Habakkuk 2

Then the Lord replied: "Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it. For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay."

Tuesday, June 2, 2026

Ruined Vessels

Acts 27:9-11,21-25 NKJV

 

9Now when much time had been spent, and sailing was now dangerous because the Fast was already over, Paul advised them, 10saying, “Men, I perceive that this voyage will end with disaster and much loss, not only of the cargo and ship, but also our lives.” 11Nevertheless the centurion was more persuaded by the helmsman and the owner of the ship than by the things spoken by Paul.

 

21But after long abstinence from food, then Paul stood in the midst of them and said, “Men, you should have listened to me, and not have sailed from Crete and incurred this disaster and loss. 22And now I urge you to take heart, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship. 23For there stood by me this night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve, 24saying, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must be brought before Caesar; and indeed God has granted you all those who sail with you.’ 25Therefore take heart, men, for I believe God that it will be just as it was told me.

 

Vessels in Trouble

 

The apostle Paul was still a prisoner. He had been so for several years now, although he had done no wrong. He only spoke truth to the people that many did not want to hear. Now he was on a ship on his way to Rome where he was to appear before Caesar. But the ship was in trouble because of the wind, and so Paul cautioned them if they continued on this course that it would end in disaster and in the loss of many lives. But the centurion did not listen to Paul, but he was more persuaded by the owner of the ship.

 

And, as I think on this, I cannot help but see a spiritual parallel to what was happening then to what is happening in the church today, although it is not entirely “apples to apples,” i.e. completely similar in every respect. But a ship is a vessel, and the church, the body of believers in Christ, is to be a chosen vessel of God, in whom God dwells, by His Spirit, who is chosen of God to live holy lives, pleasing to God, in obedience to our Lord, who is to take the unadulterated message of the Gospel to the people of the world.

 

But the true owner of many of these vessels, called “churches,” these days is not the Lord Jesus Christ but the world, and the government, and big business, which are leading probably the majority of the church in the wrong direction and to grave disaster and to the loss of many human lives for eternity. For so many of these vessels are not listening to the Lord, but to the world, and to preachers who are marketers and business men who are leading so many people to hell on the false promise of heaven for eternity.

 

Messengers of God

 

So, the Lord has sent some of his messengers, much like Paul, into some of these “church” gatherings to try to warn them against continuing on the same course, and of how it will end in disaster and in the loss of many lives. But it appears, from what I can see, that not many are listening to the Lord through his messengers, but they are continuing on course because they are listening to the voices of the false gods of the people, instead, who are steering them in the wrong direction and to ultimate eternity spent in hell.

 

But when it became apparent (back to the story now) that Paul was right, and that they should have listened to him, for things were now becoming a lot more obvious that he was right, for they were being faced with much disaster and loss that could no longer be ignored, then they began to listen to his counsel. It was too late to save the vessel, though, but individual lives would be saved. The ship would be destroyed, but not the people. So they were not to fear, because God had promised them the salvation of lives.

 

And what this reminds me of are all the warnings in the Scriptures about the last days before the return of Christ. So much of what are called “churches” today are human-based businesses and organizations which are partnered with the world and with the government (both of which God forbids), which essentially fit with biblical Babylon. And God has been warning his people for some time to come out from among them so that we do not share in their sins and in their punishment. But so many have refused and remained.

 

[Matthew 21:12-13; John 2:13-17; Acts 5:27-32; 1 Corinthians 1:10-13; 1 Corinthians 3:1-9; 2 Corinthians 6:14-18; Philippians 3:18-19; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22; Revelation 13:5-8; Revelation 18:1-5]

 

Judgment on Babylon

 

And, yet, the Lord has promised that he will judge this Babylon. The vessel will be destroyed. But human lives can be saved if they will listen to the Lord’s true biblical messengers who are speaking the truth of God’s Word to them, as Jesus and as his New Testament apostles taught it, in the correct biblical context. Judgment is coming, which should be obvious to anyone paying attention at all to what is going on in the world and in “the church.” Absolute chaos is all over everywhere, it would appear. So listen to the Lord!

 

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).

 

[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]

 

For Our Nation 

 

An Original Work / September 11, 2012

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Recording Via Gerry Peters, music producer and arranger

 

Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Trust Him with your life today.

