The Book of Life Part 2

The music group, Queen, back in the 80s, had a song that was part of the movie soundtrack. And in the song, it asks a question, who wants to live forever? Who dares to live forever? It has a very beautiful soundtrack. You listen to it many times, and it gets in your head as that is singing. Well, last week we talked about that in the sermon entitled, The Book of Life. Well, today we will take up the rest of that as the Book of Life Part 2 I plan on giving here today. Because last week we saw that the Book of Life and your name written there equals eternal life, living forever. And how important it was, and how it was actually laid out for us in the last book of the Bible, Revelation, seven times. To make sure we understood just how important it is to have our names written in the Book of Life. I'd like to turn, if you will, with me to writings of the most prolific writer in the New Testament. You will turn with me to Philippians. Philippians 4 to be exact.

Philippians 4. Chapter 4 and verse 1. It's interesting because this is a very spiritual church. Philippians, like the Thessalonians, they were very close to Paul's heart as he prayed for all. But they were very spiritually minded. They were, you might say as some critics say, one of his favorite churches. But in chapter 4 and verse 1, he says, Therefore, my beloved and longed-for brethren, my joy and what? Crown. Oh, he considered him way up here. So stand fast in the Lord, beloved. And then he says in verse 2, because this was a church in Philippi, and this is going to amaze you, but not everybody in the church got along. Does that shock you? You know, every one of us gets along. We just all just never have any, even mates don't have any problems. We all just love each other and get along. Right? Wrong. Human nature. That's why we battle it. But here it says in verse 2, I implore Euodia, a woman, and I implore Syntyche, to be of the same mind in the Lord. They weren't getting along. They had conflicts. Two women. Can you imagine that? Shocked. Shocked. It says, I urge you also true companion, and if you want to research that true companion, you can look all day long. I spent two hours trying to find who the true companion was. There's 18 different people. I think it is. So we don't know. Okay? But it's somebody there. Church. I urge you also true companion, help these women who labored. What did they do? Labored with me. They labored with Paul in the church. They labored with me in the gospel with Clement also, and the rest of my fellow workers whose names are written where? In the book of life. So those names? Yodia, Syntyke. They had relationship issues. Didn't see eye to eye about things, but guess what? Their names are written in the book of life. That's what he says. You labored. They labored with me. Just like all of you today. These guys, these guys, these weren't everybody. Ones who prepare food, ones who teach classes, ones who runs out, one who sets up this, brings this, does this. Labor!

So as many of you labor with me and this church, because it's your church. Because it's your church. So Paul had these women who labored with him, and their names, he makes sure their names are written in the book of life, headed for eternal life. There's only one other place in the New Testament since I wanted to make a thorough study of the book of life. That's why I've spent two sermons on it. I'd like you to go with me to Hebrews. Let's go over to Hebrews. Hebrews 12 has Paul, or if it's Paul. They're not sure, but from his writings, everything points to Paul writing to the Hebrews. And who would be better to write to the Hebrews than the Hebrew of Hebrews, as he called him? Say, out the Pharisee of Pharisee! I believe he wrote this. But he's trying to show through the book of Hebrews that everything from the Old Testament, everything from the OA, everything from Moses, everything from Abraham, everything was just a foreshadow of when Jesus Christ, the true High Priest, would come. That's basically a quick overview of Hebrews. And so he wanted to show them, because the Hebrews were so stuck in their traditions and everything that way, so he takes them to a part about worship. Because as Jesus Christ talked to the Samaritan woman in John 4 about, you won't always come to worship in Jerusalem or at this mountain. But there is a time when people will come together and worship. And so in chapter 12 verse 18, he's telling them, For you did not come to the mountain that may be touched and burned with fire into the blackness and darkness and tempest, and the sound of a trumpet and the voice of the word, so that those who heard it begged that the word should not be spoken to them. He's talking about Mount Sinai as they were there, and how they came and came into the presence of God. And they were scared. Even Moses said, Oh, I trembled at his voice. But he comes in to say in verse 29, But you have come when you come to worship, just like today, you come to worship God on his holy day, ask his presence, that was done here. Okay. You come. But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. We've asked his presence so they, here in spirit, they are seeing what is done. To heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, and to the, as one says, general assembly, but festal gathering. 10,000 times, 10,000s and thousands and thousands and thousands of millions of angels are added to our 60 to 70 people here today. We just don't see them. I guarantee you they see us. They know exactly about us, as we'll see as we dig a little deeper into this word. And it says to general assembly, And the church of the firstborn, aren't you? First fruits? Wasn't Jesus Christ the first of the first fruits? That's his church. Who are registered? Registered? Hmm. Are you registered? I think all of us know registered in heaven to God. Most of us, as we go to the feast tabernacles, were registered to go to the feast. We know what that means. Does anybody have NIV? No? Jeff, okay, read what that verse says in the NIV, verse 23. What does it say?

