TAKE GOD AT HIS WORD AND REALLY LIVE

November 18, 2001 am
MF Blame

Deuteronomy 4:1-9  Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judgments, which I teach you, for to do them, that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which the LORD God of your fathers giveth you. Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you. Your eyes have seen what the LORD did because of Baalpeor: for all the men that followed Baalpeor, the LORD they God hath destroyed them from among you. But ye that did cleave unto the LORD your God are alive every one of you this day.  Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the LORD my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it.  Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.  For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the LORD our God is in all things that we call upon him for?  And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?  Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest the forget the things which thin eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of they life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons;
Similarly, I must teach some truths to you as a man of God.

The Words of Moses to Israel in Deut. 4 referred to what it would take in order to enter into the promised land and enjoy all Gods blessings. God said they would thereby LIVE. And these laws were so vital to their living and possessing this land of milk and honey, that God ensured they understand something. Those truths were so important that it was incumbent upon the people to adhere strictly to them, and to leave them alone and not think to add nor take away from them.

At the other end of the Bible, in fact some of the very last verses of the entire Bible, we have similar words.

And Moses' promised Land is nothing compared to the land of milk and honey known as the Holy Ghost Kingdom of God! Everything about the Old Testament and the nation of Israel was only a foreshadow in the physical realm of the true spiritual realities of the church, the Israel of God!

And that is the reason we read of obeying JESUS' commandments.

So, we'll certainly LIVE if we keep Jesus' commandments.

And instead of going in and possessing the land, we read in Revelation, "may enter in through the gates into the city."

Jesus actually called the people of God "the City!"
Matthew 5:14  Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
This wonderful Holy Ghost Kingdom of God is full of God's blessings! I want to talk about the truths of the New Testament that you must not add to nor remove from.

Listen to the words that the New Testament teaches.

Hebrews 10:9-10  Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

Hebrews 10:14  For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.

Hebrews 10:17-18  And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.

Did you catch that? How do we have sins remitted?
Acts 2:38  Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Acts 22:16  And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.

 Sins are remitted.
Isaac 59:2  But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.
When these sins are removed, you're perfected! Now a problem arises in many people's lives after they experience salvation. There is a liar in this world that every single one of you will deal with in your life. Let me explain.

When you are saved, the Bible says you are perfect in the eyes of God.

But although our sins are totally washed away, and we are brand new creatures, YOU CAN BE TEMPTED TO THINK YOU'RE STILL THE SAME AND YOU'RE STILL NO GOOD IN GODS EYES. The word says you do not have to earn God's favor nor pay for your ticket to heaven. When His blood washes you when your sins are remitted, the work was DONE! The dangerous thing about this is that God does not take your adding to His work very lightly. Gods word says that His single sacrifice, all by itself, perfects forever them that are sanctified. Not only that, but we cannot SUBTRACT from His word.

When He says that we are perfected forever, and we are complete in Him, then DON'T SUBTRACT FROM THAT and say that you aren't that good.

Don't ever take away from this truth! Don't even say you can't take life any more!

You can!

1 Corinthians 10:13  There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
Don't subtract from this word.

Jesus said you will have eternal life from eating the fruit of life if you live by these words.

Not only did Jesus say you will eat fruit of life, but you will drink of the rivers of living water, too!
Reve 22:17  And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.
All of that is a very spiritual way of simply saying this: You will find truths all through the Bible that teach you about how His strength to save you is perfect. Your faith in just what His word says will cause showers of blessings to fall upon you if you will only stand upon the word just as it is!

If Jesus said believing His words will give you right to  the tree of life and entrance into the city, doesn't that sound a lot like getting into the Garden of Eden where the tree of life originally was?

Revelation 22:18  For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
And Satan TOOK AWAY from the words of God.
Genesis 3:3-4  But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
And ADAM AND EVE ACCEPTED that and LOST THEIR PART TO THE TREE OF LIFE AND THE GARDEN OF EDEN. A marginal reference to this verse says the Greek language for "Take away his part out of the book of life" can also be translated as "take away his part FROM THE TREE OF LIFE."  And that seems to fit, because of the words of verse 14.

The very two things verse 14 says we gain are lost if we subtract from what the word says.

If you've obeyed Acts 2:38, speak to God from the bottom of your heart today, and tell Him, "Your word is true.  If you say that I am washed from my sin when I ask forgiveness, then I really am washed of all my sin.  I will not add to that by thinking I have to do some works to complete your work of the cross, nor will I subtract from it by saying my sins are not washed away."

TAKE GOD AT HIS WORD AND LIVE..... ETERNALLY!

If you've not been washed by Jesus' blood yet, then you need to obey Acts 2:38, and really live!