Have You Kept the Faith?

“For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.” (2 Timothy 4:6-8 ESV)

This was the apostle Paul speaking. And before he became the apostle Paul, when he was called Saul, he was a persecutor of the church, of those who put their faith and their trust in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of their lives. For he was convinced that they were a false sect which was opposed to Judaism and to God and that they needed to be stopped. But he was wrong, and Jesus (in a vision) one day met him on the road to Damascus where he was headed to persecute even more Christians, and the rest is history.

The man who had once been a persecutor of Christians was now a firm believer in Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior, and who worshipped the one and only true God – Father, Son Jesus Christ, and Holy Spirit. Now he was among the persecuted for his faith in the Lord Jesus. For now he was a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ, called of God to take the full message of the gospel of our salvation to the Jews and to the Gentiles. And this was his calling of God given him through the words of Jesus Christ:

“But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—to whom I am sending you to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’” (Acts 26:16-18 ESV)

And to turn from darkness to light is to turn away from our sins to now follow Jesus Christ, who is the Light, and to walk in the light of his righteousness and of his gospel message, in obedience to his commands. And to turn from the power of Satan to God is to be crucified with Christ in death to sin and raised with him to walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin. So we are not to let sin reign anymore in our mortal bodies, to make us obey its passions. For if sin is what we obey, it leads to death. But if we obey obedience to God, its end is eternal life with God.

[Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Titus 2:11-14; Ephesians 4:17-24]

But, when Saul became the apostle Paul, and he began teaching the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ to the people, he then became the enemy of many who opposed his message, just as he had once opposed that message, too. And so he was hated, persecuted, chastised, beaten, falsely accused of wrong, and falsely imprisoned, although not for any wrong that he had done, but only because he was sharing with the people the message of Jesus Christ and of his gospel of salvation.

But he did not let that stop him, even when others who had once supported him abandoned him and turned against him, and when those who once followed him were being led astray by false teachers, and so many of them were beginning to doubt his words and to believe the lies. In all of this, in all the beatings and persecutions and false accusations against his character, he remained faithful to the Lord in serving the Lord and in continuing to share the true message of the gospel of our salvation.

But at this point in his ministry, he was convinced that he did not have much longer to live. He knew that his enemies were plotting his demise, and so he gave his parting words to Timothy, his brother in Christ and his fellow servant and laborer in the teaching of the true gospel of our salvation. But so strong was his faith that he could say that he had “fought the good fight,” and that he had “finished the race,” and he had “kept the faith.” And now what awaited him was the “crown of righteousness” given him by the Lord.

But this wasn’t for Paul alone. This treasure in heaven awaits all who love the Lord Jesus Christ, who have been crucified with him in death to sin, and who have been raised with him to walk in newness of life in him, no longer as slaves to sin, but as slaves of God and of his righteousness. This is what awaits all of us who are walking in obedience to his commands, in practice, and who are no longer walking in sin. This is our hope of eternal life with God in heaven for all who, in truth, love and long for his appearing.

But sadly, not everyone who professes the name of Jesus Christ belongs to Christ. Not all who say, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only those DOING (obeying) the will of God the Father, which is expressed for us in his written word, the Scriptures. For all who continue walking in sin, and not in righteousness and holiness, and not in faithful walks of obedience to our Lord and to his commands, they do not know God. They are not in fellowship with God, and they do not have eternal life with God. 

So, please take this time, if you have not already, to examine your own hearts before the Lord Jesus and to ask him if your lives are surrendered to him as Lord, and if you are walking in his ways, in his truth, in his righteousness, and in obedience to his commands, in practice. Are your daily lives committed to him and to his will for your lives, or are you still living for the sinful pleasures of the flesh and for what you want out of life? Can you honestly say with Paul that you have fought the good fight, and finished the race, and kept the faith? Or are you still living for your own pleasure?

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Peter 1:15; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

As the Deer 

By Martin J. Nystrom

Based off Psalm 42:1

As the deer panteth for the water

 So my soul longeth after You

 You alone are my heart's desire

 And I long to worship You

You alone are my strength, my shield

 To You alone may my spirit yield

 You alone are my heart's desire

 And I long to worship You

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZv3jzOTE70

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Traffic Jam

Stopped up traffic, where to go?

Where’s the answers? Do you know?

Pitter-patter, quick and light,

Truth has taken a big flight.

Easy road takes you around,

Where the truth not to be found.

Flitter-flatter, do their tricks,

Play their games and pick up sticks.

All’s a game, they do the same,

Lies they tell are really lame.

Make up things, they go along,

To the Lord they not belong.

Stand in pulpits, now on stage,

Do what now is all the rage,

Entertain them, bring them back,

But the truth they surely lack.

Draw them in with what’s in vogue,

Treat them to a little joke,

Show a movie, play a game,

Make sure that they stay the same.

Truth not tell them, oh, not dare,

Much too hard for them to bear.

Make it easy, make it smooth,

So their consciences they soothe. 

Make God to be just like them,

They will think him quite a gem,

Laughing, joking, ease their pain,

So in sin they will remain.

Not your game, oh do you tell?

You not buy what they do sell?

Truth, it matters to you, then?

Move that traffic! Truth then send.

An Original Work / August 13, 2022

TikTok Not

“I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.” (2 Timothy 4:1-5 ESV)

Today, here in America, we live in a “tiktok” generation where everything keeps getting shorter and shorter and shorter. The truth, righteousness, holiness, godliness, moral purity, the character of God, the character of HIS church, and the character of HIS gospel message are all being shortened. They are all being diluted and altered to make them more acceptable to the people of the world. But the shorter they get, the more they are lacking in truth, the truth that is greatly missing and greatly needed in our time.

Now “short” doesn’t always mean lacking in truth and righteousness. The Lord gives me songs and poems and memes to write, too, which are definitely shorter than these devotions which he also gives me to write. And they can convey the truth, too. But one of the dangers of teaching the Scriptures in too short of words can be that the words are taken out of context, and they can be twisted to say what they don’t say if they are taught in their full context. So sometimes we need more explanation.

But I think we need to ask ourselves the question, “Why do things keep getting shorter and shorter?” I have even noticed that some (or many) music artists are doing these “short” videos where they sing only a small portion of their songs, and not the whole song. Why is that? Why has “short” become so popular today, and anything of any length at all is being rejected as “too long”? Are we humans now not capable any more of reading anything beyond a paragraph or more? 

But, again, I think we should ask ourselves why everything is getting shorter. What purpose does it serve? Well, the purpose could be good, but the purpose could be evil. But I see a greater risk for evil than for good because the shorter the message is the more it is lacking in depth and the easier it is to deceive. And, personally, I believe that is the purpose, not that it is your purpose, but that whoever has marketed “shorter” is “better” has not a good purpose in mind, especially according to the evidence at hand.

For we now live in a generation, again, where the character of God and of his church and of his gospel are all being shortened and altered to make them more acceptable to the people of the world. And so we see a lot of memes and other forms of short gospel messages which, by their shortness, cut the necessary elements of the gospel short, while they say what itching ears want to hear and what makes people feel good emotionally, and what appeases human flesh and what attracts the ungodly of the world.

But we who are to present the truth of the gospel need to present the truth of the gospel and not cut the message so short that it is lacking in the necessary elements of the gospel message. For I hear or read so many messages which are all about the goodness of God and what he has done and what he will do for us, which is good, but while they leave out entirely what is required of us in the way of repentance and walks of obedience and holiness and surrender to our Lord as Master of our lives.

