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We've all been hurt. We all have scars. And through a relationship with Jesus Christ,

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we can all overcome and we can all be healed. Welcome to Healing Scars with Pastor Burton.

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Hey everybody, welcome back to the Sanctuary. This week, we're going to be taking a look

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at something that is definitely a hot topic in the church. This is something that many

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will touch on and then move away from just as quickly. And really, it's something that

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needs to be deeply looked at because it has to do with defending Jesus and protecting

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the church. In the military, in a law enforcement, we all raise our hand. We take a note to defend

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against enemies, foreign and domestic. And if you spend enough time around veterans of

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either of these services, you are definitely going to hear remarks about how those oaths

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don't have an expiration date. Now, the veterans and law enforcement veterans were very much

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promoted as the sheepdogs. This is something that every Christian should also take to heart

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as well when it comes to protecting the church. It's no different than being at work. You

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go to work, you work hard, you have coworkers and they work just as hard and they're just

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as motivated as you are and you all come together as a great team. And then you have that percentage

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of people who are just heinous. You wonder not only how did they get this job, how have

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they kept it? And in case you haven't already realized it, it's no different in a house

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of worship. If that's a shocker, sorry, it shouldn't be. Now, before we get into main

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text of where we're going to be at today, there are a few things I need to go through

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to lay the foundation for where we're going. So bear with me, we are getting there, I promise.

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There are several places in the Bible where the word warns us of false teachers, those

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wolves in sheep's clothing, people who call themselves pastors. And in reality, it is

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entitled only. They're not truly called by the spirit. And the reasons vary. Some look

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it as a showman's job, somewhat power, some have it handed down by a parent who was in

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that pulpit and under that mistaken thought process that they'd be a good candidate because

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they're, oh, this is my kid, and they've been brought up in this. Unfortunately, it's

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not the case. There's several reasons for these things to happen, for people to get

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into these positions. For time's sake, we're not going to go into it. We don't have that

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kind of time. That could be a day in and of itself. So we're going to start with Jeremiah

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chapter 5 verse 31. So Jeremiah chapter 5 verse 31, the Bible says, the prophet's prophecy

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lies. The priest rule by their own authority, and my people love it this way. See, this

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is one of many places where his word is telling us that there are quote unquote, preachers

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that are not led by God's authority. They tell half truths, lies, they're spinsters.

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They put the spin on things to say what they want things to say as opposed to what they

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mean. Not only that, but it warns us that the people will like it. Those people who

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are listening, why? Why would people like this? Well, it's simple. And in today's day

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and age, the answer's right in front of you because people are entertained, because they're

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being led in that whole, if it feels good, do it type of belief system, that mentality.

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People don't want to be convicted of their sins. They don't want to be told that they

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don't repent and turn away, that they're going to hell and that they need to change.

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They want to be told that they can have everything that they want, all their desires right now,

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that they're good enough just the way they are. And the truth is, none of us are good

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enough the way we are. None of us. And following these poor doctrines, to put it lightly, leads

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straight to hell. It doesn't matter if what these people are preaching is mostly true

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or not. And many of them do have enough truth in their messages to fool those who are not

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truly paying attention. And they bend and they twist the truth to say their message.

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But you know what? The bending and the twisting of the truth is still a lie. It doesn't matter

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if it's a small percentage or a large percentage. A lie is a lie. And we see a lot of these

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people on TV. We can hear a lot of them on the radio. And don't confuse this with those

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people who make honest mistakes. We all make mistakes sometimes no matter what we do. We're

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locked in on this one thing and we miss the mark. That is a mistake. That is not what

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we're talking about. What I'm talking about here, what we're looking at are these con

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men that make the rest of us look bad. And I'm here to tell you, the church is not a

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business. It is not. And shame on those who make it one. As the old meme goes, once you

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take a church and you try to turn it into a business, you've prostituted it. And that

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sounds harsh, but it's the truth. Now, 2 Timothy 4 verses 3 through 5, the Bible says,

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For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine, instead to suit

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their own desires. They will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what

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their itching ears want to say. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn

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aside to myths. But you keep your head and all situations endure hardship. Do the work

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of an evangelist. Discharge all the duties of your ministry. So here, the Word is telling

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us that it's all about the entertainment value. You know, that whole, the show must go on.

