15. Feeding themselves - This means that the people were depending upon themselves for spiritual food, and not depending upon one who has the spiritual gift of pastor-teacher, as per Eph 4:11. The local church has a definite purpose in God's plan, but apostates always distort the true meaning of the church into a system of social activity, or many other things not intended by the Lord.
Principles of Membership in a New Testament Church
(1)- As far as the New Testament is concerned, membership in a local church depends upon recognizing the authority of the pastor. In the early church it was the authority of the apostle, but since there are no apostles today, the pastor is the one in authority in the local church.
A local church is where a group of people gather together in one geographical location. A house, a cave, a field, a gymnasium, a school, or a private building. But they recognize the authority of one person as the pastor-teacher.
Hebrews 13:7, "Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith."Hebrews 13:17, "Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you."
(2)- In the context of our passage, apostasy is defined as rejection of the authority of a bona fide pastor-teacher. This rejection comes through the emotional revolt of the soul.
(3)- Therefore, these apostates are hidden rocks or reefs covered by the waters of legalism, religionism, and pseudo love, all of which are veneers of hypocrisy. But beneath that veneer, beneath the water is the dangerous, destructive emotional revolt of the soul.
(4)- PRINCIPLE - The entire purpose of the local church is for worship. The Greek word for worship is PROKUNEO, which means, "kissing face to face." We are to kiss the Lord, and this can only be done through a strict communication of Bible doctrine. Why? Because it is the knowledge of the Word of God that is the basis for our capacity of loving God. And if you do not learn Bible doctrine, if you do not have a maximum knowledge of the Word of God, you cannot truly love God. Therefore you cannot worship God.
When a pastor is called or elected by a certain local church to be their pastor, he is elected by them to take the authority over them. As long as he is their pastor in that church, he is their authority. So by the election of a pastor, the congregration is recognizing his authority.
(5)- The apostates here in our context of Jude entered into the function of a local church without accepting the pastor's authority. And many of these people were active in the local church as teachers, deacons, ushers or committe members. So the first type of apostasy here in verse 12 is the person who has rejected the authority of the pastor, but remains in the local church.
The direct teaching of the Word of God actually divides believers. It always separates the positive from the negative. Jesus said in Matthew 10:34-36, "Do not assume that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. A man's enemies will be the members of his own household."
16. Wandering stars to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness - This refers to the consequences of allowing yourself to be involved in emotional revolt of the soul. Doctrine of the Emotions of the Soul (1) - The Vocabulary Problem. (B) - Therefore, other words must be substituted to indicate emotion. (b) - The word "bowels" as used in Gen 43:30, I Kings 3:26, and Jer 4:19, refers to emotion. (c) - The word "reins," as used in Psalm 7:9, 26:2; Prov 23:16; and Jer 17:10 refers to emotion. (2) - Definition and Function: (3) - The emotions are tested by God: Psalm 7:9; 26:2; Jer 11:20; 17:10; 20:12; Rev 2:33. (4) - The emotion can be destroyed: Job 16:13; Psalm 73:21; Lam 3:13. (5) - The emotion reacts to tragedy: Jer 4:29; Lam 1:20; 2:11. (6) - Emotion is the appreciator of love: Gen 43:30; I Kings 3:26; Phil 1:8; I John 3:17. (7) - Emotion stimulates happiness: Prov 23:16; Philemon 7 & 20. (8) - Emotion and spirituality in the dispensations of the Church and the Millennium. (9) - The emotion of the negative believer hinders the learning of the Word of God. II Cor 6:11-12, "Our mouth is open to you (teaching), Corinthians; our heart is wide. You are not restricted by us, but you are restricted in your own bowels (emotion)." (10) - Therefore, believers are commanded to separate from other believers involved in the emotional revolt of the soul. Rom 16:17-18, "I urge you brethren, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. KEEP AWAY FROM THEM. For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites (emotion) ......." (11) - The emotional revolt of the soul: 17. To convince all that are ungodly of all their ungodly deeds - The first phase of judgment that the unbeliever will experience is the Baptism of Fire. This judgment occurs at the Second Advent of Jesus Christ . The second phase of judgment for the unbeliever will be the Great White Throne Judgment. Doctrine of the Baptism of Fire (1) - A general understanding of the seven baptisms in the Scripture is a necessity. The Greek word BAPTIZO, meaning, "to take someone or something and identify it with something else." Our English word "idenfification" is probably one of the best words to explain the meaning of the Greek word "baptism." There are seven different baptisms mentioned in the Bible. Four of them are dry, and three of them are wet. All seven baptisms refer to something being identified with something else. (B) - The Baptism of the Cross. Matthew 20:22, ".....can you drink from the cup that I shall drink from, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?...." There was no water at the cross. Jesus Christ was identified with all of the sins of the world as He hung on the cross. This is also known as a dry baptism. (C) - The Baptism of the Holy Spirit. Acts 1:5, "For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit." I Corinthians 12:13, "For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free, and we were all given the one Spirit to drink." At the point of salvation every believer in Jesus Christ is identified with Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit places us in union with Christ. This is what we call positional truth. This is our position. We are in Christ, and this act was carried out by the Holy Spirit. This is also called a dry baptism. (D) - The Baptism of Fire. Matthew 3:11-12, "I baptize you with water because of repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit, (the Church Age) and with fire. (the second advent) His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering the wheat into his barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire." See