To the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven, you have come to God and the judge of all to the spirit of the righteous made perfect. Okay, names are written. What do you think they're written? The book of life. The book of life that we looked at. The book of life. So it's talked about. It's very important. It's also in the good news translation that way. That is written or registered. So let's go back as we went through Revelation last week and cover those seven verses. Let's go back now and let's take a journey backwards in the scripture and let's go to the book of Malachi as we wrap this study up today.

Book of Malachi. Book of Malachi, chapter 3. Start in verse 16, but I want you to understand the book of life in the New Testament tells you about eternal life and then tells you, go get it! Go get it! That's what we read last week. That you should want that. That you should want your name written in the book of life. Tells you to go get it. What does the Old Testament tell you? These scriptures we will cover about the book of life. It's going to tell you how. How? How? How to have your name written in the book of life.

My old friend Jimmy the Lum used to say, don't tell me to have faith. Tell me how to have faith. We're going to tell you how to make sure that your name is written in the book of life, which is four or five scriptures today. So let's go there. I'll be reading from the New King James. Malachi 3 and verse 16. Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another.

How about you? Hopefully you have spoken to each other today. Hopefully after services you're going to be speaking to each other. Okay? That's what we do. That's what's called fellowship. That's what it's called, hopefully, iron sharpening iron, right? That's what we do. Well, that's what he was telling us here. Then those who feared, okay? Also, Yara is the Hebrew word. It can also mean revere, but here it's actually a worship type slash fear is how they described it. A fear of not worshiping. Not, oh God, don't strike me today. No, it's like there's this fear that we, a reverence of God that we need to have.

Remember, he's a loving father, right? Oh, he's your... Courtney knows what a loving father is, right? You want to put him on the spot and say no? Right? But we know. She don't... you don't fear him, do you? I fear your mother, but not Tim, right? But there's this... you have respect for him. That's what we do with God. And it's a... it's a... you know, it's kind of a fear. A good type of fear is what we should have. Bring that... bring that into an analogy. Is, okay, say you got your house paid off.

That would be nice, wouldn't it? We'll have a house paid off. And so the house is worth $200,000. So you go to the bank and they say, well, we'll give you a second mortgage for $200,000. Anytime you want to go, just... you can spend the money on the house.

And so you go down to the Seminole casino down here and go, what? Huh! I can gamble up to $200,000. Would you be afraid of losing that money? Absolutely! That is a good kind of fear with God when we worship Him. We... we should have this fear because He does control everything.

He does protect us. He does give us everything. I hope I have more reverence than fear of God, but I also know what He can do. So here it says, then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord listened and heard them. Think He heard you today? Think He heard you afterwards? Absolutely! We just saw there's faith. If He doesn't, He's got millions of angels to do. And He says, so a book of remembrance, book of life, every scholar that I have read, every commentary I've ever read, said that this book of remembrance is referring to the book of life.