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At least that's what these entertainers are really about. You know, that they have an

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image. You have to dress a certain way. You have to talk a certain way. Use a certain

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lingo to create this image. This character is really what they're doing. You know, they're

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concerned about their ratings. How many people are tuning in? How many people are coming

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in? They want to bring in those people. Why? Because they bring in those people, then they're

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making more money. And of course, there's the power that goes with that. This, this

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right here, these are the idols that these people truly hold dear. And people are happy

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to give it an unearned and an improper respect or credit because they're entertained. But

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it's all spectacle. Smoke and mirrors. See, there's a few things here that we should all

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take notice of. One, these people, these con men, they don't care about the truth or any

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judgment that comes from it. Right? It kind of falls into that whole thing of, you know,

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there's, you know, trying to think of the old showbiz thing, like there's no, there's

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no such thing as bad advertising, something along those lines. So, you know, they don't

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care about the truth or the judgment from not following the truth to the line. Alright?

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Secondly, the truth to them is whatever twisted truth that gets them noticed. They want to

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be noticed. It's starting to sound a little bit like a terrorist here, right? And third,

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they use viewpoints that support their own selfish desires and they will defend these

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different views using their own experiences that just happen to align with their narrative.

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Imagine that. Right? The Bible warns us here. It says, keep your head in all situations.

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It's telling us to be mindful and not let us stray just because something sounds good.

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Alright? You know, the, you know, people do get caught up if something sounds good, you

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know, but there's something to be said for that, you know, if it's too good to be true.

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So you know, this right here, this is why many pastors, myself included, tell people,

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don't take our word for it, but actually read your Bible. The best way to know that what

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you're hearing from someone is the truth is to know it for yourself. And the way you know

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it is by reading it. We're hearing it, you know, if you listen to the Bible, there's

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enough apps and stuff out there today that will read it to you. Alright? And this brings

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us to our main reading for today, the Book of Jude. And we're going to be spending quite

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a bit of time here. It's actually going to be broken into two parts. Alright? Now I'm

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going to tell you, the Book of Jude, it's a bit of a tough read, kind of dry. Okay?

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But we're going to get through this. Bear with me. This is good. It's important. It's

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very, very important. And the first section here, the first of which, we're going to take

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our most time going through. Alright? The second part, much faster, not as hard as the

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first part. Now, Jude is one of the shortest books in the Bible. You'll notice I kind of

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had a little theme here lately, going through the shortest books in the Bible. But you know

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what? They're important. They're very important. And as I've said before, a lot of people tend

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to skip over them or they'll pick little bits and pieces. But you know what? It's here for

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a reason. It is the Word and we need to be aware of exactly what all of the Word is.

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Alright? So again, the Book of Jude, one of the shortest books in the Bible. It comes

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just before Revelation. So at the very end of your book, if you're looking for it, it

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was written approximately 65 AD by Jude. Now Jude, along with his brother James, they're

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the half brothers. So Jude is a half brother to Jesus. Now remember, God is the father

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of Jesus. So that means Jude and James, they share the same mother, Mary. But they had

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different fathers. Jesus had God and as we know, Mary was married to Joseph. So he wrote

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this to remind the early church to remain vigilant because there had been false teaching

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at that time in Heresies. So this isn't something new. This isn't a new problem that the church

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has been facing in recent years. This is something that's been going on since the very beginning

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and it's an issue that's been continuously growing as we've started to discuss here today.

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And the Bible even tells us it's going to get worse. Alright? So as much as that doesn't

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sound like it's very hopeful, that's okay because there is still hope to be had here.

