LRH: Order in Our Giving - 18

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Dr.

Joseph Balbin, Head Pastor of Harvest Chapel International Kumasi. He

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And you say....

Welcome to Logos Rima Hour with God's servant, Rev.

Dr.

Joseph Baalbin, Head Pastor of Harvest Chapel International Kumasi. And now,

to today's message.

Amen. Hallelujah. Amen. So y'all, warmly welcome. I wanted to

wrap up. Order in giving. Hallelujah. I believe that God

wanted us to just run through and pick some of

the lessons that he wanted us to learn from Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy 8 · chapter mention

chapter 8 concerning the pursuit of either the spirit of

Mammon or God. Hallelujah. Because it's so important, you know,

The whole Christian life is all about giving in exchange

for what God did on Calvary's cross. God gave his

all for us when he sacrificed his only begotten son,

Jesus Christ. And through an open invitation to whosoever believes

that that person would not perish, but go on and

attain eternal life. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Amen. And it's a life

of exchange He gave so that we could give back

to Him our time, our talents, and our treasures. Hallelujah. Amen.

And if you go through the Old Testament as God delivered,

if you like, the hallmarks of the covenant that He

cut with Israel of old, you would realize that most

of the Ten Commandments, particularly when it comes to the

commandment concerning idolatry, you know, which is worshipping of other

creative elements instead of the Creator. God frowns quite seriously

on it. Indeed, in the Old Testament, it was capital

punishment to go chasing after the idols of this world. Hallelujah.

God is our Creator and He wants to be worshipped,

not the Creator or the elements of creation. Hallelujah. And

so let's see how best we can pick some of

the other lessons and then some of the things that

would complete with our worship and our service for God

and then we'll wrap up the month. Hallelujah. Amen. And

as we read through, I think one of the things

that is going to strike you and I'm sure if

you like I'll also be committing the same mistake just

as God if we want to style it as a

mistake because you realize that there is repetitiveness as we

read through Deuteronomy chapter 8 and 10. And anytime you

Deuteronomy 8 · chapter mention

see that there is a certain particular truth or commandment

in the Lord and there is repetitiveness around it, then

most often it has to do with The hard lessons

in the Bible that needs, if possible, so to speak,

to be drummed into our heads. And so God, the

Holy Spirit, knowing how easily forgetful we are, will repeat

and repeat, repeat the lessons. He's trying to drum it

into our heads that, son, forget, don't forget this, don't

forget this, don't forget this. So it will strike you

as we go through it. It's just, I mean, the commandments,

the commandments, the commandments. It's so dear to God's heart

that we never forget the commandments, but rather do everything

in our power to obey the commandments because our obedience

literally releases the blessings of God into our lives. Hallelujah.

So when you find some of these repetitive cycles of

the same commandments or truth, then God wants us to

pause long enough, meditate and practice those truths Till we

master them. It's like they can't be ignored. Truths and lessons. Amen. Hallelujah.

So let's go back to Deuteronomy chapter 8. We have

Deuteronomy 8 · chapter mention

already looked at verse 1. We have picked the lessons there.

And I've warned you already. I'm going to be competitive.

That it's all about the whole commandment. Be careful to obey.

All the commandments, no sum. And then lesson number two,

be careful to do it. Live in obedience. God wants

us to walk in obedience. Number three, that you may

live and multiply. Number four, we said go in and

possess the land. Occupy by force. Apply effort to the truth.

Whatever God bids us, there's a natural resistance within because

of our fallen nature. It is Satan's DNA that he

has bitten all humankind. Hallelujah. Because we are all his offspring.

And so there's a natural resistance within all of us

for the word and the instructions of God. We want

our liberties from God. We want to also reason Convince

ourselves and do it. Hallelujah. Amen. And that alone is

an affront and a challenge to the authority of God.

Because He created us. And He knows it all. That's

why He is the omniscient God. He knows it all.

He understands it all. Because He invented us. Hallelujah. So

anytime that we are resisting Him Did I use the word?