It's pretty easy to see. So a book of remembrance was written before Him. Name, name, name. For who? For those who fear the Lord.

First step of having your name read. Is there a reverence? Is there a fear? Is there that awesome respect? But then it doesn't end there, does it? Because then it says, and those who meditate on His name. It's a part of life! It's a part of who you are! Some good happens! I just pulled up and wasn't a parking place, and then all of a sudden I got one. I thank God for it. The big and the little things in life! That's where we... another word besides meditate in my margin says, esteem. You esteem God. That's good stuff! Okay, so we just add this. This has to be part of our character. Fear, meditation, is steaming. But then He says, to those who do, they shall be mine! There's no question. Oh, well, well, am I a child of God. Those who do this, they are His! They are mine. It says, the Lord of hosts, on the day that I make them my jewels. You know, it's interesting. A jewel, it's the actual Hebrew word is gullah. G-u-l-l-a. And I love it because it actually means a treasured possession. We've all heard about Scripture of the apple of its eye. Well, this is a treasured possession, and the other words that used to describe in English is a personal possession. We are His personal possession, a treasured possession. Yes, that is something to have a smile on your face about.

You're just not some bones with skin on it, walking around planet Earth, until your three score and ten are done. Prize, possession. He says a jewel! And I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him. Do we serve God? I hope we do. That's what we should do. How do we serve God? Oh, we just show up at the whole day. We show up on Sabbath, and we don't steal. We don't rob. We don't cheat on our wives with our husbands. We don't murder anybody. We just... No. No. We serve God. No. Man came to Christ and said, who is my brother? The prodigal son. He lays that out. We serve God when we serve Him and all mankind. Because we become like Christ. We help where we can. Walking, talking, billboard. Let's finish this up here in 18. Then you shall again discern between the righteous and the wicked, between the one who serves God and the one who does not serve God.

Wow. Let's go back to Daniel, if you will. Daniel 12. As we continue our trip, as we look through the Old Testament for the words and mention of the Book of Life, this incredible book, we should all want to make sure we have our name written there. Oh, by the way, I brought other books to get rid of some more books here. I know it continues, and you're thinking, how many books do you have? But I would like to not have any of those by the end of the day, so if you could take one of those. But the Book of Life, is it really important to us? Do we? Are we focused on making sure our names are written there? Here we have Daniel 12. Daniel 12, verse 1, says, at that time. What time? Well, my header says at the end time. In the last days, the end time. This is prophetic. Okay. At that time, Michael, the archangel, shall stand up, the great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people. And interesting, he didn't say. He didn't say Judah, did he? He didn't say Israel, did he? He didn't say any nation. He said what? God's people. God's people. That's who this archangel is to be watching, standing, detecting. And there will be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation from the beginning of the earth. There's going to be a time like no other. Even to that time, so even at the time of the end, there's nothing that's ever happened as big and as horrendous as the time that's going to happen in the last days. And at that time, your people, whose people? God's people. Your people will be delivered. Everyone who has written what in the book? What book? The book of life. So all these people were, oh, oh, I think the world's coming to an end. Oh, we have nuclear here, and we have nuclear here. Oh, wait a minute. There's a red heifer been spotted inside of Jerusalem. Oh, wait a minute. Something we need to worry about? This is what we need to worry about, making sure our names are written in the book of life. I'll take Michael protecting me. I'll take that archangel protecting me, right? Everyone who is found written in the book, and many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life. As we know, 1 Corinthians 15, verse 24, right? Shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame, and some to everlasting contempt. Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever. Eternal life. It's a big deal. It's a big deal to God. He puts it in there so that we can know. It was a big deal to Daniel. Someone tricked Daniel. Daniel goes, wait a minute, tell me this. Tell me this. No, no, no, no, no. Close it up.

