The Plunger

Psalm 149:1-4 ESV

Praise the Lord!

Sing to the Lord a new song,

    his praise in the assembly of the godly!

Let Israel be glad in his Maker;

    let the children of Zion rejoice in their King!

Let them praise his name with dancing,

    making melody to him with tambourine and lyre!

For the Lord takes pleasure in his people;

    he adorns the humble with salvation.

We who have trusted in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of our lives are to give him praise, honor and glory with our lips, and with our lives. For, if our praise and adoration of God is lip service only, it is empty praise. True praise of our Lord is given by how we conduct our lives for his glory, in walks of obedience to his commands. But, we also need to praise him with our lips.

We are to praise him in the assembly of the godly, i.e. in the gatherings of the church, the saints of God. And, these assemblies can be anywhere at any time of day. They can be formal or informal. And, they don’t have to be face to face, either. For, we can gather together on the internet, or via phone calls, or social media, or group texting or chats or video calling.

And, what is for the Lord’s praise? It is anything that magnifies him as the holy God that he is, that worships him with our lifestyles, and that is in agreement with his Word, with his divine character and will, and that promotes his righteousness, holiness, purity and faithfulness. So, for our lives to be for his praise, they must be yielded to his Lordship over our lives.

And, for our verbal praise of our Lord to truly be for his praise, then our words must be in line with his written words in scripture. The gospel message we share, thus, must also be in agreement with scripture, i.e. with the whole counsel of God, taken in context.

For, it is the humble whom he adorns with salvation, i.e. it is those who have surrendered their lives to him, and who have submitted to his Lordship, and who have repented of their sins who he adorns with his salvation. For, it is those who walk (in lifestyle) according to the Spirit of God who are saved from their bondage to sin and who have eternal life with God.

[Lu. 9:23-25; Rom. 6:1-23; Rom. 8:1-17; Eph. 4:17-24; 1 Jn. 1:5-9]

Psalm 149:5-9 ESV

Let the godly exult in glory;

    let them sing for joy on their beds.

Let the high praises of God be in their throats

    and two-edged swords in their hands,

to execute vengeance on the nations

    and punishments on the peoples,

to bind their kings with chains

    and their nobles with fetters of iron,

to execute on them the judgment written!

    This is honor for all his godly ones.

Praise the Lord!

When we share the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ, we expose sin for what it is, we call for repentance, and we warn of divine judgment. We teach the truth of the gospel which says faith in Jesus Christ is dying with Christ to sin that we might live with Christ to his righteousness and for eternity.

And, we teach that those who walk (live) according to the Spirit have eternal life with God, but those who walk (in lifestyle) according to the flesh, will die in their sins and will face eternal punishment in hell. This is the judgment that is written in God’s Word, and we execute it in the sense of declaring it.

Yet, those who are still walking in darkness, who are still living to please the flesh, who are selfish, self-centered, pleasure-driven, flesh-driven people, even if they profess faith in Jesus Christ, they are likely to be opposed to the truth of the gospel, and thus they will be opposed to us, too.

And, those in positions of authority over us may ask us to stop sharing the true gospel of repentance and obedience to Christ Jesus, our Lord. For, some of these people truly are serving Satan with their lives, and so they don’t want the truth to come out, and they don’t want the assemblies of the church to know the truth about their salvation, either.

For, the truth offends people, and they don’t want to offend their customer base, but they want to entertain them and to coddle them in their sin so that they will want to come back to the church gatherings.

They don’t want their sins exposed, either, or for people to know that if they walk (in practice) according to the cravings of their sinful flesh that they don’t have the promise of heaven when they die. For, they want them believing the lie. For, Satan is behind the lie, and he doesn’t want anyone genuinely saved from their sins and going to heaven when they die.

The Wicked Betray

So, those who are spinning their webs of deceit in order to trap people in their sins while promising them heaven when they die, will be threatened by those who are spreading the truth of the gospel. Thus, they will come against the true gospel in order to destroy it and its messengers.

Out of the wickedness that is in their hearts, thus, they will spew out venom against those who are teaching the truth. And, they will spread slander about them and about what they are teaching, too, for their goal is to stop the spreading of the gospel and to keep people believing the lie.

For, they are not concerned in the least that people are believing a lie and that they will be judged by what they do, and that they will enter into hell thinking that they were going to heaven. For, those who are spreading the webs of deceit are selfish, gluttonous, greedy and destructive people whose goal is only to satisfy the sinful cravings of their own flesh.

So, we need to put on the armor of God with which to fight against the wiles of the devil and against the lies which are being spread which are keeping people trapped in their sins with no true hope of deliverance from bondage. And, we need to use that Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God, with which to fight against those lies with the truth.

For, the lies which are being spread are an obstruction to people truly being set free from their bondage to sin. So, that Sword of the Spirit is much like a toilet plunger in that it frees those obstructions which are keeping people’s sins from being flushed away. And, those obstructions are the lies.

For, the lies say that we can have faith in Jesus Christ, but that we don’t have to obey the Lord or repent of our sins or submit to his Lordship. But, the truth says that we will reap what we sow. If we sow to please the flesh, from the flesh we will reap destruction (decay, death). But, if we sow to please the Spirit, from the Spirit we will reap eternal life (Gal. 6:7-8).

And, it is the truth which sets us free, because it lets us know that Jesus Christ died on that cross, not just to free us from the punishment of sin, and not just to promise us heaven when we die. But, he died that we might die with him to sin and live with him to righteousness. In other words, He died to deliver us from our slavery (addiction) to sin so that we might become slaves of his righteousness. And, this is the truth! (1 Pet. 2:24)

Alas! and Did My Savior Bleed

Hymn lyrics by Isaac Watts, pub.1707

ref. by Ralph E. Hudson, 1885

Music by Ralph E. Hudson, 1885

Alas! and did my Savior bleed

And did my Sovereign die?

Would He devote that sacred head

For sinners such as I?

Was it for crimes that I had done

He groaned upon the tree?

Amazing pity! grace unknown!

And love beyond degree!

Thus might I hide my blushing face

While His dear cross appears,

Dissolve my heart in thankfulness,

And melt my eyes to tears.

