Exhort One Another Daily

Hebrews 3:12-19 BSB

 

12See to it, brothers, that none of you has a wicked heart of unbelief that turns away from the living God. 13But exhort one another daily, as long as it is called today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. 14We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly to the end the assurance we had at first. 15As it has been said:

 

“Today, if you hear His voice,

do not harden your hearts,

as you did in the rebellion.”

 

16For who were the ones who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt? 17And with whom was God angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? 18And to whom did He swear that they would never enter His rest? Was it not to those who disobeyed? 19So we see that it was because of their unbelief that they were unable to enter.

 

The Scriptures are written not to men only, but also for women, and so this word “brothers” is not intended to be for men only. A better word here is the word “brethren” which has to do with belonging to the same family, in this case, with the family of God. This is written to fellow believers in Jesus Christ, whether male or female. As those who belong to the family of God, none of us should have a wicked heart of unbelief that turns away from the living God. And Paul summed up “unbelief” as equivalent to disobedience.

 

For faith in Jesus Christ is not shown genuine by lip service only. Our faith is proven genuine by our obedience to our Lord and the fruit of that in our lives. So, if someone claims to be a follower of Jesus Christ, but that person is still living in sin, and not in obedience to our Lord’s commands, as a matter of life practice (habit), then according to the Scriptures that person is not of genuine faith in the Lord Jesus. And this is not saying that we must be absolutely perfect, but that willful sin must no longer be our habit (practice).

 

And so we, as the family of God, are to exhort (encourage, urge, compel) one another DAILY to not give way to sin’s deceitfulness, but to put sin to death in our lives, and to walk in obedience to the Lord and to his commands in daily living. And this is so that, hopefully, none of us may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin and then fall away from the faith. For we have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly to the end the assurance of faith we had at first, which is only promised via us dying to sin and obeying our Lord.

 

For who are the ones who have heard the Word of the Lord and have rebelled? They are all who continue in deliberate and habitual sin and who ignore and do not obey the commands of our Lord, as a matter of life practice. They know right from wrong. They know when what they are doing is evil, and that it is contrary to the laws of God, and yet they do them anyway, for that is what they desire in place of desiring after our Lord and his holiness and righteousness. And disobedience, in practice = unbelief.

 

[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]

 

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

 

Exhort One Another Daily

An Original Work / July 5, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

We are God's House If We..

Hebrews 3:5-11 BSB

 

5Now Moses was faithful as a servant in all God’s house, testifying to what would be spoken later. 6But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are His house, if we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope of which we boast.

 

7Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says:

“Today, if you hear His voice,

8do not harden your hearts,

as you did in the rebellion,

in the day of testing in the wilderness,

9where your fathers tested and tried Me,

and for forty years saw My works.

10Therefore I was angry with that generation,

and I said,

‘Their hearts are always going astray,

and they have not known My ways.’

11So I swore on oath in My anger,

‘They shall never enter My rest.’”

 

God’s House

 

“God’s house” is not a building built by human hands called “the church.” And if we should enter such a building, we are not entering “the house of the Lord.” God’s house is us, the people of God, who by faith in Jesus Christ have denied self, died with Christ to sin, and who are now, in the power of God, walking (in conduct, in practice) in obedience to our Lord and to his commands. We are those who have surrendered our lives to the Lord Jesus to follow him in his ways, and to cease from making sin our practice.

 

And Jesus Christ is to be the head of his church, his body, and not men. There are men who are to be chosen of God who serve the church, the body of Christ, in positions of pastor, elder, or deacon, to make certain that the church is operating as she ought, and to keep things in order. But Jesus is to be head and Lord over all. And they should be getting their instructions from the Lord and from the Scriptures on how to biblically conduct the gatherings of the church, taking all the New Testament Scriptures into account.

 

Now, we are not part of that house, the church, the body of Christ, on the basis of a profession of faith in Jesus Christ only. Yes, we must “hold firmly to our confidence and the hope of which we boast,” but this is not just about a verbal proclamation of faith in our Lord Jesus, which is apparent by the following Scriptures. This has to do with us actually living the Christian life and walk of faith in daily practice, by the Spirit, in obedience to our Lord, and to his commands, and us ceasing to make sin our practice (habit).