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Alright? So the first part of Jude we're going to be looking at covers verses 1 through 16

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and it's a warning about the danger of false teachers which obviously that's what we're

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looking at today. And we're going to be looking into this section before we go into the second

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part. Okay? So we're going to go ahead and we're going to dive in here and we're going

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to look at Jude verses 1 through 4. Alright? The Bible says, Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ

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and a brother to James to those who have been called who are loved in God the Father and

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kept for Jesus Christ. Mercy, peace, and love. Be yours in abundance. So there's our greeting.

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Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share,

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I felt compelled to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all

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entrusted to God's holy people. For certain individuals whose condemnation was written

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about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are ungodly people who pervert the

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grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only sovereign Lord.

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Okay. So we see some jargon here. So let's define that real quick. What is it to contend

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for something? Well, per the dictionary, to contend for is to engage in a competition

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or a campaign in order to win or achieve something. Alright? It also means to assert something

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as a position in an argument. So it's taking a stance on something. Now, how do we do that?

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Well, for one, we read and we learn our Bible. We learn the word. Alright? This isn't just

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up to clergy members, but anyone who professes to be a Christian. See, you won't recognize

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false doctrine or bad teaching unless you read the Bible for yourself. You have to know

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it. Alright? Second, we work to grow in our relationship with the Lord. While we have

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the ability to read, we need to have a relationship to further understand the meaning of what

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is being said. Alright? And the best way to think of it, think of text messaging. Text

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messaging is a wonderful example here. So you can get a text from somebody and it could

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be, you know, and the words are right there. They're in black and white. But the way you

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interpret that message may well be completely different of how the sender intended it for

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various reasons. Okay? I mean, you're seeing it, you're seeing the words, but you're not

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hearing the inflection, the tone, you know, of what's being said. So you misinterpret

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it. That happens to all of us. We've all been there at some point. You know, it's one of

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those things that I say, don't text angry. Okay? You know, also as Christians, we contend

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for the faith by standing unified in the core values, the essentials, or in other words,

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the basics of our faith as it's found in God's work. Okay? The Bible is our basis. While

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we may not see eye to eye on everything, the underlying foundation is the same across the

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board. Example here, as we talked about before, music and worship. Alright? We just spoke

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about that, you know, last week. There's going to be different thoughts on how these things

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should be carried out and what kind of music should be played. Alright? But the underlying

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is still that it is there, that it belongs. The Bible tells us so, right? Okay. So moving

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along here into verse four, the Bible talks about those who have slipped in that they

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are ungodly. And this is specifically calling out those false teachers, those who are already

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preaching a prosperity theology, something Paul spoke of in Romans 6. See, they twist

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and they redirect things to fit their narrative, to fit their aspirations. And while they may

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very well find riches and power here on earth, what these people fail to see is that those

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things are all going to be gone in a moment. That they're going to be burned by the very

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fire that they're playing with when God's judgment comes upon them. There's also a belief

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that's held by many that how someone chooses to live has little to nothing to do with their

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faith. I'm here to tell you, it's very much to the contrary. When you have faith and repent

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from sin, you change. Repentance is change. And when you're truly faithful and a follower

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of Jesus, your life is going to change. By following his principles, they're going to

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change you. How you act, how you treat others, how you talk, your interests are going to

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change. The things that you put value in are going to change. And people will be able to

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see him in you. There's very much a reason why Jesus said that we are the light and the

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salt. Now, back to Jude, we're going to look at verses five through seven. The Bible says,

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though you already know all this, I want to remind you that the Lord at one time delivered

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his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe and the angels who

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did not keep their positions of authority, but abandoned their proper dwelling. These

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he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great day. In a

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similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and their surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual

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immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffered the punishment

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of eternal fire. All right. Now, notice there are several references being made here, several.

