What it Means to Believe in Jesus

Believing in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of our lives means us humbling ourselves before him and us dying with him to sin and to self, and us living to him and to his righteousness, not just once, but continually until the day he takes us home to be with him.

 

“And he said to all, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.’” Luke 9:23-26 ESV

 

This is in Jesus’ own words. If we are to come after Jesus, we must deny self, die daily to sin, self, and the flesh, and we must follow him in obedience to his commands (under the New Covenant). For, if we hold on to our old lives of living for sin and self, we will lose them for eternity. But if we lose our lives for His sake, i.e., die with him to sin, we will gain eternal life.

 

“They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. But that is not the way you learned Christ! — assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” Ephesians 4:19-24 ESV

 

Paul taught the same thing as Jesus, that the truth that is in Jesus is that we must put off our old self (the flesh), that we are to be renewed in the spirit of our minds, and that we are to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

 

“We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin.” Romans 6:6-7 ESV

 

If our faith in Jesus Christ is genuine God-ordained and God-persuaded faith, it means our old self was crucified (put to death) with Jesus in order that sin might be done away with in our lives, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin, that sin would no longer have dominion over our lives.

 

“I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.” Romans 6:19 ESV

 

And it isn’t just that we are no longer living our lives under the control of sin, but now we are to present ourselves to God as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification, and its end, eternal life (v. 22).

 

“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” Romans 8:5-8 ESV

 

We can’t live according to the flesh and according to the Spirit at the same time. That is like trying to go right and left at the same time. They are opposite of each other. If our thinking is set on the flesh, and that is what we live to, as a matter of practice, and we don’t have our minds set on the Spirit and walking (in conduct) accordingly, its end is not eternal life.

 

“So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.” Romans 8:12-14 ESV

 

Believing in Jesus Christ is present tense, not past tense. And believing in Jesus Christ involves this daily surrender of our lives to Jesus Christ, walking according to the Spirit and not according to the flesh. And our salvation from sin and eternal life with God are contingent on us living according to the Spirit and not according to the flesh.

 

Do you see that in these passages of Scripture so far? We must be daily (actively, continually) living according to the Spirit and not according to the flesh if we want to be saved from our sins and to have eternal life with God. It doesn’t mean we are perfect, but that sin should no longer be our master. Jesus Christ is to be our Master, the one ruling our lives.

 

“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who 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.” Titus 2:11-14 ESV

 

You see, God’s grace to us is not just forgiving our sins so we can escape hell and so we can go to heaven when we die. God’s grace delivers us out of our slavery to sin so that we can become slaves of righteousness. And his grace trains us to say “No!” to sin daily and “Yes!” to God, and to his righteousness and holiness being lived in and out through our lives.

 

“Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.” Galatians 6:7-8 ESV (cf. Rom 2:6-8; 2 Co 5:10).

 

So, you see, Jesus died to deliver us out of our slavery to sin so that we might die with him to sin and live to him and to his righteousness. He died that we might no longer live for ourselves, but for him who gave his life up for us, and that we might honor God with our lives (1 Pet 2:24; 1 Co 6:19-20; 2 Co 5:15).

 

If we walk according to the Spirit and not according to the flesh, we have eternal life with God, but if we live according to the flesh, to please our flesh, doing what we want to do, watching or listening to whatever we choose, and our lives are not surrendered to Jesus Christ, to doing his will, then we will die in our sins, no matter what faith we profess.

 

So, just know here that believing in Jesus Christ is not some words that we repeat after someone else, or some prayer that we pray, or some confession we make of Jesus as Lord. We are not saved by our words. We are saved by God’s grace, through faith, but that faith, because it comes from God, it submits to Christ as Lord, it repents of sin, and the believer in Jesus walks (in conduct) according to the Spirit and not according to the flesh.

 

The Way That He Loves

 

By W. Elmo Mercer

 

Scripture: I John 3:1;I John 3:16

 

The way that He loves is as deep as the sea,

His spirit shall be my stay.

The way that He loves is as pure as a rose,

Much sweeter He grows each day.

His peace hovers near like a dove.

I know there’s a heaven above.

To Jesus I cling, life’s a wonderful thing

Because of the way He loves.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFDAc6m2V8g

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Not Called us For Impurity

Walk to Please God

1 Thessalonians 4:1-2 ESV

 

“Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more. For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus.”

 

We, as followers of Jesus, are instructed in the Scriptures that we are to live our lives to please God, in holiness and righteousness. We are to walk (in conduct) according to the Spirit and no longer according to the flesh, and we are not to make sin our practice, or we will not inherit eternal life with God.

 

[Lu 9:23-26; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 2:6-8; 1 Co 6:9-10; 2 Co 5:10; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6]

 

The Will of God

1 Thessalonians 4:3-6 ESV

 

“For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you.”

 

In today’s modern church in America, this would not be taught. For, people in high up positions within the government and within the church joined forces some years ago and they turned the church into a marketplace to be marketed to the world just like any other product.

 

Since the world was now their target audience who they wanted to attract to these “churches,” which were now businesses of men, they began to alter how the church gatherings were conducted, and they began to dilute the gospel message in order to make it appealing to the flesh of humans.

 

For, their goal was to corrupt the gospel and then to replace the true gospel of grace with another gospel, which they have successfully accomplished, for the most part. Their goal was also to unite the government with the church so that they would be one force together (a state church).

 

And it was to unite the lies of Satan with the truth so that this false gospel has the appearance of truth. But since it is half a lie, it is a lie, not the truth. And it was to unite good and evil, and actually to twist it so that good appears as evil and evil appears as good.

 

So, a large majority of the church, the body of Christ, has united herself with the government in an unholy union, has turned God’s house into a marketplace, has altered the gospel and turned it into a lie, and is following after the gods of men instead of Jesus being her only Lord and Master.

