God Desires All People to be Saved

“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time. For this I was appointed a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.” (1 Timothy 2:1-7 ESV)

When I read this, the first question that came to my mind was, “What should I pray for all people, and for those in positions of rule and authority in the nations all over the world, and in my own nation?” Well, I know that I need to pray according to the will of God, and not against his will. But I hear so many people taking this that they should pray for God to bless certain people or particular nations or specific people who are in positions of political power. But is that what God intends? Does he want to bless all people?

So, then I got to thinking about the people in this world who are thieves, liars, murderers, adulterers, those who rape people and who take over other nations, and who steal from them, and who kill whomever they choose, and who commit horrific crimes against humanity. How should we pray for them? Well, would you pray for God to bless them? But this is what and who many heads of nations are, at least they are here in America. And this is what many professers of Christianity are, too, including many pastors.

So, how should we pray for them? Well, as we read here in this passage of Scripture it tells us that we should pray for them, for this is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. And there you have it! That is the answer to my question. We need to pray for the salvation of the people of the world and for heads of nations, that they would come to the knowledge of the truth of God’s word, and that they would obey the truth.

And this is where it gets sticky. Many people, at least here in America, have a false conception of what it means to believe in Jesus Christ and to be saved from their sins. They see their salvation as deliverance from the punishment of sin (hell) and their faith in Jesus Christ as something that they can create in their own minds to suit their own purposes and their own chosen lifestyles. And thus so many of them make professions of faith in Jesus but they are still living for self and in sin and not for the Lord.

So, if we are going to pray for the people of the world, including for heads of nations, to come to genuine faith in Jesus Christ and to be saved from their sins, and to come to the knowledge of the truth of God’s word, then we need to be praying that they understand that faith in Jesus Christ comes from God and is persuaded of God and is gifted to us of God and is not of our own doing – not of the will nor of the flesh of man. So we don’t get to decide what this faith looks like. God does! His word does!

Therefore, if we look into the word of God (in context) we will learn that the faith required of us for salvation from sin is this God-persuaded faith in Jesus Christ which leads us to be crucified with Christ in death to sin and raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin but now as slaves to God and to his righteousness. So we are saved out of our lives of addiction to sin so that we can now live for the Lord in walks of obedience and in holy living, pleasing to God (see Romans 6:1-23).

And we also need to know the truth of what the word teaches regarding our salvation, that it is not a one-time thing that takes place in our lives and now heaven is guaranteed us regardless of how we live. For if sin is what we practice, and not righteousness, and not obedience to our Lord, then we do not have salvation from sin and eternal life with God. And we will be judged by God according to our works, and many will hear him say, “I never knew you. Depart from me you workers of lawlessness.” (Matthew 7:21-23)

Now, if you are at all paying attention to what is going on in the world and in your nations, and if you are listening to the Holy Spirit speaking truth to your hearts, you should be aware that we are living in the last days before the return of Christ and that end times prophecies are being fulfilled in our present world situations. And you should be able to see the moral and spiritual decline of what is called “the church,” at least here in America, and perhaps across the world, and that God is presently judging us.

So what we really need to be praying for the people of the world, and for professing Christians, and for pastors of “churches” and heads of nations is that they all come to genuine repentance (turning from sin) and that they surrender their lives to Jesus Christ to now serve him with their lives. We need to pray that they die with Christ to sin and that they now live to him and to his righteousness in holy living, in the power of God. For if they continue in sin, even if they profess faith in Christ, they will die in sin.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Jn 6:35-58; Jn 15:1-11; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 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 3:1-11; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 10:23-31; 1 Co 10:1-22; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

God Desires All People to Be Saved

Video Talk

March 28, 2024

https://youtu.be/8V3XIZYza90

Caution: This link may contain ads

Is It Truth You're Seeking?

Is it truth you’re seeking?

Light through darkness peeking?

Are you glances sneaking?

Is your interest peaking?

Are you less resistant?

Truth you want, insistent?

Tired of lies consistent?

Truth you seek, persistent?

No more want umbrella?

Sunshine your good fella?

Tired of acapella? 

Follow now Jehovah?

Trust in Jesus Savior

Change to good behavior

Truth now your endeavor

Find with God good favor

An Original Work / October 26, 2023

The Light of The World

“And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.” (John 3:19-21 ESV)

Who or what is the light? The Scriptures teach that Jesus is the light, that he is the way, the truth, and the life. The church is the light of the world, and the church is the body of Christ, so this is the light of Christ which the church is shining forth. And light is the opposite of darkness, and darkness is sin, wickedness, evil, rebellion, immorality, and disobedience. Thus light is all that is holy, righteous, morally pure, upright, honest, and faithful.

“Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’” John 8:12 ESV

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 5:14-16 ESV

[Matthew 4:12-17; Matthew 5:14-16; Matthew 6:22-23; John 1:1-9,19-21; John 8:12; John 9:5; John 12:35-36; John 12:46; Acts 26:18]

And our salvation from sin requires that we turn from darkness (sin, evil) to light (Jesus, the gospel, truth, righteousness) and from the power of Satan to God that we might receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in Jesus Christ (see Acts 26:18). For this is what repentance and our faith in Jesus Christ are all about, and this is the truth that is in Christ Jesus which we should have been taught:

“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.” (see Ephesians 4:17-24)

So, Jesus Christ came into the world, and along with him came all of who he is and what he is about, i.e. his divine character and will for humankind. So righteousness and justice and love and obedience to God and holiness and honesty and faithfulness, et al, came into the world. But the people of the world love the darkness (wickedness, immorality, evil) rather than Jesus Christ and his truth and his righteousness because their works are evil. And so they embrace the evil while they reject the truth.

And these “people” include many who also profess faith in Jesus Christ who have been convinced by liars and deceivers that they do not have to repent of their sins, that they do not have to forsake them, and that they do not have to obey the commands of God under the New Covenant, and that nothing is required of them at all other than some fleshly faith in Jesus Christ which is not of God but which is of the flesh of man. For they believe they don’t have to put flesh to death, but they can entertain “him.”

And so many of them are quite comfortable holding on to the flesh and to sin and to doing what they know is evil while claiming God’s grace over their sins and while claiming that Jesus is their Lord and Savior and that heaven is their eternal destiny. And so they welcome living in adultery and idolatry and in lying and cheating and in sexual immorality. And they love the charmers and manipulators and deceivers who are feeding them lies while they are rejecting the truth and those who are telling them the truth.

And we need to get this. For everyone who does (practices) wicked things hates the light (hates Jesus Christ and truth and righteousness) and does not come into the light (does not come into genuine faith in Jesus Christ) lest his evil works should be exposed. They may make a profession of faith in Jesus Christ, and they may go through the motions of religious practice, but if sin is what they practice, and if righteousness and obedience to our Lord are not what they practice, they do not know God/Christ, they are not saved from their sins, and they do not have eternal life with God.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Jn 6:35-58; Jn 15:1-11; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; 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 3:5-11; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 10:23-31; 1 Co 10:1-22; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; 1 Pet 1:17-21; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

So, please don’t read just John 3:16 and decide that you can make up your own version of belief in Jesus Christ which is not biblical faith and that you are now promised that you will never perish but that you will have eternal life with God. Please read all of John 3, for it does not teach what you may think it teaches. For everyone who makes a practice of sin, who deliberately and habitually continues in sin and not in walks of righteousness and not in obedience to the Lord and to his commands (New Covenant), hates Jesus Christ, in reality, and will not come to genuine faith in Jesus Christ.

