Distressed by Various Trials

I am reading in 1 Peter 1.

 

We who believe in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of our lives are those who, by God-persuaded faith in him, have been crucified with Christ in death to sin and raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin but now as servants of God and of his righteousness in walks of obedience to his commands in holy living, by the grace of God, in the power of God (see Romans 6:1-23). And we are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

 

[Matthew 7:21-23; Matthew 24:9-14; Luke 9:23-26; John 8:31-32; John 15:1-12; Romans 6:16; Romans 8:24; Romans 11:17-24; Romans 13:11; 1 Corinthians 1:18; 1 Corinthians 15:1-2; Colossians 1:21-23; 2 Timothy 1:8-9; 2 Timothy 2:10-13; Hebrews 3:6,14-15; Hebrews 9:28; 1 Peter 1:5,9; 2 Peter 1:5-11; 2 Peter 2:20-22; 1 John 1:5-10; 1 John 2:3-6,24-25]

 

“In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ; and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls.” (1 Peter 1:6-9 NASB1995)

 

As those who profess faith in Jesus Christ, we are to be the chosen of God, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ. We are not saved by the grace of God so that we can continue living in sin and in disobedience to God and to his commands, in practice. We do not have the guarantee of heaven as our eternal destiny based on lip service only, absent of submission to our Lord and without obedience to his commands while sin is still our practice. For faith in Jesus Christ requires that we die to sin and obey God.

 

And this is one of the reasons for which we are given various trials, to test us by fire, to see whether or not our faith in Jesus Christ is genuine, or if it is not real, or if it is weak and needs to be strengthened and refined through various trials and tribulations given us to test our faith. And this isn’t for a day or a week, but our faith will be tested from now until Jesus returns so that when he does return, our faith may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ, which is faith in action.

 

And then notice with me the wording here where it says, “obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls.” But this is not in the context of our initial confessions of faith in Jesus Christ resulting in the salvation of our souls. This has to do with continuous walks of faith in obedience to our Lord in submission to his will, throughout our Christian lives, via our trials and tribulations which come to test our faith, resulting in us obtaining as the outcome of our faith the salvation of our souls.

 

“Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’” (1 Peter 1:13-16 NASB1995)

 

We, as followers of Jesus Christ, must follow our Lord in walks of obedience to his commands, and we must no longer live as slaves (addicted) to sin. This does not make us perfect. This does not mean we will never sin (1 John 2:1-2). This does not mean we will never fall back and need to be brought back to repentance (see Revelation 2-3; Galatians 6:1; James 5:19-20). But if sin remains our practice, and not obedience to the Lord, and this is where we still are when Jesus returns, then we will not inherit 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]

 

Our Eyes on Jesus

 

Based off Hebrews 12:2-13

An Original Work / April 23, 2012

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

 

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus.

Our faith starts and grows in Him,

Who for the joy set before Him

Endured all our sin.

Scorning the shame of the cross,

He sat down beside God above.

He was willing to die for us,

To save us, in love.

 

Think about the opposition

He endured from sinful men,

So when you go through life’s trials,

You stay strong within.

Knowing all He went through for us

Helps us not grow weak of heart;

Not grow weary; don’t give up;

And not from Him depart.

 

In your struggle against sin’s ways,

Resist not to shed your blood.

Have you forgotten the words

God spoke to us in love?

“My child, don’t ignore it when

The Lord corrects you; do faint not,

Because the Lord disciplines those

That He loves, of God.”

 

God rebukes us all for our good;

Share with Him in holiness.

It produces a harvest of

God’s own righteousness.

Therefore, strengthen all within you

That is weak and might give way.

Stand firm in the faith God gives you;

Trust Him and obey.

 

https://vimeo.com/125489683

 

Distressed by Various Trials

An Original Work / April 24, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Not Too Hard for God

Have you ever gotten to the point in your life where you felt like you were at the end of your rope? Everything you tried seemed to just blow up in your face? Nothing went like you had hoped, or even as you had planned? And you felt as though you just kept coming up against brick walls? 

