People like to use acronyms nowadays. Honestly, I think it's gotten a little out of hand. That's what twitter does to people. There's only so many words you can type out fully and fit into 140 characters. I'm glad I don't have to worry about twitter. I mean, I just got a blog. I'm like, three years away from actually using my twitter account. Yes, I have an account. I'm not THAT much in the dark ages. I just don't use it. Too cool for school, this cat. And I am actually referring to myself as a cat. That's not an acronym for anything. But if I was forced to make it an acronym, it would mean "clearly abundant talent."
Here's a special link for losers like me who aren't up on their cool acronyms:
www.acronymfinder.com
What were we talking about? Right, Jude. So, I was minding my own business rapping the books of the Bible like every cool Christian does (I'm up for teaching a seminar of how to rap the books of the Bible if anyone is interested); I got to Jude and was like, "hmm... I can't remember what Jude is about." So, I read it.
Jude had a pretty serious message to share. Turns out that the church was having a problem with false teachers (nothing really new- we've seen Paul and John address this on other occasions). Yet these false teachers were coming in and teaching that God's grace gave them permission to live however they wanted.
I say this because some godless people have wormed their way in among you, saying that God's forgiveness allows us to live immoral lives. Jude 1:4
Jude explains that these people live according to their instincts, and he warns us about them causing division in the church and serving their own purposes:
But these people mock and curse the things they do not understand. Like animals, they do whatever their instincts tell them, and they bring about their own destruction.
When these people join you in fellowship meals celebrating the love of the Lord, they are like dangerous reefs that can shipwreck you. They are shameless in the way they care only about themselves. They are like clouds blowing over dry land without giving rain, promising much but producing nothing. They are like trees without fruit at harvesttime. They are not only dead but doubly dead, for they have been pulled out by the roots.
They are like wild waves of the sea, churning up the dirty foam of their shameful deeds. They are wandering stars, heading for everlasting gloom and darkness.
Now they are here, and they are the ones who are creating divisions among you. They live by natural instinct because they do not have God's Spirit living in them.
Jude 1:10,12-13,19
I know it sounds pretty dramatic, but I believe Jude is painting a vivid picture to show how desperate this situation can become. We must not allow our faith to be compromised. How does this happen? By living according to our instinct instead of according to the leading of the Spirit at work in us and by His Word. Jude gives us the key to living according to the principles God has given us:
But you, dear friends, must continue to build your lives on the foundation of your holy faith. And continue to pray as you are directed by the Holy Spirit.
Live in such a way that God's love can bless you as you wait for the eternal life that our Lord Jesus Christ in his mercy is going to give you.
It may seem naive, but I believe when we live a life of fullness in the Holy Spirit, we are less compelled to compromise in our standards of faith. As we continue to build on the foundation of our faith, as our roots continue to grow deep, we are less likely to waver. We cannot live a full life, we cannot continue to bear fruit if we are compromising. Solomon writes about this:
"Quick! Catch all the little foxes before they ruin the vineyard of your love, for the grapevines are all in blossom." Sngs 2:15
Those crafty little foxes are like the compromises in our life: they ruin the vineyard. They ruin the fruit we are producing. What do our compromises look like? How are we fooling ourselves to believe the compromises in our life are not that big of a deal? The sad thing is, the compromise in our life costs a lot more than it looks on the surface. It's costing us our effectiveness as Christians.
And now a picture of my cute kids:
No comments:
Post a Comment