God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world

The Overwhelming Importance of Believers Knowing, Understanding and Appreciating God’s Great LOVE for Them!

18 Apr 2026 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: all God asks of us is obedience, all should come to repentance, beelivers must now do their part, birds singing, buds on the trees, carry them in his bosom, Christ has already done his part, christianity, Christians, climate change, deepen my breath, do the work we pledged to do for Christ, Easter celebration, eternal life, eternal separation from God, faith, feed his flock like a shepherd, gather the lambs with his arm, gently lead those that are with young, get up off our fat and lazy fannies, God commendeth his own love toward us, God is longsuffering towards us, God is not willing that any should perish, God reconciled us back to Himself, God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, God so loved the world, God will bring us closer to His heart, God will come in strength, God's great love for mankind, have everlasting life, have greater intimacy with mankind, he gave his only begotten son, his arm shall rule for him, his reward is with him, his work before him, holy spirit, I may know you all the more, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, I want to be with you now, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus Christ, keeping Christ's victory alive, keeping God first place in our lives, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, like a shepherd treats his sheep, LOVE, majesty of this time, mercy, motivated by love, number one priority, our sins could be paid for, our turn to reciprocate God's love, prayer and supplication, proclaiming victory over sin and death, promises of spring, quiet my soul, rebirth of nature, relax my muscles, rose from the grave on the third day, salvation, sending Jesus to die on the cross, sinking into the mire of evil and ungodliness, slow my thoughts, souls lost forever, spend eternity in God's presence, spring has sprung, thank you for this tenderness, thanskgiving rises to the heavens, the BIBLE, the blazing new colour, the first blossoms of spring, the Lord God will come with strong hand, the world through him might be saved, treat us in a loving manner, truth, warmer days, we all have room for improvement, while we were yet sinners christ died for us, whosoever believeth in him should not perish, wisdom, with all sincerity and truth, you can't be contained, your love both surrounds and fills me, your peace and love are present

Romans 5:8. ‘But God commendeth (demonstrated) his (own) LOVE toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.’

Oh friends, it’s our lazy-day Saturday, and I’ve seen the first blossoms, the first true blooming of the marvellous season of spring! Yes, in the beautiful yellow flowers of a tree in my backyard! And please don’t ask me what kind of tree it is, because I don’t have a clue. (smile) But after all the promises of spring that’s been recently taunting us; with buds on the trees, birds singing and the days getting warmer, we can now definitely say that spring’s been sprung! Yes my fellow believers, that marvelous and miraculous rebirth of nature is truly on it’s way after a somewhat tough winter.

And truthfully, the winter was not as tough as some we use to have before climate change disrupted everything, and made us soft, after experiencing a period of easy winters. But that’s all behind us now, for spring is here and thanksgiving rises to the heavens for all the blazing new colour and majesty of this time. And in honour of all that, let’s offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, with all sincerity and truth!

As one voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’

Yes mih bredrin, if our prayer was sincere, then we know that the wonderful God we serve will soon bring us closer to His heart, and bestow His wonderful peace and calm in our spirits, because His Number One priority is to have greater intimacy with His most wonderful creation, mankind! And He’s shown that in so many ways, in so many promises that if we don’t know and understand that by now, we’ll never do so.

Listen to this promise from the prophet Isaiah: ‘Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand (in strength), and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work (wage) before him. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.’ (Is. 40:10-11)

Now why would God make such a promise if He didn’t desire to be in close intimacy with His creation eh? His desire is to treat us in a LOVING manner like a shepherd treats his sheep. And what can be more convincing of the Lord’s great LOVE for us than His sending His son Jesus to earth to die on the cross of calvary so that our sins could be paid for, then raising Him up from the grave on the third day, at Easter, which we’re still celebrating, so that we can have the wonderful options of salvation and eternal life? That’s reconciling us back to Himself; bringing us back to his fold, and causing us to spend eternity in His awesome presence.

Yes friends, all of that was motivated by that one majestic word: LOVE! And I can’t help quoting one of my favourite scripture verses here. (smile) This one from Bruh Paul’s letter to the church at Rome, where he exposes the true and wonderful heart of God to us, when he writes: ‘But God commendeth (demonstrated) his (own) LOVE toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.’ (Rom. 5:8) Why would He do such a thing unless His LOVE and compassion were overwhelming for us eh?