 

The Warnings

 

And so there is a warning here which we must take to heart and not ignore. If you hear the voice of God spoken through the Scriptures, or via someone who is speaking the truth of the Scriptures, do not ignore that voice. And do not harden your hearts and resist that voice and rebel against that voice. But check and make sure that what you are hearing is the truth of the Scriptures, as taught in the correct biblical context, but don’t just ignore what you are hearing because it goes against your preferred lifestyle.

 

Why? Because if we follow the example of the majority of the Israelites, who wandered in the wilderness for 40 years, so we crave evil things, as they did, and we end up committing sexual immorality, and engaging in drunken revelry, et al, and so we put Christ to the test, and we gripe and complain against God, and so we resist God and his commands, and we follow the ways of sin, instead, then we will get the same results. We will not have salvation from sin nor eternal life with God. We will not enter God’s rest.

 

[see 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13]

 

So, please take this seriously. For faith in Jesus Christ is not via lip service only. And God indeed requires that we deny self, die to sin daily, by the Spirit, and that we now walk (in conduct, in practice) in obedience to his commands in holy living if we want to be saved from our sins and to have eternal life with God. For God’s grace, which is bringing us salvation, is training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives from now to Jesus’ return, or life ends.

 

[Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]

 

Our Eyes on Jesus

 

Based off Hebrews 12:2-13

An Original Work / April 23, 2012

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

 

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus.

Our faith starts and grows in Him,

Who for the joy set before Him

Endured all our sin.

Scorning the shame of the cross,

He sat down beside God above.

He was willing to die for us,

To save us, in love.

 

Think about the opposition

He endured from sinful men,

So when you go through life’s trials,

You stay strong within.

Knowing all He went through for us

Helps us not grow weak of heart;

Not grow weary; don’t give up;

And not from Him depart.

 

In your struggle against sin’s ways,

Resist not to shed your blood.

Have you forgotten the words

God spoke to us in love?

“My child, don’t ignore it when

The Lord corrects you; do faint not,

Because the Lord disciplines those

That He loves, of God.”

 

God rebukes us all for our good;

Share with Him in holiness.

It produces a harvest of

God’s own righteousness.

Therefore, strengthen all within you

That is weak and might give way.

Stand firm in the faith God gives you;

Trust Him and obey.

 

https://vimeo.com/125489683

 

We are God’s House If We..

An Original Work / July 5, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

I Have Fought the Good Fight

2 Timothy 4:1-2 BSB

“I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of His appearing and His kingdom: 2Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and encourage with every form of patient instruction.”

This was the apostle Paul speaking to Timothy, man to man. But can this be applied to women, too? Yes! For we read in Acts 2 where Peter quoted the prophet Joel in stating that in the last days God’s sons and daughters, male and female, would prophesy (preach, proclaim the word of the Lord). And he was referring to the men and women who were prophesying together on that day to the people who were there. And Jesus sent women from the tomb to proclaim to his disciples (men) that Jesus had risen from the dead. And he, in essence, sent another woman to tell her townspeople about Jesus Christ.

So, women are not excluded from preaching (prophesying, proclaiming the word of God), even to men. But women are not to be in positions of pastor or elder, and they are not to be in authority over men, and they are not to usurp authority over men, and they are not to instruct men in a position of authority over men to where they can exercise discipline over men. But right now there is a definite shortage of biblically qualified men to serve as pastor and elder who are walking with the Lord in obedience to his commands and who are setting the example for how we all should be living to please God.

2 Timothy 4:3-4 BSB

“3For the time will come when men will not tolerate sound doctrine, but with itching ears they will gather around themselves teachers to suit their own desires. 4So they will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.”

This is where we are now. And part of the reason that we are there is that so many men who serve as pastors and elders of the gatherings of the church are themselves spiritually AWOL (absent without leave). They are not living morally pure lives in walks of obedience to the Lord and so they are diluting and altering the gospel message to make it more pleasing to human flesh and to the ungodly – to all who disobey God in practice, and who continue in deliberate and habitual sin, whether or not they profess faith in Jesus Christ. So many pastors are turning from the truth and are teaching the people lies.

