HOW TO BE CLOSE TO GOD FOREVER

Transcription

1 HOW TO BE CLOSE TO GOD FOREVER Deut 34:10 12 INTRO We ve come to the end of our series of sermons on the life of one of the greatest workers for God in the OT Moses o Although he wasn t perfect ~ he wanted an intimate relationship with God which he certainly had and God used him in a mighty way Scripture Reading: no one has shown the mighty power or performed the awesome deeds Moses did in the sight of all Israel. His final words and deeds are recorded for us o Just before his death Moses gave his farewell address to the nation of Israel In it - he brought together the laws recorded in Exodus/Leviticus/Numbers o This compilation is what we call the Book of Deuteronomy Deuteronomy is quoted in the 100 times that s more than any other OT book All three of the Scriptures Jesus used to resist the Devil s temptation in in the wilderness are found in this book o Also ~ Jesus said the first and greatest of all the commandments is found in Deut 6:5 We can learn how to be close to God forever by looking at the death of Moses o It teaches us to be close to God forever we must do two things: 1) we must actively obey God s Word 2) we must always be ready to die FIRST ~ WE MUST ACTIVELY OBEY GOD S WORD Moses had his weak moments ~ but generally he did obey God o For example His last months were filled with hard work He prepared for his death by writing all the law God had given him Deut 31:24 27 o The Book of the Law recorded the detailed terms & principles God established for the Divine-human relationship ~ He set the rules and God s Children are accountable 1

2 Then in Deut Chpt 32 ~~ Moses sang a song to remind the Israelites of their obligation to obey the Lord o Let s notice the summary of the song ~~ Deut 32:46 47 Moses is reminding God s Children the God s Laws aren t just idle words rather they are life By keeping them they would live long in the Promised Land This principle applies to us too ~ how to be close to God forever is found in His Word o When it comes to God s Word ~~ there are only two alternatives: Obey and live or Disobey and die It s not enough to say we are Christians not enough to read your Bible not enough to be religious and attend church Jesus told us the way to be close to God: Matt 7:21 In this verse we see there s a marked contrast btw the mere talker and the actual doer of God s Will o Jam 1:22 tell us be a doer of the Word and not just a hearer only Mere profession is worthless There s a verse that describes those who just play church o 1 John 2:4 Those who DO the will of God when they learn it they will be in the Kingdom o Don t let the issue of faith vs works confuse you Bible teaches we are saved by Grace not works it is a gift from God But once you re saved thru shed blood of Jesus ~~ then what? o Jam 2:17 Like trying to figure out what s more important to your life: breathing in or breathing out For those who have heard God s Word and continue in ways of their sinful ways o Jesus provides a dire warning in ~ John 15:22 Jesus has come and shown us all the way of salvation ~~ for He is the way the truth and life o Listen to the words of his brother: James 4:17 2

3 TRANS God s Will ~ that which we are to be doing ~ is reveal in His Word o Being close to God forever requires more than just knowing certain things and saying Jesus is my Savior Jesus must be your LORD and Savior ~ we re to follow God s Word When He says: JUMP we ask: how high on the way up!! o To be close to God forever ~ me must actively obey His Word and SECOND ~ WE MUST ALWAYS BE READY TO DIE God continues to instruct His servant Moses in: Deut 32:49 50 o If God told you tonite that in the morning you should go to the top of Stone Mt. and you were then to die there ~~ would you go to your death?? (P) o Unless we re a forgiven Child of God this instruction would be frightening Psm 95:7, 8 a We re not promised tomorrow we must be right always w/god We must be ready to die in a real sense and in a spiritual sense That spiritual sense is exactly what Children of God are expected to do ~ to die daily o Paul says in 1 Corth 15:31 that s he dies daily o It was the secret of Paul victorious experience It explains how Paul was always close to God after the Damascus Rd Throughout his life of faithful service ~ Paul found that his old, sinful nature fought for recognition o It had to be constantly repressed -- Rom 8:6-8, 13 & 14 Paul knew the Christian life must be one of self-denial at every step: Gal 2:20 o Paul built this statement upon what Jesus said in Matt 16:24 26 When we find our old desires still clamoring for satisfaction in spite of our intentions to serve God we can take courage from Paul s experience o Christian life is a continual struggle like a constant battle ~ until Jesus comes The thought of our resurrection and the glorious life to come provide us the courage to die daily 3

