The Power to Choose
Deuteronomy 30:15 (NLT): "Now listen! Today I am giving you a choice between life and death, between prosperity and disaster." Moses just reviewed The Covenant with Israel. He is 120 years old. He is getting ready to hand the Baton to Joshua, and now he is giving some very powerful instructions to them. Moses is reminding Israel what God has established for His children: It's a Covenant of Blessings. The Power To Choose: Adam in the Garden, Genesis 2:15: It's Your Choice.
Deuteronomy 30:16-18 (NLT): "For I command you this day to love the LORD your God and to keep his commands, decrees, and regulations by walking in his ways. If you do this, you will live and multiply, and the LORD your God will bless you and the land you are about to enter and occupy. But if your heart turns away and you refuse to listen, and if you are drawn away to serve and worship other gods, then I warn you now that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live a long, good life in the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy."
Life is simply a series of choices in a world full of options, so choose responsibly.
The 2 Choices Israel Had To Make are the Same 2 Choices We Have To Make:
CHOOSE LIFE OR DEATH, Proverbs 18:21 (NKJV): "Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit."
CHOOSE PROSPERITY OR DISASTER, Isaiah 45:7 (NIV): "I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the LORD, do all these things."
3 Commands That Must Be Obeyed:
TO LOVE THE LORD, Matthew 22:37 (NKJV): "Jesus said to him, 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'"
TO FOLLOW HIS RULES, John 14:15 (NLT): "If you love me, obey my commandments."
TO WALK IN HIS WAYS, Galatians 5:16 (NIV): "So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh."
3 Warnings That Must Be Understood:
That Your Heart Doesn't Turn Away, Matthew 24:12 (NLT): "Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold."
That You Refuse To Listen, Jeremiah 17:23 (NLT): "…but they did not listen or obey. They stubbornly refused to pay attention or accept my discipline."
That You Are Drawn Away, Galatians 5:7 (NLT): "You were running the race so well. Who has held you back from following the truth?"
3 Devastating Results of Disobedience:
A Destructive Life, Proverbs 18:6 (NLT): "Pride goes before destruction, and haughtiness before a fall."
A Shortened Life, Proverbs 10:27 (NLT): "Fear of the LORD lengthens one's life, but the years of the wicked are cut short."
A Hard Life, Isaiah 59:2 (NLT): "It's your sins that have cut you off from God. Because of your sins, he has turned away and will not listen anymore."
Deuteronomy 30:19 (NLT): "Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live!"
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Rev. Bryan A. Tomes
Crossroads Community Church
www.crossroadsconnects.com