 

The result is that a large number of people calling themselves Christians, or who say they believe in Jesus Christ, have not been crucified with Christ to sin, they have not, thus, been born again of the Spirit of God, and they are not indwelt with God’s Holy Spirit.

 

The authority over their heads is still Satan and the flesh of man, they are still in bondage to sin, still headed to hell, only now on the promise that heaven is their destiny when they die. And since they are following the cheap grace gospel, many are living in sexual immorality.

 

They are indulging in the sinful cravings of their flesh, for now they have been given a free pass to continue living in sin without guilt and with the promise that their sins are forgiven, and that heaven awaits them when they die regardless of how they live while they are on the earth.

 

But God has Not Called us for Impurity

1 Thessalonians 4:7-8 ESV

 

“For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.”

 

What these liars are teaching about God’s grace is that a person can “believe” in Jesus Christ, have his sins forgiven, be bound for heaven, but his lifestyle doesn’t have to change. He does not have to repent or obey the Lord or submit to the Lordship of Christ.

 

For, they call this “Lordship” salvation, or “works-based salvation,” or legalism. Or they accuse those of us who teach that we must change, and that we must obey the Lord, of being legalists, or of teaching works-based salvation, or of being hyper-religious or self-righteous or Pharisees.

 

And people are following these charlatans by the droves because they are telling the people what their itching ears want to hear. They are telling them “Sweet nothings” to make them feel good about themselves, and they are vilifying the true gospel of salvation, calling it a lie.

 

But if we read the Scriptures, book by book, and verse by verse, in context, we can’t miss what they are saying. We are to walk to please God. We are not to walk (conduct our lives in practice) in sin. It is God’s will that we die with Christ to sin and live to Christ and to his righteousness.

 

It is not God’s will that we engage ourselves in sexual immorality, or that we live like the ungodly in the passion of lust. We are not to do wrong to others, i.e., we are not to deliberately, and habitually, and premeditatedly do to others what we know is wrong, and what we know will injure them.

 

So, if you have become convinced that God’s grace to you is carte blanche to continue living in sin without guilt, or that you don’t have to repent or obey or submit to the Lord, please go back and read the Scriptures one verse at a time in their context.

 

For, if you continue in sin, making it your practice, and righteousness is not what you are practicing, if you do not repent, this will end in death not in life everlasting. You will not inherit eternal life with God, heaven is not your eternal home, and you don’t know God and he doesn’t know you.

 

[Lu 9:23-26; Jn 6:35-58; Jn 15:1-11; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Co 6:9-10, 19-20; 2 Co 5:10, 15; Gal 5:16-21; Eph 5:3-6; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 2:6-8; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 3:4-10]

 

Come, Ye Disconsolate

 

Lyrics by Thomas Moore, 1816

Arr. by Thomas Hastings, 1831

Music by Samuel Webbe, Sr, 1792

 

Come, ye disconsolate, where’er ye languish,

Come to the mercy seat, fervently kneel.

Here bring your wounded hearts, here tell your anguish;

Earth has no sorrow that heav’n cannot heal.

 

Joy of the desolate, light of the straying,

Hope of the penitent, fadeless and pure!

Here speaks the Comforter, tenderly saying,

“Earth has no sorrow that heav’n cannot cure.”

 

Here see the bread of life, see waters flowing

Forth from the throne of God, pure from above.

Come to the feast of love; come, ever knowing

Earth has no sorrow but heav’n can remove.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06q9am18p9k

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With Integrity of Heart

Psalms 101:1-4 ESV

 

“I will sing of steadfast love and justice;

    to you, O Lord, I will make music.

I will ponder the way that is blameless.

    Oh when will you come to me?

I will walk with integrity of heart

    within my house;

I will not set before my eyes

    anything that is worthless.

I hate the work of those who fall away;

    it shall not cling to me.

A perverse heart shall be far from me;

    I will know nothing of evil.”

 

Sing of His Love and Justice

 

I love to sing, nonetheless my voice has been going in and out for some time now, so I often sing just in my mind and heart and not with my mouth. But whether singing out loud or just listening to songs and singing along with them in my mind and heart, I am still singing praise to my Lord.

 

Over the past 10 years, the Lord Jesus has given me numerous spiritual songs to write, and they do cover both the subjects of God’s love and of his justice, for the Scriptures teach both. And the songs come either directly from Scripture or they are Scripturally based.

 

The Lord also speaks to me throughout the day with songs in my mind which teach the Scriptures. This is one of the ways in which he counsels and directs me, and in which he encourages my heart. And he most always includes a song of his choosing in every devotional he has me write, too.

 

Music is an integral part of our worship of God. But we can worship God without music, and we can sing songs without worshiping God, too. For, first and foremost our lives must be surrendered to the Lord as living sacrifices to God, holy and pleasing to him, which is our spiritual worship of him.

 

Walk with Integrity

 

“Integrity” seems a rare thing these days. It means “honesty, reliability, honor, decency, and uprightness.” And it means, “firm adherence to a code of moral values” and behaving oneself wisely, with the wisdom of God.

 

So, how do we do this? In our sinful flesh, we cannot. The only way we can be people of integrity is via surrendering our lives to Jesus Christ, dying with Christ to sin and self, and being raised with Christ to newness of life in him, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

 

We can only be people of integrity in the power and working of our Lord in our lives in changing us to be more like him. For, we can’t be righteous on our own merit. We can only be righteous because of what Jesus did for us on that cross, and by faith in him, which results in us dying with him to sin.