And so many of these shorter messages willfully take Scriptures out of their context in order to distort what they say, and to teach what they do not say if taught in the appropriate context. A few examples of this are Ephesians 2:8-9 absent of verse 10, and John 10:28-30 absent of verse 27 which tells us who these verses apply to. And then we have Romans 10:9-10 taken totally out of the context of the whole of Romans, particularly missing the messages in Romans 6 and in Romans 8. And that is deceptive.

Now, again, not everything that is “short” is bad. And not everything that has any length to it is bad, either. Either one can be bad or good depending upon the message being conveyed. But the shorter it is the greater risk there is for not giving the full message of the gospel, and the greater opportunity there is for people to twist the Scriptures to their advantage and to deceive and to promote misimpressions (indirect lies), which are harder to prove. And there is much evidence of this in so many social media memes.

Now all of us who believe in Jesus Christ are to preach (proclaim) the excellencies of him who called us out of darkness into his wonderful light. We are all to be the light of the world and the salt of the earth in preserving and in shining the light of the truth of the gospel to the people of the world. For we, as the Lord’s disciples, are to make disciples of Christ of people of all nations, baptizing them (where possible) and teaching them to obey all that our Lord has commanded us. And we are all to be his witnesses in taking the message of the gospel to the people of the world, but the true gospel.

[Matt 5:13-16; Matt 28:18-20; John 4:31-38; John 13:13-17; John 14:12; Acts 1:8; Acts 26:18; Rom 10:14-15; 1 Pet 2:9,21; 1 John 2:6]

Now we should all be aware that Jesus Christ was/is God the Son, the second person of our triune God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and that he always existed with God, and that he is our creator God. But he left his throne in heaven, came to earth, and was born as a human baby to a human mother, but conceived of the Holy Spirit. So while he lived on the earth he was God incarnate, both fully man and fully God. And at the age of 33 he was crucified on a cross to die for the sins of the entire world.

[Isaiah 53:1-12; Matt 7:21-23; Matt 26:26-29; Lu 9:23-26; Lu 17:25; Jn 1:1-36; Jn 6:35-58; Jn 8:24,58; Jn 10:27-33; Jn 20:28-29; Rom 5:8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 9:5; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 11:23-32; 1 Co 15:1-8; 2 Co 5:15,21; Eph 4:17-24; Php 2:5-11; Col 2:9; Tit 2:11-14; Heb 1:8-9; Heb 2:14-15; Heb 4:15; 1 Pet 2:24; 2 Pet 1:1; 1 John 3:4-10]  

But Jesus did not give his life up for us on that cross just so we could be forgiven our sins, and just so we could go to heaven when we die. He died that we might die to sin and live to righteousness, that we might deny self, die daily to sin, and walk in obedience to his commands, and that we might no longer walk in sin. So if we profess him as Lord with our lips, but we continue walking in sin, and not in righteousness, and not in obedience to his commands, then we don’t know him, and we don’t have eternal life in him. And that is the essence of the message of the gospel of Christ. See:

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Peter 1:15; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

As the Deer 

By Martin J. Nystrom

Based off Psalm 42:1

As the deer panteth for the water

 So my soul longeth after You

 You alone are my heart's desire

 And I long to worship You

You alone are my strength, my shield

 To You alone may my spirit yield

 You alone are my heart's desire

 And I long to worship You

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZv3jzOTE70

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The Letters

Some of us, who call ourselves Christians today, may identify with one of these seven churches in Revelation more than others. Some of us may be ones who do a lot of the right things but we have forsaken our Lord because we are operating from the flesh and not from the Spirit of God. We may have a lot of things right, but we have not truly submitted our lives to our Lord Jesus Christ to walk in his Spirit and to deny our flesh. 

Others of us may be part of a church group where we know the leaders are teaching a false gospel, which gives people a license to participate in immorality, and yet we say nothing and do nothing, so by our silence we stand in agreement with the false hope they are giving to people and in agreement with them leading people into sin and to deny their Lord. 

Some of us may give the appearance of righteousness, but really inside we are spiritually about to die or we are already dead, so what we present on the outside is just a façade. 

And, then some of us may be among those who are truly following Jesus Christ with our lives, and who are giving out the gospel of Jesus Christ so that others may know Christ in his fullness. And we are among those who are being persecuted, accused falsely, gossiped about, rejected, mocked, criticized and perhaps even killed for our faith in Christ. 

These letters were written to encourage, to give hope, to exhort, and to warn us, as well as to call many to repentance and to renewed faith so that they will now give genuine testimony for Jesus Christ, our Lord.

The Letters 

An Original Work / December 17, 2013

Based off Revelation 2-3

To the angels of all the churches write:

These are the words of your Lord and your God.

I know all your deeds, and your witness, too,

And who holds to My words and tells what’s true.

I know all your hard work and your perseverance,

Yet I hold against you: you’ve forsaken Me. 

Listen to what I say to you.

You have people there who deny My name,

And who put the cross of Christ up to shame.

They entice the people to Me, profane,

And their worship of Me is all in vain.

They are so adult’rous as they chase their idols,

And you put up with them easily enough.

Listen to what I say to you.

You give off an image of godliness,

But what you present is so fraudulent,

Or else you lack passion for Jesus Christ, 

So you look to others to tell what’s right.

I say turn from your sin, or you will face judgment.

He who overcomes will have eternal life.

Listen to what I say to you.

I know your afflictions and poverty;

How you suffer for your Lord patiently.

Do not fear the devil and company.

You be faithful to your Lord endlessly.

I know all your weakness and your dedication.

You have kept My Word and not denied your Lord.

I will write on you My new name. 

https://vimeo.com/114655138 

All Who Desire to Live a Godly Life

“You, however, have followed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness, my persecutions and sufferings that happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, and at Lystra—which persecutions I endured; yet from them all the Lord rescued me. Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:10-17 ESV)

Now, to understand the context here, it would be good if you could read 2 Timothy 3:1-9 which the Lord had me write about in the devotion, “Times of Difficulty Have Come.” But briefly, what it talked about there was the last days before the return of Christ and how bad things will be then, which are really now. And it talked about how people will be lovers of self and not lovers of God, and arrogant, heartless, unholy, and immoral, etc. And it spoke of men corrupted of mind, disqualified regarding the faith, who oppose the truth and who lead other people into sin. That is where we are now.

In contrast to that, we who follow Jesus Christ with our lives are to be those who follow the teachings of Christ and of his NT apostles and who model our lives after the likeness of character of Jesus Christ. For we are to be holy as God is holy, and to be holy means to be separate (unlike, different) from the world because we are being made into the likeness of character of Jesus Christ, by God, via the Spirit, via our cooperation with God’s work of grace in our lives and our obedience to our Lord. So our conduct is to be pure as God is pure, and we are no longer to make sin our practice.

Now the apostle Paul was also a model for us of what the Christian life should look like. But many people today are distorting that to their own advantage and they are accusing Paul of regularly giving into sin and of being the worst of sinners, in the present tense of his time, according to his own words which are distorted and misinterpreted and taken out of context in order for people who profess the name of Jesus to justify them continuing in deliberate and habitual sin against the Lord. So I am going to link to an article the Lord had me write previously which you can read on that (1).

But let me just say here that Paul could not have taught what he taught and lived the life some people accuse him of living, and he could not, in good conscience, especially based upon what he taught, encourage others to imitate him and to follow his teaching and conduct, and his faith, patience, love, and steadfastness, etc. So we have to read all of Paul’s words in their appropriate context so that we don’t end up arriving at faulty and damaging interpretations of what he said and did. Was he absolutely perfect? No! But he was a godly man who obeyed the Lord and who did not walk in sin.

