Much of what you need to know about our situation today is found in the Book of Jude August 26, 2009
Posted by vsap in Blogroll, Uncategorized.Tags: Bible relevance, False Teachers, Gnosticism, Jude, New Testament, Old Testament
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Jude is 25 verses and it is the book just before Revelation in the New Testament. You can go along with this study as you read Jude or read it first and refer back to this study. It says much about our situation today proving, once again, Biblical relevance in the present age.
1. Context
Who is Jude? Jude and James were two of the four brothers of Jesus (Mark 6:3). Jude does not say that he was a brother of Jesus. He speaks of himself only as a servant of Jesus, who was now his Master. Jude was also humble enough to mention his well-known brother, James. James became a leader of the Christian church in Jerusalem (Galatians 1:19; 2:9). It is said that Jude did not believe Jesus was the Son of God until after His resurrection which is another reason why he doesn’t say Jesus is his brother, but that he is merely a servant of Jesus Christ.
What was the situation at the time (what prompted the writing)? Jude wrote the letter to warn his readers against false teachers. These teachers claimed to be Christians. But they were being a great danger to the faith. It appears Jude was fighting Gnosticism. This doctrine teaches that the sins of the body do not affect the purity of the soul, thus, allow people to engage in immoral perversions and evil. Christians have the responsibility to keep this faith without change. They must be careful that people do not take important facts away from the faith. Neither must they add false ideas. The Greek word for ‘defend’ means that it will be a great struggle. Christians must be ready at any time to meet a sudden test of their trust in Jesus. To teach wicked ideas and actions will certainly bring God’s severe punishment on people like that.
2. Style: Jude writes in “3s”
Three Old Testament Judgments: Fallen angels – Sodom & Gomorrah – Dispute over Moses’ body.
Verse 6 Because of their pride, some angels refused to obey God (Revelation 12:7-9). They left heaven to marry women on earth (Genesis 6:1-2). The false teachers in their pride and desire for women were like the bad angels. Those angels did not ‘keep’ their proper position. So God ‘kept’ them in chains and in darkness until the day of judgment. If God judges even angels, he will judge men and women too. Verse 7 The cities of Sodom and Gomorrah are an example of all kinds of wicked behaviour. Genesis 19:1-11 describes how two angels visited Lot. They visited him to warn him to escape from God’s judgement against Sodom and Gomorrah. The men of Sodom wanted to use the visitors to satisfy their wicked desires for sex. God destroyed them with fire. Verse 9 Jude gets his information from an ancient book called ‘The Assumption of Moses’. This book is not in the Old Testament. But Jude’s readers would know the story. When Moses died (Deuteronomy 34:5-6), God sent one of his most important angels, Michael, to bury his body. But the devil said that the body belonged to him. This was because Moses had murdered an Egyptian (Exodus 2:12). Michael did not argue with the devil. He said that God himself would deal with him.
Three declarations of woe: Cain, Balaam, Korah. Cain was the first person to kill someone. He killed his own brother (Genesis 4:1-15). The false teachers are ‘killing’ the belief of other people. Cain killed Abel. But God had already warned Cain about his anger. Jews in New Testament times therefore remembered Cain as someone who did not believe in God’s judgement. But God did punish him. People who decide not to trust and obey God are like Cain. God will punish them, too. Balaam is the second example. Balak, king of Moab, asked Balaam to curse Moab’s enemies, the Israelites (Numbers 22:7-18). At first, Balaam refused. But his greed for the bribe (money) that Balak offered him was too strong. So he said that he would do it. But when he tried, he found that God made him bless the Israelites instead of cursing them! (Deut. 23:5). And later, Balaam tempted the Israelites to break God’s law (Numbers 31:16). By New Testament times, Balaam was considered one who had led people away from God. Jude’s readers knew the story. So they would immediately understand what he meant. Korah was proud and jealous. He refused to accept the authority of Moses and Aaron. He also encouraged a large number of other people to oppose Moses. But God himself had appointed Moses to serve him. So Korah, and those who were with him, all died. The ground split open and swallowed those (Numbers 16:1-35). The false teachers were refusing to obey the church leaders. So they must expect God to punish them. He has already decided on their fate.