But I want to go to the writings of a man who probably, I would say, other than Christ, knew the heart of God better than anyone else. He was a man after God's own heart, who was a prolific writer also, but he put a lot of this in songs as a way of teaching. Let's go to David's thoughts, David's writings, if you will. Go back to the book of Psalm. So obviously, David knew something about the book of life. Daniel did, Malachi did. Now, David, he mentions it more than once or twice. Why? He was a prophet, was a king. He was a lot of things. And a lot of times we think of David as the negative that comes out. We miss this, this. Sometimes we wonder, well, why did God call them into His church? This. Sometimes we wonder, why didn't God call this person into this? He knows this. And it's very, very important to him. I may take out the stony heart, put a heart of flesh. Put a heart of flesh. Oh, you just want a bunch of softies. Yeah, yes. God does. He wants some soft hearts. Those who can learn, those who can humble themselves. And David could and did. So let's go back to Psalm 139, if you will, one of my favorite Psalms in the entire book. I never tire of reading it. It's so impactful as David really gets down there and says, you have known me, you have searched me. You know my sitting down, you know my rising up. You know everything about me. You're right there with me. Morning, noon, night, all through my sleep. That's Psalm 139. You built a hedge around me. When darkness falls, you're there. You have formed my inward parts, he says. I praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. He goes through these things of how he looks to God and how God is right there with him. And in verse 16, your eyes saw my substance being yet unformed. Mind you of what we didn't hear of my last week in Bible study? Before I formed you in the womb, I what? Knew you. So David knew this even. He knew us. He knows what you got. Even if you don't think you got anything, he knows what you got. He knows your potential. So he's recruited us on potential. But he says, and in your book, they were all written. What book? The book of life. Book of life. But here, David brings it to a point that none of the other writers do, is that he knows God has been with him through thick and through thin. Even when he acted like a crazy man.

Even when he made mistakes. Even when he stood before that nine-foot giant. Even when he went before a lion or a bear with his bare hands. He knew. Do we know? Do we know that God is with us? Through thick and thin, highs and lows? He is. If we're his.

So, it's interesting here, because in the New King James, this always threw me. And in your book, they were all written, the day's fashion for me, as when, as yet, there were none of them. Which you can see so many of the words were added there, as yet there were none. So, I knew I had to take that out. So, it sounded, everything about that verse sounded strange. Because, wait a minute, he knew it. Wait a minute, we're sealed back before we were even born, that we're going to be in his kingdom. One saved, always saved. Bible doesn't teach that. Did this one teach it? No. As a matter of fact, the New Living Translation was the best said, every day in my life was recorded in your book.

Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed. God has this incredible book, and you know, he's big enough he can have a book that big, that every day before the day has ended, there's us. There's what you did. There's everything in there. Is that not humbling? Is that not a little scary? Talk about fear. It's like, wow, that's written in heaven. David knew that. We need to make sure that we do. Let's go back now. Let's go back to Psalm 69. As David does it again. Psalm 69, verse 27, he said, add iniquity to their iniquity, talking about his enemies. Those who profess to be with him, take an example like a Hifafel. Hifafel was supposed to be this fatherly figure who gave him advice and everything and then turned and stabbed him in the back. And joined Absalom. There were other people who acted all righteous, even as priests. Happy Aether, another one like that. So here he says, add sin to their sin, sin upon sin, and let them not come into your righteousness. Let them be blotted out of the book of the living or the book of life. Let them be blotted out. Remember we found out last week through Revelation that Jesus Christ is called a blotter.

He blots the names out. So David is saying here, don't be fooled like he could tell God something, but he's also telling us, don't think you can fool God. Sin upon sin, iniquity upon iniquity, God, look at them. Why? Because he puts it in God's hands. He said, let them be blotted out of the book of the living and not written with the righteous.

That's how we are in the book of life. Perfect? No. No. I know many of you. Well, you're not perfect. You know me. Not perfect. But do we know the difference between right and wrong? And do we strive to live our life right and follow God? Repent when we're wrong? Yes. That's the righteous. We have to strive every day. I'm going to try to live a righteous life.