He's madly shocked. Hallelujah. Because we are not going to

get anywhere. We just end up going round and round

and round. Hallelujah. Amen. So, lesson number four in verse

one of chapter eight of Deuteronomy was to go in

and possess the land. The specific instruction that God wants

us to do. And any time that God bids us

and goals us to do something, it means that he

has given us the grace and whatever we need to

be able to do that thing. Hallelujah. He reassured Israel

of old, Moses, and then particularly here, Joshua, that you

can't take the land. It is yours for the taking.

And he said, I will be with you. I will

go ahead of you. And like he said, I will

send the hundred ahead of you. And there's no way

that the inhabitants of the land of Canaan will be

able to resist you. You will by all means be

able to take it. And all the wealth that I

have there for you. And then the final one, there

was the fact that we saw that God swore, hallelujah,

took an oath that by all means, I'm going to

bless you. Hallelujah. Amen. So now, let's pick verse 2.

Let's pick the lessons. And then he says, and in

verse 2, and you shall remember the whole way that

the Lord your God has led you these 40 years

in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you

to know what was in your heart, whether you would

keep his commandments or not. Hallelujah. What are the lessons?

That God wants us to learn from verse 2. Amen.

Number 2. The first point there is that like sheep.

And remember the Bible in several portions. Tries to paint

the picture of you and I. Being sheep. The sheep

of God. And God being our shepherd. Amen. And so

in verse 2. God says I'm taking you to a place.

That is a land that is flowing with milk and honey.

And these were. if you like, liberated slaves that were coming.

None of them had been to the land of Palestine before.

And that is how come that Moses, you know, pleaded

with his brother-in-law. Hobab, to come alongside with them. Hobab

the Kenite. That was his brother-in-law. And he said, you know,

you know the wilderness. You know that. You shall be

our eyes. And I like what he said. He said,

God has promised us a blessing. And when we come

into that blessing, you will also get your portion. Hallelujah. Amen.

Because it says that you know the terrain much more,

better than we do. Hallelujah. Amen. And so where God

is taking us, you and I, we have no idea.

I wonder if anyone of us knows what lies ahead

in the next one hour. Yeah, I don't know. Hallelujah. Amen.

But God knows. That's why he's God. A God that

doesn't know the future is no God. And he will

not be worth worshiping. Hallelujah. Amen. So it's very, very

important that we understand this, that he says that you

shall remember the whole way that the Lord your God

has led you. Like sheep, God wants us to follow

his leading and his guiding. Hallelujah. Amen. And then point

number two, God doesn't want us to forget or resent

our wilderness experiences. Because it's very clear that I led

you through these 40 years in the wilderness as if

to say that the suffering that you went through was intentional. Wow. Hallelujah.

Can you tell somebody, you never know who is suffering here. Hallelujah.

And just whisper to that person that whatever you are

going through God knows. Anytime you say that Christian suffering

is intentional, then the church, oh, ah, no. That is

not what we know about when you love somebody. But

that's divine love. It's tough love. Tell somebody it's tough love. Amen. So,

some people drift away from church because they decide to

follow the spirit of mammon because they resent the wilderness

experience that God has for us. Christian suffering and hardship

has designed it. Amen. God is not just, if you like,

bringing the hardship for hardship's sake. No. It's in the text. Hallelujah. Amen.

He says what? That he might humble you, testing you

to know what was in your heart. whether he would

keep his commandments or not. So Christian suffering that is

designed by God is not just for suffering's sake, but

there are ends that he wants to achieve. Hallelujah. Humility.

And what does humility do? It purges us of pride

and self-dependence. Humility will purge us of pride and self-dependence. Very, very,

very important lesson. Hallelujah. Amen. So God said, the goal

is to humble us. Or better still, so that we

will humble ourselves before God. Number two, he says that

God is testing our hearts. What does it mean? God

demands loyalty. You see, at the backdrop of all these

lessons that God takes us through, is the fact that

he knows where he is taking us. Amen. Remember, there's

one life to live, as we like to say, but

two chapters. Amen. A very short chapter, number one, lived

here on earth. And a longer, eternal chapter, number two.

So all that we are going through, all the hardship,

the purging, so we will pick the lessons of humility

and be purged of pride. All those things are preparing

us for chapter number two of our lives. Say a

big amen. In chapter number two, it will be too

late to learn these lessons there. Amen. After Satan's coup

d'etat in heaven, what did he do? It was all

because of pride. The Bible says his heart was lifted up.

