1 Timothy- 1- False Gospel

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Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the commandment of God our Saviour, and Lord Jesus Christ, which is our hope; Unto Timothy, my own son in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. As I besought thee to abide still at Ephesus, when I went into Macedonia, that thou mightest charge some that they teach no other doctrine, Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith: so do.  1 Timothy 1:1-4

As we begin to dive into the Epistles of Timothy, clearly written by the Apostle Paul, these were basically “Pastoral instructions” for Timothy to run the Church of Ephesus and for other used for other Pastors within the Christian Church. It’s very clear that Paul considered Timothy as his “spiritual son” as he states “my son in the faith” Timothy was believed to be very young when he came to Christ, probably in his teens and had accompanied Paul on many missionary trips. 

Timothy was very well versed in the teachings of Christ through Paul, as he had been working side by side with him for many years. The Church of Ephesus , like many other Churches, had false teachers who had rise up and began misleading many with a false gospel. This was not going to be allowed or tolerated by the Apostle Paul and assigned Timothy to oversee the Church of Ephesus to keep them on the narrow path. We see this today more than ever, false teachers preaching a false gospel, we need to rebuke and expose their heresies for the greater good of the Church

As the Apostle Paul instructs Timothy “that you might charge/instruct/warn that they teach no other doctrine”  As the Apostle Paul said in the Church of Galtia “anyone who preaches another gospel to you , than  we have preached to you, let them be accursed” (Galatians 1:8) The Apostle Paul wants it clear and known, that the true gospel of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:3-5) in the central doctrine of the Church, any false gospels will not be tolerated, let them be accursed! 

So what were they teaching? As the Apostle Paul goes on to say “neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies” If you have been in Christianity long enough, you have heard it all. I’ve heard people preaching the strangest man-made doctrines that I wouldn’t even repeat, and I rebuke them, and you should rebuke them also. Preaching a false gospel is a great sin against God, the majority of our Churches today are preaching a false gospel. A false gospel not only dishonors our Lord Jesus Christ, by minimizing his death and resurrection, but a false gospel can’t save anyone, its a broad road to Hell that just justifies a false teacher. Let them all be accursed!

As the Apostle Paul says here “which cause disputes/questions rather than godly edification which is in faith” False teachers always claim to have a “special revelation” or basically are “works based salvation” These false teachings flood the Church with confusion and take away from the power of God, by grace through faith (Ephesians 2)

As the Apostle Paul instructed Timothy, rebuke the false teachers, rebuke the false gospels, because our faith is in Jesus Christ alone, Amen!

Jude 1- Benediction

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Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen. Jude 1:24-25

As we come to the end of the Epistle of Jude, we see one of the great benedictions of the Bible, this is a doxology believed to have been written at the very early Church. As the Apostle Jude after warning us of all the traps and dangers that are out there to destroy our soul, that God can still save us. Regardless of how bad it gets, God is still in control, Christ is still King and Lord, the Holy Spirit is living inside of us, the gates of Hell shall not prevail against Christ true Church (Matthew 16:18)

I find the language intriguing here, as to me it implies Triune language. As we showed earlier the Apostle Jude clearly demonstrated the Triune God a few scriptures before this, notice the language “Now unto Him” who is Him? Is this a reference to Christ? Yes, Is this a reference to the Holy Spirit? Yes, is this a reference to God the Father? Yes, they are all able and willing to save and preserve us.

“To Keep You from falling” As the Apostle Jude talked about throughout his Epistle, the false teachers, the false religion, it continually creeps into the Church, it deceives even the elect (Matthew 24:24) however God will sustain us and keep us from falling away. However we need to listen to God and not to man, if what we are being told is not supported by scripture, then its a false teaching, don’t be deceived 

Remember the power of the gospel, remember that Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, came to pay for the sins of the world and make you Born Again (John 3:3) If you Abide in Christ, Christ will Abide in You (John 15) and you will be justified before the Father and sanctified by the Holy Spirit. God will keep you and transform you into a new creation in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:7)

True wisdom only comes from God, the world is deceived and blinded by Satan (2 Corinthians 4:4) and salvation comes from only Christ alone (John 14:6) repent and put your faith in God your Savior, your living hope , who has power, glory and dominion as King of all Kings and Lord of all Lords, the Great I AM, who was , who is , and is to come, (Rev. 1:8)  Amen!