But drops of grief can ne’er repay

The debt of love I owe:

Here, Lord, I give myself away

’Tis all that I can do.

At the cross, at the cross where I first saw the light,

And the burden of my heart rolled away,

It was there by faith I received my sight,

And now I am happy all the day!

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

Wednesday, August 7, 2019

Holding On

Psalm 119:145-148 ESV

With my whole heart I cry; answer me, O Lord!

    I will keep your statutes.

I call to you; save me,

    that I may observe your testimonies.

I rise before dawn and cry for help;

    I hope in your words.

My eyes are awake before the watches of the night,

    that I may meditate on your promise.

When we have questions about things going on in our lives, especially if we don’t know what to do, or how to respond, we need to call on God in prayer. And, we need to seek his counsel and his wisdom. And, we need to let his Word speak to our hearts. For, he will lead the way, and he will guide us and direct us into what we should do, or in what we should say.

Satan is our arch enemy. He is out to get us in any which way that he can. He will hound us at every turn. He will twist the scriptures to his advantage, and he will use them against us to try to convince us that his way is the right way. He will try to get us to doubt God and his promises to us, too. So, it is important that we study the scriptures so that we know the truth, so that we can combat Satan’s lies with the truth when he attacks us.

Satan and his many hordes are very good at taking scriptures out of context, too, to try to convict us of wrongdoing when we are doing no wrong. So, this is why it is so important that we study the Word of God in context, and that we compare scripture with scripture, so that we know what the scriptures teach on any particular subject, as a whole.

For example, the scriptures do teach that we are to be subject to those in positions of authority over us. This is absolutely true! But, they also teach us that there are exceptions to that rule. We are not to obey human authority when that authority overrides God’s laws, i.e. when human authority demands that we disobey the Lord, or that we deny our Lord, or that we compromise the truth to make peace with the world. Also, we are never to obey human authority when they require that we sin against God.

Psalm 119:149-152 ESV

Hear my voice according to your steadfast love;

    O Lord, according to your justice give me life.

They draw near who persecute me with evil purpose;

    they are far from your law.

But you are near, O Lord,

    and all your commandments are true.

Long have I known from your testimonies

    that you have founded them forever.

When the enemy is on the attack, and he is hounding us, and especially if we are physically weak and/or tired, or if we are sick or going through a time of emotional grief, it can sometimes be difficult to hear God’s voice speaking to us. And, so we need to cry this out to the Lord, and we need to pray for relief, and we need to resist our enemy, and flee temptation, and then let the Lord fill us with his peace and his calm reassurance.

Those who persecute us with evil purpose are far from the law, yet it doesn’t mean that they don’t know the law. And, it doesn’t mean that they won’t attempt to use the law to their advantage to try to instill doubt, fear and guilt within our hearts for no cause. For, Satan is the author of confusion, so he will try to instill confusion in our hearts so that he can convince us that wrong is right and that right is wrong.

So, we need to draw near to the Lord in these times, and we need to meditate on his Word, and to find our solace there. And, we need to put on the armor of God with which to fight off Satan’s evil schemes against us, and then fight off his lies with the truth (the whole truth) of God’s Word. And, then we need to keep following the truth that we know, and hold fast to it.

Psalm 119:153-156 ESV

Look on my affliction and deliver me,

    for I do not forget your law.

Plead my cause and redeem me;

    give me life according to your promise!

Salvation is far from the wicked,

    for they do not seek your statutes.

Great is your mercy, O Lord;

    give me life according to your rules.

When we know that what we are following is truth, but Satan comes in with his lies, and he attacks us, and he tries to convince us that we are not following the truth, then we need the Lord to plead our cause. And, one of the ways in which our Lord does this is that he leads us into truth, and he brings scriptures to mind which we then can use to refute the enemy’s lies against us. We just need to pray and to ask him for his help.

It is good, too, if we have the ability to write journals or to record what he is teaching us in some type of document, if we can file it on our computers under a subject heading, then when the devil comes at us again, we can go back to those documents and journals and we can be reassured of what the Lord taught us, and we can use that Sword of the Spirit against our enemy.

Psalm 119:157-160 ESV

Many are my persecutors and my adversaries,

    but I do not swerve from your testimonies.

I look at the faithless with disgust,

    because they do not keep your commands.

Consider how I love your precepts!

    Give me life according to your steadfast love.

The sum of your word is truth,

    and every one of your righteous rules endures forever.

At all times and in all situations we need to hold fast to God’s Word, which is our delight. We need to know the truth, and then we need to stand on the truth without wavering. For, our enemy will use all kinds of tricks against us to try to get us to disobey God’s Word, even by convincing us that we are obeying God’s Word when we listen to him.

And, this is why it is so critical that we are those who study the scriptures in context, and that we compare scripture with scripture, so that the enemy, who knows the truth intellectually, cannot throw us off balance.

Scriptures teach us that we are to hate evil and to cling to the good, that we are to love what God loves and to hate what he hates. We are not to hate people, though, but we are to love them. But, we are to hate the evil that people do so that evil does not cling to us, and so that we don’t become entrapped by it.

The psalmist keeps praying that God will give him life. It isn’t that he does not have eternal life with God, but it is that, when the enemy fiercely attacks us, we may despair of life, or we may feel as though our joy or our confidence has been robbed from us and that we are drowning.

So, we need refreshing. We need to be renewed in our spirits. And, we need to be strengthened in our faith and in our resolves to keep on in doing what we know is right despite our persecutors trying to convince us the opposite.

For, the closer that we draw to the Lord, and the greater our obedience to his commands, and the more that we share the truths of his Word with others, the more the enemy is going to come against us to try to stop us from spreading the truth of God’s Word. Because he doesn’t want people to reject him and to follow after the truth. But, we must hold on to the truth.

Standing on The Promises

By Russell K. Carter, pub. 1886

Based off 2 Pet. 1:2-4; Heb. 10:23

Standing on the promises of Christ my King,

Through eternal ages let His praises ring,

Glory in the highest, I will shout and sing,

Standing on the promises of God.

Standing on the promises that cannot fail,

When the howling storms of doubt and fear assail,

By the living Word of God I shall prevail,

Standing on the promises of God.

