2023-12-17AM- Remove Not the Old Landmarks

The main ideas from this information are about the importance of not removing ancient landmarks or boundaries. The Bible references landmarks as the outside edge of a border, indicating where one thing ends and another begins. The writer emphasizes the significance of recognizing and respecting these territories, trusting and obeying them. The boundaries of Israel were specifically defined by God, and Israel was not meant to expand its borders like other nations. The same concept applies to the Kingdom of God, with clearly defined boundaries and landmarks. Some individuals and movements may try to push past these boundaries, but they do not have the authority to change them. It is crucial to understand and abide by these established landmarks. Proverbs 22, verse 28, Remove not the ancient landmark which thy fathers have set. Chapter 23, verse 10, Remove not the old landmark, and enter not into the fields of the fatherless. See the similarity in the first phrase of those two verses. Remove not the ancient landmark. Remove not the old landmark. Father, thank you for our time together today. Thank you for the opportunity to preach the Bible. I'm praying for that holy anointing that makes the difference in the preaching. You know our church. You know us as individuals, and I pray God that you'll move through this place up and down every pew and touch us exactly how we need to be touched today. In Jesus' name, amen. Remove not the ancient landmark which thy fathers have set. Remove not the old landmark. Enter not into the fields of the fatherless. Now I'll explain this, but it's probably quite evident to everybody already. It's exactly a landmark. Now we actually do refer to certain points in life or monuments as a landmark. But literally what the Bible is talking about here when it refers to a landmark, it's talking about the outside edge of a border. There is a place, our piece of property right here, it has landmarks. They may not be something that's large that we could all point out to it, but there is a place that our property ends and somebody else begins. That's what he's talking about here. This word landmark, the King James translators uses it five times in our Bible, and it's all translated from the very same word. The very same word shows up 240 times in the Old Testament, translated different ways. Most of the time it's called borders or coasts. It's talking about a place where one thing ends and another begins. And the cry from the writer of this proverb says, Remove not the ancient landmark. Remove not the old landmark. But we should be a people who recognize those territories and how they are defined and how they are enclosed within a boundary. And God is saying, Leave them right where they are. Trust them. Obey them. The Bible calls them borders. It calls them boundaries. It calls them coasts. And in one place he calls it a limit. A limit. That's the same word that the writer here is saying, Don't remove the limit. Don't remove the boundary. Don't remove the border. And I can't help but to thank every Jew that would ever read out of the book of Proverbs and see these wise sayings. They weren't just something that a man came up with, but the writer here is referring back to the Pentateuch. Deuteronomy chapter 19 and verse 14, when God told the children of Israel, Thou shalt not remove thy neighbor's landmark. And in Deuteronomy chapter 27 and verse 17, he pronounces a curse on those that remove the landmarks. This was given before Israel ever crossed over into the promised land. The law was given while they were still in the wilderness. The instructions were given to these people long before anybody owned any land. Long before they moved into the promised land. Long before any of these landmarks could be identified, the law was given concerning the landmarks. Don't move them. Keep them just like they are given. Now we know that many nations all through history have gained their strength and their kingdoms have grown in proportion all because they fought in wars. And they would conquer other nations and perhaps annex a country that was right next to it. It's what Russia was trying to do when they invaded Ukraine. It's what China is wanting to do to Taiwan. And we look at those and we think, well, them are really bad. But honestly, we're in Kentucky because there was a small nation that just kept on encroaching and gaining more and more land. Britain did it. The Babylonians did it. The Medes and the Persians did it. The Grecians, the Romans. It's what they did. They went forth conquering other lands and they expanded their own boundaries. But Israel was told from the very beginning that they were not a country that was without borders. They were not a people that would go out and gain more and more property. Israel would take on other countries in warfare. And yes, they would fight other battles. But that did not mean that the borders, the landmarks, the boundaries of Israel would move into those countries. Numbers chapter 34, the first 12 verses, give very specific boundaries of the land that would be given to Israel. It describes the northern