Listen, Carefully, Be Very Careful

10 The Lord replied, “Listen, I am making a covenant with you in the presence of all your people. I will perform miracles that have never been performed anywhere in all the earth or in any nation. And all the people around you will see the power of the Lord—the awesome power I will display for you.11 But listen carefully to everything I command you today. Then I will go ahead of you and drive out the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites.
12 “Be very careful never to make a treaty with the people who live in the land where you are going. If you do, you will follow their evil ways and be trapped. 13 Instead, you must break down their pagan altars, smash their sacred pillars, and cut down their Asherah poles. 14 You must worship no other gods, for the Lord, whose very name is Jealous, is a God who is jealous about his relationship with you.
- Exodus 34:11-14

Listen, the LORD says to Moses. Each time GOD says something to His people, He always tells them to listen first. Why? Because humans are easy to forget and just inattentive when they are being told the first time. Humans need to be reminded to listen. It's like a switch that needs to be turned on. When GOD says listen, it means it is something very important that we should not just store in the temporary lobes of our brain but to listen with our hearts and store what HE is saying permanently in our lives. GOD says to Moses, Listen I will do this.... But again He says But Listen Carefully.... as if Moses wasn't listening enough, but I guess that He needs to be reminded not to doze off into other thoughts because GOD tells him again to listen again and carefully this time. 

How easy it is for us to switch into sleep mode when we are living through life. A lot of us are just living in autopilot. Living without thinking, doing without feeling. Wake up! GOD is telling us something, but we are not really listening. He will do great things, He wants us to record this, He will display HIS power! we need to remember it and never forget what GOD has done, remember how great HE is. Listen carefully because GOD Himself will drive out our enemies. And then He says Be very careful, and take note, this is what GOD wants us to do after HE does all these things for us. GOD wants us to be careful never to connect, make treaties, build covenant relationships with people who do not worship HIM. GOD wants us to stand in our faith, glorifying HIM by being an influence to others bringing them to Christ. Listen! HE is about to do what HE has promised to do, but BE CAREFUL to do what HE has asked you. Or else! we may fall and His jealousy will consume us. 

Chosen

14 “Then he told me, ‘The God of our ancestors has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and hear him speak. 15 For you are to be his witness, telling everyone what you have seen and heard. 16 What are you waiting for? Get up and be baptized. Have your sins washed away by calling on the name of the Lord.’
17 “After I returned to Jerusalem, I was praying in the Temple and fell into a trance.18 I saw a vision of Jesus saying to me, ‘Hurry! Leave Jerusalem, for the people here won’t accept your testimony about me.’
21 “But the Lord said to me, ‘Go, for I will send you far away to the Gentiles!’”
- Acts 22:14-18,21

Are you chosen? How is it that a certain man who belongs to a chosen nation - Israel was again chosen by GOD? Does it necessarily mean that if you are an Israelite you are chosen? Yes Israel is chosen by GOD to know HIM and do His will but if a certain Israelite does not follow or do His will, do you think that he is still chosen? You can't be chosen if you don't chose GOD too. Each of us are offered a place in GOD's heart regardless of race, culture, or whatever has happened in the past. All of us are called by GOD but only few become chosen when they chose GOD by accepting HIS call. What does it mean to be chosen? It is to chose to live for GOD in one's life. It is to know HIS will. When you chose GOD, you will see GOD and hear His voice. 

When we chose to follow GOD, immediately GOD instructs us to do something... we are to get up from where we are and be baptized, so that our sins are washed away when we call on the LORD JESUS or YESHUA Ha Mashiach, and His blood which He shed on the cross, to cleanse us from all of our sins and unrighteousness. We need this cleansing before we can do anything else for HIM. Sin create walls that stand in the way between us and GOD. Our unforgiven sins block us from hearing GOD and seeing GOD. Notice that right after Paul was baptized, he  saw JESUS in a vision and he heard the LORD JESUS tell him specifically what to do. When you hear from GOD it will be as clear as waters during the day. Are you seeing GOD, or hearing GOD's voice? Do you want to have this kind of life? Read and meditate on Acts 22:14-18 and you will understand what GOD wants you to do.