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Today is Tuesday December 22, 2009 and we are studying the books of II John, III John, and Jude. Please read these in your Bible or Click Here to read them. You can also copy & paste this URL to your browser http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-december-22

Today's Message: Love of God
Having been enlightened to recognize false doctrine, we can add a resounding "Praise the Lord" as we keep ourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

The book of II John, III John, and Jude are the 24th , 25th , & 26th books of the New Testament and 63rd, 64th , & 65th books of the Bible. The book of II was written by the Apostle John to the "elect lady and her children," which means the Church and its members. (The Church is always addressed in the feminine gender because she is called the bride of Christ.). The purpose of the letter was to caution believers to be faithful to sound doctrine and to warn against false teachers. What we are to learn from the book is that we must guard against false teachers who cause us to lose the spiritual qualities we have developed and who make us partakers of their evil. In his brief letter to the Church the Apostle John reminds them that they are the elect, the selected few that are chosen by God Himself to represent the church. John teaches them that they are commanded to love one another. "The elder unto the elect lady and her children, whom I love in the truth; and not I only, but also all they that have known the truth; For the truth's sake, which dwelleth in us, and shall be with us for ever. Grace be with you, mercy, and peace, from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love. I rejoiced greatly that I found of thy children walking in truth, as we have received a commandment from the Father. And now I beseech thee, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment unto thee, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one another. And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it. For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist. Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward." - II John 1:1-8. As we accept Christ into our lives and grow as a Christian the things of the world slowly become less important to us, yet the things of God become more important. Instead of dwelling on the things that we have lost we rejoice at the rewards given to us for our faithfulness, regardless of the circumstances we face.

The book of III John was also written by the Apostle John to a man named Gaius. It is written to both him and the church with which he was connected. There is no way to identify who this man was, as the Bible gives no further information on him. The truths of the letter are applicable to all believers. The purpose of the letter was to commend Gaius and Demetrius for their Christian testimony and to reprove the unchristian behavior of Diotrephes. What we are to learn from the book is that our lives are examples of what others follow, whether it be good or evil. In this brief letter, John emphasizes the importance of staying away from people and things which are evil. “I wrote unto the church: but Diotrephes, who loveth to have the preeminence among them, receiveth us not. Wherefore, if I come, I will remember his deeds which he doeth, prating against us with malicious words: and not content therewith, neither doth he himself receive the brethren, and forbiddeth them that would, and casteth them out of the church. Beloved, follow not that which is evil, but that which is good. He that doeth good is of God: but he that doeth evil hath not seen God.” - III John I:9-11. Whether we are Christian's or not we set an example for others, if we are doing things that are immoral and or malicious others will mimic us and do them also. Likewise, if we are doing things in a godly way, others will mimic that also. It is said that it takes 21 days to form a good habit, yet in an instant we can turn a good habit into a bad one. As a Bible school teacher in my church, I have seen so many families who were faithful to coming to church disappear because they missed one Sunday of church. The power of Satan is so scary, in a blink of an eye we can fall into his trap. However, God is much more powerful than him and if He can take me out of the mess that I had gotten myself into, all by myself, He can take anyone out of theirs.

The book of Jude was written by Jude (the brother of James, the earthly brother of Jesus by Mary and Joseph) and it was written to all Christians, although the specific audience at the time were members of churches in Palestine and/or Asia. The purpose of the letter was to warn against false teachers and what we are to learn from the book is that we must always be alert for false teachers who divert believers from the truth of God's Word. In this brief letter to all believers Jude expresses the importance of holding on to the truths of God's Word and being careful not to let the ungodly people get around them to corrupt their way of thinking. Jude addresses the issue of bringing false doctrine into the church, “Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ..........But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves. Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core. These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots; Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever.” - Jude 1:3,4, 10-13. There is a superficial and deceptive unity being promoted today by some who have joined hands with religions that reject Jesus as our Savior. Other religions deny either the total deity or the total humanity of Jesus. Some assume there is only One God, but that He is called by various names, such as Allah or Buddha. They ignorantly conclude that as long as you are sincere, it doesn't matter what you believe you will go to heaven. They may have received the written Word to some degree, but they have not received the Living Word, the Son of God into their hearts.

It is time that we take a stand for the truth instead of just going with the flow. God does not want us to live our lives to compromise, but be examples of the wonderful and miraculous events that take place only by living our lives for Christ. We can and will overcome ALL things through Christ, which strengthens us as long as we keep our eyes on Jesus.

Have a wonderful and blessed day/night and Merry Christmas.
God Bless You,
Christina

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