 

In the power of God’s Spirit, we can then walk (in conduct, in practice) according to (in agreement with) the Spirit of God and no longer according to our sinful flesh. And we can walk in integrity, in morality, decency, uprightness and honesty, etc., because God’s Spirit lives within us.

 

What I Set Before my Eyes

 

There are things we should set before our eyes, and things we should not set before our eyes. Sad to say that it seems the majority of today’s Christians are more apt to set before their eyes what is indecent, immoral, and dishonest, than what is upright, morally pure, and wise.

 

But it isn’t just what is immoral, dishonest, and indecent that we should not look at, but this includes what is just worthless. Many Christians spend hours watching pure junk, which includes many news shows, game shows, social media posts, what is meant just to entertain, and movies/videos.

 

So, it isn’t necessarily that they may be watching what is immoral, but that they are just wasting time watching what is worthless in light of their relationships with Jesus Christ, in light of eternity, and in light of the fact that many people need to hear the gospel.

 

Also, if we love God, and we want to follow Jesus Christ with our lives, we should love what he loves, and we should hate what he hates. And he hates the works of iniquity. He hates lies! He hates spiritual laziness and rebellion, too. But he loves for us to fear him and to follow him in obedience.

 

A Perverse Heart

 

A perverse heart is a wicked, obstinate, deviant, perverted, disobedient and rebellious heart that is contradictory to the Lord and to his will and purposes for our lives. It is a heart that deliberately and premeditatedly and habitually sins against God without conscience or repentance.

 

As followers of Jesus Christ, who have died with Christ to sin and self, we should have pure hearts transformed of the Spirit of God, with a desire for holiness and righteousness, and with resistance to all that is evil, wicked, immoral, dishonest, and indecent.

 

We shouldn’t have perverse hearts which think on evil and which plot evil on their beds, and which carry out evil as a matter of life course. We should know nothing of evil, i.e., we are not to be partakers in what is evil, but in what is righteous, holy, pure, and of God.

 

But, if that is not the case, and if you are living an immoral life while claiming faith in Jesus Christ, then please know that the Scriptures teach that if we walk (in practice) according to the flesh (in sin), we are going to die in our sins, no matter what we profess with our lips.

 

[Lu 9:23-26; Jn 6:35-58; Jn 15:1-11; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Co 6:9-10, 19-20; 2 Co 5:10, 15; Gal 5:16-21; Eph 5:3-6; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 2:6-8; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 3:7]

 

The Great Redeemer

 

Lyrics by Francis Foster, 1915

Music by Samuel W. Beazley, 1915

 

How I love the great Redeemer

Who is doing so much for me;

With what joy I tell the story

Of the love that makes men free.

Till my earthly life is ended,

I will send songs above,

Then beside the crystal sea

More and more my soul shall be

Praising Jesus and His love.

 

He has purchased my redemption,

Rolled my burden of sin away,

And is walking on beside me,

Growing dearer day by day.

That is why I sing His praises,

That is why joy is mine,

That is why forevermore

On the everlasting shore

I shall sing of love divine.

 

Glory be to Him forever!

Endless praises to Christ the Lamb!

He has filled my life with sunshine,

He has made me what I am.

Oh, that everyone would know Him,

Oh, that all would adore!

Oh, that all would trust the love

Of the mighty Friend above

And be His forevermore.

 

He is everything to me, to me,

He is everything to me,

And everything shall always be;

I will never cease to raise

A song of gladness in His praise;

Here, and in the world above,

My soul shall sing of saving love;

Life and light and joy is He,

The precious Friend who died for me.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MD-LJGRnUZY

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Let My Words Be True

An Original Work / May 30, 2021

Let my words always be true

Always thinking, Lord, of You

May my lips declare Your praise

Both now and ever always

Be there no deceit in them

No hint then of sarcasm

No mincing of words there be

Be as clear as they can be

May they show forth all Your love

Which comes from heaven above

Thinking not only of me

But of pleasing only Thee

May I love with all Your grace

All those I see face to face

And those I see virtually

May I love as You love me

May my thoughts be of Your praise

As I go throughout my days

Thinking of what You desire

And of what Your Word requires

May I follow in Your steps

Doing what You know is best

Saying words that You would say

As I bow to You and pray

They are Without Excuse

They Suppress the Truth

Romans 1:18-20 ESV

 

“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.”

 

Notice with me what this says here, for it is critical that we get this. This does not say that the wrath of God is revealed against all who do not profess faith in Jesus Christ. It is against ALL ungodliness and unrighteousness of humans, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.

 

And who are the unrighteous? Again, they are not just those who do not profess faith in Jesus Christ. They are those who practice wickedness. And who are the righteous? They are those who practice righteousness and who do not make a practice of sin (1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6).

 

So, the way in which people suppress the truth of God is by their unrighteous deeds, by how they live for themselves and for the flesh instead of living for God and for his righteousness, in his power and strength. So, the unrighteous can be some people who profess faith in Jesus Christ.

 

The reason they are without excuse is because God has revealed himself to all of humanity through his created works. His eternal power and his divine nature have been clearly perceived in the things that he has made. The only way we can’t see God in his creation is if we block him out.

 

Although They Knew God

Romans 1:21-23 ESV

 

“For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.”

 

When it says here that they “knew” God, it is not speaking of the intimate relationship that followers of Jesus Christ have with God. The Scriptures make that quite clear. It just means that they had the knowledge of who God is. They could see him through what he created.

 

But even though they had the knowledge of God, and of who he is, they did not honor him as God. And you know what? The false gospel which is permeating much of today’s church is teaching people that they can believe in Jesus, and go to heaven when they die, but that they don’t have to honor God with their lives.

 

They are teaching them that they don’t have to repent (turn from their sins) or obey the Lord or submit to his Lordship over their lives. For, they are teaching that mere words can gain them entry into heaven, even if they deny the Lord by how they live their lives on this earth.