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First there's the mention of the Israelites, who even after being rescued from Egypt, they

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still didn't trust in God. That's pretty shocking in and of itself. We can learn more

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about that by looking at the book of Numbers chapter 14, verses 26 through 39. And then

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we see a mention of the fallen angels. To see what happened to them, we only need to

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look to 2 Peter chapter two versus four. The Bible says, for if God did not spare the angels

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when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them in chains of darkness to be held for

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judgment, they were in heaven with God and they still fell. Why? Due to pride. And finally,

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we see mention of Sodom and Gomorrah, these towns that were so sinful, so immoral, so

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turned from God that the Lord didn't just punish them. He wiped them completely off

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the earth as we see in Genesis 19. So what do all these references have in common? Rebellion.

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Rebellion. I mean, obviously sin, but rebellion. These were all rebellions against God, sins

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against God. And as the Bible tells us in Romans six, verse 23, the wages of sin, or

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in other words, the cost of sin is death. And to be clear, condemned to hell. And we

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see it in these rebellions. God's chosen people, angels who were in heaven, and true sin cities

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were all punished. So when I say sin city, if you think in Vegas, guess what? It's not

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alone. There are a lot. So there are many people that don't want to believe that God

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will send them to eternal fire for rejecting him. Yet the Bible's made it clear and Jude

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is warning all who rebel against God, ignore him or just outright reject him, that they

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will be separated as well. They're going to be condemned to that eternal fire. And if

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those who are supposed to be teachers and know better have turned as well, how much

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worse is it going to be for them? And the Bible tells us in James three, verse one,

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not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we

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who teach will be judged more strictly. Teachers have a huge responsibility to their students.

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It's not a small undertaking. You know, as much as the movements that are out there now

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talk about, you know, changing things in the schools and how things are being taught and

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what's being taught, teachers and teachers out there listening, you have a moral and

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ethical responsibility to make sure that your students are being taught properly. All right.

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And we see these things in the news regularly. We'll see grade schools popping up or a university,

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you know, for the same reason. And because teachers or as we're talking about here, preachers,

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whatever the title is that they have, they're to be educated themselves there because they're

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held to a higher standard. All right. It's something it's like any other vocation. There's

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always continuing education. There's always something more to learn. All right. Just because

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you hold one book in your hand, doesn't mean you know it all. All right. There's still

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plenty to learn. Picking back up in Jude eight through 10, the Bible says, in the very same

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way on the strength of their dreams, these ungodly people pollute their own bodies, reject

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authority and heap abuse on celestial beings. Even the Archangel Michael, when he was disputing

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with the devil about the body of Moses, did not himself dare to condemn him for slander,

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but said, the Lord rebuke you. Yet these people slander whatever they do not understand and

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the very things they do understand by instinct as irrational animals do will destroy them.

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If you recall in Genesis 19, the men in Sodom, they insulted angels sent by God in the same

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way false teachers mock God's messengers. This isn't something to be taken lightly.

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They slander and put down the things that they don't understand just as they did in

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Peter's day. So this isn't something new. If that wasn't bad enough, a lot of false

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teachers, they claim to possess secret knowledge or some similar mystical wording as if they're

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beyond basic human understanding. They've been lifted up like they're a gatekeeper or

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some kind of a special prophet. On a side note, this is another reason to be very careful

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if somebody claims the title of prophet. That itself is a very special term. Prophets were

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specific people in the Bible. The Bible tells us all about them. It is a mockery that not

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only belittles God but everyone else. It's fake in front of them. If you look back to

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2 Peter chapter 2 verses 10 through 12, you'll find the Bible says something very similar

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here as well. The Bible says, this is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire

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of the flesh and despise authority. Bold and arrogant, they are not afraid to heap abuse

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on celestial beings. Yet even angels, although they are stronger and more powerful, do not

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heap abuse on such beings when bringing judgment on them from the Lord. But these people, blasphemed

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in matters they do not understand. They are like odd reasoning animals, creatures of instinct

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born only to be caught and destroyed. Like animals, they too will perish. It's easier

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for them to joke about and to undermine the things that they fear or just plain don't

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understand. Like I say, people are going to get caught up in all these things. The end

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of days is telling us, if it feels good, do it with mentality. Bear with me guys though.