But those who are of genuine faith in Jesus Christ are those who do what is true – what is of God, and what is righteous, holy, morally pure, upright, honest, and faithful, etc. They are those who have come and who are coming to Christ daily in true worship of our Lord, and in true submission to him as Lord, and in true repentance and in walks of obedience, who are living holy lives, pleasing to God, because they love their Lord. And it should be clearly seen that their works are those which God prepared in advance that we should walk in them, as his workmanship (see Ephesians 2:10).

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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What Faith Looks Like

 

Believing in Jesus Christ

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” (John 3:16-18 ESV)

“For God so loved the world that He gave the only begotten Son, so that everyone believing in Him should not perish, but should have eternal life.” (John 3:16 BLB)

“For God did so love the world, that His Son -- the only begotten -- He gave, that every one who is believing in him may not perish, but may have life age-during.” (John 3:16 YLT)

There are two important factors to note in these last two translations, both of which are more literal (word for word) translations, and the first is to distinguish that Jesus Christ was not just the Son of God, but that he was the only begotten Son of God (who is also God – see John chapter one). For he was conceived of the Holy Spirit, and not of man, although he was born to a human mother. So while he was on the earth he was both God (in the flesh) and he was man (human), but without sin.

Jesus Christ is God: [John 1:1-18; John 8:24,58; John 10:30-33; Hebrews 1:8-9; Colossians 2:9; Titus 2:13; 2 Peter 1:1; Romans 9:5; John 20:28-29]

The second thing of great importance to note is that “belief” in Jesus is not a one-time thing that happens in our lives which “seals the deal,” so to speak. This belief, which promises us salvation from sin and eternal life with God, must be continuous and ongoing belief (believing), and we must remain believing in Jesus until the very end. But this believing is not intellectual, and it is not emotional, but it is something that must be acted out in our lives in daily practice in walks of obedience to our Lord in holy living.

Jesus Christ must now be foremost (uppermost) in our lives. He must truly be Lord (Owner-Master) of our lives, and we are to now be his possession to do as he says according to his will and purpose for our lives. He is to be the one we desire above all else, as is his gift of salvation to us. But that gift is freedom from slavery (addiction) to sin and not just forgiveness of sins, and it requires walks of obedience to his commands (New Covenant) and holy living. For if sin is what we obey, we will not inherit eternal life with God.

So, our hearts must be given over to the Lord to do his will, to leave our lives of sin behind us, and to now follow him in obedience. Our hearts must now be surrendered to the Lord to do his will, to walk in his ways and in his truth, becoming like him in character, mind, action, and speaking, in the power and working of God’s Spirit living within us. For this is what it means to be holy – to be separate (unlike, different) from the world because we are being made to be like Jesus, by God’s Spirit.

But this is a lifetime process which will not be complete until Jesus returns for his faithful bride and he takes us to be with him for eternity. For our salvation will not be complete until then, and only if we continue in faithful obedience to our Lord until the very end (see noted Scriptures above). And this is not saying that we must live in absolute sinless perfection. Where God “draws the line in the sand” has to do with our practice, not our perfection. Are we walking in obedience to our Lord in holy living, in practice? Or are we walking in deliberate and habitual sin, in practice? (see noted Scriptures)

For Jesus Christ taught us that if we want to come after him that we must deny self, take up our cross daily (die daily to sin and to self), and follow (obey) him. For if we hold on to our lives of living in sin and for self, we will lose them for eternity. But if for Jesus’ sake we deny self, die daily to sin, and follow him in obedience, in practice, then we have the hope of salvation from sin and of eternal life with God. But salvation is not promised on a mere profession of faith. We have to walk in obedience to our Lord.

For Jesus also taught us that not everyone who calls Jesus “Lord” is going to enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one DOING the will of God the Father who is in heaven. For many are going to stand before him on the day of judgment, calling him “Lord,” and claiming all that they believed that they did in his name. But he is going to say to them, “I never knew you! Depart from me you workers of lawlessness.” Why? Because they would not obey the commands of God but they continued living in their sins.

And the NT apostles taught that Jesus died that we might die to sin and live to righteousness, and that we might live for him and no longer for self. For Jesus shed his blood for us on that cross to buy us back for God (to redeem us) out of our lives of slavery to sin so that we will now honor God with our bodies (with our lives). For by faith in Jesus Christ we are to be crucified with him in death to sin and raised with him to walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin but now as slaves to righteousness.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; 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 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2]

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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What I Know

 

While We are Waiting

On September 26, 2011, I was reading in 1 Corinthians 10 for my quiet time with the Lord. And the Lord had me write these words (following) and he also had me write a song titled “When in the Stillness.”

The children of Israel had experienced all of God’s blessings and provisions, as well as his guidance, leadership, and protection in bringing them out of slavery. And yet, God was not pleased with them, because they did not obey him. They wanted the blessings of God absent of obedience. So, their lives are examples for us to keep us from setting our hearts on evil, and from becoming followers of idols, in place of being followers of God. 

So many times in our lives we allow so many other things to crowd out our times with God and our relationships with him. When we need to be still before our Lord, so that we can hear him speak, we are busy doing other stuff, or we are fretting over this or over that, often involving other things which have become our idols. 

So, he calls us to be still, so that we can hear his voice speaking to our hearts, so that he can point these things out to us. Then, we need to recognize the things that are taking his place in our hearts which are not pleasing to God so that we can forsake those. And then we need to draw closer to him in fellowship with him, and in obedience to his Word.

When in The Stillness  

An Original Work / September 26, 2011

When in the stillness of this moment,

Speak to me, Lord, I humbly pray.

Be my desire, set me on fire,

Teach me to love always.

Help me to walk in fellowship with You,

Listening to You; sit at Your feet.

Whisper Your words to me, 

Oh, how gently, guiding me in Your truth. 

While we are waiting for Your blessing,

Lord, in our hearts be King today.

Help us to live for you ev’ry moment,

List’ning to what You say.

May we not stray from your word within us,

Help us obey You, Lord, in all things,

Walking each moment, Lord, in Your presence,

Our offerings to You bring.

Help us to love You, Lord, our master;

Be an example of Your love,

Helping the hurting, lift up the fallen,

Showing them Your great love.

Teach them to love You, follow You always,

Bearing their cross and turning from sin;

Walking in daily fellowship with You,

Making You Lord and King.

https://vimeo.com/126984144

While We are Waiting

Video Talk

November 5, 2022

https://youtu.be/vDetqzfYT9Y

Caution: This link may contain ads

Distancing from God

Distancing, distancing from their God, 

Many, many are a fraud. 

Turbulent, turbulent, round and round, 

Many ne’er get off the ground. 

Honoring, honoring not their Lord,

Idols, idols they adore. 

Sacrifice, sacrifice to their gods, 

Idols they, instead, applaud. 

Minist’ring, minist’ring, not in faith,

They trap people with their bait.

Multitudes, multitudes all around

Not the true faith they have found.

Witnessing, witnessing lies untold,

Masqueraders very bold.

Trickery, trickery, so deceived,

Many, many have believed.

Wakening, wakening many’s faith,

God have mercy on this date.

Conquerors, conquerors now surround,

In hopes Christians will be bound.

Penitence, penitence, that’s the goal,

So your idols you will fold.