 

So, we have an epidemic of people professing faith in Jesus Christ, convinced that they are going to heaven, but who are dishonoring the Lord by how they live their lives, and so their foolish hearts have been darkened, for they exchanged the glory of God for the things of this world.

 

He Gave Them Up

Romans 1:24-27 ESV

 

“Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

 

“For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.”

 

Professing Christian, if you do not submit your life to Christ as Lord, and if you decide that you can continue living in your sin while claiming salvation from sin and eternal life with God, please be aware that the Scriptures teach that you will NOT inherit eternal life with God.

 

If you rebel against the Lord, and you decide that you know better than God, and that you have the freedom to keep on in your sinful practices, God will hand you over to your sins, and he will let you reap the results of your rebellion, which is death, not life eternal with God.

 

It will not go well for you. You will live a miserable life filled up with the flesh, engaging yourselves in all sorts of wickedness, hurting others who love you, ruining your own life, destroying marriages and family units, damaging your children, never satisfied, and never at true peace.

 

And all this because you decided to exchange the truth of God for a lie, which is what many professing Christians are doing today when they accept a gospel message which tells them that faith in Jesus Christ does not demand their repentance, obedience, and submission to Jesus as Lord.

 

Since You Did not See Fit

Romans 1:28-32 ESV

 

“And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness.

 

“They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.”

 

Wow! What a list!! This should be only a description of those who make no profession of faith in Jesus Christ, although some of them live more moral lives than do those who profess the name of Jesus. Some of the non-Christians of this world are much kinder and loving than some Christians.

 

So, if this is how you are living, if you are making these sins your practice (habit, addiction), possibly because you have believed the lie which tells you that you can, and that heaven is still guaranteed you, please know the truth which says that those who practice sin will die in their sins.

 

And, included in this are the sins of the mind, for Jesus said that whoever looks at a woman (or a man) lustfully commits adultery in his/her own heart. And included in this is self-gratification, too, and romantic affairs, and the intentional viewing of seductive and sexually explicit material.

 

And it isn’t just the actual participation in these sins that is the problem, either, but it is the giving of approval to those who practice them, which can be through being entertained by the sins of others or by knowingly giving others permission to sin, or even encouraging them to sin.

 

So, please understand that our God is righteous and holy, and to believe in Jesus means to live holy and godly lives. For, Jesus died that we might die with him to sin and live to him and to his righteousness. God’s commands are for our good, so we should love them, and we should obey them.

 

Psalm 19

 

Song lyrics taken from Psalm 19 KJV

 

The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul:

The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.

 

More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold:

Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.

 

The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart:

The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.

 

More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold:

Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.

 

The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever:

The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.

 

More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold:

Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hJKLfGdyYI

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You Have Kept Count of my Tossings

My Enemies Trample on Me

Psalms 56:1-4 ESV

 

“Be gracious to me, O God, for man tramples on me;

    all day long an attacker oppresses me;

my enemies trample on me all day long,

    for many attack me proudly.

When I am afraid,

    I put my trust in you.

In God, whose word I praise,

    in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.

    What can flesh do to me?”

 

As followers of Jesus Christ, we are going to have enemies who are also Jesus’ enemies. They are enemies of the cross of Christ, and many of them call themselves Christians, too. For, they refuse to walk in the fear of the Lord, in submission to Christ as Lord. But behind them is our true enemy, Satan, who is truly the one with whom we are at war.

 

Thus, our battle is a spiritual battle which must be fought with spiritual weapons of warfare called the armor of God – the belt of truth, the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness, the shield of faith, the Sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, feet fitted and ready with the gospel of peace, and prayer (Eph 6:10-20).

 

Because Satan hates God, he hates Jesus Christ, God the Son, and thus his goal is to destroy Jesus and his gospel and his followers. Thus, Satan uses other humans to mete out his punishment on the saints of God for the purpose to either intimidate us into submission to him or to strike fear in us so that we will not obey the Lord.

 

But he is not limited to using other humans. He can strike us in our emotions by putting thoughts in our minds to try to confuse us or to make us afraid. He can even be very oppressive with these thoughts so that, even if we are praying, we can feel as though we are under enemy attack. We may even feel our hearts racing, but we must not yield!

 

They Injure My Cause

Psalms 56:5-7 ESV

 

“All day long they injure my cause;

    all their thoughts are against me for evil.

They stir up strife, they lurk;

    they watch my steps,

    as they have waited for my life.

For their crime will they escape?

    In wrath cast down the peoples, O God!”

 

The goal of Satan is to injure (to destroy) God’s cause, which is our salvation from sin, and which then should become our cause, too, when we die with Christ to sin and we are resurrected with Christ to newness of life in him, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

 

Thus, Satan devised a plan for the destruction of the gospel via using ministers of the gospel of Christ to dilute the gospel message to make it more appealing and acceptable to the flesh of humans and to the people of the world, including to worldly Christians.

 

So, they totally ignore Jesus’ primary teachings on what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ and to have eternal life with God, and they ignore all of Paul’s teachings which contradict the gospel message they want to convey, and they cherry pick the Scriptures they like.

 

So, they pull Scriptures out of their context and they twist them to say what they are not saying, and they teach a half-truth (lie) gospel free from any requirements of God for repentance (turning from sin), walks of obedience to Christ, and submission to him as Lord of their lives.

 

My Tears in Your Bottle

Psalms 56:8-11 ESV

 

“You have kept count of my tossings;

    put my tears in your bottle.

    Are they not in your book?

Then my enemies will turn back

    in the day when I call.

    This I know, that God is for me.

In God, whose word I praise,

    in the Lord, whose word I praise,

in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.