border and the southern border. That's where your land is going to be. It tells of the border that would be on the east. He said the river of Egypt would be on the east and the great sea would be on the west. And in Exodus chapter 23 and verse 31, God says this, and I will set the bounds. That's the same word that we read there in Proverbs as landmarks. I will set the bounds from the Red Sea even under the Sea of the Philistines and from the desert under the river where I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand and I shall drive them out before thee. Now we're living in a time right now where Israel is under attack physically. And there's people in our own country that have made themselves the enemies of Israel. One of their chants, one of these things they love to chant and sing is from the river to the sea. They're looking for the annihilation of every Jew and that that land would be taken over by somebody else. But you know what? They might think themselves awful clever. They might think themselves awful smart to come up with such a slogan. But God came up with that very thing years and years ago. Thousands of years ago God said, from the river to the sea. Those are where the boundaries of Israel are going to be. And God told Moses that there were lands that in the book of Deuteronomy chapter 2, God told Moses that they were still in the wilderness. But he said, when you cross over into the promised land, when you get to Canaan, and when your border is the river on one side and the sea is on the other, you're going to pass through some other lands. There was one land that was of the children of Esau, the Edomites. You know what God said? That's not yours. There was a land of the children of Lot, Ammon and Moab. He said, you're going to pass through them on your way in, but they do not belong to you. Moab and Ammon are not yours. Israel was never designed to be a free for all. There were to be distinct boundaries for those people. And within those boundaries, they could call it home. But if they were to venture outside of those boundaries, they would leave the protection of the sovereign nation of Israel and would put themselves at great risk. Now, Israel as a physical nation has its boundaries. I believe that we can use the Old Testament as a guide to us for the church because the kingdom of Almighty God, the kingdom of heaven is the same. It is not a free for all. There are clearly defined boundaries for the kingdom of heaven, the kingdom of God. There are landmarks that determine the borders of those who are residents of the kingdom of God. Outside of those borders, you will find yourself vulnerable to the laws of those who govern outside of those borders. We have those who have made it a practice of their selves to push past the legal boundaries of the Bible. There are those who say there are things that don't matter and it is their goal, it is their purpose to change where those borders are. But the Bible says in five places, don't remove the ancient landmark. You cannot move the old landmark. And though those may have risen up to push back on the borders, it does not change where those borders are. Israel's physical borders are still from the river to the sea. Now they may not occupy it all right now. There may be somebody in their way right now, but God defined those borders and they belong to them. And no matter what somebody does against those boundaries, it does nothing to change the fact that the boundaries exist. Job chapter 24 and verse 2, this man of God lamented and he said, some remove the landmarks. Some have chosen to remove the ancient landmarks, those landmarks that were set long before you and I ever came along, long before we ever moved into the kingdom of God. While we were passing through Moab and Ammon and Edom, we came through them. We came out of them. And by the grace of God and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for our sins, we were brought into the kingdom of God. And we have boundaries that were set before we ever got here. There have been books that have written that define new boundaries. There have been messages preached in pulpits that have moved the landmarks. There are ministries and movements that have been started all based on expanding the boundaries that are not endorsed by God's Holy Bible. Now, even if you were to take and to move a physical landmark, a rock, a post, a fence, on a piece of ground, it doesn't change the legal boundaries. We went up and seen Brother Austin's land and the surveyor had been there and all it's got is these little bitty posts sticking out of the ground with a pink flag. Brother Austin's neighbor could go over there, not that one, but another neighbor might go over there. When Brother Austin isn't around and pick up one of those stakes, walk it forward some and put it further into Brother Austin's land. Somebody might say that is the landmark. That's the boundary. But all it would take is to call the surveyor back out and he would do his measurements and he would inspect the land. And when the deed book is opened and it is searched, the actual boundaries will be rediscovered and set again. Now, somebody