God's Word Will Not Return Empty

“As the rain and the snow

    come down from heaven,

and do not return to it

    without watering the earth

and making it bud and flourish,

    so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,

so is my word that goes out from my mouth:

    It will not return to me empty,

but will accomplish what I desire

    and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

You will go out in joy

    and be led forth in peace;

the mountains and hills

    will burst into song before you,

and all the trees of the field

    will clap their hands.” (Isaiah 55:10-12 NIV)

God’s Word is reliable. It can be trusted. But let me add a word of caution here. The Scriptures, in their original form, were without error. But since then there have been copies of copies and many different translations and transliterations. So, if possible, it is best to make certain that we are reading a reliable and tested translation that is considered to be accurate as well as readable. And if you have access on the internet to Bible helps, using them can be helpful, too, but we should not rely on them as our primary source.

It is also good to make certain that we are reading the Scriptures in their appropriate context and that we compare Scriptures with other Scriptures to make certain that they agree. For many people today are being taught the Scriptures out of context which are then twisted to teach what they do not say if taught in their appropriate context. And from that many false doctrines are being taught as though they are truth when they are lies. So be students of the Scriptures who study them in context. Then apply them to your lives.

Now, what God said in his word that he would do, if he has not already done it, he will do it, unless he retracted what he said he would do because the people repented (example the story of Jonah and Nineveh in the book of Jonah, chapters 1-3). God will fulfill all his promises which he has not yet fulfilled, but we must understand that his promises all have conditions which we must meet for us to receive those promises, if they were written for us. So, make certain that you know what those conditions are.

Also, he will fulfill all the threats he made and all the judgments that he promised to the unrepentant and to the disobedient who refuse to bow to him as Lord and to die with him to sin and to now walk in obedience to his commands, in the power of God. For, regardless of what professions of faith in Jesus we may make with our lips, if we continue to deliberately and habitually sin against God, and walks of obedience to his commands are not what we practice, we will not inherit eternal life with God.

But I find comfort in this. Even if the many are rejecting the words of the Lord now, and they are not accepting the truth of his gospel, the truth of his gospel is still going out to the people of the world. And many who have heard the truth, but have not yet believed the truth, may yet believe. For the word of the Lord which is going out to the world will not return empty, but it will accomplish what God desires, and it will achieve the purpose for which he sent it, even if that is many years later from when it was sent.

Now, at the beginning of Isaiah 55 we read that the wicked (sinful) must forsake their sinful ways, and they must turn to the Lord and he will have mercy on them, and he will pardon their sins. But to turn to the Lord is to surrender our lives to him to now follow in his ways and in his truth in walks of obedience to his commands in holy living. So we not only forsake our sinful practices, but now we must walk in obedience to our Lord. For if we choose not to, in practice, we will not inherit eternal life with God.

So, when this says, “You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace,” etc., this is based on the premise that we have died with Christ to sin and that we are walking in obedience to his commands, in practice, and that sin and disobedience to our Lord are no longer what we practice. This does not make us perfect people, but if sin is what we practice, and not obedience, we do not have salvation from sin nor eternal life with God. For God’s word will be fulfilled. We must obey him if we want to have his promises in our lives.

[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]

Oh, to Be Like Thee, Blessed Redeemer 

Lyrics by Thomas O. Chisholm, 1897

Music by W. J. Kirkpatrick, 1897

Oh, to be like Thee! blessèd Redeemer,

This is my constant longing and prayer;

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

Jesus, Thy perfect likeness to wear.

Oh, to be like Thee! full of compassion,

Loving, forgiving, tender and kind,

Helping the helpless, cheering the fainting,

Seeking the wandering sinner to find.

O to be like Thee! lowly in spirit,

Holy and harmless, patient and brave;

Meekly enduring cruel reproaches,

Willing to suffer others to save.

O to be like Thee! while I am pleading,

Pour out Thy Spirit, fill with Thy love;

Make me a temple meet for Thy dwelling,

Fit me for life and Heaven above.

