They Will Malign You

Matthew 10:24-25 ESV

 

“A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household.”

 

What this is saying here is that if we follow Jesus with our lives, and we do and say the kinds of things he did and said, and we obey him, and if we teach the truth of the gospel, those who are enemies of God, of Jesus Christ, will also be our enemies. And please note here that many of these enemies of Jesus are professers of faith in Jesus Christ, and many of them are wolves in sheep’s clothing. And Jesus is sending us out as sheep among wolves.

 

Many of those who are professers of faith in Jesus Christ are also addicted to pornography, to sexual immorality, to lying, to cheating, and to adultery. This is epidemic in the Christian community here in America. This seems to be the predominant sin within the church right now. And along with that is pride, idolatry, unforgiveness, resentment, bitterness, and hatred which then come out of people’s hearts in their actions, possibly in abusive behaviors.

 

For, to malign someone is to deliberately do to him (or her) what is harmful, hurtful, damaging, destructive, evil, slanderous, denigrating and insulting, etc. And this is purposeful, and it is intentional, and this comes out in many different forms. And since Jesus said we need to beware of men, for they will betray us and do all manner of evil against us, and since he counseled us to be wise as serpents and innocent as doves, we need to be aware of their tactics, which are really the tactics of Satan (see Matt 10:16-23).

 

The Tactics of an Addict-Abuser

 

Those who are addicts and abusers, which often go hand-in-hand, are often superficially charming, funny, witty, and entertaining people, so they are generally likeable people who people may generally be drawn to because of their charismatic personalities. This is not true in all cases, though.

 

They are also self-absorbed, i.e. very self-centered. Even their “good deeds” can come from the motivation of wanting attention or to be liked and approved by others so that others will think they are great and wonderful, while at home they may be abusing their spouses and children, maligning those who are walking faithfully with the Lord, and gaslighting them, tricking, playing mind games, and falsely accusing them of wrongdoing, etc.

 

These addicts-abusers may also be lazy people, not particularly motivated toward anything good, or they may flitter from this or that, not ever really settled on anything. They may be people who waste away their spare time and whose desire it is to be entertained and to “medicate,” as they call it, on a fantasy world, and usually on something related to sexual immorality or specifically they may be viewing porn or listening to stories or watching movies, but living in a dream world, often not facing reality.

 

They are habitual liars. Most of what they say can’t be trusted. They twist the truth to their advantage, or they make up stories regularly. They will make up stories to cover their sins in advance and they will make up stories to cover up their sins after the fact. They may even lie about sinning in a particular way if it suits their purposes in another way. For they are very manipulative, and those they see as their “enemies” they will try to manipulate to their advantage so that they have the upper hand.

 

They appear to lack remorse, showing no genuine sorrow for their wrongdoing. And rather they will rationalize their wrongdoing. And this is a BIG ONE. They will either find a way to cast the blame on the one they are abusing and sinning against, or they will pretend ignorance, although they are not ignorant. Some of them are even pastors of churches and Bible teachers, so they are not ignorant of the truth, but they will play dumb as though they don’t know something, but they will play the same dumb over and over again habitually when they have been shown the truth each time.

 

They are impulsive people who are easily drawn into sin and/or who willfully set themselves up for a fall because they want to fall. And they don’t accept responsibility for their actions which then goes back to blaming the innocent or pretending ignorance or acting as though they are hearing something for the first time or acting like they don’t know how to overcome sin or how to get rid of the evil that is in their hearts. But they have lots of knowledge. They are just short on obedience and BIG ON EXCUSES!

 

They are very much lacking in respect for other people unless they are people they deem worthy of respect, like people who are super talented or who are super smart and have lots of head knowledge. If they are men, they typically lack respect for females, which is why they are able to treat women as though they are sex objects and not as human beings, and why they get angry with women who do not do what they want them to do, and why they are able to manipulate, lie to, and cheat on them.

 

If they are living with spouses who are walking with the Lord and, perhaps, may also be wise to their tactics, they may pour on the abuse, making up lies, twisting truth, gaslighting, using trickery, deception, manipulation, and trying to put the blame on their spouses rather than take responsibility for their own sin. And they may lie to other people about their spouses to try to get others to dislike and to disapprove of them or to try to paint a picture of themselves as the victims, as though they are the abused.

 

And if they are professing faith in Jesus Christ, they will put on a show of righteousness in front of people who don’t know them and/or they will blend into whatever environment they are placed in, for they are good at being chameleons. So, at the gatherings of the church people may see them as great Christians but then at home the real them surfaces. But they can be “nice” even at home when it suits their purposes and then “mean” when it is to their advantage, as well.

 

To the Scriptures

 

The Bible teaches that these kinds of behaviors and words and thoughts come from what is stored up in our hearts. Some people are abusers because they want to be, i.e. it is their choice, but because what is stored up in their hearts is anger and hatred and unforgiveness against someone who they think did them wrong maybe even 50 or 60 years ago, and that anger is still inside of them. But many of them will refuse to face this truth and to get cleansed of what is in their hearts because they won’t surrender their lives over to Jesus Christ, although some will make professions of such.

 

Many or some of them grew up in the gatherings of the church and they know what the Scriptures teach about sin, but even if these things are pointed out to them, and even if they will acknowledge them, then they will turn right around and deny them when they want to sin or when they want to excuse away their sin and so they claim ignorance. But claiming ignorance every time habitually when one is not ignorant is manipulation and it is abuse, and it is just playing mind games and shows no seriousness whatsoever about stopping the sin and having true heart transformations.