    What can man do to me?”

 

If we are true followers of Jesus Christ, it should pain us that the gospel is being destroyed, and that a false gospel has taken its place in the hearts of many people who call themselves Christians. We should weep over the fact that many are dying and headed to hell on the promise of heaven.

 

The things which concern God should concern us. The things Jesus wept over we should weep over. And if we are concerned about what concerns him it should show in what we do and in the words that we speak. And that should, in turn, get us rejected and hated by Jesus’ enemies.

 

And, again, Jesus’ enemies can include many who call themselves Christians if they are working against him and his work instead of with him and for him in his work. If they have joined in with the cheap grace gospel and are living no different than the world, they are his enemies.

 

But the Lord knows what we are going through. He knows our battles and the tears we cry due to being mistreated for righteousness’ sake. Although Satan will always be at war against us, when we cry out to the Lord, and we resist the devil, he will flee from us, but he will try again. But we don’t need to fear his attacks, for our trust is in our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

My Vows to God

Psalms 56:12-13 ESV

 

“I must perform my vows to you, O God;

    I will render thank offerings to you.

For you have delivered my soul from death,

    yes, my feet from falling,

that I may walk before God

    in the light of life.”

 

When we turn our hearts over to Jesus Christ, by faith in him, and we turn from our sins to follow Jesus Christ in obedience to his ways, and so we die with Christ to sin, and we are reborn of the Spirit of God, and the Holy Spirit comes to live within us, we have just been betrothed to Jesus Christ.

 

Jesus Christ is now our husband, and we are his bride. And right now, he is preparing a place for us, and one day he will come back for us to take us to be with him forever, and then our salvation will be complete, and our marriage to Jesus will be consummated (like in the Jewish marriage).

 

Faith in Jesus Christ is a commitment (like a vow). It is a promise to leave our lives of sin behind us to follow Jesus Christ as our Lord and to walk in his ways and in his truth and to do what he commands us to do. For, it is a surrender of our lives to him, making him our Lord (master).

 

So, we are obligated to live according no longer to our flesh, in practice, but to now follow our Lord in obedience to his will for our lives. For, if we walk (in conduct) according to the Spirit, we will have eternal life. But if we walk (in practice) according to the flesh, we will die in our sins, not have life. So, please take this to heart. Your eternity depends on it.

 

[Lu 9:23-26; Jn 6:35-58; Jn 15:1-11; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Co 6:9-10, 19-20; 2 Co 5:10, 15; Gal 5:16-21; Eph 5:3-6; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 2:6-8; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 3:7]

 

The Great Redeemer

 

Lyrics by Francis Foster, 1915

Music by Samuel W. Beazley, 1915

 

How I love the great Redeemer

Who is doing so much for me;

With what joy I tell the story

Of the love that makes men free.

Till my earthly life is ended,

I will send songs above,

Then beside the crystal sea

More and more my soul shall be

Praising Jesus and His love.

 

He has purchased my redemption,

Rolled my burden of sin away,

And is walking on beside me,

Growing dearer day by day.

That is why I sing His praises,

That is why joy is mine,

That is why forevermore

On the everlasting shore

I shall sing of love divine.

 

Glory be to Him forever!

Endless praises to Christ the Lamb!

He has filled my life with sunshine,

He has made me what I am.

Oh, that everyone would know Him,

Oh, that all would adore!

Oh, that all would trust the love

Of the mighty Friend above

And be His forevermore.

 

He is everything to me, to me,

He is everything to me,

And everything shall always be;

I will never cease to raise

A song of gladness in His praise;

Here, and in the world above,

My soul shall sing of saving love;

Life and light and joy is He,

The precious Friend who died for me.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MD-LJGRnUZY

Caution: This link may contain ads

He Redeems Your Life from the Pit

Forget Not all His Benefits

Psalms 103:1-5 ESV

 

“Bless the Lord, O my soul,

    and all that is within me,

    bless his holy name!

Bless the Lord, O my soul,

    and forget not all his benefits,

who forgives all your iniquity,

    who heals all your diseases,

who redeems your life from the pit,

    who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,

who satisfies you with good

    so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.”

 

We, as followers of Jesus Christ, who have been delivered from our bondage to sin, and who have been given new lives in Christ Jesus, our Lord, to be lived for his glory, have much for which to be thankful. We have much for which to give him all our praise and adoration.

 

Not only did Jesus Christ, God the Son, leave his throne in heaven, come to earth, be born as a human baby, take on human form, and then humble himself to become obedient to death on a cross for our sins, but he died that we might die with him to sin and live to him and to his righteousness.

 

He died to give us new lives in him, not like the old lives. We aren’t just forgiven of our sins, but we are set free from our slavery to sin so that we can now become slaves of God and of his righteousness. Sin no longer has to have sway over our lives. And that is Good News!

 

And now we can live the life God has for us to live, free from the control of sin, and empowered of God’s Spirit to live holy and godly lives, pleasing to the Lord. And therein we find true peace, joy, purpose, and satisfaction. For there we know and experience the love God has for us, beyond measure.

 

He is Merciful and Gracious

Psalms 103:8-14 ESV

 

“The Lord is merciful and gracious,

    slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

He will not always chide,

    nor will he keep his anger forever.

He does not deal with us according to our sins,

    nor repay us according to our iniquities.

For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

    so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;

as far as the east is from the west,

    so far does he remove our transgressions from us.

As a father shows compassion to his children,

    so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.

For he knows our frame;

    he remembers that we are dust.”

 

Our Lord is merciful and gracious. He is love, and he is abounding in steadfast love. And that is why he gave his life up for us on that cross so that we might be delivered from our slavery to sin, so that we could now become bondservants of him and of his righteousness.

