God's Sovereignty and Our Suffering

“It is God who has made my heart faint,

And the Almighty who has dismayed me,

But I am not silenced by the darkness,

Nor deep gloom which covers me.” (Job 23:16-17)

Job was a man of God who served and obeyed the Lord, in practice, so God regarded him as a righteous man. God said about him, “There is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil.” And yet God gave Satan permission to test Job and his faith. He allowed Satan to have Job’s servants, his livestock, and his children put to death. And later God allowed Satan to smite Job with sore boils from head to foot. And then Job’s friends accused him falsely of sin against God.

Initially Job’s response was this, as recorded in Job 1:21-22; Job 2:10:

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,

And naked I shall return there.

The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away.

Blessed be the name of the Lord.”

“Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God.” 

“Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?” 

Yet, as time went by and Job’s suffering was getting much worse, and his “friends” continued to harass him and accuse him falsely of sinning against God, as the reason for his suffering, Job’s faith began to wane somewhat, and he began to question God and his sovereignty over his life. But at the end of it all, Job repented in dust and ashes that he had declared that which he did not understand, things which he did not know. And then the Lord declared that Job had spoken of him what is truth, but his friends had not.

All in all, Job learned more of God, and he experienced more of God than he had ever before, and he was humbled before God through his suffering. Even though, through his suffering, he did get to a point to where he doubted and he questioned God, he eventually came to his senses and he repented of his doubts and fears, and he trusted in the Lord and in his sovereignty over his life. Again he accepted that God gives and he takes away, and that, in life, we should accept adversity and not just good.

And as we are watching what is happening in the world, and in our individual nations, and as we face the reality of where all this could lead, much or all of it not in our favor, I believe, we must come to that same place as Job initially did, and that he returned to, only minus the doubting of God, hopefully. And we must accept both good and bad, justice and injustice, and times of plenty and times of not having anything or much at all. For this is what is promised to us in the Scriptures in these last days before Jesus returns for his bride.

For Jesus did not promise us that if we followed him with our lives that life would be easy for us and that we would not have to suffer. He promised us the opposite of that, in fact. He said that we would be hated and persecuted as he was hated and persecuted, and that some of us would be falsely accused of wrongdoing, and falsely imprisoned, and falsely put on trial and given mock trials of injustice. And some of us they will put to death for our testimonies for Jesus Christ and for teaching the truth of his gospel.

So, even though suffering is and will be painful, we should not let it shake our faith, which would be Satan’s goal in afflicting us. We should not let it cause us to doubt God and his sovereignty over our lives, for he never promised us a life of ease and comfort. He promised us a life of suffering if we choose to follow him in obedience to his commands in holy living and in us putting sin to death in our lives, by the Spirit. And that is because if we are faithful to him, the world will not like us, and Satan will oppose us.

So we should look at suffering and its purpose in our lives through the eyes of God and his purpose in bringing suffering into our lives. Sometimes it is to get us back on track if we have drifted from our pure devotion to the Lord, and sometimes it is to strengthen us in our walks of faith, and to humble us, and to teach us to rely on God and not on ourselves. I have suffered much in my lifetime, and I am not looking forward to greater suffering, but if God allows it in our lives, I know it is for our good, to make us more like Jesus.

[Matthew 5:10-12; Matthew 10:16-39; Matthew 24:9-14; Luke 6:22-23; Luke 21:12-17; John 15:18-21; John 17:14; Rom 5:3-5; Phil 3:7-11; 1 Pet 1:6-7; 1 Pet 4:12-17; 2 Tim 3:12; 1 Thess 3:1-5; Jas 1:2-4; 2 Co 1:3-11; Heb 12:3-12; 1 Jn 3:13; Revelation 6:9-11; Revelation 7:9-17; Revelation 11:1-3; Revelation 12:17; Revelation 13:1-18; Revelation 14:1-13]

More Precious Than Silver  

Lynn DeShazo

Lord, You are more precious than silver.

Lord, You are more costly than gold.

Lord, You are more beautiful than diamonds,

And nothing I desire compares to You.

Lord, Your Love is higher than mountains.

Lord, Your Love is deeper than seas.