 

Now, on our part, if we are the ones following Jesus, and if we are being illtreated by such people, we are to have no fear of them, “for nothing is covered that will not be revealed or hidden that will not be known.” So we are to keep speaking the truth even if we are treated badly in return. And we are not to fear those who kill the body or who may ruin our reputations, etc., but rather we are to walk in the fear of God (see Matt 10:26-31).

 

“So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven” (Matt 10:32-33).

 

[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 Pet 2:24; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10, 15; Tit 2:11-14; Jas 1:21-25; Rom 12:1-2; Eph 2:8-10; Php 2:12-13; Col 1:21-23; Gal 5:16-21; Eph 5:3-6; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 2:6-8; Heb 10:26-27; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Matt 7:21-23; Rev. 2-3; Rev 18:1-6; Rev 21:8, 27; Rev 22:14-15]

 

Listen to Our Hearts

 

Songwriters: Geoff Moore / Steven Chapman

 

How do you explain, how do you describe

A love that goes from east to west

And runs as deep as it is wide?

You know all our hopes,

Lord, you know all our fears.

And words cannot express the love we feel,

But we long for You to hear.

 

So listen to our hearts.

Hear our spirit sing

A song of praise that flows

From those you have redeemed.

We will use the words we know

To tell you what an awesome God You are.

But words are not enough

To tell you of our love,

So listen to our hearts.

 

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

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Let us Bow Down in Worship

Psalms 95:1-5 ESV

 

“Oh come, let us sing to the Lord;

    let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!

Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;

    let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!

For the Lord is a great God,

    and a great King above all gods.

In his hand are the depths of the earth;

    the heights of the mountains are his also.

The sea is his, for he made it,

    and his hands formed the dry land.”

 

I started singing in the gatherings of the church when I was a small child. I have always loved to sing, and I have sung in choirs, ensembles, praise bands, quartets, trios and duets, and I have sung many solos. I have sung in nursing homes and in hospitals and in restaurants and at school and at weddings and funerals, etc. And even in my old age the Lord gave me close to 200 songs to write, and I was the one who sang them, even though my voice was moving more toward just making a joyful noise.

 

But it doesn’t matter what our voices sound like. It doesn’t matter if we can even carry a tune. I have one son who is tone deaf, but I love to hear him sing! Singing to the Lord, though it is certainly nice to be able to sing well, is not about how we sound. It is about what is in our hearts. It is about us truly being in love with Jesus and us wanting to please him, and us wanting to serve and obey him because we love him. When we sing to the Lord it should be a reflection of our walks of faithfulness to our Lord.

 

Psalms 95:6-7 ESV

 

“Oh come, let us worship and bow down;

    let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!

For he is our God,

    and we are the people of his pasture,

    and the sheep of his hand.”

 

But far too many Christians today think of worship only as singing praise and worship songs, or most especially during what is called a “worship service” in a gathering of the church (or what is falsely called church). Yes, singing is part of worship, but we can worship God without singing, and we can sing praise and worship songs and never worship God in truth.

 

I believe the best definition of worship in the Scriptures is found in Romans 12:1-2:

 

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your SPIRITUAL WORSHIP. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

 

For, kneeling before the Lord and bowing down to him is not just a physical act we go through, but it is to be an act of submission to him as Lord (Owner-Master). It is to be an act of surrender of our lives to him and of us taking the position as servant-slaves to him and to his righteousness. It is to be us forsaking our sinful practices to now walking (in conduct, in practice) in obedience to our Lord, and to his ways, and to his commands.

 

For our worship of God, which is acceptable to him, is us surrendering our all to him as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to him. It is us denying self and daily dying to sin, and it is us following our Lord in obedience. And it is us no longer being conformed to the ways of this sinful world, no longer thinking and behaving and talking like the ungodly, no longer doing the kinds of things that the ungodly do in their ungodly ways.

 

We, as followers of Jesus are to be holy in all our conduct, and holy means to be different from the world, to be separate from (unlike) the world because we are being made to be like Jesus in our thinking, attitudes, believing, speaking, and behaving. And people should recognize that we are different and that our lives are all about Jesus and following him and we are not caught up in all the trappings of this sinful world.

 

[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 Pet 2:24; 1 Co 6:19-20; 2 Co 5:15; Tit 2:11-14; Jas 1:22-25; 1 Jn 1:5-9; Rom 12:1-2; Eph 2:8-10; 1 Co 15:58; Php 2:12-13; Col 1:21-23]

 

Psalms 95:7-11 ESV

 

“Today, if you hear his voice,

    do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah,

    as on the day at Massah in the wilderness,

when your fathers put me to the test

    and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work.

For forty years I loathed that generation

    and said, ‘They are a people who go astray in their heart,

    and they have not known my ways.’

Therefore I swore in my wrath,

    ‘They shall not enter my rest.’”

 

Does this sound familiar to you? It should. The words are repeated for us in the New Testament in Hebrews 3 and 4, and the incidents are also referenced for us in 1 Corinthians 10 so that we don’t do what they did. And I find it intriguing that this is being said here right after talking about singing songs of praise to Lord in worship of him, and right after talking about how we need to kneel before God and bow down to him in worship of him.

 

This is a warning to Christians, which says right there that it is possible for us to harden our hearts against the Lord as many of the children of Israel did in the wilderness, and thus they died in the desert, and they did not enter into God’s eternal rest because of their unbelief, because of their disobedience to God in sinning greatly against him and not repenting of their sin and not turning back to the Lord to follow him in obedience.