 

So, when we trust in Jesus Christ to be our Lord and Savior, through God-persuaded faith in our Lord Jesus, we are crucified with Christ in death to sin, and we are resurrected with Christ to newness of life in him, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

 

The old lives of sin we had before have now been put to death with him so that we can live the new lives we have in Christ Jesus in his power and strength. For, Jesus died on that cross that we might no longer live for ourselves, but for him who gave his life up for us.

 

But understand this. Our Lord has compassion toward those who fear him, who honor him as Almighty God, and who repent of their sins, and who walk in obedience to his commands, and who submit to him as Lord (master) of their lives, for this is what he requires.

 

Who Keep His Covenant

Psalms 103:15-19 ESV

 

“As for man, his days are like grass;

    he flourishes like a flower of the field;

for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,

    and its place knows it no more.

But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him,

    and his righteousness to children's children,

to those who keep his covenant

    and remember to do his commandments.

The Lord has established his throne in the heavens,

    and his kingdom rules over all.”

 

We, as followers of Jesus Christ, live under the New Covenant, but we need to know what the Scriptures teach under the New Covenant, for many people are being led astray by charlatans who are telling them that God no longer requires repentance, obedience, and submission to him as Lord.

 

Not one of us is guaranteed tomorrow. We may not make it through the night. So, we need to make certain of our salvation, for many people are following a false gospel which is teaching people that they can believe in Jesus and still keep living like they did before.

 

Again, the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who FEAR HIM, to those who keep (obey) his covenant and remember to obey his commandments (New Covenant). And his covenant says we must die with him to sin and walk (conduct our lives) according to the Spirit.

 

So, please know this. If we live to please the Lord, we will have eternal life with God, but if we live (in practice) to please our flesh, we will die in our sins. We will not inherit eternal life with God. This is what it teaches under the New Covenant. We are all going to be judged by what we do.

 

[Lu 9:23-26; Jn 6:35-58; Jn 15:1-11; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Co 6:9-10, 19-20; 2 Co 5:10, 15; Gal 5:16-21; Eph 5:3-6; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 2:6-8; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 3:7]

 

Abide in Him  

 

An Original Work / July 31, 2013

Based off Ps. 27:14; Is. 40:31; Jn. 14-15

 

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

When I Cry Aloud

Our Trust and Our Hope

Psalms 27:1-3 ESV

“The Lord is my light and my salvation;

    whom shall I fear?

The Lord is the stronghold of my life;

    of whom shall I be afraid?

“When evildoers assail me

    to eat up my flesh,

my adversaries and foes,

    it is they who stumble and fall.

“Though an army encamp against me,

    my heart shall not fear;

though war arise against me,

    yet I will be confident.”

If by faith in Jesus Christ we have died with Christ to sin, and by his grace and in his strength, we are walking according to the Spirit and not according to the flesh, then, according to Scripture, he is our light and our salvation. In him is our trust and our hope.

So, we never have reason to fear those who would come against us. We should never fear opposition or enemies who are out to take us down. It doesn’t mean they won’t harm us, for we will be persecuted, but that we don’t need to fear them, for our Lord is our salvation.

Our enemies will have to stand before God one day and he will judge them for what they did. We will all be judged by what we do, in fact. For, if we sow to please the flesh, from the flesh we will reap destruction. But if we sow to please the Spirit, from the Spirit we will reap eternal life.

[Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8]

Be Gracious to Me

Psalms 27:7-10 ESV

“Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud;

    be gracious to me and answer me!

You have said, ‘Seek my face.’

My heart says to you,

    ‘Your face, Lord, do I seek.’

    Hide not your face from me.

Turn not your servant away in anger,

    O you who have been my help.

Cast me not off; forsake me not,

    O God of my salvation!

For my father and my mother have forsaken me,

    but the Lord will take me in.”

When we have troubles, heartaches, and disappointments, and when the enemy is fiercely coming against us to try to take us out, we need to cry it all out to the Lord. We need to take our burdens to the Lord in prayer and lay them at his feet and seek his counsel and his comfort.

And we need to ask for his help. Sometimes, honestly, when I am going through a difficult time, all I can say is “Help!” For, there are times when the enemy is fiercely attacking and I am overwhelmed by it all, and my emotions are raw, and all I can do is just say, “Help!” 

And the Lord does come to the rescue. And he does comfort us with his love and mercy. And he lets us know that he will never leave us or forsake us, and that even though other humans have abandoned or rejected us, he has not. He is there for us. And he will give us his strength.

Teach Me Your Way

Psalms 27:11-12 ESV

“Teach me your way, O Lord,

    and lead me on a level path

    because of my enemies.

Give me not up to the will of my adversaries;

    for false witnesses have risen against me,

    and they breathe out violence.”

This is critical. We need to desire that the Lord teach us his way, and that he leads us on a level (straight, righteous, holy) path. And then we need to listen to him and follow (obey) what he shows us. For, if we don’t, we are not going to have victory over our enemies. We will fail. 

For, our obedience to our Lord is foundational to us having peace, instead of fear, and to us being able to conquer our foes, instead of giving in to them. And it is critical to us having such intimate fellowship as this with our Lord to where we can cry out to him, and to where we can sense his comfort.

He may not deliver us physically from our enemies, i.e., our circumstances may not change. They may even get worse. But if we are walking with him in obedience to his commands, he will give us all the strength and power we need to resist the devil and to not let the enemy defeat us.

Wait for the Lord

Psalms 27:13-14 ESV

“I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord

    in the land of the living!

Wait for the Lord;

    be strong, and let your heart take courage;

    wait for the Lord!”

