Encouragement for The Discouraged

Earlier this morning the Lord had me write a devotional by the title of “God’s Word will Not Return Empty.” And then He encouraged me to record a video presentation of the writing, but with a different title, “Encouragement for The Discouraged,” because that was also a central theme in the message. Usually these are combined together in one writing, but I felt today that they were to be separate, each with a slightly different focus, but still with the same message. I hope you will find encouragement in this video today.

 

So, if God has called you to His service, and if He has gifted you with the gift of writing or speaking or singing or teaching, don’t “throw in the towel” (give up) just because it appears you are getting few to no responses. Pray for guidance and direction from the Lord to make certain you are in the will of God, doing what He has called you to do, speaking His truths. Then trust Him with the results, all in His timing. For this isn’t about us. And this isn’t about people liking us. This is about us doing God’s will, resting in Him, then trusting Him with the results. His Word will not return empty! Amen!

 

https://youtu.be/skx2z4NOAdA

 

Video Talk

An Original Work / August 13, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

God's Word will Not Return Empty

Isaiah 55:9-11 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)

 

“9For as the heavens are higher than the earth,

so My ways are higher than your ways

and My thoughts than your thoughts.

10For just as rain and snow fall from heaven

and do not return without watering the earth,

making it bud and sprout,

and providing seed to sow and food to eat,

11so My word that proceeds from My mouth

will not return to Me empty,

but it will accomplish what I please,

and it will prosper where I send it.”

 

We Have Finite Minds

 

We, as human beings, have finite minds, i.e. our minds have limits to them. There are things we don’t grasp, which we do not comprehend. Some things are just beyond our understanding. We can’t see everything. We are not all knowing as God is. So we walk by faith and not by sight, trusting the Lord and His Word even though we may not see everything and know everything like He does. If He says it, and His word teaches it (in the right biblical context), then we accept it by faith. And we follow God and His leading.

 

An Illustration

 

Let me give you an example from my own life. When the Lord first called me to this ministry 22 years ago, my assignment from Him was to write down what I was learning from my daily times spent with the Lord in His word and to post these writings on the internet. So that is what I have been doing since then. But when I began my first blog, I was not getting any responses, so after three months I stopped writing on that blog. I was still writing other places on the internet, but I abandoned that blog via lack of responses.

 

In my mind I assumed that the messages were just not getting out to the people, but I was wrong. They were. I just was not aware of it. Then, nearly two years later to the date when I left off, He had me pick back up and start writing again on that blog, and I have continued to do so since then. And I still do not get responses on that particular site. So I walked by faith and not by sight, and I trusted the Lord that He was taking these messages where He wanted them to go. For we are not always going to see the results.

 

Did I eventually see the results? Yes, I did, when I discovered stats. The Lord was indeed taking these writings to people of multiple nations and multitudes were/are viewing the writings, too. So, what if I gave up altogether and I didn’t go back and keep writing? These writings may not have reached these people, the people God intended should receive them. And I almost gave up on the second blog, too (by the same name), for lack of responses, but God encouraged me to persevere. For He had a plan!

 

Isaiah 55:12-13 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)

 

“12You will indeed go out with joy

and be led forth in peace;

the mountains and hills will burst into song before you,

and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.

13Instead of the thornbush, the cypress will grow,

and instead of the brier, the myrtle will spring up;

this will make a name for the LORD,

an everlasting sign, never to be destroyed.”

 

God’s Words Don’t Return Empty

 

The Words of God from the Scriptures, and any words He led me to write did not return empty. Just because I was not seeing the results it did not mean that the words were returning empty. And even if only one person viewed these writings, this would not be a sign of failure at all. If we only reach one person for Jesus, then we have done the will of God, and God’s word will not return empty. He may then use that one person to share those messages with others, and multitudes could be reached with the gospel of Christ.

 

Now, I know this may not be the exact intended meaning of this section of Scripture, which is about those who have trusted in Christ Jesus to be their Lord and Savior, but when we step out in faith, and we go where our Lord sends us, and when we speak to the people all that He gives us to speak to them, we are going out with joy, and we are being led forth in peace, the peace of God. And there is celebration in heaven and on the earth because the words of God are getting to the people. So we need to celebrate, too!

