Deuteronmy 19:14
NEXT, the Lord forbade the Israelites to move the land-marks which marked the boundary of a tribe or of a man's possession. "Thou shalt not remove thy neighbor's landmark." Not only was one to value and guard his own, but he was to respect that which belonged to another. God had given them the land and assigned each one his place and portion in it. It was his to enjoy and that which sustained him as a tenant under the gracious hand of God.
"Much food is in the tillage of the poor," so we read in Proverbs 13:2323Much food is in the tillage of the poor: but there is that is destroyed for want of judgment. (Proverbs 13:23). The poor may not have much, but he makes a lot out of the little he's got. We are certainly "the poor," and at best we enter but little into all the fullness of Christ, but even the little that we possess of Him can be a rich source of spiritual enjoyment to our souls.
"Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which He hath promised to them that love Him?" James 2:55Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him? (James 2:5). Many of God's dear people have but little of the truth such as some of us are privileged to possess, yet they make much of Christ and their enjoyment of Him puts some of us to shame.
In Psalm 16:66The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage. (Psalm 16:6) the psalmist says, "The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage." Here is the lovely picture of a godly Israelite in that coming millennial day, looking over the portion of land which the Lord has given him and he says, "The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places." Surely we can say this of our heavenly portion, given us to enjoy even now. How much more so when called above to enjoy it all with Him whose grace has brought us there!
We believe that this word to Israel — not to remove the landmarks — has a deep spiritual lesson for us. The Lord has set landmarks in the Church — boundaries of truth which are not to be given up, moved, or set aside. It is a solemn thing to add to or take away from the Word of God (Rev. 22:18,1918For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: 19And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. (Revelation 22:18‑19)). A true believer will never lose his eternal life in Christ, but if he gives up or tampers with what he knows to be the truth, he will surely lose in blessing to his soul, and even suffer under the hand of God in discipline.
The path of obedience to the Lord has always been a narrow one, but it is the way of happiness. To give up that narrow way for a more roomy path is surely removing the landmarks. May our feet be found in the narrow path of devotion to Him, while at the same time may we have large hearts that would go out to all the saints of God and to the unsaved all around us.
To bring in new ideas and inventions into the church would be removing the landmarks. How much rubbish has accumulated in the church of God over the centuries. And in this regard we believe that many of the modern translations of the Bible, some of which are not translations but merely paraphrases, in which the Word of God is watered down and much of the truth lost, are the enemy's attempt to remove the landmarks and get rid of the truth of God.
May we seek grace, dear young Christian, to cling to "that which was from the beginning" (1 John 1:11That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (1 John 1:1)), to cleave to the Lord and wait patiently for Him. He has told us, "Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown." Rev. 3:1111Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown. (Revelation 3:11).
Messages of the Love of God 7/6/1975