I am reading in Ephesians 5:15-20.
In the previous verses we read about all the things that we are to put out of our lives, as followers of Jesus Christ, i.e. anything which God regards as sinful. And we read that anyone who makes a practice of sinning, and not of obedience to God, will have no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. And then it goes on to warn us against being deceived by clever enchanters who convince professers of faith in Jesus Christ that they can continue in their sins and in disobedience to God and still have eternal life with God.
It then goes on to warn us that the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. And they are all those who disobey God, in practice, whether or not they have made professions of faith in Jesus Christ. So we are not to be partakers with them. We are not to participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness (evil, wickedness, sin), but instead we are to expose them. And we are now to walk (in conduct, in practice) as children of light in all goodness, righteousness, and truth, learning to do what is pleasing to the Lord. So…
We absolutely live in very evil times. I live in the USA, and it is getting crazier and crazier by the day. So many lies! So much deception! So much fakery nearly everywhere you look. Evil is being called good, and good is being called evil, and evil people are being raised up and worshipped as though they are next to God, while many truly godly people are being mocked, rejected, persecuted and falsely accused of teaching lies. But much of what is being called lies or conspiracy theories, is or might be the truth.
But we are not to be putting our trust and our hope in human flesh and in kings and kingdoms, and pastors of “churches,” and newscasters, and the like. So many of them are lying to us, and they are convincing many people to believe and to follow after their lies and to reject the truth. Instead we are to be putting our hope and trust in God and in God alone, and we are to be seekers of truth and righteousness who study the Scriptures for ourselves under the direction of the Holy Spirit, for too many people are teaching lies.
And we need to be guarded against the lies and against getting caught up in the deceptions, and we need to pray to God for wisdom and discernment to separate the lies from the truth, so that we will truly understand what the will of the Lord is. And then, by the grace of God, and in his power, we need to be living out the will of God for our lives in how we conduct ourselves day in and day out. And we should be walking in obedience to our Lord and to his commands and no longer as slaves (addicts) to sinful practices.
And getting drunk with wine doesn’t have to be solely about wine, but it is about being out of control with something other than God having control over our lives. So people can be drunk on pride, envy, hate, immorality, sexual deviance, murder, lies, power, prestige, popularity, drugs, and/or alcohol, for it all has to do with letting the flesh and other things overtake us and to take control of our minds and our behaviors. But, if we believe in Jesus, he is to be the one in control over our lives and over what we do.
Instead we are to be filled with the Spirit of God, which should have taken place when we believed in Jesus, if our faith was biblical faith. But this is something that is to be ongoing and continuous the more that we deny self and take up our cross daily (die daily to sin and suffer for the sake of righteousness), and we follow our Lord in obedience to his commands. Then, as led by the Spirit, we are to be speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with our hearts to the Lord.
But when it says here that we are to be speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, this is not about attending a “worship service” where one person leading the music picks out all the songs and then we just sing their songs of praise to God. This is me sharing with you a song the Lord has given me to share with you for your spiritual encouragement, and you sharing a song with me that the Lord gives you to share for my spiritual encouragement in the Lord, and for my instruction in godly and holy living.
And our gatherings are not to be about all of us just sitting in rows as spectators during a “worship service” with our only participation as singing along with the songs chosen by one person, followed by us listening to the same preacher preach week after week with no one to question whether or not what he is teaching is what the Bible actually teaches. Our gatherings are supposed to be for mutual encouragement and exhortation so that we can help one another to grow to maturity in our walks of obedience to God.
And we should all be testing what we are hearing, even testing the lyrics to the “worship songs,” to make certain that they are in agreement with God’s word and that what we are being fed are not the lies of the enemy.
[Matthew 5:13-16; Matthew 28:18-20; John 4:31-38; John 13:13-17; John 14:12; Acts 1:8; Acts 2:14-18,42-47; Acts 26:18; Romans 10:14-15; Romans 12:1-8; 1 Corinthians 12:1-31; 1 Corinthians 14:1-5; Galatians 6:1; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:1-32; Ephesians 5:11-21; Ephesians 6:10-20; Philippians 2:1-8; Colossians 3:12-16; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:13; Hebrews 10:23-25; James 5:19-20; 1 Peter 2:9,21; 1 John 2:6]
My Sheep
Based off John 10:1-30 NIV
An Original Work / June 24, 2012
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
My sheep hear me. They know me.
They listen to my voice and obey.
I call them and lead them.
They know my voice, so they follow me.
They will never follow strangers.
They will run away from them.
The voice of a stranger they know not;
They do not follow him.
So, I tell you the truth that
I am the gate, so you enter in.
Whoever does enter
Will find forgiveness and will be saved.
Nonetheless whoever enters
Not by the gate; other way,
He is the thief and a robber.
Listen not, the sheep to him.
Oh, I am the Good Shepherd,
Who laid his own life down for the sheep.
I know them. They know me.
They will live with me eternally.
The thief only comes to steal and
Kill and to destroy the church.
I have come to give you life that
You may have it to the full…
They know my voice, so they follow me.