might tell you that your property goes to that tree line over there. It's always been that way. This has been our land since my daddy and my granddaddy. And his daddy or him, our land is that tree line, son. Don't ever forget it. But if you would go into the record books and search through them, you would know for sure where your property line ends. And just because daddy said it was the tree line, daddy might have been telling you wrong. Just because his daddy told him that that's where the boundary was, he might have been wrong. And it can be tradition. It can be something that's passed down through the years. It can be believed by everybody in the country. But get the book out. Get the deed out. Line it up one against the other. And you just might find that you own beyond the trees. You just might find that you own before the trees. But let the book speak for itself. And you'll see wherein is the freedom of use for you on your land. And you'll be able to know too when you cross a line and you are now considered a trespasser. Because that's not where you belong. There have been said certain things don't matter when the Bible says that they do. Someone has said that there are certain things that are permitted when the Bible says that it isn't. You cannot be holy while living in an unscriptural manner. You cannot be holy while spending your time in unholy activities. And if you push back the boundaries that are set by God in His Bible, you are walking in dangerous places. Because within the boundaries, the boundaries that are set by God in His Word, there is protection of a supreme government of the kingdom of God. The Bible says He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. And to purposefully step outside of God's bounds will leave you vulnerable to whomever you come up in part with outside of these boundaries. Back in late December 2015, there was a young man from Cincinnati, Ohio. He was learning abroad, going to school in China. And he decided to hook up with this group, this tour group, that said, we'll take you into places, and we'll get you in, and it'll be at a much lower cost. And these people who would grant these students these tours, their slogan was this, Destinations Your Mother Would Rather You Stay Away From. That's quite a slogan, isn't it? Well, to a young man who's 21 years old, sounds like that might be something I'd like to do. That sounds dangerous. That sounds risky. That sounds like something I might want to do. But in 2015, on December 29th, Otto Warmbier, a young man out of Cincinnati, Ohio, took himself a guided tour straight on up into the communist country of North Korea. He went with his little group. They stayed for just a few days. And from what I understand, things got a little out of hand. There'd been some drinking. There'd been some partying inside of this communist country. And on January 2nd, 2016, just a few days after getting into North Korea, as he was looking to board the plane to get out of North Korea, they say two guards came up and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned and looked and said, without a word, he took him away. One of the young men that were in the group said, Well, I guess I'll never see you again. He had no idea how prophetic that his words would be because as Otto Warmbier was led away, he was charged and convicted of taking down a poster out of a hotel, pulling it down. It was propaganda. It was praising Kim Jong-il. And he was charged and convicted of pulling that thing off of the wall. Otto was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor in North Korea. But something happened to Otto shortly after he was convicted. After his appearance in the courtroom, something happened to Otto. All we know is that Otto fell into a coma. Otto was hospitalized. And for one and a half years, he laid in a hospital bed in North Korea while the United States government pleaded for him, while our government officials were trying to negotiate with North Korea to bring this boy back home. But after one and a half years after his arrest, he was released back into the hands of his parents, flown home into the United States, still in a coma, still unresponsive. He couldn't say anything. They didn't know that he was hearing anything. They finally took him off of his feeding tube, and he died shortly after there. Nobody has any answers. There's never been given an acceptable explanation as to what happened to Otto Warmbier. Nobody really knows. But when this young man stepped out of the protection of his United States citizenship, he became at the mercy of a government that was outside of these borders. He voluntarily stepped into a hostile, dangerous territory. His desire, just want to experience another culture. I want to see what it's like out there. And it cost that young man his life. It's not too unlike Jacob's daughter, Dinah, in Genesis chapter 34. The Bible says in just a couple of verses, she just wanted to see the daughters of the land. That's all. She just wanted to see what's happening outside these protective boundaries that I have. What adventures lay outside of the landmarks that have been set up for