Have you ever heard that when it is your time to go, it is your time to go? No matter what you do, when it is your time to die, it is your time. That you can live like the devil and yet it has no bearing on your life span? Common reasoning would tell you that it is all poppycock and yet we find many who believe that their life is numbered to an exact time in an exact way. They believe they are victims to fate. That their life is destined to happen in a manner that is beyond their control. That no matter what they do, everything is foreordained as it pertains to their life span.
We know God is sovereign right? We can't go against God's design can we? Are we not like a puppet on stings that God controls? God is stronger than us, right? Then no matter if we exercise or drink herb water, nothing matters as it concerns our life span, right?
Before we get all religious and start quoting scripture, let's examine nature. Can you plant seeds and grow garden veggies without using proper care and horticulture knowledge? Is that what farmers do when they plan and plant a crop? They just throw up all their seeds into the wind and let them fall where ever it wills and then presto; they come back months later to harvest their crops.
Here is another example, can a person not eat food for their body and yet live a long life span? Of course not, it is ludicrous idea and yet we find many of the religious with dumb ideas, especially about their views on their length of life.
First we must understand that we are all dying or already dead. It is just a matter of time before our earthly bodies succumb to life's deadly diseases and releases our soul.
Hebrews 9:27
“And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:”
Romans 5:12
“Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:”
I got to confess something. I am already dead. I died with Christ. My appointment with death has already been fulfilled. I am not waiting to die, I have already expired,
Colossians 3:3
“For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.”
Romans 6:8
“Now if we be dead
with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:”
Talk about the "Walking Dead," no wonder I'm ugly
and my teeth are falling out. The scourge of death on my old body is making me look dead. However, I'm not concerned about my appointment with death. I am
already dead. I am not even concerned about my appointment unto life. I have
already been made alive through Christ. However, I am still entombed in this body of corruption until it sleeps or what the coroners say is DEATH.
Romans 8:11
“But if the Spirit of
him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ
from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth
in you.”
The main ingredient to death is sin.
Romans 6:23
“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Somebody red with horns poisoned us with sin and it is sin that has killed us. In fact, because of sin God condemns it in the flesh,
Romans 8:3
“For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:”
So when we are dealing with the flesh we are dealing with corruption that has been condemned. It has a large sign over us like a building, "This building has been condemned."
"If a housing inspector finds that all or a part of the building you live in is "unfit" to live in and that repairs cannot be made while you are living in the property, the Board of Health may issue a finding that the dwelling or a portion of the dwelling is unfit for human habitation. This finding may lead to the Board of Health's ordering that the building be condemned, that the landlord close up the property, and that the occupants vacate the portion that is unfit. If the Board of Health condemns your building, legally, you do not have to move until after a judge orders you to move."
We are now in the process of vacating the building. The appointment with death or order by God has been given. It is just a matter of time before we leave the premises.
You can now see why I am against sinless perfection in the flesh. Something that is dead and corrupted cannot be made alive or livable again. No amount of goodness will cleanse that which has already been corrupted.
The spiritual life is a whole new work within us that does away with purifying the flesh for salvation. It is by grace we are saved. We are saved not by our works but by the grace of God.
"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9).
In a way, since our flesh has no life that rejuvenates us, it is as though we are the walking dead. However, if you are born again, there is life in the Spirit that radiates through the body of death. The new spiritual man will never die but continue to live even though the body is dead.
John 5:24
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.”
"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast" Ephesians 2:8-9).
Let's now get to the finishing point of this sermon. Read the story in 2 Kings Chapter 5. The leper Naaman sought to extend his life by seeking counsel from the prophet of the Lord. Through the prophet Naamam was given instruction in which he followed and extended his life. He evidently did not know it was his time to go, he sought the Lord and lengthened his life.
2 Kings 5:1
“Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master, and honourable, because by him the LORD had given deliverance unto Syria: he was also a mighty man in valour, but he was a leper.”
2 Kings 5:10
“And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.”
2 Kings 5:14
“Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.”
We must be obedient to the inner word as well as the written word. Through the inner word spoken by the Holy Ghost, God will send you instruction. You must be obedient to the direction that the Lord gives.
Acts 1:2
“Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen:”
The Holy Ghost still gives commandments and we must be obedient to them. To ignore the inner and outer commandments from God is to shorten your life and fall into the hands of him that seeks to kill, steal, and destroy.
1 Peter 5:8
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:”
Don't be deceived. The devil is your adversary and wants to devour you or in other word, he wants to kill you. The lion is not there to lick you but to kill and eat you. Not to do battle with the devil is to willingly let him shorten your life.
As Christians we have eternal salvation but in this temporal world we must work out our own salvation.
Philippians 2:12
“Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.”
There is only one way to fight our enemy that would shorten our lives and that is to use the provided weaponry that the Lord supplies.
Ephesians 6:16
13Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 17And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 18Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; 19And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel…."
If righteousness tendeth to life then more sin will shorten it.
Proverbs 11:19
“As righteousness tendeth to life: so he that pursueth evil pursueth it to his own death.”
Trying to live righteously will not save you eternally (Christ paid for your salvation by His blood) but in this world of temporal existence it will surely lengthen your days.
Judges 16:30
“And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. And he bowed himself with all his might; and the house fell upon the lords, and upon all the people that were therein. So the dead which he slew at his death were more than they which he slew in his life.”
Samson didn't believe that when it was His time to go, he would die. He asked the Lord to end His life. This is different than suicide. He left his life in the hands of the Lord but prayed to have his life shorten. God answered His prayer. There is a time when we are so tired with the wickedness of this world that we might pray as Samson did. Living forever in this sinful world in a corruptible body is not something that we should all strive for; especially when our body is falling apart and giving us continual pain and agony due to our old age. But ask yourself this one question. Are you ready to leave? Have you accomplished anything worthy for your loving Lord and Savior? If not, you might want to live longer than most other Christians.
To sum it all up, the length of your temporal life is not set in stone. You carry about a dead body that you can still use for the glory of God. Walk as godly as you can. Be obedient to the Lord. Walk as the Holy Ghost directs you. Don't lose sight in doing a work for your savior. What you do for Jesus will last. Your good works will have eternal benefits. Don't be deceived that everyone loves you. The devil hates you and wants to end your life. Fight against sin or sin will kill you. Sin is the instrument or weaponry that the devil uses to kill you. Sin will invite you into its deepest pleasure and then it will kill you. Depart from evil and be obedient to the Lord who owns you. Bless you all….In Jesus's NAME.