4 Back in Deut Chpt 33 Moses blesses the tribes of Israel and then climbs Mt Nebo Deut 34:1 & 4 a o From the mountain top the LORD showed him the whole land God gave Moses supernatural vision and he saw it all and more: According to P/P ~ Chpt 43: The Death of Moses ~ Moses saw: a panoramic view of the Promised Land standing out clear/distinct It was presented not as it then appeared but as it would become It was if Moses was looking upon a Second Eden God s Children established there each tribe w/ its own land the History of Jewish people after they settled the land the long sad story of their apostasy and their punishment the first Advent of our Savior He saw Jesus as a babe in Bethlehem Christ s humble life in Nazareth His ministry of love and sympathy and healing His rejection by a proud unbelieving nation Jesus weeping in the Garden and he followed Him to Gethsemane The death of Jesus on the Cross including Him say, My God, My God, why have Your forsaken Me? Jesus laying in Joseph s new tomb and His coming forth a Conqueror Jesus ascend into Heaven Moses saw three addition scenes from atop the Mountain that day o you might want to re-read pgs 472 ~ 480 this afternoon BUT Moses couldn t enter the Promised Land ~ Deut 34:4 b in Numbers 20 we re told why: o After 38 years of wandering and the death of all unbelieving adults over the age of 20 ~ a new generation came to the edge of the Promised Land There was no water there - people began to rebel & complain { again } God told Moses to speak to that rock and it will pour out water 4

5 Num 20:8 11 We established in MP #1: W/ God s Word there are only 2 alternatives: Obey it and live or Disobey and die Num 20:12 o Moses couldn t go into the Promised Land he disobeyed the Lord If he d done as God commanded at the rock ~ the people would have focus their attention on God s love ~ power ~ faithfulness o However when Moses struck he took glory and honor from God and displayed in front of the Jewish nation that is wasn t necessary to precisely obey God It would be like saying it really doesn t matter which day we worship on The first day of the week is just as good as the Sabbath Moses again learned this important lesson o In Deut Chpt 34 Moses was ready to do exactly what God wanted even if that meant dying w/o entering the Promised Land After seeing the Promised Land Moses died there in Moab ~ Deut 34: 5-7 o God buried Moses in Moab he s the only person God personally buried and nobody knows where the grave is When Moses died ~ he was still physically strong o That s a result of the promise God gave in Deut 33:25 b For as long as we live God will give us the strength to do His Will This supernatural strength is called: GRACE o 2 Corth 12:9 a Jesus says the same thing to each of us if we re going to die daily. God s Grace is sufficient Moses ~ who wanted to know God intimately on earth ~ goes to be with Him in Heaven (c.f. Jude 9) 5

6 The OT isn t the last time we see Moses in the Bible Matt 17:2-3 o Moses = represented the Law o Elijah = represented the Prophets Their presence w/jesus indicates that the OT Scriptures had been looking forward to the Messiah and His Kingdom CONCLUSION Through the death of Moses we can see how to be close to God forever o We must actively obey God s Word not just hear it ~ but do it o We must always be ready die daily for today may be your last day of life And we must die daily to make room in our heart for the Holy Spirit We all have the same choice as Moses had: o Temporary pleasures of this sin-sick world ~ or ~ the eternal presence of God o A journey into intimacy with God is really a series of choices On a daily basis we must choose to be the person God wants us to be rather than enjoying the temporary pleasures of our sin o We do this by: 1) actively obeying God s Word 2) and always be ready to die Closing Hymn ~ # 574: O Master, Let Me Walk with Thee 6