Bible Study at Surabaya - Monday, May 07, 2007

Based on Tabernacle structure, the epistle of Jude refers to the covering of badger skins, signifying the protection and attention of God towards the true church as well as separation from the false one. A complete indifference between the true and false is not revealed yet. Both are allowed to grow together just like wheat and tares mixed in the field, and the false is even more fascinating to many Christians, since the tares are exalting themselves above the wheat. Nonetheless, the separation will be manifested sometime.

Today we still learn about the church of the flesh.
Jude 1:8
8 Likewise also these dreamers defile the flesh, reject authority, and speak evil of dignitaries.
See how the church of the flesh conduct themselves:

• dreaming, intruding into those things which do not belong to the word of God. Such is carnal soul/mind.
• defiling the flesh, doing the works of the flesh. Such is carnal body.
• speaking evil of the Lord. Such is carnal spirit.
  Thus, the church of the flesh is nothing other than carnality; everything is measured carnally.

Church of the flesh and the true church will have different great feasts as follows:

1. Revelation 19:17-18, 21
   17 Then I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, "Come and gather together for the supper of the great God,
   18 "that you may eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, both small and great."
   21 And the rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse. And all the birds were filled with their flesh.
   great feast = great supper ; “eat the flesh” denotes a feast of the flesh or a great slaughter, which means perdition.
2. Revelation 19:9
   9 Then he said to me, "Write: ‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!?And he said to me, "These are the true sayings of God."
   That is to say, the marriage supper of the Lamb prepared for the true church that they may rejoice with everlasting joy.

Below we will see how God works to present the true church faultless as His perfect Bride, that they may welcome Jesus’ second coming as the Heavenly Groom and enter into the marriage supper of the Lamb.

Revelation 21:9-10
9 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls filled with the seven last plagues came to me and talked with me, saying, "Come, I will show you the bride, the Lamb’s wife."
10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,

The New Jerusalem, a city upon a high mountain, is to portray the Bride of God, the perfect true church. The true marriage is on a level with the true church and to be made the Bride of God / the New Jerusalem to welcome Jesus’ second coming and enter into the marriage supper of the Lamb.

In the parable of "Marriage of the King's Son" (Matt. 22:1-14), Jesus gave a lesson by the last verse “Many are called but few are chosen”, which means as follows:

• Many are called to become God members but few are chosen to become the perfect true church.
• Many are called to get married but few are chosen to have the perfect true marriage and to enter into the marriage supper of the Lamb.

To get married is not because we want but the Lord does. Whether our marriages will enter into the marriage supper of the Lamb depends on ourselves. The true marriage is like climbing New Jerusalem Mountain, a great and high mountain. It is not something we can do with ease but we need to struggle and sacrifice. (Note: struggle is to make strenuous efforts and sacrifices under difficulties). Husbands and wives need to sacrifice their time, energy, money, mental efforts, feelings, and their own lives, as Jesus the Heavenly Groom has given His life for us. Only the true teaching word should not be sacrificed as it is the true image of Jesus. Otherwise, everything is nothing.

Below are three obstacles to the great and high mountain:

