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I’m sharing this here with you from my time of personal devotions with my Lord Jesus Christ, for your encouragement. Sue Love
Isaiah 59:1-3 ESV
In the New Testament we read that not all who are Abraham’s physical descendants are true Israel but only those who have trusted in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of their lives. And Jesus said that not everyone saying to him, “Lord, Lord,” will enter into the kingdom of heaven, but only the one doing the will of God the Father who is in heaven. So, just because someone professes faith in Jesus Christ it does not make him or her true Israel.
Thus, if someone professes faith in Jesus Christ and then continues in deliberate and habitual sin over the course of his life, it is not as though God has failed. He didn’t fail. And it isn’t as though the person professing faith in Jesus Christ didn’t know, either. He knew that his sins were wrong. He knew he was disobeying God and that he was defying the Lord. He was not acting in ignorance but in direct defiance and disobedience to God.
The Lord was there ready to save and to listen to the sinner’s prayer of confession and repentance, but the sinner chose, instead, to continue in his sin and in his wandering and in going from this sin to the next to the next. And so his sins separated him from God, and if that is where he still is, his sins are still separating him from God so that God does not hear his prayers and so that God does not save, for true repentance is not evident.
And when people live in deliberate and habitual sin they often cover up those sins with lies, sometimes in advance of the sin, and sometimes after the fact. And those lies can include preconceived stories to tell to try to lead another in a different direction in order to remove all suspicion of evil, or making up stories of what was actually taking place during the course of the sin being acted out. Or they can be lies which are intended to lead others to believe that the habitual sinner is now free from his addiction to sin.
[Gal 3:16, 26-29; Rom 9:4-8; Gal 4:22-31; Eph 2:14-18; 1 Jn 2:22; Matt 7:21-23; Gal 5:16-21; Eph 5:3-6; 1 Co 6:9-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10]
Isaiah 59:7-8 ESV
Wow! Such a perfect description of someone living in deliberate and habitual and premeditated sin against God and against their fellow humans. And this includes many people professing faith in Jesus Christ, too. And, again, they are not acting in ignorance. They choose to sin. They plot out the sin in advance, and they even cover up the sin with lies upon lies. And many of them have no conscience about their sins or who they hurt, either.
These are people who are lovers of intoxication to sin. They are the self-indulgent. They are the ones driving the course of their lives with full determination to do as they please and to deliberately choose to reject God and his commands. And they deliberately choose to hurt others in the process without remorse or compassion. For they choose to chase after the adulteress and to live in her house, figuratively speaking.
These are people who are long on sin and wickedness. They choose to remain in the darkness and to cover it up by faking Christianity. Even though they know the truth, and some of them are even those who teach the Scriptures, they follow the lies, instead, but not in ignorance but with eyes wide open going full speed ahead into what they know is evil. So they end up talking the walk while they are not themselves walking the walk.
Isaiah 59:12-13 ESV
Some of them will confess their sins. They will admit wrongdoing, but then they will go right back into the sin deliberately and habitually. For, you see, it is not enough to admit that you are a sinner. It is not enough to even confess specific sins which you have committed. When in 1 John it says that if you confess your sins that God is faithful to forgive you your sins, this isn’t talking about a mere verbal acknowledgment that you have sinned.
For, a few verses before that it says that if we say that we are in fellowship with God but we walk (in conduct, in practice) in the darkness (sin), that we are liars who do not live by the truth. And then it says that if we walk in the light (in Christ, in truth, in righteousness) as God is in the light that we have fellowship with one another (because we are in fellowship with God) and the blood of Christ cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:5-9).
And then we have multiple scriptures (some noted in the section above) which detail for us what it means to walk in the light and what it means if we are walking in the darkness, and they let us know that we are all going to reap what we sow in this life. If we sow to please the flesh, from the flesh we will reap destruction. But if we sow to please the Spirit, from the Spirit we will reap eternal life. So, please take these to heart.