me? And so Dinah pushed past the boundaries that had been placed there for her protection. And I don't know how long she spent outside of the boundaries, but it was long enough for the prince of that country to notice her. The Bible says the prince of that country saw her. He desired her. And in a short amount of time, he took her. He abused her. He defiled her. And that young woman was robbed of her purity. She became the victim of a godless man and all of his lustful intentions. All because she went out looking to see what it was like outside of the boundaries. Outside of the things that I know. And it cost this young woman dearly. But it was when the prince of that country saw her. She was different. She wasn't painted up like the women of his own country. She wasn't loose like all those young women that would love to have thrown themselves at the prince of that country. Here went somebody that was undefiled and pure. And the prince of that country took notice of her purity. And took notice of her innocence. And said, I want that. And it wasn't long. She had a daddy that would watch out for her. She had a whole slew of brothers that would take up for her. But she stepped outside of the boundaries. And she became victim to the prince of another country. Now when the saints of God push back the liberties that are afforded us in the Bible. You are taking chances with the king of another country. And the Bible tells us that even his tender mercies are cruel. At his best, the prince of that country is cruel and wicked. That's been stated. It's been preached. There's been a song that's been written about it. That Satan cannot cross the bloodline. And that's worthy of throwing up a hand and saying, thank God. We have celebrated the fact that we are protected by the awesome power of the blood of Jesus Christ. And it's true. Glory to God. It's true. Our enemy cannot push past these boundaries. Our enemy cannot push past the awesome bounds that have been set by Almighty God. You and I are protected by the sovereign Lord of this holy kingdom. And while the devil cannot cross the bloodline, you can. You can. He can't sneak in. You can sneak out. Hebrews chapter 10 verse 26 speaks of willful sin. Willful sin. That is the individual that hath trodden underfoot the Son of God, hath counted the blood of the covenant wherewith he was sanctified an unholy thing, and hath done despite under the spirit of grace. We have biblical landmarks of holy living. And they were put in place to define what God has given to His church. Now I know men like to stand behind the pulpit and we like to tell you sometimes, now look, it ain't all rules and regulations. It's not all do's and don'ts. But make no mistake about it, there are rules and there are regulations. There are do's and there are don'ts. And it is up to us to be obedient to those. Because when you get to the place where you ignore the landmarks, when you push past the landmarks, when you are having issues and moving the landmarks, it places you in an extremely dangerous place. The latter part of the book of Ezekiel, he describes his vision of a future temple and a future restoration of Jerusalem. And you'll find some tedious reading in there because he's very specific with the measurements. It goes this far and it stops. The wall is this long and it ends. It goes this deep and it's over. It reaches this high and it's done. And then Ezekiel chapter 43 and verse 12 it says, This is the law of the house. Upon the top of the mountain, the whole limit thereof round about shall be most holy. And he repeats himself, Behold, this is the law of the house. He said, not me, God said there's a limit. God said there's a boundary. God said there's a border and there's a landmark. But let me tell you this, the final verse in the book of Ezekiel says this, It was round about 18,000 measures. It's big. It's plenty big for you to live in. It's plenty big to have joy everlasting. It is plenty big for there to be pleasures in the Holy Ghost. It is plenty big. And the name of the city that day shall be, The Lord is there. I mean, that's what he said. That's what they're going to call that place. They're going to look upon this place with its distinct borders. It's going to be called holy. And they're going to say, The Lord is there. If you choose to push against the boundaries that God... You know, I could take more time and we could talk about specifics, but there's not an individual in this place that doesn't know specifics. And if I were to go into 15 of them, I might skip your 16th. And you might say I got away with that. You'll get away with nothing pushing against the boundaries. That God has set. Remove not the ancient landmarks. Remove not the old landmarks. Cursed be the man who pushes back against the old landmarks. Jeremiah 6 and 16. We have instructions. Thus saith the Lord. Stand ye in. Not around. Not about. Not in the general vicinity. Stand ye in the ways and see. You know what he also says? Ask for the old paths. I mean get up in the morning and say, God, I want to know my boundaries. If that's it way over there, I think I'll stick right here. Some people might say how