As a Christian, we humbly serve the creator of the universe for 1 Chronicles 16:25 “great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods.” Psalm 47:1 “Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy. 2 For the Lord Most High is awesome, the great King over all the earth. 3 He subdued nations under us, peoples under our feet. 4 He chose our inheritance for us, the pride of Jacob, whom he loved. 5 God has ascended amid shouts of joy, the Lord amid the sounding of trumpets. 6 Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises. 7 For God is the King of all the earth; sing to him a psalm of praise. 8 God reigns over the nations; God is seated on his holy throne. 9 The nobles of the nations assemble as the people of the God of Abraham, for the kings of the earth belong to God; he is greatly exalted.” Daniel 4:3 “How great are his signs, how mighty his wonders! His kingdom is an eternal kingdom; his dominion endures from generation to generation.” 1 Chronicles 29:11 “Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.” 2 Samuel 22:47 “The Lord lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be my God, the Rock, my Savior! 48 He is the God who avenges me, who puts the nations under me, 49 who sets me free from my enemies. You exalted me above my foes; from a violent man you rescued me. 50 Therefore I will praise you, Lord, among the nations; I will sing the praises of your name.” Isaiah 26:1 “We have a strong city; God makes salvation its walls and ramparts. 2 Open the gates that the righteous nation may enter, the nation that keeps faith. 3 You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you. 4 Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord himself, is the Rock eternal.” Isaiah 25:9 “Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the Lord, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation.” Zechariah 12:8 “The Lord will shield those who live in Jerusalem, so that the feeblest among them will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the angel of the Lord going before them. 9 On that day I will set out to destroy all the nations that attack Jerusalem.”

     This God wants to bless us not only with eternal life but abundant life while in this present life. God even states in Malachi 3:10 “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.” This means total commitment with not just our finances but our lives. Luke 14:26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. 27 And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.” Mark 10:29 “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel 30 will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life.” Blessings and eternal life are our inheritance but to receive it means we must obey God’s word and serve Him wholeheartedly. No one or anything can be put above God and He will test you to find what is in your heart. As we just read, God will bless those who do this.

     We have two choices, actually three if you count being lukewarm as a choice but that choice is worse than rejecting Jesus. Revelation 3:15 “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” As the people were told Deuteronomy 30:15 “See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. 16 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. 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.”

     There is good news for the church who will return to God, Deuteronomy 30:1 “When all these blessings and curses I have set before you come on you and you take them to heart wherever the Lord your God disperses you among the nations, 2 and when you and your children return to the Lord your God and obey him with all your heart and with all your soul according to everything I command you today, 3 then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes and have compassion on you and gather you again from all the nations where he scattered you. 4 Even if you have been banished to the most distant land under the heavens, from there the Lord your God will gather you and bring you back. 5 He will bring you to the land that belonged to your ancestors, and you will take possession of it. He will make you more prosperous and numerous than your ancestors. 6 The Lord your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, so that you may love him with all your heart and with all your soul, and live. 7 The Lord your God will put all these curses on your enemies who hate and persecute you. 8 You will again obey the Lord and follow all his commands I am giving you today. 9 Then the Lord your God will make you most prosperous in all the work of your hands and in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your land. The Lord will again delight in you and make you prosperous, just as he delighted in your ancestors, 10 if you obey the Lord your God and keep his commands and decrees that are written in this Book of the Law and turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.”

     In Deuteronomy 28 and Leviticus 26 (take the time to read them) we see our options, blessings or curses, life and prosperity or death and destruction. God said Deuteronomy 28:1 “If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. 2 All these blessings will come on you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God,” He then lists the blessings. God also said 15 However, if you do not obey the Lord your God and do not carefully follow all his commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come on you and overtake you.” God then lists the curses that will fall upon us for disobeying. Blessings and curses are also described in Leviticus 26. These blessings along with eternal life can be our inheritance but sadly most have chosen to rebel against God’s word and reject those blessings and as we saw in Deuteronomy, we did not live long in the kingdom Jesus is the King of. Though the kingdom came near just as Jesus said it would, the churches rebellion cause God to turn His face from us. Instead of blessing, the abomination that causes desolation has brought devastation to the church. Leviticus 26:17 “I will set my face against you so that you will be defeated by your enemies; those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee even when no one is pursuing you.” Deuteronomy 28:25 “The Lord will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You will come at them from one direction but flee from them in seven, and you will become a thing of horror to all the kingdoms on earth.” This has already happened to the church as our enemies have prevailed against us.