Make Him your Lord and your Savior.

Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.

He will forgive you of your sin;

Cleanse your heart, made new within.

 

Men betraying: Our trust fraying.

On our knees to God we’re praying,

Seeking God to give us answers

That are only found in Him.

God is sovereign over all things.

Nothing from His mind escaping.

He has all things under His command,

And will work all for good.

 

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

 

Men deceiving: We’re believing

In our Lord, and interceding

For our nation and its people

To obey their God today.

He is our hope for our future.

For our wounds He offers suture.

He is all we need for this life.

Trust Him with your life today.

 

http://youtu.be/_XQkomPFz4Y

 

Caution: This link may contain ads

 

Ruined Vessels

An Original Work / June 2, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Monday, June 1, 2026

Bold in Our Witness

 


So Blinded Eyes May See

The Apostle Paul was being held in prison for sharing the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ with the people. At this time he was standing before King Agrippa giving his defense against all the accusations of the Jews (select Jews, I presume). And so he shared his testimony of how he (Saul) was a Pharisee who persecuted Christians, but how Jesus Christ visited him in a vision on the road to Damascus where Saul intended to persecute and perhaps have put to death even more followers of Jesus Christ (of The Way).

 

Acts 26:12-20 NKJV

 

12“While thus occupied, as I journeyed to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests, 13at midday, O king, along the road I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who journeyed with me. 14And when we all had fallen to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me and saying in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ 15So I said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.

 

16But rise and stand on your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you. 17I will deliver you from the Jewish people, as well as from the Gentiles, to whom I now send you, 18to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.’

 

19“Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, 20but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance.

 

Born with Sin Natures

 

We are all born into this world with sin natures, in the image of Adam, the first man created by God, and the first man to sin against God. And we all have a past. We have all sinned against God in some way or another. And so we all come up short of being acceptable and approved by God in our sins. So God the Father sent his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to the earth to be born as a baby to a human mother (a virgin), but conceived of the Holy Spirit. So Jesus was not born with a sin nature as the rest of us were.

 

Saved by God’s Grace

 

And the ultimate purpose of Jesus coming to this earth and taking on humanity, but without sin, was that one day he would be crucified on a cross for our sins, although he had done no wrong, so that, by faith in him, we will now deny self, die to sin daily, and walk in obedience to his commands, all in the power of God and by the grace of God and not of human flesh. But Jesus didn’t stay dead. God raised him from the dead so by faith in him we will live in him, and him in us, so that we will follow him wherever he leads us.

 

But this faith is not of our own doing, not of the flesh. This faith, which is required for salvation from sin and eternal life with God, comes from God, and it is gifted to us by God, and it is persuaded of God as to his holiness and righteousness, and of our sinfulness, and of our need to and of God’s requirement that we now deny self, die to sin, and obey our Lord’s commands, in practice. And this faith involves us doing the good works of God which he prepared in advance that we should do them, in his power.

 

[Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; Acts 26:18; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Hebrews 12:1-2; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Peter 2:24]

 

Persecuting Jesus

 

So, we have all persecuted Jesus in one way or another. Not all of us in the same way in which Saul/Paul did before he met Jesus on the road to Damascus, but by our sins we did. For, how Paul treated the Lord’s followers was, in essence, him persecuting Jesus. And we persecute Jesus when we choose sin, because we are all created by Him. But especially we do this if we are disciples of Christ who return to our sins after we have been cleansed by his blood, and at any time in our lives we end up denying him as Lord.

 

But the good news is that we can be revived, and we can be renewed in the Spirit via genuine biblical repentance. And God may, even after all the bad that we did previously, renew us in him, and even give us a new call, and a new assignment, which we do not deserve. But because of his grace, he may give us a second chance to be the people of God he wants us to be in going where he sends us and in saying to the people all that our Lord gives us to say to them, under his direction, and empowered of the Holy Spirit.

 

Open Their Eyes

 

Whether you are believing in Jesus Christ for the first time ever, or you are being revived of the Spirit after a time of falling away, your eyes need to be opened to the truth of your spiritual condition, of how you got there, and of what the only solution is for you to be delivered from sin and to now walk faithfully in obedience to the Lord in holy living. And what it all comes down to is a changed heart and mind resulting in a change of behavior, by the grace of God, repenting (turning from) all sin, and now following Jesus with your life in obedience and in faithful service to him from this point forward.

