Let us pray….
Isaiah 53:1 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?
Deuteronomy 27:11-14 And Moses charged the people the same day, saying, These shall stand upon mount Gerizim to bless the people, when ye are come over Jordan; Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Joseph, and Benjamin: And these shall stand upon mount Ebal to curse; Reuben, Gad, and Asher, and Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali. And the Levites shall speak, and say unto all the men of Israel with a loud voice,
Moses went on at this point to describe the things that were to be a reason for being cursed, and then he gave the reasons for being blessed. These went far above and beyond the original “Ten Commandments”. These items were an exposition on the thoughts, and intents of the “Ten Commandments”. These were from God’s point of view. They were limited in their scope, and were mostly “Thou Shalt Nots” from the cursing point of view.
The foundations that were laid that day seem to have slipped from our grasp in this day and age. We as Apostolic-Pentecostals have also seemed to have lost our way concerning grace and the law, as we attempt to serve God according to our perception of his desires for our lives.
My hope and my desire today, is to reveal to you the arm of the Lord in our deliverance from the law unto grace. Now I think you know me well enough by now to know that I stand firmly behind what we as a people of God, have decided is right in the sight of God for Holy living. What I have to say this night will not change your opinion of my stand on that subject. What may happen is that it will change your reasons for a stand on this subject.
It is not my intention this evening to teach this congregation about dress codes, or in particular, to define what the standard of dress for this congregation should be. While that is my job as the Pastor of this church. That's something which will be scheduled for a bible study night, not a Sunday morning service.
What I do intend to do this morning, time permitting, is to show you the difference in attitudes that exist between those who are under the law; and those who have seen the revelation of Jesus Christ, as the expressed image of God Almighty as he has revealed to us those attitudes which we should maintain toward all things.
¨ Too many times over the course of my walk with God in this marvellous light. I’ve seen members of a congregation turn away from God because they couldn’t keep the supposed burden of some imaginary law they were under. They’ve felt held back from some sort of hypothetical freedom. When in reality, it was only this humble request for holiness that has kept them back from bondage to the world.
¨ Too many times I’ve heard that we’re under grace now and the law is no longer in effect to hold us down from our freedom in Christ. When in reality Grace is stricter in its interpretation of sin than the law ever was.
¨ Too many times I’ve seen those same individuals compromise this wonderful revelation of holiness we have from God. These same individuals soon become former members of this esteemed truth. They go off to seek their freedom in the world and then wonder where God went. Soon they make no further pretense to serve Christ at all. They’re lost in bondage to their envisioned freedoms.
¨ Too many times churches have gone the way of the less holy, thinking they are more holy, more righteous, more loving. All the time denying the true love that is only too apparent to them that serve God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength. Denying in their hearts that the constraints placed upon them are for their protection, and instead are there only to hinder their freedom.
The scriptures teach us to beware when people call Right “wrong” and Wrong “right”. We can’t grow in Grace if we hold it in contempt. God has brought us out of the world, and the sins and the iniquities that abound therein. Let’s not revile God by saying he’s bound us, when in reality it’s the protective arm of God that's truly set us free. And whom the Son sets free is free indeed.
¨ Too many times people have turned away from one thing of God, only to turn away from another, then another, then another, and another. Until finally they don’t believe in anything at all!
¨ Too many times people have walked away from this marvelous light only to stumble in the darkness until they fall in the ditch. That ditch which soon leads to the pit of hell!
¨ Too many times God has moved in their lives in order to draw them back to him. But because they’ve esteemed his holiness as less than desirable. They’ve grown cold in their hearts toward God himself. They no longer hear God when he speaks to them.
Beware saint of God when you no longer feel Him moving in your heart. He always moves, but we don’t always hear him. Sometimes we fail to listen; sometimes we fail to hear him because we haven’t prepared our hearts to hear him. We need to prepare our hearts to seek him daily, or soon we will wonder, "Where did the wonder go".
¨ Soon we will wonder if all this is necessary to serve God.
¨ Soon we will be on the outside looking in.
¨ Soon we will no longer care.
¨ Soon, so very soon thereafter, we are lost.