also Luke 3:16-17. Unbelievers are identified with fire. At the second advent of Jesus Christ, all unbelievers will be removed from the earth and thrown into the fires of hell, then the Millennium will begin with believers only. The Baptism of Fire is also known as a dry baptism. (E) - The first water baptism is that John the Baptist. In his baptism the water represented the kingdom of God, and each believer was baptized into the kingdom. If you recall, John's message was that of the coming kingdom. (F) - The water baptism of Jesus Christ by John the Baptist. In Jesus' case, the water represented the plan of God the Father, and Jesus went down into the water identifying Himself to the plan of God. Matt 3:13-17. No one can ever be baptized as Jesus was. Why? (G) - The believer's baptism at the beginning of the Church Age. The water represented the body of Jesus Christ, and each believer was baptized into the body of Christ. (3) - Baptism actually begins two dispensations: (4) - Biblical parables that teach the Baptism of Fire: (B) - The parable of the good and the bad fish. Matthew 13:47-50. The good fish represents the believers going into the Millennial Kingdom, and the bad fish represents the unbelievers going into the fires of hell. (C) - The parable of the ten virgins. Matthew 25:1-13. Five of them had oil, and they represent the believers left on the earth to go into the Millennial Kingdom. The other five had no oil and they represent the unbelievers who were cast out. (6) - The Baptism of Fire for the Jews is described in Ezekiel 20:32-38; Isaiah 1:25-26; Malachi 3:1-6. (7) - Biblical analogy to the Baptism of Fire: Matthew 24:36-42. "But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, and knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come." Many people mistake this passage of Scripture for the Rapture, but it actually represents the Baptism of Fire. According to the I Thess 4:16-18, at the Rapture all born again believers of the Church Age (dead and alive) will receive their glorified resurrection bodies and leave the earth and meet the Lord in the air. The Tribulation period will then begin with unbelievers only. Then at the end of the Tribulation period, and just before the Millennial Kingdom begins, all unbelievers will be removed from the earth and thrown into the fires of hell, and the Millennial Kingdom will begin with believers only. The taking away of all unbelievers from the earth and throwing them into the fires of hell at the Second Advent of Jesus Christ is called "The Baptism of Fire."
18. Ungodly - Ungodly simply means "not taking God into account or having not regard for God." Principles of Godliness and Ungodliness (1) - Ungodliness means, "to have no regard for God." It refers to a lack of spirituality. Keep in mind that spirituality deals with the filling of the Holy Spirit, therefore, ungodliness, or ungodly, refers to a lack of the filling of the Holy Spirit. Anything that is done apart from the filling of the Holy Spirit is ungodly. (2) - Godliness basically means, "Careful observance of, or conformity to, the laws of God." This definition can be very misleading, because careful observance to God's law in self-effort and for personal honor becomes self-righteousness, or "ungodliness." The Pharisees were careful observers of the laws of God, but Jesus said that they were of their father the devil. (John 8:44). (3) - Godliness refers to a voluntary dependence upon God. A life that is free from doubt as to His wisdom, His love, His goodness, and His provision. Dependence upon God excludes all dependence upon self. In fact, dependence upon self is "ungodliness." (4) - A believer is dependent upon God in a two-fold sense: When a person is born again, God does much more than reinstate him to Adam's original condition; he actually makes him "a new creation," with a divine nature (II Cor 5:17). This "new creation" is not only by the power of God, but also by His sovereign grace, made possible by the death of His Son. This guarantees God's ability and willingness to provide all that His "new creation" needs. Rom 8:32, "He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things." (5) - We must realize that godly living includes unfailing dependence upon the grace of God, as controlling every aspect of life. In other words, there is no godly living where there is no dependence on God through Christ in the filling of the Holy Spirit. (6) - That which measures up to high moral standards is not always godly living. The world religions have moral codes, but conformity to them is not godly living. Conformity to the golden rule or to the Mosaic Law in itself is not godly living. (7) - Service to others is not in itself godly living. There are many social programs of neighborliness, and good will taught by many churches, but if these programs are not executed or carried out according to the plan of God they are not godly. God's plan requires at least three things before anything done can be considered to be godly: (8) - Biblical statements regarding godly living: Heb 10:38, "The just shall life by faith." Heb 11:6, "Without faith it is impossible to please God." Rom 14:23, "Whatever is not of faith is sin." If faith is so important, what does God say as to how faith is obtained? Rom 10:17, "Faith comes by hearing, hearing by the word of God." This refers to more than just "hearing." The Greek work AKOUO refers to
"learning." Godly living requires the consistent confession of sins to God whereby the filling or controlling ministry of the Holy Spirit is obtained. Godly living also includes self-discipline in Bible study, and the consistent, daily learning of the Word of God whereby the growing in grace is obtained. Therefore, anything that is done in the filling of the Holy Spirit and the application of Bible doctrine is godly living. (9) - Therefore, ungodly living is anything done apart from the filling of the Holy Spirit and apart from the application of the Word of God. This means that helping the helpless while filled with the Holy Spirit is godly. But helping the helpless apart from the filling of the Holy Spirit is ungodly. Also, being good and moral apart from the filling of the Holy Spirit is ungodly; soul winning done apart from the filling of the Holy Spirit is ungodly. Even Bible study done apart from the filling of the Holy Spirit is ungodly. Most people usually agree that murder, stealing, cheating, and violence are all evil and ungodly. But most people do not understand and do not realize that anything done apart from the filling of the Holy Spirit is ungodly, no matter how good it may appear to be.
