We will still be continuing learning the epistle of Jude, which is in Tabernacle structure referred to the covering of badger skins, also called the covering of judgment. The term “covering” denotes the protection and attention of God towards the true church (wheat) as well as separation from the false ones (tares). We must be extremely cautious with the false; they do seem to be greater and swifter in growth, but they will someday be burnt in fire. The true church, however, is slower but sure to be stored in the barn (the kingdom of a thousand-year peace and the kingdom of heaven).
For that reason, we must be extra careful and must not notice only the physical characteristics in any spiritual matter. Or else, we will be cheated and trapped in the false church.
There are four types of the false church as mentioned below:
- unshepherded church (vs. 4)
- law-based church (vs. 5)
- satanic church in the likeness of Sodom and Gomorrah (vs. 6-7)
- fleshly church (starting vs. 8)
We are learning Jude 1:12
12 These are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots;
Clouds without water are empty clouds. Clouds here signify glory, the sons of God covered with glory, but if they are not filled with the doctrine, they will be empty and blown with the winds (the wind of temptations and the wind of heresies) until they perish.
We are learning more about “These are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves.” The false churches are spots in the forming of the Body of Christ. The word “spot” implies being imperfect. There are two spots as follows:
- “they feast without fear” = people yielding to intense craving.
As it had happened to the people of Israel in the wilderness, they craved for meat and so they were destroyed by the Lord.
Numbers 11:4-6
4 Now the mixed multitude who were among them yielded to intense craving; so the children of Israel also wept again and said: "Who will give us meat to eat?
5 "We remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic;
6 "but now our whole being is dried up; there is nothing at all except this manna before our eyes!"
In the new version Indonesian Bible, “the mixed multitude” is written as orang-orang bajingan, which means rogues; and in the old version, bangsa kacauan, which means wild people. These people were strangers who followed the people of Israel out of Egypt and passed through the sea, but did not keep Passover. Those wild people portray the false church that may be about to influence the true Church to gain fleshly matters in Christ, not the word. They despised manna because of intense craving. So we can say, the craved wild people are pastors and Christians who get bored with the shepherding word; they pursue fleshly matters and no longer desire the word, even they dare to sacrifice the word to get fleshly matters. Maybe they do get them – even if to oppose the word of God, but while they are about to enjoy it, they have died.
Numbers 11:33-34
33 But while the meat was still between their teeth, before it was chewed, the wrath of the LORD was aroused against the people, and the LORD struck the people with a very great plague.
34 So he called the name of that place Kibroth Hattaavah, because there they buried the people who had yielded to craving.
Kibroth Hattaavah was a burial place of the people who had yielded to intense craving, that is to say, the burial of craving.
That the meat was between their teeth implies something in hand; it seemed that they had exactly gotten what they wanted, but they had died before enjoying it. Dying here means spiritual death and the second death (destruction in hell).
In order that we do not enter into the burial of craving/destruction, we must take heed to the burial of water baptism.
Romans 6:4
4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
Just as Jesus was baptized, even so we must be baptized.
- the requirement is to be dead to these five sins: malice, deceit/lie, hypocrisy, envy, and evil speaking.
Let us check these five sins before being baptized in water, or else the Kibroth Hattaavah (the burial of craving) will appear.
1 Peter 2:1
1 Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking,
- the implementation is to be buried with Christ into water.
- the result is to desire the shepherding word more than anything, just as newborn babes desire breast milk.
1 Peter 2:2
2 as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby,
Nothing can substitute the need of babes, which is milk. When a baby cries over milk, he will not stop crying until he gets the milk. This illustration is to describe that newborn Christians will not exchange the word of God for any other things.
Let us check ourselves. Do not enter fleshly church with craving causing unappreciative manners to the word of God. Let us now have new life that desires and appreciates the word of God more than everything in the world. Furthermore, e have to sacrifice all worldly matters in order to get the shepherding word/the true teaching word. - “serving only themselves” = being egoistic
Jude 1:12
12 These are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves.
Here are the practices of egoism, which is symbolized with a goat.- unwillingness to give and share
Matthew 25:41-46
41 "Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels:
42 ‘for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink;
43 ‘I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.