Pause
As for those who would say that we are under grace and not the law, I implore you to consider this:
Matthew 5:27-28 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou
shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a
woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
Those of old time, were those under
the law. They said, “Thou shalt not
commit adultery”. But what did Jesus say? “But I
say unto you, that whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath
committed adultery with her already in his heart.” Just the wrong look at a woman, is now the sin of
adultery. That being established I want to move on into the topic at hand today,
the deliverance from the law unto Grace.
Under the law, we had Moses giving the
word of God as it was transcribed upon the two tablets of stone. Nevermore to
change since we have an unchangeable God. Thus, here is where we get the term
“Written in stone”, because it means something that will never change.
God in his infinite wisdom
knew that somehow we as human beings would find a way to destroy those precious
things. So Jesus was foreordained to come and to redeem us from our sins, but
he also came to show us a better way. He didn’t just repeat the law because the
law couldn’t save us. We’re not strong enough to obey it, so He gave us grace.
Now, some individuals use grace as an
acronym meaning; God’s Riches At
Christ’s Expense. They use this as an excuse to keep living their old ways
before God. While this may very well be a portion of it’s meaning; I dare to
believe that grace is much more than that. Grace did pay a dept we could not
pay, but grace also requires an even greater commitment to God; than the law
which we could not keep.
The law required our
obedience to God through the fulfillment of statutes, while grace requires
everything we possess. It requires our obedience, our heart, our soul, our mind,
and our strength. It requires our love, and our total undying commitment to
Jesus Christ as our savior.
We're not only to be
obedient to the precepts of the law as was Christ, who fulfilled all that which we were too weak in the
flesh to obey. But we are to be obedient to the principles and the concepts
revealed to us by Christ, which were established during his fulfillment of the
law. The thoughts and intents of God’s law were graphically lived and recorded
for the whole world to see.
Let’s take for example the woman taken
in adultery. The law specified that she should be stoned until dead. However,
Jesus showed us that we should have mercy along with our judgement. He spoke
only these words, “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at
her.” These words were all that needed to be spoken to prove their lack of
mercy.
How would you feel if
Jesus had no mercy on you in respect to your sins past or present? How would
you feel
if you were judged according to your own judgement? Thank God we are not judged
by our own standards; but by those of Jesus Christ as set forth in the Bible.
I dare say that none of us
are perfect! If we were perfect, Christ wouldn’t have had to die for us. But
many times it seems that we have no mercy. It’s been said that the Christian
army is the only one that shoots it’s wounded. Too often we fail help those who
have fallen, but instead we condemn them as unworthy.
Now,
when we think of the “Ten Commandments”, we think of things of that we're not
allowed to do. Jesus was given to showing us what to do much more than what not
to do. Oh, he did tell us what not to do. But he showed us even more so what to
do. With that in mind, I want you to consider the following passage of
scripture as I relate to you the “Ten Commandments”; as now changed from mostly
“Thou Shalt Nots” to completely “Thou Shalt’s”.
Hebrews 1:1-3 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto
the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of
all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his
person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by
himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;
The passage I just read shows us
without a doubt that Jesus Christ was, and is the express image of God
almighty. If He has set examples for us to follow in the bible, and He has, we
would be fools not to follow those examples. Let’s look at the examples He's
set for us concerning the Ten Commandments.
1.
Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
This now becomes:
¨
Thou shalt love the
Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.
¨
Thou shalt keep your
mind stayed on him and unspotted from the world.
¨
Thou shalt study his word
on a daily basis.
¨
Thou shalt seek him in
prayer on a daily basis.
¨
Thou shalt teach your
children about the goodness of the Lord.
¨
Thou shalt live a holy
life before God and man as a witness for the Lord.
¨
Thou shalt sacrifice
your will to the Lord God almighty.
Wow, that last one is
hard! Sacrifice your will to God? It’s tough, but if you'll do that one
the rest of those will be easy to do. Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane was
praying that God would take away the task that He had for Him. That task was to
die for our sins, yet Jesus said, “Not my will but thine be done”, and He was
obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
Living for God is a
sacrifice at times. But if you work on a job you're sacrificing too. You
sacrifice several hours of each day for a reward. That reward being a paycheck.
If we'll sacrifice our will to God we'll receive a reward as well, with that
reward being eternal life in Heaven.
Some people try to live
this life easy, and it’s very hard for them to do so. They think:
·
Poor pitiful me. I
have to give up so much for God. It’s just so hard. But they forget the sacrifice God made on their behalf.