We should not get impatient with the Lord if he doesn’t come to the rescue as soon as we think he ought, or if he does not rescue us in exactly the manner in which we thought he would. For his ways are above our ways, for he knows the end from the beginning. We don’t!

I listened to a secular song today (not the one below) in which the writer of the lyrics talked about how he thanked God for unanswered prayers, for just because God doesn’t answer, he said, it doesn’t mean he doesn’t care, because some of God’s greatest gifts are unanswered prayers.

It is better a lot of times that we don’t get what we think we need or when we think we need it. God’s timing is always perfect. So, we need to wait on the Lord to do what he plans to do, when he plans to do it, and we must be strong in the Lord, and let our hearts take courage, which comes from him.

*

This is a secular song, and this was written from the perspective of humans helping other humans, but the Lord has put this song in my mind to go along with this passage of Scripture, so although it is not an exact match, yet it says what the Lord is saying to us, and he does know how we feel:

Lean On Me

By Bill Withers

Sometimes in our lives

We all have pain

We all have sorrow

But if we are wise

We know that there's always tomorrow

Lean on me

When you're not strong

And I'll be your friend

I'll help you carry on...

If there is a load you have to bear

That you can't carry

I'm right up the road

I'll share your load

If you just call me

Call me

What Does it Profit?

Luke 9:23-26 ESV

 

“And he said to all, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.’”

 

From Ashes to Beauty

 

This is what the Christian life is all about. If anyone tells you differently, they are lying to you. It is NOT all about us and what God can do for us. It is about Jesus Christ and our lives surrendered to him for his praise and for his glory. It is about his life now being lived in us and out through us.

 

We don’t “get saved” and now we are going to heaven when we die, but then we can go on living however we want until that time. This is about dying to sin and to self, not just once, but daily. This is about death to our old lives so that Jesus Christ can live his life in us and out through us.

 

This is about total surrender to Jesus Christ, letting him have HIS way in our lives and us getting out of the way so that he can work. And HE does the best work ever. Amen? We make a mess of things when we are the ones running our own lives. But he turns ashes into beauty.

 

Saving and Losing

 

If we have this notion that we can “believe” in Jesus Christ but that how we live on this earth doesn’t matter because our eternity is now guaranteed us, then we need to think again. We need to think biblically and not with the mindset that the people of this world are feeding us.

 

For, if we do not surrender our lives to Jesus Christ, and we do not die with him to sin, not just once, but daily, and if we continue on living in sin, doing what we want to do without regard for what the Lord wants for us, we are not going to spend eternity with God, no matter what.

 

But, if we do die with him to sin daily, and if we do live to him and to his righteousness, not in our own strength, but in the strength that our Lord provides for those who are his by faith in him, then we have the hope of eternal life with God. We can be certain of our eternal destiny.

 

Are We Ashamed?

 

Now, I may step on some toes here, and that is alright, but why is it that Christians can talk with others about everything but Jesus Christ unless they are at church? I am on social media to share the life of Jesus with others, and I find that the majority of Christians on there never mention Jesus.

 

I find that the vast majority of those who call themselves Christians talk no differently with their friends than do the people who make no professions of Jesus Christ. They watch all the same junk (though not everything is junk), and they listen to all the same stuff and play the same games, etc.

 

There is not much of a distinction between Christians and non-Christians these days, and that should not be. And this includes pastors who are on social media talking about the same junk as everyone else and never sharing a Scripture or talking with people about Jesus.

 

He Will Be Ashamed of Us

 

Please understand this, for this is critical. If we are ashamed to talk about Jesus with our friends and acquaintances, and we would rather just talk about the same junk the world is talking about, because we are more interested in people liking us, then Jesus will be ashamed of us.

 

If we deny him by our words and by our lifestyles, he will deny us. If the fruit we have to show is the fruit of the world, and if our lifestyles are the same as those of the world, then when Jesus returns for his bride, we won’t go to be with him for eternity.

 

For whatever we sow on this earth we will reap for eternity. If we sow to please the flesh, from the flesh we will reap corruption (destruction, death). But if we sow to please the Spirit, we will reap eternal life. For what does it profit us if we gain the whole world, and we lose or forfeit ourselves?

 

[Lu 9:23-26; Jn 6:35-58; Jn 15:1-11; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Co 6:9-10, 19-20; 2 Co 5:10, 15; Gal 5:16-21; Eph 5:3-6; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 2:6-8; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 3:7]

 

Full Release  

 

An Original Work / April 15, 2012

 

Walking daily with my Savior

brings me joy.

Loving Father; precious Jesus;

He’s my Savior and my Lord.

Gently leads me; follow Him.

I’ve invited Him within.

Now abiding in His presence,

oh, what peace.

From my self-life

He has brought me,

By His mercy, full release.

 

Hope and comfort,

peace and safety Jesus brings

When I daily bow before Him;

Obey freely; do His will.

Follow Him where’er He leads.

Listen to Him; His words heed.

Now obeying his words fully,

oh, what love

That He gives me

through salvation,

By His Spirit, from above.

 

Loving Father; precious Jesus,

He’s my friend.

With my Savior, by His Spirit,

I will endure to the end.

Share the gospel, tell what’s true.

Witness daily; His will do.

Tell the world of how their Savior

bled and died.

On a cruel cross He suffered

So that we might be alive.

 

https://vimeo.com/115169203

Are You Walking through a Dark Valley?

Psalms 23:1-3 ESV

 

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

   He makes me lie down in green pastures.

He leads me beside still waters.

   He restores my soul.

He leads me in paths of righteousness

    for his name's sake.”

 

When I repented of my sins, and I surrendered my life to Jesus Christ, by faith in him, he became my Shepherd, and I became one of his sheep. I was a child at that time, so I didn’t fully comprehend all that it meant for me, but what I understood is that I wanted Jesus in my life, but not just in my life, but I wanted my life to be all about him.