Standing on the promises I now can see

Perfect, present cleansing in the blood for me;

Standing in the liberty where Christ makes free,

Standing on the promises of God.

Standing on the promises of Christ the Lord,

Bound to Him eternally by love’s strong cord,

Overcoming daily with the Spirit’s sword,

Standing on the promises of God.

Standing on the promises I cannot fall,

List’ning every moment to the Spirit’s call,

Resting in my Savior as my all in all,

Standing on the promises of God.

Standing, standing,

Standing on the promises of God my Savior;

Standing, standing,

I’m standing on the promises of God.

*Copyright status is Public Domain

Tuesday, August 6, 2019

Women in Ministry

Jesus’ Treatment of Women

As far as I know, from what I read in the New Testament, Jesus always treated women with high honor and respect. He never talked down to a woman or treated any woman as though she was less valuable than a man, with maybe one exception.  

As recorded in Matt. 15:21-28, it appears that Jesus’ seemingly harsh words to a Gentile woman were not meant in unkindness, but that they were meant to test her faith, and to lead her to stand up for what she believed, too. And, then he honored her for her faith, which he said was “great faith.”

And when other men took advantage of women, for evil purposes, or when they mocked or criticized them, Jesus stood up for the women, and he protected them. And, he cared about their needs, and he ministered to them, and he honored their faith. And, if he did rebuke them, he was loving and gentle in his rebuke. He was always tender with them, compassionate and loving. And, he used women to share the gospel with men, too.

[See: Jn. 8:1-11; Lu. 7:36-50; Matt. 26:6-13; Mk. 5:25-34; Lu. 10:38-42; Jn. 2:1-11; Jn. 4:1-42; Jn. 20:11-18.]

In fact, In Luke 7 we read that a Pharisee invited Jesus to eat with him at his house. When a woman who had a reputation heard he was there, she came there and she anointed his feet with ointment, and wet them with her tears, and wiped them with her hair, and caressed them with her kisses.

When the Pharisee disapproved of the woman, Jesus rebuked him. But, what he said to the Pharisee was for the encouragement of the woman, as well. For, what Jesus said to the Pharisee is that everything that he should have done for Jesus, but did not do, the woman did do. For, he said, “she loved much.” And, he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

And, we read in Luke 8:1-3 that some women even traveled with Jesus and the disciples, too, and that they helped provide for Jesus’ and the disciples’ needs out of their own means.

I am assuming that the women made things which they sold for money, and that out of their earnings that they helped provide for Jesus and his disciples in the work of the ministry. So, they were co-laborers with Jesus and with his twelve male disciples in the ministry.

Your Daughters Shall Prophesy

And, when the scriptures teach on the gifts of the Spirit, they do not differentiate between men and women, i.e. that some gifts are not for women. In fact, in Acts 2:17-18 we read:

“And in the last days it shall be, God declares,

that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh,

and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,

    and your young men shall see visions,

    and your old men shall dream dreams;

even on my male servants and female servants

    in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.”

So, why is it then that we have these teachings in the New Testament that sound as though women are to always remain silent, that they are not to speak in the gatherings of the church, without exception? (1 Co. 14:34-35; 1 Tim. 2:11-12). Doesn’t that seem contradictory to how Jesus treated women? And, isn’t it contradictory to the passage in Acts 2, and to other New Testament scriptures that speak of women prophesying?

And, why is it that so many church congregations, at least here in America, do not allow their women to prophecy (preach) in their gatherings? And, some pastors treat women as though they are dirt under their feet for them to walk on? For, Jesus never treated a woman like that. He valued women, and he used women in ministry, and he even sent women out to share the gospel with men. And, the Holy Spirit of God gifted women to prophesy. So, why would God then turn around and put the smack down on women?

And, why, then would the scriptures talk about how we are all one body in Christ, and that we are all necessary, and that one part should not say to another, “We have no need of you!”? And, why would it teach that the body grows and builds itself up in love and in the faith as “each part” does its work? And, then tell our women that their part, which God gave to them, and for which he gifted them, is not permitted? (See Rom. 12; 1 Co. 12; Eph. 4). Is the church then not suppressing the gifts of women?

How can we resolve these seeming contradictions? Is it possible that these passages on the silence of women in the church can have another plausible explanation other than the complete and total suppression of the gift of prophecy among the women in the church? And, if so, what might that be?

For, women obviously prophesied in New Testament times (See: Lu. 2:36; Acts 2:17; Acts 21:9; 1 Co. 11:5). So, how are we to understand this restriction of the silence of women in the church if God poured out his Spirit on both men and women so that they could prophesy, and we have recorded in the New Testament that there were indeed women who did prophesy? What is the context? What is the purpose of the restriction?

The Context Reveals

Well, the context of 1 Corinthians 14 is that of teaching on spiritual gifts, teaching on love, and instructions regarding the misuse of the gifts and the right way in which the gifts are to be used, and regarding their purpose, too. So, this is in the context of 1 Corinthians 12 and 13, also.

And, it is in 1 Corinthians 12 where we are taught that each body part is necessary, and that we are not to say to another part of the body that we have no need of him or of her. And, it is God who decides who gets what part, too. And, it is the Holy Spirit who assigns the gifts.

And, here in 1 Corinthians 14 we are told first off to pursue love, and to earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that we would prophesy. And, the one who prophesies speaks to people for their upbuilding, consolation and encouragement. The one who prophesies edifies other believers, for the spiritual growth and advancement of them in the faith. He or she inspires, cheers, urges, nurtures, promotes and fosters spiritual maturity and holy walks in the Spirit of God, too, which is consistent with Eph. 4:15-16.

So, if both women and men are gifted with the gift of prophecy, and we women are to use the gifts of the Spirit given to us for the upbuilding and the encouragement of the body of Christ, his church; and if not one of us is to say to another “We have no need of you,” and if all the parts are necessary, and women did prophesy in the New Testament, and the body of Christ is built up in the faith as “each part” does its work, then we have to conclude that these instructions on the silence of women have a meaning other than the absolute silence of women in the church.