Your heart was in the right place, and you were moving in a forward direction, but Satan just kept fighting hard against you, using loved ones, friends, or church people to oppose you, and to try to get you to compromise with the world, or to not take life so seriously. 

It seemed no one was on your side and “in your ball court” except God. Even those who were supposed to love and support and protect you had turned against you, and so you felt without hope, without resources, and lacking the strength to fight anymore. And so you just wanted to throw up the white flag and say, “I surrender!” Have you been there? I have!

So, what are we to do when we get to that place? We need to call on God for help, for strength, for comfort, for healing, and for direction. We need to also fight off Satan’s evil attacks against us with the truth of God’s Word. And this is the truth from his Word regarding these times in our lives.

She Laughed

The Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’ Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.” (Genesis 18:14 ESV)

Abraham and Sarah were well past childbearing age, and yet God promised them that they would have a son, and that Abraham would be the father of many nations. The Bible says this about Abraham:

“Without becoming weak in faith he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah's womb; yet, with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully assured that what God had promised, He was able also to perform” (Romans 4:20-21 NASB).

I think sometimes we grow weary when what we hope for takes too long, and so we get impatient with God, and thus, when things get really hard, we are ready to “throw in the towel.” We give up too soon, because we feel that what we hope for is not going to happen. We have our eyes fixed on our circumstances, instead of on God, and so we decide it is an impossible situation, and there is just no way that good will come out of it. And, so we bail, because it got too hard, and/or because it looked too impossible.

But, we forget that, with God, anything is possible, according to his will and purpose. Nothing within his perfect will is too hard for him to do. He is the God of impossible situations. He is the God of miracles, too. So, we need to yield to God’s will, pray for direction, and then do what he shows us, and move forward, not backward. Instead of just giving up, we should see what God is up to, then trust him, and then follow his lead. 

Not Looking Good?

‘Ah, Lord God! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you. Jeremiah 32:17 ESV

“Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh. Is anything too hard for me?” Jeremiah 32:27 ESV

God’s people were in captivity. Jerusalem was under siege. Jeremiah was under arrest and being held in confinement because of what he was prophesying in the name of the Lord. Things didn’t look too promising. And, yet, God told Jeremiah to buy a field, so he did, even though, by human understanding, it probably was illogical. 

God’s people were in captivity because, although God had rescued them, and he had provided for them, and had led them, they did not obey him, but they did evil in his sight. So, God judged them, and he brought disaster on them, but not to destroy them, but to bring them to their knees, so they would return to him.

So, again, things were not exactly looking good. The people were living in open rebellion against God. Sin was abounding. And now their land was being conquered. All looked pretty hopeless. But, then God said, “Is anything too hard for me?” 

You see, God had a plan. And his plan was to revive his people and to bring them back into fellowship with him, so that he would be their God, and they would be his people. His plan was, that through a very difficult circumstance, he would work a miracle in their hearts and lives. And, that they would fear him, and so they would walk in his ways. Now he would bring good on them. And fields would be bought once more.

So, sometimes, when things look utterly hopeless, we need to seek God’s face and allow him to show us what he is doing in these circumstances, and how he is working all things for good for those who love God and who are called according to his purposes. When things seem to be at their very worst, it may be the time when God will break through, and a miracle will happen. So, we have to know that nothing, within God’s will, is too hard for God. So, we should never give up, but we should trust him, walk with him, and do what he tells us to do, for he has a plan. 

Nearly Impossible

But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich. Jesus, seeing that he had become sad, said, “How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” But he said, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.” (Luke 18:23-27 ESV)

Hard, difficult, challenging, and even nearly impossible is not too hard for God. We can’t do it, but he can. We see stubborn and rebellious hearts, living in sin, addicted to all sorts of sinful practices, children and spouses being abused, betrayed and abandoned, and cruel and inhumane treatment of the oppressed at the hands of the wealthy and powerful, and we wonder if there is any hope that this will ever end.