Now, I think David could write this because David's life was laid out as an open book, wasn't it?

All these great feats, but all the low points in his life, so many of the sins, he understood that. He was an open book.

How about us? Are we prepared?

Verse 29, What does the David say? But I am poor and sorrowful. Let your salvation, O God, set me up on high. I will praise the name of God with a song, and I will magnify him with thanksgiving.

Why do we sing praises for God and for our service? Because we're supposed to. It's not supposed to be something you come in here and you just, all right, okay, another, no, no, no.

We're praising God. And David knew that. This was a guy who jumped, and he's like dancing, and his wife goes, you crazy half naked man, right? Because she couldn't see that this is what he had wanted. This is what he'd been praying about, was to bring that ark of the covenant. He was so, I mean, he couldn't contain himself. That's why it's important. Neil knows it. Neil feels music. Just not words that he says. That's why we want him leading songs.

David knew this. David, because how many of us? I occasionally, yesterday, Mary will walk through the house or something, and she's humming something, and then all of a sudden it's from the hymn on. I don't know why I can get it out of my head. I'm going through there going, that's good. That's good because I don't do it enough. But it was a part of David's life, and it was a big part of his life. Now, we have one of these churches where everybody's going to jump up and raise their hand. I was invited to a church that way in the islands, and it was after our service, Sabbath. It was on Sabbath, and they came in, and so they invited me down. So I went there, and I spoke truth. But, man, it was just like it was a revival type, except it was our every week service. But it was like a carnival. You know, and I like music. I like upbeat service. I'm not your typical speaker united. Most of you know that. You've prayed about it, but it doesn't work, so you stuck with me. Right? But this was just—it was all show, because I get some of the people who got up there and did this, and they did a flop on the floor, and they would just start singing, and then singing this one, singing, and you couldn't even—you know, that's not what it's about. But it is about, you know, really understanding these words of what you're saying and praising God. And how important it is, and this shouldn't be the only day of the week that you sing praises to it. See, it's something I have to change. That's what this woman in the red dress here is trying to—the lady in red today is trying to help me to see.

Because I'm not—he's not finished working with this old lump of clay yet. Neither is or with you, either.

Let's go. Let's finish this up. Let's go to Psalm 56. You got to remember, David used a lot of poetic language. He used a lot of analogies, metaphors. He was a composer. He was a singer. He was the rock star of his day. He was big stuff. He knew how to touch people. Don't we all have a singer that we can listen to that when you sing—when him or her sings, it just changes your whole—you know, you can be just like, oh, man, I got a flat tire. I got all these other issues. I'm 15 pounds overweight. I'm like, nothing's working. Nothing's working. I'm just, I'm tired. I'm like this. But all of a sudden, you listen to some music, and you have that person, and all of a sudden, you start feeling good. The hand starts moving.

Now you're just—it changes your whole emotion. And this is what David knew. That's why God allowed David to write so many with the Aesaph and also the sons of Korah, who wrote all this beautiful music, wrote these words down so that we could really get the focus and really feel empowered by this. Well, it says in chapter 56, verse 8, he says, you number my wanderings. I mean, God knows wherever we go. He knew you guys were hiding out in New York and didn't want to come and see me. He knew the wisest, they were out there playing around in New York. Right? He knows where you're going. He knows his comings and goings, but he knows our wanderings. He can even—he knows when we kind of wander away a little bit from him. Sometimes he throws a little line out there to us, and we have to say, thank you. Okay. That's David. Oh, he just—that's David knew. He said, you number my wanderings. You put my tears into the bottle, into your bottle. He knew every tear. He knows every tear that comes down our face. And David says, you even—it's like you put them in a bottle. They're not just, oh, crocodile tears, but he knows. And he cares. And that's why it even dogs and James about coming before him, broken sometimes. And sometimes we need to cry. And we're truly sorry. Sometimes we need to cry because of we're so thankful and happy and know that he just took care of us. He just stepped down and did something for us that's just incredible. That's dead. Put my tears in your bottle. Are they not? Are they not in your book, even the times of your tears?