44 "Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?
45 "Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.
46 "And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."
Thus, egoism here means stinginess. No stingy man will be saved from curses and destruction. Besides, the stingy must be greedy for God’s and other’s wealth.
God always gives opportunity to everyone to give and share with others as written in Mark 12, in which Jesus noticed how the people put money into the treasury. In Tabernacle Teaching, the treasury relates to the Ark of Covenant (http://www.gptkk.org/tabut-en.php) , referring to perfection.
Mark 12:41-42
41 Now Jesus sat opposite the treasury and saw how the people put money into the treasury. And many who were rich put in much.
42 Then one poor widow came and threw in two mites, which make a quadrans.
Thus, everyone gets the same chance to give money for the work of ministry as well as for the needy – no matter he is rich or poor.
“giving” is related to the two things below: - the forming of the Body of Christ
Since the days of King Josiah, people had put money into treasury to repair the temple of God. Thus, the treasury is connected with the forming of the spiritual temple of God, that is, the Body of Christ. See now, giving would be profitable as we are participated in the forming of the Body of Christ. - garment of the Bride
2 Corinthians 9:7-8
7 So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.
8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.
Giving is connected with good works abundant for the clean and bright garment of the Bride.
Revelation 19:8
8 And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts (Former Translation Indonesian Bible: perbuatan-perbuatan kebajikan good works) of the saints.
God wants our giving, beginning from tithe and special offering, because it relates to the forming of the perfect body of Christ and the abundance in good works as the clean and bright garment of the Bride.
Be careful, some people give but their garments are not bright. The woman of Babylon is also arrayed in fine linen, but not bright. What then makes it bright? Sincerity does. Only willing and cheerful givers will make their garments clean and bright.
2 Corinthians 9:7
7 So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.
It is no use to give grudgingly; the garment will not be bright and the giver will be built to be the body of Babylon. How to make it bright then? To give in times of need/in the sign of blood, just as the widow gave out of her poverty and retained honor from God. We therefore should give in need because we love God. Remember, brightness shines out of the heart. Very often we promise that we will give our money after getting a salary rise. This is wrong. When we are in times of need and the word of God encourages us to give our money, we should give it up. In such a manner, we give in the sign of blood and that would be clean and bright garment.
- Fouling the true doctrine with unrighteous and unholy way of life.
Ezekiel 34:17-19
17 ‘And as for you, O My flock, thus says the Lord GOD: "Behold, I shall judge between sheep and sheep, between rams and goats.
18 "Is it too little for you to have eaten up the good pasture, that you must tread down with your feet the residue of your pasture––and to have drunk of the clear waters, that you must foul the residue with your feet?
19 "And as for My flock, they eat what you have trampled with your feet, and they drink what you have fouled with your feet."
Such a life way will cause to fail the desire of those who want to hear the doctrine because they have consumed the true teaching word but they trampled the grass and water until other sheep cannot eat and drink. The Lord will chase away the egoistic goat to the place of curse. Students should not cheat and officers should not do corruption as well as merchant should not lie so that the true teaching word is not fouled. On the contrary, what we should do is to adorn the doctrine.
Titus 2:7-10
7 in all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works; in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility,
8 sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may be ashamed, having nothing evil to say of you.
9 Exhort bondservants to be obedient to their own masters, to be well pleasing in all things, not answering back,
10 not pilfering, but showing all good fidelity, that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things.
Whoever foul the teaching word will be accursed and destroyed. If we are employees, we must be obedient to our employer that we may adorn the teaching word. Not only at office, we must adorn the teaching word wherever we are to draw the others into the doctrine. By our obedience, we live in the doctrine and the others will be attracted to accept the doctrine, so that we all go for perfection. - Ezekiel 34:20-21
20 ‘Therefore thus says the Lord GOD to them: "Behold, I Myself will judge between the fat and the lean sheep.