 

We are to be careful that we don’t get caught up in the trappings of the world and that we don’t wander off from our pure devotion to the Lord to where we now accept living in sin as a normal part of our lives. We must guard against doing what they did, engaging in sexual immorality and in idolatry and revelry, grumbling against God and putting the Lord to the test. Yet these things took place as examples for us, that we might not desire evil as they did, and that we might not harden our hearts against our Lord.

 

And the Lord is saying the same thing to us today, and we are warned about this all throughout the New Testament. If we go astray in our hearts, and if we do not follow in the ways of the Lord, but we go the ways of the flesh, and we end up making sin our practice, and righteousness is not our practice, and we end up living in sin again in disobedience to our Lord, and obedience is not what we practice, we will not inherit the kingdom of God no matter what we profess with our lips. So, please read these Scriptures:

 

[Lu 9:23-26; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 1:28-32; Rom 2:6-8; 1 Co 6:9-10; 2 Co 5:10; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-11; Rom 6:16; Rom 8:3-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 10:26-31; 1 Pet 1:17-21; Jn 15:1-11; Rev. 2-3; Rev 18:1-6; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15; Matt 7:21-23]

 

He Lifted Our Burdens

 

An Original Work / February 15, 2014

Based off Isaiah 9:2-7

 

People walk in darkness.

They abide in their sin.

It has power o’er them.

True belief escapes them.

 

Jesus Christ came to save them.

He gave His life up for them;

Crucified; died for our sin,

So we might be forgiven,

And have life up in heaven.

 

Many come to know Him.

God’s love now o’erflows them.

They rejoice in vict’ry.

Their sin is but hist’ry.

 

We were once bound in slav’ry.

Jesus lifted our burdens;

Set us now free from Satan,

So we now walk in freedom.

Sin has no more dominion.

 

Praise be to our Savior!

He showed us His favor.

He took all our burdens;

Cast them all upon Him.

 

He is our mediator;

The Light which shines in darkness.

Counselor in our troubles;

He gives peace now in our hearts;

Joy which is everlasting.

 

https://vimeo.com/86854416

Evildoers Who Eat Up God's People

Psalms 14:1-3 ESV

 

“The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’

    They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds;

    there is none who does good.

 

The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man,

    to see if there are any who understand,

    who seek after God.

 

They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt;

    there is none who does good,

    not even one.”

 

Those who are thoughtless, irrational, and unwise deny the existence of Almighty God. They are in the flesh, and they are given over to the deeds of the flesh, and therefore they are corrupt, immoral, wicked people who do abominable (loathsome, detestable) deeds such as taking advantage of those weaker than them, using and abusing others, and committing adultery against their spouses without conscience or true remorse.

 

But wait a minute. This also describes perhaps as much as 65% or greater of Christian men, according to statistics, who are regularly engaging in the viewing of pornography and/or are engaged in other sexually immoral activities or evil deeds. And this includes perhaps as many as 35% or greater of pastors, with women joining their ranks, but at a lesser amount, and with children also joining in, too, including children of “Christian” parents. So these include people who profess faith in God, in Jesus Christ.

 

So, this isn’t talking here just about professed atheists. This is talking about anyone who denies God by his deeds and who does what is detestable and abhorrent (inspiring disgust and loathing). They are those who are not truly seeking after God because they are seeking after the flesh, to fulfill the lusts of the flesh. They have all turned aside and together have become corrupt, and even if they do “good deeds,” God does not see them as doing good.

 

And today’s modern market-driven church is just feeding this attitude that they can “believe” in Jesus and yet continue to regularly (habitually) and deliberately choose to sin against God and against their spouses and children, and against other humans. For they are being taught that all their sins are forgiven so they won’t be punished for their sin, or that God can’t even see when they sin, but all he sees is Jesus when he looks at them.

 

But it goes beyond that. They are being taught that they don’t have to surrender their lives to Jesus Christ, and they don’t have to repent of their sins, and they don’t have to walk in obedience to the Lord and to his commands. If they don’t say this outright, which many do, they still teach it when they tell their adherents that they can make a profession of faith in Christ, that all their sins are forgiven, and now heaven is guaranteed them when they die regardless of how they live their lives from now until then.

 

So, the incident described for us in 1 Corinthians 5 about the man in the church who had his father’s wife pales by comparison to the immorality that is running rampant in today’s modern institutional and market-driven churches which are all about appealing to and pacifying the flesh of man rather than putting the flesh of man to death with Christ and then living to God and to his righteousness in the power of God’s Spirit living within. And God is still saying, “Remove the evil person from among you.”

 

Psalms 14:4-6 ESV

 

“Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers

    who eat up my people as they eat bread

    and do not call upon the Lord?

 

There they are in great terror,

    for God is with the generation of the righteous.

You would shame the plans of the poor,

    but the Lord is his refuge.”

 

So, “all the evildoers” includes many who profess faith in Jesus Christ but who are convinced that their immoral and deliberate and habitual acts of rebellion against God, and against other humans, will not impact their salvation and eternal life with God. And so they feel they have the liberty to keep on in their sins and that God will not judge them. And it doesn’t matter to them who they hurt in the process, for it is all about fulfilling their lusts.

 

So, “evildoers” are not just those who make no profession of faith in Jesus Christ who are still living in their sin, but they are all who make a practice of doing evil, who make a practice of sinning and of disobeying God regardless of what faith they profess with their lips. For, according to the Scriptures, we are slaves of whoever or whatever we obey, and if it is sin, it leads to death, but if it is obedience, it leads to righteousness and to eternal life with God.