Order and Submission

So, again, let’s look at the context. The context has to do with how gifts are used, and it has to do with the order in which they are used. And, then let’s look at the wording of the passage, too. For, it all comes down to submission. It says that a woman, if she has questions regarding something she wants to learn, that she should ask her husband at home. So, apparently women were interrupting the order of service to ask questions. And, some of this is definitely cultural to that day and time.

It also appears, by the context, that these women were usurping authority over the men, for it clearly instructs them that they are to be in submission to their husbands, and to the leadership of the church, and it indicates that they were stepping out of that order by speaking in the church gatherings in a disruptive way. So, these women were out of order in what they were doing.

And, the passage in 1 Tim. 2 supports this, that women are not to usurp authority over the men, and that they are not to instruct men in an authoritative manner which would require men to obey them.

So, in conclusion, I believe God has gifted both men and women in various ways, and that scripturally both men and women are gifted with the gift of prophecy (preaching), which is for the edification and encouragement of the body of Christ and for their strengthening and nurturing of them in the faith, that they may all reach maturity in Christ Jesus, their Lord.

I believe Jesus values women highly, that he gifts them in ministry, and that he calls them to prophesy (preach) the truths of scripture so that the body of Christ might be drawn closer to their Lord in walks of faith, and so that they may not wander off from the faith to go after what is false. I also believe that our Lord uses women sometimes in areas usually assigned to men, but that he does so when so many men are spiritually AWOL, and so they are neglecting their callings (See: Lu. 7:36-50 as illustrative of this).

Lastly, I believe it all comes down to submission to the authorities within the church. If women are given permission to speak, and it is done in proper order, and if it is done in the right way, for the upbuilding of the body of Christ, then they should be allowed to speak.

But, they are not to usurp authority over the men nor to cause a disturbance in the congregation, and they are not to instruct men in the sense of being over men in authority. But, they are to remain in submission and in proper order, and then they can speak as they are called upon to speak, as God gifts them to speak.

Have Thine Own Way, Lord

Words by Adelaide A. Pollard, 1907

Music by George C. Stebbins, 1907

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!

Thou art the potter, I am the clay.

Mold me and make me after Thy will,

While I am waiting, yielded and still.

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!

Wounded and weary, help me I pray!

Power, all power, surely is Thine!

Touch me and heal me, Savior divine!

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!

Hold o'er my being absolute sway.

Fill with Thy Spirit till all shall see

Christ only, always, living in me!

The Church Revived

Jeremiah 33:1-3 ESV

The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah a second time, while he was still shut up in the court of the guard: “Thus says the Lord who made the earth, the Lord who formed it to establish it—the Lord is his name: Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.

Not one of us knows everything there is to know about God and about His Word, the Bible, the Holy Scriptures (Genesis to Revelation). As well, the scriptures are made clear to us by the Spirit of God, for they are spiritually discerned. So, if we want to have understanding of the Word of God, then we need to pray, and we need to ask God to reveal to us his truths.

This is not saying that we can’t use external sources such as commentaries, dictionaries, Bible study helps, and Greek and Hebrew Lexicons, etc. We can. But, they must not be our primary source. And, even as we read these helps, we must pray for spiritual discernment to know what is right and what is wrong, for there are so many different ways the Bible is interpreted.

In addition to this, we read in the Bible that “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16-17 NIV).

Thus, the Word of God is not just for intellectual comprehension, but it is to be applied to our daily lives. And, we can even learn from the scriptures that don’t specifically apply to us, the church, with regard to who God is, concerning his divine character and will, and relating to what he requires of us, his people. We just have to read them in light of the New Covenant.

Also, as we are going into God’s Word, praying for understanding, guidance and wisdom, we need to make certain we are reading and interpreting scriptures within their context. This is not to say that God can’t use any scripture outside of the original context to speak to us today regarding something in our lives. He can. But, doctrinally speaking, if we are going to teach God’s commands to his church, they must be taught in context.

Jeremiah 33:4-5 ESV

For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning the houses of this city and the houses of the kings of Judah that were torn down to make a defense against the siege mounds and against the sword: They are coming in to fight against the Chaldeans and to fill them with the dead bodies of men whom I shall strike down in my anger and my wrath, for I have hidden my face from this city because of all their evil.

So, what is the context here? It is helpful here if we can read the book of Jeremiah or at least some chapters before this one to get the context. Bible study helps are also useful for getting the context here, and I have personally engaged some commentaries to help me to understand the historical background of what was happening here, so that I understand what biblical principles could be applied to our lives today through this story.

Jerusalem was under siege by the king of Babylon, and Jeremiah, a prophet of God, who spoke God’s exact words, was being held captive, i.e. he was being persecuted for his faith and for his testimony for God and for his Word. The scriptures say he was “shut up” in the court of the guard. And, the reason that Jerusalem was under siege is because of Israel’s sins of idolatry against God. So, this was a judgment of God on his people for their sins of rebellion against God, and for their refusal to listen to his instructions.

So, who are God’s people today? We, the church, who are believers in Jesus Christ, are God’s people today. And, the vast majority of the church in America today can certainly be paralleled over to God’s people in Jerusalem in the day of Jeremiah. For, there is much rebellion against God going on within the market-driven church of today, and there is much refusal to listen to God’s instructions (his commands) to us, his people, too.

For, the church in America, for the most part, is a reflection of American culture. It is a reflection of the people of God living immature, self-indulgent, selfish, pleasure-driven lives apart from God’s will and purposes for his church. They are soft on sin, unyielding to the Lordship of Christ, hardened to instructions on holy living, and going under spiritually like a sinking ship.

There is disorder and every evil practice going on within today’s modern church here in America. The character and the heart of this rebellious church is the opposite of what is righteous and holy, which is evident by their deeds, by their involvements with worldliness, and by their participation in the lusts of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, and by their unions (alliances) with what is contrary to God and to his Word.

Thus, the Word of God is under siege, and it is being shut up, and in its place is a cheap grace gospel which appeases human flesh, and which coddles people in their sins, and which makes no demands for holiness or obedience to Christ. The church itself has been taken over by liars, thieves, marketers, manipulators, and twisters of scripture, who are destroying the church and the Word of God, and who are giving false hope to people while leaving them dead in their sins. This is the destruction of Jerusalem going on in America today because of the rebellion of God’s people.