     Every Sunday Christians go to church thinking all is well with their souls and the church is how it should be, but every Sunday Christians are being deceived. It is not just the cults like the Mormons or Jehovah’s witnesses that are being deceived, but denominations and independents of all sizes are also being deceived. Yet they worship God thinking He is pleased with their praise, all the while the church is filled with other gospels and those teaching them. Isaiah 1:7 “Your country is desolate, your cities burned with fire; your fields are being stripped by foreigners (enemy) right before you, laid waste as when overthrown by strangers. 14 Your New Moon feasts and your appointed festivals I hate with all my being. They have become a burden to me; I am weary of bearing them. 15 When you spread out your hands in prayer, I hide my eyes from you; even when you offer many prayers, I am not listening. Your hands are full of blood!” Amos 5:21 “I hate, I despise your religious festivals; your assemblies are a stench to me. 22 Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Though you bring choice fellowship offerings, I will have no regard for them. 23 Away with the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps.” Though the deception is extreme, there is also a high level of false security that is present mostly from the delusion God brought on the church for unbelief and rebellion. 2 Thessalonians 2:10 “They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie 12 and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.”

     Because of the deception and delusion, today’s Christians don’t have the protection from satan they think they have because they attend church. This deception and delusion also means that the church has rejected their inheritance. As Paul said Acts 13:46 “We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles.” Sadly, now the Gentiles have also rejected eternal life and the blessings in this present life. This rebellion has allowed our enemies to decimate the church. Daniel 8:12 “Because of rebellion, the Lord’s people and the daily sacrifice were given over to it. It prospered in everything it did, and truth was thrown to the ground.” Most do not understand that because the abomination that causes desolation has come upon the church, satan is right there with them, even standing behind pulpits and leading worship. Daniel 9:27 “And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.” This lack of understanding causes people not to turn their hearts back to God as they think they are already on the right path. That deception has destroyed many and prevented them from receiving their inheritance. This is why the teaching eternal security is so devastating. Yes, Paul said Ephesians 1:13 “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.” If you have not heard the message of truth but another gospel instead, there is no guarantee. Most have been taught that what they see and hear in church is how the church should be, yet scripture does not give the same picture. In fact, the church looks nothing like the Gospels nor is there power like the Gospels and Acts; the power the church was supposed to have. We were supposed to have the keys to the kingdom so that Matthew 16:19 “whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Joel 2:11 “The Lord thunders at the head of his army; his forces are beyond number, and mighty is the army that obeys his command.” Scripture has been set aside for the ways of man which means that the church does not have God’s power to defeat their enemies. The only way for that power to return is to seek God and turn from wicked ways. God said Zechariah 1:3 “Therefore tell the people: This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Return to me,’ declares the Lord Almighty, ‘and I will return to you,’ says the Lord Almighty.” Malachi said Malachi 3:7 “Ever since the time of your ancestors you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord Almighty.” When the church repents, the kingdom comes near and once again we will do as Jesus did.

     We saw last week that the church is supposed to have power over our enemies. As Jesus said, Luke 11:20 “If I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.” Mark 1:34 “Jesus healed many who had various diseases. He also drove out many demons.” We also saw that His disciples would also have that same power. Mark 6:13 “They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.” Luke 9:1 “When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, 2 and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.” Acts 8:5 “Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there. 6 When the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed, they all paid close attention to what he said. 7 For with shrieks, impure spirits came out of many, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed.” If the church would repent and return to God’s word, that same power would be present today, but the church must obey God’s word and stop putting tradition, reason and experience above His word. Paul prayed Ephesians 1:18 “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength 20 he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.” Most in the church today do not understand this available power the church could have as this power is also part of our inheritance.