Because, as Peter says, He ‘is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but all should come to repentance.’ (2 Pet. 3:9b) Of course, the Lord doesn’t want to lose any of His magnificent creation to hellfire and damnation. Just like we don’t want to lose any of our children or descendants to it. And we do that because we have much LOVE and compassion for them, and don’t want their souls to be lost forever in eternal separation from their Creator.

And Jesus Himself explained it better than anyone else, when He said to Nicodemus, the Jewish leader who secretly came to Him under cover of night seeking answers. ‘For God so LOVED the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world though him might be saved.’ (John 3:16-17)

There again we see it my people, it’s all about God’s great LOVE for mankind. And you can’t have real and true LOVE unless you have a fair amount of intimacy. That’s why it’s ever so important for us to get close to our heavenly Father so that we can experience all the LOVE and compassion He has for us. He has already played and shown His hand by sending Jesus to die for us, it’s now our turn to reciprocate that LOVE by keeping Him first place in our lives and sincerely living this earthly life the way He desires. That’s all He asks of us; obedience to Him and His Word!

And though that’s sometimes difficult to do in this ungodly world with Satan and all his evil cronies on our case, the Lord has already given us all we need to fight the good fight: His Word with His many promises, the Holy Spirit that indwells us to lead, guide and comfort us, and easy access to Him though prayer and supplication. What else do we need eh? Nothing, but to get up off our fat and lazy fannies and do the work we’ve pledged to do for Christ!

And this lazy-day Saturday in the spring of 2026, is as good a day as any for us to truly contemplate how we’re living for Christ, and how we can and need to improve it, for we all have room for improvement. And my fellow believers, we all also know that our world desperately needs to see plenty improvement right now, if we’re to prevent it from further sinking into the mire of evil and ungodliness that it’s currently doing! Much LOVE!

…Christ has already done His part…proclaiming victory over sin and death…now we must do our part…keeping His victory alive…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

The Overwhelming Intensity of God’s LOVE and Compassion for Mankind!

11 Mar 2026 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a call to contentment and courage, a cheerful hearth fire, a glorious future with Jesus, all should come to repentance, alone in a huge computer universe, as some men count slackness, be content with such things as ye have, bet your bottom dollar, But God commendeth his love toward us, called thee by thy name, cast down, christianity, Christians, claim God's unlimited resources, die such a horrible death, does it really matter to God about me, endure to the very end with Christ, even to the end of the world, eyes straight ahead, faith, fear not, fear not neither be dismayed, get the feeling, glad to be alive, God doesn't seem personal, God has passed me by, God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, God will never pass us by, God's guidance, governed by our Father, halfway home, hands on the plough, Has God Passed Me By, He will not fail thee neither forsake thee, heartbreaking measures, holy spirit, I am the Lord thy God, I am with thee, I don't really matter, I gave Egypt for thy ransom, i have loved thee, I have redeemed thee, I will be with thee, I will give men for thee, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee, I will not fear what man shall do unto me, Jesus Christ, learn to trust, let your conversation be without covetousness, listening to the wind beat against the house, lo I am with you always, looked pensive, LOVE, mercy, neither shall the flame kindle upon thee, not a guessing game, not goverened by chance but God's choice, not governed by fate, not looking back, not willing that any should perish, One Year Book of Bible promises, our second wind day, our sinful souls could be saved, people for thy life, prone to ask questions. why life's tragedies, regardless of circumstances, relevant to our times, Ruth Harms Calkin, salvation, save us from sin, sitting in our living room, sound morbid, tested, thank God, the BIBLE, the breath of life is still flowing through me, the doubts of a seventeen-year old, the gospel truth, the Holy One of Israel, the intensity of the promise, the Lord he it is that doth go before thee, the Lord is longsuffering to us-ward, The Lord is my helper, the Lord is not slack concerning His promise, the Lord will never pass us by, the universe in in God's control, the world through him might be saved, thou art mine, thou hast been honoured, thou shalt not be burned, thou wast precious in my sight, thy Saviour, truth, we may boldly say, Wednesday Wail, what better evidence than the cross, what better evidence than the Lord's promise, when thou passest through the waters, when thou walkest through the fire, while we were yet sinners christ died for us, why disease pain and heartache, why life's tragedies, why the sense of futility, wisdom, wisdom to the nth degree

Romans 5:8. ‘But God commendeth his LOVE (demonstrated his own LOVE) toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.’