Jeremiah 33:6-9 ESV

Behold, I will bring to it health and healing, and I will heal them and reveal to them abundance of prosperity and security. I will restore the fortunes of Judah and the fortunes of Israel, and rebuild them as they were at first. I will cleanse them from all the guilt of their sin against me, and I will forgive all the guilt of their sin and rebellion against me. And this city shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and a glory before all the nations of the earth who shall hear of all the good that I do for them. They shall fear and tremble because of all the good and all the prosperity I provide for it.

So, God has allowed this to take place, and for the church to be under siege right now by those thieves and liars of “Babylon,” who are destroying it, because his ultimate goal is to bring his people, his church, to a place of spiritual health and healing. Thus, God disciplines his beloved in order to bring her to holiness and to purify her so that she might leave her rebellious ways, and so that she might follow him in obedience and in surrender to his will (See: Heb. 12:3-11; Rev. 3:19; 1 Co. 11:32).

He just asks that we leave our “leaky vessels” behind us, i.e. our sinking ships, which include our sinful pleasure-driven flesh, the cheap grace gospel, and the false market-driven church which is leading many believers in Jesus astray from their pure devotion to Jesus Christ. We are to leave “Babylon,” in other words, so that we do not share with her in her sins and in her punishment (See: Rev. 18:4-5). And, we are to follow God with our lives.

And, God will restore, revive and renew us to what we were intended to be from the beginning, which is a holy people, set apart (different) from the world, because we are being made to be like Christ in righteousness, holiness and purity of devotion to God. And, this is what the church in America needs right now. We need revival!

But, sad to say, I feel that matters are going to get much worse here in America before God’s rebellious people here finally look up to God and they leave their flesh-driven lives to follow him in holiness and in purity. And, I think if we are spiritually discerning that we can see the handwriting on the wall for America. She is on a massive spiritual and moral decline, and for her to be brought back to the Lord, she is going to suffer even more than she is now at the hands of “Babylon,” to get her to see God as her only God/Lord.

God is With Us

An Original Work / June 11, 2019

Based off Psalm 46

God’s our refuge. He is our strength,

A present help to us when in pain.

Therefore, we will not be afraid,

Although the earth beneath us gives way.

Though the mountains be moved to the sea,

Roaring waters abound so free,

And the mountains now tremble so,

We will not fear, God is near, we know.

God is with us and He makes glad

The hearts of all who to Christ have fled.

Christ is in us, so we’ll not fall

When on our Savior our hearts do call.

God will help us, as mornings arise,

To be faithful to His design.

Nations raging, and tempers flare.

Our God is with us. We know He cares.

Come and see the works of the Lord.

He’s armed for battle with His great sword.

He’s the Word, and He is the Life.

He gives us strength in all of our strife.

Be still and know that He is our God.

He’s exalted where’er He trods.

The Lord Almighty, with us still;

The God of Jacob, our citadel.

https://vimeo.com/341717561

Sunday, August 4, 2019

How Things Look

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7 ESV

Putting on Masks

How a person may appear to others, and who that person may be deep down inside his heart may be as different as night and day. For, humans are good at performing and at putting on masks so that people will like them. Thus, some of the seemingly nicest people we meet may be child molesters, adulterers, gossipers, slanderers, manipulators and thieves and liars.

And, that brings me to this word “nice.” Do you know that “nice” often means superficial, agreeable, amusing, charming and polite? And, do you know that “polite” often carries with it the same characteristic traits? And, that in some cultures here in America, it involves lying to people, deceiving them, and then stabbing them in the back when they are not looking?

Yet, nowhere in scripture are we encouraged to be superficial and to perform well so that people will like us. Nowhere in scripture are we told that it is okay to lie to people to their faces, and then to mock them once they are out of our sight, and then to laugh about it. Nowhere in scripture are we instructed to be charming and amusing so that people will like us, or to be agreeable with all people in order to be acceptable to other humans.

An Example

Several years ago a pastor’s wife, in the community where we lived at that time, died. And, I can still recall what was being said about her then. People raved at what a wonderful Christian woman she was because she was so nice to everyone, and because everyone loved her, and she had no enemies. According to them, she did and said all the culturally acceptable things that people do, and so she was well liked by everyone, it would appear.

Now she may have been a very godly woman. I didn’t know her, so I can’t say. So, I am making no judgments on her character at all. But, what stood out to me was the assessment of other humans as to what a good Christian is to be like or look like. And, it had to do with being “nice” to everyone so that she had no enemies, and so that everyone liked her.

But, then I compared that to scripture and to how it describes what good Christians should be like. They should be those who have died to their old lives of sin, who have been reborn of the Spirit of God, and they should be walking in accord with the Spirit of God and no longer according to the flesh.

They should be living holy lives, separate (different) from the world, and set apart unto God, because they’re being made to be like Jesus. They should be walking in obedience to their Lord, and they should be witnessing for Jesus Christ and for his gospel of salvation to the world around them.

Thus, the world and the worldly church should not love them as their own. Instead, the world and the worldly church should hate them, and they should persecute them, and speak falsely against them.

Everyone won’t love them or think that they are “nice,” either. And, that is because they don’t join in with the world, they don’t blend in with the culture, they do stand out as different, and because they are sharing with others the gospel which offends people because it demands death to sin and living to righteousness.

For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” 1 Co. 1:26-31 ESV

But God Chose

For, you see, God doesn’t choose like we do. He is not impressed by outward appearance or by charm or cultural politeness or niceties which get us liked by other humans. He doesn’t want us to be agreeable with all humans so that they will like us in return. We are supposed to be agreeable with God, instead, which means we will have to be disagreeable with the flesh of man which is opposed to God and to his righteousness.

Now, I am certainly not saying that we should go around being all hateful and mean. We should be loving and kind to others, but loving and kind by God’s standards of what those words mean, not by human standards.

