Our Right of Choice
God didn’t make man like robots, which would reverence Him automatically, but
He made us in His image and likeness, and gave us the ability to choose whether
we would love Him with all of our heart. Yet many times through out the Bible,
God gives us direction and instruction on what we should choose (Deuteronomy
30:15-16,19-20) “see, I have set before you this day life and good, death and
evil. In that I command you this day to love the Lord Yahweh your God, to walk in
His ways, and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His judgments,
that you may live and multiply, and the Lord Yahweh your God shall bless you in
the land where you go to possess it. I call heaven and earth to record this day
against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing;
therefore choose life, that both you and your seed may live. That you may love
the Lord Yahweh your God, and that you may obey His voice, and that you may
cling to Him; for He is your life, and the length of your days; that you may dwell in
the land which the Lord Yahweh swear to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and
to Jacob, to give them”.
God gave us the commandments in Exodus 20:1-17 and Jesus confirmed the
commandments in Matthew 22:37-39. God didn’t give us the commandments to
keep us from having fun, but because He knows the end from the beginning, He
knows where things will take us.
The word “if” in the Bible indicates that we have a responsibility. In Isaiah 1:18-
20 says “come now, and let us reason together; says the Lord Yahweh; though
your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like
crimson, they shall be as wool. If you be willing and obedient, you shall eat the
good of the land. But if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured with the
sword; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken it”.
Deuteronomy 28:1-14 clearly shows us the blessings that will come upon us, if we
obey God’s word; and Deuteronomy 28:15-68 shows us the curses that will come
upon us if we don’t obey His voice. The choice is ours.
We know that choices has consequences, many people are blaming God for
things that are not of God, but are the results of their own self interest. Good
news is that even if we have gone astray, He has a way for us to choose to return
to Him (II Chronicles 7:14) says “if My people, which are called by My name, shall
humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face; and turn from their wicked
ways, then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their
land”. This is Old Testament, yet in the New Testament I John 1:9 says “if w
confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us
from all unrighteousness”.
Jesus says that we must choose to be born again (John 3:3-6) “Jesus answered
and said to him, verily, verily, I say to you, except a man be born again, he
cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus said to Him, how can a man be born
when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be
born? Jesus answered, verily, verily, I say to you, except a man be born of water
and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. that which is born of
the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit”. God provided
Jesus to reconcile mankind to Himself (John 3:16-18.36) “for God so loved the
world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him,
should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the
world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved. He
that believes in Him is not condemned; but he that believes not is condemned
already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of
God. he that believes on the Son has everlasting life, and he that believes not
the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him”.
John 15:5-7,10 Jesus says “I am the vine, you are the branches; he that abides
in Me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit; for without Me you can do
nothing. If a man abide not in Me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered,
and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If you
abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall
be done to you. If you keep My commandments, you shall abide in My love; even
as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love”. We have the
choice of staying connected with Jesus.
We can choose what we speak, whether we speak life to our circumstances or
whether we will speak death like the world does (Proverbs 18:20-21) “a man’s
belly shall be satisfied with the fruit of his mouth; and with the increase of his lips
shall he be filled. Death and life are in the power of the tongue; and they that
love it shall eat the fruit thereof”. Jesus says in Matthew 12:35-37 “a good man
out of the good treasure of the heart brings forth good things; and an evil man
out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. But I say to you, that every idle
word that men shall speak; they shall give account thereof in the day of
judgment. For by your words you shall be justified, and by your words you shall
be condemned”.
We are told to cast down vain imaginations (II Corinthians 10:4-5) “for the
weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling
down of strongholds. Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that
exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every
thought to the obedience of Christ”. We have to make the Bible the final
authority in our lives, as we stand on the word of God, we give God the
opportunity to bring it to pass.
The word of God is our ammunition, but we have to use it. Jesus demonstrated
for us, how we have to use it. Every time the devil tempted Jesus in the
wilderness, Jesus would say “it is written”. Then He would quote what was
written, that was contrary to what the devil tempted Him with (Matthew 4:1-11);
and it says that the devil left Him, we as followers of Jesus, have to do the same
thing.
God wants us to prosper and be in health as our soul prospers (III John 2), but
the choice is ours if we let our soul prosper. Our soul prospers as we renew our
mind (Romans 12:1-2) “I beseech you therefore, brethren by the mercies of God,
that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is
your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world, but be you
transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good,
and acceptable, and perfect, will of God”.