And he was a man called of God to take the messages of God to the people and to insist that we deny self, die daily to sin, and follow our Lord in walks of obedience to his commands. And he taught that if sin is what we obey, and not righteousness, and not obedience to our Lord, that we will die in our sins. We will not inherit eternal life with God. And he gave warning after warning to the churches that they not take lightly the messages of God and that they not think that their eternity is secured on the basis of lip service only. For he taught if sin is what we obey we do not have eternal life.

[Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; Tit 2:11-14; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 9:28; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2]

Okay, so with that said, if we read Paul’s words in the context of all that he taught, we can certainly use him as a model (an example) of what a true follower of Christ should be like. For Paul was sold out to the Lord, and his whole life was dedicated to serving the Lord Jesus Christ and to getting the truth of the gospel out to the people, and to correcting error and teaching the truth. He was so dedicated to the Lord, and so determined in heart and mind to obey the Lord, that he was persecuted severely for his walk of faith, and he spent much time in prison for preaching the truth of the gospel.

And he taught us that if we live holy lives, pleasing to God, in moral purity and uprightness, in faithful service to our Lord, that we can expect to be hated and persecuted as was Jesus and as were the NT apostles. “Indeed”, he said, “all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.” Absolutely the truth! So, if you are not being persecuted by anyone because of your walk of faith in the Lord, something is wrong. And you may want to inquire of the Lord to ask him why.

But despite what other people do or how they live or how they perceive us or treat us, we are to continue in what the Scriptures teach us with regard to how we are to conduct our lives and with regard to us surrendering our lives to the Lord Jesus to do what he says we ought to do. We are not to let others persuade us to be less than who we should be just so we don’t offend other people with the truth or so that others will like us and want to be with us. For the Christian life is not easy in/easy out, but it is a hard life of sacrifice and suffering for the salvation of human lives for eternity.

And, although it is the New Testament which teaches us the life of Christ and his gospel message, and which gives instructions in holy living to the church, the body of Christ, we should not forsake all the teachings of the Old Testament. For “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” We just need to read the OT in light of the NT and the gospel of our salvation and what is required of us now in thought and word and deed.

Oh, to Be Like Thee, Blessed Redeemer 

Lyrics by Thomas O. Chisholm, 1897

Music by W. J. Kirkpatrick, 1897

Oh, to be like Thee! blessèd Redeemer,

This is my constant longing and prayer;

Gladly I’ll forfeit all of earth’s treasures,

Jesus, Thy perfect likeness to wear.

Oh, to be like Thee! full of compassion,

Loving, forgiving, tender and kind,

Helping the helpless, cheering the fainting,

Seeking the wandering sinner to find.

O to be like Thee! lowly in spirit,

Holy and harmless, patient and brave;

Meekly enduring cruel reproaches,

Willing to suffer others to save.

O to be like Thee! while I am pleading,

Pour out Thy Spirit, fill with Thy love;

Make me a temple meet for Thy dwelling,

Fit me for life and Heaven above.

Oh, to be like Thee! Oh, to be like Thee,

Blessèd Redeemer, pure as Thou art;

Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;

Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrYhiK2nQBg 

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(1) https://runwithit.blog/2023/05/13/was-paul-a-hypocrite-ii/

Times of Difficulty Have Come

“But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith. But they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men.” (2 Timothy 3:1-9 ESV)

Now, since all of us were born into sin, with sin natures, in the image of Adam, not one of us is without sin. All have sinned, and all have come up short in our sinful natures of attaining God’s divine approval and his righteousness. In our flesh natures, not one of us is righteous, no not one. All of us like sheep have gone astray. And not one of us is capable of saving our own selves from our sins or from the punishment of sin, nor can any of us do anything in our flesh to be acceptable to God and to have eternal life.

[Rom 3:9-26; Rom 5:12-19; 1 Co 15:21-22,42-49; Eph 2:8-10]

So sin has always existed ever since the first man Adam sinned against God. So, to a certain extent, all the sins listed in this passage of Scripture have always existed in human beings. But the closer that we get to the return of Jesus Christ the more we are seeing an increase in these sins to where what is described here is more the norm than is godly and holy living by the grace of God, in the power of God. I believe we are seeing so much more of what is described here in our society, as a whole, here in America where I live.

I was born into this world the last day of and in the last 6 hours of 1949, so I have seen a lot in my lifetime of 74 years. And I have observed how much things have changed from generation to generation, especially with the introduction of television, and then home computers and the internet, and then cellphones and smartphones. As the years went by, more and more of the world crept into the lives of the people of God via TV and movies and the internet and eventually smartphones. And a moral decline took place.

Further and further people moved away from God and were drawn into the trappings of the world. And then the church at large (not all congregations) made the choice to incorporate their gatherings as businesses under the state, and they began following after human-based marketing schemes and goals and tricks in order to “draw in large crowds of people from the world” into their gatherings. And then the gospel message began to be altered to make it more acceptable and less offensive to the people of the world.

So now that the church at large (not all congregations) had lost its saltiness and had hidden its light under a bushel, because it was busy entertaining the people of the world and making “church” more comfortable for the people of the world, and so it was becoming more like the world to attract the world to its gatherings, that is when the things listed in this passage of Scripture really began to increase and become predominant in nature. For the church was now too much like the world and not much like the body of Christ.

And so we see in our culture a massive decline in morality and in godly living, and we hear preachers giving “believers” in Christ free license to continue living in deliberate and habitual sin against the Lord under the auspices of God’s grace. And so many professers of faith in Jesus Christ feel at liberty to keep on in their sinful practices without feeling guilty, because they are being given a free pass to keep sinning without consequence and without punishment, but with a false promise of heaven for eternity.

So, yes, in our culture today, even within the gatherings of “the church”, we are seeing much in the way of people being lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. And so many are addicted to sexual immorality, too.

And many “church” congregations have men in positions of “pastor” who are like these men who were talked about in this passage who creep into households and capture weak women (and men), burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. For these men oppose the truth, men corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith. For they are “wolves in sheep’s clothing” masquerading themselves as “servants of righteousness.”

But one day God is going to judge this “Laodicean” church here in America, and perhaps in other nations, too, but I believe for the purpose to bring so many of them back into right relationship with the Lord in pure fellowship with him, now walking in obedience to his commands in holy living. And in this way he will make his bride ready for his return and ready to be with the Lord for eternity. For the way the church is now, biblically speaking, not many are headed to heaven, but they are still on their way to hell, for sin is still their practice, and not righteousness, and not obedience to God/Christ.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Peter 1:15; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

My Heart’s Desire  

An Original Work / June 29, 2013

Based off Romans 10:1-21; Luke 9:23-26; Ephesians 4:17-24

Loved Ones, Oh, my heart’s desire

Is that you might come to Jesus.

Many appear zealous for God,

But they do not trust in Him.

They have not submitted to the One

Who saved them from their sins;

Not forsaken their sins,

Nor have they obeyed their King.

The word of the Lord is near you:

The word of faith we’re proclaiming:

That you must confess your faith

In Jesus as your Lord and King:

Believe in Him as your Lord, 

And follow Him where’er He leads.

Share the gospel; be a witness,

And meet others’ needs.

Beautiful are the feet of those

Who bring the good news of Jesus:

Anyone who would come to Him

Must deny himself today;

Die to sin and self, and

Let the Spirit transform you in heart;

Put on your new self in Jesus,

Yielding to the cross. 

https://vimeo.com/115643303

A Vessel for Honorable Use

“Now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work.” 2 Timothy 2:20-21 ESV

So, what is the context here? Paul was giving instructions to Timothy with regard to the things he should teach the believers in Christ. And he was talking about how, when we do what is right, and when we follow Jesus with our lives, that we will suffer persecution and rejection. And he was talking with him about the importance of obedience to our Lord and of faithfulness to the calling of God on our lives, and how we will live with him if we have died with him to sin, but how he will deny us if we deny him by our actions.