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

Blessèd Redeemer, pure as Thou art;

Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;

Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.

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

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God’s Word Will Not Return Empty

An Original Work / March 3, 2025 

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Trust God's Wisdom

Life in tangles, people scrambling,

Rushing, trying to find the truth,

Liars lying, not truth telling,

Many are living so uncouth.

Who’s the trusted? Who’s the busted?

Can’t be sure who’s right and who’s wrong?

Each side telling their side selling,

Their stories written in a song.

Days of confusion and illusion

Each side claiming that they are right.

But if they name it and they claim it,

It still puts people in a plight.

This side, that side, both have wrongs,

This side, that side, both precise.

It’s all a matter of in the pie

Where you choose to take your slice.

For human beings and their thinking

Of the flesh and not of God,

Although they might have some things right

They have, as well, a lot that’s wrong.

So, as Christians we seek wisdom

To know what’s truth and what are lies,

For on people and their wisdom

In truth we cannot that rely.

We pray discernment to know truth,

To recognize then what are lies,

We read our Bibles, seek the answers,

And trust God’s wisdom he provides.

An Original Work / March 3, 2025 

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

God's Ways are Higher

 

While He May Be Found

“Seek the Lord while he may be found;

    call upon him while he is near;

let the wicked forsake his way,

    and the unrighteous man his thoughts;

let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him,

    and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

    neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.

For as the heavens are higher than the earth,

    so are my ways higher than your ways

    and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:6-9 ESV)

Whether we are reading in the Old Testament or in the New Testament, under the New Covenant, the message is still the same. We who are the wicked by birth, i.e. who are born with sin natures, in the image of Adam, must forsake our wicked (sinful) ways, and we must turn to the Lord. And to turn to the Lord involves not only us dying with Christ to sin but us now living to God in walks of obedience to his commands (see Romans 6:1-23).

For the faith to believe in our Lord unto salvation is not of our own flesh, not of our own fleshly works, but it is gifted to us by God, and it comes from God, and it is persuaded of God as to his holiness and righteousness, and of our sinfulness, and of our need to die with Christ to sin and to now walk with him in obedience to his commands. And it results in us, in the power of God, doing the works God called us to do (see Ephesians 2:8-10; Titus 2:11-14).

So, it isn’t by lip service only that any of us are saved from our sins and promised heaven as our eternal destiny. True faith, which comes from God, and which is not of our own doing, submits to Jesus as Lord (Owner-Master) and surrenders our lives to the will of God for our lives. Thus, by faith in him, we die with him to sin and we now walk in obedience to his commands, as a matter of life practice, although not necessarily in absolute perfection.

God had compassion on us sinners, which is why he sent Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, who is God, to die on a cross. For in his death he put our sins to death with him so that, by faith in him, we will now die with him to sin and walk with him (who was raised from the dead) in obedience to his commands – all by the grace of God and in the power of God, and not of our own flesh. For even our faith to believe in Christ comes from God.

And then when we believe in Jesus with this faith which comes from God and which dies with Christ to sin in order to obey him and his commands, God pardons (forgives) us our sins. For God’s thoughts are not the same as ours, and his ways of doing things are not the same as ours in our human flesh. And Jesus taught that if we are going to come after him that we must deny self, take up our cross daily (die daily to sin) and follow (obey) him.

For his grace, which is bringing us salvation, is training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives while we await our Lord’s return. For if we hold on to our old lives of living in sin and for self, we will lose them for eternity. But if we deny self, die daily to sin, by his grace, and walk in obedience to his commands, in his power, then we have the hope of eternal life with God.

[Luke 9:23-26; Titus 2:11-14; Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; 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 5:16-21; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; 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]

 

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

While He May Be Found

An Original Work / March 3, 2025 

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Listen Carefully To Me

“Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters;

And you who have no money come, buy and eat.

Come, buy wine and milk

Without money and without cost.

“Why do you spend money for what is not bread,

And your wages for what does not satisfy?

Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good,

And delight yourself in abundance.

“Incline your ear and come to Me.