Following, following now your Lord,

Faith in Jesus, one accord. 

An Original Work / July 26, 2020

Revealed to Us Through the Spirit

“Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away. But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But, as it is written,

“’What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him’— these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. For who knows a person's thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual.

“The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. ‘For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?’ But we have the mind of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 2:6-16 ESV)

Now, when the apostle Paul was first sharing the message of the gospel of Christ with the people, it was new to the people. For the Jews of the Old Covenant had only known the Old Covenant, and the Gentiles had (generally speaking) not previously been included in the family of God. Yet, the gospel message can be seen and was prophesied about in the Old Testament. Jesus, the Christ, had been prophesied about in the Old Testament writings. The book of Isaiah is probably half prophecies of the Messiah.

Yet, Paul stated that the rulers of his time didn’t understand the message. They didn't understand the prophecies of the Christ and of his gospel and of the Messianic age, and that those prophecies had been fulfilled in Jesus Christ. For if they had comprehended it all, they would not have crucified Christ on that cross. And why didn’t they see this? Why did they not comprehend it? Because it was revealed through the Holy Spirit, and they were not in tune to the Spirit’s voice. For they were not spiritual, i.e. they were not of God, but of the flesh.

So, let’s look at how this is happening in our world today. I live in the USA, so I will speak mainly of what I have observed and experienced and read about and witnessed myself of what is going on here in America. So many of our pastors and church leaders today have gone the way of the world and of marketing schemes and tricks and goals for how to grow their “churches,” and for how to “draw in large crowds of people” from the world. And so many of them have deserted the true faith and the truth of the gospel in order to attract the world to their gatherings so that they can add numbers.

So, rather than teaching the truth of the gospel of our salvation as Jesus taught it, and as his NT apostles taught it, in context, they are largely teaching a wisdom of this age which has been skillfully blended in with the gospel of Christ while they “cherry-pick” the passages of Scripture which they then make to agree with the “wisdom of this age”, because they largely teach them out of context to make the Scriptures say what they do not say if taught in the appropriate context. But they mask it as though it is truth.

They may claim that what they are teaching is truth, and that it is biblical, and that it is of God or of the Spirit of God, but while they alter and dilute the true gospel message to make it more appealing to the ungodly of this world. And so it ends up being more of a social gospel with “feel-good” messages intended to tickle itching ears and to make people feel good about themselves. For so many of them now are not teaching God’s requirements for genuine repentance (dying to sin) and for walking in obedience to his commands in holy living, but they promise people heaven when they die.

And many may call it “sharing the gospel” when what they are really doing is sharing more of a social gospel that is contrary to what Jesus and his NT apostles taught. Being “missional” is not usually about sharing the truth of the gospel but it is more about blending in with the culture of the world and being “nice” to people and being “good deed doers,” but not usually about teaching that to come after Christ we must deny self, die daily to sin, and follow him in obedience. For if we do not, we don’t have life in him.

Anyway, what many of them are teaching sounds good to the flesh, but it doesn’t put the flesh to death. And that is because what they are teaching is not from the Holy Spirit but from the spirit of the world. And it comes from human wisdom, and not the wisdom of God (not in the whole), for it is, again, a careful blend of human wisdom and biblical wisdom, but which cuts out the wisdom of God which human wisdom does not agree with. For the natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God.

So many professers of faith in Jesus Christ have their minds so saturated with the world and with the thinking of the world, often disguised as of God, that they don’t even realize that what they are believing as truth is not of the Spirit of God at all, but it comes from the philosophies of human flesh. For if we are going to comprehend the things of the Spirit, they must be spiritually discerned by those who truly are of the Spirit of God and who are listening to him and who are following him in obedience to God’s commands.

So, the bottom line in all of this is that we need to be students of the Scriptures who read them in their full context, who are listening to the Lord and to what the Scriptures teach us who profess to be followers of Christ. And then we need to deny self, die daily to sin, by the Spirit, and walk in obedience to our Lord and to his commands, as empowered by God. For if we continue living in sin, and we do not walk in obedience to our Lord, we will not inherit eternal life in him, but we will face the wrath of God.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; 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 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2]

A Believer’s Prayer 

An Original Work / July 31, 2012

With my whole heart, Lord, I pray 

To be Yours, and Yours always.

Lead me in Your truth today.

May I love You, and obey.

Lead me in Your righteousness.

When I sin, may I confess;

Bow before You when I pray;

Live for You and You always.

Love You, Jesus, You’re my friend.

Life with You will never end.

You are with me through each day,

Giving love and peace always.

You will ne’er abandon me.

From my sin You set me free.

You died on that cruel tree,

So I’d live eternally.

Soon You’re coming back for me;

From this world to set me free;

Live with You eternally.

Oh, what joy that brings to me.

I will walk with You in white;

A pure bride, I’ve been made right

By the blood of Jesus Christ;

Pardoned by His sacrifice.

https://vimeo.com/114796263

What's Important?

Christian brother, where are you?

Christian sister, and you, too.

What’s important? Do you know?

Does it matter? Does it show?

Your intentions, what are they?

Read your Bible, kneel and pray?

Have devotions here and there?

Share the gospel anywhere?

Some of you are quite sincere, 

Follow Jesus, have Him near.

Hearts are given o’er to Christ.

Now to sin NOT are enticed.

Follow Jesus where He leads,

On His word you daily feed.

Share the gospel, Christ to know,

Hearts sincere, and not for show.

But while others fall in sin,

Not the souls of folks to win.

Self-absorbed and self-defiled,

Self-indulgent all the while.

Make professions, not in fact,

Their confessions not intact.

Love their idols, play their games,

And they remain just the same.

So, the calling here is this,

Don’t let your faith be amiss.

Turn from your sins, follow God,

Righteousness now you applaud.

Faithful you in service be,

Walking with Christ tenderly,

Follow Him in what He says,

Your faith in Him now express.

An Original Work / October 1, 2022

Please Be Genuine

“And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:1-5 ESV)

This was the apostle Paul speaking to the church in Corinth. And he set the example for us in how we are to be in our speech, especially with regard to what we share or teach about the gospel of our salvation or from the Scriptures, in general. We are not to be superfluous in the sense that we are not to add on to the Scriptures what the Scriptures do not teach, especially to try to sound superior or eloquent or haughty so as to lift up ourselves and/or to try to impress others with smooth talking and persuasive words.

First of all, we should be ourselves. We should be the same no matter who we are with. Now we may be a little bit different with close family members, in the sense that there would be more of an intimacy and closeness there, and shared experiences, but even there we should still maintain our true character and not try to blend in with our environment. We should never put on airs to try to impress other people or to try to make ourselves sound different or better than who we really are day in and day out.

Oftentimes, when I am making talk videos, I will tell my audience that my conversations with them are as though we are sitting across the living room from each other sharing what we are getting out of the Scriptures at that moment in time. I do very little preparation for these talk videos in advance, if any, and I try to just let the Holy Spirit lead me in what he wants me to share. So I am my natural self, and what you see is what you get. I don’t try to put on any kind of performance to impress anyone. Should be obvious.

I have a very specific memory of a pastor of a church congregation from many years ago. If you spoke with him in person, his speech was one way. But when he stood behind the pulpit to preach, he put on a “preacher voice” which was just not natural for him at all. Perhaps he was trained to do that in his seminary training. Some preachers do have particular styles they follow which appear to be along church denominational lines. Some tell jokes and tearjerker stories while others yell and stomp their feet, etc.

