Bishop David Oyedepo: Enemies of Success!

Topic: Enemies of Success!

We understand from Scriptures that success is the birthright of every child of God. However, it is not just ordinary success but outstanding one. By this we mean, standing out among our peers. Also, all-round success is God’s plan for us and as such when we succeed, God is delighted; because it glorifies Him. As it is written: For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end (Jeremiah 29:11).

However, we will only experience success when we do whatsoever God says we should do. In other words, when we do what He commands, we are entitled to His blessings. This is because God is no respecter of persons and the scriptures cannot be broken (Acts 10:34-35). If we disregard God’s conditions for breakthroughs as written in scripture, we will suffer the same calamity the world is facing. Like I have always said, whatever we desire from our inheritance, we need to know the fundamental requirement to accessing them. The good news is that, there is a covenant of success already in place. All we need to do is to locate it and comply with the demands. A wise man once said, ‘’let your learning lead to knowledge and let your knowledge lead to action. God’s Word also says: But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves (James 1:22). Therefore, it is wisdom to work with all that we have learnt.

Let us recognise that success is not an issue of chance, but of choice. What we do with what we have learnt reveals whether or not we want to be successful. No one can stop a covenant child of God from succeeding; not even the devil. So the devil is not our problem as people erroneously think; neither is any mortal man. No one but ourselves can stop us from getting to that glorious place ordained for us. Many people in the society have lost sight of these facts, taking God’s covenant for granted and thereby living an unsuccessful life. That is why, it is important to explore certain cautions we must take heed to, if success is our goal. In other words, there are things we must guard against, so as to experience outstanding success. These are:

Self Reliance: One big barrier between us and God’s blessings is reliance on self. As we may recall, when God wanted to bless Abraham. He said: …I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed (Genesis 12:2-3). Abraham’s success is still being celebrated today because God made Him. God’s blessing was what made Abraham a success, not his expertise or hard work. Likewise, it is God’s blessings that will make us successful, without adding any sorrow to it (Proverbs 10:22). Thus, we must stay connected to God always. A reliance on our expertise, wisdom or hard work alone disconnects us from His blessings. The story is told in 2 chronicles 26 of King Uzziah who was marvelously helped of God. But, in the next verse, the Bible says: …when he was strong, his heart was lifted up to his destruction: for he transgressed against the Lord his God (2 Chronicles 26:16). King Uzziah whom God prospered so much ended His life in misery as a result of self reliance. As we may recall, the race is not to the swift, neither is the battle to the strong. Favour is not to men of skilful or understanding. It is God that determines the events of every man’s life. Therefore, we must look up to Him and rely on Him always. We shall not fail!

Disobedience: God leads by instruction (Psalms 32:8) and His Instruction is the high way to distinction. When God speaks, He speaks to correct, reprove and rebuke so we can get on course with His agenda. By His commandment, any believer can be on top of his world; as it is by doing what God says that we change levels. But if we are smarter than God, we will remain at the same level (Isaiah 34:16).

Pride: Some Christians are so full of pride that they don’t know that it’s their pride that has gotten them grounded. No matter how loaded the potentials in us are, if we walk in pride, we don’t have a future. It takes meekness to learn and apply ourselves to it (James 4:6).

Envy: A lot of Christians fall victim of envy without knowing. It is important to know that our thoughts are as important as our words. Every evil thought against any man lifted by God brings evil upon our lives. Remember, when God makes somebody our head and we curse him, we will perish. Also, when we see people rising around us, we shouldn’t wish them evil, or we will never rise. Everyone that comes against a man who is enjoying a covenant rise from God comes under a curse. Remember God told Abraham …I will bless thee and curse him that curses thee. Many are under such curses today. Therefore, we must gird up the loins of our minds and rejoice from the depth of our hearts with that friend of ours who is lifted by God.

In conclusion, success does not come from any human source but from God. If we must experience outstanding success, it is wisdom to comply with God’s instructions and as we do so, I see us enjoying all-round success.

Nevertheless, one step to a successful living is being born-again. If you are not born-again, you are not entitled to it. Are you born again? If you are not, this is an opportunity to do so. Simply say the following prayer: Lord Jesus, I come to You today. I am a sinner. Forgive me my sins. Cleanse me with Your precious Blood. Today, I accept You as my Lord and Saviour. Thank You Jesus for saving me! Now I know I am born again!”  For further reading, please get my books: Success Strategies, Success Systems, Maximising Destiny, Exploring the Secrets of Success. I invite you to come and fellowship with us at the Faith Tabernacle, Canaanland, Ota, the covenant home of Winners. We have five services on Sundays, holding at 6:00 a.m., 7:50 a.m., 9:40 a.m., 11:30 a.m. and 1:20 p.m. respectively.

I know this teaching has blessed you. Write and share your testimony with me through: Faith Tabernacle, Canaanland, Ota, P.M.B. 21688, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria; or call 01-4548070, 01-4548280; or E-mail: feedback@lfcww.org.