Personal experiences, beliefs, and opinions are just that- ‘personal’.

So are man-made doctrines and traditions (Mark 7:8-9).

No one is faulting you for having those...as most of us do. But where we get into trouble is when we ‘lay aside’...God’s word and hold up our personal beliefs and/or experiences above what God says; and we do that more often than you might imagine.

How many people are out there today who have little or no faith at all in God because one time they ‘prayed a prayer’ and nothing happened...and therefore they figured this talk about a ‘loving God’ and ‘answered prayer’ was nothing but a feeble myth for desperate people?

Or how about those passages that suggest anyone who abides in Jesus ‘no longer sins’ or has ‘ceased from sin’ because they’ve been ‘born of God’ (1 John 3:6,9; 5:18; 1 Pet. 4:1-2). And yet...I’ve had people tell me: “Well I don’t know anyone who lives like that!”...as if their personal assessment supersedes what God’s word has clearly stated. I hope you get my drift here.

I know...this can really upset the apple carts of people who were taught that all you need to do is just ‘accept Christ as your personal Savior, get baptized and join a local church... and you’re good to go’. And let me assure you, this is not about ‘adding to’ what Christ did for us on the cross at Calvary as if we can go out and ‘earn’ or ‘work for’ a place of being in good standing with God. But this flippant cry of 'just believe’ could very well lead people down a path that will have a horrific outcome if they don’t take the time to dive in to God’s word and read for themselves what it has to say. (Matt. 7:13-14, 21-23; Acts 17:11; 2 Cor. 11:3-4)

Just as the Israelites who were delivered from the hand of Pharaoh back in Egypt had a land to possess, so do we NT ‘believers’ today ...who claim to ‘follow’ Jesus.

And as we should all know by now, that first generation of folks who came out from the bondage of slavery ended up dying off in the wilderness because of their unbelief and disobedience...having never been able to enter in to this good land God had for them. Why do you think writers in the NT pointed to them as ‘examples’ for us of how NOT to be, and hopefully learn from their mistakes? (1 Cor. 10:4-11; Heb. 3:7-19)

Using another example of how we can easily lay aside God’s word when taught the ‘traditions of men’ (Mark 7:8), look how quick we are to build a doctrine around John 3:16 as if that is the only significant verse in the Bible, underscoring that part about ‘whosoever believes in Him will not perish...but have everlasting life”. If that is the verse you have ‘hung your hat of faith’ on, then how do you get around other verses like Matt. 7:21, or Hebrews 5:9 that says Christ became the source of eternal salvation to those who ‘obey’ Him? And what did Jesus have to say about the part 'repentance' plays in not perishing? (Luke 13:1-5)

Maybe this is why we are warned repeatedly to ‘be not deceived, brethren’ (James 1:16; Matt. 24:4-5). And maybe that is why we are told in Heb. 4:1 that “since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear... lest any of you seem to have come short of it”. Sounds like such dramatic and sensational talk... prying on people’s emotions and ignorance, as some might suggest. But give that a moment and ask yourself, why would God’s word exhort us to 'fear lest we fall short' of entering such a place of ‘rest’? Why, Heb. 4:11 then says: “Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience” ...pointing back to what we read there in Heb. 3:16-19.

So let’s wade in to this idea of ‘entering in and cleansing the land’, which is what the walk of salvation was supposed to be. But it’s not a piece of prime real-estate that God is after; it’s our hearts that need ‘purifying’, which is what sanctification is all about. And yes, it is a process that can only happen IF...we are abiding in Jesus; because ‘apart from Him, we can do nothing’ (John 15:4-5). And before you get too smug and ‘grow at ease in Zion’ (Amos 6:1; Zeph. 1:12), thinking your ‘salvation was a one and done deal’ through a quick prayer, let us not forget what Jesus rebuked that church at Sardis for, calling them out with stern warnings ...since He had not ‘found their works yet complete/perfect’ (Rev. 3:1-3).

God made it clear to the Hebrew people early on- You are going to be led into a land where I will bless you in ways you could never imagine, but there are some nations on this land that need to be dealt with. I won’t remove them all at one time because you couldn’t handle it. But little by little, we will overcome them because I am the one leading you and will empower you to overcome them all. (Ex. 23:20-33; Deut. 7). 

And if there was anything that was stressed and repeated over and over with that group of Israelites whom God wanted to lead and bless, it was the need for them to ‘hear and obey’... as if their lives and the lives of their children and grandchildren depended on it. Friends...when did God change? (Acts 3:22-23; Luke 13:1-5)

But let’s be clear about one thing that distinguishes what we read back in the OT and that land which was in need of clearing/cleansing...and what we are to be doing today. Our ‘enemies’ that ‘defile the land’ are not ‘flesh and blood’. It is not the Hittites or the Amorites that need removed from the ‘land’. You may recall God’s warning to the people that ignoring Him or failing to fully comply with His leadership...would open the door for these wicked people to be a snare to them and even take their children captive. Rather, it is a ‘spiritual enemy’ and forces of wicked darkness’ that we contend with today (Eph. 6:12; 1 Pet. 5:8) and God had a very specific plan and method in which He would purify our hearts and rid them of all that defiled them. Do you remember what the names of some of those are? Check out Mark 7:20-23; Gal. 5:19-21, and Rom. 1:29-32...then meet me back here tomorrow.