Jude

[0:00] Who but the soul that's late to know How just and only is the law Will to the cross of Christ repair And seek salvation only there How just and only is the law Will to the cross of Christ repair And seek salvation only there How just and only is the law

[1:01] Will to the cross of Christ repair And seek salvation only there How just and only is the law Will to the cross of Christ repair The cross of Christ repair The cross of Christ repair Will to the cross of Christ repair From all is the law Will to the cross of Christ repair The cross of Christ repair Thank you.

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[6:26] Well, the same truth is upon my mind to bring to you this evening with the help of God. You will find the text in the General Epistle of Jude verses 24 and 25.

[6:45] The General Epistle of Jude verses 24 and 25. Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy.

[7:08] To the only wise God, our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever.

[7:20] Amen. Amen. We considered the Epistle of Jude in general terms this morning as a chart given to us by God showing some of the dangers which attend the passage of the Lord's people as they journey on through life.

[7:54] Jude's epistle and there is a great connection between Jude's epistle and the second epistle of Peter.

[8:06] And if we can rely at all upon the dating of epistles as at the head of margins in some Bibles, we shall see that Jude's epistle and Peter's second epistle were written in the same year, the year A.D. 66.

[8:34] We cannot say that the dating of any epistle is exact because it doesn't form part of the inspired word of God.

[8:54] Nevertheless, those students of truth and of the movements of the apostles have given us their judgment and we would appreciate the connection date-wise between this epistle, Jude's epistle, and the second epistle of Peter.

[9:22] And if you, and I would like you to do this, to consider those two portions of the word of God together, you will see that Peter deals with many of the same problems that Jude deals with.

[9:43] And obviously, the difficulties were confronting both apostles at the same period and they, under the inspiration of the same Spirit, realised the same dangers and the same needs in the Church of God.

[10:04] And my friends, how good it is to be warned of those things which may destroy us if suffered of God to fall into them.

[10:21] And we have proved that some of those things into which we have fallen carry with them the strength and power to destruction apart from the recovering mercy and grace of God in Jesus Christ.

[10:44] I love the words of Jesus to Peter himself when Peter was involved in that terrible fall, denying his Lord at that most critical juncture of Christ's experience.

[11:03] experience. Jesus said to Peter, Simon, Simon, Satan hath desired to have you that he may sift you as wheat.

[11:15] But I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not. And when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.

[11:27] Now, Peter was in need of conversion. and Peter was in need of the strengthening of his faith and the preservation of his faith.

[11:43] I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not. And when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren. Well, Peter, in his first epistle especially, attends to that divine command in strengthening his brethren concerning their security in Jesus Christ.

[12:09] And my friends, in his second epistle, he also labours the same point as Jude does in his epistle. And all faithful ambassadors of Jesus Christ will speak of an insecurity outside inside of Jesus Christ and an absolute security in Jesus Christ.

[12:38] Well, now, I cited this morning three instances from the word of the ability God to keep when subject to great temptation and conflicting environment.

[13:11] I quoted Noah at the time when he built the ark to the saving of his house. I quoted Joseph when sold as a bond slave into Egypt and preserved by God's grace amidst the temptations of adversity and perhaps more so amidst the temptations of prosperity.

[13:46] For my friends, exalted position carries with it terrible temptation that if ever we need keeping in this world, we need keeping in a season of temporal prosperity.

[14:07] And then I mentioned over Dyer in the terrible evil house and kingdom of Ahab and Jezebel.

[14:19] I could go on with the great cloud of witnesses all testifying of the keeping power of this God who is able to keep his people from falling.

[14:36] And my friends, though we have record of the fall of not a few godly persons recorded for us in scripture, they are a warning against any propensity at all to self-confidence no matter the measure of grace that God has given us and the calling to which God has called us.

[15:13] We're only safe as we are kept. And our worst enemy is ourselves.

[15:26] So, what a mercy to realise an abiding dependence upon the keeping power of our God.

[15:44] Now let us just consider afresh the sufficiency and abiding ability of God to keep us from falling.

[16:03] You know, the doctrine of the almightyness of God is a most comforting doctrine. That whatever power militates against us, our God is greater than that power.

[16:26] Omnipotence is on our side when God is on our side. If God before us, who then can be against us?