·
God’s really mistreating
me. Why can’t I live it like the “Frozen Chosen” crowd? They don’t have any rules.
But they don’t feel the Holy Ghost like
we do either.
·
Why can’t I live it
like the “Blab it and Grab it” crowd? They actually get something they claim
once in a lifetime or so. They also have
no credibility either. They claim all this stuff and never get it. Oh, once
in a great while someone will get something. But I guarantee you they don’t
even get a small fraction of what they blab for!
For every compromised
movement of any denomination you have what seems to be some perceived minor advantage
over what God has actually commanded us to live. But they lose an equal amount
of God's anointing in return. We're commanded to have no other gods before him.
When we turn away from the precepts God has set before us for any reason
whatsoever, we're turning away from the living God, and proclaiming that we are
the god of our own lives.
Jesus himself, as the
expressed image of God, denied himself, even at the cost of tremendous
suffering, and in the end, his own life. What other example can we find that
shows such intense love for God? No greater love hath any man than this? But
that a man would lay down his life for his friends.
If we'll spend all our
time loving God for who he is and what he’s done. We won’t have time to worry
about what we’re missing, or what someone else “thinks” they’re getting away
with. Let me repeat that last part. What they “think” they’re getting away with.
2.
Thou shalt not worship any graven image
This now becomes:
¨
Thou shalt seek Jesus
for he is your intercessor between God and man.
¨
Thou shalt pray to him
everyday that he becomes more real in your life.
¨
Thou shalt pray to him
everyday because dead idols made of wood and stone can’t answer your prayers.
¨
Thou shalt pray to him
everyday because he alone can forgive your sins.
¨
Thou shalt pray to him
everyday because he is God manifest in the flesh, and when you pray to him you
are praying to God himself.
¨
Thou shalt pray to him
everyday because the disciples are dead and can no longer intercede for you.
¨
Thou shalt pray to him
everyday because Mary is dead and can no longer intercede for you.
¨
Thou shalt pray to him
everyday because the scriptures teach us to “Seek out our own salvation with
fear and trembling”.
¨
Thou shalt pray to him
everyday because you want to be more like him, and that will only come through
fellowshipping his spirit.
Don’t let anything in this world interfere with your relationship with Jesus Christ. Don’t let art, entertainment, video, computers, ball games, or even church things interfere with your relationship with him.
I don’t see anything wrong with the proper usage of any of the things I just mentioned. Art has its place. Entertainment has its place. Video has its proper usage as well; watching Apostolic-Pentecostal doctrinal teaching videos are acceptable in my view.
Computers have their place, but keep them in their place. I use a computer at work for work. I use one at home for sermon preparation, and bible study preparation, things of that nature. If it’s taking time away from your family that should be spent with them, get rid of it. Your family is a priceless thing. Take it from a man who at this stage of his life can only dream of having a family.
Don’t get so involved with the extra-curricular activities of the church that your family life suffers. Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Thursday night don’t count as extra-curricular activities, but everything else does!
We're going to have lots of wonderful things to do in this church. It will take people to run these things and to participate in these things. But if your family or especially your relationship with God is suffering because of your participation in the extra-curricular activities of the church. Stop immediately! No one is irreplaceable! Someone will rise up and fill your spot, and things will go on just like they did when you were running the show.
3.
Thou shalt not take God’s name in vain
This now
becomes:
¨ Thou shalt bless the Lord at all times, his praise shall continually be in your mouth.
¨ Thou shalt witness for him in Jerusalem, and Judea, and to all the nations of the world. Including America! Including Oildale!
¨ Thou shalt live your life before God and man in such a way that it brings glory to his name and not shame.
¨ Thou shalt teach home bible studies to others in need of basic bible knowledge. With the Pastors permission first of course
¨ Thou shalt speak with a clean tongue at all times because you love the Lord your God.
I would venture to say that you wouldn’t want God to hear some of the things some of you say on the job. We’re to be "Christ like" at all times! Jesus went through more than any of us will ever have to go through, and I can’t find him cursing anywhere in the bible. Not one place!