1. At the foot of the mountain
   While Jesus was taking Peter, James, and John to pray on a high mountain, a young man at the foot of the mountain suffered epilepsy or mad pig disease. A pig symbolizes uncleanness related to sexual sins and eating-drinking (such as drunk and drugs) created as breakers of the marriage’s holiness, for Satan knows our marriages will not partake of the marriage supper of the Lamb without holiness.
   I am sorry for this testimony. Some time ago I met a pastor with the “Master of Theologia”, who is a committee member of Benny Hinn. He sent a message to me by a pastor of our organization (Tabernacle Pentecost Church), saying: “Please carry my message to Rev. Widjaja Hendra: Pray over me, lest I have an affair with another woman like my other friends.” Receiving the message, I was burst into shock. At the foot of the mountain uncleanness is waiting for each one of us, regardless of who we are, what title we have, how prominent we are as a pastor.
   To anticipate the spirit of uncleanness, we must bring our marriages to cling to Jesus the True Vine, which means being shepherded to the only true teaching word. It must be the true vine as we will also find the wild one. Thus, the center or main body of organism is Jesus Himself through the true teaching word - neither men nor church nor organization – by which we are sanctified intensively under shepherding service system.
   John 15:3
   3 "You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.
   “the word which I have spoken to you” = the true teaching word, which is disclosed its mystery. If branches separate themselves from the vine, they will not be pruned. In the same analogy as this, we will not be cleansed until being shepherded to the true vine.
   God cleanses us from sins that bind our body, soul, and spirit as follows:
   1 Corinthians 5:8, 11
   8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
   11 But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner––not even to eat with such a person.
   1. Sins of the body are fornication and drunkenness.
   2. Sins of the soul are covetousness, reviling, and lies. They bind fast and characterize into our lives. Very often we are invited to have lunch and we said that we had already eaten although actually we had not eaten yet because of keeping prestige. Such is a lie.
   3. Sin of the spirit is idolatry, that is, something that prevents our love and worship toward God.
      Unless we are cleansed from those sins, we cannot eat together; meaning we cannot unite with one another at either home or church. Put aside them and walk in sincerity and truth! We will be like in a feast. The more we are sanctified, the more we feel the feast, as real joy comes not from ease or riches, but from sincerity and truth by the work of the true teaching word. This joy will reach its peak at the marriage supper of the Lamb.
2. On hill
   Isaiah 5:1
   1 Now let me sing to my Well–beloved A song of my Beloved regarding His vineyard: My Well–beloved has a vineyard On a very fruitful hill.
   The vineyard shows a feast. Joy in marriage does not depend on wealth or big house but sincerity and truth in heart where there is no hypocrisy. We find the sincerity and truth in the true teaching word preached continuously.
   Judges 14:5
   5 So Samson went down to Timnah with his father and mother, and came to the vineyards of Timnah. Now to his surprise, a young lion came roaring against him.
   Vineyard on the hill was troubled with a young lion, intent on breaking peace in marriage by these two disturbances:
   1. heresies, causing us to doubt about the true doctrine which we have experienced and preached.
      Amos 3:12
      12 Thus says the LORD: “As a shepherd takes from the mouth of a lion Two legs or a piece of an ear, So shall the children of Israel be taken out Who dwell in Samaria––In the corner of a bed and on the edge of a couch!
      A lion, symbolizing heresies, keens on legs and ears.
      2 Timothy 4:2-4
      2 Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.
      3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers;
      4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.
      In case one’s ears are bitten, he prefers fables to teaching word and his legs are thus bitten. Legs here points to conviction. Such a man has neither attention nor conviction of the true doctrine; he doubts and be like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. There is no peace in all his ways, even being drown/decreased.
      Lions are destroying, we therefore must hold fast to the only true teaching word which we have experienced, witnessed, and preached, and pastors should become the role model of the church in faith.
      Hebrews 13:7-9
      7 Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of their conduct.
      8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
      9 Do not be carried about with various and strange doctrines. For it is good that the heart be established by grace, not with foods which have not profited those who have been occupied with them.
      Jesus Christ is the same in terms of His teaching. We must accordingly establish our faith in the true teaching word. We have to follow the example of the Late Rev. In Juwono as the founder of Lempin-El and the Late Rev. Pong Dongalemba. Both of them hold fast to the true teaching word until they died. Students of Lempin-El, you have to remember whether the church is drown or not depends on the pastor’s conviction. Once he doubts about the true doctrine, the church will lose peace and be drown.
   2. wrath or emotional anger
      Proverbs 19:12
      12 The king’s wrath is like the roaring of a lion, But his favor is like dew on the grass.
      Such anger leads to harshness by words and deeds. Wives are like a vessel. Once you say rough words, her heart breaks into two, but once you lay violent hands on her, it will break into pieces as if the vessel were cast down. As good as a potter can repair, there must be something missing. I said to youth in Malang and Surabaya to make an end of a love relationship with a man who hit her with hand because someday the man will hit her with his foot.
      Do you think that female lions will not do alike? In reality, the female are fiercer than male, for example, wives tend to blame their own husbands in case of fussy babies.
      That is a clip of troubled marriage and the answer is favor, which is like dew on the grass. Where there is favor, there shall be peace and abundance and everything must go well. Both pastor and the church will be easy to do their works.
3. On the top of mountain
   As Jesus was praying on the top of mountain, glistening, the three disciples – Peter, James, and John – fell asleep. Sleeping in worship (the preaching of the word/the glory) shows the heart as hard as the rock and those who dwell in the clefts of the rock are wolves. Thus, we will find on the top of mountain wolves howling to break the marriage union.
   See what a hard heart can do:
   1. self-truth: the one who does the wrong blames the others and God by the true doctrine for his justification.
      We must resist this by confessing and forgiving one another, so that the wolves will be struck motionless as the Blood of Jesus covers our sins.
   2. remain in the flesh nature.
      After praying, Jesus was transfigured, but the three disciples weren’t owing to their falling asleep. We cannot remain in the flesh nature, but must be adorned and renewed by worship.
      1 Peter 3:3-6
      3 Do not let your adornment be merely outward––arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel––
      4 rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.
      5 For in this manner, in former times, the holy women who trusted in God also adorned themselves, being submissive to their own husbands,
      6 as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, whose daughters you are if you do good and are not afraid with any terror.
      Sarah was told of being barren and past the age of menopause that pregnancy was impossible with her. Because of her spiritual adornment however - gentle, quiet, and submissive -, the Lord opened her womb. Something impossible with men is made possible. By neither intelligence nor riches we will work, but God Himself will make a way for us in all our ways, either ministry or future until we become as glorious as He is when He comes a second time and we enter into the marriage supper of the Lamb.
   That’s the three obstacles we must resist, just like Lot facing the errors of Sodom and Gomorrah. Before the cities were destroyed, the angels of God got him to escape to the mountains. Lot had gone out but he could not escape to the mountains; he just could flee to Zoar and the sun rose there.

Genesis 19:19-23
19 "Indeed now, your servant has found favor in your sight, and you have increased your mercy which you have shown me by saving my life; but I cannot escape to the mountains, lest some evil overtake me and I die.
20 "See now, this city is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one; please let me escape there (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live."
21 And he said to him, "See, I have favored you concerning this thing also, in that I will not overthrow this city for which you have spoken.
22 "Hurry, escape there. For I cannot do anything until you arrive there." Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar.
23 The sun had risen upon the earth when Lot entered Zoar.

The high mountain is displayed as the ark of covenant and Zoar (the nearest city) refers to the altar of burnt offering, which signifies the cross: belittled, despised, and rejected. People say, “Life is hard, rejoice and be merry at church!” This motto is an expression of rejecting the cross. Where will you go then? The fire is coming, escape yourself to the cross of God! Outside the cross, God cannot do anything and neither can we. Come to the cross and confess all our mistakes and weaknesses! There the sun shines – regardless of our being evil or good. The mercy and favor of God is able to do the best until we become His perfect bride.
God bless you!