Jude 1- Spiritual Firefighters

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And of some have compassion, making a difference: And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh. Jude 1:22-23

If you see a person in a burning building, what is the loving thing to do? Is the loving thing to allow them to burn in the building or to grab them out of the fire? The obvious answer is to save the person from destruction, however in our culture today, which has crept into the Church, they have it backwards. The “loving” thing in todays society is to allow people to remain in their sin and to destroy themselves, basically leaving them in the fire.

As Christians we are “Spiritual Firefighters” it’s our job to share the gospel of Jesus Christ, as the Apostle Jude says here “pulling them out of the fire” . But while we do this, we do this with compassion, as other English translations state “have mercy”. The loving thing is to want to save peoples souls, not justify their sin. It’s like a child/parent relationship, a parent who never disciplines their child because they fear it will make them upset, is a parent who doesn’t really love their child. If you love your child, you want them to be prosperous in life, teach them right or wrong, to neglect the child is a great failure of a parents responsibility

This is the state of the fallen Church today, instead of pulling people out of the fire, they are leading them into the fire. As Jesus said “Enter by the narrow gate, broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who goin by it. Narrow is the gate and difficult is the way that leads to life,  and there are few who find it” ( Matthew 7:13-14) Is this the message the Rainbow Church is telling sinners? The world is headed on the broad road to Hell, however there is noone warning them! Is this loving to lead them to the slaughter?

Now think also about FIrefighters, do they just show up one day and do their job? No, they train and learn how to properly save people. We as Christians need to do the same, study your Bible, learn from other Christians, be led by the Holy Spirit, pray without ceasing, submit to The Lord, you can’t enter this spiritual warfare unprepared or you will end up in the fire yourself. We are not battling against flesh and blood but against evil demonic forces, put on the Armor of God (Ephesians 6)

Last thought I want to leave with you, is remember when you were saved from the fire also. Have mercy and compassion on these lost souls, remember The Lord had mercy on you, have mercy on others, pull them out of the fire, tell them the good news that Christ died for our sins, Christ rose on the 3rd day defeating sin and death forever, repent and believe the gospel, Amen

Jude 1- The Triune God

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But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. Jude 1:19-20

The Apostle Jude reveals alot to us in this small letter, including the affirmation of the Trinity. While alot of Chistians will try to deny the Triune God, they will claim the doctrine of the Trinity doesn’t exist in the Bible, here is another example of an Apostle affirming the Triune God. That the true living God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. While the nature of God can be difficult for our human minds to comprehend, its Biblical and revealed by the Holy Spirit

I’m often reminded of what John Wesley said “ Show me a worm that can comprehend man, and I’ll show you a man that can comprehend the Triune God” The fact that the nature of God is difficult for our minds to grasp, should not be a surprise. Look out in the vastness of the universe or the ocean, look at the complexity of the human body and the DNA code, there are many things beyond our human comprehension, it shouldn’t be surprised the Creator is complex in nature

The Apostle Jude here gives us almost a benediction here, praying in the Holy Spirit, Keeping yourselves in the love of God (Father), looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ (Son)  The Apostle under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit addresses God as Triune , Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This is consistent with the teachings of Christ and the other Apostles

As Jesus said in Matthew 28:19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. “ Just as the Apostle Paul taught about the Triune God “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ (Son), and the love of God (Father), and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all” (2 Corinthians 13:14) Or just like the Apostle John taught about the Triune God “For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one.” (1 John 5:7) Or just like the Apostle Peter taught about the Triune God “elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace be multiplied.” (1 Peter 1:2)

So if your going to deny the Trinity, you have to deny the words of Jesus Christ himself and the Apostles, this is alot of denying of scripture. You either believe the Word of God or you don’t, regardless if your human mind can comprehend the nature of God, we must believe what scripture has revealed to us about God. 

But as the Apostle Jude states here to the Church “Build up yourselves on your holy faith” Put your faith in the Triune God, the God of the Bible, not a God made up in your mind or through man-made ideas. Jesus Christ and the Apostles are the foundation of the Christian faith, if you reject their words, your faith in simply built on sinking sand, God bless