I believe it’s Brother T.F. Tenney who says, “When you say the name of Jesus, you are either praying or cursing”. If you’re truly in love with Jesus, you won’t have any problem with the idea of stopping the usage of foul language. You’ll do it gladly! Jesus told us that salt water and fresh water don’t flow out of the same well. Neither should good and evil communication flow out of the same mouth.
If we love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, we'll want to be conformed to his image. The image he’s given us for an example is Jesus Christ.
¨ No one will have to tell us quit talking dirty, we’ll want to!
¨ No one will have to tell us to witness, we’ll want to!
¨ No one will have to tell us to stop taking the Lord’s name in vain, because that name will be precious in our sight!
¨ We’ll love the name of Jesus, that name we were buried in through baptism. The name by which we are saved according to Acts 4:12. That name which is above every name.
Those old “thou shalt nots” are meaningless to an on fire for God Christian, because we’ll want to do what’s right so badly that the “thou shalt nots” won’t even matter any more. How’s your mind today? Are the “thou shalt nots” bothering you? You need to check your relationship with Christ if they are.
4.
Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.
This
isn’t a “thou shalt not”. But I want to use it
to show you the revelation of God’s heart through Christ. Jesus was in the
Temple every Sabbath day “As was his
custom”. This law was only concerned with keeping that day holy unto the
Lord. Not so much with attendance, or even faithfulness to God during the rest
of the week. However, the Apostle Paul said in:
Colossians 2:16-17 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in
respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a
shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.
¨
We are the body of
Christ and we're to keep every day holy unto the Lord as was Christ’s example
to us in the life he lived before men. He was without spot or wrinkle. He had
no blemishes or he wouldn’t have been acceptable as our sacrifice for sins. God
doesn’t want us to be sanctified and holy to him only on the Sabbath. He wants
us to be a living sacrifice to him every day of the week. We’re to give God
thanks for each and every day. The testimony of our lives as witnesses for
Christ doesn’t get put into a box on Monday. It has to be a light shining to
the whole world Sunday through Saturday. Also…
¨
We’re to be as
faithful to church as Jesus was. That means we can’t skip church just because
we don’t feel like it. Just because we’re tired. Just because somebody hurt our
feelings. It’s time to grow up if you’re missing church for those reasons. If
you miss church, it needs to be for a very good reason, because God's the one
who has to believe your excuse, certainly not me! Just remember, God isn’t
fooled a bit by fancy words or supposed loopholes in his word. Those don’t
exist. He said in:
Hebrews 10:24-25 And let us consider
one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the
assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one
another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
God doesn’t want you missing church.
I’m sorry; but it doesn’t get any plainer than that! He doesn’t want you
missing it for your sake, but he also doesn’t want you missing it for your brother
and sister’s sake. You're to be here to encourage each other to stick it out
until the end. Not just to stick it out, but to conquer and occupy the enemy's
territory until Christ comes to take us home to be with him.
If you truly love God with all your heart,
soul, mind, and strength, you won’t want
to miss church. You won’t be able to wait until the doors are open again.
Newborn babes in Christ always want more church than three services a week.
They can’t get enough church. They want more, and more, and more, and more, and
more, and more, and more, and more, and you get my meaning. We need to return
to our first love. Listen to what Jesus tell us in:
Revelation 2:1-5 Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These
things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in
the midst of the seven golden candlesticks; I know thy works, and thy labour,
and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou
hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them
liars: And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured,
and hast not fainted. Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou
hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent,
and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove
thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. But this thou hast, that
thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. He that hath an
ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that
overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the
paradise of God.
I think that this passage is very
applicable to the modern day Apostolic-Pentecostal movement. We're sometimes a
bit too holy for our own good. We have seemed to have lost our way concerning
the lost. We teach truth, which we ought to do. We identify those which have
turned away from truth, and we warn ourselves to stay away from them.
When what we need to do is
witness to them, to treat them with love, and kindness, and respect. We don’t
have to agree with them on their doctrine, but we can’t win them to the truth
if we can’t talk to them like they’re human beings.
Jesus didn’t rebuke the
sinners who came to him to receive salvation, he accepted them gladly. He only
rebuked those self-righteous, hypocritical, religious zealots; who came not to
be saved but to nitpick those who did.
Let’s get them saved first
and worry about everything else after
they fall in love with Christ! Once someone falls in love with Christ, they'll
have a teachable spirit, a spirit that's willing to hear sound doctrine. I
think we have a wonderful church here, and I think we follow those principles.
