"And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him" (Matthew 3:16).
We have evidence in the Scriptures that there is a general heaven and there is a personal heaven. Thus the heaven over a nation or a congregation could be open while the personal heaven of a particular individual in that nation or congregation could be closed. In the same vein, an individual may experience a personal open heaven while the communal heaven remains closed. Elijah and the widow of Zarephath were examples of people who experienced open heavens at a time when the rest of the society were under a closed heaven. In our Bible verse for today, many people were there for baptism, but it was only Jesus whose heavens were opened.
It is usually a very bad experience to be under a closed heaven, whether for an individual or for a community of people. Under a closed heaven situation, things would be generally tough, blessings would be nil or rare, hardship would be constant, and fulfilment would be unknown. Some people may have the heavens shut over their business or career, while for some others, it could be in the area of relationship or their spiritual life. It is also possible to experience a total shut down of the heavens over an individual or nation. When that happens, life on earth would be worse than hell.
There are a number of factors that could cause the heavens to shut down, but sin remains a contender for the top spot. The Bible calls sin a transgression of the law (1 John 3:4). It is setting aside the law of God and living by the laws of men - the laws we have set up for ourselves. In other words, sin is living contrary to the word of God. When we consistently live in this way, we could shut the heavens over our lives. Biblical Israel found herself under a closed heaven many times because of their transgressions.
Lack of knowledge is also another reason for living under a closed heaven. Much of the problems that bedevilled the patriarch Job was the result of lack of knowledge. That was why when God came through to Job, He took him through a course on the creation and administration of the earth. And then, of course, failure to walk fully in God's program for your life could also bring you under a closed heaven. Jesus's case was not that of sin or lack of knowledge. He simply was yet to enter fully into God's program for His life.
There are a couple of things you must give attention to if you want your heaven to open up. First, you must humble yourself before God. Jesus humbled Himself to submit to John's baptism and His heavens were opened (Matthew 3:11-15). The greatest proof of humility is unquestioned obedience to God's word, that is, doing things just as God has said. Jesus Christ demonstrated this when, in spite of John's protest, the Lord insisted on being baptized by John in order "to fulfill all righteousness" (Matthew 3:15). Jesus wanted to submit Himself to all the provisions of the word of God. Secondly, prayer will open your heaven. Notice that Jesus was praying when the heavens were opened unto Him. Heaven will always open in response to fervent, sincere and anointed prayers.
Finally, the Scripture teaches that regular tithing will keep your heavens open. The indication to this is clearly given in the book of Malachi where God promised that when you pay the tithe, He will "open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it" (Malachi 3:10). Indeed, by linking our heaven with our blessings, this Bible verse fully underscore the significance of the "heaven" we have been talking about. May the Lord grant us further understanding in Jesus Christ's name.
No comments:
Post a Comment