Topic: 5 KEYS TO GREATNESS
Text: Genesis 26:1-14
Speaker: Pst. Belemina Ogbunge

Date: 23^rd October 2022, 1^st Service

Genesis 26:1-14 (KJV)

¹ 1And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar.

² And the Lord appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of:

³ Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father;

⁴ And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed;

⁵ Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.

⁶ And Isaac dwelt in Gerar:

⁷ And the men of the place asked him of his wife; and he said, She is my sister: for he feared to say, She is my wife; lest, said he, the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah; because she was fair to look upon.

⁸ And it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out at a window, and saw, and, behold, Isaac was sporting with Rebekah his wife.

⁹ And Abimelech called Isaac, and said, Behold, of a surety she is thy wife; and how saidst thou, She is my sister? And Isaac said unto him, Because I said, Lest I die for her.

¹⁰ And Abimelech said, What is this thou hast done unto us? one of the people might lightly have lien with thy wife, and thou shouldest have brought guiltiness upon us.

¹¹ And Abimelech charged all his people, saying, He that toucheth this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.

¹² Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the Lord blessed him.

¹³ And the man waxed great, and went forward, and grew until he became very great:

¹⁴ For he had possession of flocks, and possession of herds, and great store of servants: and the Philistines envied him.

INTRODUCTION

Genesis 26:1-14, the Bible shares how Isaac has become great, very great but that greatness didn’t just come like that, certain things happened that we need to kindly take note of. When the word of God dwells in our hearts, we’ll be able to experience the blessings and the light along our path.

5 KEYS TO GREATNESS

1. Divine Intervention: when God shows up darkness clears up. Divine Intervention opens the doors for your celebration.

• Distinct instruction: Genesis 26:2, there are times God appears in many instances but so many people are not attentive to listen to what God is saying, they are too busy murmuring and complaining, enveloped in self-pity, moving in anger and distracted by situations, the Bible says God appears and “said”. Proverbs 3:5-12 (MSG), wrong assumptions give rise to destruction, it is an error when you assume that you know it all. For us to be able to experience greatness we must give room to distinct instruction. Instruction is an order, it is a directive, Proverbs 1:8, Proverbs 4:1. Many times we just go forth in life without listening to God’s instruction. Without instruction, one experiences destruction.

• Definite inclination to God’s word: It requires swallowing your ego, your pride, and your opinion and doing what God says you should do, when you decline divine instructions, you decline in life. Proverbs 8:33. God will always give us instructions in every situation of life once we are sensitive. Proverbs 4:13-15. The moment you let go of instruction, you give room to destruction.

• Decisive integrity: Integrity means doing the right thing because it’s the right thing to do, people out of fear or the opinions of others abuse integrity. Because of fear Isaac said his wife was his sister, Genesis 26:7. Proverbs 11:3, Proverbs 20:7. A life that lacks integrity may be a carnal celebrity but is a spiritual nonentity.

• Diligent Insight into how God wants you to do it: When one is diligent, they don’t give room to excuses, diligence opens the way to dividends in life, Proverbs 10:4.

CONCLUSION:

In conclusion, we need to consider the 5 keys to achieving greatness, a divine intervention that will give rise to distinct instruction and it shall open a way to a definite inclination with a definite inclination there should be decisive integrity and as you operate with decisive integrity there should be a diligent insight into how God wants you to do it and when that happens, the kind of desirable inheritance you are trusting God for shall come into manifestation, the kind of breakthrough you want shall come into manifestation and I ask, when is your time?

PRAYER:

1. My father, my father, the blessings you have for me strengthen me to receive them in the name of Jesus
2. Help me to be sensitive to your instruction, in any way I have gone my path I am sorry.
3. My father, my father, every strange voice speaking to my life and my destiny, I reject it in the name of Jesus.
4. Help me to obey your voice oh Lord!
5. Strengthen me to walk on the path of integrity.
6. Help us to be diligent oh Lord.
7. Father, I receive my increase, I receive greatness, in Jesus’ name, Amen!

PRAYER OF SALVATION

Say,

Almighty God, I come before your presence with a sincere heart asking for your mercy, I am very sorry for every act of compromise please forgive me, I ask for your grace, and I ask for your strength to live a righteous life, help me oh God, Jesus come into my life be my personal Lord and Savior, I forsake every path of compromise, thank you Jesus for giving me this opportunity, by your grace and mercy I will not fail you, In Jesus name, Amen!