So keep it up folks! Please keep it up!
5.
Honor your Father and your Mother
¨
This is another
commandment that is not a “thou shalt not”. But none the less it is important
that we get the meaning of what Jesus lived before us as an example of God’s
opinion on the subject.
Jesus
was in obedience to his parents at all times. He did what he was told or he
wouldn’t have been perfect. Young people
need to learn to love being in obedience to yourr parents. You heard me, learn
to love being in obedience to your parents. Learn to pray for your parents'
everyday. As you learn to really love them, you'll quickly cease to be
disobedient to them. You still won’t agree with them on everything, but it
won’t be as hard to do what they tell you to do. Trust me, as you get older,
you’ll be amazed at just how smart your parents are getting.
If you live long enough,
and God blesses you enough, you'll have children of your own and you can be as
dumb as you currently think your parents are. Notice I said “think” your
parents are. As you grow up, if you’re truly honest. You’ll know that it was
you who got a lot smarter, not your parents.
That’s
one reason why Jesus wants you to be obedient to your parents. Not only to be
obedient, but to honor them. You really ought to hug their necks today and tell
them how much you love them. Tell them how much you respect what they are
trying to do to help you grow up and be a responsible adult.
Remember, whatsoever a man
soweth, that shall he also reap. Break that generational curse of disrespect
for your parents. Disrespect will tear your family to shreds, both now and in
the future. How can you expect your family or your future children to respect
you, or even God, if you don’t plant those seeds of respect in your family
right now!
If you truly love God with
all your heart, soul, mind, and strength; you'll find serving God through
serving your parents will be a great blessing in your life. God won’t have to
tell you to do it. You’ll do it gladly because you love God so much. Jesus
loved his parents. We don’t know what happened to his father because he’s never
mentioned again after Jesus first trip to Jerusalem. But we do know that one of
the last things Jesus did before his death on the cross was to insure that his
mother was well taken care of. Take good care of your parents and your own
children will take good care of you.
6.
Thou shalt not kill
Thou
shalt not kill is no longer a thou shalt not. Say what! I said “Thou shalt not kill is no longer "a thou
shalt not". Remember, we’re talking about what God has revealed to us of
himself through the life that Jesus lived before us on this earth. The word “kill” here is from the Hebrew word “Ratsach”,
meaning: to dash in pieces, to kill, especially to murder. In light of this:
¨
Thou shalt not kill is
now thou shalt love thy brother as thyself.
¨
Thou shalt treat him
with honor and respect even when he doesn’t deserve it
¨
Thou shalt leave all
thoughts of vengeance unto the Lord thy God. “For vengeance is mine; I will
repay, sayeth the Lord”.
¨
Thou shalt be faithful
to witness to him.
¨
Thou shalt remember
“But by the grace of God, there go I”.
¨
Thou shalt love thy
neighbor as the Lord thy God hath loved you, and gave himself for you on the
cross at Calvary.
How can you say you love
God and hate your brother? If you truly love God you'll look for every
opportunity to do good to your neighbor. You'll be friendly and show the mercy
and grace of God when dealing with them. You'll rejoice in the opportunity to
witness the love of God by helping them in their times of trouble. You'll
happily forgive them of their trespasses against you. You'll know that by so
doing you have represented Christ well in front of them.
We have no right to hate
anyone or especially to kill them. My personal stand is that you only kill to
save your life, that of your family, or in defense of your country. But pray
that you never have to live with someone else’s death. There’s no thou shalt
not here folks, not if you truly love Jesus.
7.
Thou shalt not commit adultery
¨
This now becomes thou
shalt love thy wife as Christ loved the church and gave himself for it.
¨
Thou shalt tell
your self everyday that you love her until you honestly do.
¨
Thou shalt tell her
everyday that you love her.
¨
Thou shalt do all
within thy power to show her that you mean it.
¨
Thou shalt spend time
in conversation with thy wife everyday, and let her talk all she wants.
I said all she wants. Remember
Christ died for you, it won’t kill you to listen to her, and it will most
certainly be of great benefit to her.
¨
Thou shalt not be
selfish, but thou shalt give of yourself willingly to do things with her that
maybe you don’t enjoy so much. If you truly love your wife, you will enjoy
being with her even in those situations.