 

And then, you can be used of God to be one of his ministers and witnesses who take the message of the gospel of Christ to the people of the world, not because we are deserving of it, but because of the love and grace of God in delivering us out of sin and giving us a new start down the path now leading to heaven instead of to hell. For we cannot help others to turn from darkness and to walk in the light of truth and righteousness if we are not first there ourselves. So, we who are sharing with the people the gospel as taught by Jesus Christ himself, need to be obedient to our Lord in all respects.

 

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). And this is what we must be teaching others in order to open their blinded eyes.

 

[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]

 

Open My Eyes, That I May See 

 

By Clara H. Scott, 1895

Open my eyes, that I may see

Glimpses of truth Thou hast for me;

Place in my hands the wonderful key

That shall unclasp and set me free.

 

Open my ears, that I may hear

Voices of truth Thou sendest clear;

And while the wave notes fall on my ear,

Everything false will disappear.

 

Open my mind, that I may read

More of Thy love in word and deed;

What shall I fear while yet Thou dost lead?

Only for light from Thee I plead.

 

Open my mouth, and let me bear

Gladly the warm truth everywhere;

Open my heart and let me prepare

Love with Thy children thus to share.

 

Silently now I wait for Thee,

Ready, my God, Thy will to see.

Open my heart, illumine me, Spirit divine!

 

https://youtu.be/B7DKxf3OTmI?si=RYFivB1wIXJ_P-DB

 

So Blinded Eyes May See

An Original Work / June 1, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

The Lord's Will Be Done

Acts 21:10-14 NKJV


10After we had been there several days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. 11Coming over to us, he took Paul’s belt, bound his own feet and hands, and said, “The Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews of Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and hand him over to the Gentiles.’” 12When we heard this, we and the people there pleaded with Paul not to go up to Jerusalem.


13Then Paul answered, “Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” 14When he would not be dissuaded, we quieted down and said, “The Lord’s will be done.”


God’s Will


Paul was now in Caesarea, and he was staying at the home of Philip, the evangelist. But he was on a journey to Jerusalem, where he knew he was going to be persecuted. A prophet of God even confirmed that before Paul and all the people. And the people pleaded with him not to go to Jerusalem. But Paul’s response was that he was ready, not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. So, when the people were not able to change his mind they said to him, “The Lord’s will be done.”


Now, Paul should not be regarded as the only exception to the rule of “let’s play it safe.” For we are taught all throughout the New Testament that faith in Jesus Christ, if it is true biblical faith in the Lord, must involve us having tribulations and trials to test our faith, and us being hated and persecuted as Jesus was treated for the sake of righteousness, and for the sake of the gospel. So, if we are out there, like Paul, sharing the truth of the gospel, and not the lies spreading so rapidly, we should be experiencing some of this.


Facing Persecution


Especially in our day and time when so many preachers and evangelists are altering and diluting the gospel to make it less offensive and more appealing to the ungodly (which includes many who profess faith in Jesus Christ), if we teach and preach what Jesus taught, and what his New Testament apostles taught as the gospel, in its correct biblical context, unless we are not really out there in the world where people can hear us or read what we write, we will face opposition, even from others who say they believe in Jesus Christ.


We won’t be opposed just by the general populace. But we will be opposed, rejected, crucified (words only), hated, and cast aside as unwanted by many preachers and evangelists, too, who are diluting the gospel to make it more appealing to human flesh. In fact, many of them are being trained, in their training sessions on how to “do church,” to reject the gospel truth and its messengers. And they are being warned about people like me with “strong convictions,” that they are to invite us to go somewhere else where we fit.


Be Ready


We should not be surprised if we are not generally accepted even by most who also profess faith in Jesus Christ, but if we are more often than not rejected and even persecuted, if we are speaking the truth of the gospel of Christ to the people. We should be fully ready and fully prepared to face the kinds of things we are warned about in the Scriptures that Jesus and the prophets and the New Testament apostles experienced for their walks of faith in the Lord and for preaching the truth of the gospel to the people.


