart so that it can do the work of regeneration. They remain converted but not convicted so it becomes impossible to be committed.
They are in the church but not in Christ and therefore not new creatures. Old things have not passed away and nothing has become new. They do abominable things and visit strange places in search of solution to their problem. They are ever learning but never coming to the knowledge of the truth. If you find any trace of this situation in your life, ask the Holy Spirit to help you out.
MOTIVATIONAL QUOTE:
IT IS CONVICTION THAT MAKES YOU SURRENDER ALL TO JESUS AS YOUR LORD AND SAVIOUR.
IT IS CONVICTION THAT MAKES YOU SURRENDER ALL TO JESUS AS YOUR LORD AND SAVIOUR.
PROPHETIC WORD:
May your confession match your conviction.
May your confession match your conviction.
PRAYER POINTS:
MORNING
1. Unbelief, I cast you out of my life, in the name of Jesus.
2. Powers eating the word of God in my life, die by fire, in the name of Jesus.
3. Spiritual instability, get out of my life by fire, in the name of Jesus.
1. Unbelief, I cast you out of my life, in the name of Jesus.
2. Powers eating the word of God in my life, die by fire, in the name of Jesus.
3. Spiritual instability, get out of my life by fire, in the name of Jesus.
EVENING
4. Holy Spirit, help me to surrender my life fully to Jesus, in the name of Jesus.
5. Hardness in my heart, melt away by fire, in the name of Jesus.
6. I decree that the word of God shall take a firm root in my heart, in the name of Jesus.
7. Holy Spirit, purge me of every worldly entanglement and fill me afresh, in the name of Jesus.
4. Holy Spirit, help me to surrender my life fully to Jesus, in the name of Jesus.
5. Hardness in my heart, melt away by fire, in the name of Jesus.
6. I decree that the word of God shall take a firm root in my heart, in the name of Jesus.
7. Holy Spirit, purge me of every worldly entanglement and fill me afresh, in the name of Jesus.
MOUNTAIN TOP LIFE is a daily devotional by Dr. D.K Olukoya (General Overseer, Mountain of Fire and Miracle Ministries, Worldwide).