far can I push it? Somebody might ask, somebody that they trust, and they say that's the boundary right there. It's been the boundary when I was a kid. It's been a boundary that my preacher preached to me. It's the boundary that's been this way for all as far as anybody can understand. But I say get out the old deed book. I say get a hold of the record. And you might find that you're pushing against the borders that God himself has laid down for us. Remove not the old landmarks. Ask for the old paths where he is the good way. And walk therein. And ye shall find rest for your souls. I hope that Jeremiah's people was different from everybody in this place. Because they said we will not walk therein. They said we're not going to be hedged in like that. We're just not going to be bound like that. North Korea, you can consider that to be a prison country. Its citizens are not permitted to leave. They can't get a visa and just fly out and say I'll be back later or maybe I won't. If they get out of there, they're risking their lives to get out. It is a prison country. God has not shackled you to his kingdom. Despite what somebody up the road might be preaching, that you can never get out. My Bible tells me you push against them borders, and it won't be long before you're on the other side. And when you're on the other side, you are now in the jurisdiction of a prince of another country. And when he grabs a hold of you, he'll not be kind. He might show you some pleasure. He might show you around the vanity fair of a city called Vanity. But there's coming a time when the cage will be brought forth, the door will be opened, and you'll be flung in there and be bound within from being a prisoner from the prince of that other country. But here, we've got the love of God. We've got the shadow of the Almighty. Brother Austin, would you come to the piano please? Deuteronomy 10, verse 12 says, And now, Israel, what doth the Lord require of thee but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all His ways, and to love Him, and to serve the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, to keep His commandments, to keep the commandments of the Lord and His statutes which I command thee this day for thy good? Boundaries are set for your good, for your protection. Will you stand with me? Father, thank You so much for the opportunity to have preached today. Thank You for what I felt while I delivered Your Word. Thank You for the responsiveness from the congregation. Thank You for these, Lord, who believe. God, You put it on my heart, Lord. Somebody, somebody wants to see what's on the other side of these borders. So I'm asking You today, God, bring conviction into this house and deal with us all exactly how we need it today in the name of Jesus. God gave this to you for your benefit. For thy good, He said, walk in My ways and My statutes. God planned them out very carefully. The borders that He gave, the kingdom of God, the saint of God, the Christian. I mean, He didn't just throw them out there and say, this will be good enough. This will be wide enough for them. This will be deep enough. He carefully, on purpose, laid it all down. And He said, stay here. I'll care for you. You'll be under the shadow of the Almighty. You'll be under the care of the Most High God. And so today, the tempter has come. Sometimes He whispers in the ear. Sometimes He just sends somebody right to you. That's not the border. God doesn't require that. And they're lying to you because they haven't checked the book. Somebody might say, come go with me. You listen to me. It's dangerous being outside of the landmarks. That's why He said, don't push them back. Don't move them. Don't remove them. Job said somehow. God, somebody's moved the landmarks. That's why you need to keep the book with you. And so you recognize it. So you know, that's not what God has for me. And here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to ask that we all come into this altar. And I'm going to ask that we all pray. Somebody's been talking. That old enemy of our souls. His voice has been wafting over the border. Saying things. And it caused Diana to wonder what the women on the outside were doing. And it cost her a lot. I don't want to see nothing like that happen to any of us. I want our young folks to stay safely. Safely within the borders that God has laid out. Not the borders of gospel like Holiness Church. Not the intentions and the beliefs and the faith of Tim Sargent. But within the Word of God. Lest your soul be spoiled. Let's all come in. Let's talk to God. And if somebody's been telling you lies. God already knows all about it. He was there watching it happen. God already knows what you've heard. God already knows what you've been shown. So. You're going to have to keep your own heart with all diligence. You're going to have to hide the Word of God in your heart. Lest you sin against God. You're going to have to identify the boundaries. And stay within them. On your own. I am. And waiting not. To rid my soul. Of one's dark blood. To thee. Whose blood. Can cleanse each spot. O Lamb of God. I come. I come. Just as. I am. Thou wilt receive.