21 "Because you have pushed with side and shoulder, butted all the weak ones with your horns, and scattered them abroad,
Not only from goats, sheep will be also separated from egoistic sheep, which loved to push with side and shoulder. What does it mean? Shoulder denotes responsibility; “to push with side and shoulder” means being unfaithful to and irresponsible with the work of ministry. Take this analogy: We have two hands that are faithful on their own places we cannot move. If they are unfaithful, they will be possible to be broken or disabled. In such condition, they cannot be useful when the body needs. It shows an egoism and consequently the unfaithful and irresponsible parts are useless and have to be cut, meaning perdition in weeping and gnashing of teeth. Let us now become serious because the Lord will judge between sheep and sheep according to the faithfulness and responsibility. You who have left the service and ministry for a long time should return to God before you cannot return anymore. Now the disabled hands still can be cured. The Lord will cut the hands and cast to the dark place if they keep in disability (unfaithfulness and irresponsibility) because He supposes that they are useless. It is indeed a terrible thing.
Matthew 25:26, 30
26 "But his lord answered and said to him, ‘You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed.
30 ‘And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
unfaithful and irresponsible = wicked and lazy. Such an unprofitable person will be cut and cast into curses and hell, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. On the other hand, the faithful and responsible servants will be joyful until the marriage supper of the Lamb.
Matthew 25:21
21 "His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.
We must be extremely cautious, as the wheat were sifted twice. God sifts and so does Satan. Sheep will definitely be separated from goats and they will still be separated from each other. Pastors will be separated from one another and so will ministers, just as Abel was separated from Cain and Jacob from Esau. Everything will be apparent at the end of the day.
How then to clean spots in our lives?
- by the word of God
Ephesians 5:25-27
25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,
26 that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word,
27 that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.
The Husband washed His wife by water and the word. What kind of word is it? It is the word of the Husband / the Bride Tidings / the word sharper than any two-edged sword. Seeing that, we need to attend Bible Study Service in which the teaching word is emphasized strongly and deeply for our sanctification.
The power of the Bride Tidings to sanctify is like soap to cleanse spots and like fire to purify rust.
Malachi 3:1-3
1 "Behold, I send My messenger, And he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, Will suddenly come to His temple, Even the Messenger of the covenant, In whom you delight. Behold, He is coming," Says the LORD of hosts.
2 "But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire And like launderer’s soap.
3 He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi, And purge them as gold and silver, That they may offer to the LORD An offering in righteousness.
To cleanse spots on the ministry robe, we need to rinse it with a soap. Rinse means forward-backward movements; implying the word repeated over again. Some times ago we read a verse and today we reread the verse. This repetition is very effective to cleanse spots we can see on the garments, such as wickedness and laziness, unfaithfulness and irresponsibility. The word preached repetitively is not to make us bored; also, it does not mean that the preacher could not find another preaching material. It is all nothing but to cleanse spots perfectly.
Besides with launderer’s soap, we are also purified with a refiner’s fire from unseen rusts. Notice a car being inflated because of rust inside it. Only welding (the refiner’s fire) can clean the rust inside our heart and mind. Thus, a refiner’s fire is used to purify rusts inside of the heart and mind, such as follows:
Mark 7:21-23
21 "For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,
22 "thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness.
23 "All these evil things come from within and defile a man."
Rusts are divided into two groups: (1) evil desires provoking men to the love of money and (2) unclean desires provoking men to sexual sins and eating drinking.
As the ministers of God, we must be purified from sins outside and inside that we may offer up sacrifices acceptable to Him. We cannot take a pleasure in godliness. Cain and Abel were both servants of God, but only Abel’s sacrifices were acceptable to God, since Cain did the ministry in spot that is to say anger. We still remember Jude 1:11 about the spots of Cain, Balaam, and Korah that must be cleansed by the teaching word / the Bride Tidings / the word sharper than any two-edged sword / the word which is like launderer’s soap and a refiner’s fire. The word of gospel is significant to bring sinners to have faith in Christ and be baptized with water and the Spirit, so that they may serve and minister God. Nonetheless, they still have spots, which can be purified by the teaching word only. Spots are purified, we may offer up sacrifices acceptable to God until we become perfect, without blemish and spot. - by the process of reconciliation / by the blood
Without the teaching word, we keep so many spots and can do nothing.