Then it was Wednesday, our second wind day, but it’s wet, cloudy and chilly! The recent sunshine and spring-like warmth have faded away. However, we do know that it will come again, for that’s how the Lord decreed it. So, a li’l more winter won’t hurt, for spring will soon be back, you can bet your bottom dollar on that! (smile)

And today we’re going to look at a very interesting and rather appropriate poem for many of us, from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. It’s titled ‘Has God Passed Me By?’ And as always, I don’t know if I’ve shared it before because I don’t keep a check on them. The beauty of these poems though is that they are very relevant to our times, and thus can be shared over and over.

So please read with me: ‘We were sitting in our living room before a cheerful hearth fire, listening to the low March wind beat against our house. My pretty seventeen-year old friend looked pensive. She said finally, “You’ll probably think I sound morbid, but sometimes I just get the feeling that God has passed me by. He just doesn’t seem personal. It’s like being all alone in a huge computer universe where I don’t really matter.” The doubts of a seventeen-year old? If we’re honest we’ll all confess that we’re prone to ask questions: Why life’s tragedies? Why disease and pain and heartache? Why the sense of futility so often? Does it really matter to God about me?

What better evidence than the cross? What better evidence than the Lord’s promise, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Our vast universe is in God’s control. We are not governed by fate, but by our Father. Not chance, but His choice. Not a guessing game, but His guidance. He chose us to be the object of His lavish LOVE. Cast down, perhaps – that we might learn to trust, regardless of circumstances. Tested, that we might claim God’s unlimited resources. Passed by? Never!’

Now that my friends is the gospel truth! Our God has never and will never pass us by? Why would He do that eh, after all the trouble He’s been through to first create us, then save us from the sin we so foolishly embraced? As the poem asks: ‘What better evidence than the cross?’ And that’s another most important fact. If the Lord didn’t care very much about His human creation, do you think He‘d send His only Son to earth to die such a horrible death so that our sinful souls could be saved?

No! That doesn’t make any sense. Remember what Bruh Paul says in Romans – one of my favourite scriptures: ‘But God commendeth his LOVE (demonstrated his own LOVE) toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.’ (Rom. 5:8) Now why would He take such drastic, heartbreaking measures if He didn’t care deeply for us eh? It’s very obvious that He did, and does care for His most remarkable creation. Remember what Peter says: ‘The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.’ (2 Pet. 3:9)

Yes friends, that’s possibly one of the reasons Christ hasn’t returned as yet; the Lord’s patiently giving as many of us time to accept Christ as Lord and Saviour and thus receive salvation and eternal life, because He doesn’t want to lose anybody to hellfire and damnation. And there are several verses in the Bible where God has promised to never leave nor forsake us. As the one that’s the Bible Promise for the poem. ‘’Let your conversation (conduct) be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.’ (Heb. 13:5) And consequently, when we add the next verse, we get a call to contentment and courage. ‘So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.’ (Heb. 13:6)

And right from the very beginning the Lord, through Moses, also made that promise to the Israelites who were about to enter the Promised Land. ‘And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.’ (Deut. 31:8) What more can I say eh friends? How much more encouragement do we need eh? But if you need more, then listen to these words of the Lord though the prophet Isaiah. ‘But now, thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.

When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee: and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon (scorch) thee. For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee (in thy place). Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable (honoured), and I have LOVED thee: therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life. Fear not: for I am with thee:’ (Is. 43:1-5a)

What more can our God say or do to make us understand our importance to Him eh? He redeemed Israel in olden times, gave men for them, and He’s done the same for us under the New Covenant; He gave the life of Jesus to redeem us. As Jesus stated so clearly to Nicodemus and also to us: ‘For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world though him might be saved.’ (John 3:16) Now what’s there not to understand eh?