 

So, if God has called you to His service, and if He has gifted you with the gift of writing or speaking or singing or teaching, don’t “throw in the towel” (give up) just because it appears you are getting few to no responses. Pray for guidance and direction from the Lord to make certain you are in the will of God, doing what He has called you to do, speaking His truths. Then trust Him with the results, all in His timing. For this isn’t about us. And this isn’t about people liking us. This is about us doing God’s will, resting in Him, then trusting Him with the results. His Word will not return empty! Amen!

 

[Matthew 5:13-16; Matthew 7:21-23; Matthew 28:18-20; Luke 9:23-26; John 4:31-38; John 10:27-30; John 13:13-17; John 14:12; Acts 1:8; Acts 26:18; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 10:14-15; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-14; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Peter 2:9,21,24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10]

 

God’s Word will Not Return Empty

An Original Work / August 13, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

 

Seek the Lord 

 

Based off Isaiah 55

An Original Work / July 20, 2012

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Musical Instrumentation by Mark Bradley

 

“Come to Me all you who thirst; come to waters.

Listen to Me, and eat what’s good today,

And your soul will delight in richest of fare.

Give ear to Me, and you will live.

I have made an eternal covenant with you.

Wash in the blood of the Lamb.”

 

Seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him.

Let the wicked forsake his way, in truth.

Let him turn to the Lord, and he will receive mercy.

Freely, God pardons him.

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts,

Nor are your ways My ways,”

declares the Lord, our God.

 

“My word that goes out of My mouth is truthful.

It will not return to Me unfulfilled.

My word will accomplish all that I desire,

And achieve the goal I intend.

You will go in joy and be led forth in peace.

The mountains will burst into song… before you,

And all of the trees clap their hands.”

 

https://vimeo.com/379408296

Seek The Lord

Isaiah 55:6-8 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)

 

6Seek the LORD while He may be found;

call on Him while He is near.

7Let the wicked man forsake his way

and the unrighteous man his thoughts;

let him return to the LORD,

that He may have compassion,

and to our God,

for He will freely pardon.

8“For My thoughts are not your thoughts,

neither are your ways My ways,”

declares the LORD.

 

Deity of Christ

 

Jesus Christ, The Lord, is not just the “Son of God,” but He is God. And when he lived on the earth He was fully God and fully man (God incarnate). But He was not born with a sin nature as we are, for He was conceived of the Spirit and not of man, and He was born to a virgin woman of God. But He did not come into being just when He was born as a human baby. For He always existed as God and with God, and He is our creator God. For our God is Father, Son Jesus Christ, and Holy Spirit – one God in three persons.

 

[Genesis 1:26; Genesis 3:22; John 1:1-36; John 8:24,58; John 10:30-33; John 20:28-29; Romans 9:5; 1 Corinthians 10:1-4; Philippians 2:5-11; Colossians 2:9; Titus 2:13; Hebrews 1:8-9; 1 Peter 1:20-21; 2 Peter 1:1]

 

Seeking the Lord

 

If we are seeking the Lord, it means we are pursuing Him, to learn who He is, to get to know Him, because we want to follow Him. And to follow Him is to do what He says, to obey Him and His commands (New Covenant). We abide by His teachings because we love and respect and honor Him. And so, by God-persuaded faith in Him, which comes from God (not of the flesh), we deny self, die to sin daily, and walk in obedience to His commands, all in His power, strength, and wisdom, and according to His love, grace, and mercy.

 

Born With Sin Natures

 

When we are born into this world, we are born with sin natures, in the image of Adam, the first man created by God, and the first man to sin against God. And when we come into this world we are separate from God, unable within ourselves to be acceptable and approved of God. So God the Father sent Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son, into the world to put our sins to death with Him, and to rise from the dead, so that by faith in Jesus Christ we will now die with Him to sin and walk with Him in obedience to His commands.

