The Apostate, chapter 10
To: In residence Churches of God. God’s 10th Mo. 15th, 5,781. 12/30/2020.
The apostasy Jude saw coming is much deeper than Satan’s first lie, his influencing a pagan calendar, and planning a one world governing body with his followers. In this latter age only a few haven’t bowed to a Baal like philosophy, the Holy Scriptures define as this ‘worldly system of things.’ From an education perspective, it’s demonically led people brain washing the whole world with their notions, which is no more than believing propaganda when there’s no proof. It’s their science with no data, becoming a ‘take our word or else philosophy.’ Including, global warming with no science data by folks too dumb to recognize that one volcanic eruption puts more carbon in the air than fossil fuels do in a decade. It is provable science, that our forest’s need carbon dioxide. Same with so called sciences’ propaganda regarding corona 19 virus control. There’s no scientific data for any of their virus control methods. Truth is that plagues are most often the result of people’s disobedience to God. For people’s good, He gave laws regarding caring for the land, diet and family. More plagues are prophesied.
Heavenly Father: please help us individually understand the difference between, ‘believing that’ opposed to ‘believing IN.’ Help many recognize that to Believers IN is to obey out of loving respect for Your laws. The obedient look forward to Your kingdom’s establishment and faith in Your promises. The resurrection and meeting in the sky to literally rule with authority. In Jesus’ gifted nature we worship and ask. AMEN.
Reveled spiritual understanding is given individually through methods of God’s choosing. Hearing, reading, observations and angelic appearances have all been used and fit His calling. The desire and effort to turn from falsehoods and practice His righteous way is gifted. (See Phil 2:13) Give God the praise when truth is understood, ‘it’s by revelation and not from within the fleshly mind or intellect.’ John the Baptist shared this truth.
John the apostle wrote, (John 3:7-8; Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must all be born from above.’ The wind blows wherever it will, and you hear the sound it makes, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.)
It’s revealed to God’s people that His purpose for making mankind in His likeness and image is to make them family, His literal offspring, children of His choosing. (John 1:11-14; He came to what was His own, but His own people did not receive Him. But to all who have received Him; those who believe in His name, He has given the right to become God’s children; children not born by human parents or by human desire or a husband’s decision, but by God. Now the Word became flesh and took up residence among us. We saw His glory — the glory of the one and only, full of grace and truth, who came from the Father.)
Jesus revealed and inspired His apostle Peter to give us revelations.
(1Peter 2:1-8; So get rid of all evil, deceit, hypocrisy, envy and all slander. And yearn like newborn infants for pure, spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up to salvation, if you have experienced the Lord’s kindness. So as you come to Him, a living Stone rejected by men but chosen and priceless in God’s sight, you yourselves, as living stones, are built up as a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood and to offer spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it says in scripture, “Look, I lay in Zion a Stone, a chosen and priceless Cornerstone, and whoever believes in Him will never be put to shame.” (Quote from Isaiah 28:16) So you who believe see His value, but for those who do not believe, the Stone that the builders rejected has become the Cornerstone, and a stumbling-stone and a rock to trip over. (Quote from Isa 8:14) (Denoting an obstacle to faith something that arouses anger and rejection.) They stumble because they disobey the Word, as they were destined to do.) Only the called out, those born from above, aren’t destined to trip.
As Jesus is a living Stone. So too are we who believe IN. Believers IN are a spiritual house, a holy priesthood. Obedience makes them acceptable to God the Father through Jesus Christ.
Jesus’ apostles’ letters are TO a called out converted people. Thus, if we have experienced the Lord’s kindness, we are also as living Stones -Saints. To be built a holy priesthood. WHY? To offer spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. HOW POSSIBLE? Only through the imputation of God’s spirit to our being!
(1Peter 2:9-12; But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of His own, so that you may proclaim the virtues of the One who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. You once were not a people, but now you are God’s people. You were shown no mercy, but now you have received mercy. Dear friends, I urge you as foreigners and exiles to keep away from fleshly desires that do battle against the soul, and maintain good conduct among the non-Christians, so that though they now malign you as wrongdoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God when He appears.)
No matter our nation or community, Believers IN are foreign exiles to the world as was Abraham! If we are believers IN His marvelous light, it’s ONLY because He called us out of darkness.
(a) Unbelievers are not capable of yearning for spiritual understanding.
(b) Followers of Jesus are God called and chosen.
(c) Growing to salvation is to experience God’s kindness.