 

So, God’s people here are not the evildoers, but they are those who are being “eaten up” by these evildoers, and that is happening much in today’s modern market-driven churches. Many of those professing faith in Jesus Christ who are convinced that they can keep on in their deliberate and habitual sins, and that it will not impact their eternal security, are attacking Christians who believe the Scriptures and who are following the Lord in obedience and who are forsaking their sins.

 

But God is with the generation of the righteous, and according to Scripture, the “righteous” are those who make a practice of righteousness, not those who just make a profession of righteousness. For, if sin is what we practice, and if righteousness is not what we practice, and if obedience is not our practice, but disobedience is our practice, and if we do not love our fellow humans, we don’t know God and we don’t have eternal life with God.

 

Psalms 14:7 ESV

 

“Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!

    When the Lord restores the fortunes of his people,

    let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad.”

 

Salvation for all Israel (Jew or Gentile by physical birth who believe in Jesus) has come out of Zion. Jesus Christ, God the Son, died on a cross close to 2,000 years ago. He died to take away our sins. So, when he died he became sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God. So, when he died our sins died with him. But that doesn’t mean that all are saved. Only those with genuine faith in Jesus who are living righteously are saved.

 

Those who make sin their practice, according to Scripture, will not inherit the kingdom of God. Not all who say to God, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who is DOING the will of God the Father in heaven. For, if we walk according to the flesh, we will die in our sins, but if we walk according to the Spirit, then we have eternal life with God. So, it is not the one professing faith in Jesus who is righteous, but it is the one who is living righteously in the power of God’s Spirit living within him.

 

[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 Pet 2:24; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10, 15; Tit 2:11-14; Jas 1:21-25; Rom 12:1-2; Eph 2:8-10; Php 2:12-13; Col 1:21-23; Gal 5:16-21; Eph 5:3-6; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 2:6-8; Heb 10:26-27; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Matt 7:21-23; Rev. 2-3; Rev 18:1-6; Rev 21:8, 27; Rev 22:14-15]

 

He Lifted Our Burdens

 

An Original Work / February 15, 2014

Based off Isaiah 9:2-7

 

People walk in darkness.

They abide in their sin.

It has power o’er them.

True belief escapes them.

 

Jesus Christ came to save them.

He gave His life up for them;

Crucified; died for our sin,

So we might be forgiven,

And have life up in heaven.

 

Many come to know Him.

God’s love now o’erflows them.

They rejoice in vict’ry.

Their sin is but hist’ry.

 

We were once bound in slav’ry.

Jesus lifted our burdens;

Set us now free from Satan,

So we now walk in freedom.

Sin has no more dominion.

 

Praise be to our Savior!

He showed us His favor.

He took all our burdens;

Cast them all upon Him.

 

He is our mediator;

The Light which shines in darkness.

Counselor in our troubles;

He gives peace now in our hearts;

Joy which is everlasting.

 

https://vimeo.com/86854416

Loneliness and Longing

An Original Work / March 30, 2022

Loneliness and longing

Want to feel belonging

Searching for direction

Asking God a question

What on earth’s my purpose?

Am I just a goofus? 

Do I really matter?

Am I torn and tattered?

Am I just a nothing?

Or do I have something

In me that is useful?

Can I now be fruitful?

Jesus has the answer

He is now your purpose

He’ll give you direction,

Answering your questions.

He gave His life for you

So you’d walk in His truth

Set you free from your sin

So you’d be forgiven

He says turn from your sin

Walk in His ways, in Him

Follow where He leads you

He will be to you true

Fellowship with Him now

Before Him your heart bow

Make Him Lord and Master

Not ‘twill be disaster

Peace and joy He’ll give you

He’ll show you what is true

Show you what’s your purpose

To give Him your worship

Encourage the Body of Christ

Jesus Christ, God the Son, had just been crucified on a cross for our sins, and on the third day he was resurrected from the dead by God the Father. After his resurrection Jesus appeared to some of the women, who had followed him prior to his death, and to his disciples, and to many other people, so his disciples had seen him more than once since his resurrection. And now he appeared to some of them again while they were fishing.

 

Just as day was breaking Jesus stood on the shore, yet his disciples did not know that it was Jesus. And he called out to them and asked them if they had any fish, but they had caught nothing. So he told them to cast their net on the right side of the boat, and they would find some. So, they did as he said, and they caught so many fish they were not able to haul them all in. And then John recognized Jesus, and then the disciples came to shore.

 

John 21:15-17 ESV

 

When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.” He said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.”

 

In Context

 

Now, backing up a little here to give this context, Peter had declared to Jesus before Jesus was arrested that he (Peter) would lay down his life for Jesus. But Jesus told him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the rooster will not crow till you have denied me three times” (John 13:38). And after Jesus was arrested, Peter indeed denied Jesus three times, the third time vehemently, and then the rooster crowed. And Peter remembered Jesus’ words, and he wept bitterly (Matthew 26:69-75).

 

Now, I wanted to understand what this word “deny” meant then, so I looked the word up on biblehub.com in their interlinear. And I found that it means to “repudiate” (reject, disavow, renounce), “refuse” (decline, snub), and “contradict, refuse to affirm or confess or to identify with, and to disown” (cast off, cast aside). So, this was no light matter. This was a serious offense against the Lord, and Peter did it 3 times as Jesus said he would.

