HOW TO PROLONG YOUR LIFE
'DEUTERONOMY 4:40
Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments, which I commend thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and WITH THY CHILDREN AFTER THEE, and THAT THOU MAYEST PROLONG THY DAYS UPON THE EARTH, which the Lord thy God giveth thee, for ever.
'This Scripture doesn't say, 'Keep My commandments so you can live a short time upon the earth.' No, God is trying to tell us how we can prolong our days.
'What does it mean to prolong your days? It means to live longer on this earth. And this Scripture says that even your children will be blessed.
'In other words, by doing what God said, we will prolong our days and live longer on earth. That doesn't mean we won't die, but it means that if we obey the Lord, we can live a long, good life. Well, under the New Covenant, the commandment God has given us to obey is the law of love.
'As I said, there are a number of statements in the Book of Proverbs that tell us how to shorten our days or to prolong them.
'PROVERBS 3:16
16 LENGTH OF DAYS (long life) IS IN HER (wisdom's) RIGHT HAND; and in her left hand riches and honour.
'PROVERBS 9-11
11 For by me (wisdom of God's Word) THY DAYS SHALL BE MULTIPLIED, and THE YEARS OF THY LIFE SHALL BE INCREASED. 'PROVERBS 10:27 27 THE FEAR OF THE LORD PROLONGETH DAYS: but the years of the wicked shall be shortened. 'PROVERBS 28:16
16 The prince that wanteth understanding is also a great oppressor: but he that hateth covetousness SHALL PROLONG HIS DAYS.
'You see, God made provision for us to prolong our days. Now it's up to us to walk in the light of His provision. How do we do that? By walking in love toward others! Study the Bible for yourself on the subject of love. You'll find out just how much the Bible has to say about love and health and living a long time on the earth.
'In fact, I am convinced that if the Body of Christ really walked in the love of God, they wouldn't need healing; they could walk in divine health.
'But just by virtue of the fact that the Bible has so much to say about the subject of God's love, you can see that it is important for the Body of Christ to find out more about this subject. When I was a young minister, I heard an older minister who had been in the ministry for more than fifty years say something that has served me well over the years.
'He said, 'Anytime you find some Scripture or a biblical subject that's only mentioned once in the entire Bible, you know it's not of major importance.'
'There's lot of truth to that statement. Did you ever stop to think about that? Well, the Bible does say, '…In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established' (2 Cor. 13:1) How many witnesses? Two or three.
'Therefore, if a Bible subject is of great importance, it would be mentioned over and over again in the Word. And yet sometimes people are prone to take one little Scripture and run off with it and try to build a major doctrine on it. That's foolish. 'Just think how many times the subject of love is mentioned in one way or another in the Bible. The New Testament writers wrote about this subject over and over again. 'If you want to know about a Bible subject, find other Scriptures in the New Testament that confirm the same thing or the same subject'
Culled from:
Love – The Way to Victory
By Kenneth E. Hagin