And then he spoke with him about how we are not to quarrel about words, and how we should avoid irreverent babble, and how we should present ourselves to God as those approved, who are workers who need not to be ashamed, but who rightly handle the word of truth. And then he talked about how the Lord knows those who are his and how everyone who names the name of the Lord is to depart from iniquity. And then we have this discussion about “a great house.”

So, the “great house” appears to be in reference to the gatherings of the church, which include both those of sincere faith in Jesus Christ who have departed from iniquity and those who have swerved from the truth who are upsetting the faith of some. They both name the name of the Lord, but Jesus said that not everyone who says to him, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the ones DOING the will of God the Father who is in heaven (see Matthew 7:21-23).

So, in this “great house,” i.e. in these gatherings of the church we have some vessels (people) which are honorable, and we have some which are dishonorable. And so the encouragement here is that we are to cleanse ourselves of what is dishonorable to God so that we can be vessels of God for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to our Lord and ready for every good work. And to be holy is to be separate (unlike, different) from the world because we are being conformed to the likeness of Jesus Christ.

“So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. And the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.” 2 Timothy 2:22-26 ESV

Therefore, if we are to cleanse ourselves of what is dishonorable so that we can be the Lord’s vessels for honorable use, then we have to flee sinful passions, and we must pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace. And biblical faith involves dying with Christ to sin, not just once, but daily, and it means living to him and to his righteousness and obeying his commands (New Covenant). And love prefers what God prefers which is moral purity, faithfulness, honesty, godliness, holiness, and uprightness.

Also righteousness is what is deemed right and godly in the eyes of God, and peace is peace with God which only comes via genuine God-given faith in Jesus Christ whereby we are crucified with him in death to sin, and we are raised with him to walk in newness of life in him, no longer living as slaves to sin, but now living as slaves to God and to his righteousness. And those of us who call on the Lord from pure hearts should be living just like this describes, and we should not be living in deliberate and habitual sin.

Now, when we follow Jesus Christ with our lives we are going to be opposed. We are going to have people who will come against us and who will attack us and who will do evil against us. But we are to patiently endure their evil attacks, yet while correcting our opponents with gentleness. Now this gentleness is not weakness and it does not involve any compromise of truth or righteousness so as not to offend the ungodly. It is another word for meekness, and Jesus was meek, but he was not weak.

For, as followers of Christ, we are to be those who are speaking the truth of the gospel and who are refuting the lies. And we are to be speaking the truth in love to one another, so that we are not carried away by false doctrines. And we should be exhorting one another so that none of us are led astray by sin’s deceitfulness. And we ought to be provoking one another to love (as God is love) and to good deeds (which God prepared for us to do). So, be kind, but never compromise truth and righteousness.

The goal of all of this is that the Lord would grant to our opponents repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, that they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will. So, don’t be afraid to speak the truth in love, to speak it boldly, and with the passion of Paul and of Jesus, but with kindness and in love, and with sincerity, and with the right purpose. For many people profess faith in Jesus who are headed to hell, but on the promise of heaven.

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15] 

Follow Him  

An Original Work / February 21, 2013

Based off Luke 9:22-25

Jesus, Son of God,

Died for us on a cross.

Anyone who would come to Him

Must deny himself and follow.

He must take up his cross daily;

Die to sin and self each day.

Father, God above,

Loved us so: gave His Son.

If you want to save your old life;

Keep on sinning, follow your ways,

You will lose your life forever;

Hope of heaven gone away.

Spirit of our God

Gives us life in God’s Son.

Nonetheless, if you die to self;

Forsake your sin; follow Jesus,

You will live with God in heaven,

And forever praise His name! 

https://vimeo.com/117316842

Nonsense, Nonsense

Nonsense, nonsense coming from their mouths,

Raise their banners, raise them very loud,

Bold in witness, that but not of God,

Please the world and draw in their large crowds.

“Win the world to us, but not to God,

Please the crowds and make sure music’s loud,

Tell some jokes, and have a new cartoon,

Twist the Scriptures morning, night, and noon.

“All surrender, but to God do not,

Bow to humans and to all their gods,

Share their idols, give them all your praise,

Pledge allegiance, and your voices raise.

“Share the gospel? No! For we forbid.

Keep that gospel, keep it very hid.

Don’t judge others. Speak not then of sin.

People’s souls to Christ you’re not to win.

“Pleasure-seeking, that’s what it’s about,

Play your games and to our idols shout,

Don’t offend the people with the truth,

Better if you’d rather be uncouth.

“All about now blending with the world,

Unity with flesh now not absurd,

Keep on sinning now you’ve been forgiv’n,

Don’t let judgment keep you now from heav’n.”

They’re mistaken, though, in what they say.

Read your Bible. Read it now and pray.

God requires your obedience,

And he says from sin you must repent.

If you choose to God to not obey,

Not give homage to him, or bow, or pray,

Not forsake your lives of liv’n in sin,

Heav’n’s not yours, your sins He’s not forgiv’n.

An Original Work / February 4, 2022

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

As One Approved by God

“Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers. Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, who have swerved from the truth, saying that the resurrection has already happened. They are upsetting the faith of some. But God's firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: ‘The Lord knows those who are his,’ and, ‘Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity.’” (2 Timothy 2:14-19 ESV)

Paul was writing these words to Timothy, and he was encouraging him to share with others what Paul, via Christ Jesus, was teaching him:

• Fan into flame the gift of God within you

• Do not fear what others will say about you or do to you

• Do not be ashamed of the gospel of Christ

• Follow the pattern of sound words taught by Paul via Christ

• Be strengthened by the grace of God in faith

• Teach others what Christ is teaching you

• If we have died with him, we will live with him

• If we endure with him, we will reign with him

• If we deny him, he will deny us

• If we are faithless, he remains faithful to all he said he would do

So Timothy was to remind the Christians of these things, and he was to charge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers. And this is not to say that we should not contend for the truth of the gospel, or that we should not defend the honor of God and of his word, or that we should not answer the lies with the truth. But we are not to get into arguments over words which go nowhere and which produce nothing good. But we should speak the truth in love to people.

And now we are all at different places in our lives. Some of us became believers in Christ as children and we are now in our 70s. Some of us have taught the Scriptures for many years, and some of us full-time, and so we may be more familiar with the teachings of the Scriptures than others who have known the Lord a shorter period of time and who have not taught the Scriptures for a very long time. But some people who have taught the Scriptures a long time are not living the Scriptures that they teach others.

So length of time of being a Christian, or length of time and experience in teaching the Scriptures may or may not be relevant to our spiritual walks of faith in obedience to our Lord and to his commands. What is important is that our lives are surrendered to Jesus Christ and that we are following him in his ways and in his truth one day and one step at a time, in a forward direction, and not backwards. And it is important that we are open to hearing from the Lord what he wants to teach us each day from his word.

But this is where a caution comes in. So many people today are teaching the Scriptures out of context, and they are thus willfully (in many cases) twisting them to their own advantage to make them say what they do not teach if taught in the correct biblical context. So if we are going to be workers of God who rightly handle the word of truth, we need to be diligent about reading the Scriptures in their appropriate context, and really in the context of the New Testament, as a whole, to get the right understanding of them.

And we need to be open to being taught by the Holy Spirit with regard to what the Scriptures actually teach, even if the Scriptures disagree with what we were always taught from our childhood on up, or ever since we professed faith in Jesus Christ. For sometimes we are taught these wrongly by others who did not do diligence in studying the Scriptures in their context, but who interpreted them in light of some theology that they were taught by other humans. So do your best to study the Scriptures in context, by the Spirit.