But we should all be natural, i.e. who we are no matter who we are with. None of us should put on a performance or airs to try to make ourselves appear better than we really are. And if we are sharing or teaching the Scriptures, we should pray and ask the Lord for guidance and wisdom in what to say, and we should not talk out of our own thinking and reasoning, especially if it does not align with the teachings of the Scriptures. But differing circumstances may require varied responses, like happy or sad.

And I am certainly not saying that, even if we do things the right way, in practice, that we will always say everything in the right way all the time. We are still human beings. And so our communications with one another are not always going to be perfect. And sometimes we may have to back up and reword what we intended to say, or we may have to stop and apologize for not being as sensitive as we should have been in how we said something. But we should be those who practice speaking the truth in love.

The main thing here is to be genuine, not fake. Don’t try to be someone you are not or to give a false impression of who you really are. And don’t be someone who teaches what you yourself are not living, especially don’t try to sound spiritual and righteous if you know that sin is what you practice and that righteousness and godly living and obedience to the Lord are not what you practice. Don’t preach to others what you are not living yourself, or at least be honest and admit that you are not living what you preach.

And, if we are going to be those who are teaching the Scriptures to others, we need to be in close fellowship with the Lord, walking in obedience to his commands, in holy living, no longer walking in sin, and we need to let the Holy Spirit be the one to direct us in what to say, and it not be of our own flesh nor of the teachings of other humans. And this makes us real and genuine, and then others’ faith will not rest on human wisdom, but in the power of God and of his word (taught in the correct context).

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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Be Jesus to The World

John 9:1-11 ESV

As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him. We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” Having said these things, he spit on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed the man's eyes with the mud and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.

The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar were saying, “Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?” Some said, “It is he.” Others said, “No, but he is like him.” He kept saying, “I am the man.” So they said to him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” He answered, “The man called Jesus made mud and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed and received my sight.”

I love this story! Don’t you? Now, you know Jesus was not saying that the man’s parents never sinned, but that the man’s blindness was not caused by his or by his parents’ sins. Now I thought about how the man could have sinned prior to being born blind, if that were possible, but then I decided that was beyond me and so I skipped over that part other than to point out that we humans have all sinned and we all come up short of attaining God’s divine approval and acceptance. For we can never be good enough in our flesh.

But as I thought about Jesus’ words and how he said that the reason this man was born blind was so that the works of God might be displayed in him, I was encouraged by that. For if you think of all the things that have happened in your life or in the lives of people you love and care for, some people have gone through so much that it is hard to imagine how any of them came out sane and whole. But I love it that God can take the impossible situations of our lives and he can turn them around for good.

And then I love what Jesus said in his next words. For people are dying every day. I have lost people who I loved to death, and I know I will probably lose more, or I could be the next one to die. Not one of us knows if we have tomorrow. So, while there is still time, and while we still have the breath of life in us, if we are believers in Jesus Christ, we must be doing the works of God while we still have today. And we must be doing the kinds of things Jesus did, and we must speak the words that he spoke, and we must be sharing with people the truth of the gospel while there is still time.

So, what is the truth of the gospel? In a nutshell it is that Jesus died on that cross and was raised from the dead in order that we might die with him to sin and live to him and to his righteousness (1 Peter 2:24). For Jesus died to free us from our slavery to sin and to empower us to live godly and holy lives pleasing to him. But if we choose not to obey the Lord, and if we choose to continue living in deliberate and habitual sin against God and against other humans, then we need to know that heaven does not await us.

[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] 

Be Jesus to The World

Video Talk

November 3, 2022

https://youtu.be/503p8irnZo0

Caution: This link may contain ads

Changing Times

Ring those bells

Call the congregation

We will soon

Have a jubilation

Tell the truth

And, listen to it well

Sit ye down

And listen for a spell

God has called

His people to Him now

To know Him

And at His feet to bow

Changing times

Have people in a whirl

Doubting God

At him their thoughts do hurl

Fear’s ablaze

In the hearts of many

Believing lies

Hope, they ain’t got any

God’s not dead

He hasn’t left the scene

He’s engaged

In truly everything

All is well

For He’s not left our side

When in Him

We truly do abide

He works all

According to His plan

On His Word

We truly can depend.

An Original Work / March 31, 2020

Ask in Faith, No Doubting

“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.” (James 1:5-8 ESV)

I mentioned in the first devotion posted today, “Do Not Be Anxious About Tomorrow,” that the Lord has lately been having me write these daily devotions a week in advance. So I am actually writing this on Friday, September 27, 2024, now at 7:39 p.m. USA EST. And right now the eastern/middle part of our country has been hit with a major hurricane affecting Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina, etc. The flood damage in N and S Carolina is catastrophic! And I live in South Carolina.

So I am most certain that there are people here right now who are praying and asking God for wisdom to make the right decisions, or they are praying for the safety of loved ones who can’t be reached because of cell towers being down. So, it appears to be a very good time to talk on the subject of prayer and how we should be praying and believing God for answers. 

I want to mention first of all the critical importance of reading Scriptures in their context and of understanding that all of God’s promises have conditions (stipulations, requirements). So don’t read verse 5 and stop there. Read through verse 8 and then you will get the whole context of what is being taught here on the subject of praying for wisdom. For not everyone who asks God for wisdom will get an answer from the Lord, because not everyone asks in faith without doubting God.

So, what is faith? The word means “persuasion,” and with regard to the Christian faith, it means to be persuaded by God. And what will God persuade us to do? He persuades us as to his holiness and righteousness and of our sinfulness, and of our need to turn from (repent of) our sinful lifestyles, to die with him to sin, and to now walk in obedience to his commands in holy living, in the power of God, by the grace of God.

And faith to believe in Jesus Christ is authored by God, it is gifted to us by God, and it is not of our own doing – not of the will nor of the flesh of humans. And thus this faith aligns with God’s will and purpose for our lives and with the teachings of Christ and of his NT apostles with regard to what constitutes genuine faith and salvation and the hope of eternal life with God. And they teach that genuine faith results in self-denial, dying daily to sin, and walking in obedience to our Lord and to his commandments.

And that perfectly aligns with what James wrote here in today’s passage. For, since Jesus died on that cross to deliver us out of our slavery to sin and to give us new lives in him to now be lived for his glory in walks of obedience to his commands, then faith which comes from God will act on that. And those of true faith in the Lord will die with him to sin, not just once, but daily, and we will walk in obedience to his commands, in his power, by his grace, and we will not deliberately and habitually sin against the Lord.

So faith and wisdom are intertwined. They work together hand-in-hand. But sadly there are a lot of people who profess faith in Jesus Christ, who will seek the counsel of the Lord, but then they are like the man who looked at himself in the mirror and then immediately walked away and forgot what he looked like (James 1:22-25). If they don’t like the Lord’s counsel they will go elsewhere to find someone to tell them what they want to hear. And that is why they are double-minded. 

They seem to desire God and his wisdom on one end, but when they come up against a situation where they have to choose the wisdom of God or worldly wisdom or their own flesh or their sinful desires, then they go with their flesh and not with God. So they are like one person but two on a see-saw (teeter-totter) going back and forth and up and down in opinion and belief and practice depending on their emotions and desires and what is most important to them at the time they are making a choice.