For, it is neither loving or kind to lie to people just so they will like us, especially if we shrink back from our faith, and we deny our Lord, and we are more concerned with people liking us than we are concerned with other people’s salvation from sin and eternal life with God. Loving like God loves us means to lay down our lives for the salvation of others, and to be willing to be hated and rejected in order to see others be set free. And, “kind” means to tell people the truth that they need to hear, but to do so in love.

Jesus, our Example

And, Jesus is our primary example here. He is not the “Jesus” that many people think he is or have been convinced that he was. He didn’t just go around doing good deeds and blessing people so that it made them feel good about him. Everyone didn’t like him. In fact, the majority hated him and they rejected him, and they would not receive him as their own.

For, what he said to them offended them, because he told them that their deeds were evil. He confronted sin in sinful humans. He didn’t make nice with the world so that the world would love him. And, that is one of the reasons they hated him so much, because he wasn’t like them, and he didn’t do the things that they did, and he even confronted them about the things they were doing that were wrong, and he told them that they had to change, and he told them that if they didn’t, they would not go to heaven.

So, again, God doesn’t see like we see. He judges people by what is in their hearts, not by cultural norms of society which dictate how we should all act. He knows who truly loves him and who does not. He knows who is going to follow him and obey him, and he knows who will make superficial professions of faith in him only, but who will then live their lives to please the flesh and other humans.

Honestly, with regard to the culture of our day here in America within the church, I believe that if Jesus Christ were to walk inside the doors of most or many of our gatherings, they would not recognize him nor receive him as their own. But, they would despise and reject him because he didn’t “stay in his own lane” and because he offended people by the things that he said. So, they would encourage him to “go someplace else” where he would be a “better fit.”

What To Expect

So, if you identify yourself with Jesus Christ, then don’t expect that you will be liked by everyone or that you won’t be hated, rejected and persecuted. Expect that you will be treated like he was treated, and that even the worldly church will invite you to go someplace else because you don’t fit.

And, expect, too, that people will think you are not a good Christian because you don’t “stay in your own lane,” but you speak out and you tell people the truth, because you love others more than you love yourself.

But, know that God is on your side if you are walking in his ways and in his truth, so don’t be discouraged. Just keep trusting the Lord. Keep obeying him. Keep following his lead. Keep doing what he says.

But, be prepared to be hated and rejected even by others who call themselves Christians. And, don’t be afraid of that. The Lord will give you the strength that you need to endure and to keep on in the faith and to keep on sharing the gospel so that others can come to know him, too.

God is With Us

An Original Work / June 11, 2019

Based off Psalm 46

God’s our refuge. He is our strength,

A present help to us when in pain.

Therefore, we will not be afraid,

Although the earth beneath us gives way.

Though the mountains be moved to the sea,

Roaring waters abound so free,

And the mountains now tremble so,

We will not fear, God is near, we know.

God is with us and He makes glad

The hearts of all who to Christ have fled.

Christ is in us, so we’ll not fall

When on our Savior our hearts do call.

God will help us, as mornings arise,

To be faithful to His design.

Nations raging, and tempers flare.

Our God is with us. We know He cares.

Come and see the works of the Lord.

He’s armed for battle with His great sword.

He’s the Word, and He is the Life.

He gives us strength in all of our strife.

Be still and know that He is our God.

He’s exalted where’er He trods.

The Lord Almighty, with us still;

The God of Jacob, our citadel.

https://vimeo.com/341717561

Saturday, August 3, 2019

Firm and Steadfast

James 1:2-4, 12 ESV

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.

There are people in this world of ours who truly hate God. They resist him, they refuse to do what he says, and they reject his Lordship over their lives and his commandments. They are self-indulgent hypocritical liars who live for the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. They are lustful, lewd, hateful, mean, angry, bullies, abusers, gossipers, and spiteful. And, they take advantage of people who are weaker than them.

Some of them, like the Pharisees of Jesus’ day, are religious people, and they may even be leaders within the church, and pastors, and Bible teachers, and those who profess faith in Jesus Christ, and they may also be heads of governments and of corporations. They may be legalists, too, who hold to a bunch of man-made religious customs and think they are righteous because they follow a set of surface-level rituals while they deny Christ as Lord, and while they engage in all sorts of evil behind closed doors.

Many of these are those who are presently persecuting the saints of God, the followers of Jesus Christ who love the Lord their God, and who are walking in fellowship with their Lord Jesus Christ. They resent them, they are bitter against them, and they hate them, so they speak evil against them, abuse, mock, insult, and slander them. Or, they are trying to trip them up or to tempt them to leave the way of holiness to return to walking in the ways of the flesh. For, they are given over to Satan.

They are those who are out to steal, to kill and to destroy the church. So, they are also out to destroy the gospel of our salvation, too, by diluting it and altering it to make it more appealing and acceptable to human flesh. And, so they are persecuting those who still hold to the truths of God’s Word – who are still teaching (sharing, preaching) the full gospel message.

So, we need to stand firm on the Word of God, and resist Satan, who is the one behind these persecutors, and we need to flee the temptation to fear or to give in and to compromise for the sake of peace. We have to say “NO!” to ungodliness and worldly passions (lustful desires) no matter how much pressure is being aimed at us to be more like everyone else. And, we need to be proactive and determined about this, too, so that we don’t buckle under pressure. And, we need to continue to live godly, upright and self-controlled lives in the power of the Holy Spirit until the day Jesus returns.

James 1:22-24 ESV

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like.

Many of these hypocritical liars and deceivers, who are hotly pursuing the saints of God in order to persecute them, are those who are promoting a cheap grace gospel which says we don’t have to obey God. For, these liars are working for Satan who wants to convince all people that they can go to heaven when they die, and yet still live like hell when on the earth. Or, they will convince them that they can, at least, still be lords of their own lives.

And, thus, many people, at least here in America, have bought into the cheap grace (easy believism) gospel which makes no demands for holiness, godliness, obedience, submission or repentance. And, so they may look into what the Word of God teaches, and they may even have much head knowledge about what the scriptures teach, too, but they are convinced that they don’t have to do what it says and that nothing bad will happen to them if they don’t do what it says.

They assume, because they said some magic words to save their souls, that heaven is guaranteed them when they die, so they believe that their sinful lifestyles will not impact their eternal security. And, thus they are lulled to sleep by these lies and deceptions. So, even if they do read scriptures which say the opposite of what these deceivers are telling them, they ignore them, for they are convinced that their actions have no bearing on their eternal life.

