It’s Getting Serious

Posted on May 12, 2025 by Don Merritt

Though you already know all this, I want to remind you that the Lord at one time delivered his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe. And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day. In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire.

Jude 5-7

Jude isn’t messing around in this letter; he gets right into his indictment of false teachers and frauds.  In this paragraph, he cites three Old Testament examples to make the point that his recipients had best not listen to these people.  There is an underlying premise in all of this that isn’t entirely expressed, at least not for a modern audience. The only “new truth” comes from false teachers. Their new morality is little more than an old immorality (cf. Galatians 1:9; 1 John 2:19-28). If you are like most modern people, your defenses are up and there are warning lights going off in your head, but hang with me for a moment.

Jude mentioned in verses 3-4 that there are people in his readers’ midst who are trying to pervert the gospel message they have been entrusted with, just as John told his readers that they should hold to the gospel teachings they heard in the beginning− Paul also gave to his readers similar warnings.  So, if someone comes up with a different gospel, it can’t be right, for the gospel is “once for all”.   Leaving the gospel behind, along with the teachings of Christ will have certain consequences; Jude begins to make his case here with three examples from the past:

The first example comes from the story of the Exodus. God saved the people from Egypt and delivered the promised land to them, but they were too afraid to enter it.  Only Joshua and Caleb entered the land ultimately, for God led the people through the Wilderness for the next 40 years in punishment for their disobedience. You might recall that this same example was used in Hebrews 3 and 4 to make the same point.

The next example is that of angels who rebelled against God. They fell from their high position and await their doom.

Finally, he uses the example of Sodom and Gomorrah where the people turned their backs on God’s ways and fell into immorality, the result apparently of a “new truth” discovery.  They lost their relationship with God and were consumed by His judgment.

I would like to call to your attention something that might not have occurred to some: In each of these three cases, those involved turned their backs on a relationship with God that they had.  The Israelites refused to accept the promised land, a covenant promise God made to Abraham and his descendants who turned their backs on the covenant when they refused to enter.  The angels mentioned had a high place in heaven, but they turned their backs on this relationship when they decided they would take God’s place.  The people of Sodom and Gomorrah had favor with God until they turned their backs on Him and decided that they would decide what is right and what is wrong.

Do you remember how verse 4 ends? Here’s the whole verse, pay special attention to the end:

For certain individuals whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord

Jude’s point is that these teachers with their “new truth” are trying to make the people deny Jesus Christ by their actions which would amount to a repudiation of their covenant relationship.  In Scripture, this is always a very big deal: In life, it is the way to destruction.

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That Which is Possible

Posted on May 11, 2025 by Don Merritt
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An Empowering Relationship

Posted on May 10, 2025 by Don Merritt

Our relationship with Jesus Christ is an empowering relationship.  This relationship provides us with all that we need to walk with Him through this life, and no matter what may happen to us along the way, no matter how many trials we might endure, to go through this life victoriously.

Good and upright is the Lord;
    therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.
He guides the humble in what is right
    and teaches them his way.
All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful 
    for those who keep the demands of his covenant. 

Psalm 25:8-10

Our Lord empowers us by giving us comfort in rough times. Our Lord leads us in His ways, He is merciful and quick to forgive when we ask, and all of this is incredibly empowering.  It empowers us to live as God would have us to live.  It empowers us to live free from sin and shame, and it sets us free from the traditions and ways of this world.  Finally, it changes our entire outlook on life and our priority system.

There is no greater blessing in all the universe than to live in relationship with Jesus Christ and living according to His leading will surely improve all of our human relationships.

Why would we ever wish to neglect this relationship?

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Freedom in Christ

Posted on May 9, 2025 by Don Merritt

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

 Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. For through the Spirit we eagerly await by faith the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.

Galatians 5:1-6

Paul continues into the fifth chapter making his case for two distinct covenants.  He opens with the statement that Christ has set us free and then moves into an exhortation for us to remain free in Christ, and never to go back again to slavery under the Law. He states it so very clearly in verse 2: “mark my words…” Entering into the Law will do no good, carrying the sign of an already fulfilled covenant will do no good.  Stronger still, he tells us that if we seek to reenter the Law, we will be “alienated from Christ” and “fallen away from grace.”   Quite frankly, it seems incomprehensible to me that anyone can read these words and be confused about their meaning.

In the final line, he comes to the crux: 

The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.

You were running a good race. Who cut in on you to keep you from obeying the truth? That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. “A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough.” I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion, whoever that may be, will have to pay the penalty. Brothers and sisters, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished. As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves!

Galatians 5:7-12

The Galatians had gotten off to a good start, but somewhere along the path, somebody “cut in” to divert them to a different path; this kind of teaching is not from God.  Paul’s reference to yeast goes back to the Old Testament imagery of yeast as sin, thus a little sin makes its way through the entire group.  Then, Paul seems to be saying that he is confident that the Galatians will not listen to them anymore, yet he still isn’t quite finished with his rant…

He points out that these false teachers will pay the price for their actions, and lest anyone should think that Paul was behind these teachings, he reminds them that if he were teaching circumcision, the Jewish authorities wouldn’t still be persecuting him. Finally, he makes one more statement.  It seems to me that Paul has tried several methods to make his case against the teaching of first becoming a Jew, and then and only then receiving Christ.  He has chided, reasoned, encouraged and exhorted.  In case anyone hadn’t gotten the point yet he has one more thing to say, this time of a rather personal nature.

You might ask why it is that Paul is so passionate about this issue.  Why did he go to such lengths and give the Galatians such a chewing out?

You’re free to disagree with me of course, but I think that the answer is really simple.  When someone adds to, or subtracts from the Gospel, that person is perverting the Gospel.  Since the Gospel is the “power of God to salvation,” this kind of perversion undermines the very eternal purpose of God. As a consequence, it is not merely a different interpretation or a differing opinion; it is rebellion against God all over again.  Its source, as Paul has clearly stated, is not God.  With that in mind, let’s ask ourselves who or what the source might be, if it isn’t God.  Could it be a simple misunderstanding, or would it really come from a more sinister origin?

I’ll let you be the judge of that one, but I would add one more question: Who stands to gain by perverting the “power of God to salvation”?   

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Off to a quick start!

Posted on May 9, 2025 by Don Merritt

Jude gives us a typical greeting in the first 2 verses, telling us who is writing and extending his good wishes in love to his recipients.  Then he quickly moves to his purpose for writing:

Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt compelled to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to God’s holy people. For certain individuals whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.

Jude 3-4

Although he wanted to write to them about the salvation we share in Christ, events have intervened. Notice the words he uses here, he felt “compelled” to write them to “urge” them to “contend” for the faith; words that imply a crisis of some sort. “Contend” comes from a word that would normally be used in either a military or athletic contest.  Yes, there would seem to be a crisis at hand.

That faith he wants them to contend for is the faith that was “once for all” entrusted to “God’s holy people.”

This statement is reminiscent of John’s “as you have heard from the beginning” the message of faith had been given to them by others when they came to believe the gospel; it does not change.  You could say that Jude isn’t going for any of the present-day notions of progressive revelation wherein the message changes or evolves over time. The gospel is the gospel, once and for all time.

There seems to have been certain people who have come within the church who have ideas about changing the message. We can clearly see two things from verse 4: These people wish to abuse the liberty we have in Christ, to engage in immoral practices, and to deny Christ.  At this point, they sound quite a bit like “antichrist” in 1 and 2 John, and you will recall that they were Gnostics.

There is always a tension between liberty and going too far.  We have a great freedom in Christ, since the Law is gone and His laws are “written on their hearts.”  Can you have one “law” and I another− scholars have debated this for centuries:  What really is the difference between “liberty” and “license”? In verse 4 it would appear that one field of conflict was that of sexual practices, one that will be repeated in the verses that follow, and one that is very much under discussion in our day.  Where is that line?

In recent centuries within Western culture, that line was well-defined with lists of things you mustn’t do: “Don’t smoke or chew or go with girls who do” is one of the more amusing of these. I prefer another approach: Does an action glorify God? Does it build up His Kingdom, or will it tear the Kingdom apart? Apparently, Jude felt strongly that the Kingdom was in jeopardy; and that is his purpose for writing this letter.

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Paul Goes Radical

Posted on May 8, 2025 by Don Merritt

 Tell me, you who want to be under the law, are you not aware of what the law says? For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and the other by the free woman. His son by the slave woman was born according to the flesh, but his son by the free woman was born as the result of a divine promise.

These things are being taken figuratively: The women represent two covenants. One covenant is from Mount Sinai and bears children who are to be slaves: This is Hagar. Now Hagar stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present city of Jerusalem, because she is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem that is above is free, and she is our mother. For it is written:

“Be glad, barren woman,
    you who never bore a child;
shout for joy and cry aloud,
    you who were never in labor;
because more are the children of the desolate woman
    than of her who has a husband.”

Galatians 4:21-27

It’s funny, every time I read this I’m surprised, even though I know what’s coming.  This was radical in Paul’s day, and for some reason it’s still radical in our day. It flies in the face of the teaching of many Christians concerning Israel, and yet there it is…

The really radical part begins with verse 24: “These things are taken figuratively” Then, “The women represent two covenants…” In his analysis, taken under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul is stating quite clearly that Hagar and Ishmael represent the Old Covenant (the Law of Moses) and that Sarah and Isaac represent the New Covenant. But wait, there’s more…!

Now you, brothers and sisters, like Isaac, are children of promise. At that time the son born according to the flesh persecuted the son born by the power of the Spirit. It is the same now. But what does Scripture say? “Get rid of the slave woman and her son, for the slave woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with the free woman’s son.” Therefore, brothers and sisters, we are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman.

Galatians 4:28-31

We are children of the promise as Isaac was the son of promise.  This is the promise that God made to Abraham, the promise that his descendants would be more numerous that the stars in the heavens or the grains of sand on the shore, and that all of the nations of the earth would be blessed though them.  Earlier in this letter, Paul indicated that Jesus was that descendant, the seed.  Here, through Christ, Paul is telling us that we carry this forward as descendants of Abraham not according to the flesh, but according to the promise of God. Yes, just as Isaac was persecuted by Ishmael, so the church was persecuted by the Jews in Paul’s day, but as Hagar and Ishmael were driven out by Abraham, so now those who persecuted the church would be driven out, for they would not inherit the promise.

Honestly, I’m not sure how much clearer it could be, and there is still more to come in the next chapter…    

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Peaceful Waters

Posted on May 8, 2025 by Don Merritt

I was walking through the woods once,  and I came upon this scene…  The woods were cool and fresh in the stillness of the early morning light and I came upon this little stream suddenly.  The babble of the water could be heard along with the singing of the birds and the crickets; I had to stop…

I wondered as I took in the sights and sounds if the Garden of Eden was like this back at the dawn of time.

A person could say that this was the kind of environment that we were intended to inhabit, surrounded by God’s creation in peace and wonder… only perhaps without the gnats! In scenes such as this God seems nearer somehow, and yet He is always near at hand.  Maybe this apparent nearness is caused by the lack of distractions, I don’t know, maybe it’s just my imagination.

We can be near to God whether we are in the city or the country, whether there is quiet or noise, whether we are relaxed or stressed; it’s a matter of understanding and desire to pull close to Him.  Yet, there are certain situations that are almost automatic…

Wherever you are, whatever is going on in your life, why not move near to Him today and give Him thanks and praise for the amazing things He is doing in your life?  Surely your day will be enriched by it.

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Paul’s Loving Concern

Posted on May 7, 2025 by Don Merritt

Formerly, when you did not know God, you were slaves to those who by nature are not gods. But now that you know God—or rather are known by God—how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable forces? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again? You are observing special days and months and seasons and years!  I fear for you, that somehow I have wasted my efforts on you.

Galatians 4:8-11

The section we’ll be looking at here is a section or transition, that reflects Paul’s concern for the Galatian churches.  Paul is writing this letter to correct an error encouraged in Galatia by those who sought to require them to first come under Jewish law before they could become followers of Jesus Christ, and so after having demonstrated that Jewish law is no longer in force and effect, Paul comes down to the root of the problem− Do you, after having been set free, desire to return to bondage?  I don’t know about you, but there have been times in my life where that was the central question for me.

You are observing special days and months and seasons and years! Note Paul’s tone… and that’s all I’m going to say about this for now…

I plead with you, brothers and sisters, become like me, for I became like you. You did me no wrong. As you know, it was because of an illness that I first preached the gospel to you, and even though my illness was a trial to you, you did not treat me with contempt or scorn. Instead, you welcomed me as if I were an angel of God, as if I were Christ Jesus himself. Where, then, is your blessing of me now? I can testify that, if you could have done so, you would have torn out your eyes and given them to me.  Have I now become your enemy by telling you the truth?

Galatians 4:12-16

In recounting their earlier relationship, Paul is reminding them of their experiences together, and of all that they had in common.  You might also notice that he mentioned that he became like them and shared the Gospel with them.  Isn’t it ironic that they have now become like Paul used to be; Jewish in their outlook.  It would seem that this irony wasn’t lost on Paul who is writing to bring them back to where they were before he left them.

Those people are zealous to win you over, but for no good. What they want is to alienate you from us, so that you may have zeal for them. It is fine to be zealous, provided the purpose is good, and to be so always, not just when I am with you. My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you, how I wish I could be with you now and change my tone, because I am perplexed about you!

Galatians 4:17-20

So far in this letter, Paul has spoken sharply to its recipients; he wasn’t pleased to hear what they’ve been up to. In these verses, however you see that he is really speaking to them like a father who is correcting a naughty child.  The message is clear, but the motivation for the correction is pure love. Paul isn’t upset because they have listened to another teacher, Paul is upset because the other teacher has led the people to a place where they will be harmed, and Paul is having a tough time with that thought. It isn’t difficult to feel his emotions at being separated from those who need his guidance now.

That brings something to mind.  Have you ever been chided by someone for not agreeing with them on some point?  Did they have Pail’s motivation, or were they just insisting that everybody do things their way?  If you answered that question, I’m willing to bet that you’ve been “corrected” in both ways, right?  There’s a big difference between the two, isn’t there?

There is a time and place to correct a fellow Christian who has taken the wrong turn.  The question is, why do we seek to correct them, and how do we go about doing it?

Yes, there is a lesson for us in this text, isn’t there? Oh, and it really isn’t in speculating about what Paul’s illness was, is it?

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Jude: An Introduction

Posted on May 7, 2025 by Don Merritt

Starting today, I’ll be posting items about the Book of Jude on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings. I hope you’ll find these posts interesting, and if nothing else, you won’t come across that many studies of this book, so these may be somewhat unique. Today, in this first post, I’ll give a little introduction to the Book of Jude4…

Jude is a strange little letter, nestled between 3 John and Revelation. It is seldom quoted, and sermons and studies of it are rarer still. It could be that it is neglected because of its size, only 25 verses, or its location, or because it is so similar to 2 Peter 2.  A more likely reason could be that it is just strange.

We don’t know for sure who wrote it, nor can we be certain of when it was written, nor can we quite understand some of its quotations, but we do know why it was written, for it was written to warn against false teachers.  We will consider these unanswered questions as we continue through it, and we’ll begin with author and date right here and now.

Who was Jude?

Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and a brother of James

Jude 1a

Jude and Judas are forms of the name Judah, and we know Judah was one of the sons of Jacob and one of the tribes of Israel.  There are four men mentioned in the New Testament named Jude or Judas who could be the author.