     We need this power to destroy the work of satan. satan is very powerful and it is important to understand that he wants to get you to curse God and destroy you. We get a picture of satan in Revelation. Revelation 12:9 “The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.” We also see that the only way to defeat him is “11 They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.” You are not covered by the blood if the lamb is you are following other gospels, so you will be defeated by satan. Notice that satan is accusing day and night so we better have our armor on. Peter said 1 Peter 5:8 “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” If you are not obeying God’s word and living for Him wholeheartedly, you will be devoured. satan has to report to God as we see in Job. Job 1:6 “One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and satan also came with them. 7 The Lord said to satan, “Where have you come from?” satan answered the Lord, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.” satan’s purpose is to get you to curse God. Job 1:11 “But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.” After the disaster and sickness that came on Job, his wife said, Job 2:9 “Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!” When we deny God’s word and follow the ways of man, we curse God and will die.As we saw with Job’s wife and friends, there will be those who knowingly and unknowingly will try to get you to curse God and turn away from Him.

     As we saw with Job, God may even suggest that you are a candidate for satan which is why we must stand on God’s word at all times and not give up. We also saw this with Peter. Luke 22:31 “Simon, Simon, satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat.” Job responded when he lost everything, Job 1:20 “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” Job said to his wife, Job 2:10 “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” Like Job we must persevere. James 5:11 “As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.”

     The good news is that even though satan is accusing day and night, if we stay true to God’s word and persevere, we can persevere just as Job did as that is part of our inheritance. We are told Revelation 12:12 “But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short.” Not only will satan try to get you to curse God, there will be those who are offended if you are standing firm on God’s word and will be used by satan. It is here where testing the spirits is imperative to make sure you are actually standing on scripture. Standing on denominational doctrines and theology is not the same as standing on God’s word. Standing firm on other gospels will deny you your inheritance. Just as Jesus offended the teachers of the law, standing on God’s word will also bring offense and you will be insulted and ridiculed. 1 Peter 4:12 “Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. 14 If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.” Luke 6:22 “Blessed are you when people hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. 23 “Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets. 26 Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you, for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets.” Paul said 2 Corinthians 12:10 “That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

     Basically, hating you, insulting and rejecting you because you are following Jesus and obeying His word, is like cursing you. We are told this is going to happen and how to respond. Luke 6:27 “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” The good news for those who follow wholeheartedly is that God will protect us which is also part of our inheritance. In our day you may not think about calling down curses on someone and often they come across humorous such as “may the fleas of a thousand camels invade your armpits and your arms be to short to scratch" or “may the chocolate chips in your cookies always turn out to be raisins.” But sometimes it can be even more serious like saying I wish you were dead; I wish that what I have experienced happens to you, or you are useless and will never amount to anything and generational curses such as you will be just like your loser parent or relative. You can even call down curses upon yourself. Matthew 27:23 “they shouted all the louder, “Crucify him!” 24 When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. “I am innocent of this man’s blood,” he said. “It is your responsibility!” 25 All the people answered, “His blood is on us and on our children!” Even though Jesus said Matthew 10:14 “If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet. 15 Truly I tell you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.” Matthew 23:35 “And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 36 Truly I tell you, all this will come on this generation.” The reality is curses are real and should not be made, even in jest. Many say these things and even dabble in horoscopes, the occult and games / movies that involve witchcraft and think no harm no foul, it’s not real anyway, but it is.

     An example of this is found in Numbers. This was real then and still real today. Numbers 22:2 Balak son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites, 3 and Moab was terrified because there were so many people. Indeed, Moab was filled with dread because of the Israelites. 4 The Moabites said to the elders of Midian, “This horde is going to lick up everything around us, as an ox licks up the grass of the field.” So Balak son of Zippor, who was king of Moab at that time, 5 sent messengers to summon Balaam son of Beor.” He said to Balaam, “A people has come out of Egypt; they cover the face of the land and have settled next to me. 6 Now come and put a curse on these people, because they are too powerful for me. Perhaps then I will be able to defeat them and drive them out of the land. For I know that whoever you bless is blessed, and whoever you curse is cursed.” Here we see the power that this man had but it is also important that even though God spoke through him, he would later be killed. Numbers 31:1 “The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Take vengeance on the Midianites for the Israelites. After that, you will be gathered to your people. They fought against Midian, as the Lord commanded Moses, and killed every man. 8 Among their victims were Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur and Reba—the five kings of Midian. They also killed Balaam son of Beor with the sword.” Joshua 13:22 “In addition to those slain in battle, the Israelites had put to the sword Balaam son of Beor, who practiced divination.”