(A) - There is no vocabulary word in either the Hebrew or Koine Greek language for "emotion," as we have in English.
(a) - The word "belly" as used in Prov 13:25, Prov 18:8, Rom 16:17-18, and Phil 3:19, refers to emotion.
(A) - Emotion is the responder and appreciator of the mentality of the soul.
(B) - Emotional response to the mentality of the soul produces the spectrum of happiness in the soul. This spectrum includes everything from tranquillity on one end to stimulation and ecstatics on the other end of the spectrum.
(C) - Emotional response to the sin nature produces the misery spectrum. This spectrum includes frustration, instability, depression, and anxiety.
(D) - Since the emotion was never designed to dominate the soul, wide emotional swings demonstrate the inability of the emotion to handle authority or to assume authority in the soul.
(E) - The emotion does not contain either Bible doctrine or knowledge; therefore, it cannot by design dominate the soul.
(F) - God has designed the mentality of the soul to dominate the soul.
(G) - By definition, emotion is the appreciator and responder of the soul. By function, the emotion responds to the mentality of the soul. (A) - God does not test the soul and the emotions at any specific time, but His omniscience knew billions of years ago the status of every person's soul at any given point in time.
(B) - PRINCIPLE: you cannot "fool God." Because He read your mind, and your motivation billions of years ago. And He knew what you would think, and what your attitude, and your feelings would be billions of years before you were born.
(C) - The condition of your soul and your emotion known to Him at all times.
(D) - Since capacity for life is based on the amount of Bible doctrine in the soul, the testing has to do with the response of the emotion to this information. (A) - The emotions are destroyed by responding to the sin nature rather than to the mentality of the soul.
(a) - By the three categories of sins: Mental attitude sins, sins of the tongue, and overt sins.
(b) - By lust patterns: approbation lust, power lust, materialism lust, sexual lust, etc., etc.
(c) - The emotions can also be destroyed by the producton of human good, which is simply doing good things in the power of your sin nature.
(d) - This causes the emotional revolt of the soul.
(e) - In emotional revolt, the emotions, under the influence of the sin nature, reject the authority of the mentality of the soul.
(f) - The result is anarchy in the soul, chaos, with wide emotional swings, and temporary or permanent psychosis.
(g) - Not only does emotional revolt of the soul produce pyschosis, but it explains such problems as apostasy, sublimation, degeneracy, and lack of capacity for life and love. (A) - This reaction occurs when the individual is in emotional revolt of the soul, in which the authority of the mentality of the soul has been neutralized or destroyed.
(B) - The mentality of the soul, not the emotion, contains Biblical information.
(C) - Emotional reaction is a revolt against divine design in the structure of the soul.
(D) - Under emotional revolt, and reaction to tragedy or pressure, the individual breaks under the pressure. (A) - When the mentality of the heart has Biblical information, there is capacity for love.
(B) - When the mentality of the soul dominates the soul, emotional response makes the individual very much aware of the fact that he is in love and that love exists in the soul. (A) - The frame of reference in the soul provides information for the memory center which stimulates response in the emotion. Hence, the emotion become the stimulus for happiness.
(B) - The conscience (norms & standards) also stimulates the emotion and causes the function of the priesthood, patriotism, and rapport with those whom you love.
(C) - The viewpoint of the soul provides stimulus in the emotions when someone expresses the divine viewpoint of life in public speaking or conversation. (A) - The Church Age:
(a) - Christ is absent from the earth during the Church Age; therefore, the filling of the Holy Spirit produces the character of Christ and the glory of Christ without emotion being an intergral part of spirituality. Rom 5:5; Gal 5:22-23.
(B) - The Millennium:
(b) - Emotion is never designed to produce character, but to respond to character.
(c) - Grace is the plan of God for the human race, and emotion as a responder appreciates grace, and responds to grace in a positive manner.
(d) - But emotion as an aggressor or dictator, supresses grace and promotes legalism.
(e) Remember that emotion cannot produce character, it can only respond to character.
(f) - Therefore, emotion and ecstatics cannot have spiritual content in the Church Age.
(g) - Emotion can respond to the filling of the Holy Spirit, or emotion can react to the filling of the Holy Spirit (grieving the Spirit), but emotion CANNOT BE the filling of the Holy Spirit.
(h) - If emotion was a part of spirituality today, we would never know what was real or what was false. (a) - Christ is present on the earth under perfect environment.
(b) - The angelic conflict is suspended due to the chaining of Satan and the imprisonment of all fallen angels and demons.
(c) - Because of the Millennial conditions, emotion is a bona fide part of the results of spirituality.
(d) - Why? Because in the Millennium the ministry of the Holy Spirit is designed to cause believers to appreciate Jesus Christ, who is present on the earth, rather than to produce the character of Christ in believers, as when He was absent.
(e) - Scripture on Millennial spirituality: Isaiah 29:19; 32:15; 44:3; Ezekiel 39:29; Joel 2:28-29; Zechariah 12:10. (A) - The emotional revolt of the soul causes the emotions to respond to the sin nature.
(B) - To take over dictatorship of the soul, the emotion must become the aggressor and neutralize the soul where Bible doctrine is located.
(C) - Instead of responding to the soul, the emotion becomes a tyrant, an aggressive nag; and therefore it shuts out the Bible doctrine in the soul.
(D) - Consequently, emotional revolt short-circuts the entire learning process and causes malfunction.
(E) - The malfunction in the learning and application process frustrates God's plan and God's grace in the life of the believer. (A) - Believers who live by their emotion are apostate, degenerate, and disoriented to truth.
(B) - The role of the emotion changes from responder to aggressor.
(C) - Believers with such confusion in their souls are troublemakers; therefore, other believers are commanded to separate from them.
(D) - This means separation from those involved in the tongues movement, healing movement, and any other religious activity where emotion is stressed.
(E) - The tongues movement, and anything that stresses emotion as a spiritual experience is in emotional revolt of the soul. (A) - In effect, the emotional revolt of the soul is analogous to the emotion fornicating with the sin nature instead of responding to the soul, which is the thinking part of the soul.
(B) - instead of responding to Bible doctrine in the soul, the emotion responds to mental attitude sins, lust patterns, and the human good of the sin nature.
(C) - Emotional fornication becomes emotional revolt.
(D) - Remember that emotion has no Bible doctrine content, no character; it can respond only to Bible doctrine in the soul.
(E) - Once the emotion revolts and becomes the aggressor, it loses all capacity for life and substitutes the misery spectrum (response to the sin nature) for the happiness spectrum (response to the soul).
(F) - The emotion is unfaithful.
(G) - The sin nature is the adulterer (lover) who turns the fornicating emotion into a tyrant-witch, upsetting the soul, and destroying all common sense and all true reasoning. (A) - The Baptism of Moses found in I Corinthians 12:2, "They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea." Moses was identified with the path through the sea. He was actually identified with the cloud (Christ) going through the path in the sea. Moses did not get wet, yet this is still called a baptism. The only people who were immersed were the Egyptians, and they all died. This is called a dry baptism.
(a) - He was a sinless human being with no need to repent.
(b) - He was associating Himself with the plan of God the Father in which He would die for the sins of the world.
(c) - Anyone who says that they are following the Lord in believer's baptism, or that they were baptized as Jesus was are guilty of blasphemy. (A) - The Baptism of the Holy Spirit began the Church Age.
(B) - The Baptism of Fire will begin the Millennial Kingdom. (A) - The parable of the wheat and the tares. Matthew 13:24-30, and Matthew 13:36-43. The wheat represents the believers who remain on the earth and go into the Millennial Kingdom, while the tares represent the unbelievers who are taken off of the earth and thrown into the fire.
(5) - The Baptism of Fire for the Gentiles is described in Matthew 25:32-38; Isaiah 42:1; Joel 3:11-12.
(A) - The filling of the Holy Spirit.
(B) - The consistent learning of the Word of God.
(C) - The application of what was learned. It is important to note, that the filling of the Holy Spirit is a requirement for all service and learning. 
Bible Doctrine Study Site: <><> Jude Index <><> 
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