 

My dad was an abuser who touted Christianity as his faith, but who did not put that faith into practice. He was a legalist, though, in the truest sense of the word, in that he had all these external rules we had to follow that had nothing to do with our relationships with Jesus Christ but only to do with how we appeared on the outside to others.

 

We had to “go to church” every time the doors were open, pretty much, and we had to go through all the rituals involved in that. And on Sundays we were not allowed to play, but we had to stay dressed up all day. And then there were the five don’ts that we learned: You don’t drink (alcohol, wine, or beer), smoke, play with traditional playing cards, dance, or go to movies.

 

And so, we grew up with a Pharisee for a father, basically, who abused his family but who made a pretense of Christianity via legalistic rules. So, when I put my faith and trust in Jesus Christ, I wanted to be a real Christian, not a fake one. I didn’t want to go through the motions of religion. I wanted to follow Jesus Christ with my life, to do what he said.

 

And there I began my journey with Jesus Christ as my Shepherd. And I began to depend on him to teach me his way that he has for my life. And I began to find my comfort and security in him and in his love for me, although again, I was a child living with an abusive father, under the rule of legalism, so it wasn’t “easy street” or “smooth sailing.”

 

But I learned that I could cry out to Jesus in my suffering and that he was there for me to meet my needs right where I was at that time in my life. God became to me the father I never had. He led me in the right way, the way that was good for me. And he encouraged me, and he strengthened me in my walk of faith, and he gave me purpose and hope and joy.

 

Psalms 23:4 ESV

 

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

    I will fear no evil,

for you are with me;

    your rod and your staff,

    they comfort me.”

 

Wow! I think I must have walked through literally hundreds of those valleys in my lifetime. I wish that I could say that I remained completely faithful to the Lord (my Shepherd) all throughout my life, and that I never once caved to fear, but that I always leaned on the Lord for my support, help, guidance, and strength to get through those valleys.

 

But, alas, I can’t say that. The valleys that I had to walk through in this life never ended. They weren’t constant, but they were frequent enough. And they kept getting harder and harder, and they were hitting me from multiple sources. And eventually they wore me down, and I went through a low period in my life when I did not depend on the Lord to be my Shepherd.

 

But you know what a shepherd does when his sheep wander? He goes after them, and that is what the Lord did with me, too. And he did use his rod and his staff to get me back on course, on the path he had prepared for me to take even before he created the world, and even before he formed me in the womb of my mother (Ps 139; Jer 1).

 

And that did bring comfort to my soul and to my mind and heart, that the Lord my Shepherd sought after me and he brought me back, and then he gave me a new start. And, after some time, he gave me a new assignment which I had never thought of before nor would I have ever considered doing this on my own.

 

Seventeen years ago, he called me to write down on a “tablet” what he taught me from his Word, and then I was to place it on the internet, so that a herald could run with it. So, I went looking for places on the internet where I could share what he was teaching me. Then, two years later he called me to do this full-time.

 

Psalms 23:5-6 ESV

 

“You prepare a table before me

    in the presence of my enemies;

you anoint my head with oil;

    my cup overflows.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

    all the days of my life,

and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord

    forever.”

 

My Lord, my Shepherd, Jesus Christ, prepared me my whole life for this ministry. I had to go through those valleys, because they helped to make me who I am. Now, it was never God’s will that I caved, for a time, to all the hits that kept coming against me, but even that he has used to prepare me for what I am doing today.

 

So, despite the fact that Satan tried to destroy me my whole life, and that he used many different people in my life to do his dirty work in trying to bring me down, and that he partially succeeded for a short period of time in my life in defeating me, the Lord had a plan and a purpose for my life that could not be thwarted by his enemies.

 

The Lord lifted me out of that valley, and he gave me a firm place to stand, and by his grace, and in his strength and power, I have been standing ever since then, all glory to God! But the hits still come, and I still have enemies coming against me, but the Lord is my strength and my song. He is my life! And my life is being lived for his glory and praise.

 

He is with me all the time, and he lives within me in the person of the Holy Spirit, and I have a close walk with my Lord, in intimate fellowship with him, where he guides my path each day, and he teaches me what he wants me to write. And then I write what he leads me to say. And he uses it for his purposes and for his glory in the lives of other people.

 

So, if you are a believer in Jesus Christ, but you are going through a dark valley right now, please know that Jesus can pull you out of that dark valley, and he can give you a firm place to stand. And he will help you to stand and to do what he has called you to do if you will trust him with your life, and if you will submit to his purposes, and if you will do what he says.

 

The Great Redeemer

 

Lyrics by Francis Foster, 1915

Music by Samuel W. Beazley, 1915

 

How I love the great Redeemer

Who is doing so much for me;

With what joy I tell the story

Of the love that makes men free.

Till my earthly life is ended,

I will send songs above,

Then beside the crystal sea

More and more my soul shall be

Praising Jesus and His love.

 

He has purchased my redemption,

Rolled my burden of sin away,

And is walking on beside me,

Growing dearer day by day.

That is why I sing His praises,

That is why joy is mine,

That is why forevermore

On the everlasting shore

I shall sing of love divine.

 

Glory be to Him forever!

Endless praises to Christ the Lamb!

He has filled my life with sunshine,

He has made me what I am.

Oh, that everyone would know Him,

Oh, that all would adore!

Oh, that all would trust the love

Of the mighty Friend above

And be His forevermore.

 

He is everything to me, to me,

He is everything to me,

And everything shall always be;

I will never cease to raise

A song of gladness in His praise;

Here, and in the world above,

My soul shall sing of saving love;

Life and light and joy is He,

The precious Friend who died for me.

 

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