     The king called for Balaam to curse the Israelites but three times Balaam instead of cursing the Israelites, he blessed them over and over again. Numbers 23:21 “No misfortune is seen in Jacob, no misery observed in Israel. The Lord their God is with them; the shout of the King is among them. 22 God brought them out of Egypt; they have the strength of a wild ox. 23 There is no divination against Jacob, no evil omens against Israel. It will now be said of Jacob and of Israel, ‘See what God has done!’ “May those who bless you be blessed and those who curse you be cursed!” God had said to Abraham Genesis 12:2 “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” That promise to Abraham is also part of our inheritance. Galatians 3:29 “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.  Numbers 24:10 “Then Balak’s anger burned against Balaam. He struck his hands together and said to him, “I summoned you to curse my enemies, but you have blessed them these three times.” Later we see this event described. Deuteronomy 23:3 “No Ammonite or Moabite or any of their descendants may enter the assembly of the Lord, not even in the tenth generation. 4 For they did not come to meet you with bread and water on your way when you came out of Egypt, and they hired Balaam son of Beor from Pethor in Aram Naharaim to pronounce a curse on you. 5 However, the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam but turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the Lord your God loves you.” Joshua 24:9 “When Balak son of Zippor, the king of Moab, prepared to fight against Israel, he sent for Balaam son of Beor to put a curse on you. 10 But I would not listen to Balaam, so he blessed you again and again, and I delivered you out of his hand.”

     Witchcraft is “the use of sorcery or magic.” Divination is “the art or practice that seeks to foresee or foretell future events or discover hidden knowledge usually by the interpretation of omens or by the aid of supernatural powers.” The occult – “the use of sorcery or magic” is real and dangerous. We must understand that this kind of power is all around us and we are powerless against it if we do not obey God’s word wholeheartedly. I have heard of witches praying against ministers in towns. One article I read said, the church does not need to fear them which is not true. The problem is that if you are not following God’s word wholeheartedly, you do need to fear them as God will not turn those curses into blessings and as we saw with Balaam there is power to cause damage. Witches are very real as we saw with King Saul. 1 Samuel 28:7 “Saul then said to his attendants, “Find me a woman who is a medium, so I may go and inquire of her.” “There is one in Endor,” they said. 8 So Saul disguised himself, putting on other clothes, and at night he and two men went to the woman. “Consult a spirit for me,” he said, “and bring up for me the one I name.” She was able to bring up Samuel.

     The amazing part about receiving our inheritance is that obediently following God’s word changes the outcome when people curse you or insult you or say all kinds of evil against you because of Jesus, God will turn those curses into a blessing. Isaiah 54:17 “no weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and this is their vindication from me,” declares the Lord.” Isaiah 49:25 “I will contend with those who contend with you, and your children I will save.” Isaiah 50:4 “The Sovereign Lord has given me a well-instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed. 5 The Sovereign Lord has opened my ears; I have not been rebellious, I have not turned away. 6 I offered my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard; I did not hide my face from mocking and spitting. 7 Because the Sovereign Lord helps me, I will not be disgraced. Therefore have I set my face like flint, and I know I will not be put to shame. 8 He who vindicates me is near. Who then will bring charges against me? Let us face each other! Who is my accuser? Let him confront me! 9 It is the Sovereign Lord who helps me. Who will condemn me? They will all wear out like a garment; the moths will eat them up.” Jeremiah 50:33 “This is what the Lord Almighty says: “The people of Israel are oppressed, and the people of Judah as well. All their captors hold them fast, refusing to let them go. 34 Yet their Redeemer is strong; the Lord Almighty is his name. He will vigorously defend their cause so that he may bring rest to their land, but unrest to those who live in Babylon.”