We see lives torn apart by sin, hatred and violence, lies and betrayal, broken marriages, and children exposed to all sorts of evil via internet devices, and we wonder when or if God will ever intervene. We see the addicted, too, hanging on to their idols, often unwilling to let go, or fighting to hold on, or trying to delicately balance their sinful practices with their Christian lives, and we wonder if they will ever come to their senses and truly give God their all in total surrender to his will. Some people have already written them off, and have decided they will never change.

Yet, I believe in miracles. I’ve seen a soul set free! I know God’s power to change lives and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they can receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those sanctified by faith in Jesus Christ. So, there is always hope until they are dead or until Jesus Christ returns. Until then, we should keep praying, because with man, this is impossible, this deliverance from our chains, but with God, it is not.

So, when things look bleak, when our plans fail, when life kicks us in the rear, and the opposition is strong, we need to put on the armor of God and fight Satan and his lies and believe in God’s Word and his promises, and then just let him lead us as to the way he wants us to go. Instead of running away when life gets too hard, we need to run to God. He may say, “Leave,” but he may say, “Stay.” So, we need to do what he says, and then just trust him with the results. He will give us all we need to endure, and the wisdom we need to keep persevering, even when all looks utterly hopeless. We just need to rest in him, rely on his strength and power, and keep pressing on.

His Strength Is Perfect

By Steven Curtis Chapman

His strength is perfect when our strength is gone

He'll carry us when we can't carry on

Raised in His power, the weak become strong

His strength is perfect, His strength is perfect

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGC9KT918Kk 

Sunday, December 31, 2017, 6:13 p.m. – Thank you, Jesus, for these encouraging and hopeful words. Help us to hear you clearly, and to follow your lead, and to run to you and not from you when things get hard.

Not Too Hard for God

An Original Work / December 31, 2017

Reposted on April 23, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Work for The Lord

In October of 2018 I received a "Blogger Recognition Award" from some of my fellow bloggers. Today I realized there were people now reading that post from 2018, and then the Lord gave me a Scripture to go with it:

“As slaves of Christ, do the will of God with all your heart. Work with enthusiasm, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.” (Ephesians 6:6b-7 NLT)

(Ephesians 6:6-7 NASB1995: “Not by way of eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart. With good will render service, as to the Lord, and not to men.”)

The Lord, thus, coordinated this passage of Scripture with the following quotes from that blog post of eight years ago. For the subject matter here has to do with working for the Lord and not for human approval. For if we are working for the Lord, we are going to be doing what God approves whether or not other humans approve us or not. We are going to be following the leading of the Spirit even if we are trashed by other humans.

Quote from blog post on October 28, 2018:

In the past couple of days, I and my blog, “Run With It,” were nominated for the “Blogger Recognition Award” by two different people… So, I want to thank them both for this honor. Thank you, ladies!

But, I also want to give all the honor, glory and praise to God, for truly this is HIS blog, and I just write what he directs me to write and what he teaches me from His Word. So, all the glory and honor go to HIM, and not to me. I am just his servant, doing his bidding. So, this is truly HIS award, not mine. End quote

*[Here I gave my testimony as to how this blog got started and what motivated me to begin blogging. But this is too long to share again now.]

One of the things I was asked to do in receiving this blogger award was to give two pieces of advice to new bloggers, and so this is what the Lord gave me to share with them at that time, which still applies to our lives today.

Another quote from the blog post of October 28, 2018:

Advice to new or to old bloggers:

First of all, I would say that, if you are a follower of Jesus Christ, that you should give your blog to the Lord, and let it be HIS blog, not yours. Let him decide what goes on your blog. Inquire of Him as to what you should write about, and let him guide your words. And don’t do it for the praise of humans, but be willing to suffer persecution, if necessary, or rejection, for speaking the truths which God would have you to speak.

Secondly, I would advise you then to put the results of what God has you write in his hands, trusting that he will use it for his purposes and for his glory. Don’t worry about how people are going to respond, and don’t be looking for how many followers or “likes” you will receive as your measure of success. If you are being obedient to the Lord, then you are a success, whether or not anyone recognizes you or your work. End Quote

And this is advice I need to give to myself sometimes, too, if I begin to get concerned about lack of responses from people at all. I would never change what I write to please people in place of writing what the Lord gives me to write, but I am not against trying to make it to where I can post some things in smaller sections for those who do not read long posts, provided the smaller sections of writing do not lose their context in the process, which does not always work. But my main purpose in writing is to write what the Lord gives me to share all for his glory. And I leave the results in his hands.