[Lu 9:23-26; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 1:28-32; Rom 2:6-8; 1 Co 6:9-10; 2 Co 5:10; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-11; Rom 6:16; Rom 8:3-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 10:26-31; 1 Pet 1:17-21; Jn 15:1-11; Rev. 2-3; Rev 18:1-6; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15; Matt 7:21-23]
Isaiah 59:20-21 ESV
But here is the Good News! Jesus Christ came to earth and he died on that cross in order that we might die with him to sin and live to him and to his righteousness. He came into this world to turn us from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God that we might receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those sanctified by faith in Jesus Christ (1 Pet 2:24; Acts 26:18; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; Tit 2:11-14).
And turning from our sins is not just mouthing words of confession of sin. It is like making a spiritual U-turn. We were walking in sin (one direction) and now we turn and we walk in the opposite direction (in the way of righteousness and holiness). We now walk (in conduct, in practice) no longer according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. We now walk in righteousness and holiness and no longer in deliberate and habitual sin.
Now our lives are committed to Christ to following him in his ways and in his truth. Now our lives are dedicated to him and to his service and not to living to please our sinful flesh. Now we speak truthfully in integrity and not in lies and deception. And now we spread the truth of the gospel and not the lies that so many are spreading today which give permission for the “believer” in Jesus to continue living in sin.
For Our Nation
An Original Work / September 11, 2012
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.
Isaiah 59:1-3 ESV
“Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save,
or his ear dull, that it cannot hear;
but your iniquities have made a separation
between you and your God,
and your sins have hidden his face from you
so that he does not hear.
For your hands are defiled with blood
and your fingers with iniquity;
your lips have spoken lies;
your tongue mutters wickedness.”
or his ear dull, that it cannot hear;
but your iniquities have made a separation
between you and your God,
and your sins have hidden his face from you
so that he does not hear.
For your hands are defiled with blood
and your fingers with iniquity;
your lips have spoken lies;
your tongue mutters wickedness.”
In the New Testament we read that not all who are Abraham’s physical descendants are true Israel but only those who have trusted in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of their lives. And Jesus said that not everyone saying to him, “Lord, Lord,” will enter into the kingdom of heaven, but only the one doing the will of God the Father who is in heaven. So, just because someone professes faith in Jesus Christ it does not make him or her true Israel.
Thus, if someone professes faith in Jesus Christ and then continues in deliberate and habitual sin over the course of his life, it is not as though God has failed. He didn’t fail. And it isn’t as though the person professing faith in Jesus Christ didn’t know, either. He knew that his sins were wrong. He knew he was disobeying God and that he was defying the Lord. He was not acting in ignorance but in direct defiance and disobedience to God.
The Lord was there ready to save and to listen to the sinner’s prayer of confession and repentance, but the sinner chose, instead, to continue in his sin and in his wandering and in going from this sin to the next to the next. And so his sins separated him from God, and if that is where he still is, his sins are still separating him from God so that God does not hear his prayers and so that God does not save, for true repentance is not evident.
And when people live in deliberate and habitual sin they often cover up those sins with lies, sometimes in advance of the sin, and sometimes after the fact. And those lies can include preconceived stories to tell to try to lead another in a different direction in order to remove all suspicion of evil, or making up stories of what was actually taking place during the course of the sin being acted out. Or they can be lies which are intended to lead others to believe that the habitual sinner is now free from his addiction to sin.
[Gal 3:16, 26-29; Rom 9:4-8; Gal 4:22-31; Eph 2:14-18; 1 Jn 2:22; Matt 7:21-23; Gal 5:16-21; Eph 5:3-6; 1 Co 6:9-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10]
Isaiah 59:7-8 ESV
“Their feet run to evil,
and they are swift to shed innocent blood;
their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity;
desolation and destruction are in their highways.
The way of peace they do not know,
and there is no justice in their paths;
they have made their roads crooked;
no one who treads on them knows peace.”
and they are swift to shed innocent blood;
their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity;
desolation and destruction are in their highways.
The way of peace they do not know,
and there is no justice in their paths;
they have made their roads crooked;
no one who treads on them knows peace.”
Wow! Such a perfect description of someone living in deliberate and habitual and premeditated sin against God and against their fellow humans. And this includes many people professing faith in Jesus Christ, too. And, again, they are not acting in ignorance. They choose to sin. They plot out the sin in advance, and they even cover up the sin with lies upon lies. And many of them have no conscience about their sins or who they hurt, either.
