Christianity

Key Verse: “Fear God. Do what he tells you.” – Ecclesiastes 12:13 The Message.

Read Romans 3, 6: 1 – 11.

Edmund presents the whole problem of mankind: sinfulness. Traitor. Tempted. He is caught in his own greed and by the White Witch’s lure.

After Edmund is rescued, he and Aslan have a private conversation. No one hears what they say – but it changes Edmund forever. Afterwards, Edmund apologizes and all is forgiven.

There seems to be two sides to Edmund. That of bad: temper, lying; and that of good: repenting, fights the battle, helps defeat some of the Witch’s schemes.

Edmund is seen as unrighteous. One forgiveness is given though Edmund stands up for the truth and is still seen not as his former self but as an heir to the throne.

Thoughts to Ponder:

1. What side of Edmund am I currently like?
2. How can I be more forgiving of others?
3. What is something I can do to see that justice and mercy is given to those that need it?
4. How hard is it to let go of grudges and past mistakes of yourself? Of others?
5. Have you ever had that private conversation with God about seeking forgiveness?
6. How am I exposing the schemes of the devil in my own life?

How today’s devotion applies to me:

Two or three things that I have learned:

1_____________________________________

2_____________________________________

3_____________________________________

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God’s Economics 101 class

 Proverbs 11:24 Give freely and become more wealthy; be stingy and lose everything.

Proverbs 19:17 If you help the poor, you are lending to the LORD–and He will repay you!

Deuteronomy 15:10 Give generously to the poor, not grudgingly, for the LORD your God will bless you in everything you do.

God’s ways are beyond logic sometimes, his economic principles are totally opposite what the world tells me to do with my money, check out Economics 101 at any school and you will see how God’s ways are different from our ways.

God says to be generous, give it away and do it with a good attitude, I can go through the motions and lay the money out there but if my attitude stinks then it doesn’t matter what my actions were. Anybody can do the right thing with a little bit of effort but my attitude proves the condition of my heart and shows how much I am like my Savior.

Jesus gave it all away for me, he left his home in heaven and even gave up his life, certainly I can give of my time, talent and resources to help somebody in need and do it without complaining.

Lord, help me to always be a cheerful giver. I want to give you my money, my time and my talents to you so that I can be a part of the work that you are doing.

I just read this article from youthworker.com about the importance of teaching our kids to know what the Bible actually says – not what we would like it to say. It’s tempting to sometimes soften the message for younger groups. We may rationalize that they’re too young to handle the sharp edges of Scripture… The article offers the examples of John and David as a couple exhibits of the danger this presents. I wonder, what is the damage being done? Are they subtly learning to twist Scripture to make it say what they want it to say?

If you teach – teach the truth.
If you teach kids – teach them how to handle the truth even when it’s uncomfortable.

So, it’s been a few days since I last dawned a bottle of spray paint and got busy on the Wall. Let’s see God… how do I get my mojo back?
Sleezy televangelists? Nah, been there recently. Done that. What about a God Sighting of the Month? I did miss a month but still managed the [...]

In light of a few intense days in Haiti (I’ll share another post tomorrow), I’m sort of emotionally exhausted so let’s do a community post today. Chime in and join the blog community. This is the post you can rip on each other’s answers and no one will be offended – I think! I’ve asked [...]

By now, most of you have heard the brouhaha regarding what Glenn Beck said on his radio and TV show recently:
“I’m begging you, your right to religion and freedom to exercise religion and read all of the passages of the Bible as you want to read them and as your church wants to preach them [...]

Now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it, that Jesus, who saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe.And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day—just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire.