And we are to avoid “irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness.” And there is a lot of this “irreverent babble” being passed off today as truth which is not truth, and many are falling prey to this babble because they are not testing what they hear against the teachings of the Scriptures in context. For if it sounds good to them, they accept it. And so many are not even interested in testing what they hear against the teachings of the Scriptures, for they like what feels good even if it isn’t good.

And a lot of this “irreverent babble” is spreading like gangrene here in America, anyway, and so many people are being duped by master liars and manipulators and deceivers who know how to charm the people into believing their lies and into following after the lies and not the truth. So we must be people of discernment who are testing what we hear from others, no matter who they are, to make certain that what they are teaching agrees with what the Scriptures teach in their appropriate context.

And so many people are swerving from the truth and they are following after the lies which feel good to their itching ears. And this is because they are not being discerning but they are, again, going after what makes them feel good, not after what is good and what is good for them. And so many people are professing faith in Jesus Christ and being promised heaven as their eternal destiny who have never died with Christ to sin, and so they have not been raised with him to walk in obedience to him in holy living.

And so we have many false professers of faith in Jesus Christ who are convinced that heaven is guaranteed them when they die who do not honor Christ with their lives but who are still living for the flesh. But the Lord knows who are his, and he said they are those who forsake their sins to follow him in walks of obedience to his commands, in practice. And so if we profess faith in Jesus, but we are still walking in sin, and not in obedience to our Lord’s commands, then we do not have the hope of eternity with God.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Peter 1:15; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

My Heart’s Desire  

An Original Work / June 29, 2013

Based off Romans 10:1-21; Luke 9:23-26; Ephesians 4:17-24

Loved Ones, Oh, my heart’s desire

Is that you might come to Jesus.

Many appear zealous for God,

But they do not trust in Him.

They have not submitted to the One

Who saved them from their sins;

Not forsaken their sins,

Nor have they obeyed their King.

The word of the Lord is near you:

The word of faith we’re proclaiming:

That you must confess your faith

In Jesus as your Lord and King:

Believe in Him as your Lord, 

And follow Him where’er He leads.

Share the gospel; be a witness,

And meet others’ needs.

Beautiful are the feet of those

Who bring the good news of Jesus:

Anyone who would come to Him

Must deny himself today;

Die to sin and self, and

Let the Spirit transform you in heart;

Put on your new self in Jesus,

Yielding to the cross. 

https://vimeo.com/115643303

The Joy of You

“But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. 

“I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 

“Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” ~ Philippians 3:7-14 NIV’84

I can tell you that I walk now by the Spirit of God, by the grace of God, but there have also been times in my life when I lived for my own flesh and for my own selfish desires. And so I can tell you from experience that there is nothing like walking with my Lord. I don’t ever want to go back to walking in the flesh. Nothing in this world is worth holding on to if it means loss of fellowship with my Lord Jesus. I want nothing more than Him! 

The Joy of You  

An Original Work / June 8, 2011

Based off of Philippians 3:7-14

Jesus, keep me near the cross.

Let me count my life but loss

Compared to the joy of You;

Transformed life; walking anew.

Faith in Christ, turning from sin;

Holy Spirit now within.

Overcoming sin’s dark sway;

Sharing Christ’s suff’rings always.

Becoming like Him in death;

Meeting Him at my last breath.

I am not yet made perfect.

I press on as God’s elect

To reach the goal before me,

God has picked in destiny.

Forgetting what is behind;

Keeping what’s ahead in mind.

Fellowshipping with my Lord;

Walking with Him, one accord;

Obeying His every word;

God has called me heavenward. 

https://vimeo.com/127354741 

What if We Deny Him?

“Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel, for which I am suffering, bound with chains as a criminal. But the word of God is not bound! Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. The saying is trustworthy, for:

“If we have died with him, we will also live with him;

if we endure, we will also reign with him;

if we deny him, he also will deny us;

if we are faithless, he remains faithful— for he cannot deny himself.” (2 Timothy 2:8-13 ESV)

In the book of Genesis we read the story of Joseph whose brothers sold him into slavery because they were jealous of him and of his favor with their father. But the Lord had plans for Joseph that his brothers had no knowledge of. For God sent Joseph to Egypt ahead of a famine to prepare the way for the Lord to rescue his people from a famine (Genesis 37:1-Genesis 50:26). And when his brothers finally realized that this was Joseph, they begged his forgiveness. And this was Joseph’s response to his brothers:

“As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.” (Genesis 50:20 ESV)

Sometimes God allows evil to come into our lives, not speaking here of the kind where we are tempted to do evil and so we succumb to the evil and therefore we sin against the Lord, but evil done against us. And he allows evil people to do evil against us because he has planned a greater good as the result, such as what Paul gave testimony about in his own life many times. For because Paul was imprisoned for preaching the gospel, the gospel of Christ spread and many more people were saved from their sins.

And I have shared my own testimony of how the Lord took me through one difficult situation after another after another to get me ready for this ministry to which he called me 20 years ago. And I have shared how I came up against one pastor after another who mistreated and persecuted me for my walk of faith in the Lord, and how that lead to the Lord sending me to the internet where he could use me to share his gospel message and to warn of deceptive forces of evil lurking about and of false gospels being taught.

When we are going through these times of difficulty where we are being mistreated and persecuted for our walks of faith in the Lord, we may not always understand what is happening to us and why, especially if we have not yet reached that maturity level in our lives where we understand that God allows us to suffer for the sake of righteousness in order to make us into the people that he wants us to be so that he can use us in other people’s lives to help them to know Christ and to grow to maturity in him.

So, it is good for us to seek the Lord’s face during these difficult times, not just for our own comfort, but to learn the reason for our suffering and what God has planned for our lives as a result of all the things that he has taken us through. For, if we are willing, the Lord will show us his plan and his purpose for it all, and he will lead us in the way that he would have for us to go as a result of all the things we have suffered. And he will use us in other people’s lives for their good because of what we suffered in advance.

“Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.” Amen!

And now here Paul laid out for us some elemental truths of the gospel message. The first one is that if we have died with him, we will also live with him. For Jesus Christ died on that cross that we might die with him to sin and now live for him and for his righteousness in walks of obedience to his commands in holy living. But if we choose to hold on to our old lives of sin, we will lose them for eternity. Yet if we deny self, die daily to sin, and follow him in obedience, then we have the hope of eternal life with God.

[1 Peter 2:24; Romans 6:1-23; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; Luke 9:23-26]

The second is that if we endure, we will also reign with him. And the New Testament Scriptures have much to say to us on this subject. For we cannot just make a profession of faith in Jesus Christ and now all our sins are forgiven, and now heaven is guaranteed us when we die, but regardless of how we live. We have to walk in obedience to our Lord and not in sin if we want to have salvation from sin and eternal life with God. And we must continue in these walks of faith until the very end to have life in Him.

[Jn 8:31-32; Jn 15:1-12; Rom 11:17-24; 1 Co 15:2; Col 1:21-23; 2 Tim 2:10-13; Heb 3:6,14-15; 2 Pet 1:5-11; 2 Pet 2:20-22; 1 Jn 2:24-25] 

The third is that if we deny him, he also will deny us. And we deny him, not just with our lips, but by how we live our lives. In fact, we can profess him with our lips but by our actions deny him. And that is still denying him. For we can honor him with our lips while our hearts are far from him, and we can worship him in vain. And we can be ashamed of his words, not just by our refusal to speak the truth of the gospel to others, but by our refusal to live the truth of the gospel. And he will deny us when he returns one day.

