Choose Life or Death

From the Garden of Eden, from the very beginning of mankind, there was a choice. God did not create us as machines or robots. He has bestowed free will upon us. From the very beginning, God gave us the freedom of choice. There is a freedom to choose anything, which defines your tomorrow. 

God brought out the Israelites from 400 years of slavery and journeyed with them in the desert to the promised land. In the book of Genesis, God brought out the Israelites from the clutches of slavery and promised to take them to Canaan. However, it is only when we reach the book of Joshua that this promise is fulfilled. In the first book, the promise was declared to Abraham, and the promise was fulfilled in the sixth book (Book Of Joshua). What we must understand is that, there is a process for the fulfilment of the promises .i.e taking possession of the promised land.

You have to go through many ups and downs and be prepared to enjoy the promise. You can see the same in the story of Joseph, where God gave him a vision and a promise at a young age of Seventeen and it is much later in his life at the age of thirty that his promise came to fulfilment. Joseph went through arduous times during this in between time of preparation.
In between all this journey, all of them had a choice. Should I bow before other gods? Should I choose good or bad? These choices were ever present before them. 

In the book of Deuteronomy, chapter 27:12-14 you will see an astonishing incident taking place.

Deuteronomy 27:12-13 says, 'When you have crossed the Jordan, these tribes shall stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people: Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph and Benjamin. And these tribes shall stand on Mount Ebal to pronounce curses: Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan and Naphtali.’

Jordan was a powerful water body back then, much broader with stronger currents. The Lord says, when you cross river Jordan, six tribes must stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people. On the other side on Mount Ebal six other tribes are to pronounce curses. Mount Ebal is comparatively barren. Whereas Mount Gerizim is on the opposite side and it is very beautiful and fertile. It seems like both these mountains are natural emblems of blessings and curses. Both these mountains are the same height and there is almost 600 feet gap between the two mountains. The Israelites are standing in between these two mountains and the tribes are splitting two to the two sides as God commanded them to. It almost looks like a stadium or an amphitheatre. So as the Priests and Levites declare from either side, the people say Amen. God then commanded them to carve the blessings and curses on stones on either side. Then they created an altar of stone. In their journey from Israel to Canaan this was a monumental moment in their lives. 

Deuteronomy 28 recounts the blessings (verse 1-14) and curses (Verses 15-68) that were proclaimed from either side. Let’s skip to Chapter 30. 

Deuteronomy 30:15-16 says, ‘See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.’

Just like the Israelites, we are also on a journey. As we all know everything that happened in the Old Testament is a shadow of what is to come. For instance, Pharaoh is a depiction or rulership of Satan himself, where he enslaves God's people. Even in our lives there is a journey. From the day we got saved, we are also in our Exodus. In the desert, they were completely dependent on the Lord, for food, water, direction and any form of sustenance. Many people assume that Canaan land (a land flowing with milk and honey) is heaven, but that is not so. Canaan is the depiction of the blessed state of our lives on Earth. The journey through the desert is a depiction of the process that we must endure.

Deuteronomy 30:17-20 says, ‘17 But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, 18 I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess. 19 This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live 20 and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.’

Know that no matter what happens in your life your Lord will be there and all you need to do is love your Lord. You may not be able to depend on the people around you. But know that you can always count on the Lord. The Lord is your life and gives you life. If you can hold on to this principle, know that anything that is meant for you will not pass you by and will come to you at the right time. Do not depend on people, but hold on to God for He is always there for you.

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About The Author:

Dr. Damien Antony
Born and brought up in a Christian family, Dr. Damien Antony possessed an unquenching quest for truth right from his boyhood days and eventually his relentless search led him to the Bible. He is a Revival Preacher, Bible Teacher, Leadership Trainer, Author and a Life Coach. He moves under the anointing for Prophetic, Healing, Deliverance, Inner Healing and Financial Breakthrough. God has also blessed him with an Apostolic Mandate to take the Universal Body of Christ to the next level of revelation and anointing.