We must be prepared, as Paul was, that we could be put in prison, or beaten, or falsely accused of wrong we did not commit. And we could be put on trial in a court of law on false charges. And the liars may be believed over us based on false evidence, which is very easy to create in our generation, especially with the assistance of AI (artificial intelligence). And we could be put to death because we refuse to deny Jesus as the Christ. This is all coming our way. So we need to be fully ready for when it comes.


[Matthew 5:10-12; Matthew 10:16-25,34-39; Matthew 24:9-14; Luke 6:22-23; Luke 12:49-53; Luke 21:12-17; John 15:18-21; John 16:33; Acts 14:22; Romans 5:3-5; 2 Corinthians 1:3-11; Ephesians 6:10-20; Philippians 3:7-11; 1 Thessalonians 3:1-5; Hebrews 12:3-12; James 1:2-4; 1 Peter 1:6-7; 1 Peter 4:12-17; Revelation 6:9-11; Revelation 7:9-17; Revelation 11:1-3; Revelation 12:17; Revelation 13:1-18; Revelation 14:1-13]   


Fully Ready!  


Based off Acts 20-22,26; Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8

An Original Work / June 19, 2013

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love


Why are you weeping and breaking my heart?

I’m fully ready to suffer for Christ.

If I must die for the sake of His name,

I am convinced it will not be in vain.

Glory to God and to His Son Jesus,

Who has redeemed us; bought with His blood.


May I speak to you? Jesus came to me;

Asked of me, “Why do you persecute me?”

He said, “Now get up and stand on your feet.

Go, and you’ll be told all I have for you.

I have appointed you as a servant,

And as a witness; you have been sent.”


“Go into the world and preach the gospel.

Open the blind eyes. They will receive sight.

Turn them from darkness to the light of Christ;

From power of the evil one to God,

So they may receive forgiveness of sins,

And a place among those who’re in heav’n.”


https://vimeo.com/115439432


The Lord’s Will Be Done

An Original Work / June 1, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

The Whole Counsel of God

Acts 20:25-31 NKJV

 

“25And indeed, now I know that you all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, will see my face no more. 26Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all men. 27For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God. 28Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. 29For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. 30Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves. 31Therefore watch, and remember that for three years I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with tears.”

 

Self Defense

 

This was Paul speaking. He was on his way to Jerusalem. And the Holy Spirit had testified to him that in every city chains and tribulations awaited him. So, as he spoke to the elders of the church in Ephesus here, he was also convinced that he would never see them again. And so these were his parting remarks to them, much like someone might say who was dying.

 

Now, all throughout Paul’s ministry on this earth he was persecuted, beaten, left for dead, imprisoned, rejected, lied about, falsely accused of wrong, and opposed strongly by his opposition. So, at times, he had to come to his own defense to tell the truth about himself, as opposed to the lies. Jesus Christ did this, too, sometimes, when he was opposed and lied about and falsely accused of wrongdoing. So, it is not wrong or prideful or bragging, necessarily, to state the truth about yourself in opposition to the lies.

 

Therefore, he declared himself innocent of the blood of all people. For he had not shunned to declare to the people the whole counsel of God. And what is that? It is the whole plan of our salvation from sin and eternal life with God. It is God’s revealed will and purpose concerning our salvation from sin. It is the pure and unadulterated gospel message regarding Jesus’ death and resurrection, and for what purpose he died and was raised from the dead to deliver us out of bondage to sin so we will now serve him with our lives.

 

The Gospel

 

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).

 

For by God-gifted faith in Jesus Christ, which is not of our own doing, we are 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 as slaves to righteousness in walks of obedience to God’s commands. We are no longer to permit sin to reign in our mortal bodies to make us obey its desires. For if sin is what we obey, it results in death. But if obedience to God is what we obey, it results in sanctification, and its end is eternal life with God (see Romans 6:1-23).

 

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 while we wait for Jesus’ return. 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)

 

Take Heed

 

Then Paul gave counsel to the elders of the church in Ephesus. They were to take heed, as overseers, to shepherd the church of God which our Lord purchased with his own blood via his death on that cross in putting our sins to death with him so that we can now die to sin and live to righteousness. And to shepherd is to lead, to give counsel to, to teach, to instruct, but also to provide comfort, encouragement, and compassion towards the people without compromise of truth and righteousness, for the sake of godly living.