 

[Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 9:23-26; Romans 3:9-26; Romans 5:12-19; Romans 6:1-23; 1 Corinthians 15:21-22,42-49; Ephesians 2:1-3,8-10]

 

Our Ways not God’s Ways

 

For our thoughts and our ways, in our flesh, are not the ways of God. We cannot, therefore, in our own flesh, do anything to earn or to deserve our own salvation. Only by the grace of God, according to His will and purpose, can any of us find salvation from sin and eternal life with God. But.. salvation from sin is deliverance from our addiction to sin so we will now serve the Lord in walks of obedience to His commands, in surrender to His will and purpose for our lives. So by faith in Jesus Christ we must die to sin.

 

[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]

 

Video Talk on the same subject

 

https://youtu.be/14DKBh95nVg

 

Seek The Lord

An Original Work / August 12, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

 

My Sheep 

 

Based off John 10:1-30 NIV

An Original Work / June 24, 2012 

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

 

My sheep hear me. They know me.

They listen to my voice and obey.

I call them and lead them.

They know my voice, so they follow me.

They will never follow strangers.

They will run away from them.

The voice of a stranger they know not;

They do not follow him.

 

So, I tell you the truth that

I am the gate, so you enter in.

Whoever does enter

Will find forgiveness and will be saved.

Nonetheless whoever enters

Not by the gate; other way,

He is the thief and a robber.

Listen not, the sheep to him.

 

Oh, I am the Good Shepherd,

Who laid his own life down for the sheep.

I know them. They know me.

They will live with me eternally.

The thief only comes to steal and

Kill and to destroy the church.

I have come to give you life that

You may have it to the full…

 

They know my voice, so they follow me.

 

https://vimeo.com/114938263

The Foolishness of Idolatry

Worthless Treasures

 

Isaiah 44:9-11 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)

 

9All makers of idols are nothing,

and the things they treasure are worthless.

Their witnesses fail to see or comprehend,

so they are put to shame.

10Who fashions a god or casts an idol

which profits him nothing?

11Behold, all his companions will be put to shame,

for the craftsmen themselves are only human.

Let them all assemble and take their stand;

they will all be brought to terror and shame.

 

What is an idol? It is anything worshipped over and above or in place of God. And what is idolatry? It is extreme devotion to a person or a thing or any possession, like giving one’s heart, passion, and desire to a habit, an addiction, a possession, a person, or to money, fame, fortune, or hobby, or self, and/or to sin. It is to give one’s devotion, commitment, dedication, and fidelity (faithfulness, loyalty) to things created rather that to the creator who made us. And it is putting self and selfish desires above God in life practice.

 

Those who are idolaters are not true worshippers of God. For they put their idol above and/or in place of God. And idolatry is sin in the eyes of God. It is a violation of God’s commands (New Covenant). And those whose minds, hearts, emotions, passions, and desires are in the direction of whatever idol they worship are not of God. For they are the wandering and the drifting, whose thoughts and desires are outside of marriage to Christ. They are adulterers who give themselves to their idols in place of surrender to God.

 

And some (or many) are also adulterers who give themselves to their idols, whose thoughts and desires are outside of marriage to their spouses. And their idols might be addiction to pornography and/or to self-gratification, in place of becoming one flesh with their spouses. Or it could be extra-marital affairs, either in person or via the internet, etc. For they are those who are wandering from home, not necessarily physically, but in their minds and hearts and emotions. Their hearts are not really with their spouses.

 

For the lusts of their flesh rule over their minds and hearts and passions and desires. They get first place in their lives – not God – not spouse. And you can’t serve two masters. You are either devoted to God or to the flesh, but the two don’t mix. But such idols as this or any other idol in the eyes of the Lord profits them nothing. They may give them some temporary emotional high, but when the high fades, then what? All that does is to push them further away from God and spouse (if they are married) and leaves them empty trying to fill the emptiness with what will never give them peace.

 

Deluded Hearts

 

Isaiah 44:18-20 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)

 

18They do not comprehend or discern,

for He has shut their eyes so they cannot see

and closed their minds so they cannot understand.

19And no one considers in his heart,

no one has the knowledge or insight to say,

“I burned half of it in the fire,

and I baked bread on its coals;

I roasted meat and I ate.