And I like how this commentary describes God’s promise never to leave nor forsake us. ‘The Intensity of the Promise: In the original Greek, this phrase uses multiple negatives, translating to an emphatic “I will never, ever, under any circumstances, desert you, nor give you up nor leave you without support”. That’s how strong God’s promise of never deserting us is! And Jesus gave us His final assurance when He said: ‘and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt. 28:20b)

Now that’s certainly good enough for me! Let’s hope it’s good enough for many more people out there who still have doubts and fears about the Lord by passing us. And to help with that, let’s declare our Wednesday Wail, letting the whole world know of our wonderful position in Christ Jesus. As one strong and sincere voice: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’

Now, that leads to an even greater promise: those who endure to the very end with Christ, will enjoy an even more glorious future than the one mentioned above; one we cannot comprehend. So, why don’t we all endure to the very end, so that we can enjoy that more than glorious future together eh? That seems to be wisdom to the nth degree! Much LOVE!

…The Lord might refuse our requests…but He’ll NEVER pass us by…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

The Overwhelming Importance of Christians Not Abusing and /or Misusing God’s Promises!

21 Jan 2026 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a garden of thistles and thorns, a snowy winter, abide with you for ever, all our lives through, be of good cheer, be perfect and entire, bear many a burden, bear many a care, being confident of this very thing, between a rock and a hard place, clay in the hands of a potter, count it all joy, divne help, endure to the end with Christ, eternal life, eternal separation from God, faith, fall into various trials, flower-strewn pathways, get through life scot free, give you another Comforter, God hath not promised skies ever blue, God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, God's desire is to have us all as replicas of Jesus, God's Word, grace, grace for trials, grin and bear it, guide you into all truth, halfway home, hands on the plough, he dwelleth in you, he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever, he which hath begun a good work in you, hellfire and damnation, help from above, holy spirit, i have overcome the world, I will not leave you comfortless, I will pray the Father, if ye love me keep my commandments, in my ye might have peace, in the world ye shall have tribulation, Jesus Christ, joy without sorrow, lazy, leave you as orphans, let pateince have her perfect work, life is not a bed of roses, light for the way, living for Jesus offers unsurpassable rewards, LOVE, mercy, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, needing no guide, negative experiences, not looking back at the past, not turning back, omnipotent power, our second wind day, peace without pain, perform it until the day of jesus, rest amid labour, salvation, selfish, shew you things to come, smooth roads, stay on the straight and narrow path, strength for the day, sun without rain, swift easy travel, tha k god, the breath of life is still flowing through me, the living truth, the Lord's Number One Plan, the lust thereof, the positive work God accomplishes through testing, The Promises and Non-Promises of God, the Spirit of truth, the testing of your faith produces patience, the trying of your faith worketh patience, the world passeth away, the world through him might be saved, to a glorious future with Jesus, tough times in this sinful world, truth, turbulent times, undying LOVE, unfailing sympathy, unsurpassable rewards, waltz through this life with no cares, wanting nothing, when the Spirit of truth is come, when ye fall into divers temptations, whom the world cannot receive

1 John 2:17. And the world paseth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

And then it was Wednesday, our second wind day. And do we ever need to catch that second wind so we can make it safely through, because it’s a cloudy, snowy, miserable day. Chuh! This looks like it’s going to be a snowy winter, for every time you turn around it’s snowing. But there’s nothing much to do but grin and bear it, for that’s the nature of the northern climes, and we’ve been spoiled in recent years with comparatively little snow during the winter months. But here’s an interesting poem I recently discovered amongst my piles of papers. I’m not sure where it comes from or when (smile) but I’m fairly sure I’ve shared it sometime in the past.

But like so many of those prayers and poems, they are still very appropriate for these turbulent times. And I believe the poem is called ‘The Promises and Non-Promises of God.’ So please read with me. ‘God hath not promised skies ever blue, flower-strewn pathways all our lives through; God hath not promised sun without rain, joy without sorrow, peace without pain. God hath not promised smooth roads and wide, swift, easy travel needing no guide; God hath not promised we shall not bear many a burden and many a care. But God hath promised strength for the day, rest amid labour, light for the way; grace for trials, help from above, unfailing sympathy, undying LOVE!’