     We are also told Matthew 10:17 “Be on your guard; you will be handed over to the local councils and be flogged in the synagogues. 18 On my account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles. 19 But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, 20 for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.” Though innocent, many will try to make you guilty but in innocence God will give you the words to refute those who are against you. Job’s three friends were not able to refute Job. Job 32:3 “(Elihu) He was also angry with the three friends, because they had found no way to refute Job, and yet had condemned him.” Solomon asked for wisdom. 1 Kings 3:10 “The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for this. 11 So God said to him, “Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, 12 I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be.”  Daniel 1:17 “To these four young men God gave knowledge and understanding of all kinds of literature and learning. And Daniel could understand visions and dreams of all kinds. 18 At the end of the time set by the king to bring them into his service, the chief official presented them to Nebuchadnezzar. 19 The king talked with them, and he found none equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they entered the king’s service. 20 In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom.” Acts 4:8 “Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them.” Acts 18:28 “For he (Paul) vigorously refuted his Jewish opponents in public debate, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Messiah.” Titus 1:9 “He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.”

     The inheritance the church was supposed to have was eternal life, blessings, life and prosperity, curses turned into blessing, power against enemies and refuting those who speak against us with wisdom. But due to rebellion, eternal damnation, curses, death and destruction, curses remain curses and no wisdom or knowledge and no power against enemies. This has happened because the church stopped listening to God’s word. The church has followed in the steps of Israel and Judah. Jeremiah 37:1 “Zedekiah son of Josiah was made king of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; he reigned in place of Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim. 2 Neither he nor his attendants nor the people of the land paid any attention to the words the Lord had spoken through Jeremiah the prophet.” Jeremiah was told Jeremiah 9:6 “You live in the midst of deception; in their deceit they refuse to acknowledge me,” declares the Lord. 12 Who is wise enough to understand this? Who has been instructed by the Lord and can explain it? Why has the land been ruined and laid waste like a desert that no one can cross? 13 The Lord said, “It is because they have forsaken my law, which I set before them; they have not obeyed me or followed my law. 14 Instead, they have followed the stubbornness of their hearts; they have followed the Baals, as their ancestors taught them.” 15 Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “See, I will make this people eat bitter food and drink poisoned water. 16 I will scatter them among nations that neither they nor their ancestors have known, and I will pursue them with the sword until I have made an end of them.” Jeremiah 8:4 “Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says: “‘When people fall down, do they not get up? When someone turns away, do they not return? 5 Why then have these people turned away? Why does Jerusalem always turn away? They cling to deceit; they refuse to return. 6 I have listened attentively, but they do not say what is right. None of them repent of their wickedness, saying, “What have I done?” Each pursues their own course like a horse charging into battle.” Jeremiah 27:23 “I gave them this command: Obey me, and I will be your God and you will be my people. Walk in obedience to all I command you, that it may go well with you. 24 But they did not listen or pay attention; instead, they followed the stubborn inclinations of their evil hearts. They went backward and not forward. 25 From the time your ancestors left Egypt until now, day after day, again and again I sent you my servants the prophets. 26 But they did not listen to me or pay attention. They were stiff-necked and did more evil than their ancestors.’ 27 “When you tell them all this, they will not listen to you; when you call to them, they will not answer. 28 Therefore say to them, ‘This is the nation that has not obeyed the Lord its God or responded to correction. Truth has perished; it has vanished from their lips.” The church rejected their inheritance.

     To once again receive the inheritance God wants to bless us with, we must return to Him and turn from our wicked ways. Jeremiah 17:5 “This is what the Lord says: “Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who draws strength from mere flesh and whose heart turns away from the Lord. 6 That person will be like a bush in the wastelands; they will not see prosperity when it comes. They will dwell in the parched places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives. 7 “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. 8 They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.” Isaiah 55:1 “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near. 7 Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.” Ezekiel 18:23 “Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign Lord. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live? 30 “Therefore, you Israelites, I will judge each of you according to your own ways, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. 31 Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, people of Israel? 32 For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent and live!”

     David said to Solomon, 1 Chronicles 28:8 “So now I charge you in the sight of all Israel and of the assembly of the Lord, and in the hearing of our God: Be careful to follow all the commands of the Lord your God, that you may possess this good land and pass it on as an inheritance to your descendants forever. 9 “And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the Lord searches every heart and understands every desire and every thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever. 10 Consider now, for the Lord has chosen you to build a house as the sanctuary. Be strong and do the work.” Matthew 25:34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.”