Covenant Relationship #9

Greetings in the name of the Lord! I feel compelled to talk more about repentance.
Ezekiel 18
20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.
21 But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die.
22 All his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live.
23 Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord GOD: and not that he should return from his ways, and live?
24 But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die.
25 Yet ye say, The way of the Lord is not equal. Hear now, O house of Israel; Is not my way equal? are not your ways unequal?
26 When a righteous man turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and dieth in them; for his iniquity that he hath done shall he die.
27 Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive.
28 Because he considereth, and turneth away from all his transgressions that he hath committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die.
29 Yet saith the house of Israel, The way of the Lord is not equal. O house of Israel, are not my ways equal? are not your ways unequal?
30 Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord GOD. Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin.
31 Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel?
32 For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord GOD: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.
These scriptures are so powerful! Even in the Old Testament God called us to turn away from sin and seek righteousness. You are responsible for your own sins. Not your father or your family! It is up to you to repent which literally means to turn away from sinful ways and follow righteousness. 1 Peter 1:16 says: Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. Hebrews 12:14 Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord. If we are not Holy we cannot see the Lord.
The scriptures above say: But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die.
We will live (be alive spiritually) if we turn away from sin and live a holy life. The word says he will surely live, he shall not die. The death he is speaking of here is a spiritual death because we all are destined to die a natural death.
To live in Christ is to be obedient to his word. His laws and statutes. Some folks believe that it is ok to live any way you want to and still be saved. But that’s not what the scripture here say. Jesus loves us unconditionally and always will but He also calls us to higher calling.
2 Corinthians 6
17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.
He wants us to separate from sin because He is Holy so we must be Holy. We can’t live any old way we want and expect to be saved. We have to live a separated life and touch not the unclean thing and He will receive you!

Acts 26
18 To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.
20 But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.
This lets us know that no matter who you are,no matter your nationality, we must turn away from sin and do right things. We have to make a decision to turn away from actions that lead to spiritual death and choose life. No one can force us to do this.
The altar is where we repent. Your altar can be anywhere. Your car, the church or your bedroom. It’s anywhere that you call upon the name of the Lord. Your altar is the place that you surrender your self will to be obedient to the will of the Lord. You die out to self.
Acts 2
21 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Acts 22
16 And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.
Romans 10
11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
12 For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.
13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
1John 1
6 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Revelations 1
5 And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,

The altar is where we call upon the Lord to forgive our sins. We make the decision to turn away from sin and enter into covenant relationship with Jesus Christ! We have to enter in as He has instructed us. We promise to love Him, serve Him and obey Him!
Living in covenant with Jesus Christ brings peace of mind. However we must follow the plan that Jesus set before us to enter into covenant with Him. There are specific instructions.
Jesus told a parable.
Matthew 22
11 And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:
12 And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.
13 Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
14 For many are called, but few are chosen.
We need to be sure we have the wedding garment on! Jesus loves us dearly but also gives clear instructions on how to enter into covenant with Him.
Peter (the rock Jesus said He would build His church on) stood up on the day of Pentecost and gave us the plan of salvation.
Acts 2 (read Acts 2)
37 Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?
38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
39 For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.
Our prayer today: Lord forgive me for anything I have done that is not pleasing to you, whether knowingly or unknowingly. I surrender my life to your will. Lead me and I will follow. Show me your ways and give me strength and courage to be obedient! In Jesus name! Amen!