Be Careful How You Walk
An Original Work / October 25, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
In the previous verses we read about all the things that we are to put out of our lives, as followers of Jesus Christ, i.e. anything which God regards as sinful. And we read that anyone who makes a practice of sinning, and not of obedience to God, will have no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. And then it goes on to warn us against being deceived by clever enchanters who convince professers of faith in Jesus Christ that they can continue in their sins and in disobedience to God and still have eternal life with God.
It then goes on to warn us that the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. And they are all those who disobey God, in practice, whether or not they have made professions of faith in Jesus Christ. So we are not to be partakers with them. We are not to participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness (evil, wickedness, sin), but instead we are to expose them. And we are now to walk (in conduct, in practice) as children of light in all goodness, righteousness, and truth, learning to do what is pleasing to the Lord. So…
“Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father.” (Ephesians 5:15-20 NASB1995)
We absolutely live in very evil times. I live in the USA, and it is getting crazier and crazier by the day. So many lies! So much deception! So much fakery nearly everywhere you look. Evil is being called good, and good is being called evil, and evil people are being raised up and worshipped as though they are next to God, while many truly godly people are being mocked, rejected, persecuted and falsely accused of teaching lies. But much of what is being called lies or conspiracy theories, is or might be the truth.
But we are not to be putting our trust and our hope in human flesh and in kings and kingdoms, and pastors of “churches,” and newscasters, and the like. So many of them are lying to us, and they are convincing many people to believe and to follow after their lies and to reject the truth. Instead we are to be putting our hope and trust in God and in God alone, and we are to be seekers of truth and righteousness who study the Scriptures for ourselves under the direction of the Holy Spirit, for too many people are teaching lies.
And we need to be guarded against the lies and against getting caught up in the deceptions, and we need to pray to God for wisdom and discernment to separate the lies from the truth, so that we will truly understand what the will of the Lord is. And then, by the grace of God, and in his power, we need to be living out the will of God for our lives in how we conduct ourselves day in and day out. And we should be walking in obedience to our Lord and to his commands and no longer as slaves (addicts) to sinful practices.
And getting drunk with wine doesn’t have to be solely about wine, but it is about being out of control with something other than God having control over our lives. So people can be drunk on pride, envy, hate, immorality, sexual deviance, murder, lies, power, prestige, popularity, drugs, and/or alcohol, for it all has to do with letting the flesh and other things overtake us and to take control of our minds and our behaviors. But, if we believe in Jesus, he is to be the one in control over our lives and over what we do.
Instead we are to be filled with the Spirit of God, which should have taken place when we believed in Jesus, if our faith was biblical faith. But this is something that is to be ongoing and continuous the more that we deny self and take up our cross daily (die daily to sin and suffer for the sake of righteousness), and we follow our Lord in obedience to his commands. Then, as led by the Spirit, we are to be speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with our hearts to the Lord.
But when it says here that we are to be speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, this is not about attending a “worship service” where one person leading the music picks out all the songs and then we just sing their songs of praise to God. This is me sharing with you a song the Lord has given me to share with you for your spiritual encouragement, and you sharing a song with me that the Lord gives you to share for my spiritual encouragement in the Lord, and for my instruction in godly and holy living.
And our gatherings are not to be about all of us just sitting in rows as spectators during a “worship service” with our only participation as singing along with the songs chosen by one person, followed by us listening to the same preacher preach week after week with no one to question whether or not what he is teaching is what the Bible actually teaches. Our gatherings are supposed to be for mutual encouragement and exhortation so that we can help one another to grow to maturity in our walks of obedience to God.
And we should all be testing what we are hearing, even testing the lyrics to the “worship songs,” to make certain that they are in agreement with God’s word and that what we are being fed are not the lies of the enemy.
[Matthew 5:13-16; Matthew 28:18-20; John 4:31-38; John 13:13-17; John 14:12; Acts 1:8; Acts 2:14-18,42-47; Acts 26:18; Romans 10:14-15; Romans 12:1-8; 1 Corinthians 12:1-31; 1 Corinthians 14:1-5; Galatians 6:1; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:1-32; Ephesians 5:11-21; Ephesians 6:10-20; Philippians 2:1-8; Colossians 3:12-16; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:13; Hebrews 10:23-25; James 5:19-20; 1 Peter 2:9,21; 1 John 2:6]
My Sheep
Based off John 10:1-30 NIV
An Original Work / June 24, 2012
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
My sheep hear me. They know me.
They listen to my voice and obey.
I call them and lead them.
They know my voice, so they follow me.
They will never follow strangers.
They will run away from them.
The voice of a stranger they know not;
They do not follow him.
So, I tell you the truth that
I am the gate, so you enter in.
Whoever does enter
Will find forgiveness and will be saved.
Nonetheless whoever enters
Not by the gate; other way,
He is the thief and a robber.
Listen not, the sheep to him.
Oh, I am the Good Shepherd,
Who laid his own life down for the sheep.
I know them. They know me.
They will live with me eternally.
The thief only comes to steal and
Kill and to destroy the church.
I have come to give you life that
You may have it to the full…
They know my voice, so they follow me.
Be Careful How You Walk
An Original Work / October 25, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love