God be glorified for your mercies over us today. God gave the opportunity ‘to ALL, to make decisions on issues which will surely affect them either positively or negatively as revealed in the Bible text today. God placed four things before them in Deuteronomy 30:11-20, life, death, blessing and curse. However, God in His benevolence counseled man to choose life since He knew that man could still choose wrongly.
Introduction
Read Deut 30:19 and meditate on it. It talks about the heavens. God will not compel anyone to choose any issue, but whatever choice is made will affect the man. God wants us to choose life as we surrender to the lordship of Christ in total obedience and fear of God and also encourage the rest of our family to do so (Acts 16:31; Joshua 24:15). The Israelites are addressed in Deut. 5:25-29 did not have the fear of God as attested to in verse 29;
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Read and meditate on Deut. 5:29.
This statement was written for us so that we can live in the fear of God. We are enjoined to fear the Lord the more these days so that it might be well with us. ‘Now fear the Lord…and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood. Read and meditate on Joshua 24:14. Read and meditate on Ecclesiastes 12:13.
Many individuals are not living well these days because they don’t fear God. I encountered a sticker some years ago on a lecturer’s door at the University of Ife (Now Obafemi Awolowo University), Ile Ie, Osun State, Nigeria that stirred up a thought in me. The sticker had this content;
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‘Í fear God and fear a man that does not fear Anonymous. I pondered greatly on this for a while and concluded that we need to fear God and that anyone without the fear of God in him or her can do the worst things to others. Consider what Abraham said to King Abimelech and his people in Genesis 20:11 about the fear of God;
‘And Abraham said that because he thought the fear of God was not in this place; and they would slay him for his wife’s sake’ He knows even now that the fear of God is fast disappearing in their land. This is evident in many atrocities such as kidnapping, adultery, rape, fornication, money rituals, and terrorism being perpetrated by man in our days for the vain glory and ultimately the destruction of man. You can read more similar posts on our Bible page of the site.
Why No Fear of God?
It is because of the evil in the hearts of men that removed the fear of God Jeremiah 17:9-10). The heart is very deceitful and evil. These are days when men use their wives for rituals and vice versa; some do send hired assassins to kill each other, so many broken homes, false prophets and men of God, among others.
So much evil in our land these days because many hearts are yet to be transformed through salvation facilitated by the blood of Jesus Christ. Many are in the church today and full of activities but are yet to experience the salvation provided by the Lord Jesus Christ.
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God knows what is in your heart, especially that evil and will judge you and pay you back with your deeds whether good or evil (Gal 6:7). The first king of Israel, King Saul was deposed by God because he did not fear God, but rather his soldiers that encouraged disobedience in him (1 Samuel 15:20-23).
King Saul shifted blame to the people who went to war with him despite being the one who received the commandment for the task. Saul’s obedience was not complete because he lacked the fear of God and he lost the throne.
Stop shifting blame for every wrong act and evil deed of yours, but rather accept your errors, repent and plead for the mercy of God (Proverbs 28:13; 1 John 1:8-10). The sin of disobedience is likened to witchcraft and such disobedient individuals will be judged like witches also (1 Samuel 15:23).
God’s Wish for You
God want you to choose life and live both now in this world and hereafter. Listen to God and be obedient in choosing life provided by the Lord Jesus Christ and it shall be well with you and your household. Jesus Christ is the life and when you choose Him as your Lord and Saviour, you will surely live (John 14:6).
God has given us life and this life is in Jesus Christ (1 John5:10-12). There is no controversy about this, but I plead with you today that you choose life so that you will live and your generations.
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Let parents choose Life and this will extend to generations after (Acts 16:31). Such was the case of Timothy who enjoyed the benefits of the Christian faith through his grandmother (Lois) and mother (Eunice) who chose life in Christ Jesus (2 Timothy 1:5). It is the will of God that all mankind should choose life and be saved.
Let everyone accept Jesus Christ today! In John 9:35-38, the blind man that Jesus restored his sight emphatically accepted the Lordship of Jesus Christ despite all challenges that questioned his belief in Jesus Christ.
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Initially, Jesus Christ revealed Himself to the blind man as the Healer, but later seeing that the man held to his faith came later to reveal Himself to the blind man as the Saviour.
The man accepted Him as the Saviour. Friends, afford yourself the great opportunity of salvation today as you surrender your life to Him. Call on Him now to save your soul and you will live: ‘And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved’ (Acts 2:21 KJV).
It is not a difficult thing to call upon God for the word unto salvation is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth and thy heart, that thou mayest do it unto life (Deut. 30:11-14).
How To Choose Life (Romans 10:6-10,13)
- Call upon the name of the Lord with the heart of repentance. You need to do this in open confession with your mouth and believe in your heart and you shall be saved.
- Abide in God’s word (John 8:31). Many confess that they are Christians, but fail to live by His words and as such are yet to experience total salvation (John 15:5-7). Without abiding in Jesus Christ and His words, you shall not be fruitful, or fulfilled and will not live. Living by His words will not allow the evil in the world to defeat you.
When you live by His words, you shall be loved by God and He will dwell with you (John 14:23); you will ask whatever you wish, it shall be done unto you (John 15:7). When God lives in you, no disease or harm will come near and overcome you because the Most High in you is greater than all.
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The great secret to overcoming problems is to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. No one who knows and believes in Christ Jesus will ever be put to shame because God will become your refuge and helper (Psalm 91:1; Isaiah 50:7). Brethren, do not look back or reject Jesus Christ irrespective of whatever comes your way. Stop looking at men who can fail at any time, but rather look unto Jesus Christ (Heb 12:2). Jesus Christ is infallible!
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Now that the Awesome God is in you, you will become awesome also and the Lord will put your fear in men especially enemies (Deut. 2:25). This is because you carry the presence of the Most High God in you. This was the experience of the Israelites when being led by God through Joshua for Rahab confessed that fear gripped Jericho when they heard what God did for His children (Joshua2:8-11).
Many children of God are not experiencing this privilege because they have no right standing with God. Once you accept the Lordship of Jesus Christ and you abide in His words, you will enjoy the privilege of divine defence. Christianity is not a religion, but a way of life and sins such as lies, and deception, amongst others should not be found in you.
Conclusion
We are enjoined to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness (Mathew 6:33). A child of God should live a life without blemish in this perverse generation. Choose Jesus Christ, live by His words and grace will be given unto you to say no to all forms of ungodliness (Titus 2:11-12). Kindly open your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ, call unto Him to forgive your sins and save your soul. May God be with you and bless you greatly as you choose life today in Jesus’ name.