Lord, Your Love encompasses the nations,

And yet, You live right here inside of me!

Who can weigh the value of knowing You?

Who can judge the worth of who You are?

Who can count the blessings of loving You?

Who can say just how great You are?

Lord, You are more precious than silver.

Lord, You are more costly than gold.

Lord, You are more beautiful than diamonds,

And nothing I desire compares to You.

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

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God’s Sovereignty and Our Suffering

An Original Work / March 2, 2025 

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

What is Appointed for Us

 

I Have Treasured the Words of His Mouth

“But He knows the way I take;

When He has tried me, I shall come forth as gold.

My foot has held fast to His path;

I have kept His way and not turned aside.

I have not departed from the command of His lips;

I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.” (Job 23:10-12 NASB1995)

God’s servant Job was a righteous man who feared God and who walked in obedience to his commands. But God allowed Satan to test this godly man. First his animals and many of his servants were killed. Then his sons and his daughters were killed. But what was Job’s response? He mourned their deaths but he worshipped God. He said, “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.” And the Scripture says, “Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God.” (see Job 1:1-22).

But then God allowed Satan to test Job even more. And so Satan smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. But when his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die!,” he replied, “Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?” And then the Scripture says, “In all this Job did not sin with his lips.” And although his friends initially consoled him in his suffering, then they began accusing him of sinning against God as the reason for his suffering. And so he and his friends talked back and forth (Job chaps. 2-37).

But Job was not perfect in all of his responses to his persecutors who were judging him falsely and who were accusing him of sinning against God as being the reason for his suffering. So, God then began to speak to Job (beginning in chapter 38, I believe). And he corrected Job on some things that he got wrong. But Job was not wrong about the fact that his suffering was not because of sin in his life, for he was a godly man who worshipped and served the Lord with his life, and who was righteous in the eyes of God. But Job repented of what he had wrong:

Then Job answered the Lord and said,

“I know that You can do all things,

And that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted.

‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’

Therefore I have declared that which I did not understand,

Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.”

‘Hear, now, and I will speak;

I will ask You, and You instruct me.’

“I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear;

But now my eye sees You;

Therefore I retract,

And I repent in dust and ashes.” (Job 42:1-6 NASB1995)

Was Job a righteous and a godly man? Yes, he was. Was he deserving of the suffering that he went through? i.e. did he do something to deserve what all he suffered? No, he didn’t. His suffering was not the result of sin in his life. Did he initially have the correct responses to his suffering? Yes, he did. But as things got much worse, and as his friends continually tried to convince him that his suffering was a result of sin, then he didn’t do as well, and I believe he began to question God, and so God had to rebuke him on that matter. But Job then repented, and God honored him for speaking the truth.

But what I believe the Lord wants me to focus on here is Job’s words in chapter 23 where he described his relationship with the Lord. He said that his foot had held fast to the path of God, that he had kept the ways of the Lord, and that he had not turned aside from them. He said that he had not departed from the commands of God’s lips, but that he treasured the words of the mouth of the Lord more than his necessary food. And this is the life of a Christian which God desires of all of us, that we should walk in his ways and in his truth, and that we should obey his commands and speak truth.

And the truth which he wants all of us to speak is the truth of His Word as he taught it in its pure sense. He wants us to be sharing the truth of the gospel with the people of the world and with the worldly church for their salvation from their bondage (addiction) to sin so that they can now serve God with their lives in walks of obedience to his commands in holy living. And he wants us to keep speaking his truth even while being tested and tried and falsely accused of wrong we did not do, and even if all our friends turn against us and we go through tremendous suffering for our walks of faith.

And we need to be telling people the truth of the gospel, in opposition to the lies which are so popular today, because there are so many people without faith in the Lord Jesus who will die in their sins because they did not repent of their sins, and they did not die to sin, and they are not now walking in obedience to the Lord and to his commands. For the truth says that if sin is what we practice, and not obedience to our Lord, that we will not have eternal life with God, regardless of what faith in him we profess with our lips. So it is critical that we should be telling people the truth for their salvation.