Since they have divided minds and hearts and loyalties, and they are unstable in their ways, and their hearts are not steadfast in walks of faith and obedience to the Lord, they should not suppose that they will receive anything from the Lord, and that includes salvation from sin and eternal life with God. For Jesus said that not everyone who calls him “Lord” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one doing the will of God. We cannot serve two masters. We will hate the one and love the other. God is not divided.

[Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; Galatians 5:16-21; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 John 1:5-10; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10]  

Ask in Faith, No Doubting

Video Talk

September 27, 2024

https://youtu.be/pEat21XGweE

Caution: This link may contain ads

Cracks and Crinkles

Life on this earth is not simple

It comes with its cracks and its crinkles

It comes with its friends and its foes

It comes with its wonders and woes

Life certainly has ups and downs

Sometimes with a smile or a frown

Some days may be sad, others joy

Some things that will build or destroy

We never do know what will come

Or even where they will come from

Sometimes it comes left, sometimes right

Some days will be sad, some delight

No matter what comes, when or where

We are not to fear, not despair

For God has it all in command

And He’s working out His good plan

An Original Work / October 8, 2023

Do Not Be Anxious About Tomorrow

"Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” (Matthew 6:25-34 ESV)

Lately the Lord has been having me write these daily devotions a week in advance, so I am actually writing this on Friday, September 27, 2024, at 1:57 a.m. USA EST. And right now the eastern/middle part of our country has been hit with a major hurricane, according to the news media, which is supposed to wreak havoc here in S Carolina sometime later this morning, not directly, but we are supposed to get a lot of high winds and rain and maybe even some tornadoes, and they are saying we should stay home.

In times like these we think about possibly losing our power (electricity) and water and food supplies, or about where we will go if we get hit directly with winds strong enough to do major damage to our dwelling place. So I find it really interesting that Matthew 6:33 was the verse for the day on “Bible Gateway .com,” for the Lord will sometimes have me write devotions from whatever passage of Scripture contained their verse for the day, but not always. And what is jumping out at me here is “Do not be anxious..”

And this isn’t just about possible storm damage, is it? This is about life, in general. We should not be people who worry about anything. Now this does not mean we sit around and do nothing and become lazy gluttons while expecting God to do everything for us and to supply our every need. We still need to work, if we are physically or mentally able, and to follow the leading of the Lord with our lives, and to do his will and his calling upon our lives. 

“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10).

[John 15:1-11; 1 Corinthians 15:58; 2 Corinthians 9:8; Galatians 5:6; Ephesians 2:8-10; Philippians 2:12-13; Colossians 1:9-14; 2 Thessalonians 1:11-12; 2 Timothy 2:21; Titus 2:11-14; Titus 3:8; James 2:17] 

So, we work for the Lord, according to his will and purpose for our lives, and in his power and strength, but we don’t stress over the details. We trust that the Lord will provide for our every need as long as we are following him in walks of obedience to his commands. We trust that he will guide and direct us every step of the way with regard to what we are to do next, and where we are to go, and what we are to do when we get there. And this is how I operate each day with regard to what the Lord has me write.

And God is absolutely amazing in how he directs my path each day, and in how he leads and directs me, sometimes in the simplest of ways, in order to show me what passages of Scripture to read, and the lesson that he would want me to get out of it and then to share with others. Sometimes he will even plant a cockroach or a beetle or a slug or a spider, or whatever, just where he wants them at a specific time in order to give me a real life parable from them to teach me what he wants me to learn from the Scriptures.

And sometimes there are things I am going through in my personal life and the Scripture passage for that day will speak directly to that situation and will give me guidance and direction in knowing what to do and how to respond. But I know the Lord is always going before me and preparing the way for whatever he has for me each day. And no matter what he takes me through, I know that he is completely sovereign over my life and my circumstances, and he is going to use it all for my ultimate good.

So, if our trust is really in the Lord Jesus, we should not be anxious and worried about anything, but we should take every concern that we have before the Lord in prayer and then trust him to show us what he wants us to do, and then trust him to work it all out for our good. But this means that we must seek first and foremost God/Christ and his kingdom and his righteousness, and then God will provide us with what we need to do his will. And this means that we need to obey our Lord in all things.

So, we are not to be anxious about tomorrow, for actually, we have little to no control over what might come upon us, even in the next seconds or minutes. But we do need to make certain that our hearts are right with the Lord, that we are walking in his ways, in obedience to his commands, in holy living, in his power, and that we are no longer walking in deliberate and habitual sin against our Lord and against our fellow humans. For any one of us could die at any moment, and not everyone is going to heaven, not even all who profess faith in Jesus Christ. So get your heart right with God.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; 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 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2]

‘Til The Storm Passes By

By Thomas Mosie Lister

In the dark of the midnight have I oft hid my face

While the storm howls above me, and there's no hiding place

'Mid the crash of the thunder, Precious Lord, hear my cry

Keep me safe till the storm passes by

Many times Satan whispered

There is no use to try

For there's no end of sorrow, there's no hope by and by

But I know Thou art with me, and tomorrow I'll rise

Where the storms never darken the skies

Till the storm passes over, till the thunder sounds no more

Till the clouds roll forever from the sky

Hold me fast, let me stand in the hollow of Thy hand

Keep me safe till the storm passes by

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

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More Than These

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.”

Even though this was Jesus’ specific message to Peter, these words are his words to us, as well. For when he calls us to follow him, he calls us to forsake our sins and to leave our past lives behind us in order to follow him where he leads us. For when we believe in Jesus, we die with him to sin and we are raised with him to walk in newness of life in him, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Our new lives are not supposed to be like our old lives. And now our lives are to be surrendered to Christ to do his will, to go where he sends us and to do and to say what he says.

And when Jesus asks if we love him “more than these” he is talking about our sins and our selfish wills and our plans for our lives and our earthly attachments, etc. We are to love him more than our family members, too, or we are not worthy of him. Basically, when we believe in Jesus and we die with him to sin, we die to our old lives and to us being the ones in control of our lives. Now he is Lord and Master of our lives, we are his possession, and now he is the one who should be directing us in the way we should go and where we should live and what job or ministry we should have, etc.

And then we are to feed the Lord’s sheep. No, this is not just for people who are pastors of churches or for people in positions of rule and authority over all people. The Lord has gifted all of us within his body and he has assigned us our parts in the body, and so we are to be using those gifts and doing his assignment for the mutual encouragement and edification of the body of Christ. And so we are to be exhorting and urging and instructing one another in the path of righteousness and so we are not hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. And we are to be speaking the truth in love to one another and speaking to one another in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.

[Rom 12:1-8; 1 Co 12:1-31; Eph 4:1-16; Eph 5:17-27; Col 3:16; Heb 3:13]

More Than These

Video Talk

November 1, 2022

https://youtu.be/N80K5zeK648

Caution: This link may contain ads

Called of God to Make Disciples

You are a Chosen Race

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

“Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.” (1 Peter 2:9-12 ESV)

Who is being addressed here? They are the elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for the sprinkling with his blood (1 Peter 1:1-2). And the elect are all those who are chosen out by God for the rendering of special service to him, i.e. the chosen of God to die with him to sin and to live to him and to his righteousness in walks of obedience to his commands in holy living, by the grace of God, as persuaded of God for faith in him.

