Jehovah Shammah (1)

Jesus is always on time; Jesus is Always There

⁸ Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
Hebrew 13:8 Jesus Christ the same…Jesus- the son pf God   

⁶ Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. John14 :6

Joseph

Before the wise men were called to interpret Pharoah’s dream and they were in a quagmire, unable to interpret the dream and their lives Jeopardy, God had the solution to that problem, answers to their question; Joseph was sent ahead of time to interpret that dream. God was not taken by surprise. Why? He is Jehovah Shammah!

You will recall that before the Pharoah had this dream interpretation problem, he had interpreted the dream of two of his inmates. It was the butler whose dream was successfully interpreted who remembered Joseph after two years of forgetfulness.  However, he remembered Joseph at the right time and told Pharaoh about it when he wanted to kill all wise men who were not able to interpret his dream. Joseph was summoned and he interpreted the dream and the prisoner became a Prime Minister in a foreign land.

Furthermore, following from this dream was a time of famine predicted that was to last for seven years. It was Joseph that God used to stem the devastation that would have arisen as a result of the famine because preceding the period of famine, was a 7years of prosperity, and he was used to administer the produce of the land such that there was no starvation in the Land. Jehovah Shammah (Ezek.48:35)! The Ever-present and very present Lord. God is always on time!

Gen.41:39-41, Ps46:1

No matter the problem or situation you come up against in the journey of your life, always remember that Jesus is always on time. See how Joseph was called out of the prison to offer a solution. So, expect divine intervention when you come to the crossroads of your life. God is always faster than the devil.

Saviour Before Bondage

¹² Now when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, horror and great darkness fell upon him. ¹³ Then He said to Abram: “Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years. ¹⁴ And also the nation whom they serve I will judge; afterward they shall come out with great possessions. Gen.15:12-14

Before the 400 years of bondage of the Israelites in a foreign, God had gone ahead to provide a solution, a deliverer, Moses, who was to be unveiled at the proper time. Moses was born in the midst of the burden and bondage. Besides, Moses was trained and educated in the house of Pharoah. He had the best of education Egypt could offer and at Pharoah’s expense. After a while God gave him an understanding that he was born to be a solution, an answer to the slavery question. He was God’s medicine to the sickness of slavery; the harbinger of Joy in the face of the anguish, maltreatment and sorrow. Moses knew who he was: that he was an Israelite and not an Egyptian, called to defend his people. In the course of defending his people, he committed a murder that made him take cover as a fugitive in a foreign land – Midian. There He was trained, groomed, prepared for his life’s purpose. Jethro was like a mid-wife that God used to train Moses. There looking after Jethro’s Sheep, he had lots of work-experience to look after God’s sheep-the Israelites. There he was consecrated for the service of God. There God gave him a staff that was to be symbolic of his sceptre and instrument of deliverance and signs and wonders.

Exodus 7:7-13

I am here to remind you that in the midst of your trials and temptations and testing and ordeals, there is always a solution right there by you. All you need is a revelation knowledge of what it is that you have in your hand or your house that God can use as the answer to the question and solution to the problem. Why? Because, before the problem came, a solution had been put in place, awaiting your discovery.

Do you recall that before Lazarus died, Jesus was already a family friend of Mary and Martha? Before Lazarus died, Jesus had visited them, and was very close to them. And so when Lazarus died and Jesus arrived late after he had been dead for four days and now buried and stank, the sickness that took his life could not stop him from coming back to life.

And what is God telling us today? He is always there and we need to open our eyes to see Him and acknowledge Him amidst the seemingly hopeless or dead situation and obtain our miracle or resurrection.  God wants us to know that in 2024, in the midst of every darkness, there is a light waiting for our discovery. And as we in faith turn on the light, the darkness will flee. We need to open our eyes to see that satan is a defeated foe and that he cannot triumph over us because Jesus is with us always.

The Problem of Eli and the Solution of Samuel

Let me take you again to another story in the Bible when Hannah was believing God for the fruit of the womb. She suffered a lot of taunts from her mate Penninah and agonised in prayer for the fruit of the womb. However unknown to her, God was also looking for someone to replace a prophet (Eli) who was past his sell-by date. God saw in Hannah a woman who was dedicated and available to be used to give birth to that prophet. So, God gave Hannah a sudden surprise and did not allow her to agonise for too long. Samuel was born and later took over from Eli. Hannah’s testimony and joy and answer was manifested because God was there, right on time- as God is always on time.

¹⁹ Then they rose early in the morning and worshiped before the Lord, and returned and came to their house at Ramah. And Elkanah knew Hannah his wife, and the Lord remembered her. ²⁰ So it came to pass in the process of time that Hannah conceived and bore a son, and called his name ^[f]Samuel, saying, “Because I have asked for him from the Lord.” 1Sam1:19-20

Remember that in your time of need, God will always be there. I want to bring you an understanding from the word of God so that in your time of trouble you will draw inspiration from the Word and prevail.

The God of Provision: Widow of Zarephath

This widow faced a very hard time, financially. She was very poor and had a last meal that she was going to eat with her child and die. The prophet arrives, who was also in need. Prophet Elijah, as commanded by the Lord was sent to this desperate woman to be fed. She told him her plight and that she was in dire need and only had a jar full of flour and a jar of oil.

The Prophet insisted that she fed him first and prophesied that what she had would not run dry. We all know the story. Through her obedience God multiplied what she had and she was abundantly supplied.

