Against Sneaks (Part A)

God what are you doing is sending me to preach these truths that will not happen. Everybody's turning on me.

I hate that I was born. That's what he says. Jeremiah 20 verse nine then I said I will not make mention of him nor speak anymore in his name because he did not sooth those who were against God with false truths do not tell them things that would avoid the troubles rim but increase troubles for them.

Knowing he told him like it was this cross reference radio with our pastor and teacher guest Rick is the senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville.

Rick is currently teaching through a special series called truth, love testimony, please stay with us after today's message to hear more information about cross reference radio, specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching, but for now please turn to the book of Jude and let's join Pastor Rick for part one of his message called against sneaks. We will take verses three and four.

Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain men have crept in unnoticed long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.

I know this little letter here like the back of my hand to that the Holy Spirit responds is not good enough. You need the Holy Spirit of God to do anything for God, being familiar with something being competent, being intelligent, qualified, whatever it may be, is not enough, God must be present as the prophet Arlette Eliza said the God who answers by fire. He is God the God who shows up in a way that we need him to show up. That is our God and this little letter.

I'm enjoying preparing to share with you would. God is giving me because it's blessing me as Paul said, that which I first received. I delivered to you. That is the system God has put in place these two verses well going back to our introduction last Sunday the grenade before the storm. This would be the grenade pin pulled next session. The grenade was thrown and I'll I like this military parallels. It fits with this little letter because it is very explosive and from hell's perspective when he gets going they're the ones that are yelling, grenade coming and the Christians are all of us should be very much interested in this approach to defending our faith on behalf of those who are lost when not defending it for ourselves. We defending it in for those whom we are preaching to and hopefully I can expound on that a little bit. Have you ever seen a church sign that says all souls welcomed I am when pastor Thomas Powell and I were planning a trip to the UK which got interrupted by the virus. They hang the church so we look for a guy that was going to help us when one particular area and the church that they went to the sign outside it says all souls welcomed heaven does not make that offer and notice the Scripture and notice Jude.

It is naïve. I understand.

A person may say well how we going to preach to them. If we don't get the memo. They're welcome to come in, so long as they behave, but if they tried to share that which is contrary if they try to force us to can conform or go off the rails, then they're not welcome in a stitch same thing in your house. If I came over to your house and just stuff the bag with all your goodies from the refrigerator you viewed what would welcome me again so it is naïve at the very least, it is rebellious at the most and I fear that is the spirit that drives a church to say all souls are welcome all souls belong to God. That's true. But again, to welcome those who go off the rails is to bring destruction to the church. We are to be wise as serpents as harmless as doves.

We are to use our brains and were not supposed to behave as though we live in an alternate universe where reality is not reality. Again, this small but explosive letter is a very serious letter to the church and it identifies behaviors that define Christ.

That's what Jude is going to do. He is condemning the guilty is not excusing them is nothing but but but so Jude will point out that Chrysler's beliefs. Christ lives, Chrysler's beliefs are not going to help the people who hold those beliefs are going to hell. Very serious very personal is trying to say to the church. Listen, this is serious stuff and the people that are doing this are damned and you can reach him region but if you cannot reach him stop them.

John said stop him at the door. Don't let a man may we not be gullible and foolish with these spiritual truths and so now we look at verse three. Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints will, of course, beloved is attached. Verses one and two E. talking to the believers who he said were sanctified, you know, when you took an article of the temple of the Jews of Satan. Maybe it was the lampstand of the Lord, even the anointing oil or cough or anything in that temple was sanctified. That means it was set aside for God's purposes for God's use.

It was not common and the people of God are supposed to be just that set aside for God's use were not supposed to be coming. We are the recipients of special grace. There is a common grace that belongs to humanity. Otherwise humanity would not be able to function in God is given this common grace, but there is a special grace that leads to our citizenship in heaven that belongs to the beloved in June is very clear in making a distinction between the believers in verses one and two in the letter to a verses of this short explosive letter, which is now to him was able to keep you from falling to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy but he again makes it distinct.

There are those who believe in their those who cause trouble because of their beliefs and so again sanctified all the beloved ones that he is mentioning here in this third verse. What is the purpose of of saying your beloved in Christ are sanctified in Christ because his consequences. Do not be sanctified not being sanctified will bring judgment and we Christians are supposed to work hard to be part of God's processes to say don't mess with the Lord's truth receive it instead. So he says while I was very diligent to write to you hard-working man of God, eager, attentive, zealous for the things of Christ Jesus.

He put his heart and his head into this little letter because of his faith because he at one point was now walking with Christ.

He was part of you know it is with his brothers. He then his mother Mary believe that Christ was off his rocker. At one point but he came to his spiritual sense and he realized and now is doing something with this faith while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation. How many pastors on before Sunday when they start foraging for what am I going to say on Sunday are looking for something encouraging something that's positive something that you can leave your Singapore. I really feel strong about my faith. Now then we are overruled and output in our preparation and God says I know that stuff is wonderful and they should know that that's basic to their faith, but we've got other things to do because they are assailants.