 

And why was Paul so concerned about the church? He knew that after his departure that savage wolves would come in among them, not sparing the flock. And he was speaking of “wolves in sheep’s clothing,” i.e. of human beings who would pretend to be Christians and followers of Christ and preachers of the gospel. But they would speak lies to the people to lead them in the wrong direction. And we have many of them in the gatherings of “the church” in our world today who are leading many people astray.

 

Also, he said, from among their own selves men would rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves. And we have many such people in our gatherings of “the church” today who are speaking lies to the people, who are diluting the gospel to make it less offensive and more acceptable to human flesh, and who are leading many people to hell on the promise of heaven. Therefore, we do need to keep watch, and to test the spirits, and to reject the lies, and to embrace the truth of God’s Word.

 

[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]

 

Forever with Us

 

Based off Psalm 46

An Original Work / February 5, 2016

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

 

Be still and know God is over all things.

Throughout the earth, He’ll be honored as King.

The Lord Almighty, forever with us.

He is our refuge when we’re in distress.

 

Therefore, we have not a reason to fear.

Trials will come, but our God is still near.

He is our helper, so we do not fall.

Mountains will quake, but on Jesus we call.

 

Joy to the Church, even if sorrow comes.

Enemies rage, but our faith marches on.

God’s Holy Spirit, now living within,

Gives peace and comfort, and grace without end.

 

https://vimeo.com/154477497

 

The Whole Counsel of God

An Original Work / June 1, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Sunday, May 31, 2026

That I May Finish My Race

Acts 20:16-24 NKJV


Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus, so that he would not have to spend time in Asia; for he was hurrying to be at Jerusalem, if possible, on the Day of Pentecost.


From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called for the elders of the church. 18And when they had come to him, he said to them: “You know, from the first day that I came to Asia, in what manner I always lived among you, 19serving the Lord with all humility, with many tears and trials which happened to me by the plotting of the Jews; 20how I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, and taught you publicly and from house to house, 21testifying to Jews, and also to Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. 


22And see, now I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that will happen to me there, 23except that the Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations await me. 24But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.”


Be Faithful


All of us who believe in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of our lives are to serve the Lord Jesus with our lives in ministry, according to the giftedness of the Holy Spirit within us, and according to God’s calling (his assignment) upon our lives, which will not all be the same. Now we are all called to die to sin daily and to walk in obedience to our Lord and to serve him with our lives, but he doesn’t call all of us to the same exact areas of ministry, although we are all called to be sharing the true gospel with other people.


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


And we are all called of God to be faithful to those callings and to not be slack, and to not be neglectful to do what God has called us to do, both to these general callings of God to all of us who believe in him, and to our individual and specific areas of ministry to which he has called us. For we were all created by God for a specific purpose, and he has very specific areas of ministry which he has selected just for us to do. And as his followers, we are to learn what those are and to do them.


Fully Surrendered


Like when Jesus interrupted Paul’s (then Saul’s) journey to Damascus where he intended to persecute even more Christians, and in order to call him to open spiritually blinded eyes, turning them from darkness (sin) to the light (God/Jesus Christ, the gospel), and from the power of Satan to God, so that they could receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those sanctified by faith in Jesus Christ, our Lord. And Paul then surrendered to the will of God and ended up writing probably half of the New Testament (see Acts 26:18).


And Paul didn’t serve the Lord in ministry, according to his calling, because it was easy or popular or because he got a lot of “likes.” He suffered much persecution and rejection and beatings and imprisonment and false accusations and abandonment, etc. – all for the cause of Christ and for the sake of his gospel message, and in order to win people to faith in Jesus Christ, and then to nurture them and to exhort them to walk in obedience to the Lord and to no longer walk (in conduct) in sin. Praise Jesus!


Falsely Accused


And if we are following the Lord Jesus according to his callings upon our lives, we are promised that we will be hated and persecuted as Jesus was, and that we will be falsely accused of wrongdoing, rejected, forsaken, forgotten, cast aside as unwanted, harassed, ignored, mocked, and falsely arrested and imprisoned. And even some of us will be put to death for our walks of faith and for our obedience to the Lord. And some or many of our persecutors may be others who profess faith in Jesus Christ, too.