But it isn’t as though we have no choice in the matter, as some would have you believe. Even though the faith to believe in Jesus Christ is not of our own doing – not of the will nor of the flesh of man – but is gifted to us by God, and it is persuaded of God, so as to align with God and with his will and purpose for our lives, we still have to submit and surrender ourselves to the will of God. We have to deny self, take up our cross daily (die daily to sin) and follow (obey) him (Luke 9:23-26), by our choice, but only in his power, and only by his grace. For if we do not, we do not have eternal life with God.

[1 Peter 2:24; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Acts 26:18; Titus 2:11-14; Ephesians 2:8-10; Romans 12:1-2; Hebrews 12:1-2; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; Matthew 7:21-23; Romans 1:18-32, etc.]

So, this is not speaking of those who merely make professions of faith in Jesus Christ, who give lip service only, but whose lives are not surrendered to God to do his will, but who are still living according to the flesh, and not according to the Spirit. Many are those who profess faith in Jesus Christ with their lips but whose hearts are far from him, for they are following after a gospel created in the minds of human beings who are of the flesh who want salvation from sin but who do not want to yield control of their lives to God.

But for those of us who have been crucified with Christ in death to sin, and raised with him to now walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin, but now as slaves to God and to his righteousness, we are God’s chosen race, his holy people, his holy nation, a people for his own possession, whether Jew or Gentile by physical birth. Only those of genuine walks of faith and obedience to the Lord Jesus are his chosen people. All those who do not believe in Jesus, who are living in rebellion against him, who are not conformed to his will, are not his true people.

[Genesis 17:7-9; Genesis 18:19; Romans 2:28-29; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 9:4-8,25-28; Romans 11:1-36; Galatians 3:16,26-29; Galatians 4:22-31; Ephesians 2:11-22; Ephesians 3:6; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 2:22; John 8:18-19,38-47; Jude 1:5; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-16; Hebrews 8:6-13; Revelation 2:9; Revelation 3:9]

And this is certainly not teaching that as God’s true people that we will live in absolute sinless perfection (1 John 2:1-2). We might not. We might sin, at times. But if sin is what we practice, i.e. if we deliberately and habitually sin against God and against other humans, especially without conscience, and without true remorse, and with deliberate malice and hatred in our hearts and a desire to hurt other humans, then according to the Scriptures we are not those of true faith in Jesus Christ, and we will not have eternal life.

[John 10:27-30; Rom 2:6-8; 1 Co 6:9-10; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; 1 John 1:5-10; 1 John 2:3-6,15-17; 1 John 3:4-10; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31]

So, now that we have a biblical picture of who those are (and are not) God’s chosen race, his royal priesthood, his holy nation, a people for his own possession (he is Lord – owner master of our lives), we need to also understand what our biblical responsibility is to God, as his chosen race. For not only are we to die to sin daily and to walk in obedience to his commands, in holy living, but we are to be those who are sharing the true message of the gospel with the people of the world, in daily practice.

And we get a hint here as to what that gospel message entails, i.e. “who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” For darkness is sin and light is truth and righteousness and Jesus Christ and his gospel message. For by genuine faith in Jesus Christ we die with him to sin and we are reborn of the Spirit of God to now live holy lives, pleasing to God, in walks of obedience and surrender to the will of God for our lives. Sin is no longer to be our practice, but we should all be following our Lord in obedience.

A Believer’s Prayer 

An Original Work / July 31, 2012

With my whole heart, Lord, I pray 

To be Yours, and Yours always.

Lead me in Your truth today.

May I love You, and obey.

Lead me in Your righteousness.

When I sin, may I confess;

Bow before You when I pray;

Live for You and You always.

Love You, Jesus, You’re my friend.

Life with You will never end.

You are with me through each day,

Giving love and peace always.

You will ne’er abandon me.

From my sin You set me free.

You died on that cruel tree,

So I’d live eternally.

Soon You’re coming back for me;

From this world to set me free;

Live with You eternally.

Oh, what joy that brings to me.

I will walk with You in white;

A pure bride, I’ve been made right

By the blood of Jesus Christ;

Pardoned by His sacrifice.

https://vimeo.com/114796263 

Grave Disaster

Grave disaster going faster

Many make the devil master

Follow him where’er he leads them

Singing songs, salute his anthem

Flocking now to all their heroes

Who then do make strange bedfellows

Knock on doors, salute their master

Who is bringing evil faster

Wisdom speaking through the windows,

“Why you follow strange bedfellows?

Why you listen to their teachings?

Why you not have your misgivings?

“Why you not respond in wisdom?

Why you not have any vision?

Why you follow what is trouble?

Why you walk a walk that’s double?”

Keep in step with godly wisdom

And you will have perfect vision

Follow where the Savior leads you

And from your sins He will heal you

Trust in Jesus as your Savior

And He’ll give you of His favor

Release you from sin’s disaster

So you’ll live forever after

An Original Work / June 21, 2022

Imperfect People and a Perfect God

Some of you have probably seen these memes on social media where they list the weaknesses and sins of some of the people in the Bible. They will tell you that Jacob was a cheater, Peter had a temper, David had an affair, Noah got drunk, Jonah ran from God, Paul was a murderer, Gideon was insecure, Miriam was a gossip, Martha was a worrier, Thomas was a doubter, Sara was impatient, Elijah was moody, and Moses stuttered, etc. 

And then they quote: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:9 ESV

But that is out of context. The context was that Paul was receiving visions and revelations from God. So to keep him from becoming conceited, a thorn was given him in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass him. Three times he pleaded with the Lord that it should leave him, but God replied, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” So, this had nothing to do with Paul sinning against the Lord nor with him being human.

This was fully about Paul, a man of God, who walked in holiness and in righteousness, and in walks of obedience to the Lord, and not in sin, being given visions and revelations from God. And so God (the only one who would or who could) gave him that thorn in the flesh (not defined for us, other than it was a messenger of Satan) to keep him from becoming conceited. And God is not going to give him sin nor would he refuse to deliver him from sin.

And God’s power is not perfected in sin. And his grace is not sufficient for us if we are walking in sin. And the “weakness” he was talking about was not sin. For, again, God is not going to refuse to deliver us from sin. Jesus Christ died on that cross that we might die to sin and live to his righteousness. He shed his blood to redeem us out of our lives of living in sin so that we will now live holy lives in walks of obedience to his commands.

So, God is not okay with any of us being adulterers, liars, cheats, murderers, thieves, drunkards, rebellious, gossips, deserters, and hot tempered, etc. His grace is not sufficient for us if we are walking in any of these sins and if we are not walking in obedience to our Lord in holy living. And yes, some of these, who were people of God, did sin against the Lord at some time in their lives. But many (or all) of them repented and did not continue in those sins.

But what is the message that the meme is giving to us by including the passage from 2 Corinthians 12:9? It is implying that Paul's weakness was sin, and not just one sin, but addictive sin, that God's power was being perfected in Paul's sinful addiction, and that God's grace was sufficient to cover his addictive sin, and while God refused to deliver him from this addictive sin, but that God's grace would sustain him. 

So, it is saying to us that we can be Christians and still live (walk) in sin against the Lord, that God may refuse to deliver us from our sin, but that God’s grace is going to cover it all. Just not biblical! Does God’s grace cover our sins? Not if we continue in those sins habitually and deliberately. For God’s grace is training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives while we wait for Jesus’ return (Titus 2:11-14).