(d) It’s gifted to recognize our state of being; our inherited from Adam nature.
(e) Gifted with a desire to turn to God‘s Way.
(f) Believers IN are built, a spiritual house to offer spiritual sacrifices.
(g) Jesus is a priceless Cornerstone in God the Father‘s View, rejected by world.
(h) For unbelievers Jesus is the Stone they are destined to trip over.
(i) Believers IN are chosen to be God’s own, a royal priesthood. a holy nation.
(j) People believe IN because of His grace and mercy, not of our own choosing.
(k) Believers can expect to be maligned and ostracized by established religions. This is Jesus’ teaching, as revealed to Peter and each Believer IN. NOW BACK TO JESUS’ WORD THROUGH JOHN
(John 15:1-4; I am the true vine and My Father is the gardener. He takes away every branch that does not bear fruit in Me. He prunes every branch that bears fruit so that it will bear more fruit. You are clean already because of the Word that I have spoken to you. Remain in Me and I will remain in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it remains in the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in Me.)
Followers of Jesus Believe IN the God of Abraham. Spirit led not to lean to OUR own understanding; that is we don’t trust our own fleshly intellect! Fruit NOT produced through Jesus, is what all worldly religions offer. Because of the Word, believers IN Jesus are purified. In John’s first letter to converted people he gets more to the point in the following verses. (1John 3:18-20; Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue but in deed and truth. And by this we will know that we are of the truth and will convince our conscience in His presence, that if our conscience condemns us, that God is greater than our conscience and knows all things.)
(John 15:9-12; Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; remain in My love. If you obey My commandments, you will remain in My love, just as I have obeyed My Father’s commandments and remain in His love. I have told you these things so that My joy may be in you, and your joy may be complete. My commandment is this; to love one another just as I have loved you.)
JUST AS I HAVE LOVED YOU, has been repeated several times! Jesus is the Shepherd that has given, ‘laid down’ His life for His sheep. Jesus’ teaching this New commandment, does not nullify His ten commandments, but magnifies them spiritually.
(John 15:13-15; No one has greater love than this; that one lays down his life for his friends. You ‘followers of Me’ are My friends if you do what I command you. I no longer call you slaves, because the slave does not understand what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because I have revealed to you everything I heard from My Father.)
Revealed is the key word. Hopefully we prayerfully accept and believe IN Jesus‘ truth, NO person can understand without His revealing! Theology schooling adds nothing to spiritually revealed comprehension! Paul always referred to himself as Jesus’ slave. We each should be willingly proud to be His slave, because He loved and chose us first.
(John 15:16-17; You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that remains, so that whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. This I command you – to love one another.)
People can’t join God’s church.
If we believe IN God the Father and God the Son as manifested in the holy scriptures it’s because WE ARE CHOSEN. Some Organized Clergy folks teach the opposite. We can’t come to Jesus as He’s revealed until He reveals Himself. Jesus’ sacrificial death on our behalf is the love we are to have for one another. We must be willing to die for one another if necessary. JESUS speaks of His death as a commandment, received from His Father. (Review John 10:18 & 14:31)
It’s not ONLY the degree or intensity of OUR love for one another that Jesus is referring to, by comparison of His own death. John makes clear HOW we come to know Godly love in his first letter.
(1John 3:16-17; We have come to know love by this: that Jesus laid down His life for us; thus we ought to lay down our lives for our fellow Christians. But whoever has the world’s possessions and sees his fellow Christian in need and shuts off his compassion against him, how can the love of God reside in such a person?)
John expresses his own love while quoting Jesus’ teaching how to love. We hope each understands the spiritual fulfillment of, ‘God’s imputing His spirit to our minds to make us AT ONE with Himself.’ When gifted with a desire to be AT ONE with Him; we seek to know His Ways.
The apostasy Jude wrote about was primarily the result of Pharisee/Sadducees type Judaism and paganism infiltrating God’s called out people. They each had their personal agendas and spread their fleshly rational. (Rational like Cain’s, who thought God should be pleased with his sacrifice and way of thinking.)
To unbelievers of every sort; the mystery of God imputing His spirit in people of His choice, making them at one with Himself isn’t logical. Unbelieving people’s spreading what Jude called apostasy was their inserting their own ideas about right, wrong, good and evil. A miraculous opening of a person’s mind to understand the scriptures doesn’t fit fleshly minded rational. Unbelievers can’t accept that believing IN Jesus and His deeds, are miraculous gifted by a grace event.