But through it all we are to remain faithful to our Lord in obedience to his commands, in holy living, in dying daily to sin and to self, and in serving him in the specific areas of ministry to which he has called us, regardless of how we are treated in return, even from others who profess to know the same Lord as we do, and even from family members. For Jesus told us that if our lives are surrendered to him, to follow him in obedience, that we can expect our family members to reject and to persecute us, because they lack faith.


[Matthew 5:10-12; Matthew 7:13-14; Matthew 10:16-39; Matthew 24:9-14; Luke 6:22-23; Luke 12:49-53; Luke 21:12-17; John 15:18-21; John 17:14; Romans 5:3-5; 1 Peter 1:6-7; 1 Peter 4:12-17; 2 Timothy 3:12; Philippians 3:7-11; 1 Thessalonians 3:1-5; James 1:2-4; 2 Corinthians 1:3-11; Hebrews 12:3-12; 1 John 3:13; Revelation 6:9-11; Revelation 7:9-17; Revelation 11:1-3; Revelation 12:17; Revelation 13:1-18; Revelation 14:1-13] 


Much Perseverance


And we must keep speaking the truth of the gospel to all who will listen. And the truth is that if we are to come after Jesus, we must deny self, die daily to sin, and follow him in walks of obedience to his commands. For if we hold on to living in sin and for self, we will lose our lives for eternity. But if for Jesus’ sake we deny self, die daily to sin (by the Spirit), and follow Jesus in obedience to his commands, and in obedience to his callings on our lives, then we have the hope of eternal life with God (see Luke 9:23-26).


And the only way that we are going to follow through with this, and to remain faithful to the Lord and to his callings upon our lives, is if we do not account our lives of any value nor as precious to ourselves in such a manner as to prefer the approval of other humans over the approval of God, and as more valuable to us than the salvation (from sin) of other human lives. And we must be committed to finishing the course and the ministry that we received from the Lord Jesus to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.


God’s Grace


But this grace, which is bringing us salvation, and which is gifted to us by God, is training us to renounce (say “No!” to) ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives while we wait for our Lord’s return. For Jesus 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, the works which God prepared in advance that we should walk in them (see Titus 2:11-14; Ephesians 2:8-10).


Myopic  


An Original Work / August 19, 2013

Based off 2 Peter 1:3-11

Christ's Free Servant, Sue J Love


Jesus has given ev’rything

Needed for life and godliness.

His great and precious promises

Free us from our sin and distress.


Add to your faith His goodness;

Knowledge; patience; godliness;

Brotherly love and mutual affection;

Kindness and unselfishness.


If you possess these qualities,

Growing in your maturity,

They will keep you from vanity.

You will bear fruit effectually. 


Nonetheless, if you lack them;

Forget you’ve been cleansed from sin,

Nearsighted are you; you can’t see Jesus.

You have closed your heart to Him.


Therefore, beloved, confirm, then,

Your calling and your election.

Do this by showing diligence:

Obey your Lord; be repentant.


Practice all these qualities

God provided on a tree.

He died for our sins so we’d be given

Life with Him eternally. 


https://vimeo.com/115839336


That I May Finish My Race

An Original Work / May 31, 2026

Copied mostly from “Faithful to Our Callings,”

An Original Work / May 27, 2024

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Compelled by The Spirit

Acts 18:5-11 NKJV

 

5When Silas and Timothy had come from Macedonia, Paul was compelled by the Spirit, and testified to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ. 6But when they opposed him and blasphemed, he shook his garments and said to them, “Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.” 7And he departed from there and entered the house of a certain man named Justus, one who worshiped God, whose house was next door to the synagogue. 8Then Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed on the Lord with all his household. And many of the Corinthians, hearing, believed and were baptized.

 

9Now the Lord spoke to Paul in the night by a vision, “Do not be afraid, but speak, and do not keep silent; 10for I am with you, and no one will attack you to hurt you; for I have many people in this city.” 11And he continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.

 

Facing Opposition

 

Sometimes the Lord will send us to a particular place because he wants us to share the truth of the gospel of Christ with the people there, even knowing that we will be rejected, in return. Perhaps, in this way, the seed has been planted in their minds, and it could come back to them at a later time when they would then receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. For God knows the end from the beginning, and he knows who will believe in him, and who will not. So we must always obey the Lord and follow his leading in our lives.

