THE PRINCIPLES OF DIVINE FAVOUR.

 This year God has promised us UNCOMMON FAVOUR. “Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon Zion:  for the time to favour her, yea, the set time, is come” (Ps. 102:13).

Say after me: Now is the appointed time for God to favour me. I shall be decorated with the coat of many colours this year and I shall live in the overflow this year, IJN.

Today, we want to look at “THE PRINCIPLES OF DIVINE FAVOUR!” Here is the key: Uncommon favour is accessible to all, but is obtainable only by those that obey the principles.

What is a principle? A principle is the basic way in which something works. It is a rule that MUST be followed. 

God’s principle is His perfect will and it specifies His way of doing things. For instance, if you want to prosper financially, God demands that you give. 

For instance, if you want to prosper financially, God demands that you give in the measure you want to receive.

In Luke 6:38 Jesus said, “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.”

Give in the measure you want to receive. 2 Corinthians 9:6-7 says, “…He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. 7 Every man (person) according as he purposeth (decides) in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.”

Similarly, if you want to experience God’s favour, you must follow the laid down rules – God’s instructions.

What then are the principles of divine Favour? The principles of divine favour include:

1. Realize that divine favour is a gift from God. You can’t purchase it. Others are not obligated to you. It is the Lord only that can open the door of favour to you. 

To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: “These are the words of Him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. The door He opens no one can shut, and what He shuts no one can open” (Rev. 3:7, NIV). 

2. Divine favour is a seed you can sow into other people’s lives. For instance, when you help others achieve their goals, you are sowing seeds of favour which will eventually come back to you according to Luke 6:38. 

What you make happen for others, God will make happen for you. “Knowing that whatever good one does, he will receive the same from the Lord” (Eph. 6:8). 

3. Divine favour begins when you solve a problem for someone else. For instance, when Joseph interpreted the dream for Pharaoh, his gift made room for him. “A man’s gift maketh a room (way) for him, and bringeth him before great men” (Prov. 18:16).

4. Divine favour begins as a seed and ends as a harvest. What you sow today in the life of someone else will re-enter your life tomorrow according to Luke 6:38. This is called the “Harvest of Favour.”

5. Divine favour is necessary for uncommon success or breakthroughs. This is because you can never work hard enough to provide everything you want in life. All your earnings cannot generate the finances you will need for all your dreams and goals. 

Here is the truth: If your dream is really of God, it must be greater than what you can ever finance single handed. Therefore, divine favour is very necessary for you to take giant leaps into your future (Deut. 16:15).

6. Divine favour is not co-incidental. God uses favour as a reward for even the smallest act of obedience to His Instructions.

God said, “If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land” (Isa. 1:19).

God said, “If you obey and serve Him, you shall spend your days in prosperity, and your years in pleasures” (Job 36:11).

7. Divine favour is not normal (Ps. 127:1; Prov. 14:23, NIV). Many struggle and sweat each day of their lives to advance by a single step but no way. They have never tasted the flow of divine favour.

Proverbs 14:23 says, “All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty” (NIV).

8. Divine favour is also what you obtain from the LORD when you find a wife. “Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour of the Lord” (Prov. 18:22).

9. Divine favour is also what you receive from the LORD when you find wisdom. “For whoever finds me (wisdom/the perfect will of God) finds life and receives favour from the Lord” (Prov. 8:5, NLT).

10. Divine favour is not stagnant. It must flow. Just as a stream is never stagnant, divine favour is like a current that increases from a trickle to a Niagara Falls when it is honoured and embraced (Matt. 13:8, NIV).

11. Divine favour can grow. The good happening in your life today can increase to a 100-fold within the next 12 hours. 

“Jesus grew in favour with God and men” (Lk. 2:52).

“And the boy Samuel continued to grow in stature and in favour with the LORD and with men” (1 Sam. 2:26, NIV).

“Grace (divine favour) and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord” (2 Pet. 1:2).

12. God’s favour lasts a lifetime. “… but His favour lasts a lifetime…” (Ps. 30:5, NIV).

13. God’s favour will make you very secure. “Your FAVOUR, O Lord, made me as secure as a mountain” (Prov. 7:7).

14. Divine favour is not guaranteed. You must qualify for it. For you to qualify, you must do the needful. “If you fully obey the LORD your God and carefully follow all His commands …2 All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the LORD your God” (Deut. 28:1-2 says, NIV).

You must live a life of holiness in order to attract God’s favour upon your life.

15. Divine favour can cease. Divine favour stops when you disobey God, as is the case when you delay paying your tithe to God. A curse, instead of the blessing, comes on you (Mal. 3:8-9; Deut. 28:15-68).

The moment you disobey God you lose your holiness. When you lose your holiness, divine favour ceases in your life.

16. Divine favour comes when others pray for you. Peter was imprisoned, but the church prayed, and God became involved. The doors of the prison were opened, and Peter was miraculously released (Acts 12:1-11).

17. Divine favour also comes when you pray concerning your situation. Divine favour came when Paul and Silas prayed concerning their predicament and sang hymns unto God. The Holy Ghost came down and brought favour to them (Acts 16:16-34).

“This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 15 And if we know that He hears us - whatever we ask - we know that we have what we asked of Him” (1 Jn. 5:14-15, NIV).

Job found favour with God when he prayed! “He prayed to God and found FAVOUR with Him, he saw God's face and shouted for joy; he was restored by God to his righteous state” (Job 33:26, NIV).

Conclusion: This is the year of the fulfilment of God's promises to you because this is His appointed time to favour you. I therefore, encourage you to key into God’s favour today. Do not delay!

Watch out for the next edition of Good News from the Pulpit!

 

Your friend, I. I. MADUBUNYI (Head Pastor)                                                                             24.01.2021