Shall I make something detestable with the rest of it?

Shall I bow down to a block of wood?”

20He feeds on ashes.

His deluded heart has led him astray,

and he cannot deliver himself or say,

“Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?”

 

They do not comprehend or discern, not because they are incapable of such, but because they have willfully shut their eyes and ears to what they do not want to see or have to face. And this includes people who are pastors and elders of “church” congregations, or people who have professed faith in Jesus Christ for many years, and perhaps have even taught the Scriptures themselves, or who have gone to Bible college or seminary, so they know what the Scriptures teach. They are not ignorant, but they can play dumb.

 

So they end up bowing down to their own creations, which are the “gods” they have created for themselves to worship as though they are truly God, but which were made with human hands and were created in human minds. And that is absolutely senseless to worship what they created with their own hands or minds. And it is absolutely foolish to not worship The Creator, but themselves, which many of them do, for they become their own idol. And Paul talked about this in Romans 1:21-25 BSB (Berean Standard Bible):

 

“21For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and darkened in their foolish hearts. 22Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools, 23and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images of mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. 24Therefore God gave them over in the desires of their hearts to impurity for the dishonoring of their bodies with one another. 25They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is forever worthy of praise! Amen.”

 

For their deluded hearts led them astray, and so they refuse to believe that what they are believing is a lie. They want to believe the lie because it does not confront them in their sins. The lie tells them that all they have to do is to make a verbal profession of faith in Jesus Christ and now they are forgiven all sins and heaven is guaranteed them for eternity, but regardless of how they live. But the truth says to come after Christ we must deny self, die to sin, and obey God in practice or not have eternal life with God.

 

[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]

 

The Foolishness of Idolatry

An Original Work / August 12, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

 

As the Deer

 

By Martin J. Nystrom

Based off Psalm 42:1

 

As the deer panteth for the water

So my soul longeth after You

You alone are my heart's desire

And I long to worship You

 

You alone are my strength, my shield

To You alone may my spirit yield

You alone are my heart's desire

And I long to worship You

 

[A Prayer of worship of God only]

A Roadway of Holiness

Saturday, March 25, 2017, 10:32 a.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “Seek the Lord.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Isaiah 35 (NASB).

 

From Darkness to Light (vv. 1-2)

 

“The wilderness and the desert will be glad,

And the Arabah will rejoice and blossom;

Like the crocus

It will blossom profusely

And rejoice with rejoicing and shout of joy.

The glory of Lebanon will be given to it,

The majesty of Carmel and Sharon.

They will see the glory of the Lord,

The majesty of our God.”

 

Do you ever get heavy of heart over this sin-sick world? I do! I especially get burdened for my nation, the USA, and for the church here in America. I grieve and mourn over the spiritual condition of the church, overall, though not necessarily representative of all gatherings of the church in America.

 

Our nation is an affluent nation. Even some of the poorest of people here have cable TV in their houses, and not only do many of the adults in the household have smart phones, but many of the children do, too. People living on welfare or living in government subsidized housing often seem to be better off than those working for minimum wage. I think the vast majority of Americans have cell phones and cable TV. At least, it seems that way. And many of them plan their lives around their TV shows, too. And it seems most people have private (unrestricted) internet connection, too.

 

Now, I am not against these things, except for in the hands of young children who are being unsupervised by adults, or in the hands of those who are not mature enough or self-disciplined enough to choose good over bad. Yet, I can see where TV, movies, the internet, and private internet access via tablets (I Pads) and smart phones have been a great source of deception, mind control, and of spiritual decline of the church here in America. These devices have sucked in so many Christians and have captivated them to the point to where they take over their lives, and God has often been pushed into a corner and barely noticed. Yet, this is just a small picture of the spiritual wilderness that exists here in the USA.

 

Still, the Lord has been encouraging me that He has a plan of action in mind which will deliver His people out of this spiritual wilderness, and which will bring them into a time of great joy and of blossoming spiritually.

 

Take Courage (vv. 3-4)

 

Encourage the exhausted, and strengthen the feeble.

Say to those with anxious heart,

“Take courage, fear not.

Behold, your God will come with vengeance;

The recompense of God will come,

But He will save you.”

 

Sometimes, when I see all the evil going on all around me, and all the Christians (or professing Christians) living not much different at all from the people of the world, I get disheartened. When I see so much of the church embracing the world of sin in order to connect with the world, and seemingly so few truly seeking after God with all their hearts, it saddens me greatly. When I know that the Word of Truth is going out to the people, and that many are hearing the truth, though many are not, yet they seem to let the truth just go in one ear and out the other so that they can continue on the same course they have been on, it tears at my heart, and I cry. And, when Christians see Christian fellowship as merely a church social where they eat and play games with each other, I groan inwardly to have true fellowship.

 

I am torn in my emotions because I want to see the church awakened to all the lies they have been buying into, and I want to see them walking in truth and purity, and serving the Lord with great zeal. But, from what I read in the Scriptures, it does not appear that this is going to happen unless we, as the church in this nation, are put through some enormous time of suffering and great trials. It isn’t as though I long for this time, though, but what I hunger for is to see the church in America revived, and God’s people set on fire for Him, and the Word of Truth going out from the revived church to the people in their communities, and people flocking to Jesus Christ (See: Isaiah 2). And so I need to be reminded to “take courage,” and to trust the Lord, and to believe Him to change people’s hearts, all in His perfect timing.

 

New Birth (vv. 5-7)

 

“Then the eyes of the blind will be opened

And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped.

Then the lame will leap like a deer,

And the tongue of the mute will shout for joy.

For waters will break forth in the wilderness

And streams in the Arabah.

The scorched land will become a pool

And the thirsty ground springs of water;

In the haunt of jackals, its resting place,

Grass becomes reeds and rushes.”

 

The Bible teaches us that God disciplines us for our good that we may share in His holiness, and that for those of us who have been trained by it, it will yield a harvest of righteousness in our lives. But this isn’t light stuff here. He uses the terms “scourges” and “reproves,” and He says that the discipline is painful and not pleasant, but it is for our good. Sometimes when things are going too well for us in this life we can lose sight of eternity and we can end up focusing our time and attention on the things of this world rather than on the things that matter for eternity. We end up spending our time on what is going to pass away and on what has no eternal value whatsoever. And so God has to discipline us in order to refocus our attention on what really matters, and so He can purify us and make us holy unto Him.

 

So, there are times when we need this wake-up call in order to have our blinded eyes (or deceived minds) opened to the truth, so that we do follow the truth and we don’t follow after lies. And, when the church is awakened spiritually, they will be that light of the world and the salt of the earth. They will be sharing the gospel, so that the people of this sinful world will have their spiritually blinded eyes opened, too. Thus, they will be born again of the Spirit of God and be given new lives in Christ Jesus to be lived to Him and to His righteousness. Where they were once in a spiritual wilderness (desert), now they have springs of living water flowing from within them. They have the Holy Spirit living within them empowering, encouraging, comforting, teaching, strengthening and guiding them into all truth. Amen!

 

Highway of Holiness (vv. 8-10)

 

“A highway will be there, a roadway,

And it will be called the Highway of Holiness.

The unclean will not travel on it,

But it will be for him who walks that way,

And fools will not wander on it.

No lion will be there,

Nor will any vicious beast go up on it;

These will not be found there.

But the redeemed will walk there,

And the ransomed of the Lord will return

And come with joyful shouting to Zion,

With everlasting joy upon their heads.

They will find gladness and joy,

And sorrow and sighing will flee away.”

 

By God’s grace, through God-given faith, we can be saved from our sins and have eternal life with God. This God-given faith, though, is not like human faith. It is divinely convinced (persuaded) as to God’s will for our lives, and so it submits to Jesus Christ, and it chooses to walk in obedience to our Lord and to forsake the old (former) way of living in sin and for self. When we trust in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of our lives with this kind of faith, we are crucified with Christ in death to sin, and we are resurrected with Christ to newness of life, “created to be like Him in true righteousness and holiness” (See: Eph. 4:17-24; Rom. 6:1-23; Rom. 8:1-14; Luke 9:23-25).

 

The lives we live, we no longer live according to our sinful flesh, but according to the Spirit of God who now lives within us, and who empowers us to live such godly lives. We walk by faith and not by sight. We live to please God in all that we do, or we should. Yet, if we continue living in sin, we don’t know God. If we walk (in lifestyle) in darkness (sin), yet we claim to have fellowship with God, we are liars. If we hold on to our old lives of living for sin and self, and if we walk (conduct our lives) according to the flesh, we will die in our sins. But, if by the Spirit we are putting to death the deeds of the flesh, we will live with Christ for eternity.

 

So, if you want to be on this Highway of Holiness, which leads to eternal life with God, then you need to believe in Jesus Christ with God-given faith which yields to Jesus as our Lord, and which submits to His will for our lives, and which cooperates with His work of grace in our lives. While it is true that we do nothing to earn or to deserve our own salvation, and that our salvation is a free gift of God’s grace, that gift means we die with Christ to sin so that we are “born again” of the Spirit of God to live lives no longer for ourselves, but for the one who gave His life up for us. In other words, Jesus didn’t die just so we could escape hell and go to heaven when we die. He died that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. He died, not just to forgive us our sins, but to free us from slavery (addiction) to sin.

 

[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]

 

A Roadway of Holiness

An Original Work / March 25, 2017

Reposted on August 11, 2026, w/slight editing

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

 

Seek the Lord / An Original Work / July 20, 2012

 

Based off Isaiah 55

Musical Instrumentation by Mark Bradley

An Original Work / July 20, 2012

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

 

“Come to Me all you who thirst; come to waters.

Listen to Me, and eat what’s good today,

And your soul will delight in richest of fare.

Give ear to Me, and you will live.

I have made an eternal covenant with you.

Wash in the blood of the Lamb.”

 

Seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him.

Let the wicked forsake his way, in truth.

Let him turn to the Lord, and he will receive mercy.

Freely, God pardons him.

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts,

Nor are your ways My ways,”

declares the Lord, our God.

 

“My word that goes out of My mouth is truthful.

It will not return to Me unfulfilled.

My word will accomplish all that I desire,

And achieve the goal I intend.

You will go in joy, and be led forth in peace.

The mountains will burst into song… before you,

And all of the trees clap their hands.”

 

https://vimeo.com/379408296

Unwilling to Obey

Pleasant Words Only

 

Isaiah 30:8-11 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)

 

8Go now, write it on a tablet in their presence

and inscribe it on a scroll;

it will be for the days to come,

a witness forever and ever.

9These are rebellious people, deceitful children,

children unwilling to obey the LORD’s instruction.

10They say to the seers,

“Stop seeing visions!”

and to the prophets,

“Do not prophesy to us the truth!

Speak to us pleasant words;

prophesy illusions.

11Get out of the way; turn off the road.

Rid us of the Holy One of Israel!”

 

This is definitely where we are today, at least where I live in the USA. So many have rejected the gospel message taught by Jesus Christ and by His New Testament apostles, taught in the correct biblical context. But this is coming from the top down, i.e. from church denominations and from Bible colleges and Seminaries and their teachers, and from business marketing training for pastors on how to grow their churches. And then it is being passed down to the church via the pastors who have embraced the lies.

 

And I am not saying that all these people are doing this, but it appears that the majority have rejected the biblical gospel in favor of the “pleasant words” the people largely prefer to hear. Anything regarded as negative is being discarded in favor of all that is considered positive, but in the eyes of humans, and not from the perspective of God and His Word. Sin is largely being accepted as just the normal course of life, and teachings against sin and calls for repentance are becoming taboo, i.e. forbidden and disregarded.

 

So, if you are someone who believes the Scriptures and who is teaching the truth of the Gospel, don’t be surprised if the majority of people professing Christ as their Savior reject what you teach, for they reject what Jesus taught. For they don’t want to hear the truth. They want to hear the “feel good” stuff which does not confront them in their sin and call them to repentance and to obedience to God’s commands. They want to hear pleasant words which give them comfort in their sinful lifestyles.