2 Timothy 4:5-8 BSB

“5But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. 6For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8From now on there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but to all who crave His appearing.”

Now, I am not an advocate of women usurping authority over men. I am one who believes in submitting to those in authority unless those in authority are requiring that we lie, cheat, steal, manipulate and twist the Scriptures to make them less offensive and more acceptable to human flesh. Obeying God always comes before obeying men, and we never have to submit to sinning against God. But I am a woman of God who is very aware of the spiritual environment in probably the majority of the gatherings of “the church” in my nation, and of how the majority of the men are not living morally pure lives.

And then I am reminded of the story of the woman who wet Jesus’ feet with her tears, and wiped them with her hair, and who kissed his feet and anointed them with perfume who was then looked down upon and criticized by a Pharisee. Jesus addressed the man and he let the man know that the things that he should have done for Jesus, but did not do, the woman who he wanted to cast out did those things for Jesus. And so he chastised the man and he honored the woman because she did for Jesus what the man should have done but did not do, even when she was criticized for doing it.

Now we live in a time in our world and in my nation when we need more people preaching the truth of God’s Word, of the Gospel of our salvation to the people. And in the last days God’s daughters will prophesy (preach, proclaim the word of the Lord). But us women are being forced to go to the internet because we will not be given a voice within most of the gatherings of “the church.” But we need people preaching the truth to the people in our churches, even if they are female, as long as they are not in positions of authority over men, but as given permission to speak by those in authority.

I am a woman of God, largely rejected by men, who God sent to the internet 22 years ago to share with the people what God was teaching me each day from my times spent with him in his word. He gave me a voice on the internet where I had no voice in the gatherings of “the church.” And here I have had the freedom to preach (to proclaim the word of the Lord) to whoever will listen (male or female). And by the grace of God, even against much opposition, at times, I have fought the good fight, and I am continuing the race, and I have kept the faith. May God be glorified through his servant!

[Matthew 5:13-16; Matthew 7:21-23; Matthew 28:18-20; Luke 9:23-26; John 4:31-38; John 10:27-30; John 13:13-17; John 14:12; Acts 1:8; Acts 26:18; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 10:14-15; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-14; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Peter 2:9,21,24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10]

Should I Not Preach Jesus 

Based off 1 Corinthians 9:16-10:13

An Original Work / July 4, 2013

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Woe to me should I not preach Jesus.

I’m compelled to preach the full gospel.

I make myself a slave to ev’ryone

To win their hearts to Christ.

All this I do for my Lord Jesus,

And for the sake of His Name;

Do it for the sake of His gospel,

So that I, its blessings gain.

Scripture notates the sins of others;

Written down for us as examples

To keep us from setting our hearts 

On evil as did those of old.

Do not worship other gods of man;

Do not give your hearts to them;

Not partake in immorality.

Do not test your Lord and King.

So, be careful if you think you are

Standing firm in your faith in Jesus.

God has given his word to warn us, 

So through faith we will not fall.

No temptation has o’ertaken you

Except what is commonplace.

God is faithful to not let you be

Tempted past what you can bear.

He gives the way of escape. 

https://vimeo.com/116057811

I Have Fought the Good Fight

An Original Work / July 4, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

The USA

In 1776 my home became a nation.

Today they celebrate with many jubilations.

For many this seems good, believe what they were given;

Believe their forefathers are living now in heaven.

From early on in life we’re taught to vow to nation

Our all undying love, our loyalty, devotion.

We’re told we are one nation, it’s God who we do serve,

There is no separation. From truth, that is a swerve.

We’re taught that we were founded on Christian principles,

That God did bless our nation; in Him we were unfurled.

And then down through the ages the truth did now unfold,

Not everything they told us was true, so oh, how bold!

The more we did the research, the more that we did see

That so much that they taught us were lies that they did feed.

They’re not the greatest nation with much humanity,

But they’re the world’s worst terrorists from many want to flee.

It’s written in the symbols, not Christian as they said,

For many who interpret know we were falsely led.

Our nation was not founded on Christian principles,

But on syncretism, with religions they were merged.

The plan from the beginning, The Harlot they would be,

Conquering all the nations, combined they meant to be.