So God is not going to teach us lessons of

pride in heaven. You will be cast down. There will

be no time. So all the hard lessons that we

need to learn, all the purging that we need to

go through, they are taking place here Say a big amen.

Because when Jesus comes, he's coming to pick up a

complete bride. Prepared. Amen. Passed through the furnace of suffering. Refined.

They are the people that are going to make it

to heaven. That's why the Bible says in heaven there

will be no sin. So if we don't pick our

lessons right here, then it means that you are not

prepared to go to the heaven that we are going to. Amen. Amen.

And there are lessons. Amen. Because there will be no time.

You won't even make it to heaven. That's the whole thing.

You won't make it. And the Bible makes it as copious,

you know, instructions and verses. The kind of people who

are not going to make it there. Prideful people, you

won't make it. So for you and I, that is

why the Bible says that God chastises and disciplines us

as his children. Because the purging and the refining has

to be done here on earth. That is why Christians suffer. Amen.

Because suffering has a way of humbling us. He says

God tests our hearts. Demands loyalty and he demands obedience. Hallelujah. Amen.

And God never wants us to forget these truths. Amen.

Now let's look at verse 3. So now we have

We have learned that he's taken us through. God took

Israel of old through the wilderness experience so that he

will humble them, test their hearts. Hallelujah. Amen. And then

verse 3 says, and he humbled you. Look at what

he did. And let you hunger and fed you with

manna which you did not know. Nor did your fathers

know that he might make you know that man does

not live by bread alone, but man lives by every

word that comes from the mouth of God. Hallelujah. I

believe that some of the greatest lessons that God seeks

to teach us about this life is that he didn't

create us to come pursuing and acquiring wealth. Say a

big amen. Amen. Hallelujah. Life is more than wealth or

mammon and the pursuit and acquisition of it. and all

the other goodies and all the other benefits that the

spirit of Mammon brings. Because where we are going, unless

you see sometimes when we read it, it sounds something, oh,

the city is a city of gold, the streets are

paved with gold and all that, and sometimes we think that, oh,

this must be fantasy. It's not fantasy. Say a big amen.

The Bible is not delicious, it's truth. Hallelujah. So if

we are going to a place where all these things

are there. Why are you when God has reassured us

that there are hours in waiting? So why do you

want to pursue this to the exclusion of God and

then ignore what God wants to do to prepare us

for chapter number two of our lives? I hope you

are getting it. Amen. So all said and done, if

you acquire the wealth, we all say, but sometimes we

forget the hard truth that God wants it to be

etched on our minds. All the money, where do you

have it? Why do you leave it here? Why? Because

where God wants to take us, there is enough there.

Or more than enough there. Hallelujah. Then our argument is that,

oh no, God, we want some also for this life.

There's no problem. Let's go on. Let's see. When you

get the money, what are you going to use it for?

You want to be a billionaire? What do you want

to do? You tell me, right, right, right. And I say,

if I am a billionaire, what I will use the

money for? Hallelujah. You will write three lines, four lines.

We'll go through this and you'll see. Hallelujah. Amen. Now

listen to it. Hallelujah. Amen. So it's very, very important

that we remember that he humbled you. He let you hunger,

fed you with manna, Underline that which you did not know,

nor did your fathers know, that he might make you

know that man does not live by bread alone, but

man lives by every word that comes from the mouth

of God. Hallelujah. Let us remember the foundational stones that

Moses had laid. God created us to be his stewards

and born servants. Hallelujah. We live in this world and

follow every word and instruction. That proceeds from the mouth

of God. Simply because it is his world. He is

the owner. Hallelujah. Amen. And he knows what he is doing.

And where he is taking us all. Yes it is

a falling well. But God has promised that he will

fix it. Amen. He will fix it. Hallelujah. And one

of the ways that he said he's going to fix

it is that I'm going to create things anew. Amen. Hallelujah.

And isn't it amazing? He reassures us. He says that

eyes have not seen, nor ears heard, nor the mind conceived.

or fathom the good things that God has planned for us,

who believe, who trust, who follow his leading and his guidance.