Enoch’s prophecy and the Apostles’ prediction of evil, divisions, and apostasy. Including the first man, Adam, Enoch is the seventh name in the first family line (1 Chronicles 1:1-3). The Jews considered seven was the perfect number. Genesis 5:24 tells us that Enoch ‘walked with God’, that is, he lived a holy life, very close to God. Enoch did not die, because God took him straight to heaven. Although he lived so long ago, Enoch speaks in his book of the return of the Lord to judge everyone. In particular, he tells of the awful fate of wicked people who do not obey God. Jude keeps repeating the word ‘wicked’ to emphasize how bad they are in God’s sight. They were not Christians at all. They did not believe that God would judge and punish them. They are making a very great mistake.
Two more sets of “3”
God has called them. God calls people to serve him in the same way as he called Israel (Isaiah 42:6). To serve him is a responsibility. It is also an honour, like an invitation to a special party. God is saying, ‘Be my guest!’ God loves them. God’s love protects them and also gives them inner strength every day. God is keeping them for Jesus Christ. Whatever happens, God will keep them in safety until Jesus comes again (Philippians 1:6; 1 Peter 1:4).
‘God’s mercy’: They need God’s pity to forgive them and to help them every day. And they will need it especially on the day of judgment. ‘God’s inner peace’: This peace of God is so much greater than we can understand (Philippians 4:7). Christians will have this inner peace because God has forgiven them. They know that he will help them to obey him. They know that God always keeps his promises. ‘God’s love’: They will come to realise how greatly God loves them (Romans 8:35). Then they will want to show love to other people (John 15:17). Christians cannot earn any of these qualities. They are God’s free gifts.
3. False teachers described in word pictures
Jude describes these dangerous men in word-pictures. He takes examples from the four regions of the physical world: clouds in the air; trees on the earth; waves of the sea; stars in the sky. Clouds that promise rain, but produce none, are useless (of no value). These men do nothing to help other Christians to grow in their trust of Jesus. Trees that produce no fruit, even in autumn, are as good as dead. The farmer burns them (Matthew 7:19). These men are without roots, without true life in Jesus Christ. So, these men are ‘twice dead’. In regard to waves: The Jews of the time stayed away from the sea. It could be wild and dangerous. The wicked are like the sea that never rests. Its waves never stop rolling, carrying dirt and mud (Isaiah 57:20). In a similar manner, these men never stop their wicked actions. They are like the dirty rubbish that the waves leave on the shore after a storm. Finally, with the wandering stars, Jude is referring to the book of Enoch. This book is not in the Bible, but was very popular in New Testament times. Enoch identifies these wandering stars as fallen (bad) angels. Enoch obeyed God and went straight to heaven (Genesis 4:17). The bad angels did not obey God and they lost their home in heaven. God has prepared a prison for them in deepest darkness. The false teachers who do not obey God will suffer the same fate.
4. The Apostles’ Warning
Verse 17 Jude has had much to say about the wicked words and behaviour of the false teachers. Now, to end his letter, he again speaks about his readers. They are his dear friends. He loves them, because they are like him. They believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, as he does. Jude has already appreciated their memory of the Old Testament stories (verse 5). Now he commands them to remember how the apostles, too, warned them about wicked men (Acts 20:29; 1 Timothy 4:1; 2 Peter 3:3). Jesus also had warned about people like that (Matthew 7:15; 24:11). Verse 18 Memory was very important in the ancient world. Few people could read and books were rare. So Christians had to develop their memories. Jude’s readers must always keep clearly in their minds the good news of the gospel (what the Lord Jesus Christ has taught and done for them). Only then will they be strong enough to defend their faith against false teachers. Men who are as wicked as that only believe in their own ideas. They do not believe in what God teaches. Verse 19 By their selfish words and actions, these evil men upset the unity of the church members. They did so by forming their own groups at the love-meals. They did so when they claimed to be superior Christians. They claimed that the Holy Spirit was guiding them. They certainly did not have the Holy Spirit in their lives. God’s Spirit intends Christians to love and to help each other and to keep together.