He Touched My Mouth  

Based off Isaiah 6:1-8; Jeremiah 1:4-9

An Original Work / June 13, 2012

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Oh, I saw the Lord seated on His throne,

High and lifted up; Holy is the Lord!

The earth is full of His glory.

“Woe to me,” I cried, 

“I’m of unclean lips.”

My Lord touched my mouth

With His cleansing pow’r; 

Removed all my guilt, paid for by His blood.

He asked, “Whom shall I send;

Who will go for us?” 

I said, “Here am I. Send me!”

Before I was born, God set me apart;

He appointed me to His servant be.

I said, “I don’t know how to speak.

I am but a child.” Then, the Lord replied:

“Do not say to me, ‘I am but a child.’

You must go to all, and do what I say.

Do not fear them, for I’m with you.”

My Lord touched my mouth;

Gave me words to say.

https://vimeo.com/114929183

Video Talk on the Same Subject

https://youtu.be/DeAXEHolDe4

Work for The Lord

An Original Work / April 23, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

We Are to Live for The Lord

“One person regards one day above another, another regards every day alike. Each person must be fully convinced in his own mind. He who observes the day, observes it for the Lord, and he who eats, does so for the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who eats not, for the Lord he does not eat, and gives thanks to God. For not one of us lives for himself, and not one dies for himself; for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s.” (Romans 14:5-8 NASB1995)

Under the Old Covenant God had with his people Israel (Jews only at that time), they had to obey a set of liturgical, ceremonial, sacrificial, purification, circumcision, dietary, and Sabbath laws, in addition to God’s moral laws. But when Jesus Christ gave his life up for us on that cross to deliver us out of our slavery to sin and to empower us to live holy lives, pleasing to him, in obedience to our Lord’s commands (New Covenant), he did away with the Old Covenant law, except he did not do away with God’s moral laws ever.

But some of the Jews who had believed in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of their lives were having a difficult time letting go of the dietary and Sabbath laws. Yet, although they were regarded as being “weak in faith” because of this, they were not chastised by God for holding on to the dietary restrictions and the Sabbath laws. But rather they were regarded as those who obeyed the Sabbath and who restricted their diet as doing so unto the Lord, the same as those who regarded every day alike and ate whatever.

But what both groups were chastised for was fighting with each other over these differences. For this was not a matter of rebellion or immorality or disobedience to God, which would be regarded as sin. But this was a matter of a difference of opinion and a difference of practice. And many Christians today still hold on to at least the concept of keeping the Sabbath, for they have this idea that we are to gather together once a week on a Saturday or a Sunday for a worship service, which they call “going to church.”

And many of them are fixated on this to the point to where they pass judgment on their brothers and sisters in Christ who are not compelled to raise one day above another, for their worship of Christ is not confined to one day of the week, nor is their fellowship with other believers in Christ. Yet the one day of the week people often add on to that that we have to be in a building called “church” where we sing songs and listen to one man preach and then we go home until the next week when we repeat the same routine.

But all of us who are of faith in Jesus Christ should be worshiping God every day of the week, and we should be students of the Scriptures who are obeying the teachings of our Lord under the New Covenant God has with his people Israel (Jew and Gentile by faith in Jesus Christ). And we should be gathering with other believers in Jesus Christ daily for fellowship and biblical encouragement and spiritual growth, even if it is just via a text message or an email or a Facebook post or a phone call when in person does not work.

For, the folks who regard one day a week above the other days are still given the same instructions from God as the rest of us, that we are to gather daily with other believers in Christ for mutual encouragement and exhortation so that we grow to maturity in our walks of obedience to our Lord, and so that we help one another to not fall into the trap of sin and to not be taken in by “wolves in sheep’s clothing” who will feed them lies that pull them away from God and from biblical fellowship with other Christians of like faith in Christ.