[Matt 7:13-14,21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Jn 10:27-30; Ac 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; Tit 2:11-14; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10]

A Missionary Cry

By Albert B. Simpson

Melody by J.H. Burke

A hundred thousand souls a day

Are passing one by one away

In Christless guilt and gloom;

Without one ray of hope or light,

With future dark as endless night,

They’re passing to their doom.

The Master’s coming draweth near;

The Son of Man will soon appear;

His kingdom is at hand.

But ere that glorious day can be,

This gospel of the kingdom we

Must preach in every land. 

Oh, let us then His coming haste,

Oh, let us end this awful waste

Of souls that never die.

A thousand millions still are lost;

A Savior’s blood has paid the cost,

Oh, hear their dying cry. 

They’re passing, passing, fast away,

A hundred thousand souls a day

In Christless guilt and gloom.

O Church of Christ, what wilt thou say

When, in the awful judgment day,

They charge thee with their doom? 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhY4_zj2Kyk

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I Have Treasured the Words of His Mouth

An Original Work / March 2, 2025 

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Such Troubling Times

Such troubling times we live in now

Because to Christ much do not bow

But bow to men, they surely do

And to their idols stick like glue

They masquerade of righteousness

But to their sins they not address

They walk in sin, and not by faith,

Because their sins they not abate

They will not obey God’s commands

For on their flesh they now depend

And worldly living is their thing

Their idols to Christ will not bring

Their stubbornness and selfish pride

It takes them now on a joy ride

To live for pleasure of this world

And sacrifice to them absurd

May not be wild, unruly be

But truth of Scriptures they not see

So in the lies they now believe

And listen to those who deceive

Submit not then to God’s pure rule

But to their idols up they curl

And entertain from dusk to dawn

The righteousness of God not spawn

So God is speaking, speaking clear

That to your idols NOT be near

But fellowship with Jesus Christ

And take not His grace for a heist

Obey your Lord, do what He says

Forsake your sins in righteousness

Believe His word, live now for Him

And do no longer walk in sin

An Original Work / March 1, 2025 

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

The Enemy Has Damaged Most Everything

“O God, why have You rejected us forever?

Why does Your anger smoke against the sheep of Your pasture?

2 Remember Your congregation, which You have purchased of old,

Which You have redeemed to be the tribe of Your inheritance;

And this Mount Zion, where You have dwelt.

3 Turn Your footsteps toward the perpetual ruins;

The enemy has damaged everything within the sanctuary.

4 Your adversaries have roared in the midst of Your meeting place;

They have set up their own standards for signs.

5 It seems as if one had lifted up

His axe in a forest of trees.

6 And now all its carved work

They smash with hatchet and hammers.

7 They have burned Your sanctuary to the ground;

They have defiled the dwelling place of Your name.

8 They said in their heart, ‘Let us completely subdue them.’

They have burned all the meeting places of God in the land.

9 We do not see our signs;

There is no longer any prophet,

Nor is there any among us who knows how long.

10 How long, O God, will the adversary revile,

And the enemy spurn Your name forever?

11 Why do You withdraw Your hand, even Your right hand?

From within Your bosom, destroy them!” (Psalms 74:1-11 NASB1995)

When I read this today, I could not help but think immediately of what is happening in my nation (the USA) and in the rest of the nations in our world right now. Now, this was speaking specifically of “the sheep” of God’s pasture who now are those who believe in Jesus Christ with God-persuaded faith in the Lord. We are those who have died with Christ to sin, and who have been raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin, but as slaves to God and to his righteousness.

[Lu 9:23-26; Jn 10:27-30; Ac 26:18; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Tit 2:11-14; Heb 12:1-2; 1 Pet 2:24]

But, as the Bible prophesied, a large majority of “the church” has become lukewarm (like the church of Laodicea) and they have become worldly (2 Peter 2:1-22; Jude 1:1-25; 2 Peter 3:1-18; Revelation 2-3), and some have apostatized (renounced their faith in the Lord – see 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12; 1 Timothy 4:1-5). And I believe very much so that the present day worldly and modern “church” is under the judgment of Almighty God because she has drifted from her pure devotion to Christ to follow worldly ways.