 

Not Willing to Repent

 

Isaiah 30:15 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)

 

15For the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, has said:

“By repentance and rest

you would be saved;

your strength would lie in quiet confidence—

but you were not willing.”

 

Jesus Christ taught that to come to Him we must deny self, take up our cross daily (die daily to sin), and follow (obey) Him. For if we hold on to living in sin and for self, we will lose our lives for eternity. But if we deny self, die daily to sin, by the Spirit, and we walk in obedience to our Lord and to His commands, in His power, then we have eternal life with God. For not everyone who calls Him “Lord” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one DOING (obeying) the will of God (see Luke 9:23-26; Matthew 7:21-23).

 

Repentance (turning away from sin) and obedience to our Lord’s commands are required by God as necessary components of faith which saves. They are not optional, i.e. recommended only, and they are not to be altogether discarded, as many are teaching these days. Far too many people professing the name of Jesus have bought into the lies which tell them that all they have to do is “believe” and now they are saved and on their way to heaven, but without actually biblically defining what it really means to “believe.”

 

For faith in Jesus Christ, which comes from God, and is not of our own doing, is gifted to us by God, and it is persuaded of God as to His righteousness and holiness, and of our sinfulness, and of God’s requirements that we deny self, die to sin, and follow our Lord in obedience to His commands. So this biblical faith is something that is ongoing and which will not be completed until Jesus Christ returns to judge the people and to take His faithful bride to be with Him for eternity. So we must stay the course to the very end.

 

The Grace of God

 

Isaiah 30:18 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)

 

18Therefore the LORD longs to be gracious to you;

therefore He rises to show you compassion,

for the LORD is a just God.

Blessed are all who wait for Him.

 

God’s grace, which is bringing us salvation, is training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age. For Christ “gave Himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession who are zealous for good works.” “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” (See Titus 2:11-14; Ephesians 2:8-10)

 

So, God’s grace is not a free ride to heaven based off lip service to God only. It is not Jesus just handing us salvation, no strings attached. The grace of God sent Jesus Christ to the cross to put our sins to death with Him so that by faith in Him we will now die with Him to sin and walk in His holiness and righteousness in obedience to His commands. Grace is not freedom to keep on in your sin. God’s grace offers you the opportunity to die with Christ to sin and to now live in victory over sin, by His grace, in obedience to God.

 

[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]

 

Unwilling to Obey

An Original Work / August 11, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

 

Search me, O God 

 

By James E. Orr, 1936

 

Search me, O God, and know my heart today,

Try me, O Savior, know my thoughts, I pray;

See if there be some wicked way in me;

Cleanse me from every sin, and set me free.

 

I praise Thee, Lord, for cleansing me from sin;

Fulfill Thy word and make me pure within;

Fill me with fire, where once I burned with shame;

Grant my desire to magnify Thy name.

 

Lord, take my life, and make it wholly Thine;

Fill my poor heart with Thy great love divine;

Take all my will, my passion, self and pride;

I now surrender, Lord, in me abide.

 

O Holy Ghost, revival comes from Thee;

Send a revival, start the work in me;

Thy Word declares Thou wilt supply our need;

For blessings now, O Lord, I humbly plead.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tl_sd1gH6hU

 

Caution: This Link may contain ads

An Alliance Against God's Will

Isaiah 30:1-5 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)

 

“Woe to the rebellious children,”

declares the LORD,

“to those who carry out a plan that is not Mine,

who form an alliance, but against My will,

heaping up sin upon sin.

2They set out to go down to Egypt

without asking My advice,

to seek shelter under Pharaoh’s protection

and take refuge in Egypt’s shade.

 

3But Pharaoh’s protection will become your shame,

and the refuge of Egypt’s shade your disgrace.

4For though their princes are at Zoan

and their envoys have arrived in Hanes,

5everyone will be put to shame

because of a people useless to them.

They bring neither help nor benefit,

but only shame and disgrace.”

