Remember God

Introduction

Hosea 8:12–14 KJV 1900

12 I have written to him the great things of my law, But they were counted as a strange thing. 13 They sacrifice flesh for the sacrifices of mine offerings, and eat it; But the Lord accepteth them not; Now will he remember their iniquity, and visit their sins: They shall return to Egypt. 14 For Israel hath forgotten his Maker, and buildeth temples; And Judah hath multiplied fenced cities: But I will send a fire upon his cities, And it shall devour the palaces thereof.

Pray - Be Seated

Body

Forgetting God

Deuteronomy 32:15–18 KJV 1900

15 But Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked: Thou art waxen fat, thou art grown thick, thou art covered with fatness; Then he forsook God which made him, And lightly esteemed the Rock of his salvation. 16 They provoked him to jealousy with strange gods, With abominations provoked they him to anger. 17 They sacrificed unto devils, not to God; To gods whom they knew not, To new gods that came newly up, Whom your fathers feared not. 18 Of the Rock that begat thee thou art unmindful, And hast forgotten God that formed thee.

Judges 2:10–13 KJV 1900

10 And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation after them, which knew not the Lord, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel. 11 And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served Baalim: 12 And they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, which brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and bowed themselves unto them, and provoked the Lord to anger. 13 And they forsook the Lord, and served Baal and Ashtaroth.

1 Samuel 12:7–12 KJV 1900

7 Now therefore stand still, that I may reason with you before the Lord of all the righteous acts of the Lord, which he did to you and to your fathers. 8 When Jacob was come into Egypt, and your fathers cried unto the Lord, then the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, which brought forth your fathers out of Egypt, and made them dwell in this place. 9 And when they forgat the Lord their God, he sold them into the hand of Sisera, captain of the host of Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab, and they fought against them. 10 And they cried unto the Lord, and said, We have sinned, because we have forsaken the Lord, and have served Baalim and Ashtaroth: but now deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, and we will serve thee. 11 And the Lord sent Jerubbaal, and Bedan, and Jephthah, and Samuel, and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side, and ye dwelled safe. 12 And when ye saw that Nahash the king of the children of Ammon came against you, ye said unto me, Nay; but a king shall reign over us: when the Lord your God was your king.

Forgetting God’s Acts

Psalm 78:11–24 KJV 1900

11 And forgat his works, And his wonders that he had shewed them. 12 Marvellous things did he in the sight of their fathers, In the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan. 13 He divided the sea, and caused them to pass through; And he made the waters to stand as an heap. 14 In the daytime also he led them with a cloud, And all the night with a light of fire. 15 He clave the rocks in the wilderness, And gave them drink as out of the great depths. 16 He brought streams also out of the rock, And caused waters to run down like rivers. 17 And they sinned yet more against him By provoking the most High in the wilderness. 18 And they tempted God in their heart By asking meat for their lust. 19 Yea, they spake against God; they said, Can God furnish a table in the wilderness? 20 Behold, he smote the rock, that the waters gushed out, And the streams overflowed; Can he give bread also? Can he provide flesh for his people? 21 Therefore the Lord heard this, and was wroth: So a fire was kindled against Jacob, And anger also came up against Israel; 22 Because they believed not in God, And trusted not in his salvation: 23 Though he had commanded the clouds from above, And opened the doors of heaven, 24 And had rained down manna upon them to eat, And had given them of the corn of heaven.

Judges 8:33–34 KJV 1900

33 And it came to pass, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel turned again, and went a whoring after Baalim, and made Baal-berith their god. 34 And the children of Israel remembered not the Lord their God, who had delivered them out of the hands of all their enemies on every side:

Nehemiah 9:16–17 KJV 1900

16 But they and our fathers dealt proudly, and hardened their necks, and hearkened not to thy commandments, 17 And refused to obey, neither were mindful of thy wonders that thou didst among them; but hardened their necks, and in their rebellion appointed a captain to return to their bondage: but thou art a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and forsookest them not.

Consequences of Forgetting God

Forgetting God Brings Suffering on the Individual

Isaiah 17:10–11 KJV 1900

10 Because thou hast forgotten the God of thy salvation, And hast not been mindful of the rock of thy strength, Therefore shalt thou plant pleasant plants, And shalt set it with strange slips: 11 In the day shalt thou make thy plant to grow, And in the morning shalt thou make thy seed to flourish: But the harvest shall be a heap in the day of grief and of desperate sorrow.

Forgetting God Brings Suffering on Others

Jeremiah 3:21 KJV 1900

21 A voice was heard upon the high places, weeping and supplications of the children of Israel: for they have perverted their way, and they have forgotten the Lord their God.

Forgetting God Brings Destruction on a Nation

Deuteronomy 8:19–20 KJV 1900

19 And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the Lord thy God, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish. 20 As the nations which the Lord destroyeth before your face, so shall ye perish; because ye would not be obedient unto the voice of the Lord your God.

Isaiah 65:11–12 KJV 1900

11 But ye are they that forsake the Lord, That forget my holy mountain, That prepare a table for that troop, And that furnish the drink offering unto that number. 12 Therefore will I number you to the sword, And ye shall all bow down to the slaughter: Because when I called, ye did not answer; When I spake, ye did not hear; But did evil before mine eyes, And did choose that wherein I delighted not.

Conclusion

Warnings Not to Forget God

Deuteronomy 4:9 KJV 1900

9 Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons;

Deuteronomy 8:10–14 KJV 1900

10 When thou hast eaten and art full, then thou shalt bless the Lord thy God for the good land which he hath given thee. 11 Beware that thou forget not the Lord thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgments, and his statutes, which I command thee this day: 12 Lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein; 13 And when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied; 14 Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the Lord thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage;