Title: Sincerely, sincerely (Jude 1:17-25)
Contents Sincerely and sincerely (Jude 1:17-25) - Rev. Geun Lee
[Jude 1:17-25]
[17] ♠ Beloved, remember the words of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, [18] ♠ They said to you that in the last days there will be scoffers, walking after their ungodly lusts [19] ♠ These are party-makers, carnal, and devoid of the Holy Spirit [20] ♠ Beloved, build yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit [21] ♠ Keep yourselves in the love of God and live forever [22] ♠ Have mercy on those who doubt [23] ♠ Save others by drawing them out of the fire. Be merciful [24] ♠ Be able to protect you from hindrance, so that you may stand blameless and rejoicing before his glory [25] ♠ Glory and majesty to the one and only God our Savior through our Lord Jesus Christ and power and dominion be from all ages, now and ever, Amen.
We want to live a life of faith with an honest and sincere heart. We must be faithful and honest because we stand before a God who sees into us. We always want to live like this, but the problem is that false images come out without us knowing. How can I live a life of sincere faith?
First, we must destroy our false beliefs and build real ones.
We consider ourselves faithful. But in verses 20 and 21, “Beloved, build yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keeping yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.” . In order to be faithful in the Lord, it is not enough to live a good life. It is only when the disposition of the Triune God is revealed that we become faithful. We know it well, but in reality it is not. We can blossom without relying on the Triune God. That's why we may be fake. Therefore, we must be the real that blossoms and builds up our inner faithfulness.
Second, we must lay down our concerns and listen to the Lord's concerns.
What is the Lord's concern? The Lord speaks to us. “Love your God and love your neighbor as yourself.” We need to build holiness within ourselves and at the same time be able to see the people around us. God's concern is that we build ourselves on the most holy faith. It is praying with the Holy Spirit, deeply realizing God's love and showing Christ's mercy. The word compassion is a compound word of com and passion. Together + hardship. In other words, it is not just watching from the side, but visiting, sharing pain and receiving together.
One cold winter day, a gentleman sees a girl shivering coldly on the street. He complains to God. God, why don't you take care of that child? Then God speaks to him. I sent you there to solve the problem.
Our concern is "why not?" But God's concern is, "Will you do it?" There is an example of this in the Talmud. A father asks his son to borrow a sickle from the house next door. But the neighbor didn't lend the sickle. A few days later, the neighbor comes to borrow a sickle. The son asks his father. What should I do? Then my father said something very important. If you don't lend a sickle because you have resentment, it's "revenge". What kind of life do you live?
We want to be truthful before the Lord. I consider myself to be true. But if you want to be truly sincere, you must be able to see other people. We serve "one God alone." I am not alone in being faithful. Everyone must be real. I have to live with God's interest as my interest. I pray that you will become believers who look around you from a spiritual point of view and live a faithful life with God's interests as your interests.