Guys have not seen it. Hallelujah. The descriptions or the

glimpses of heaven that the apostle John gives us in

the book of Revelation and all the other prophets of

God have documented. The Bible, it says that, Paul says

that when he was caught up into the third heaven,

he said, The things that he saw, he said, he

can't document it. He can't put words to it. That's

why he says, I can't. Because he can't be able

to put words to it. Hallelujah. Amen. And look at

verse 4. It says, your clothing did not wear out

on you and your foot did not swell these 40 years.

Let's take the lessons. So God through Moses now draws

our attention to the supernatural provisions that he made for

Israel during the wilderness journey. And I'm saying that the wealth,

what have we been using the wealth for? Food, clothing, shelter, cars.

When we are tired, when we can't walk, the cars

will take us to wherever we want to go. Amen.

Now look at what What about food? Food supplies. God

supplied manna for 40 good years. Amen. The food, 40 years.

So through the supernatural provision of God, God was trying

to tell us a lesson. In the wilderness, Israel didn't farm.

They never planted anything. They never reaped anything. They ate

manna for 40 good years. More or less, God fed

them for 40 good years. Food. When we become a billionaire,

one of the things on your agenda will be good food. Hallelujah.

Have you seen the description of manna? They say it

was like nothing. And the Bible says that it was

the food of angels. It means that when you and

I will go to heaven, we'll go and see manna there.

And the people of Israel tasted manna long before they

would get there. Hallelujah. What about water? There was a

supernatural supply of water. The Bible says that the water

that Moses struck when the rock, that water followed them.

You see, so Israel was led across the tracks that

the water was going through. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. So for 40 years,

God gave them water to drink. Hallelujah. Amen. So there

was supernatural supply through the rock that followed them. What

about clothing? Look at what did God say. He said,

your clothing did not wear out on you. Amen. Talk

about fashion. Trending fashion. 40 years. How many of us,

every year we want to change our wardrobes. 40 years,

Israel didn't find any cause or reason to change their wardrobe. Hallelujah. Amen.

When you become a billionaire, I hope you are writing

how you spend your 1 billion. Food, water, clothing. Footwear. Hallelujah. Footwear.

40 good years, no change. And what I like about

the footwear is that it also In a way. And

I like what Moses said. How Moses put it. Oh God.

He said your feet did not swell these 40 years.

More like I walked you, I led you in hell. Hell.

Well done is you know well. They could have been

what pricked by all kinds of things and got swellings

and got infections and all that. God is saying that

he gave them supernatural health. The people who died. All

the people who died were those who opposed him. So

minus Caleb and Joshua, all the others were killed by God.

He said, I'll kill you anyway. And he killed them. Hallelujah. Amen.

But for 40 years, they were held in health and vitality.

Are you thinking about your billion? What are you going

to use it for? Amen. Hallelujah. So it's amazing that

God's argument here is that even when I give you

the wealth, these are the basic necessities of life. All

the rest, you think about it. When you get money,

what are food, clothing, shelter, health? Hallelujah. Amen. And I

like what The apostle Paul would say, my God shall

supply all my needs according to his riches in glory

through Christ Jesus. Turn to someone and say, God is

still in the business of supernatural provisions. Amen. And you

just have to believe. You have to believe. This is

what he's saying. 40 good years. He demonstrates it. So

more or less, Don't go and fix your eyes and

begin chasing the spirit of Mammon. What are you going

to do with it? These are the things that we

ultimately use it for. And more like come to the

wilderness where there was nothing. Supernatural. God's supply. All these

basic things. That's verse 4. And you remember he says,

I change not. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. those who have dared to believe,

and you allow God to guide you and to lead

you day by day, you'll be amazed. You'll be amazed

at the supplies that God has installed for you. Verse

5 says that, know then in your heart that as

a man, so still the lessons, the tough lessons he

wants us to know, as a man disciplines his son,

the Lord your God disciplines you. So we are learning

here that God disciplines us as his children. What is

the end goal of discipline? Character training. Amen. Discipline is

for character training. And where we are going, discipline matters.

Say a big amen.

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