The result of all of this is that we have many “thumb-sucking” so-called Christians in America who are pacifying, appeasing and soothing themselves with sinful practices, idolatry and immorality. They worship the god of entertainment and self-gratification, rather than worship and obey the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. They think only of themselves and of getting what they want to satisfy their sinful cravings with no or little regard for what God wants for them and from them in the way of holy living.

Thus, we have a bunch of zombies who walk around in a daze, who are like robots just doing what they are programmed to do, living in sinful addiction, without conscience, without regard for how their actions might impact or hurt others. Their minds are controlled by the media, including social media and the news, by religious leaders, many of whom are entertainers and liars, and by the sinful practices in which they engage themselves regularly.

Even though they may be hearing the Word of God with their physical ears, they are not listening to it with their hearts. For, their hearts are already given over to their sinful practices and to their idols of entertainment. And, so they are not really taking in the Word of God. They know it intellectually, but they have not applied it to their hearts and to their lives, in practice.

So, oftentimes the things that they say they desire, with regard to their faith in Jesus Christ, or in relationships with others, they actually circumvent by their behaviors. They shoot themselves in their own feet (an idiomatic phrase) by doing the opposite of what they say they believe and even what they say that they truly want. And, it is because they refuse to believe the truth, but instead they follow after the lie, because it is easier.

James 1:25 ESV

But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.

What we know intellectually doesn’t matter for eternity. What we do with what we know does matter! For, faith in Jesus Christ is not just words we repeat after someone so that we have our tickets into heaven. It is not mere intellectual or emotional assent to who Jesus Christ was and is and to what he did for us in dying on a cross to deliver us from our sins.

Faith in Jesus Christ is doing what the Word of God teaches, by God’s grace, through God-given faith in Christ, and empowered by the Holy Spirit of God. It is not just following a set of rules, though. It is surrender of one’s life wholly unto God to follow Jesus Christ, our Lord, in all of his ways, according to his Word. And, it is God working in us as we yield our lives to his control.

This is not saying we will never sin again, though. But, what it means for us is that sin is no longer our master, in control of our lives. Now Jesus is our Lord (owner-master), and our lives are given over to him and not to the flesh. If we do sin against God, we confess it, we turn from it, and by the help of the Holy Spirit, we don’t keep returning to that same sin. But, we learn from our errors not to keep repeating them, and we grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord in how to live godly and holy lives pleasing to God.

So, this we have to know. Our actions do matter for eternity. We are not saved by works of the flesh, though. We can do nothing to deserve or to earn our own salvation. But, we are saved to good works which God prepared in advance that we should do by his Spirit. And, true faith in Jesus Christ submits to his Lordship and walks in obedience to his commands.

Also, we are all going to reap what we sow. If we sow to please the flesh, from the flesh we will reap destruction (decay, death). But, if we sow to please the Spirit, from the Spirit we will reap eternal life (Gal. 6:7-8; cf. Rom. 6:1-23; Rom. 8:1-17; Eph. 4:17-24; 1 Jn. 1:5-9; Lu. 9:23-25).

God is With Us

An Original Work / June 11, 2019

Based off Psalm 46

God’s our refuge. He is our strength,

A present help to us when in pain.

Therefore, we will not be afraid,

Although the earth beneath us gives way.

Though the mountains be moved to the sea,

Roaring waters abound so free,

And the mountains now tremble so,

We will not fear, God is near, we know.

God is with us and He makes glad

The hearts of all who to Christ have fled.

Christ is in us, so we’ll not fall

When on our Savior our hearts do call.

God will help us, as mornings arise,

To be faithful to His design.

Nations raging, and tempers flare.

Our God is with us. We know He cares.

Come and see the works of the Lord.

He’s armed for battle with His great sword.

He’s the Word, and He is the Life.

He gives us strength in all of our strife.

Be still and know that He is our God.

He’s exalted where’er He trods.

The Lord Almighty, with us still;

The God of Jacob, our citadel.

https://vimeo.com/341717561

Friday, August 2, 2019

The Apart-ment

It was kind of like a dream. I was waking up and my mind was thinking. I was thinking about our apartment we are moving into in a few weeks, and I was thinking about my room/study/office/music room, and the placement of the various pictures on the walls, and about my scripture quilt, too.

I have a picture of a lighthouse with a scripture underneath it. That is what came to my mind first. The scripture on it is John 8:12. Then, I was thinking about the picture I have of Jesus’ hands reaching out to us, in essence saying, “Come to me…” Matt. 11:28-30. And, then I was thinking of my scripture quilt. Each letter of each scripture was intricately (precisely) hand sown onto that quilt by the person who made it.

And, then my mind thought about children coming into the room and jumping on the bed and on top of that quilt and ripping apart the scriptures and ruining the quilt and how sad that made me feel that it was ruined.

And, then I had a secular song playing in my mind which I had just recently heard for the first time. It is an old shanty song, which is a work song sung on a ship at the end of a voyage. It is called, “Leave Her, Johnny” and the “her” is the ship (vessel). Much of the song expresses grievances with regard to the ship itself and its bad food and the ship’s leaky condition, and how hard the work was, and that the ship wouldn’t steer or stay, etc.

So, as I was praying all of this through, the song “Trust and Obey” began to play in my mind, as well.

The Apartment

We are presently getting ready to move, not only to another apartment, but to another state where we have lived before. And, I believe the Lord Jesus is using this move metaphorically this morning to illustrate a biblical truth, much like Jesus’ parables did. Jesus took real life situations such as farming and fishing and eating/drinking, and he taught biblical lessons from those. So, that is what this is like. It is an allegory.

If you take the word “apartment,” and you break it down, it means “apart” – separately – and “ment” – denoting an action or a resulting state. So, together the word would mean “the resulting state of being apart, separate.” Now, this can be taken in a good context or in a bad context.

For, as followers of Jesus Christ, we are called to be holy, and holy means to be set apart from the world because we are being made to be like Christ. So, there is a resulting state (condition) from that separation from the world and unto God, which I believe is mainly what this is showing. But, there is also a resulting state (situation) from separation from God and unto the world, too.

