If We are Willing and Obedient

“But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. They said to you, ‘In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions.’ It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit. But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.

“Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen” (Jude 1:17-25 ESV).

We live in a day and time, at least here in America, we do, when what this is speaking of is a very present reality, not just out in the world, though, but within what appears to be the majority of the gatherings of the church (or within what are falsely being referred to as gatherings of “the church”). For so much of what is called “church” is not the church under the headship of Jesus Christ, following our Lord in obedience and in surrender to his will, doing what he has called his church to be and to do.

For the church, which is the true church, is the body of Christ comprised of all people who have been crucified with Christ in death to sin and who have been raised with him to walk in newness of life in him, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. We the people of God are his church, his body, his temple in whom he dwells by his Spirit. We alone are the house of God. For the church is not a building, not a corporation under the state, not a business, and not a social or a civic club, but she is the bride of Christ.

But even though that is the truth of who she (the church) is, that is not what is largely being presented as the church. Most of what is called “church” appears to be these buildings and corporations (businesses) and social clubs. And many of their leaders are being trained in marketing techniques and schemes in how to “grow their churches,” just like any other business. And so they are focusing their attention on “drawing in large crowds of people from the world,” and thus they are altering the gospel to appease the flesh.

For many of them are being led by these scoffers who are following after worldly passions and ungodly desires, who are not being led by the Spirit of God at all, but by marketing books and training seminars which teach them to be more worldly in order to attract the world to their gatherings. So, they are being taught by other men (humans) to alter their gatherings and the gospel message and the character of God/Christ in order to draw in large crowds of people from the world and to keep them coming back for more.

Thus, they have diluted the gospel message down to a mere profession of faith in Christ Jesus or a mere acknowledgement of who Jesus is and what he did for us on that cross. After that they are congratulated that they are now children of God, all sins forgiven, on their way to heaven, and that nothing can take that away from them, but regardless of how they live – no death to sin, no submission to Christ as Lord, no obedience to our Lord and to his commandments, and no works of God required, so they say. Not true!

And people by the thousands, and perhaps millions, are believing their lies. And so we have masses of people professing faith in Jesus Christ whose lives are no different from people who make no profession of faith in Jesus Christ at all. For they never died with Christ to sin, and they are not living to him and to his righteousness. But they are still walking (in conduct, in practice) in deliberate and habitual sin against God in acts of immorality, adultery, lying, cheating, and unfaithfulness, etc., and many without conscience.

So, this is an encouragement here to those of us who profess faith in Jesus Christ as to what our lives should look like if we are true followers of Jesus Christ. For “faith” in Jesus Christ is of God, not of the flesh of man, and so it must submit to God’s will and purposes for those who profess his name. Jesus said, if we are going to come after him, we must deny self, take up our cross daily (die daily to sin) and follow (obey) him. For if sin is what we obey, and if righteousness and obedience are not, we don’t know God.

So, we must be those who have died and who are dying daily to sin and to self and who are following our Lord in obedience to his commands, in practice. We must not be those who are making sin our practice, our habit. For keeping ourselves in the love of God is not just claiming his love over our lives. But it means we are walking in his love, in moral purity, uprightness, godliness, honesty, faithfulness, and obedience to God and to his commands. And we are resisting the devil and we are fleeing temptation to sin.

And we should be those who are spreading the truth of the gospel to the people of this world, including to all who profess faith in Jesus Christ, letting them know that they must die with Christ to sin and now live to his righteousness, in his power, and no longer walk in sin, or they do not have salvation from sin and eternal life with God. For if sin is what they practice, no matter what their lips profess, they will not inherit eternal life with God. So we need to be getting out that message to the people.

Now, none of this we can do in our own strength and willpower, for this is not powered by the flesh, but by the Spirit of God. But it is possible in the strength of the Lord as we surrender our lives to Jesus Christ, and as we submit to his Lordship over our lives, and as we choose daily to obey him and to not obey the flesh. So, there is absolutely no excuse for any true follower of Christ to ever remain living in addiction (slavery) to sin. For Jesus died to deliver us out of our slavery to sin, if we are willing and obedient.

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15] 

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.

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