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 10:32-33; Matt 15:7-9; Luke 9:23-26; 2 Timothy 2:11-13; 2 Timothy 3:1-5; Titus 1:15-16; 2 Peter 2:1-3; Jude 1:3-4]

The fourth is that if we are faithless, that he remains faithful, for he cannot deny himself. And we must be very careful here that we do not misinterpret these words. For he is not faithful to us if we are not faithful to him. And we have to know here, too, that all of God’s promises have conditions and stipulations and warnings to go with them. So he is faithful to those promises and to the conditions which he stipulated for those promises to be fulfilled. And he is faithful to fulfill his warnings to us, too.

And the New Testament Scriptures are filled with his promises with their stipulations, and with his warnings to us if we do not meet those requirements. For if we profess to be in fellowship with God, but while we walk (in conduct) in darkness (sin), we are liars. And if we claim that we know God but while we walk (in conduct) NOT in obedience to his commandments (New Covenant), we are liars. For whoever practices righteousness is righteous, but whoever practices sin is of the devil.

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

Songs in the Night  

An Original Work / December 18, 2013

“About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.” Acts 16:25 NIV ‘84

Lord, I praise You forevermore.

You, my Savior, I now adore.

Hope in heaven awaiting me,

Because You died at Calvary.

I have been forgiven,

And I’m bound for heaven.

Jesus set me free from

All my sin, I say.

I will praise Him always!

Lord, I love You for all You’ve done:

Overcame death, my vict’ry won!

Jesus saved me, and now I’m free!

I rejoice in His love for me.

I will walk in vict’ry!

My sin is but hist’ry!

I am free to please Him

With my life today.

I will love Him always!

Lord, I thank You for giving me

A new life bought at Calvary.

Loving Jesus, I meet with Him.

Tender mercies now flow within.

Lord, I am so thankful;

Through my Lord, I’m able

To sit at His table;

Fellowship with Him.

I will thank Him always!

https://vimeo.com/379484387

A Good Soldier of Christ Jesus

“You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also. Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.” (2 Timothy 2:1-7 ESV)

In chapter 1 of 2 Timothy, Paul wrote to Timothy to encourage him with regard to his faith and calling in the Lord Jesus, and to encourage him to “fan into flame the gift of God” within him, and to not give way to fear. And I am assuming it was fear of other humans who may have been opposing him or ridiculing him, perhaps because of his youth. So Paul encouraged him to not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, and to not fear suffering for the sake of the gospel. But he was to follow the pattern of the sound teaching he heard from Paul, who received those words from the Lord.

Now, we can apply these same words to our lives, for all of us who believe in Jesus Christ with genuine faith have been called of God to his service, and to spread the message of the gospel to the people of the world, and to minister to the physical and spiritual needs of the body of believers in Jesus Christ. We have all been given the Holy Spirit to live within us to empower us in our walks of faith and to teach us the ways of the Lord. And we have all been given gifts of the Spirit which we are to put into practice, by the Spirit, for the encouragement and spiritual growth of the body of Christ, the church.

And we are not to be afraid of what other humans will say about us or think about us or if they attack us and ridicule us or make light of what we are doing in our walks of obedience to the Lord, in his service. But we must persevere in walking with the Lord and in following in his footsteps and in serving him with our lives and in sharing the truth of the gospel with others. But we can only do this in the strength and power of the Spirit of God alive within us giving us the courage and the confidence to keep on speaking the truth of God’s word to the people, regardless of how we are treated by them.

And then we are to be those who are helping others to grow in their walks of faith in obedience to the Lord and to his commands. We should pray that the Lord will lead us to his faithful servants who we can encourage and help to grow in their understanding of the teachings of the Scriptures and in how to apply the truths of the Scriptures to our daily lives, and who we can help to increase their understanding of the message of the gospel, the whole counsel of God, and to guide them in discerning biblical error and false gospel messages which are spreading like wildfire, so they obey the truth.

And we who are of genuine faith in Jesus Christ are regarded by God as his spiritual soldiers who are in his spiritual army fighting off the attacks of the enemy of our souls under the guidance and direction and empowerment of our commanding officer, Jesus Christ/God (see Ephesians 6:10-20). So we are not to get caught up in the trappings of the world and the things that the world has to offer us which are opposed to Jesus Christ and to his will and purpose for our lives, and which are opposed to the truth of his gospel message. But we are to make it our aim to please Jesus in all things.

Now, we live in a day and time when so much of what are called “churches” are really businesses of human origin following after human-based marketing schemes and tricks and goals in order to attract the ungodly of this world to come to their gatherings. And so rather than preach biblical repentance (dying with Christ to sin) and walks of obedience to our Lord in holy living, as the outgrowth of our salvation, which is evidence of genuine faith in the Lord, so many are diluting the gospel to make it more acceptable to the ungodly so that they will want to come to their “church services.”

But that is not the gospel that Jesus taught, and it is not what Paul and the other NT apostles taught as the gospel of our salvation. While so many people today are claiming that no works are required of us at all, they don’t read Ephesians 2:10 which follows right after Ephesians 2:8-9, and which says that we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for Good Works which God prepared in advance that we should walk in them. And here Paul tells us that it is us who obey God’s rules (his commands) who will win this battle and who will receive the crown, and who will not end up in hell.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Peter 1:15; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

My Heart’s Desire  

An Original Work / June 29, 2013

Based off Romans 10:1-21; Luke 9:23-26; Ephesians 4:17-24

Loved Ones, Oh, my heart’s desire

Is that you might come to Jesus.

Many appear zealous for God,

But they do not trust in Him.

They have not submitted to the One

Who saved them from their sins;

Not forsaken their sins,

Nor have they obeyed their King.

The word of the Lord is near you:

The word of faith we’re proclaiming:

That you must confess your faith

In Jesus as your Lord and King:

Believe in Him as your Lord, 

And follow Him where’er He leads.

Share the gospel; be a witness,

And meet others’ needs.

Beautiful are the feet of those

Who bring the good news of Jesus:

Anyone who would come to Him

Must deny himself today;

Die to sin and self, and

Let the Spirit transform you in heart;

Put on your new self in Jesus,

Yielding to the cross. 

https://vimeo.com/115643303

They Turned Away From Us

“You are aware that all who are in Asia turned away from me, among whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes. May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains, but when he arrived in Rome he searched for me earnestly and found me— may the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that day!—and you well know all the service he rendered at Ephesus.”

If you have ever experienced what Paul related to us here, then you can identify with him from personal experience. For being a follower of Jesus Christ, and being a minister of the gospel, which we are all supposed to be, will get you rejected and abandoned and cast aside even by people of your own family, your closest friends, others within the gatherings of the church, and by pastors and elders of church congregations, too, who are not following the Lord with wholehearted devotion, and whose lives are not totally surrendered to Jesus Christ to doing his will, but who are still worldly.

And what Paul was speaking about, and what I am speaking about has to do with us having our lives totally surrendered to the Lord Jesus in absolute commitment to serving him with our lives full time in service to him in doing whatever it is he has called us to do. And that doesn’t mean we are engaged in Christian service full-time like I am, or like some pastors and missionaries are, but that we are all to be serving the Lord with our lives full-time, and we should always be on-call for whenever the Lord has something he wants us to do. And we should be ready always to answer that call with “Yes!”

And this is about speaking the truth of the gospel and the truth of God’s word to the people, and not all just the happy-happy stuff, but the hard stuff, too, which there is a bunch of! And so that opens us up wide to being hated and rejected, even by others who call themselves Christians, but whose lives are not surrendered to following the Lord Jesus with their lives, or who are not mature in their walks of faith, or who are being deceived by the lies of the enemies of God.