There are those that are attacking from all directions and I need you to use my word to address the things that are going on in their lives. That's why a preserve preserve my word and that's why put you in the pulpit and this is what was going on with Jude.

God overruled his intention. He wanted to see if we have is beautiful salvation for the blood of Jesus Christ. It cost him his life on Calvary, but he rose again.

That's what he wanted to say to them, and as he was preparing the Lord said this is what's going on in that area or of the church. This is what I need you to do and so he says concerning our common salvation, I was diligent to right now being redirected to address those who were damning souls who are blocking goals or or trying to steal those from the very salvation and listen you young Christians when you go out into the world. Learn how to say no it's not what I believe you may sound persuasive. I may like you, but I believe in what the Scripture says, and I don't need you to put anything over it to try to make it better for me. Learn to say that. Learn to look them in the face and say no I don't believe that because the Bible doesn't preach that and then you if you can't beat them in the argument you come see me bring their dress with them. I'm not saying will go to show up at the house with pipes and clubs were not of course that's the fun part of it is course were not but I hope it expresses that is serious.

There those adult like that you say they don't like that you've come under the leadership of mom and dad are good church and all the people that are in that church of done you know wrong.

They don't like that they want to convert you out of your faith into their whatever it may be and they're all over the place and there otherwise. Oftentimes very successful in other areas of life. He may have a lot of money. They may have half they may have a lot of trophies they may even have a lot of pictures of me on the walls not good enough. Do they match with what the Scripture gives us. If they don't then they fall under the blows of Scripture's condemnation, which is a cry out to them to fix the problem with Jeremiah preach the word to to a nation that was determinative to be apostates. They will vent on rejecting their God and Jeremiah came along said don't do this you going to Babylon as prisoners because of your apostasy. They hated him for with the heart of the stone. The harlot comes a strike to break the stone and that's God's word and that's what Jude is doing.

Jude is using the word of God into the church is not hammering the church producing listen church.

They are out there, they are doomed and you better watch out, and so we read Jeremiah 23 verse 29 God speaking to the prophet is not my word like fire says Yahweh like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces. You cannot prevail against God in the end, it is best to side with him. Jeremiah preach. God rebukes in the apostates wanted him dead for it. They hold this at all, please let him mess up so we can have something to charge him with that didn't work he just simply threw him in jail.

They laughed at him. That's all. That's probably just as almost as bad as plotting his death. Have you been laughed at in your faith, you're in good company. Jeremiah was laughed at and survived. He continued to preach, even though he didn't want to preach at this lowest point nor morale left God, what are you doing is sending me to preach these truths they've not happen. Everybody's turning on me. I hate that I was born at $0.20.

Jeremiah 20 verse nine then I said I will not make mention of him nor speak anymore in his name because he did not sooth those who were against God with false truths. He did not tell them things that would've avoided troubles for him but increase troubles for them. Knowing he told him like it was in. Here's what happened. Jeremiah tells us what his word was in my heart like a burning fire shut up in my bones.

I was weary of holding it back. I could not. I'm tired of the consequence of preaching.

I'm tired of what goes into trying to save souls. I'm not going to do it anymore, but I couldn't help myself. I went back to it again and that is the life of a diligent servant. He wanted to stop delivering this unpopular message he got in trouble for where was God who was supposed to be blessing him for delivering the message he could not be found.

You would rather have preached pleasant things to the nation.

Remember your father Abraham remember Joseph consider the words of Isaiah that great prolific prophet of Israel. Remember Eliza he would love to have talked about their common salvation, but God overruled and said you've got to address the sin that's going on in those that are bringing the trouble to my people by telling them lies. Incidentally, the salvation that we had that Jude wanted to talk about it always begins with God.

First John chapter 4 in this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his son to be the propitiation for our sins because of God's love.

He initiated action on our behalf of sinners and he dealt with the sin. Christ died.

That's history, Christ died for me that salvation and that's what he wanted to write about and you didn't get to but I got to talk about a little bit so he says I found it necessary to write you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith. Such a subtle little verse I can write about salvation, but I felt was more to it than that, as we know he's sitting and he's getting ready to write this letter. He may have already written a letter about their salvation and spirit was upon his armies.

I can't. This is not it. I like what I'm saying is true, it's accurate but it's not ordained the function. The anointing is not on it. Here's what I think I should say. And as he begins to write.

He said yes this is it, maybe even as he goes to dispatch the letter by whatever career he chose. He saying to himself. I sure hope that was it. While it was because we have it to this day, and we love what he has a Savior love the Lord you love Jude and every other book of the Scripture, the spirit of God overruled Jude's intention. We are supposed to always be ready for that we are to be new wineskins all the time in the hands of God, flexible to what he wants to do without ever violating what he is already accomplished in his teachings to us.

So Jude saw what he had to do wake them up there sleeping there's an enemy planting weeds in the field and is saying you better wake up and put a guard there.

See the man who has seen Christ is the child of God on a mission.