Listen, that you may live;

And I will make an everlasting covenant with you..” (Isaiah 55:1-3 NASB1995)

This is one of those passages of Scripture which is spoken more in figurative language and which we are to interpret on a spiritual level, kind of like the parables that Jesus spoke. For this is not about physical thirst, nor is it about physical water. And this is not about physical money and physical food. And “buying” is not about purchasing anything with physical money. 

This is speaking to people who are spiritually bankrupt, who do not have the Spirit of God living within them, who do not have salvation from sin nor eternal life with God. Even if they profess faith in Jesus Christ with their lips, they do not know the Lord because they have not died with him to sin and they are not now walking in obedience to his commands in holy living.

But this doesn’t mean that these people are aware of their spiritual emptiness. Many are those who profess faith in Jesus Christ, who are convinced that they are now saved from the punishment of sin, that all their sins are forgiven, and that heaven is now guaranteed them when they die. But they don’t realize that they are “wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked” (Revelation 3:17), spiritually speaking. So Jesus says to them:

“I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.” (Revelation 3:18-19 ESV)

And that passage of Scripture in Revelation 3 parallels this passage in Isaiah 55 – same basic message – all to be taken more figuratively and to be applied to our lives in a spiritual and not a physical sense. 

So, what is the overall message to be gained by us here? When we are born into this world, we are born with sin natures, in the image of Adam, separate from God and not able, in ourselves, to attain salvation from sin and eternal life with God. There is not anything that we can do in our flesh to be approved by God and to be righteous in his sight. No amount of good works, on our part, will ever earn us salvation from sin and eternal life with God.

Only because of Jesus’ blood sacrifice on that cross for the sins of the world can any of us have salvation from sin and eternal life with God. And not one of us can come to faith in Jesus Christ unless God first draws us to Christ, i.e. unless we are first persuaded of God as to his righteousness and holiness, and of our sinfulness, and of our need to, by faith, die with him to sin and now walk in obedience to his commands. Even the faith to believe in Jesus comes from God and is not of our own doing, lest we should boast.

So, we have not the resources within ourselves to be saved from our sins and to have the hope of eternal life with God. Only by God’s grace through God-gifted faith in Jesus can we enter into genuine relationship with the Lord. But faith which comes from God results in us dying with Christ to sin and us now walking in obedience to his commands, in his power. And the grace of God is training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives for the glory of God.

And I believe this is what it means that we buy without money, because believing in Jesus does not come from ourselves, but it is persuaded of God, and it is gifted of God, and is not of human flesh. Jesus paid the cost with his life in death on that cross so that we can now die with him to sin and walk in obedience to his commands. But he did not die just to forgive us our sins and to promise us heaven when we die, but in his death he put our sins to death with him, and he rose from the dead victorious over sin, so that by his grace we may now die with him to sin and walk in obedience to him.

For the covenant he makes with those of genuine faith in him is not just that he will forgive their sins and that heaven will be their eternal home, and even that is conditional upon us dying with him to sin and walking in obedience to his commands, by the Spirit, in the power of God. So, the covenant requires that we die with him to sin and that sin is no longer what we practice, but now obedience to our Lord and to his commands and holy living are what we practice, by his grace, in his power.

So, yes, it is by God’s grace, through God-persuaded and God-gifted faith in the Lord Jesus that we are saved and that we have the hope of heaven when we leave this earth. And this is not of our own doing, not of the flesh of humans. But.. God’s grace trains us and requires of us to renounce our sinful ways and to now live holy lives, pleasing to him, in walks of obedience to his commands. And by faith we must die with him to sin and walk in obedience to his commands, for that is why Jesus died on that cross. But if we refuse, and we continue to walk in sin, and not obedience, we have not life in Christ.

[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 5:16-21; 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]

Believe Him  

An Original Work / July 15, 2013

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

My heart cries: Lord, won’t You hear me

Seeking You for the answers

To my heartache and questions

I have concerning my life?

Speak, Lord, to me right now.