These are people who are lovers of intoxication to sin. They are the self-indulgent. They are the ones driving the course of their lives with full determination to do as they please and to deliberately choose to reject God and his commands. And they deliberately choose to hurt others in the process without remorse or compassion. For they choose to chase after the adulteress and to live in her house, figuratively speaking.
These are people who are long on sin and wickedness. They choose to remain in the darkness and to cover it up by faking Christianity. Even though they know the truth, and some of them are even those who teach the Scriptures, they follow the lies, instead, but not in ignorance but with eyes wide open going full speed ahead into what they know is evil. So they end up talking the walk while they are not themselves walking the walk.
Isaiah 59:12-13 ESV
“For our transgressions are multiplied before you,
and our sins testify against us;
for our transgressions are with us,
and we know our iniquities:
transgressing, and denying the Lord,
and turning back from following our God,
speaking oppression and revolt,
conceiving and uttering from the heart lying words.”
and our sins testify against us;
for our transgressions are with us,
and we know our iniquities:
transgressing, and denying the Lord,
and turning back from following our God,
speaking oppression and revolt,
conceiving and uttering from the heart lying words.”
Some of them will confess their sins. They will admit wrongdoing, but then they will go right back into the sin deliberately and habitually. For, you see, it is not enough to admit that you are a sinner. It is not enough to even confess specific sins which you have committed. When in 1 John it says that if you confess your sins that God is faithful to forgive you your sins, this isn’t talking about a mere verbal acknowledgment that you have sinned.
For, a few verses before that it says that if we say that we are in fellowship with God but we walk (in conduct, in practice) in the darkness (sin), that we are liars who do not live by the truth. And then it says that if we walk in the light (in Christ, in truth, in righteousness) as God is in the light that we have fellowship with one another (because we are in fellowship with God) and the blood of Christ cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:5-9).
And then we have multiple scriptures (some noted in the section above) which detail for us what it means to walk in the light and what it means if we are walking in the darkness, and they let us know that we are all going to reap what we sow in this life. If we sow to please the flesh, from the flesh we will reap destruction. But if we sow to please the Spirit, from the Spirit we will reap eternal life. So, please take these to heart.
[Lu 9:23-26; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 1:28-32; Rom 2:6-8; 1 Co 6:9-10; 2 Co 5:10; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-11; Rom 6:16; Rom 8:3-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 10:26-31; 1 Pet 1:17-21; Jn 15:1-11; Rev. 2-3; Rev 18:1-6; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15; Matt 7:21-23]
Isaiah 59:20-21 ESV
“And a Redeemer will come to Zion,
to those in Jacob who turn from transgression,” declares the Lord.
“And as for me, this is my covenant with them,” says the Lord: “My Spirit that is upon you, and my words that I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, or out of the mouth of your offspring, or out of the mouth of your children's offspring,” says the Lord, “from this time forth and forevermore.”
to those in Jacob who turn from transgression,” declares the Lord.
“And as for me, this is my covenant with them,” says the Lord: “My Spirit that is upon you, and my words that I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, or out of the mouth of your offspring, or out of the mouth of your children's offspring,” says the Lord, “from this time forth and forevermore.”
But here is the Good News! Jesus Christ came to earth and he died on that cross in order that we might die with him to sin and live to him and to his righteousness. He came into this world to turn us from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God that we might receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those sanctified by faith in Jesus Christ (1 Pet 2:24; Acts 26:18; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; Tit 2:11-14).
And turning from our sins is not just mouthing words of confession of sin. It is like making a spiritual U-turn. We were walking in sin (one direction) and now we turn and we walk in the opposite direction (in the way of righteousness and holiness). We now walk (in conduct, in practice) no longer according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. We now walk in righteousness and holiness and no longer in deliberate and habitual sin.
Now our lives are committed to Christ to following him in his ways and in his truth. Now our lives are dedicated to him and to his service and not to living to please our sinful flesh. Now we speak truthfully in integrity and not in lies and deception. And now we spread the truth of the gospel and not the lies that so many are spreading today which give permission for the “believer” in Jesus to continue living in sin.
For Our Nation
An Original Work / September 11, 2012
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.