But she (the present day worldly church) is not under the judgment of God just because she wandered off to follow after the ways of man and of the flesh and of the world, but because she has refused time and time again to hear the Lord speaking to her through his written word, and through his messengers (those speaking the truth of God’s word), and she has not repented of her worldly ways, but she has continued in them. And she has not pursued righteousness and holiness and obedience to her Lord.

And I believe that the worldly church is presently under the judgment of God and that is why everything is going crazy as it is, and not much of it makes sense anymore, and there is so much chaos and disruptions. And lies and liars abound in ways we would not even thought of many years ago. And the enemy has definitely damaged everything within the sanctuary (the church) to where “the church” is barely recognizable as the body of believers in Jesus Christ, but has been turned into businesses marketed to the world.

But it isn’t just that. But the gospel of our salvation and the character of God/Christ, and of his church, have severely been damaged and altered to make them more acceptable and appealing to the world and to human flesh in order to “draw in large crowds from the world” into their gatherings, in order to “grow their numbers.” And many (or most) of these gatherings (in America) have been turned into stage productions to attract the world and are being led by a small group of “dictators” not following God’s Word.

And this is the reason that “the church,” at least here in America, but perhaps in other nations, too, is under the judgment of God. But I believe this judgment, at least in part, is intended to bring many to repentance before the day when Jesus returns to judge, when many end up in hell on the promise of heaven because they would not obey the Lord, in practice, but they went their own way, and they continued in their sins, instead. And in the book of Revelation some do repent and turn to obey the Lord.

[Matthew 5:10-12; Matthew 10:16-25,34-39; Matthew 24:1-51; Luke 6:22-23; Luke 12:49-53; Luke 21:12-17; John 15:18-21; Ephesians 6:10-20; 1 John 2:18-25; Jude 1:17-23; 2 Peter 2:1-22; 2 Peter 3:1-18; 1 Timothy 4:1-5; 2 Timothy 3:1-9; Revelation 6:9-11; Revelation 7:9-17; Revelation 11:1-3; Revelation 12:17; Revelation 13:1-18; Revelation 14:1-13]

One of the biggest ways in which the church has turned away from her Lord and has gone after the ways of the world is in diluting and altering the gospel of our salvation to make it more acceptable to human flesh. So many have done away with God’s requirements that we must die to sin and now walk in obedience to his commands, as essential elements of believing faith which saves, and they are catering to human flesh, instead. For they are willfully teaching the Scriptures out of context and twisting what they teach.

So we must know that the Scriptures teach that all of us are going to stand before the Lord on the day of judgment and we will have to give an account to God for what we did with Jesus and with his gospel message and with our lives in response to his message to us. And all who continued in deliberate and habitual sin against God, and who did not repent of their sinful ways, and who did not follow the Lord in obedience, in practice, will not inherit eternal life with God, regardless of what their lips professed. Believe this!

[Matt 7:21-23; Rom 2:6-8; 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 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10]

For Our Nation  

An Original Work / September 11, 2012

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Trust Him with your life today.

Make Him your Lord and your Savior.

Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.

He will forgive you of your sin;

Cleanse your heart, made new within.

Men betraying: Our trust fraying.

On our knees to God we’re praying,

Seeking God to give us answers

That are only found in Him.

God is sovereign over all things.

Nothing from His mind escaping.

He has all things under His command,

And will work all for good.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Men deceiving: We’re believing

In our Lord, and interceding

For our nation and its people

To obey their God today.

He is our hope for our future.

For our wounds He offers suture.

He is all we need for this life.

Trust Him with your life today.

https://vimeo.com/379406352

The Enemy Has Damaged Most Everything

An Original Work / March 1, 2025 

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Anything Can Be Faked

 

Until I Came Into the Sanctuary of God

I am reading in Psalms 73, which has 28 verses, so I will not quote them all, but the whole Psalm is one continuous story, so I will summarize much of it and then quote other parts of it. And I do believe that at least some of this is relevant to what is going on in the world today and in my nation (USA).