 

But, if where he sends us, the people reject us, and they reject the message of the gospel of Christ (the undiluted message), the Lord may then send us somewhere else where the people (not all) will listen and will believe in Jesus and will deny self, die to sin, and obey God, in practice, by faith in him, and in his power at work within them. And perhaps our rejection in the one place was intended of God as a catalyst to get us to go somewhere else where we might not have otherwise gone if we were not rejected first.

 

Changing Locations

 

In my own life the Lord sent me several different places where I was rejected by the institutional church, all in preparation for him then to send me to the internet, where I might not have otherwise gone if I had not first been rejected in these other places. For it took me a while to believe that I should leave the institutional market-driven churches. I kept thinking there had to be an exception to the rule. But everywhere I went, it was the same. In all cases they had diluted the gospel and were catering to the world.

 

So, I left the institutional church, which is not to be confused with the biblical church, the body of Christ, i.e. all who are of genuine faith in the Lord Jesus. I did not desert the body of Christ. In fact, by the Lord sending me to the internet, that just opened the door for me to share what the Lord was teaching me through my times spent with him daily in his word. And now I was able to be used of God to encourage my fellow believers in Christ in the ways of the Lord, as we are taught in the Scriptures we are all to do.

 

No Guarantees

 

But there are no guarantees that wherever God sends us that we will not be hated, rejected, and persecuted for the name of Jesus and for the gospel of our salvation. And I have certainly faced opposition on the internet, too. But here, so far, I have had the freedom, in most places, to share what the Lord teaches me and what he shares with me that he wants me to then share with the people of the world and with my fellow followers of Jesus Christ. Here I am able to use the gifts of God in my spiritual body part assignment.

 

But that does not assure me that all will go smoothly all the time. So, if I should begin to feel afraid, the Lord then encourages me to not be afraid, but to keep speaking the truth of his words, and to not go silent out of fear of how I might be treated, in return. For he is with me always, leading and guiding me in the way that he would have me to go. And so far he has kept me safe from any kind of grave harm to myself, and he has kept the door open wide for me to keep speaking his truth to the people.

 

Troubled Times

 

But I am well aware of the times in which we live, and where all the craziness we are seeing in the news every day is all headed, which is to the ultimate rule of the beast and his one world totalitarian regime. It feels like it won’t be long before everything comes crashing down all around us, the way things are headed right now. But only God knows the day and the hour when all those things will take place. And he is still in control. So we must trust him with the future and keep following him wherever he leads us.

 

[Matthew 5:10-12; Matthew 10:16-25,34-39; Matthew 24:9-14; Luke 6:22-23; Luke 12:49-53; Luke 21:12-17; John 15:18-21; John 16:33; Acts 14:22; Romans 5:3-5; Ephesians 6:10-20; Philippians 3:7-11; 1 Peter 1:6-7; 1 Peter 4:12-17; 1 Thessalonians 3:1-5; James 1:2-4; 2 Corinthians 1:3-11; Hebrews 12:3-12; Revelation 6:9-11; Revelation 7:9-17; Revelation 11:1-3; Revelation 12:17; Revelation 13:1-18; Revelation 14:1-13]

 

Safe in the Arms of Jesus

 

By Frances J. Crosby and William H. Doane 1868

 

Safe in the arms of Jesus,

Safe on His gentle breast;

There by His love o’ershaded,

Sweetly my soul shall rest.

Hark! ’tis the voice of angels

Borne in a song to me,

Over the fields of glory,

Over the jasper sea.

 

Safe in the arms of Jesus,

Safe from corroding care,

Safe from the world’s temptations;

Sin cannot harm me there.

Free from the blight of sorrow,

Free from my doubts and fears;

Only a few more trials,

Only a few more tears!

 

Jesus, my heart’s dear Refuge,

Jesus has died for me;

Firm on the Rock of Ages

Ever my trust shall be.

Here let me wait with patience,

Wait till the night is o’er;

Wait till I see the morning

Break on the golden shore.

 

Compelled by The Spirit

An Original Work / May 31, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love