Elijah and the Widow

⁸ Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, ⁹ “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. See, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you.” ¹⁰ So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, indeed a widow was there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, “Please bring me a little water in a cup, that I may drink.” ¹¹ And as she was going to get it, he called to her and said, “Please bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.”

¹² So she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I do not have bread, only a handful of flour in a bin, and a little oil in a ^[a]jar; and see, I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.”

¹³ And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said, but make me a small cake from it first, and bring it to me; and afterward make some for yourself and your son. ¹⁴ For thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘The bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry, until the day the Lord sends rain on the earth.’ ”

¹⁵ So she went away and did according to the word of Elijah; and she and he and her household ate for many days. ¹⁶ The bin of flour was not used up, nor did the jar of oil run dry, according to the word of the Lord which He spoke by Elijah.

1Kings17:8-16

From her lack, God through Elijah, multiplied what she had in super abundance.

What Do You Have in Your Hands?

 A Road In the Sea

Looking again at the story of Moses as he led the children of Israel out of the House of Bondage, they came to the Red Sea and were sandwiched between Pharaoh’s army and the sea.  The people panicked and told Moses,

“Because there were no graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you so dealt with us, to bring us up out of Egypt? ¹² Is this not the word that we told you in Egypt, saying, ‘Let us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than that we should die in the wilderness.”

Moses Encouraged them

¹³ And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Standstill, and see the salvation^[b] of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. ¹⁴ The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold^[c] your peace.”

He then Cried out to God. What did God say?

¹⁵ And the Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to Me? Tell the children of Israel to go forward. ¹⁶ But lift up your rod, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it. And the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea. ¹⁷ And I indeed will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they shall follow them. And I will gain honor over Pharaoh and over all his army, his chariots, and his horsemen. ¹⁸ Then the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gained honor for Myself over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”

Yes, God asked Moses what he had in his hands. In other words, no matter what you face, the solution is right there in your hands or your house.

The solution to cross the Red Sea was in the hand of Moses. Most times the solution to cross our “Red Sea” is in our hands. But the question is whether or not you can see it. The laughter we need is our hands. Use what is in your hands. … and Moses stretched forth the rod and the sea was parted for them to walk on dry ground. Halleluia!

In the Beginning

In Genesis 1 we are told that there was void and darkness

1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. ² The earth was without form, and void; and darkness ^[a]was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

³ Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.

Before darkness pervaded. God- the light of the world was there and called forth light out of the darkness.

⁶ For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Cast Down but Unconquered

⁷ But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.

2Cor.4:6-7

So no matter the darkness you are going through today, the light of God is there to bring about a solution, a joy unspeakable, a panacea, a breakthrough, even a miraculous divine providence.

To that situation in your life, God will declare His light and the darkness will disappear, in the name of Jesus. That situation of pain, God will turn into a great joy in the name of Jesus. The Psalmist said, “You have turned for me my mourning into dancing;
You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness,
¹² To the end that my ^[glory may sing praise to You and not be silent.
O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever. Ps.30:11-12

Realise today, that because God is always with us, there is always a solution to our problems.

From what we have seen, we know that healing and resurrection come from God and so when Lazarus was sick and died, Jesus, the Resurrection and the Life was there. So anything dead in your life will come back to life. Anything that is sick will be healed. Anything that is weak will be made strong.

We have also seen that after famine, abundance came. God shall give you super abundance in your “Day of famine.”

As children of God, we need to draw strength from the Word of God and be inspired to take steps of faith, work out the work and see supernatural manifestation.

In conclusion, I want us to look at the story of the three Hebrew children who were exiled in Babylon and tempted to bow to the image of gold erected by King Nebuchadnezzar.

In Hebrew 12:29 we know that our God is a consuming fire and so when the three Hebrew children were threatened with being thrown into the fiery burning furnace that had been heated seven times hotter than usually, they were not afraid and refused to compromise what they believed. They boldly defied the King’s command to bow and refused to bow.

The king was infuriated and he commanded them to be tied and thrown into the fiery burning furnace. However, before they were thrown into that furnace, the Lord was there – Jehovah Shammah- Ever-present Lord! He is always on time. He is always there.

Call for salvation

One of the ways in which you can enjoy His ever-presence is to be reconciled to him through salvation. So if you do not know Him as Lord and Saviour, this is your opportunity to come and be reconciled to God through Jesus Christ.

Say with me: Lord Jesus, I accept that I am a sinner and I believe and confess that Jesus died for me and was raised to give me justification. Jesus is my Lord and Saviour.  Today, I pass from death to life- abundant life, the God -kind of life. Thank you that my name is removed from the book of those condemned. There is now no more condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.

Now that you are a child of God, pray: Lord, protect me from every attack in the name of Jesus. Lord, overshadow my children, my family and everything that belongs to me. In the mighty name of Jesus. And let every darkness give way.

Let us pray: In this year 2024, I receive abundance of Joy and provision and direction. The Lord will supply all my needs according to His riches in glory.

Lord, deliver me from every generational bondage, by the authority in the mighty name of Jesus. Healing and resurrection, appear in my life, family and circumstances. Let every unpleasant situation be reversed, in the matchless. mighty name of Jesus.

In the name of Jesus, satan will not take glory over my life and the life of my family. My life and the life of my family will arise and shine and the glory of God will be seen, in the mighty name of Jesus.

Lord, rescue me, provide for me, make a way where there seems to be no way.

Lord, be on time in my situations as I have seen in your word because you are the same, yesterday today and forever. In Jesus mighty name amen.