Will we be absolutely perfect ever while we live in these flesh bodies on this earth? I don’t believe we will be. For the word “perfect” means, “to bring to an end, complete, finish, accomplish, consummation, finish the necessary process, reaching the end” (Bible Hub .com). We are to be in the process of being made perfect, but the perfection will not be completed until Jesus returns and he takes his faithful ones to be with him for eternity.

Philippians 3:12: “Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.”

But lack of perfection is never to be used as an excuse for deliberate and habitual sin, and for not walking in obedience to our Lord’s commands. For if sin is what we practice (obey) and not obedience to our Lord, then the Scriptures teach us that we don’t know God, he doesn’t know us, we are not born of God, we are of the devil, and we will not inherit eternal life with God, but we will face the wrath of God, instead.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; 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 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2]

So, don’t buy into these memes which try to convince you that you can continue in deliberate and habitual sin against the Lord and that God’s grace is sufficient for you and that his grace will cover it all. Just not biblical! Don’t buy into the lies that try to tell you that you can serve God and the devil at the same time, and that even if sin is what you practice that heaven is still guaranteed you when you die. That’s a lie from hell.

But if our faith in the Lord is genuine, and even though sin is not what we practice, but obedience to our Lord is what we practice, that doesn’t guarantee that we will never fail or that we will never sin again. We might, but that is not permission to sin. For the Bible makes it clear that if we make sin our practice that we will die in our sins. And many are going to hear God say, “I never knew you. Depart from me you workers of lawlessness.”

The Battle for Truth

An Original Work / May 18, 2013 

Based off Malachi 1-4

Truth is marching, truth is marching.

I love you. Honor me.

Tell the truth. You’ll be free.

Sing My praise all your days.

I will give all you need.

Truth is marching, truth is marching.

Turn from sin; cleansed within.

Stand in awe of My Name.

Teach what’s true. Walk in peace.

Follow Christ, in His ways.

Truth is marching, truth is marching.

Show to God faithfulness.

Do not be adult’rous. 

Do not shed shallow tears.

Do not be insincere. 

Truth is marching, truth is marching.

I have sent messengers,

Who have giv’n my address.

They call for repentance,

And they warn of judgment.

Truth is marching, truth is marching.

I, the Lord, do not change,

So return – blessings gain:

Healing comes; joyfulness;

Freedom from your distress.

https://vimeo.com/117023801

His Timing is Perfect

I am not going to write much on this subject today. You can listen to the video, if you are able. I asked the Lord if he wanted me to do a video talk today and he put this title in my head, “His Timing is Perfect.”

Basically, we all have things we are going through in this life, and not everything we are praying for is coming to fruition as we had hoped. There are loose ends that are not tied up. Things are being left unresolved for one reason or another. Relationships are not all being healed. People are not coming together as they should. But all of these things are out of our control. We have prayed to God, and we have sought his counsel, and we have done as he has directed, but now we wait.

And the waiting can be hard, at times, especially if we have waited a very long time for something and if we are still waiting, like for the salvation of loved ones, for example. So, we have to accept that we can’t solve everything and that not all things are going to come together as we would like, and some things are just out of our control. And so we hand it all over to the Lord after we have made sure we have done all he has asked of us, and we trust him to work it all out for the good of us who love him.

His Timing is Perfect

Video Talk

October 31, 2022

https://youtu.be/Xuq4j2AcaVU

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Pitter Patter

Pitter patter what’s the matter?

Life is full of empty chatter.

Wishful thinking lights are blinking

While men’s lives are deeply sinking.

Throes of idols all asunder

While men’s anger sounds like thunder.

World a turning, fires burning,

While men’s hearts are barely churning. 

Much confusion lacking vision

Christians not on holy mission.

Worldly matters makeup chatter

And will end in much disaster.

Holy mission not God’s vision

But of man and television.

Do you notice? Look at lattice

And then you’ll see what’s in practice.

God’s not silent when you’re violent

He is speaking and He’ll triumph!

An Original Work / November 5, 2019

Not Worldliness But Godliness

“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.” (1 John 2:15-17 ESV)

We are to love the people of the world with agape love which prefers what God prefers, which is what is holy, righteous, morally pure, upright, kind, honest, faithful, and obedient to our Lord and to his New Covenant Commandments. When we love God with this love we prefer to live through Christ and to choose his choices and to obey them in his power. And so we will love other humans with that love which honors God and his Word, and which does not deliberately and habitually sin against God and other people.

So, when this instructs us to not love the world, this is not talking about the people of the world. We are to love all people, even our enemies, even those who hate us and mistreat us and do all sorts of evil against us. We are to love them and pray for them and do good to them and speak truth to them that will be of spiritual benefit to them, and with love and kindness, considering their true needs as greater than whether or not they will like us or approve of us or treat us kindly, in return. Love speaks the truth.

So, what does it mean then that we are not to love the world? We are not to prefer (favor, desire, choose) worldliness and godlessness and selfishness and sinfulness. We are not to live according to the desires of our human flesh, but we are to live according to the Word of God and according to his will and purpose for our lives, and in walks of holiness, righteousness, moral purity, uprightness, and obedience to our Lord. We are not to copy the patterns of the world (of the ungodly) but we are to be like Jesus in character.

The Lord’s desires are now to be our desires, not the sinful pleasures of the flesh, and not idolatry and adultery and idleness and wickedness and all that this world has to offer in the way of pleasing the flesh and fulfilling our sinful and selfish desires. For when we believe in Jesus Christ, with faith that comes from God, and is gifted to us by God, and that is persuaded of God, we die with Christ to sin so that we can now live for him in walks of obedience and in holy living. And now we want to do the will of God.

So, how do we know if we are loving (preferring) the world, which includes the sinful pleasures of the world? Well, first of all if our actions are contradictory to God’s requirements for us in holy living, then we are preferring the world, not God. And if our lives are consumed by the world and all that the world is offering us in the way of entertainment and information and activities, etc., but God gets very little of our time and attention and affection and service and obedience. That tells it all.

That is why Jesus called us to come out from the world and to be separate (unlike, different) from the world and to be becoming like Jesus in character and thinking and in actions. For that is what it means to be holy. We are not to adopt the ways of the world and our culture and the attitudes and practices and thinking and believing of those who are of worldly thinking and who are not following after the teachings of the Scriptures (in context). The Bible (Genesis to Revelation, in good translations) should be our only Bible.

So, as those who are of genuine faith in Jesus Christ, our lives are to be surrendered to the Lord to do his will. For our lives are no longer our own to be lived according to what we want, but they are to be lived according to what God wants for our lives, which he makes clear all throughout the Scriptures. And, although we who are old may retire from physical labor, we are never to retire from obeying our Lord and from doing his will. He is still to be boss over our lives, and we are still to do as he commands us to do.

[Luke 9:23-25; John 15:18-19; Romans 12:2; Galatians 6:14; Ephesians 2:1-3; Titus 2:11-14; James 4:4; 2 Peter 1:3-4; 1 John 2:15-17]

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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Fully Surrendered

By Alfred C. Snead / George C. Stebbins

Fully surrendered—Lord, I would be,

Fully surrendered, dear Lord, to Thee.

All on the altar laid,

Surrender fully made,

Thou hast my ransom paid;

I yield to Thee.

Fully surrendered—life, time, and all,

All Thou hast given me held at Thy call.

Speak but the word to me,

Gladly I'll follow Thee,

Now and eternally

Obey my Lord.