¨
Thou shalt remember
that your relationship with her is more important than anything in this world
but your relationship with Christ.
¨
Thou shalt tell the
whole world everyday that you love your wife and wouldn’t trade her for
anything or especially anyone else.
How could you cheat on
someone that you truly love? I have no doubt that if you would convince
yourself on a daily basis that your spouse is the best thing that ever happened
to you. You wouldn't have a problem being faithful. If you would keep your mind
on how much you love her, you will always love her. If you would spend your
daydreaming time in dreaming up ways to show her that you love her, you will
always love her, and she will probably always love you because of it.
You may notice that I’m
saying this in respect to a man's relationship to his wife. That’s because I’m
a man. I’m supposed to act like a man. I’m supposed to walk like a man. I’m
supposed to talk like a man. If I ever get a wife, I’m supposed to love my wife
like she’s a woman, not like she’s a man.
God created Adam and Eve,
not Adam and Steve. I’m not just saying that because homosexuality’s wrong, and
it is. I’m saying it because women don’t think like men. They don’t act like
men. They don’t want to be treated like men. They want to be loved like they’re
a woman.
Women are the most special
of all God’s creation. If you don’t think so, you’ve been married too long and you’ve
let your relationship with your spouse grow stagnant.
I’ve been single all of my
life. I would love to have an “On fire for God Apostolic woman” for a wife. I
know what it’s like to live alone. I know what it’s like to hurt because you
have no one to share those special times in your life with. Without someone to
share them with, they just aren’t all that special in the end.
Men, treat your wife like
she’s a lady at all times. Make sure your kids see you treat her with love and
respect at all times. What your children will learn about how to treat their
spouses when they grow up, will be learned from watching how you treat yours.
You can break generational
curses in one generation. If violence and quick tempers run in your family,
break that curse now! The longer you put it off the longer your children will
have to deal with it. Most bad tempers are caught from their parents. You are
the best teacher your child will ever have. What they learn from you will be
more caught than taught.
Love your spouse with all
your heart, soul, mind, and strength, loving only God more. If you don’t love
your spouse that way right now. Start convincing yourself that you love her
right now!!! Don’t wait for tomorrow, tomorrow never comes. Love her today,
whatever it takes. How much you love your spouse reflects on how much you love
your savior! Praise God!
8.
Thou shalt not steal
Malachi
3:8-12 Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed
me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have
robbed me, even this whole nation.
Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine
house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open
you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the
fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time
in the field, saith the LORD of hosts. And all nations shall call you blessed:
for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the LORD of hosts.
Now
it’s:
¨
Thou shalt love the
Lord with thy offerings.
¨
Thou shalt love the
Lord with thy tithes.
¨
Thou shalt love thy
neighbor too much to take what’s his or hers.
¨
Thou shalt bless thy
neighbor when they are in need.
Too many times we take God
for granted. We take the blessings of God for granted. This passage isn’t
talking about the sneak thief that breaks into your home while you're out. It’s
talking about the children of God. Oh the sneak thief will go to hell for his
sins alright. But how much worse will it be for someone that has enjoyed the
benefits of serving God, but was too cowardly to trust God to meet their needs.
That was too cowardly to pay their tithes! I’ve got news for you folks; the
cowards are going to hell too!
I also want you to notice
something else in this passage. It says in tithes and offerings. You give the tithe because you're commanded to do
it. You give offerings because you love God! Actually you’re commanded to give
offerings as well as your tithes. If you truly love the Lord you’ll give both,
and you’ll do it willingly.
Don’t think you can steal
from God and get away with it! You might fool the rest of us but God’s got your
number! Learn to love God and trust him enough to meet your needs. If we love
God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength we won’t steal from God, or
our brother. If you truly love God like you say you do. How could you dare do
anything that would bring reproach to his name?
Love means to sacrifice. I
don’t know how many of you know that. We’ve already discussed that in relation
to spouses. But when you love someone you give of yourself. You don’t always
seek your own, but you seek the benefit of others.
God in the Ten
Commandments said to not steal. Jesus, God manifest in the flesh, taught us
that it’s better to give than to receive. We’re to follow his example. Whenever
you want clarification of what the word says on a subject. Look at what Jesus
said and did before you ask for a second opinion.