 

Now, I find it interesting that Jesus then asked Peter 3 times to affirm his love for him. Not only that but remember that the third time that Peter denied Jesus he did so vehemently (“in a forceful, passionate, or intense manner; with great feeling” – Oxford definition). And the third time Peter affirmed his love for Jesus he did so grieved in his spirit that Jesus asked him this a third time. So he answered with great passion and emotion.

 

What About Us?

 

Have you ever denied Jesus? Maybe you didn’t do it verbally or passionately like Peter did, but have you ever been embarrassed to mention his name or to let people know that you know him? Have you ever snubbed him when you knew he was talking to you? Or do you cast him aside and live your life however you want? Or do you not talk about him with your friends out of fear of being rejected? There are so many ways we can deny Jesus.

 

And we don’t deny Jesus just with our words or with our silence but we deny him with our actions when we do the opposite of what we know is right, and when we refuse to listen to him when he says, “Stop! Don’t go there!” We deny him when we refuse to make him Lord (Owner-Master) of our lives and when we barely spend time with him or acknowledge him throughout our days. And we disown him when we choose sin over him and when we refuse to walk in obedience to his commands.

 

Do We Love Him?

 

So, Jesus asked Peter 3 times if Peter loved Jesus, and Peter verbally affirmed his love for Jesus. But then what was Jesus’ reply to him? He said, “Feed my lambs.” “Tend my sheep.” “Feed my sheep.” They all mean the same thing. Peter was to nurture spiritually the body of Christ, those who trusted in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of their lives. He was to teach them what it means to be a Christian and to help them to grow to maturity in their walks of faith in Jesus Christ.

 

But before I get into what that entails, I want to point out the fact that Jesus told Peter that if he loved him, basically that he was to do what Jesus said. It involved action on his part, not just words, for love is not just words, and it isn’t just emotions (what we feel), but love is what we do, and so is hate. Our actions speak louder than words and they reveal what is in our hearts towards other people, whether it be love or hate.

 

So, what kind of actions are required of us if we love Jesus or if we say we love Jesus? The Bible says if we love Jesus that we will keep (obey) his commands (his teachings and the teachings of his New Testament Apostles and anything he leads and guides us to do under the direction of his Holy Spirit). And one of the things he does ask us to do is to minister to the body of Christ to help one another to grow (mature) in our walks of faith.

 

And he says we are to be the light of the world and the salt of the earth and that we are to proclaim the excellencies of Him who called us out of darkness into his wonderful light. And we are to be making disciples of Christ of people of all nations, teaching them to obey our Lord’s commands. And when the Holy Spirit enters into us we are his witnesses for good or for bad, for we represent him and others judge Jesus by us and by how we live.

 

So, it isn’t just Peter who was to feed the Lord’s sheep, but we are to do that, too. We are to be speaking to one another in Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, and we are to speak the truth in love to one another and work together as the body of Christ to help one another reach maturity in Christ. And we are to exhort (a holy urging) one another daily so that none of us may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.

 

We need to show the same grace to others as God shows us, and his grace does not pacify people in their sin or give the addicted to sin a pass. His grace instructs us to say “NO!” to ungodliness and fleshly passions and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives while we wait our Lord’s soon return. And we need to be helping one another to do that via exhortation and holy urgings and speaking the truth in love to one another.

 

[Rom 12:1-8; 1 Co 12:1-31; Eph 4:1-16; Eph 5:17-21; Col 3:16; Heb 3:13; 1 Pet 2:9; Matt 5:13-16; Matt 28:18-20; Acts 1:8; Acts 26:18; Tit 2:11-14]

 

Glorious Grace 

 

An Original Work / August 8, 2012

Based off Ephesians 1:3-10 NIV

 

Praise be to God, the Father of Jesus,

Who has blessed us in heavenly realms.

For He chose us in Him from beginning

To be His holy children of God;

All in accord with His will and pleasure;

To the praise of His glorious grace.

 

In Jesus Christ we receive forgiveness.

We have redemption through His shed blood.

Glorious grace God freely has given us

In the One He loves and adores;

All in accord with the riches of His grace

Which He pours out on those He loves.

 

With all His wisdom and understanding,

God has made known His will unto us,

According to His will and good pleasure,

Purposed in Christ till all be fulfilled;

To bring all things on earth and in heaven

Under our Lord Christ; be unified.

 

https://vimeo.com/119441766

He was Smitten by God

Isaiah 53:3-6 ESV

 

He was despised and rejected by men,

    a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;

and as one from whom men hide their faces

    he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Surely he has borne our griefs

    and carried our sorrows;

yet we esteemed him stricken,

    smitten by God, and afflicted.

But he was pierced for our transgressions;

    he was crushed for our iniquities;

upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,

    and with his wounds we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray;

    we have turned—every one—to his own way;

and the Lord has laid on him

    the iniquity of us all.

 

He Became Sin for Us

 

When Jesus Christ, God the Son, died on that cross for our sins he became sin for us so that when he died he put our sins to death with him. So, him being smitten by God was also sin being smitten by God. Through Jesus’ death on that cross God put our sin to death so that he might free us from our slavery to sin and so that we might walk in his ways and in his truth and in his righteousness in obedience to his commands (New Covenant).

 

But not everyone is healed. Not everyone is living in peace with God. Just because Jesus died on that cross and put our sin to death with him it does not mean that sin is put to death in us. And just because we might make a profession of faith in Jesus Christ, it does not mean sin has been put to death in us. We have to cooperate with God in his work of grace in our lives. It is not automatic just because of what Jesus did in dying for our sins.