2 Peter 3:14
14 Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless;
“to be found by Him in peace” means in the blood of Jesus the High Priest. Formerly, the blood was from animal but now, only the blood of Jesus can reconcile us and wash the spot.
In Tabernacle, there are two reconciliation ministries:
Altar of burnt offering (http://www.gptkk.org/mkb-en.php)
Animal was slain and the meat was burnt as well as the blood was smeared on the horn and poured under the altar of burnt offering for the reconciliation of sins. Now it speaks about the sacrifice of Jesus as the Lamb of God on the cross. We have the reconciliation through confessing sins to God and men, not repeating sins after being forgiven.
Blood-sprinkling in the Most Holy Place.
In ancient times, the high priest Aaron entered into the Most Holy Place once a year to sprinkle the blood. The blood-sprinkling now means to us sufferings because of committing no sin. What good is this to us?
2 Corinthians 4:16-17
16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.
17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory,
A suffering without sin is meant to change and renew our lives little by little; from shameful fleshly men into glorious spiritual men, even as glorious as Christ is (being perfect, without spot and blemish). The life change begins with honesty. As long as a man lies, he will remain in spot and blemish and will not be renewed (Ephesians 4).
The blood of reconciliation will draw the presence of the High Priest - provided we make peace with one another by confessing and forgiving sins, and we are strong and courageous to endure grief, suffering wrongfully. The High Priest is always present where there is reconciliation blood, not only to make peace, but also to give aid.
Hebrews 2:16-18
16 For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham.
17 Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.
18 For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.
He is able to aid us from any problem. The word “able” means being unrestricted by any problem. The merciful High Priest is able to aid us from any problem, even from the things which are impossible with men.
Now it is up to us to cleanse or not spots with the word and the blood of reconciliation. If we commit a sin and get a trouble, we should confess our sin immediately. After the High Priest makes propitiation for the sin, He is able to settle all problems. On the contrary, we commit no sin but suffer reproach; we therefore should not be fainthearted, but be grateful to the Lord. In such a manner, the High Priest is renewing us and making a way out for our troubles. Propitiation and aid will be continuing until our names are written on the book of life as it had happened in the days of Israel. When the Lord was angry because Israel worshiped the golden calf, Moses went up to the mountain to make peace with the Lord, not regarding his life. If the Lord would not forgive their sin, Moses let himself blotted out of the book of life. We can see no egoism found in Moses.
Exodus 32:30-33
30 Now it came to pass on the next day that Moses said to the people, "You have committed a great sin. So now I will go up to the LORD; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin."
31 Then Moses returned to the LORD and said, "Oh, these people have committed a great sin, and have made for themselves a god of gold!
32 "Yet now, if You will forgive their sin––but if not, I pray, blot me out of Your book which You have written."
33 And the LORD said to Moses, "Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot him out of My book.
Let us now have the reconciliation through the altar of burnt offering (confessing sins) although our sins are so huge. Nevertheless, there is a sin we often do not realize, i.e. idolatry. It can take the form of hoping others when we face problems until leaving the Lord. It is an idol because we do not come to the Lord but others.
We have struggled to be faithful but we suffer still. Don’t complain and deny your faithfulness! Or, if you do, you should beg for His pardon soon. The merciful High Priest will stretch out His hands to renew our lives, solve any problem, and write our names on the book of life. When the first time we believe in Christ, we are saved and written on His book. If we retain a sin, however, we will be blotted out of His book.
Now the question is: how do we know if we are written on the book of life? Make it sure when you are in peace; no complaint, no condemnation, no jealousy, and no anger. In such condition, the Hand of High Priest is able to help us. We may not allow ourselves to feel annoyed, for we will be blotted out of the book of life and finished off at the time of Jesus’ second coming. Indeed, we do not know when Christ will come back. We only know that the High Priest is now dwelling among us to give aid and write our names on His book. The things which are dead will be revived and which are impossible will be made possible with God.
God bless you!