5. Contending for the Faith – Remaining Strong in Jesus
Verse 20 Jude ends his letter with words to encourage his readers. God offers Christians the resources with which to overcome attacks from the wicked. That is God’s part. Their part, as loyal Christians, is to make full use of God’s resources. In this way they will build up a strong common faith. Unity is strength. Then with God’s help they will be able together to oppose the evil ideas and deeds of these wicked people. Jude tells his readers what to do: They are to ask the Holy Spirit to help them to pray. Their prayers must not be selfish or impatient. The Holy Spirit will teach them to know God’s desires, both for themselves and for other people. The false teachers do not have the Holy Spirit in their lives (verse 19). Otherwise, their behavior would be holy. Verse 21 They must keep themselves in God’s love. How do two people maintain their love for each other? They spend time together. They talk and listen to each other. They want to please each other. And the more that they do these things, the more their love for each other will grow. We keep ourselves in God’s love in a similar way. We must spend time quietly with him. We must talk (pray) to him, even about the little things of life. We must listen to what he says to us in our hearts. We must obey what he tells us to do. We shall want to please him at all times because we are preparing for life with God in heaven. That life is the gift of Jesus Christ to loyal Christians on the day when he returns.
6. A final set of “3″
God’s people who need help Verses 22-23 Jude now speaks about three groups of people who need special help.
•There are those with doubts. The false teachers have already damaged the faith of some weaker Christians. Now those weaker Christians are not sure about what to believe or how to live. Jude urges his readers to be especially kind to those who have doubts. They need help to understand clearly how God wants them to live. They are to be holy, as God is holy. They are to care for other people, and not be selfish. At all times they are to trust God completely, and not their own thoughts.
•There are people who have been too ready to listen to the false teachers. Jude uses picture language. The people in this group are like a stick that is beginning to burn. Jude’s readers must rescue them quickly, before the fire burns them completely.
•There are people who refuse to turn to God. Christians must pity them and be kind to them. But they must act with great care. This is in case the life without God that these people lead begins to appear attractive.
7. Finishing in Joy
We shall never be able to praise God enough. In love, God controls all. He rules over all. He supplies every need of all who trust him.
Sources:
William Barclay ~ The Letters of John & Jude ~ St. Andrews Press ~ Revised edition, 1998
Dick Lucas & Christopher Green ~ The Message of 2 Peter & Jude ~ The Bible Speaks Today ~ IVP, 1995
Michael Green ~ 2 Peter & Jude ~ Tyndale NT commentaries ~ IVP, 1987
R. H. Charles (translator) ~ The Book of Enoch ~ SPCK, 1997
Chambers 21st Century Dictionary Bibles ~ R.S.V, T.E.V, Jerusalem, Weymouth, J. B. Phillips, N.E.B, N.I.V
Wycliffe Associates (UK), November 2002
Change you are forced to believe in August 24, 2009
Posted by vsap in 2008 Presidential Election, Blogroll, Financial Crisis, US Politics, Uncategorized.Tags: Baltimore Business Journal, Barack Obama, Economic Policy, new office reality
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Baltimore Business Journal – by Julekha Dash
“These are lean times at businesses throughout Greater Baltimore and the rest of the country. More than 40 percent of business leaders say they will employ fewer staff in three to five years compared with the number they employed prior to the recession, according to a Watson Wyatt Worldwide survey released this month.
All this change — and the threat of more to come if the economy does not rebound soon — has created an awkward vibe in office buildings from Howard to Harford and all spots in between. Employee morale has suffered. Managers are stressed to meet their bosses’ bottom-line demands. Some employees are afraid to voice their concerns or weigh in with feedback for fear of retribution. Meanwhile, just about everyone is working more hours these days, as layoffs and new responsibilities lead to an increased workload. Perhaps now more than ever employees are living for the weekends — unless they have to work Saturday and Sunday, too.”
Welcome to the world of change, delivered by Barack Hussein Obama. The story continues:
“About one-third of U.S. companies reacted to the recession by cutting staff, according to Watson Wyatt Worldwide. Another two-thirds have frozen hiring and salaries in the past year. One in 10 employers shortened their workweek to cut costs.”
And just when you thought it was getting better, because PresBO and his band of tax cheats and miscreants said so, there’s this:
“No group has been affected more by the recession than the employees of companies of all shapes, sizes and industries. In Maryland, more than 66,000 of them have been laid off since December 2007.
For the more than 2.5 million remaining in the state’s work force, the rules of engagement have changed. Many of them — regardless of tenure or job title — are looking over their shoulders, wondering if they are going to be the next to be handed a pink slip. Others are so focused on preserving their employment, they rarely say a word unless it’s at the urging of a manager.”