 

And this also is not a one-time experience that happens in our lives which guarantees us heaven when we die regardless of how we live our lives from now until we die. Daily we must, by the Spirit, be putting sin to death and be walking in obedience to our Lord. For God’s grace instructs us and trains us to say “NO!” to ungodliness and fleshly lusts and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives while we wait for Jesus’ soon return.

 

For Jesus died on that cross 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. He shed his blood for us on that cross to buy us back for God (to redeem us) so we would now honor God with our lives. And Jesus died to free us from our slavery (addiction) to sin so we would now be slaves of God and of his righteousness.

 

[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 Pet 2:24; 1 Co 6:19-20; 2 Co 5:15; Tit 2:11-14; Jas 1:22-25; 1 Jn 1:5-9; Rom 12:1-2; Eph 2:8-10; 1 Co 15:58; Php 2:12-13; Col 1:21-23]

 

Our Response to What Jesus Did

 

The Scriptures do not teach that we can just pray a prayer to receive Christ as Savior of our lives and now our sins are forgiven and heaven is guaranteed us when we die no matter how we live from now on. The Scriptures teach that we must be crucified with Christ in death to sin and be raised with Christ to WALK in newness of life in Him, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

 

Yes, this is of God! Yes, we can’t do this in our own flesh. But it doesn’t happen without our full cooperation. And it doesn’t end there. We are to now consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus, and we are to not let sin (our choice, our actions) reign in our mortal bodies, to make us obey its passions (our choice, our actions). We are now to present ourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and our members (body parts) as instruments of righteousness (of holy and godly living).

 

Now we must WALK (in practice) not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit, for if we walk (in conduct, in practice) according to the flesh, we will not inherit the kingdom of God. We will not have eternal life with God. If sin is what we practice, and if righteousness is not what we practice, and if we do not practice obedience to our Lord but disobedience is our practice, we do not know God and we do not have heaven as our eternal destiny.

 

For, Jesus said that if anyone would come after him, he must deny self, take up his cross daily (daily die with him to sin) and follow (obey) him. And Paul taught that the truth that is in Christ Jesus is that we must put off our old self, which belongs to our former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of our minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. And we are to no longer live like the ungodly.

 

[Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Lu 9:23-26; Eph 4:17-24; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Gal 5:16-21; Eph 5:3-6; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 2:6-8; Heb 10:26-27; 1 Co 6:9-10; 2 Co 5:10; Matt 7:21-23; Rev 21:8, 27; Rev 22:14-15]

 

A False Grace and Gospel and Church

 

It is sad to say, though, that most people professing Christ as Savior today in America do not follow those Scriptures and what they teach with regard to our salvation and our eternal life with God. They cherry pick a few Scriptures they like which they largely take out of context, and they build their own gospel of grace that is of the flesh of man and not of God, and which was created to appeal to and to appease human flesh, not to please God.

 

Not only that, but before that or in connection with that they recreated what church is now, too, for they turned the body of Christ into institutions of men and into corporations under the state, and they are marketing “the church” like any other business or product. Thus they appeal to the felt needs of the people and to their fleshly desires, and so they have altered the gatherings of the church to draw in large crowds of people from the world.

 

Thus they are now largely just businesses of men which are about entertaining and appealing to the world. Thus they also altered the gospel of Jesus Christ by removing God’s requirements for surrender to him as Lord (Owner-Master), and for repentance (forsaking our lives of sin), and for obedience to his commands (New Covenant) and to walking in his ways and in his truth. And they chose the ways of the world and of the flesh over the ways of God and of righteousness and holiness.

 

So, God is calling out to his people to listen to him, to test what they are hearing against the whole counsel of God (his word in context), to reject the lies of the enemy, and to follow him in truth. But it appears that most are not listening, and they are still holding on to the lies, and they are still going their own way, and they are still holding on to their institutional churches with their worldly and fleshly gatherings and they are not returning to God.

 

Even though God has been disciplining them, and he has been correcting the lies and proclaiming the truth through his servants, still most professers of faith in Jesus in America seem to be going on, business as usual, with no concern that how they are living will not end in eternal life with God because they refuse the truth and they embrace the lies. And the addicted to sin are still descending, still not responding to the voice of the Lord calling them to repentance and to surrender to him as Lord. They are accepting the supplanter in place of God’s true grace, and they are continuing in sin.

 

But God is still calling out to his church to “leave Babylon” so that she does not share in her sins and punishment, for her sins are piled high to heaven, and God is judging and will judge her even more. He is calling out to his adulterous and wayward people to return to him as their only Lord, but again, most appear to not be responding to his calls, and they are continuing as they have been. And he is calling to all who have forsaken his ways and his commands to repent and to turn back to him in obedience to his will.

 

For Our Nation 

 

An Original Work / September 11, 2012

 

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.

 

https://vimeo.com/379406352

How to Know Christian or Non-Christian

Question: What’s the main difference between a believer in Jesus and an unbeliever, or a Christian and a non-Christian?

 

Answer: The Scriptures define a true believer as one who forsakes sin and follows Jesus in obedience, and it defines unbelievers as those still walking in sin who do not obey the Lord (See 1 John 1, 2, & 3; Rom 6 & 8; Eph 4:17-32; Tit 2:11-14; Luke 9:23-26; Gal 5:16-21; Rom 2:6-8; etc.)