It’s all in preparation, the ruling of the Beast,

With many tribulations unfolding is the feast.

So, do not worship nations and rulers of the earth,

For they are bound to fail you, make you feel like a jerk,

For you believed their stories, them you did celebrate,

But you can change your story, it never is too late.

An Original Work / July 4, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Terrible Times Have Come

2 Timothy 3:1-5 BSB

 

“1But understand this: In the last days terrible times will come. 2For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3unloving, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, without love of good, 4traitorous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5having a form of godliness but denying its power. Turn away from such as these!”

 

Media Influence in Human Lives

 

We are definitely living in the last days! I live in the USA, and I see this in my nation in abundance! Although the internet definitely has some good uses and purposes, which I am very grateful for, it also has opened the door wide to every form of evil imaginable, I believe. And so much of this is being daily fed into people’s hearts and minds. And the young and the vulnerable are especially susceptible to believing the lies and to rejecting the truth, because the lies often make them feel good, which the truth may not.

 

Radio first, then television, then computers, then the internet, and then smart phones (also the internet) can be and are being used as means of mind control, mind manipulation, propaganda, and influence in people’s hearts and minds, also influencing their attitudes, values, and behaviors. For as the saying goes, “garbage in, garbage out.” What gets stored up in our minds and hearts can and will come out in our attitudes and behaviors. But the media does have some plusses, such as what I am able to write now.

 

So, the media (radio, television, and the internet) can be a good thing, or it can be a bad thing depending upon what we do with it, and how we use it, and whether or not we are mature and sensible and godly people who are able to discern what we should not be viewing and what is safe for us to view. Children should not be handed computers, tablets, and smart phones and then not be supervised, for they lack the maturity to make the right kinds of decisions. And honestly, it appears that applies to many adults.

 

What’s Permeating the Church

 

And I know you may think that I rail on this subject, but pornography use has skyrocketed via the internet and smart phones. And this is permeating the church and the lives of people who profess faith in Jesus Christ, including probably half the pastors (or greater than half), according to recent statistics. And this is destroying people’s lives and their marriages and their families, and the church at large. So many are now embracing this sin, and few seem to be willing to do what needs to be done to put it to death.

 

And this doesn’t just impact the person doing the sinning, but it affects all who are impacted by the sinners, via their sins, one way or another. For those who are addicted to sin and to disobeying God will also be those who lie and who cheat and who hate and abuse those they are supposed to love. And the sin will completely distort the meaning of the word “love,” and it will damage the minds and hearts of those addicted to the sin. And they will easily accept the lies of Satan and reject the truth, to justify their actions.

 

And “love” is not just feelings and emotions. Love is action. And God is love. And “love” means to prefer what God prefers, which is all that is holy, righteous, godly, morally pure, upright, honest, faithful, and obedient to our Lord and to his commands. And love does no harm to its neighbor. So it isn’t love for God or for anyone else if how you treat them comes from a heart set on sin and selfish desire and the lusts of the flesh. For viewing porn is adultery, and it is traitorous, conceited, and thinking only of self. It is hate.

 

[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]

 

Wake Up! 

 

Based off Ephesians 5:1-21; Revelation 3:1-6

An Original Work / November 25, 2011

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

 

Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead.

Your God awaits you to do what

He says to you.

Be not conformed to your selfish will.

Trust in the Lord. Do what He says.

He will give you victory.

Do not walk in darkness;

Come into the light of love.

 

Listen to your Savior calling

You to obey all His teachings.

Repent of your sin, and

Christ will shine His love on you.

He waits patiently for you to

Heed His whispers to your heart.

Will you hasten to obey Him;

Not from Him depart?

 

Live your life from this day forward,

Walking in His love and mercy.

Let Him cleanse you of all your sins.

Dwell with Him today.

Do not insult God’s grace to you.

Do not make light of your sin.

Let the light of His truth come

And free you from within.

 

https://vimeo.com/125863007

 

Terrible Times Have Come

An Original Work / July 4, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

If We, Then We

2 Timothy 2:11-13 BSB

 

“11This is a trustworthy saying:

If we died with Him,

we will also live with Him;

12if we endure,

we will also reign with Him;

if we deny Him,

He will also deny us;

13if we are faithless,

He remains faithful,

for He cannot deny Himself.”