If you have seen the risen Lord, you are on a mission. Jude saw the risen Lord. He knew Jesus Christ and that's why he had to change his message because his mission was to do what God was telling him to do, and this should be our stew. We should be on a mission where we find ourselves.

We do really go about our business of you in the workplace. I don't know maybe just be a clerk or whatever is doing her business, but the minute somebody comes your way and the conversation goes into the spiritual realm. Your mission is before you. And if you get good at. God will bring more people your way. That's been my experience. So again, wanting to celebrate salvation. He changes in the sounds the alarm. I believe he was fired up by Peter's letter. I believe Jude was under the authority of Peter's apostleship. There's evidence for that in this writing.

When you compare what Jude has to say with what Peter has said their timestamps included within Peter's letter and Jude's letter that let us know that Peter wrote before Jude. Therefore, Jude is influenced by what Peter says Paul. Paul was dealing with the same thing, but where is Jude and Peter were dealing with the increase of Gentiles coming to the into the church in bringing the Gnostic heresies all had to deal with the original Christians which were in majority Jewish people and he had to deal with that so he writes to Timothy in second Timothy as I charge you, therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ would judge the living and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom. I charge you, and then he goes on to tell him what to do and it has everything to do with adhering to the Scripture. I quote the verse so much time restraining myself and quoting it yet again preach the word in season and out of season. I did it can hold back, convict, review and exhort with all long-suffering and teaching convict, rebuke, and exhort, don't let them take you off that course Titus.

Don't let them despise you for telling the truth stand up to them again, you younger Christians have not yet had a taste of what the world is going to hurl at you stand up to them. They don't need another person to join their march to hell they mean someone's going to help them get out of hell and that might be you sit back and disagree with me, disagree with those who love Christ trade and all this precious gold for Mark possess what you going to get a pile of mud by incorporating man's ideas with God's word. The church allows herself to be less shrink to not be what she's called to be able to be something else, and whatever that something else is I don't want to be at. I saw a sign that says what was it something about while the viruses around you know shelter with Jesus's not enough.

What Jesus are you talking about what is he have to offer me. Why should I shelter with him. Who says that he is right. Why do I even need him. This is what we're here for to lay it out to them. I can answer the questions. If you would just ask me what I can get you to ask me.

I depend on God to bring people to me, God has to choose my battlefield, I don't choose them and I don't want the enemy to choose them either.

The Holy Spirit of God chooses where I'm going to fight the fight of faith and so this this man juice is contend earnestly it's a single word in the Greek and year in which the New Testament is originally pending. It's a single word is a compound word in the Greek single word that is cognate of two other Greek words means to struggle over.

In fact, within that Greek word, we get our English word agonize. He says I want you to agonize over the faith, put your back into it. I see some sweat is a struggle with simple were invited to be part of it it's linked with that word. It's meaningful. It's not a stretch at this point in his letter again. Hell is concerned because he is saying to the believers wake up and stand we you need to be to deal with what's coming your way in from here to the end of this letter. What he has to say needs to be repeated to the churches throughout all the agents call all Christians should know this letter should not be a Christian who love the Lord Jesus Christ, that is at time to read this word.

I mean, you make it Saturday on your deathbed and you don't have time to read you. Otherwise you should have read this little letter and if you have not.

I'm not rebuking you but I am encouraging you strong for encouragement today. Maybe. But remember, it is one thing to contend it is another thing to be contentious, were not called to be contentious, will call to struggle but were not called to start personal finance and try to prove ourselves right. Paul wrote to the Corinthian. He says give no offense either to the Jews or to the Greeks or to the church of God is a saying in the message offense, and they have to be offended. I lie like this line. You know pulses of eating meat makes my brother stumble, I will not again eat meat. But there are limits to that because he would not say if wearing clothes makes my brother stumble. Paul, I rather you stumble put some clothes on his struggles for the faith. For the faith, he says, agonize to contend, to resist the devil in the spirit that's what Jude is talking about to be contentious is to promote yourself in the flesh. I've gotta win this argument.

I will not back down.

That is a trap in the believers will not earnestly contend for the faith.

Guess what Satan will go forward with out contest will be no wonder struggle against their whole nations like that where there is no Jesus Christ mentioned were people have never even heard the names hard for us to get our heads around that but it's true. You think everybody in Haman has heard the gospel. You think everyone in Haman has heard the name of Jesus Christ. What India all the people there all the different you know the Hinduism and the moon is lame. All the other stuff is in Pakistan using their people in Pakistan you think everything a person in Pakistan. That's an adult as her Jesus Christ. Even the name they must be stopped.

This forward motion of those who either cover-up Christ or go against him. Paul when he wrote to Titus, he said, for there are many insubordinate both idle talkers and deceivers and then he says this in the next verse, whose mouths must be stopped or subverted entire households, teaching things which they ought not, for the sake of dishonest gain. Thanks for listening to cross reference radio today cross reference is the teaching ministry of Pastor Rick Gaston of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville, Virginia.

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