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We're getting there. We're already past the halfway mark. Like I said, this is a much

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harder read than what we're used to. So hang in there with me. Picking up in Jude verse

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11, the Bible says, woe to them. They have taken the way of Cain. They have rushed for

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profit into Balaam's error. They have been destroyed in Korah's rebellion. Now this is

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another short verse that is packing a lot of punch. The old one, two here. Here we see

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Cain who of course killed his brother out of jealousy. Balaam who prophesied out of

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greed and Korah who rebelled against those who were put in leadership positions by God

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and did so in an effort to get power for himself. He wanted the power. These are traps that

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false teachers and not just them but a lot of people adopt as their attitudes in life.

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These are the things that people want, the idols that people prize. Pride, selfishness,

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jealousy, greed, power, trying to corrupt others as well. Be able to manipulate them

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to get what they want. Not only that but they ignore God's will. They put themselves first.

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They throw God in that back seat. Where do these things fit into your life? This is something

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we all need to ask ourselves. What can we do to remove them? Because while we're talking

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about false teachers, there are things that impact all of us at some point. Because at

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some point we're all teachers of some sort. Jude verses 12 through 16, the Bible says,

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these people are blemishes at your love feast, eating with you without the slightest qualm.

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Shepherds who feed only themselves. They are clouds without rain, blown along by the wind,

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autumn trees without fruit, and uprooted twice dead. They are wild waves of the sea, foaming

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up their shame, wandering stars for whom the blackest darkness has been reserved forever.

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Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about them, see the Lord is coming with thousands

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upon thousands of his holy ones to judge everyone and to convict them all of ungodly acts that

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they have committed in their ungodliness. And of all the defiant words ungodly sinners

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have spoken against him. These people are grumblers and fault finders. They follow their

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own evil desires. They boast about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage.

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Wow. So the early church, believers, they would have a full meal. They would sit down

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for dinner. They'd have a full meal and then after that was done, they would share a communion

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together. This was called a love feast. Basically it was a time of fellowship. They'd come together,

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they'd have fellowship and they would prepare their hearts to have communion. You go to

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communion, we talk about this and why we have communion. However, in several churches, this

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feast, this turned into a time of drunkenness and gluttony. A prime example in Corinth showed

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where there would be some gluttons just making absolute pigs of themselves while others went

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hungry. You can find that in 1 Corinthians chapter 11. These people are contaminant. They

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pollute and they damage everyone and everything around them. Very similar to places of worship

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that call themselves churches today. Those places, for example, that stock up the pantry

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but then when people who are in need come looking, they're turned away and they're

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told, oh sorry, it's for members only. We don't have enough. Then they'll give to their

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own church members when it's time for certain items to expire. They give to their own church

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members and when it's time for certain things to expire, they'll take those things and they

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put them out on the counter for the members to take before they're thrown out or certain

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holidays come around and they'll give to their members and then people, they come in and

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say, oh you want to let's go, okay cool and stock up, no problem, but only for select

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groups. Not even everybody is necessarily allowed in for that. These churches will still

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say that they're reaching out in love. Not exactly what we're supposed to do, is it?

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Not a lot of love, not a lot of mercy, not a lot of grace. You'll notice in verses 12

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and 13 that these teachers are compared to a number of useless things as well. Why? Because

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they don't produce anything. In Christian jargon, in the Christian world, we would say

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that they're not producing fruit. Then, not only that, so not only are they called useless

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but then they're called twice dead. What's this mean? Well, it's a reference to the first

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death which we will all meet because we all know that these bodies that we're living in

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are only here for a limited time, but the second death is where only the believers are

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brought into the Lord's presence in heaven and everyone else is separated from God and

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sent to hell. This section here, it finishes out talking about the return of Jesus and

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the judgment to come. That everyone will stand before him in answer for their misdeeds. That's

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why it's so important to repent now and to lean on Jesus, to follow him, to lean on his

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word and to point others towards him. None of us can take the word of another. We need

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to know it for ourselves and to accept Jesus as our Lord and our Savior if we're going

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to spend eternity with him. We already know he is the only way. He is the gateway to heaven.