So, although it is perfectly fine to raise one day above another, those who do so must still regard all days in the week as unto the Lord for his service. And all of us should be ministering to one another within the body of Christ, using the gifts of the Spirit we have been given by God, in the body part assignments given us by God. For we are not called of God to be part-time servants of the Lord, but we are called to be his followers, doing his will, living for his glory every day in obedience to our Lord and to his commands.

[Matthew 5:13-16; Matthew 28:18-20; John 4:31-38; John 13:13-17; John 14:12; Acts 1:8; Acts 2:14-18,42-47; Acts 26:18; Romans 10:14-15; Romans 12:1-8; 1 Corinthians 12:1-31; 1 Corinthians 14:1-5; Galatians 6:1; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:1-16; Ephesians 5:11-21; Ephesians 6:10-20; Philippians 2:1-8; Colossians 3:12-16; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:13; Hebrews 10:23-25; James 5:19-20; 1 Peter 2:9,21; 1 John 2:6]

Abide in Him  

Based off Psalm 27:14; Isaiah 40:31; John 14-15

An Original Work / July 31, 2013

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

If you wait for the Lord, put your hope now in Him, 

He will give you His strength and endurance within.

He will renew your strength, so you will not lose heart.

You will soar on wings like eagles, never depart.

“If you abide in Me, and My words live in you,

You will walk with Me daily and follow what’s true.

I will live now in you; give you peace now within,

If you obey My teachings and turn from your sin.”

“If you listen to Me, and do all that I say,

I will give you My comfort; be with you always.

I will heal all your pain; life with Me now you’ll gain,

If in fellowship with Me you always remain.”

https://vimeo.com/115029858 

We Are to Live for The Lord

An Original Work / April 23, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

What is Good for Edification

“Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.” (Ephesians 4:29-32 NASB1995)

What is an “unwholesome word”? It isn’t just a cuss word, or something vulgar, or slander. It is the opposite of beneficial and helpful and useful, i.e. it is contrary to what is good and healthful. It could be a false accusation against someone, or an unkind and unnecessary remark to them. It could be someone just being nasty or cruel to someone else just because they think differently on a subject. So, we must guard against such as this in our own lives and in our own speaking, and in our own responses to other people.

However, this does not mean that we ever compromise the truth of the Scriptures in order to not offend other people. We can speak the truth in love without being hateful and nasty in our approach. For the truth, spoken in love, is what is kind. Lying to people, even if meant to make them feel good, is never kind. Truth spoken in love is kind even if it is not received as kindness but it is rejected and disdained. But, with regard to the gospel, truth is what saves lives. Lies send people to hell. So tell them the truth!

For 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).

But this goes beyond just speaking the truth of the gospel versus speaking lies to people just to make them feel good or so that they will like us and not reject us. This goes to all of our speaking. All of us need to guard our hearts and minds and words against speaking hurtful and unnecessary words to other humans just because they look different, or they act different, or they believe different from us. Especially in the political realm, we are not to get caught up in the “attack” the other side just because they think differently. 

We who claim Jesus as Lord and Savior of our lives need to be those who represent him well. And I know that none of us are perfect, and we are not always going to say all the right things in all the right ways. But we should make it our goal and our purpose to be kind to all people no matter who they are or what they do or what they believe. And, again, kindness is not lying, and it is not compromising truth to not offend people. Love speaks the truth people need to hear even if they reject us and the truth we speak.

Your Life 

Based off of Colossians 3:1-17

An Original Work / October 22, 2011

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Set your hearts and minds

On things up above

Where Christ sits with God;

Not on earthly things.

For you died and your life

Is now hidd’n with Christ.

When Christ, who is your life, is seen,

You will be with Him.

Your sins, put to death.

Don’t walk in these ways.

Don’t lie to yourselves

Or to others, too.

Since you have taken off

Your old sinful past;

Put on the new self in Jesus,

Get rid of such things.

Therefore, holy ones,

Put on gentleness;

Kindness; patience, too;

Be compassionate.

Bear with one another;

Forgive others, too.

Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

O’er all, put on love.