In this case, this room in this new apartment represents a life of holiness, a life which is separate from the world and unto God, because one is being made into the likeness of Jesus. And, it represents the resulting condition or situation of that life which is separate from the world and unto God, too. It is a life dedicated to the Lord and to his service.

It is a life of ministry, too, of sharing the gospel of our salvation and of using the gifts God has given to us for the glory and praise of God. It is a life dedicated to the study of God’s Word and to its practical application to our everyday lives. It is a life of prayer, and a life of praise and of worship of our Lord and of singing and rejoicing in Him, too. And, it is a life of purpose, of dying with Christ to sin and of living with him to his righteousness.

The Lighthouse

In this apartment (see meaning above), in this room (freedom in Christ), there is a picture (representation) of a lighthouse. Now, the purpose of a lighthouse is to shine forth the light (truth, righteousness), to warn of danger, and to show the way to safety (protection of the Holy Spirit via salvation from sin). And, the way to safety is found in this scripture verse:

“Again therefore Jesus spoke to them saying, ‘I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life.’” John 8:12

If we follow Jesus, it means we go along with him, we stick to him and we keep to his word, i.e. we walk in obedience to his commands by the Spirit of God. We respect and honor him for the holy God that he is, and we respect and honor his Word, too. Thus, we abide in (live in) him and him in us, and we go with him wherever it is that he leads us. We do what he says to do.

If we do this, in practice, in lifestyle, though not necessarily in absolute sinless perfection, the resulting condition of that apartness from the world and unto God is that we will not walk in the darkness. We won’t live in sin. We won’t make sin our practice, our lifestyle, our “go to,” as a matter of course. Sin will no longer have mastery over our lives. Satan will no longer have power and control over our lives, but Jesus will be our only Lord and master. Amen!

In other words, our salvation is not merely forgiveness of sins and the hope of eternity with God in heaven. Our salvation is deliverance out of our bondage (addiction) to sin so that, empowered by the Spirit of God, we can live lives which are separate from the world and unto God, and we can walk in obedience to our Lord Jesus so that sin no longer reigns in our lives.

Rest for Our Souls

In this apartment (result of being holy, set apart unto God) and in this room (freedom in Christ) is also a representation of Jesus’ hands reaching out to us, in essence saying,

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Matt. 11:28-30

So many people these days have the wrong idea of what freedom in Christ really means, and of what it means to be saved from our sins, to be forgiven, and to have eternal life with God. In an effort to forsake the idea of works-based salvation and of self-effort, they have swung the pendulum the other direction and they have turned God’s grace into freedom to keep on in their sinful practices without guilt or remorse. And, this is just wrong!

And, honestly, legalism and liberalism are both the same, for they are both of the flesh of humans and not of God, and they are both based in the flesh under the control of the flesh, and not under the control of God at all.

For, God didn’t say that our salvation means we no longer have to work. In fact, the scriptures teach that we are saved to good works which God prepared in advance that we should do, but it is Him who works in us as we cooperate with that work, and as we yield to him and let him have control. And, that is what this whole picture of taking Jesus’ yoke upon us is all about.

What this reveals is that we now submit to the Lordship, the control of our Lord over our lives. We allow him to work his grace and transformation in our lives and we cooperate with that work, as he leads. And, that is why the yoke is easy and the burden is light, because it is the Lord Jesus carrying the weight of it on his shoulders, and it is him leading, empowering and strengthening us to do the work to which he has called us.

So, when we die with him to sin that we might live to him and to his righteousness, we take his yoke upon us, we learn from him, and we follow him and his lead in obedience to his commands. And, it is there that we find rest for our souls.

The Scripture Quilt

A quilt is a comforter, a covering, so it represents the Holy Spirit as our comforter and our salvation from sin as God’s covering, his protection over our lives. It is a scripture quilt, which also represents Jesus’ blood shed on a cross for our sins that we might die with him to sin and live with him to righteousness. And, the Word of God is Jesus who died on that cross, and who embraced that death on a cross for you and for me so that we could be set free from our addiction to sin and now be slaves of his righteousness.

Jesus is the master designer of this quilt, which he very precisely created for you and for me as his plan of salvation for our lives. But, the children, i.e. the naïve, the immature, the childish have invaded his plan of salvation for his followers, and they have torn the scriptures apart, and they have ruined the gospel message so that it is no longer useful for anything good, and that breaks my heart, and it breaks God’s heart.

For, they have changed God’s grace into a license to continue to walk in darkness, and they have rejected the true Light. And, they have brought it under attack. And, they are attacking those who are the Lord’s servants who are sharing the true gospel, too. So, this is also about Christian persecution, which is also a resulting situation of being set apart from the world and being set apart unto God. We will be hated and persecuted for our testimonies for Jesus Christ and for his gospel message.

Leave Her Johnny

The ship that “Johnny” is to leave, in this scenario, is truly our old sinful lifestyles, which are leaky vessels, which serve and eat bad spiritual food, where we work for the flesh and we are misguided and misdirected, and where we don’t remain in Christ or in his Word because we are guided by the flesh, instead. But, this leaky vessel also represents the cheap grace being taught today which leaves people still dead in their sins without hope.

We, as followers of Jesus, are to leave those leaky vessels, and we are to move into this new apartment and this room that is dedicated to the Lord and to his service. And, we are to hold fast to the true Light, and we are to follow Jesus in his ways and in his truth, and to study his word, to pray, to sing praises to him, and to worship him by giving our lives to our Lord as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing unto him (Rom. 12:1-2; Rom. 6:1-23).

Trust and Obey 

Words by John H. Sammis, 1887

Music by Daniel B. Towner, 1887

When we walk with the Lord

in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will,

He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.

Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

But we never can prove

the delights of His love
Until all on the altar we lay;
For the favor He shows,

for the joy He bestows,
Are for them who will trust and obey.

Then in fellowship sweet

We will sit at His feet.
Or we’ll walk by His side in the way.
What He says we will do,

Where He sends we will go;
Never fear, only trust and obey.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmGb3zRv6xE