 

This was the gist of a question that was asked on Twitter (social media) by a fellow Tweeter, and this is the response the Lord led me to give to him. But then the Lord encouraged me to expand on that answer here because it is a legitimate question, and not everyone knows the answer. But where we get our answer to that question is in the Scriptures, in their context, not in one or two select verses taken out of their context.

 

The Answer is in The Scriptures

 

So, let’s start with Romans 6. If we believe in Jesus Christ with God-given faith we are crucified with Christ in death to sin and we are raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him. 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 (addicted) to sin. So, we are to consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

 

Therefore, we are to no longer allow sin to reign in our mortal bodies, to make us obey its passions. For sin shall have no dominion over us since we have been saved by God’s grace. And then we need to know this, that we are slaves to whom we obey, either of SIN, which leads to DEATH, or of OBEDIENCE, which leads to righteousness, and to sanctification, which then ENDS IN ETERNAL LIFE with God.

 

And then let’s look at Romans 8. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh for sin, God the Father condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, WHO WALK NOT ACCORDING TO THE FLESH BUT ACCORDING TO THE SPIRIT. For those who live according to the flesh set their mind on the things of the flesh, and to set the mind on the flesh is DEATH, but to set the mind on the Spirit is LIFE and peace.

 

So, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if we live according to the flesh, WE WILL DIE, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the flesh, YOU WILL LIVE. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are God’s children. And if we are being led by the Spirit that means that we are following the Spirit, and to follow means to OBEY.

 

And then let’s look at Ephesians 4. There we learn that we must NO LONGER WALK (in conduct, in practice) as the ungodly do, giving ourselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. For the truth that is in Christ Jesus instructs us 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” (Eph 4:17-24).

 

Then let’s look at Titus 2. God’s grace, which brings salvation, trains (teaches, instructs, commands) 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 soon return. For Jesus 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 (See Titus 2:11-14).

 

Then, let’s look at what Jesus said in Luke 9:23-26. He said that if we want to come after him, we must deny self and take up our cross daily (DAILY DIE TO SIN) and follow (OBEY) him. For if we would save our lives (hold on to our old lives of living in sin and for self) we will lose them, but if we lose our lives for Jesus’ sake (die with him to sin), we will save our lives, i.e. we will have eternal life with God. But if we are ashamed of Jesus and of his gospel, he will be ashamed of us when he returns.

 

And let’s look at Galatians 5. It says if we WALK (in conduct, in practice) by the Spirit, we will NOT GRATIFY the desires of the flesh, and to walk by the Spirit involves forsaking our sins and walking in obedience to our Lord. And then it talks about the WORKS OF THE FLESH which include sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, drunkenness, orgies, etc. And then we are warned that if we PRACTICE such things that we WILL NOT INHERIT THE KINGDOM OF GOD.

 

And here is Romans 2:6-8 ESV: “He will render to each one ACCORDING TO HIS WORKS: to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give ETERNAL LIFE; but for those who are self-seeking and DO NOT OBEY THE TRUTH, but obey unrighteousness, there will be WRATH AND FURY.

 

And now we will look at 1 John 1,2,&3. 1 John 1 says if we say we have fellowship (intimacy in relationship) with God while we WALK (in conduct, in practice) in DARKNESS (sin, wickedness), we LIE and do not practice the truth. But if we WALK in the LIGHT (Jesus, truth, righteousness) the blood of Jesus CLEANSES US from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, but if we confess (have the same mind as God about) our sin, which requires repentance and obedience, then God forgives our sins.

 

1 John 2 says, “And by this we know that we have come to know him, IF WE KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS. Whoever says ‘I know him’ but does NOT KEEP his commandments IS A LIAR, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected” (1 John 2:3-5). This means that if you do not obey the commandments of God (New Covenant) as a matter of practice, you DON’T KNOW HIM.

 

And lastly, 1 John 3 says that everyone who makes a PRACTICE OF SINNING also practices lawlessness. No one who abides in Christ KEEPS ON SINNING (as a matter of practice). But whoever practices RIGHTEOUSNESS is righteous as Christ is righteous. Whoever practices sinning (habitually, addictively) is of the devil. No one born of God makes a practice (habit) of sinning. See 1 John 3:4-10.

 

Putting it All Together

 

Now, if you put that all together as one complete picture of our salvation from sin you should be able to see clearly what I stated in the beginning of this which is that “The Scriptures define a true believer as one who forsakes sin and follows Jesus in obedience, and it defines unbelievers as those still walking in sin who do not obey the Lord.” And here are some of the same and some additional Scriptures to consider, as well, on this subject:

 

[Jn 8:31-32; Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 11:17-24; 1 Co 15:2; 2 Tim 2:10-13; Heb 3:6,14-15; 2 Pet 1:1-11; 2 Pet 2:20-22; 1 Jn 2:24-25; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 1:28-32; Rom 2:6-8; 1 Co 6:9-10; 2 Co 5:10; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Heb 12:1-2; Jn 6:44; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-11; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:3-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 10:26-31; Jn 15:1-11; Rev. 2-3; Rev 18:1-6; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

 

For Our Nation  

 

An Original Work / September 11, 2012

 

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.

 

https://vimeo.com/379406352

Don't Get Bitter, Get Better

Ephesians 4:30-32 ESV

 

“And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”

 

Guard Your Hearts

 

We have to guard our hearts daily against all these things. People are going to do things that will hurt us, whether they do so intentionally or not. We are going to hear about injustices and crimes which may anger us. We may be discerning of what we know are lies because we can test what is being said against the truth and we hate lies like God hates lies. But we have to be so careful that we don’t internalize these things and let them fester within us.

