“The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul;
The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.
The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.
The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether.
They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold;
Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.
Moreover, by them Your servant is warned;
In keeping them there is great reward.” (Psalm 19:7-11 NASB1995)
We who believe in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of our
lives are not under the Old Covenant liturgical, ceremonial, sacrificial,
purification, circumcision, dietary and Sabbath laws. God did away with the Old
Covenant law when Jesus put our sins to death with him on that cross. But then
he introduced the New Covenant law of grace which is training us to say “No!”
to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and
godly lives while we await the return of our Lord (see Titus 2:11-14).
So under the New Covenant we are not lawless. In fact, the
Scriptures emphasize much the importance of obedience to our Lord and to his
New Covenant commands. For, Jesus said that not everyone who says to him, “Lord,
Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one DOING (obeying) the will
of God the Father who is in heaven. And we read where if we say we know God but
we do not obey his commandments, that we are liars who do not live by the truth
(Matthew 7:21-23; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10).
So, under the New Covenant, we still have to obey God and
his commandments which are written down for us in the New Testament writings,
and which are written on our hearts, as well, if we are of genuine faith in the
Lord Jesus, a faith which comes from God, which is gifted to us by God, and
which is persuaded of God as to his righteousness and holiness, and of our
sinfulness, and of our need to, by faith in him, die with him to sin and now
live to him and to his righteousness, in obedience to his commands.
So, faith in Jesus Christ is not words only. It is not lip
service with no action. Faith, which is of God, and which is not of the flesh
of humans, results in us dying with Christ to sin and walking in obedience to
his commands, in practice, or it is not biblical faith which saves us from our
sins and which promises us life eternal with God. So if death to sin and walks
of obedience to our Lord and to his commands are not part of your faith, then
it is not the kind of faith which is of God and which saves us from our sins.
Therefore, death to sin and walks of obedience to our Lord
and to his commands are essential elements of believing faith which saves us
from our sins and which promises us life everlasting with God. And his commands
to us are for our good, to do good to us, restoring our souls, making us wise,
rejoicing our hearts, and enlightening our eyes, etc. For they are righteous
altogether. And by them we are warned against doing what is evil and what is
harmful to our souls. And in keeping them there is great reward!
So, as those who have put our faith and trust in the Lord
Jesus, we should also be those who live by our Lord and his commandments to us,
who make it our practice to obey our Lord and to do what he says we are to do,
and to not do what he says we are not to do. For we should be those who walk in
the fear of the Lord, who honor him with our lives, who love and obey him, and
who desire to please him in all that we are and do and say. Our lives should
now be under his control and no longer under the control of flesh.
[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John
6:44; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 2:6-8; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; 1
Corinthians 10:1-22; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32;
Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 12:1-2;
1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:5-10; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10]
My Sheep
Based off John 10:1-30 NIV
An Original Work / June 24, 2012
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
My sheep hear me.
They know me.
They listen to my
voice and obey.
I call them and lead
them.
They know my voice,
so they follow me.
They will never
follow strangers.
They will run away
from them.
The voice of a
stranger they know not;
They do not follow
him.
So, I tell you the
truth that
I am the gate, so
you enter in.
Whoever does enter
Will find
forgiveness and will be saved.
Nonetheless whoever
enters
Not by the gate;
other way,
He is the thief and
a robber.
Listen not, the
sheep to him.
Oh, I am the Good
Shepherd,
Who laid his own
life down for the sheep.
I know them. They
know me.
They will live with
me eternally.
The thief only comes
to steal and
Kill and to destroy
the church.
I have come to give
you life that
You may have it to
the full…
They know my voice,
so they follow me.
Rejoicing The Heart
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