This is exactly what the liberals want: passive censorship for the sake of self-preservation. You stay quiet on the job front, they can get away with what they want on the political front because, frankly, you are too tired to fight them. At least until the health care issue bit them on their flabby butts.
On last bit of enlightenment about PresBOs America:
“Facing the threat of losing their jobs, employees are not speaking up as readily as they used to, said John McDermott, who was laid off last year from the Web design firm 
E.magination Network LLC.
“Now is not the time to put yourself out there,” he said. McDermott is now a self-employed technology consultant who sees the fear among many employees in his industry.
Employees do what they are told to do and “as they are told to do it,” he said. A director at a finance company, at a company McDermott declined to name, said he didn’t like the company’s strategic direction but refused to share it with his managers for fear of losing his job like others have in the industry.”
PresBO is trying to box you in, using your employers, using your health care plan, using any fear tactic available, to bring you to submission to his way.
This is the way of the socialist. This is the way of the fascist. This is your president.
Perspectives: Obamacare, “cap and trade” July 28, 2009
Posted by vsap in Blogroll.Tags: Arthur Laffer, Barack Obama, Cap and trade, health care reform, Small business
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What does Obamacare mean in the real world? From the Washington (DC) Business Journal, July 27 (bold is mine):
“A proposed surcharge on high-income Americans to help fund an overhaul of the health care system could hit one-third of small businesses that employ 20 to 250 workers, according to the National Federation of Independent Business.
The House Ways and Means Committee approved an income tax surcharge on individuals with incomes of more than $280,000 as part of its health care legislation.
The surcharge, which would kick in at $350,000 for households, starts at 1 percent and rises to 5.4 percent for households with income of more than $1 million.
The surcharge’s effect on small businesses has become a major issue in the health care debate. Most small businesses are sole proprietorships, S corporations or other entities where profits flow through to their individual owners for income tax purposes.
Republicans quickly labeled the surcharge a tax on small businesses, while House Democratic leaders countered that it would not apply to 96 percent of small businesses.
Overall, about 600,000 individuals with small business income could be hit with the surcharge. Those business owners may be a small percentage of the small business community, but they are the ones who tend to put their money back into their businesses and create jobs, surcharge critics contend.
Based on a survey of small business owners in December 2007, NFIB estimates that one-third of companies with 20 to 250 employees could face the surcharge. Businesses of this size create about 33 million jobs a year, according to the Census Bureau…
Manufacturers would be hit particularly hard by the surcharge. Nearly 70 percent of manufacturers pay taxes at the individual rate, according to the National Association of Manufacturers. Taxable income at small and medium manufacturers averages around $570,000, the association states.”
Arthur Laffer, deemed guru of supply-side economics, had this to say in a recent Q&A with the Houston Business Journal (bold is mine):
“The founder and CEO of Nashville economic research and consulting firm Laffer Associates, sat down for an interview with the Houston Business Journal before the event.
Q In Houston, the proposed cap and trade legislation related to climate change is a hot topic considering the city’s dependence on the energy industry. What’s your assessment of the impact of such a policy, given what we’ve seen on the direction it’s taking?
A Cap and trade is nothing but a huge tax increase. It’s like increasing the federal income tax by more than 50 percent. I’d say it’s not only bad for the energy industry but it’s an economy killer.
A long time ago, (former vice president) Al Gore proposed his own carbon tax. He always recommended that to do a carbon tax, you offset it 100 percent with income tax or payroll tax. He wanted to see less carbon used but wanted to see the economy be healthy.
All (the current legislation) does is raise revenue to pay for other programs put in by this administration and doesn’t make sense, except for the aggrandizement of government.
Q I would think you aren’t a big fan of the stimulus package either.
A Have you ever heard of a poor person spending himself into prosperity? It’s true that a person who receives the stimulus will spend more to buy things he wouldn’t normally have purchased and that, in turn, would create jobs for people producing the things he’s buying that they normally wouldn’t have produced. But for every stimulus recipient there’s a stimulus payer. The people who pay the money are therefore de-stimulated, so the net effect is zero. If you tax the people who work and pay people who don’t work, don’t be surprised if you find more people not working.