I'm picking on Courtney just because she wouldn't come up here today.

Tim, you remember the times when she cried and you had to help wherever you could? Sometimes you couldn't, but you tried anyway. That's what dads do. That's what moms do, don't you? Right? God does that with us. It's a relationship. You want to know? You want to know why your name's written in the Book of Life? It's because there is a relationship. You're his treasure. You're his personal property. You're everything to him. And David wanted to make sure we knew that. And even our tears, he knows when we cry. Which is scary because I've made Mary cry more than a few times. A few times because she was laughing, but I said something I shouldn't have said. It's something I didn't do. God knows that. He knows her tears. And he knows who caused them. A little bit of fear there. And if you're his, he knows if somebody makes you cry. That's why he said, take your prayers to him. Somebody out there in the world, somebody at your job, somebody at this is causing you such grief. Don't just mull over it. Take it to dad.

He's already got your tears in a bottle. He's already recorded. And it says, are they not in your book? When I cry out to you, then my enemies will turn back. This I know because God is for me. God is for me. Beautiful. Beautiful. One last time. Turn to Exodus 32. Exodus 32. Here we know this is one of the more famous mentions of the Book of Life, and it's actually mentioned by Moses. Moses, because the children of Israel had sinned so much. He had done all these things for them, and then they get there, and then they build the golden calf. They don't want him. And then Aaron actually said, I don't know. They gave me this gold. I threw it down in some fire. Boom! How comes this magical calf? That is a humorous story, standing before and saying that. But then verse 31, as God is just so upset because he's just like, are they ever? We're just getting this thing started, and they've already won another God. They don't want you. Then Moses returned in verse 31. Then Moses returned to the Lord and said, oh, these people have sinned a great sin and have made for themselves a God of gold. Did he need to tell God that? No, God's going to tell you, get off that mountain! We'll go see what they're doing.

Yet now, if you will forgive their sins, but if not, I pray, blot me out of your book, which you have written. It was a book of life. He knew his name was in there. And the Lord said to Moses, whoever has sinned against me, I will blot him out of my book. Was that just like, oh, well, we sinned, that's it? No. But it was the heart back again. It was the heart of these people. That's what he kept telling these people. They weren't going to stay, and they weren't going to love him. All they need is some love. And that's all we need. It's one of the things that puts us into the book of life, is make sure that we do that. I know it's amazing because even you go back to all the way to Genesis 5, verse 1, he says, this is the book of the genealogy of Adam. God loves books. He loves to keep records. I guess he's the world's greatest accountant, right, Tim? I mean, he keeps up with everything! Tears, happy, issues, problems, keeps up with him.

So we'll wrap up a one-line scripture, if you will. Turn with me to Ephesians 1, back to the New Testament. But you just took a trip through the Old Testament in the book of life. Hopefully there's not much you don't understand. Now, Ephesians 1. Ephesians 1, as this is so powerful. In verse 13, he said, In him, Jesus Christ, you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. What is eternal life? The ultimate salvation. It is. It is. In whom also having believed, do we believe? Part of that making sure our name's written in his book. Christ won't believe. We believe you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise. Better have the Holy Spirit if you want to make sure your name's written there. Which is the guarantee of our inheritance. Until the redemption of the purchased possession to the praise of his glory. Brethren, we are so blessed. We are truly blessed to have our names written in the book of life. We have an elder brother who will do anything and everything in his power to keep from blotting our names out of that book. How about we do everything in our power to make sure that our names are not blotted out? That our names stay securely in there. So as Queen asks, who wants to live forever? Who dares to live forever? It's all of us whose names are written in the book of life.