And that’s the living truth my people! God never promised that we will just waltz through this life with no cares, worries, burdens or trials. He simply promised that He will help us each and every day to bear what burdens or trials we might experience. It’s just that we know His omnipotent power and are lazy and selfish and expect to get through life Scot free, that we take these liberties about what God promised and what He didn’t. Why do you think He gave us first Jesus, then the Holy Spirit eh?

Jeus came to save us from our abominable sinful behaviour that was leading us down the path of eternal separation from God. As He very plainly says in the gospel of John: ‘For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world though him might be saved.’ (John 3:17) Yes friends, we needed divine help if we were to avoid hellfire and damnation. And having given us an option to avoid that most fearful outcome, the Lord then gave us the Holy Spirit to help us live the kind of life we needed to live so we could stay on the straight and narrow path that leads to Him and eternal life.

The Holy Spirit is our guide and comforter and helper. If God didn’t think we’d need those things to live this earthly life, why give us the Holy Spirit? Listen to Jesus again, this time on the work of the Holy Spirit. ‘If ye LOVE me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter (Helper), that he may abide with you forever. Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless (as orphans): I will come to you.’ (John 14:15-18)

And so it was done! The Holy Spirit came to dwell within each believer on the first day of Pentecost after Jesus’ ascension back to heaven. (Acts 2:1-4) Then later on, Jesus again spoke to the disciples about the importance of the Holy Spirit. ‘Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself (on his own authority); but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall ye speak: and he will shew you things to come.’ (John 16:13) And Jesus finally told them: ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33).

Oh my people, the Lord knew that we would have tough times in this sinful world, that’s why he equipped us with all that we needed to handle it. The Holy Spirit, prayer, grace, mercy, and His Word. For living in an evil and ungodly world trying to be righteous and godly is a major task. That’s why we have scriptures like James’ exhortation: ‘My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations (various trials); Knowing this, that the trying (testing) of your faith worketh (produces) patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire (complete), wanting (lacking) nothing.’ (James 1:2-4)

Yes those are tough words to handle, but as the scholars explain: These “negative” experiences are to be accepted with great joy, not for the sake of the trial itself but because of the positive work God can accomplish through the testing.’ We do need to remember that God tests our faith all through this earthly life and that is done usually through trials and temptations because it’s only when we are between a rock and a hard place that our faith grows. When life’s good, our faith either stagnates or gets soft and weak.(smile)

And remember too that the Lord’s Number One Plan is to have all His children as replicas of His first born Jesus, therefore, as along as we are alive, we will be like putty or clay in the hands of a potter, with Him trying to make us into the image of Jesus. It’s like Bruh Paul says to the Philippians: ‘Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform (complete) it until the day of Jesus Christ.’ (Phil. 1:6) That means everyday we’re alive the Master Potter will be working on us. So it’s not an easy life to live for Christ, but as I keep saying, it’s very interesting and the rewards are unsurpassable.

Nothing this world has to offer can ever surpass salvation and eternal life with Christ. Remember too as John says in his first epistle: ‘And the world paseth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.’ (1 John 2:17) Yes, my fellow believers, this world will eventually pass away, but if we do God’s will, we will live forever with Him. Let’s remember that and set our minds to it, despite all the many tests and temptations we might face, for our God is just faithful and true !

Now let’s go home declaring our Wednesday Wail, letting all and sundry know of our wonderful position in Christ. As one strong and sincere voice: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’

And if we’re serious, then we’ll endure with Christ right to the very end, and thus enjoy the promise of a more than glorious future for those who see it through to the end. Much LOVE!

…life is not a bed of roses…but a garden of thistles and thorns…that we need to work on…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

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The Overwhelming Importance of Believers Knowing, Understanding and Appreciating God’s Great LOVE for Them!

The Overwhelming Intensity of God’s LOVE and Compassion for Mankind!

The Overwhelming Importance of Christians Not Abusing and /or Misusing God’s Promises!

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