Yet in like manner these people also, relying on their dreams, defile the flesh, reject authority, and blaspheme the glorious ones. But when the archangel Michael, contending with the devil, was disputing about the body of Moses, he did not presume to pronounce a blasphemous judgment, but said, “The Lord rebuke you.” But these people blaspheme all that they do not understand, and they are destroyed by all that they, like unreasoning animals, understand instinctively. Woe to them! For they walked in the way of Cain and abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to Balaam’s error and perished in Korah’s rebellion. These are hidden reefs at your love feasts, as they feast with you without fear, shepherds feeding themselves; waterless clouds, swept along by winds; fruitless trees in late autumn, twice dead, uprooted; wild waves of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever.

It was also about these that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones, to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” These are grumblers, malcontents, following their own sinful desires; they are loud-mouthed boasters, showing favoritism to gain advantage.

—Jude 5-16—

Last week, I began a series here based on a small group study I wrote a year ago examining the epistle of Jude, by first examining “our common salvation” of which he was so eager to write. It is critical for us to understand “the faith once for all delivered” for which we must contend—because knowing what is right is critical for us to distinguish what is wrong.

As Jude continues down this road, so do we, looking at what he (and the rest of Scripture) tell us about those who have “crept in unnoticed.”

Perverting the Grace of God

Jude verse 4 tells us that, “certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.”

This is a pretty serious charge, isn’t it? To say that some among us—leading, teaching, writing books, blogging, making videos—that some of these are not servants of Christ at all. They’re servants of Satan seeking to destroy God’s Church? Without question it is, but it’s one to which all believers must pay careful attention.

I would suggest that today the ability to be deceived by false teaching is greater than in any other generation. Podcasts, vodcasts, books, blogs… There’s so much out there, some good, some great and some that is extremely sketchy. And quite honestly, it can be difficult to discern who is on the level and who might not be. But just because it’s hard doesn’t mean that we don’t try.

The Old and New Testaments are not silent on this issue. Virtually every book of the New Testament has a severe warning against false teachers. Matthew 7:15-20; Mark 13:22; 2 Cor. 11:1-15; Phil 3:2-3; Col. 2:18-19; 1 Tim 1:2-20, 4:1-3, 6:2-5; 2 Tim 3:1-9; 2 Pet. 2:1-22; 2 John 7-11; Rev 2: 14-16, 20… These are just a few of the New Testament examples of warnings against false teaching.

Perhaps one of the most severe is the Apostle Paul’s warning to the elders of the Ephesian church:

Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish everyone with tears.

Acts 20:28-31 (emphasis mine)

In other words, Paul tells them, “Pay attention! Men are coming who will distort the truth and lead people astray—and you might be one of them!”

He even applies this warning to himself in Galatians 1:6-9,

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

The Old Testament warnings are equally severe. Significant portions of Jeremiah address false prophets and priests who lead the people of Israel astray (see Jeremiah 14:13-22, 23:9-40, 28:1-29:32) as does chapter 13 of the book of Ezekiel. These false prophets are called ”liars,” their messages “worthless divinations” and “vain hopes” that are the “deceit of their own minds.” And God makes it clear: “I did not send them, nor did I command them or speak to them.”

Designated for Condemnation

Beginning in verse 5, Jude begins to describe in unbelievably clear terms the authority of Christ and the judgement that awaits those who seek to lead God’s people astray. Perhaps most powerful in verse 5 is that Jude emphatically states it was Jesus who freed the Israelites from bondage in Egypt. “Jesus is God,” says Jude, who grew up with Jesus as his half-brother. “And Jesus will judge the living and the dead.”

Jesus destroyed those who did not believe in the desert (v. 5). Jesus brought judgement on Sodom and Gomorrah for their gross sexual immorality (v. 7). Jesus chains the devil and his angels in anticipation of the judgement to come (v. 6). It is Jesus who rules over hell and will judge (v. 6-7).

The Scriptures are clear: Judgement belongs to God alone—and Jude makes it equally clear that Jesus is the one who will judge.

This should give us pause for ”it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Heb. 10:31).

Those who are warned about are blasphemers.