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The last part of Jude is a call to keep the faith, to remain vigilant. Now, this is much

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easier. We're going to go through this much, much faster. The hard part is done, guys.

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We're rounding third now. We'll see this in Jude verses 17 through 23. The Bible says,

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but dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. They said

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to you, in the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.

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These are the people who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the

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Spirit. But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and

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praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for the mercy of

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our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life. Be merciful to those who doubt. Save

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others by snatching them from the fire. To others, show mercy. Mixed with fear, hating

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even the clothing, stained by corrupt flesh. So in verses 17 through 19, much like we've

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already seen, other apostles also warned about these false teachers. And we see this throughout

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the Bible, several places. When the word speaks of the last times, it's referring to the time

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that we live in now. This is that time between the first and the second coming of Christ.

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So that's where we are today in history. Now, in verses 20 through 21, we're being told

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to stay close to God and to fellow Christians. So don't let yourself get drawn in by wolves

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and sheep's clothing. Can you learn anything from them? Yeah, potentially, but it's a very,

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very slippery slope. You're essentially walking out into a spiritual minefield. Not the best

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choice. All right. Now, in verses 22 through 23, we're told to be compassionate and to

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introduce people to Jesus, to do our part, to answer the great commission. You know,

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when the Bible says, hating even the clothing, stained by corrupted flesh, it's telling us

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that while we should hate sin, we still need to love and to share the gospel with sinners

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and unbelievers. You know, let's face it, sharing the gospel is very much a life or

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death situation. And it can be really hard to find that common ground with someone to

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start a dialogue with, but don't allow that to pull you into sin, that common ground.

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Okay. That is our quicksand right there. And that's where we run into trouble. You know,

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what we need to do is we need to point the way to Christ and stand firm right where we're

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at. Remember, we don't get to decide what the Bible is about. We don't get to decide

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what the Bible teaches. Rather, the Bible is what tells us, the church, what we need

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to teach to others. How we point the way to Jesus. It's not about a production. It's

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not about showmanship. It is about salvation. All right. Now, Jude uses a prayer, a praise

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to close. So in Jude verses 24 and 25, the Bible says, to him who is able to keep you

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from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great

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joy, to only God, our savior, be glory, majesty, power, and authority through Jesus Christ,

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our Lord, before all ages now and forevermore. Amen. All right. So keep in mind, we're all

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broken. We've all sinned. We've all fallen short of the goal, right? It's all the more

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reason for each and every one of us to show compassion to our fellow man, even the non-believers.

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I should actually say especially the non-believers. All right. Now, while we know there are a

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lot of false teachers out there, when we keep his word as our base and we lean on God to

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guide us instead of the words of men, we know we'll be directed down the right path. We

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have to remain vigilant to ensure the word isn't tainted. And it's not only for ourselves,

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but for others. All right. Remember, protect from enemies, foreign and domestic. We need

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to watch out. So just as in the early days of the church, we are all subject to the same

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errors, the same temptations, the same poor doctrines that are presented by false teachers.

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But we don't need to be afraid. We haven't been given a spirit of fear. Second Timothy

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chapter one, verse seven, the Bible says, for the spirit God gave us does not make us

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timid, but gives us power, love, and self-discipline. See, God will protect us. It is on us to keep

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our guard up and to keep looking to Jesus, even in the storm. Keep looking to Jesus.

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And remember, even though these people are blinded by their sin, we still need to pray

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for them continually. We need to pray for them and pray for them to come around, that

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their hearts were soft and that they will repent and follow the Lord. And not only that,

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but we need to pray for all those that they influence. There are flocks out there who

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don't even know where they're being herded. You've got this. Stay vigilant. God bless.

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Thank you for tuning in to Healing Scars with Pastor Burton. If you'd like to know more

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about our ministry, you can find us on Facebook at Be the Light Sanctuary, or you can visit

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our website at BeTheLightSanctuary.org. Thank you so much for listening. We'll catch you

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next time. God bless.