For so many of them are being fed lies and not the truth, and so they are accepting the lies as though they are the truth, while they are rejecting the truth as though it is the lie. They may be believing half-truths, but half-truths are still lies if they are delivered in a way intended to deceive and to lead the people astray to a false gospel. And many people are being duped by master deceivers and manipulators into accepting the lies as the truth because the lies sound good, but the truth is hard to accept (example: “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?” John 6:60).

So, don’t get disheartened, and don’t get discouraged if you are following the Lord in obedience and in surrender to his will and so you are being rejected and cast aside and lambasted (condemned, scolded, attacked) because you take God and his word seriously, and you take his calling upon your life seriously, and so you are doing what his word teaches that we all should be doing. But keep on in doing what God has called you to do in ministering his word to the people of this world. For people need to hear the truth, and not many are teaching the truth these days.

I know that when the Lord first called me to this ministry 20 years ago that I did not have much support or encouragement from anyone, and I had many who turned against me, and so I had to choose between the acceptance of human beings and the acceptance and the will and purpose of God for my life. That day I died to self and to self-will that I might follow my Lord in obedience to his will and purpose for my life, even if it meant that I had no encouragement from anyone. And I didn’t have much encouragement at all for a very long time, and I did have a lot of opposition.

But one day I cried it all out to the Lord, and I appealed to him on the basis that when he walked this earth that he had at least 11 disciples who were in support of him, although some were a little flaky sometimes, and that even Paul, when he was in prison, had people who visited him and who encouraged him. And so I prayed and begged God to please give me some encouragers, for this was very hard!! And he did, little by little, and now I have more than a few, and I cannot tell you what a blessing that has been to me and what joy that brings to my heart. But I know full well that my dependency must remain in the Lord and not in humans who may fail me.

[Matt 5:10-12; Matt 10:16-25; Matt 24:9-14; Luke 6:22-23; Luke 12:49-53; Luke 21:12-19; John 15:1-21; John 16:33; John 17:14; Acts 14:22; Rom 5:3-5; Eph 6:10-20; Phil 3:7-11; 1 Pet 1:6-7; 1 Pet 4:12-17; 2 Tim 3:12; 1 Thess 3:1-5; Jas 1:2-4; 2 Co 1:3-11; Heb 12:3-12; 1 Jn 3:13; Rev 6:9-11; Rev 7:9-17; Rev 11:1-3; Rev 12:17; Rev 13:1-18; Rev 14:1-13]

You Loved Me

An Original Work / December 3, 2019

A song based off the poem by the same name @ Original Works

Music and lyrics by Sue Love @ Original Works & Tosin Iyawo Ogaga

Vocals by Tosin Iyawo Ogaga & Sue Love

When I was lonely and afflicted,

You were there to pick me up.

You took me in Your arms,

And You held me tenderly.

Your love embraced me.

Your grace sustained me.

When my heart cried out to You

In my fear and my despair,

You never turned away,

But You let me know You loved me.

Your grace forgave me.

You did not shame me.

Then, when I answered the call,

“Here, Lord, send me.”

You sent me to where I must be.

Your mercy held me, did not fail me.

All this, You had planned, to use me.

And, when all trials and scorn

Came to test me.

You gave me all that I would need.

You strengthened me so I’d not fail You.

Your kindness blessed me, it touched me.

And, when I needed the church 

To lift up me,

To hearten me so I’d not fail,

You blessed me with folks who would love me.

Their presence with me, Your praise hailed!

And, when I walked through the valley

Of the shadow of the death,

And tears flowed from my eyes,

Still Your kindness was there for me.

Your touch, it healed me.

For I believed You.

When now I think about the ways,

Of the many, many ways

That You in Your great love

Show me that You’ll always care for me,

My heart, it thanks You,

And gladness fills me, fills me.

Bring Them Home

They are wand’ring far from home,

From the Lord their souls do roam.

Looking not to God above,

Trusting not in Jesus’ love.

Trusting in themselves alone,

Spending time on their Smart Phones

Doing what their flesh desires,

And do not what God requires.

Looking to the flesh of man,

Not on God’s grace do they stand.

Stand on intellect and flesh,

With the world they truly mesh.

Walking not by faith in Christ,

Taking God’s word now by heist,

They pervert the Word of God,

And on God’s grace they do trod.

They care not what God’s Word says,

They prefer the lies, instead.

They’re not instruments of grace,

Not see Jesus face to face.

They profess their faith in God,

To their idols, though, do nod.

God is calling to repent, 

From their idols to relent.

But so many do not hear.

They put fingers in their ears.

Will not listen to the truth,

And can be now so uncouth.

So we pray to God above,

That they will respond to love,

Will repent of all their sins,

And obey the Lord and win.

An Original Work / January 29, 2022

Suffering for the Gospel

“Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher, which is why I suffer as I do. 

“But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me. Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you.” (2 Timothy 1:8-14 ESV)

As believers in Jesus Christ, we must also be his followers who follow him in obedience to his commands and who follow in his footsteps, and who go wherever he sends us in doing whatever he has called us to do. For he has a calling for each and every one of us which we must follow. He has a plan and a purpose for every one of our lives. It is to die with him to sin and to walk in obedience to his commands. And it is to share in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, doing and saying the kinds of things he did and said.

For we were not placed on this earth so that after we profess his name we should go about our own business, still doing whatever it is that we want to do without regard for our Lord and for what he wants us to do, as his followers. But we should be seeking his face and his will for our lives, and we should be sharing the truth of the gospel with the people of the world wherever we are so that they can forsake their sins and surrender their lives to Christ Jesus to follow in his ways and to obey his commands, too.

For Jesus Christ called us to a holy calling, and to be holy is to be separate (unlike, different) from the world because we are in the process of being conformed to the likeness of character of Jesus Christ. And that means that our bodies (our lives) are to be surrendered to Christ as living sacrifices to him, holy and acceptable to God, which is our spiritual worship of God. And no longer are we to be conformed to the ways of this sinful world, but we are to be transformed of the Spirit of God in heart and mind in order to walk in newness of life in him in obedience to his commands (Romans 12:1-2).

Now not one of us is saved from our sins and promised heaven as our eternal destiny based on our own merit or because of our own good works. For not one of us is righteous in our own flesh, and all of us were born into this world with sin natures, separate from God, so we all come up short in our own flesh of attaining God’s divine approval and his righteousness. It is only by the grace of God that any of us are offered the chance to believe in Jesus and to die with him to sin and to now walk in his holiness and righteousness in obedience to his commands. So all the glory goes to God!

Yet, we must all choose to believe in Jesus, and we must all cooperate with him in his work of grace in our lives in the putting of our sins to death so that we can now walk in his holiness and righteousness and in obedience to his commands. For all throughout the New Testament we read that we must die with Christ to sin, and we must forsake our sins and say “No!” to sin, and we must put off living sinful lifestyles and put on Christ and his love and righteousness and walk in obedience to his commands, in his power.

But when we obey the Lord, and we submit to his will and purposes for our lives, and we go where he sends us, and we do whatever it is he calls and equips us to do, we will be rejected, hated, mistreated, forsaken, forgotten, and persecuted for the sake of his name, as he was treated. But we are to be willing to be treated in such a manner in order to follow him in obedience, and in order to take the message of the gospel to the people of the world.

And the message of the gospel is that Jesus Christ died on that cross that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. He died that we might now live for him and no longer for ourselves. He shed his blood for us to buy us back for God (to redeem us) out of our slavery to sin so that we will now honor and serve him with our lives. For by faith in him we are crucified with Christ in death to sin and raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him, no longer as slaves to sin but now as slaves to righteousness. For if sin is what we obey, it leads to death, but obedience to God ends in eternal life.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Peter 1:15; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

All The Way My Savior Leads Me

Lyrics by Frances J Crosby, pub. 1875

Music by Robert Lowry, pub. 1875

All the way my Savior leads me,

What have I to ask beside?