The Psalmist was Asaph. And he was struggling in his heart and in his mind with thoughts of envy of the arrogant as he saw the prosperity of the wicked who did not seem to have struggles or difficulties, for they didn’t seem to be in trouble as other people were. Therefore, pride was their necklace. They seemed to always be at ease, and they increased in wealth. Asaph said,

“Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure

And washed my hands in innocence;

For I have been stricken all day long

And chastened every morning.” (Psalms 73:13-14 NASB1995)

But then he said,

“When I pondered to understand this,

It was troublesome in my sight

Until I came into the sanctuary of God;

Then I perceived their end.

Surely You set them in slippery places;

You cast them down to destruction.

How they are destroyed in a moment!

They are utterly swept away by sudden terrors!” (Psalms 73:16-19 NASB1995)

Okay, so if you are someone who pays attention to what is going on in the world and in your individual nations, or to what is happening in the United States of America (where I live) with our new government heads, or to what you are being told is happening, which may or may not be the truth at all, and frequently is not the truth, you may or may not have similar reactions. For the people who are now ruling over us are definitely the wealthy and the powerful of the world who seem to be unstoppable and are gaining much ground. And on a surface evaluation, it can be very disturbing.

But I love this next part.. “Until I came into the sanctuary of God; then I perceived their end.” And this is where we all need to be, in the sanctuary of God, which is not a physical place, but is our relationships with the Lord, seeking the counsel of God, and studying the Scriptures. For if we study the Scriptures, then what is happening in our world and in our individual nations will begin to make sense, especially any Scriptures which prophesy the events of these last days before the return of Christ. Very telling! So if you want answers to all this craziness, read your Bibles and pray to God.

“Whom have I in heaven but You?

And besides You, I desire nothing on earth.

My flesh and my heart may fail,

But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

For, behold, those who are far from You will perish;

You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to You.

But as for me, the nearness of God is my good;

I have made the Lord God my refuge,

That I may tell of all Your works.” (Psalms 73:25-28 NASB1995)

And this is where we all need to land. We all need a God-perspective and a biblical perspective of what is happening in our world and in our individual nations, and then we can be at peace even in the midst of much turmoil. For what we are seeing take place in our world and in our nations was prophesied in the Scriptures so that we would be warned in advance of what to expect so that we will be ready for it, so that it does not take us out or make us afraid. So we need to stop listening to those who would want to get us to be afraid, and we need to let the peace of God rule in our hearts.

We need to put our focus on the Lord and on his word and on following our Lord in obedience to his commands. Yes, be educated as to what is going on in our world, but don’t believe everything certain people tell you, for lies and liars abound everywhere you look. Deception is HUGE these days, as the Bible predicted that it would be. We are not seeing anything that the Bible did not warn us about in advance to prepare us for such a time as this. So we need to get our counsel from God and in his Word, and let the peace of God rule in our hearts, and not get caught up in all the angst all around us.

One day all this will be over, and those who did evil, and who did not obey God, will be cast into the fiery furnace of hell where they will be forever. And many of them are those who give lip service to the Lord but who, by their actions, deny him as their Lord (Owner-Master). So a mere profession of faith in Jesus Christ will not “get you off the hook” if by your lifestyle you are living to please your flesh and not God. For we are all going to stand before God on the day of judgment and we will be judged according to our works. And if sin, and not obedience, is our practice, then we will not see God.

[Matt 7:13-14,21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Jn 10:27-30; Ac 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; Tit 2:11-14; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10]

For Our Nation  

An Original Work / September 11, 2012

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Trust Him with your life today.

Make Him your Lord and your Savior.

Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.

He will forgive you of your sin;

Cleanse your heart, made new within.

Men betraying: Our trust fraying.

On our knees to God we’re praying,

Seeking God to give us answers

That are only found in Him.

God is sovereign over all things.

Nothing from His mind escaping.

He has all things under His command,

And will work all for good.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Men deceiving: We’re believing

In our Lord, and interceding

For our nation and its people

To obey their God today.

He is our hope for our future.

For our wounds He offers suture.

He is all we need for this life.

Trust Him with your life today.

https://vimeo.com/379406352

Until I Came Into the Sanctuary of God

An Original Work / March 1, 2025 

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love