Fully surrendered—silver and gold,

His, who hath given me riches untold.

All, all belong to Thee,

For Thou didst purchase me,

Thine evermore to be,

Jesus, my Lord.

Fully surrendered—Lord, I am Thine;

Fully surrendered, Savior divine!

Live Thou Thy life in me;

All fullness dwells in Thee;

Not I, but Christ in me,

Christ all in all.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nkl6j_NMmLM

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If We Obey His Commandments

“My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. 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. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.” (1 John 2:1-6 ESV)

It is critical to correct biblical interpretation always that we read Scriptures in their context. It is a good practice to read the whole context of a Bible book or a biblical passage in order to not take Scriptures out of context and to get a false impression of what they are teaching. So many lies are being taught as truth these days because they are teaching Scriptures out of context and they are twisting them to say what they do not say if taught in the correct context. So, let’s look together at what this is saying.

Who is this written to? It is written to the church, to those professing faith in Jesus Christ. And the author is God, via the apostle John. And the subject matter is that we may not sin. He wrote these things to those professing faith in the Lord Jesus that they may not sin. For that is the goal of our faith, that we should die with Christ to sin and be raised with him to walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin, but now as servants of righteousness in walks of obedience to his commands.

But even though it should be our goal that we no longer sin, we are still human beings who live in flesh bodies, who still have the propensity to sin, and who will be tempted to sin, and who may, at times, sin against the Lord, sometimes without forethought. But if our faith in Jesus Christ is God-gifted and God-persuaded faith, and we have died with Christ to sin, and we are walking in obedience to him, in practice, he is our advocate to God the Father. His sacrifice for our sins covers us so they are not held against us.

For Jesus Christ (God the Son, the Son of God) gave himself up for us on that cross so that when he died, our sins died with him, and when he was raised from the dead, he rose in victory over sin, death, Satan, and hell, on our behalf, so that we would now die with him to sin and live to him and to his righteousness, by his grace, and in his power and strength. So, 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 now as slaves to God and to righteousness.

But what if all we do is make a profession of faith in Jesus Christ, but we don’t ever die with him to sin, and we don’t walk in obedience to his commands, in practice? Is Jesus Christ still our advocate? Not according to what comes next, and not according to what was taught in 1 John 1 and 1 John 3 and in the books penned by Paul and by the other apostles. And not according to what Jesus taught, either. For if sin is what we practice, and not righteousness and obedience to God, we don’t have salvation from sin.

For we read in 1 John 1:5-10 that if we say that we are in fellowship with God/Christ, but while we walk (in conduct, in practice) in darkness (sin), we lie and we do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light (truth, righteousness, godliness, Jesus Christ, the gospel), then the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin. And we read in 1 John 2:3-6 that if we claim to know God/Christ, but if obeying his commandments is not our practice, the truth is not in us, and we don’t really know God/Christ.

So, we cannot read 1 John 2:1-2 and stop there and assume that no matter how often we sin, even if sin is our practice, and if we do so deliberately and premeditatedly, without conscience, that Jesus is still our advocate. And this is why context is so critical, for many professers of faith in Jesus Christ are still living in deliberate and habitual sin while claiming Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior and forgiveness of all sins and heaven as their eternal destiny. But if sin is our practice, we are not in fellowship with God.

And if we claim that we know God, but we do not obey his commandments (New Covenant), in practice, we are liars. We don’t know God, and heaven is not our eternal destiny. For whoever practices righteousness is righteous in the eyes of the Lord, and whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil (1 John 3:4-10). So, we have to be people for whom sin is not our practice, but for whom obedience to our Lord is our practice, all by the grace of God and in his power, as we surrender our lives to do his will and purpose.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; 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 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2]

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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Search Me, O God, and Try Me

Psalms 139:23-24

“Search me, God, and know my heart;

    test me and know my anxious thoughts.

See if there is any offensive way in me,

    and lead me in the way everlasting.” NIV

“Search me, O God, and know my heart! 

Try me and know my thoughts!

And see if there be any grievous way in me, 

and lead me in the way everlasting!” ESV

As followers of Jesus Christ we are to live holy lives pleasing to God, for this is why Jesus died on that cross, that we might die with him to sin and live to him and to his righteousness; that we may live for him and no longer for ourselves. For when Jesus shed his blood for us on that cross it was to buy us back for God (to redeem us) so that we would now be God’s possession and so he would be our Master, and so we would honor him with our lives.

But we still live in flesh bodies, and so we are still subject to sin and to failure, and we still have the propensity to sin, and we are still tempted to sin. But Jesus, through his death on that cross, put our sin to death with him so that we might now live in freedom from slavery to sin. It doesn’t mean we will never sin again (1 John 2:1-2), but that sin should no longer be our master. We should no longer live as slaves to sin but as slaves to righteousness.

There are many people today, though, who are professing faith in Jesus Christ who are still living like they did before they professed faith in Christ. Sin is still their master. They are still living as slaves to sin. Deliberately and habitually, and often premeditatedly, they give in to the sinful cravings of their flesh, they deny Jesus Christ, they refuse to obey him, and they do what ought not to be done and what hurts other people.

According to the Scriptures, those who make sin their practice, and who deny Christ as Lord (Master) of their lives, who deliberately and habitually live in (walk in) sin, and who do not live to obey the Lord or in righteousness and holiness, they are not saved from their sins, and heaven is not their eternal destiny unless they repent and they turn and they follow Jesus in obedience. So please know this (Matt 7:21-23; Gal 5:16-21; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10).

But what I talk about here in this video is addressed mainly to those who are walking in holiness in obedience to the Lord and who have forsaken their lives of sin, but because they still live on this earth and in flesh bodies they may, from time to time, sin, not usually deliberately, and definitely not habitually in the same way. Sin is not their practice. But they may say something with a wrong attitude or whatever it may be sometimes.

It is important that we regularly check our hearts. We need God to search us, not because he needs it, for he knows, but we need him to let us know if there is anything we are doing that is displeasing to him, or if we said something we shouldn’t have said, or if we had a bad attitude about something that we didn’t see at the moment that it happened but later, or perhaps not until he reveals it to us. We need this for our daily cleansing.

Search Me, O God

Video Talk

October 30, 2022

https://youtu.be/ji57tEUyfQU

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"Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.  Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me..." Psalms 139:23-24 NLT

You Loved Me

When I was lonely and afflicted,

You were there to pick me up.

You took me in Your arms,

And You tenderly held me.

Your love embraced me.

Your grace sustained me.

When my heart cried out to You

In my despair,

You did not shun me, 

But You let me know that You loved me.

Your grace forgave me.

You did not shame me.

Then I answered the call, 

“Here Lord, send me.”

And so You sent me to where

You planned ahead of time to use me.

Your mercy held me.

You did not fail me.

And, when trials and tribulations

Came my way to test me,

You gave me everything I needed

So that I would not fail, but would survive.

Your kindness blessed me,

And You caressed me.

And, when I needed the body of Christ

To lift me up

And to encourage me so that my

Heart did not fail,

You gave me friendships,

Their presence cheered me.

And, even when I walked

Through the valley of the 

Shadow of death and tears

Overflowed from my eyes down my cheeks,

Your touch, it healed me.

For, I believed You.

And, even now when I think

About all the many ways

In which you have blessed me,

So many ways I cannot count them all,

My heart, it thanks You.

And, gladness fills me.

An Original Work / November 27, 2019