Can I doubt His tender mercy,

Who through life has been my Guide?

Heav’nly peace, divinest comfort,

Here by faith in Him to dwell!

For I know, whate’er befall me,

Jesus doeth all things well.

All the way my Savior leads me,

Cheers each winding path I tread,

Gives me grace for every trial,

Feeds me with the living Bread.

Though my weary steps may falter

And my soul athirst may be,

Gushing from the Rock before me,

Lo! A spring of joy I see.

All the way my Savior leads me,

Oh, the fullness of His love!

Perfect rest to me is promised

In my Father’s house above.

When my spirit, clothed immortal,

Wings its flight to realms of day

This my song through endless ages:

Jesus led me all the way.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OWdmZGik1Jw

Caution: This link may contain ads

The Heart of Man

“Some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, ‘Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don’t wash their hands before they eat?’” Jesus knew their hearts, so he replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?” Ouch! He called them hypocrites, and then told them that Isaiah was right when he prophesied about them: “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.”

Then, Jesus called the crowd over to him and said, “Listen and understand. What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him unclean, but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him unclean.” And the disciples were concerned that Jesus had offended the Pharisees, but Jesus was not the least bit concerned about whether or not his words offended the self-righteous, prideful and hypocritical religious leaders who were leading people astray by their strict adherence to things that did not affect the heart of man, and while they neglected the true matters of the heart. 

For Jesus Christ is concerned about our hearts, and he wants us to have our hearts purified and to be made clean by the power of his Holy Spirit within us. So he is calling out to us to turn from our sins and to turn to him to follow him in obedience to his commands. This is the way of love, and it is the way of salvation. (see Matthew 15:1-20; Mark 7:1-23)

The Heart of Man  

An Original Work / April 4, 2012

Based off Matt. 15:1-20; Mk. 7:1-23

Listen to me ev’ryone and

Understand this teaching of Christ:

Why do you break the commands 

Of God for the sake of tradition?

When you follow the ways of man,

And don’t obey the words of Christ,

You nullify the words of God,

And you hold to the ways of man. 

What comes out of a man’s mouth is

What makes him unclean and dirty.

The things that come out of the mouth

Come from the heart, from within him.

The heart of man is so sinful;

From his nature, out comes evil:

Lying, cursing, greed and malice,

Lust and lewdness, deceit, slander.

Jesus calls us to obey him;

Turn from our sins; follow His ways.

Yet, his people honor him with their lips, 

but their hearts not with Him.

Their worship of God is in vain.

Their teachings are rules taught by man.

Jesus calls us; gently leads us 

To return and follow His truth. 

https://vimeo.com/125490002 

Keep Persevering

“Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God according to the promise of the life that is in Christ Jesus, To Timothy, my beloved child: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

“I thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors, with a clear conscience, as I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. As I remember your tears, I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy. I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well. For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” (2 Timothy 1:1-7 ESV)

We who are called of God to serve him with our lives are still human beings. We bleed. We cry. We get hurt. We mourn. We grieve. We go through trials and tribulations to test our faith. And we need encouragement. For we aren’t always strong. We get tired. We get discouraged and disheartened. We feel lonely. We have days when we have no strength or energy, especially the older that we get. We get forgetful. And we have enemies. We have people who are against us and what we do, even among those professing faith in Jesus Christ. And so it helps to know that there are people praying for us.

I never knew either of my grandmothers. My father’s mother died when he was only 4 years old in the flu epidemic of 1918. My mother’s mother died in 1952 when I was only 2 years old, so I have no memory of her. But in 2004 I came into possession of my grandmother’s (my mother’s mother’s) journals, and that was God sent. As soon as I began reading her journals I immediately connected with her in ways I never connected with any of my other family members. I really felt as though I belonged to her.

She wrote so much like I write, and she expressed herself in many of the same ways in which I express myself. She said the same phrases that I say, and she had the same heart for the Lord as I have. And we had many of the same favorite Bible verses that we quoted. But she was much more of a prayer warrior than I am, and she visited people in their homes and prayed with them, and I think she even took food to them sometimes. But we shared the same passion for God and for his word and for ministry.

Even back then she was seeing the condition of the church as in great need of revival and she was burdened for the spiritual condition of the church, as was A.W. Tozer who wrote back in the 1940’s about some of the things that a lot of us were not even aware of until the past 10-20 years, some of which many people are still not aware. And there was this one thing that my grandmother kept quoting that I was not familiar with, and so I finally looked it up, and it turned out that it was a passage of Scripture:

“Then the Lord replied: ’Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it. For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.’” (Habakkuk 2:2-3 NIV’84)

Then this passage of Scripture kept showing up in other places and I knew that God had a message for me through it. And eventually that became God’s calling on my life to write down what he teaches me from his word each day on a tablet (my computer) and to place these writings on the internet (the herald) so that the herald could “Run With It” (the name of my blog). But the Lord took me through so many trials and tribulations in my life to prepare me for this moment so that I would answer his call.

And I understand why the apostle Paul wrote to encourage Timothy and to remind him to fan into flame the gift of God within him, and why he told him that God did not give us a spirit of fear but of power and love and self-control. And that is because when we answer God’s call on our lives with “Yes, Lord!”, that is when the enemy begins to fiercely attack and to try to discourage us and to make us afraid in hopes that we will back down and run away. But the Lord had prepared me for this moment all my life. 

I knew there was no turning back, not anymore. This was it! For this very purpose I was created of God for this moment in history to share with people what the Lord was teaching me from his word each day for their encouragement and instruction and spiritual growth and wisdom and discernment. For these are very trying times in which we now live, and there is so much confusion and lies and distortions of truth and things being altered, and liars and lies and tricks and deceptions now abound!

So I was to fan into flame the gift of God within me unlike any other time in my life. And I was to stay the course no matter what – no matter what others said about me or did to me or said to me. For this is a critical time in our history when people need to hear the truth and they need to be made aware of the many lies which are spreading in the name of truth. And so I am committed to the Lord and to his calling upon my life no matter what happens to me or how many hate or reject me or want nothing to do with me. And if they think me odd, that’s ok. People need to hear the truth.

And the truth, with regard to the gospel of our salvation, is that Jesus died that we might die with him to sin and now live to him and to his righteousness, in surrender to his will, in walks of obedience to his commands, and in holy living, to the glory and praise of God. But if sin is what we practice, and not righteousness, and not obedience to the Lord, we will die in our sins and we will not inherit eternal life with God regardless of what our lips profess. So please take this to heart.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Peter 1:15; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

Songs in the Night  

An Original Work / December 18, 2013

“About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.” Acts 16:25 NIV ‘84

Lord, I praise You forevermore.

You, my Savior, I now adore.

Hope in heaven awaiting me,

Because You died at Calvary.

I have been forgiven,

And I’m bound for heaven.

Jesus set me free from

All my sin, I say.

I will praise Him always!

Lord, I love You for all You’ve done:

Overcame death, my vict’ry won!

Jesus saved me, and now I’m free!

I rejoice in His love for me.

I will walk in vict’ry!

My sin is but hist’ry!

I am free to please Him

With my life today.

I will love Him always!

Lord, I thank You for giving me

A new life bought at Calvary.

Loving Jesus, I meet with Him.

Tender mercies now flow within.

Lord, I am so thankful;

Through my Lord, I’m able

To sit at His table;

Fellowship with Him.

I will thank Him always!

https://vimeo.com/379484387