The administration has already said the economy is in worse shape than they imagined, and I think the more the stimulus program takes effect, the worse the economy will be.”
Yes, there is legitimate concern with PresBO and the direction he wants to “lead” this nation in. I hope the health care issue will be his “Waterloo”, as Sen. DeMint described last week. That way, this will be his only term and he can follow Jimmy Carter into early retirement.
PresBO racism, collapsing health care “reform”: Patriot Post July 25, 2009
Posted by vsap in Blogroll, Financial Crisis, US Politics, Uncategorized.Tags: health care reform, Henry Louis Gates, Patriot Post, Racism
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Take the “How will Obamacare be paid for?” poll here:
The Patriot Post gets it right 99.9% of the time. Visit them at www.patriotpost.us. Need a reason to visit? Check out a couple of excerpts:
From the Left: Acute Victimitis
“A white police sergeant accused of racism after he arrested renowned black scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. at his home insisted Wednesday he won’t apologize for his treatment of the Harvard professor,” Fox News reports. Gates was arrested after a neighbor phoned police about a possible burglary at Gates’ house. As it turns out, Gates was the “burglar” — he claims he had to force the door open because it was jammed. Police say that Gates became belligerent and accused them of racism (“This is what happens to black men in America!” he shouted), prompting the officers to arrest him.
Barack Obama jumped into the fray Wednesday night during his prime-time news conference (about health care), saying, “[T]he Cambridge police acted stupidly” in arresting Gates. He added, “[T]here is a long history in this country of African-Americans and Latinos being stopped by law enforcement disproportionately, and that’s just a fact.” Perhaps that’s because blacks and Latinos commit crimes at a disproportionate rate to their percentage of the population.
Obama, who has a difficult time hiding his own racism and resentment, then declared that federal officials should work with local law enforcement “to improve policing techniques so that we’re eliminating potential bias.” Ah, yes. Maybe the ATF Waco planners could help out. Or maybe we could all stand in long lines so the TSA could search grandmothers in order to not offend jihadis.
In the end, Obama later “clarified” through his mouthpiece Robert Gibbs. “He was not calling the officer stupid, okay?” Gibbs scolded. Not that the president regretted the remarks, Gibbs added. Too little, too late. In light of the fact that Sgt. James Crowley, the arresting officer, is the police academy expert on racial profiling and was hand-picked by former police Commissioner Ronny Watson, who is black, the Fraternal Order of Police issued a rebuke of the president Thursday. See, now Obama has just made a union mad.”
On Health Care “Reform”:
The president absurdly claimed that nationalizing health care “will keep government out of health care decisions, giving you the option to keep your insurance if you’re happy with it.” Even the Associated Press couldn’t swallow that whopper: “In [the] House legislation, a commission appointed by the government would determine what is and isn’t covered by insurance plans offered in a new purchasing pool, including a plan sponsored by the government. The bill also holds out the possibility that, over time, those standards could be imposed on all private insurance plans, not just the ones in the pool.”
Furthermore, according to The Wall Street Journal, “[W]hen Mr. Obama says that ‘If you like your health-care plan, you’ll be able to keep your health-care plan, period. No one will take it away, no matter what,’ he’s wrong. Period. What he’s not telling the American people is that the government will so dramatically change the rules of the insurance market that employers will find it impossible to maintain their current coverage, and many will drop it altogether.” But pay no attention to the man behind the curtain — Obama “will keep government out of health care decisions.”
Perhaps columnist Ann Coulter put it best when she quipped, “All the problems with the American health care system come from government intervention, so naturally the Democrats’ idea for fixing it is more government intervention. This is like trying to sober up by having another drink.”
The BIG Lie
“[H]ealth insurance reform will not add to our deficit over the next decade, and I mean it. … I am very worried about federal spending.” –Barack Obama
Oh, well, in that case…
On Cross-Examination
“The last time the president made grand promises and demanded passage of a bill before it could be reviewed, we ended up with the colossal stimulus failure and unemployment near 10 percent. Now the president wants Americans to trust him again, but he can’t back up the utopian promises he’s making about a government takeover of health care. He insists his health care plan won’t add to our nation’s deficit despite the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office saying exactly the opposite.” –Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC)”
Subscribe to the Patriot Post or visit regularly for a reality check. PresBO won’t like it, but you’ll be doing yourself a great service!