 

Woe to The Rebellious Children

 

Who are the “rebellious children” today? They are all people who make professions of faith in Jesus Christ with their lips but whose lifestyles speak the opposite. They are those who call themselves “Christians,” but in reality are not followers of Jesus Christ, for they are still living according to the sinful passions of the flesh, and not according to the commands of God. And they are not followers of Christ because they are followers of the teachings of humans who twist and distort the Scriptures to excuse away their sins.

 

They prefer the teachings of humans who dilute and alter the gospel message to make it less offensive and more acceptable to human flesh. They prefer a “Christianity” which allows them to live however they want to live without regard for what God requires of them in the way of thought and word and deed. They prefer “gospel light” because it makes no requirements of them that they must forsake their sinful practices and now live holy lives, pleasing to God, in surrender to the Lord Jesus and to His commands.

 

Alliances Against God’s Will

 

So, what kind of alliances are professing Christians making today which are against the will of God and are against His plans and purposes for our lives? Many of them have to do with joining institutional market-driven businesses of human making which are called “churches,” but which are being led by cult leaders and marketeers who are following business models for how to conduct their “churches,” rather than following the model of Christ written down for us in the Scriptures which teaches us the ways of our Lord.

 

And so many of these alliances are teaching a false grace gospel which gives the sinners permission to keep on in their sin after they have made professions of faith in Jesus Christ. So many of them are teaching that we do not have to put sin to death in our lives (repent of our sins), and we do not have to obey God and His commands, for they call that “works salvation.” So, for those who are still making sin their practice, these kinds of alliances are attractive to them, because they don’t make them feel guilty for sinning.

 

False Alliances, the People’s Shame

 

These are people who do not seek the counsel of God, because they don’t truly want His counsel, because they know what His Word teaches about sin and sinful addiction and repentance and obedience to our Lord’s commands. So they seek out other humans who will tell them what their itching ears want to hear. And they will follow them instead of following God. Because then they can live however they want, and do whatever pleases them, while they still claim to be Christians and to be followers of Jesus Christ.

 

But this will be to their shame, for it is contrary to the will and purpose of God written down for us in the Scriptures for us to follow. It will be to their disgrace that they put their trust in other humans over and above putting their trust solely in God. For one day we are all going to stand before God on the day of judgment, and we will have to give an account as to what we did with Christ and with His gospel and with the teachings of the Scriptures on what it looks like to be true followers of Christ who obey God’s commands.

 

Believe The Truth

 

For God’s grace, which is bringing us salvation, is training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age. For Christ “gave Himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession who are zealous for good works.” “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” (See Titus 2:11-14; Ephesians 2:8-10)

 

And we learn in 1 John 1-3 that if we claim that we have fellowship with God, but yet we walk in darkness (sin), we are liars. If we claim that we know God, but we do not obey His commandments, in practice, we are liars. For it is not the one who claims He is “in Christ” who is “in Christ,” but it is the one who has denied self, died with Christ to sin, and who is now walking in obedience to our Lord and to His commands, in practice, and no longer in sin. We have the hope and the promise of eternal life with God in heaven.

 

[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Acts 26:18]

 

An Alliance Against God’s Will

An Original Work / August 11, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

 

Only in Him 

 

Based off Isaiah 30

An Original Work / February 19, 2014

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

 

Woe to those who look to man’s help;

Who turn away from Jesus Christ;

Forming an alliance not in step with God;

Making their own plans, and praying not.

 

Willing not to listen to truth,

They close their ears to what is right.

Pleasing words are all that they’ll hear;

Feel good messages that bring cheer.

 

Trust in your Lord; turn from your sin.

Put your faith now ONLY IN HIM.

Do not turn to idols. They’ll not satisfy.

Jesus will save you. That’s why He died.

 

Your Lord will be gracious to you.

He cares all about you, ‘tis true.

He forgives you all of your sin

When you give your life up to Him.

 

Oh, how truly gracious He’ll be

When you bow to Him on your knees;

Turning now from your sin; walking in his ways.

He’ll lead and guide you all of your days.

 

Now you will sing praises to Him.

He delivered you from your sin.

You’ll tell others now of His grace,

So they may see Christ face-to-face.

 

https://vimeo.com/87181019