1. He could be Jude, brother of Jesus. Mark 6:3 lists four brothers of Jesus, including Jude and James.

2. Judas son of James is mentioned in Luke 6:16 and Acts 1:13; this guy was an apostle. Some have suggested that the Greek is a little tricky and he could be the brother of James rather than the son of James, but personally, I don’t think so. Even if the Greek was tricky, the author of Jude doesn’t say he is an apostle; in fact, he speaks of the apostles in v. 17 as though he weren’t one of them.

3. Judas Barnabas is mentioned in Acts 15:22 and maybe he was a “brother” of James in the sense of a brother in Christ rather than as a literal physical brother. That idea seems unlikely since “brother of” in the Greek appears more of an identification used to identify a literal brother.

4. Judas of Damascus from Acts 9 is the other one, but it would seem that he is way too obscure to have written an authoritative letter to a church, and oh, by the way, was he even a believer?

With these choices, it seems to me that our author must have been a half-brother of Jesus and brother of James. Some have also suggested that “Jude” could be a pen name for someone, but for me that involves way too much speculation to be considered, unless someone can find some evidence somewhere.

When was this written?

Beats me!  If we are right about which Jude wrote it, then it must have been between 55 and 80. Since he identified himself as the brother of James, we might think it would have been within James’ lifetime, so that narrows it down to 62 or before. Some have even suggested it might have been written in the second century by an entirely different Jude.  I doubt that, but the truth is we really can’t be certain.

There then, is a basic introduction to the book that answers, more or less, the standard questions we should ask about any book of Scripture, except for one: Why the book written in the first place…

We’ll delve into that question as we go through the text.

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Sonship!

Posted on May 6, 2025 by Don Merritt

What I am saying is that as long as an heir is underage, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate. The heir is subject to guardians and trustees until the time set by his father. So also, when we were underage, we were in slavery under the elemental spiritual forces of the world. But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.”  So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.

Galatians 4:1-7

Sonship! I’m not really sure that is a proper English word, spell check doesn’t like it, that’s for sure, but I must admit that it works for Paul’s message to the Galatians.  These seven verses sum up his argument in a way that is so simple and so uncomplicated that anyone who gets lost in discussions of covenants and laws and patriarchs can’t miss. For once, I really like the “new” NIV rendering; they nailed it.

Check out Paul’s use of metaphors here; a son who is destined to inherit the entire estate of his fathers. An heir not only to a great estate and great wealth, but heir to a great title, yet the son is not of age.  His life is privileged, yes, but he must follow the orders of everyone from his parents, to the “upper servants.” In a way, he is like a slave, for even though he holds within himself the potential of command and power, he is still subject to those around him, and his father isn’t putting up with any nonsense. Before Jesus came, “we” lived according to the “elemental spiritual forces of this world,” sin, death, form, ritual, lusts and law that produce condemnation: Them Jesus came. By the time He had completed His work on this earth, everything had changed. We had been redeemed from “slavery” to those elemental forces and were set free, as though an earthly heir had reached the age of majority. Now, we have achieved “sonship” as God’s children, co-heirs with the Son to everything. We are the children of God, and as such we have inherited eternal life and co-dominion with Christ, and all of this is made possible by the fact that the old ways are now gone for good.  Yes, we are used to thinking about this in terms of our sins and guilt, but there is another dimension to it that Paul has been addressing for three chapters now that we, like some of the Galatians, often forget or overlook.  The very Law is also gone, for it has been made obsolete and useless, its time has passed.

Now, as you think about these things, it would be very easy to think of them in Jewish terms, for they were God’s chosen ones under the Law, but if you are thinking in Jewish terms, you’ve missed something profoundly important.  Paul isn’t writing to Jews in this letter, he is writing to the Galatians, and they were never Jewish, they were Gentiles. Think about that for a while; consider the theological ramifications of that fact…  There is no Jew, there is no Gentile…

That can only be true if the Law was buried with Christ in death’s tomb.

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