Let the peace of Christ

Rule in your hearts now.

You were called to peace.

Be ye so thankful.

Let the word of Christ dwell

In you richly now

As you teach and instruct others;

Sing songs unto Christ. 

Spoken: “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Colossians 3:17 NIV 1984). 

https://vimeo.com/125740353 

Video Talk on the Same Subject

https://youtu.be/r0ZWnFHde90 

What is Good for Edification

An Original Work / April 22, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Question About D Trump Reading Scripture

Yesterday President (of the USA) Donald Trump read a passage of Scripture from 2 Chronicles 7:11-22 to the public in a video message recorded in the White House’s Oval Office. I would love to hear your thoughts on this. Why do you think he did this? For what purpose? And why this specific passage of Scripture at this particular time in our world and in our nation? And why this Scripture passage while he is at war with other nations? And please refrain from vulgarity in expressing your opinions on this subject. I just want to hear your thoughts on any side of this, not the opinions of others whose thoughts you have read somewhere else. Thank you.

P.S. I don't generally get responses on this site, although I do get reads, but if any of you have any thoughts you would like to share on this subject, I would love to hear from you. Thank you. You ae welcome to email me your responses at cfservant@gmail.com. 

Those Who Suppress The Truth

“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.” (Romans 1:18-23 NASB1995)

It is not okay with God for us who profess the name of Jesus to keep on sinning, to keep making sin our practice. God’s grace is not free license to keep on sinning deliberately and habitually without conscience, and without biblical remorse, and without genuine repentance. 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 while we wait for our Lord Jesus’ return (see Titus 2:11-14; Matthew 7:21-23).

Jesus Christ, in his death and resurrection, put our sins to death with him, and he rose from the dead victorious over sin, hell, death, and Satan so that, by God-persuaded and God-gifted faith in him we will now deny self, die to sin daily, and walk (in conduct) in obedience to his commands in holy living – all in the power of God at work now within us in changing and purifying us and making us holy vessels fit for his service to be used for his glory and praise. All glory to God! (see Romans 6:1-23; Luke 9:23-26).

Lip service only to God will get us nowhere good. For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of human beings who suppress the truth which can be known about God and his righteousness, via their deliberate and habitual acts of unrighteousness. For if we choose our sins over God, we are dishonoring our Lord and what Jesus did for us on that cross in putting our sins to death with him so that, by faith in him, we can now die to sin and obey our Lord in holy living, by his power.

So many who profess faith in Jesus Christ are far from God in how they live and in what they practice. So many have gone the way of the world and are living worldly and immoral lives for self-pleasure, and they are not living holy lives for the glory of God. So many are followers of other human beings rather than being followers of Christ. And then those other humans end up being their gods rather than God being their God. And so they end up believing and living the lies rather than believing and living the truth.

Now God will pursue us to bring us to himself. And if we fall, he will pursue us to bring us back to himself in holy living. But he will not force himself on anyone who does not want him in their lives. He will hand us over to our own devices if we choose our sins over obedience to his commands (see vs. 24-32). But sadly so many who profess to know Christ, who know the will of God, that those who make sin their practice will die in their sins, still they continue in deliberate sin and they approve of others who practice sin, too.

But 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).

[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] 

Love Must Be Genuine 

Based off Romans 12:9-21

An Original Work / October 22, 2013

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Love must be genuine.

Hate what’s evil; cling to good.

Love each other with affection.

Show respect for ev’ryone.

Never lack in your zeal.

Serve the Lord with diligence.

Rejoice in steadfast hope.

In affliction, patient be.

Keep on praying; share with others.

Practice hospitality.

Bless those who persecute.

Feel with others sympathy.

Be not filled with conceit.

Daily sit at Jesus’ feet.

Live in harmony with others.

Live at peace with ev’ryone.

Repay not to someone

With the evil he begot.

Do not take your revenge;

Leave it to the wrath of God.

If your enemy is thirsty,

Give to him something to drink.

Do what’s right for mankind.

Evil: overcome with good.

https://vimeo.com/114695549

Those Who Suppress The Truth

An Original Work / April 22, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love