Sermon by: Harriet Bond
Date: April 15, 2011
God didn’t make man like robots, which would reverence Him automatically, but
He made us in His image and likeness, and gave us the ability to choose whether
we would love Him with all of our heart. Yet many times through out the Bible,
God gives us direction and instruction on what we should choose (Deuteronomy
30:15-16,19-20) “see, I have set before you this day life and good, death and
evil. In that I command you this day to love the Lord Yahweh your God, to walk in
His ways, and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His judgments,
that you may live and multiply, and the Lord Yahweh your God shall bless you in
the land where you go to possess it. I call heaven and earth to record this day
against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing;
therefore choose life, that both you and your seed may live. That you may love
the Lord Yahweh your God, and that you may obey His voice, and that you may
cling to Him; for He is your life, and the length of your days; that you may dwell in
the land which the Lord Yahweh swear to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and
to Jacob, to give them”.
God gave us the commandments in Exodus 20:1-17 and Jesus confirmed the
commandments in Matthew 22:37-39. God didn’t give us the commandments to
keep us from having fun, but because He knows the end from the beginning, He
knows where things will take us.
The word “if” in the Bible indicates that we have a responsibility. In Isaiah 1:18-
20 says “come now, and let us reason together; says the Lord Yahweh; though
your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like
crimson, they shall be as wool. If you be willing and obedient, you shall eat the
good of the land. But if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured with the
sword; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken it”.
Deuteronomy 28:1-14 clearly shows us the blessings that will come upon us, if we
obey God’s word; and Deuteronomy 28:15-68 shows us the curses that will come
upon us if we don’t obey His voice. The choice is ours.
We know that choices has consequences, many people are blaming God for
things that are not of God, but are the results of their own self interest. Good
news is that even if we have gone astray, He has a way for us to choose to return
to Him (II Chronicles 7:14) says “if My people, which are called by My name, shall
humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face; and turn from their wicked
ways, then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their
land”. This is Old Testament, yet in the New Testament I John 1:9 says “if w
confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us
from all unrighteousness”.
Jesus says that we must choose to be born again (John 3:3-6) “Jesus answered
and said to him, verily, verily, I say to you, except a man be born again, he
cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus said to Him, how can a man be born
when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be
born? Jesus answered, verily, verily, I say to you, except a man be born of water
and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. that which is born of
the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit”. God provided
Jesus to reconcile mankind to Himself (John 3:16-18.36) “for God so loved the
world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him,
should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the
world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved. He
that believes in Him is not condemned; but he that believes not is condemned
already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of
God. he that believes on the Son has everlasting life, and he that believes not
the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him”.
John 15:5-7,10 Jesus says “I am the vine, you are the branches; he that abides
in Me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit; for without Me you can do
nothing. If a man abide not in Me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered,
and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If you
abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall
be done to you. If you keep My commandments, you shall abide in My love; even
as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love”. We have the
choice of staying connected with Jesus.
We can choose what we speak, whether we speak life to our circumstances or
whether we will speak death like the world does (Proverbs 18:20-21) “a man’s
belly shall be satisfied with the fruit of his mouth; and with the increase of his lips
shall he be filled. Death and life are in the power of the tongue; and they that
love it shall eat the fruit thereof”. Jesus says in Matthew 12:35-37 “a good man
out of the good treasure of the heart brings forth good things; and an evil man
out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. But I say to you, that every idle
word that men shall speak; they shall give account thereof in the day of
judgment. For by your words you shall be justified, and by your words you shall
be condemned”.
We are told to cast down vain imaginations (II Corinthians 10:4-5) “for the
weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling
down of strongholds. Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that
exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every
thought to the obedience of Christ”. We have to make the Bible the final
authority in our lives, as we stand on the word of God, we give God the
opportunity to bring it to pass.
The word of God is our ammunition, but we have to use it. Jesus demonstrated
for us, how we have to use it. Every time the devil tempted Jesus in the
wilderness, Jesus would say “it is written”. Then He would quote what was
written, that was contrary to what the devil tempted Him with (Matthew 4:1-11);
and it says that the devil left Him, we as followers of Jesus, have to do the same
thing.
God wants us to prosper and be in health as our soul prospers (III John 2), but
the choice is ours if we let our soul prosper. Our soul prospers as we renew our
mind (Romans 12:1-2) “I beseech you therefore, brethren by the mercies of God,
that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is
your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world, but be you
transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good,
and acceptable, and perfect, will of God”.
Sermon by: Harriet Bond
Date: April 15, 2011