 

The Gospel of our salvation is not a free ride to heaven based off lip service only. Once Saved Always Saved is NOT a biblical doctrine of salvation, but a creation of human origin to appease human flesh. There are conditional “if” statements all throughout the New Testament Scriptures with regard to our salvation from sin and our eternal life with God, and we need to know them and to take them seriously, for where we will spend eternity depends on us knowing and obeying the truth and not the lies which are being spread.

 

If We Died With Him (2 Timothy 2:11)

 

“If we died with Him, we will also live with Him.”

 

When Jesus Christ was put to death on that cross it was to put our sins to death with him. And when he rose from the grave, it was in victory over sin, death, hell, and Satan. And all this was on our behalf in order that, by biblical faith in Jesus, we will now deny self, die to sin daily, and follow our Lord in walks of obedience to his commands, in surrender to his will, and no longer as slaves to sin. He does not demand absolute perfection, but he does demand that now death to sin and obedience to God be what we practice.

 

[Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 9:23-26; Acts 26:18; Romans 6:1-23; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 4:17-32; Titus 2:11-14; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6]

 

If We Endure (2 Timothy 2:12)

 

“If we endure, we will also reign with Him.”

 

And to endure is to persevere in, to remain in, and to abide in Christ. And to abide is to comply with, obey, follow, conform to, uphold, and to continue with Christ in his teachings, to put them into practice in our daily lives. For our salvation from sin is not a one time deal and now we are good to go for eternity. Our salvation is progressive. We are saved (past). We are being saved (present active). And we will be saved (future) when Jesus returns, but provided that we continue in him in walks of obedience to his commands and that we do not deny him and return to living in sin in rejection of him.

 

[Matthew 24:9-14; Romans 8:24; Romans 13:11; 1 Corinthians 1:18; 1 Corinthians 15:1-2; 2 Timothy 1:8-9; Hebrews 9:28; 1 Peter 1:5,9]

 

If We Deny Him (2 Timothy 2:12)

 

“If we deny Him, He will also deny us.”

 

So what does it mean to deny Christ? It means to refuse him, to reject him, to contradict him, and to disallow him, which is what we do if we choose our sins over obedience to our Lord. If sin is still what we practice (by habit) and not obedience to our Lord and to his commands, then according to the Scriptures, we do not know Christ, we are not in fellowship with Christ, and we do not have salvation from sin nor eternal life with God. For Jesus taught that to come to him we must deny self, die to sin, and obey his commands.

 

[Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 9:23-26; Acts 26:18; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; 1 Peter 2:24]

 

If We Are Faithless (2 Timothy 2:13)

 

“If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.”

 

Please pay careful attention to what this says, and then compare it to the teachings in 2 Timothy 2:11-12. For many people are teaching this out of context, and they are teaching the faithless (i.e. those who are still living in deliberate and habitual sin against God, and not in walks of obedience to his commands), that even if they are faithless, that God will remain faithful to them to secure them salvation from sin and to give them eternal life with God. But that is antibiblical! And it contradicts the three previous statements in the previous verses. So context is critical to correct biblical interpretation.

 

So read the whole passage! If we die with him to sin, we will live with him. If we endure with him, we will reign with him. But if we deny him, by how we live, he will deny us and we will not have salvation from sin, and we will not have eternal life with God, because God remains faithful to his promises, which includes his warnings. God does not change if we change. What he said he will do, he will do, which includes denying us entry into eternal life with him because we refused to obey him and we obeyed sin, instead.

 

[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]

 

Keep On! 

 

An Original Work / December 15, 2011

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

 

Praise the Lord! Praise Him now!

Before Him humbly bow.

Repent of your sins now.

Turn to Him; obey now.

Walk in fellowship with Him daily,

And abide in His truth.

He will forgive you,

And He’ll cleanse you,

And He’ll give you new life.

 

Trust in Him. He is truth.

He will not forsake you.

Rest in Him. Let Him lead.

He will meet all your needs.

Obey His ev’ry word to you,

And listen to all He says.

He will be faithful

In all His promises,

So rest in Him.

 

Do not bow – gods of men.