 

Especially since we live in such a wicked world, and because so much of this wicked world has infiltrated the gatherings of the church, and because so many pastors today, at least here in America, are wolves in sheep’s clothing and/or they have bought into the lies of Satan which they are spreading to their people, and because we have government heads who lie to us and who betray us the people, and a news media which lies to us, too, it can be so easy to become terribly cynical and to internalize all that we are feeling.

 

Yet, this doesn’t negate the reality that all these things are definitely taking place, and it is not to minimize the seriousness of the situations at all. And this certainly is not recommending that we put on blinders and just pretend that these things are not happening in our world and in the church. And this is not a call to be people of silence who do not address these issues and who do not call for justice and mercy, and who do not expose the fruitless deeds of darkness and call for repentance and obedience to our Lord.

 

But we can’t hold on to these things in our hearts. We have to watch that we don’t become bitter in our spirits, for that is what Satan wants. When these things arise, which they will, we have to let go of them and release them to the Lord. And then we must let him lead us in what we need to do and in what we should say, and in how we should respond to these difficult and troubled circumstances. And we need to pray for these people who have hurt us and/or who are doing all this evil, and we must forgive them all.

 

Put Them All Away

 

When and if we allow bitterness to build up in our hearts and in our spirits, and when and if we willfully and deliberately hold on to hurt feelings to where we refuse to forgive, and to where we desire to get even with our offenders, and to where we end up slandering them in return, or we end up treating them badly in return for what they did to us, or in return for what we may perceive they did to us, that grieves God’s Holy Spirit.

 

Not only do our thoughts, attitudes, and actions grieve God’s Holy Spirit, because we are not acting in love, but in hate, but this ends up damaging our relationships with other people, and we end up hurting ourselves, too. And if these things continue to fester within us and to take hold of our lives, they may lead to all sorts of physical problems for us, too, such as heart attacks or hypertension or stomach ulcers, although these things are not necessarily all associated with bitter spirits, though they can be.

 

But the point of all this is that if we do not put these things all away from us, and we willfully allow them to fester within us and to hold on to them to the point of anger and hate and resentment and bitterness, they are not only going to grieve God’s Holy Spirit, but they will hinder our walks of faith and fellowship with our Lord and with the body of Christ, and our attitudes and actions and words are bound to be reflective of what is stored up in our hearts, for the Bible tells us so (Lu 6:45; Matt 15:17-20).

 

And not only because it is the right thing to do, and because it is the godly thing to do, but in order to counteract any temptation toward bitterness of spirit we must do the opposite of what we may be tempted to do. We must be kind to one another, even to those who treat us badly, and even to those who do evil against us. And this isn’t something we fake, although some people do while they still hold on to the bitterness. This has to be genuine, from our hearts, out of a desire to truly love others like God loves us.

 

And when we put away from our lives and our hearts all these bad and evil things, and when we yield to the Holy Spirit’s control, we will naturally love others and we will be able to smile and even enjoy the company of those who have done us evil, providing, of course, that they are not in the process of doing us evil at the time. For, I am not saying we should ever take pleasure in evil. But we can genuinely love and care for even our enemies and take pleasure in doing good to them with genuine heartfelt joy.

 

And all this is possible because of what Jesus Christ did for us in dying on a cross for our sins so that we could die with him to sin and live to him and to his righteousness. All this is possible because even while we were yet sinners and we were enemies of God, Jesus Christ, God the Son, died for us on that cross to free us from our slavery to sin so that we might now become slaves of God and of his righteousness and live in victory over sin in the joy of the Lord and with love for others as God loves us.

 

Jesus did not die for us because of our goodness. He didn’t do good for us because we were first doing good for him. And we should do likewise. We should love even our enemies, even those who do evil against us. And we should not let a bitter spirit develop within our hearts. But we must let all the pain go, and let God heal, and we must forgive, and we must pray for those who have persecuted or done evil against us and we must do good for them, in return, but “good” according to God, not according to the flesh.

 

[Matt 5:8-12,43-48; Matt 7:12; Lu 6:27-36; Jn 13:33-35; 1 Jn 4:7; Rom 12:9-11,14-21; Prov 24:17-20; Prov 25:21-22; 1 Co 13:1-8; 1 Co 16:14]

 

I Pray for Them

 

An Original Work / June 4, 2013

Based off John 17

 

“Glorify Your Son, that Your Son

May glorify our God in heav’n.

Father, You granted Him all power

And all authority over men,

That He might give eternal life

To all those whom now

You have given Him.”

 

“This now then is eternal life:

That they may know You,

Father, and Your Son;

That they may know the only true God,

And Jesus Christ whom the Father sent.

I have brought You the glory by

Finishing the work that You’ve given Me.”

 

“I have shown You to those whom

You gave to Me out of the world;

They were Yours. You gave them to Me

And they have obeyed Your words

And they accepted them. They knew

That I came from You, and they believed

With certainty, I was sent.”

 

“Holy Father, I pray for them by the

Power of Your name: Protect them,

So that they may be one as we are,

For they are still living in this world.

I have given them Your word;

Because of Your word, the world

Has hated them.”

 

“I pray they may have the full measure of

My joy now living within them.

Father, I pray You sanctify them

By Your word; truly Your word is truth.

As You sent Me into the world,

I send them to tell the world to repent.”

 

https://vimeo.com/116141024