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May 21, 2006 “16These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaks great swelling words, having men's persons in admiration because of advantage.” (Jude 1:16) It is true the scriptures do not flatter unbelievers in any way. Scripture is not meant to flatter anyone. Scripture is meant to teach, instruct, give warning – in more biblical terminology – “reprove and rebuke” the “complainers” who believe man and the words of man are more important than the instructions of the Spirit of God. The Bible is meant to offend. Jesus came to offend. There is always to be a mounted offense against the ravages of sin and the rejections of the unfaithful. There is an old saying (I think Gen. Mac Arthur) that a defensive war is a war lost (or something to that effect). Jesus did not defend His Father to anyone. He attacked the religious idealism of his day with his Father’s spoken word. Men had walked away from the pronouncements given to Moses. They had gone on to write thousands of pages of Rabbinical “enhancements” to what God had clearly spoken to Moses. Jesus came to set the record back to its correct path. The “complainers” were the religionists who saw everything they had carefully built being trashed by a quiet and simple talking individual they could not understand. They did not see they spoke with God’s son. They did not realize that their inability to grasp the simple was because of their own arrogance and lust. They were the holders of authority; not this son of some carpenter. “17But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ; 18How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts.” (Jude 1:17-18) Jude is writing to his fellow believers. They would know and understand the warnings. These were warnings that the Lord spoke to his followers while he yet walked with them. The “complainers” would do what came naturally. Not having the Spirit of God the only avenue of personal peace would be through “mockery” or complaint or outright desecration of things revered by faithful men. “19These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit.” (Jude 1:19) This is the difference. It is not a question of other than “What think ye of the Christ? Whose son is He?” Those that can answer in faith, believing Jesus is the Son of the Living God, have received the Spirit of God. The unbeliever is that one “having not the Spirit.” “20But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, 21Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.” (Jude 1:20-21) The scriptures tell the believer that there is “no condemnation” to them that walk in Jesus after the Spirit. Paul wrote that there is “one Lord, one faith, one Spirit”. The Holy Spirit is the entity that keeps the separated from again being entangled in the lusts of the world and of men. The Spirit is the builder of the Body of Christ. Walking and praying in the Spirit is the sign of the Christian to the lost of the world. “22And of some have compassion, making a difference: 23And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.” (Jude 1:22-23) Compassion marks the Christian. God’s compassion stretches over all ages and generations of men. The blood shed on Calvary was atonement for all timelines and all men. The Christian shows his compassion in prayer and in preaching the eternal message of eternal life. He also shows his compassion by staying away from sin. There is no compromise with sin. The Christian prays for and understands the “complainer”. In compassion we witness and hopefully “make a difference”; remaining faithful to the example set by Jesus sitting among sinners. Jesus could sit, teach, preach and share his compassion without being tempted to experiment or compromise with any lust of any unbeliever. It is the hard example, but the correct and only one. ------------ Email Skip: skiptoomaloo@hotmail.com Comment on this article here! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com. Please link to this article rather than copying and pasting it onto your site (which would be unauthorized and illegal). |
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