Let Christ rule in your hearts.

Do not stop – share your faith.

Keep on: speak Jesus’ name.

Share His truth with all He leads you to

Be a witness for Him.

Never yield to sin

Against your God.

Obey Him in ev’ry way.

 

https://vimeo.com/125862760

 

If We, Then We

An Original Work / July 4, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

The Affairs of This Life

2 Timothy 2:3-7 BSB

 

“3Join me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4A soldier refrains from entangling himself in civilian affairs, in order to please the one who enlisted him. 5Likewise, a competitor does not receive the crown unless he competes according to the rules. 6The hardworking farmer should be the first to partake of the crops. 7Consider what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all things.”

 

What does it look like if we suffer like good soldiers of Christ Jesus? It means that we are following our commanding officer, for one, and because we are following his instructions to us, we are also actively engaged in spiritual warfare. For the devil does not want us obeying our Lord and living holy lives, pleasing to God. And he especially does not want us teaching the truth of the gospel of Christ and calling sinners to repentance and to obedience to our Lord. So he will use all means possible at his hands to try to destroy us.

 

Affairs of This Life

 

And what are these “civilian affairs,” i.e. “the affairs of this life”? The word “affairs” also means “transaction, or negotiation.” And “of this life” means of this world, so this would be about worldly pursuits and transactions and negotiations. And worldly is opposite of godly. And a negotiation can be a compromise, which can be a spiritual compromise, i.e. a concession with regard to God’s commands and his moral values. And “affairs” also carries with it the meaning of an adulterous relationship outside of marriage.

 

Now, an adulterous affair is not necessarily the intended context here, but it is also not out of context. For if we are good soldiers of Christ we will refrain from entangling ourselves in what is worldly and immoral and that which compromises the truth of the gospel in order to appease human flesh. We will not live in addiction to sin, making sin our practice, while making excuses for why we are not living righteously, in obedience to the Lord, obeying our commanding officer, and living to please him in all we do.

 

But sadly, and I just read some recent statistics on this subject, it appears that around 80% of Christian men, and about 40% of Christian women are engaged in pornography. And I think it was 50% or greater, the number of pastors who also engage in pornography. But it isn’t just that they all engage in the viewing of porn on a somewhat habitual or consistent basis, but this has been accepted among many pastors and church fellowships as the norm, it would appear, from what I just read, and which I have also observed.

 

God’s Call To Righteousness

 

And so what took place in the church in Corinth has multiplied beyond counting, it is now so enormous (see 1 Corinthians 5). And not many are doing anything to stop it, either. For so many are living that way themselves and it is becoming socially acceptable within the gatherings of “the church.” So many are claiming Jesus as Lord and Savior and heaven as their eternal destiny while they deliberately and habitually are engaged in what they know is sinful, immoral, hateful, selfish, and against God’s commands.

 

Even though they know that what they are doing is sinful, and is against God, yet they continue in addictive sin, in what is corrupt, vile, wicked, immoral, dishonest, and hateful towards those they are sinning against. But many who engage in this put on a show of righteousness on the outside, just like the Pharisees, and they pretend all goodness while secretly they are still living in sin. For their lives are not surrendered to the Lord. They are still operating in the flesh and so they lie and they cheat as a matter of practice.

 

According to The Rules

 

But genuine soldiers of Christ refrain from entangling themselves in the affairs of this life in order to please our commanding officer, the Lord Jesus Christ, the second person of our triune God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. But all this is of God, and is done in the power of God, and not by human flesh. We can only be those who follow the rules (God’s commands) because of God’s grace in delivering us out of bondage to sin. And God empowers us to live holy lives pleasing to him, not perfect, but obedient in practice.

 

So please pay close attention to what this is teaching us here. If we live by the flesh, and so we engage in the sinful desires of the flesh, in habitual and deliberate defiance of God’s commands which say we must live holy lives, pleasing to God, and that we must put sin to death in our lives, and then we put on a show of righteousness to hide what we are doing in secret, we do not have salvation from sin nor eternal life with God. And we will not receive that long awaited crown if we do not live by the rules, by God’s commands.

 

[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]

 

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

 

The Affairs of This Life

An Original Work / July 3, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love