Wouldn’t it be great if
the sneak thieves of the world would leave you money and things instead of
taking them? Imagine how great it would feel to come home and find a thousand
dollars piled up on your kitchen table.
Next time you feel the
urge to steal, leave them a blessing instead. Next time you decide to steal
from God, remember, it’s your own blessing that you’re stealing. Also remember this;
along with the loss of that blessing you gain a curse! You’ll inherit a curse
and stand a good chance of losing everything you’ve worked for. You’ll also
gain a lake side seat at the lake of fire. The only problem is; the seats’ are
on the wrong side of the shore line.
9.
Thou shalt not bear false witness
This is now:
·
Thou shalt speak the
truth in love.
·
Thou shalt tell the whole truth and not just the part of it
you like.
·
Thou shalt keep your
mouth closed when you would speak evil of another.
·
Thy words shalt be
sweet as honey, for tomorrow you may have to eat them.
·
Thou shalt witness to
others about Christ.
Some
people seem to think that “Thou shalt not bear false witness is only for the
Old Testament and has no basis in the New Testament. Wrong! God thought it
important enough to include in the New Testament as well.
Revelation 21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and
murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the
lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
Let's
just move up a few verses from our text here in Revelation.
Revelation 21:5-7 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all
things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
And he said unto me, It is done. I am
Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is
athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall
inherit all things; and I will be his
God, and he shall be my son.
I am Alpha and Omega? I
will be his God? This is Jesus speaking folks. Jesus doesn’t lie! The
scriptures teach us in Hebrews 6:18 that it is impossible for God to lie! God doesn’t lie and
he doesn’t want you to lie either. How can anybody trust you if you lie? How
could anybody trust a God that lied to them? It’s been said that you’re the
best example of a Christian that some people will ever see.
¨
How are you going to
represent your God???
¨
Who will people see
when they look at your life?
¨
Will your life reflect
God?
¨
Or will your life just
reflect you?
We
need to be above reproach saints of God!!! We need to be a bright light in this
dark and perverse world we live in. Were supposed to be bastions of truth and to
lie would totally destroy our witness.
¨
What kind of witness
are you living?
¨
What kind of testimony
to others is your life?
¨
Would God recognize
himself in your life? And finally
10.
Thou shalt not covet
This now becomes:
·
Thou shalt rejoice in
thy neighbor's blessing.
·
Thou shalt be glad you
don't have to wash, wax, polish, or pay for what your neighbor has!
·
Thou shalt be content
with what you have.
·
Thou shalt lay up
treasures for your self in heaven
When we desire to have
what other people have. Let me clarify things: Not the same things they have,
but the very thing they have. When we covet our neighbor's goods, or spouse, or
house, we're showing our selfishness, greed, and lack of love for our neighbor.
What a horrible witness that becomes!
How can we say that we
love our neighbor and we want to take his wife from him? How can we say we love
God when we're telling Him that he was wrong to give those items to someone
besides ourselves?
What this really tells us
is that we're still in love with ourselves, and not in love with God. We need
to fall in love with God above all else!!!! We can keep from coveting and still
not be in love with God. But under grace, God demands our all, not just our
obedience.
If the musicians will come at
this time
I
would like to ask the congregation a few questions at this time:
1.
Are you being obedient
to God in the area of the Ten Commandments?
2.
Are you fulfilling the
"Grace" requirement of each of these Ten Commandments?
3.
Are you doing it based
on fear of hell?
4.
Or are you doing it
out of true love for your Lord and Savior?
5.
Do you need a little
help in loving God a little more?
6.
Do you need a little
help in denying the flesh?
You see, there’s a reason
why God listed covetousness last. That's because it's the prime cause for the
need of the other nine commandments. If we learn to love God with all our
heart, soul, mind, and strength, which is the first commandment, we won't have
a problem following any of God's other precepts or commandments.
It's when we covet control
of our lives, and ownership of everything that our neighbors have, that we
struggle against God's ordinances. We have to give everything to God and be
satisfied with what He's given us in return to be truly happy.
I would like for everyone
to come down to the altar at this time; we either need prayer to serve God
better, or we need to be praying for someone to serve God better. "Come
and dine the master calleth, come and dine". There's no better place to
get what we need from God than here at this altar.