“Oh, dear one, why don’t you trust Me

With your life’s circumstances?

Give your all on the altar

In submission of your will

To My purpose for you.

“Surrender your life completely

To your Lord and your Savior.

He has all things planned for you

For His glory and honor.

He’ll work all things for good.

“Believe Him. He will fulfill all

Of His promises to you

For your life and your future.

Trust Him. Rest in His love.

He’ll give you peace from above.”

https://vimeo.com/115945593 

Listen Carefully To Me

An Original Work / March 3, 2025 

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Goodnight My Friends

Goodnight my friends

The night draws near

When soon my wake

Will disappear

Into the night

I’ll go to sleep

From me you will not

Hear a peep

The day was long

And I belong

Where I can get

Some good night rest

I’m tired now

This bod worn out

My mind needs rest

From many thoughts

‘Twas a good day

Had time to play

Relax a bit

And time to sit

Some family time

Had time to share

Of things we are

Now some aware

Time to reflect

On what’s in store

For all of us

At root of core

Some good, some bad,

But we will wait

To see what God

Has planned to date

An Original Work / March 2, 2025 

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Yet Know That God Will..

“Rejoice, young man, during your childhood, and let your heart be pleasant during the days of young manhood. And follow the impulses of your heart and the desires of your eyes. Yet know that God will bring you to judgment for all these things. So, remove grief and anger from your heart and put away pain from your body, because childhood and the prime of life are fleeting.” (Ecclesiastes 11:9-10 NASB1995)

This passage of Scripture begins sounding like someone is advising and encouraging another in what to do and in how to behave in his life, but it is not that at all. In truth, this is not an encouragement, but it is a warning. And this does not apply just to youth or just to males (men), but to all people, really. And the message intended is basically this which follows. 

If we live to please ourselves, and if we follow the impulses (urges, desires) of our human hearts, and the desires of our eyes, i.e. the lusts of our flesh, instead of following our Lord in obedience to his commands, then we need to know the result. God will bring us to judgment for all these things. And the New Testament Scriptures teach the same exact truth over again.

So, what are we, thus, counseled to do? We are to remove worldly and fleshly lusts from our lives which, if we don’t, will result in the judgment of God against us if we do not repent and change our ways and now obey our Lord in practice. We are to leave childish and self-indulgent practices behind us which glorify the flesh and which separate us from the grace of God. And we are now to honor God with our lives in holy and righteous living.

We are also to remove worldly sorrow from our lives which does not result in genuine repentance and changed lives. For just saying that you are sorry, or just confessing with your lips that you sinned against the Lord, but then while you keep going back to the same exact sins deliberately and habitually, does not result in genuine salvation and forgiveness of sins. For Jesus said that not everyone who confesses him as Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one DOING the will of God the Father (Matthew 7:21-23).

He also taught that if anyone would come after him he must deny self, take up his cross daily (die daily to sin) and follow (obey) him. For if we hold on to living in sin and for self, we will lose our lives for eternity. But if we deny self, die daily to sin, by the Spirit, and follow our Lord in walks of obedience to his commands, in surrender to his will and purpose for our lives, in the power of God living within us, then we have eternal life with God. For if we deny Jesus by how we live, he will deny us when he returns (Luke 9:23-26).

So, we cannot live our lives to please our flesh for our own entertainment, and to gratify the lusts of the flesh, and for it to have no impact on our lives for eternity. We are not saved from our sins and on our way to heaven by lip service only. Genuine faith in Christ results in us dying with Christ to sin and us now walking in obedience to his commands, in practice. And God’s grace instructs us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives while we await our Lord’s return.

[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]

As the Deer 

By Martin J. Nystrom

Based off Psalm 42:1

As the deer panteth for the water

 So my soul longeth after You

 You alone are my heart's desire

 And I long to worship You

You alone are my strength, my shield

 To You alone may my spirit yield

 You alone are my heart's desire

 And I long to worship You

 

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

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Yet Know That God Will..

An Original Work / March 2, 2025 

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love