They rely on their own dreams, on a “private word from God” that they put on par with the authority of Scripture, despite the fact that it might contradict Scripture. They “defile the flesh,” falling into sexual immorality. They reject authority, refusing to obey godly counsel or even Scripture. They “blaspheme the glorious ones,” possibly a reference to flippant talk against fallen angels when even the archangel Michael wouldn’t rebuke Satan, instead saying “the Lord rebuke you!” (v. 9).

They are controlled by their base instincts and desires. They are rebels motivated by greed and self-aggrandizement. They exemplify depravity.

They have no fear of the Lord.

They are blasphemers.

And Jesus will “execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him” (v. 15). These things will not go unchecked. God will not allow His name to be maligned, nor His people to be destroyed.

Be Steadfast

The challenge is false teachers don’t usually make themselves obvious; it’s not some dude who looks like Dick Dastardly with a sinister moustache waiting in the wings to snatch you. These are “Christians” who reject the truth; they are pastors of the serpent. They say nice words and say nice things that make us feel good but deny Scripture, sometimes overtly, sometimes covertly. They sow doubt under the guise of a conversation. Like the serpent in the garden speaking to Eve, they ask, “Did God really say…?”

Looking at the OT examples in particular, these are men and women who would speak as though God had given them revelation. Their intent always is always to turn us away from the God that is to the god of their imagining.

The point of knowing what to look for is not to go heretic-hunting. It’s to be discerning. To help us identify godly teachers and authors. To understand when God is being honored, and when He is being blasphemed. To encourage others to do the same. But it’s not to go on a smear campaign or to watch-blog or declare someone a heretic if they’ve misspoken. That happens far too often and is something that we must avoid.

In the end, judgement belongs to the Lord. He will render all judgement. So we must be cautious in how we approach countering false doctrine and teachers that we do not ourselves blaspheme God. We are called to contend for the faith, not abandoning it for what sounds pretty but is altogether unhelpful. We are called to persevere in the face of false teaching with a holy fear of the Lord.

Next: Jude 17-25 – The call to persevere

“Good Idea: Giving your dog a bath. Bad Idea: Having your dog dry-cleaned.” ~ Animaniacs

Obvious, isn’t it? Behold the power of over-thinking something.

Poor execution will take your idea into outright stupidity, if you let yourself move to quickly. Don’t let yourself move too quickly. How you execute the idea is just as important as the idea itself. Take time to plan. Be patient. Do it right. Don’t get so excited about the idea that you lose the impact of it by rushing.

I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase, “God is in the details.” I believe that. The best way to do something usually takes time to discover, but it’s still the best way. Give your idea time to fully bake. A half-baked idea will make *you* look half-baked. Every time. Get all the puzzle pieces in the right place and all your resources lined-up, on-board and engaged.

I considered going into greater detail on this subject, but the quote contains all the visuals you need. A dry-cleaned dog, while indeed clean, is not the right solution. Ever.

Pay attention to the plan. Don’t rush it.

Key Verse: “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.”

Read Daniel 1. Daniel 3: 16 – 26.

Lucy was known as the youngest of the Pevensie children. She was the first to discover Narnia (though actually not the first human to be there though ummm Read The Magician’s Nephew aka The Professor who was there before). Lucy set an example of Faith and that of love in all she did. She didn’t back down. Lucy seemed very similar to the valiant antics of Shadrock, Meshach, and Abednego. Lucy had trust that Aslan(God) would be there to help no matter what.

Lucy’s persistence to tell the story of Narnia was evident. I wonder how we are to tell our story being a part of God’s story?

Thoughts to ponder:

1. How are you setting an example?
2. How is your own trust in God?
3. How persistent are you? Are you telling people the good news of Jesus?
4. Lucy, also played a part of a healer, how are you helping others to heal in their emotional hurts, spiritual hurts, serving those physically hurting, socially? Are you serving?
5. What does it mean to be a part of God’s story?
6. What trait do I most like in Lucy?

How today’s devotion applies to me:

Two or three things that I have learned:

1_____________________________________

2_____________________________________

3_____________________________________

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