[16:41] My friends, how good it is when realising the dangers of the way we appreciate the sufficiency of our God to keep us under all circumstances into which our lot and our life may take us, all the dangers to which we may be exposed in every department of life because youth has its peculiar dangers, dangers, middle life has its peculiar dangers, old age has its peculiar dangers, and my friends, in any area of life we're not secure except as the Lord secures us, and we each, however old or ever young we may be tonight, we need this God to keep us from all evil.

[18:03] I was talking to a young man last evening about an old man, his grandfather, who obviously is in decline, he's going old, and we were discussing the difficulties of growing old, the grace that we need to withdraw that others may take our place and sustain the responsibilities that were generally ours in former years.

[18:52] And my friends, I haven't yet come into that experience, but I can foresee the great grace that is needful to grow old graciously, to give up the reins to those whom God has appointed and prepared to succeed us, realizing that when the world has passed, when we have passed, the world goes on, sustained, maintained, by the hand of him, who may have condescended to use us in some small area of life, but who is well able to raise up others to take our responsibility in place, when we ourselves have gone the way of all the earth.

[20:01] now unto him that is able to keep you from falling. The seed of every evil is in every heart, and I see a great gulf in personal pride, it's easy to fall into, a condition and position of dishonour and disgrace through personal pride, that all that we may be so humbled and so humble in spirit as to be ready to bow to the will of

[21:04] God in all that God appoints for us, the way he determines us to take.

[21:19] Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling. the dangers of many, but don't despair.

[21:31] God is above them. God is able to keep us from falling when we are called to traverse the most slippery places of experience.

[21:47] and no enemy has the wisdom and power to destroy us while we are preserved and kept by God himself.

[22:06] Well, I must move on. Now, unto him that is able to keep you from falling and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy.

[22:24] Now, God has made provision for man's weakness and man's sinfulness and who among the Lord's people but what again and yet again has had abundant cause of confession, sorrow for sin before God.

[23:00] But God has made provision against the sins of his people. in such a way as to give promise of faultless presentation before the presence of his glory.

[23:29] glory of God is such as to reveal everything which is a spot for a blemish.

[23:55] such is the intrinsic glory and light of God as to be an absolute revelation.

[24:09] And my friends, we shall all stand before God revealed exactly as we are. nothing which belongs to us of a sinful or guilty nature can be concealed.

[24:31] The glory of God will be an absolute, exact, complete manifestation revelation of all things which concern lost mankind.

[24:53] Now, when we think of that, oh, how terrible will be the revelation of the sin and iniquity of the human race, why man takes great pains to conceal, to cover his faults and his failings, we all in readiness for the preservation of our character take great pains to conceal those weaknesses that may be obvious in us and we fear will also be made obvious to others.

[25:49] But, my friend, when we come before God, there's not such a thing as concealing because the glory of God is such that even the thoughts and intents of the heart are made manifest unto him and before him.

[26:21] Now the text speaks of an ability in God to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy.

[26:50] You and I think of sinners coming into the presence and glory of God, their hearts being filled with shame, they receive the just, the due reward of their deeds and they hear that terrible and everlasting sentence, depart from me, ye curse into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angel.

[27:25] How many of us here tonight have anticipated that word being spoken to us and with shame our heads hanging and we necessarily, irrecoverably descending into the bottomless spirit.

[28:02] But here the text speaks of an ability in God to present a people faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy.

[28:24] Now just think of the contrast between the just desert of sinners and the picture which the Holy Ghost by Jude presents to us here.

[28:37] Why we see the condemned criminal going as it were down to the consequence of his sins under the law of God to experience punishment in that place where hope and mercy never comes.

[29:01] A sentence passes with no hope of relief or recovery eternally.

[29:11] on the other hand we see people faultless as though they'd never sinned.

[29:30] Sons and daughters of Adam to whom Jude was writing sinners yes but sinners pardoned sinners forgiven whose sins have been atoned for who have been the subject of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ who came into this world to suffer bleed and die that their sins may be taken away forever from them as he suffered for their sakes their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more says God though your sins be as scarlet they shall be as wool though they be red like crimson they shall be whiter than snow my friends look at the whiteness around us and think that that is not so pure as the saints will be when they're presented faultless in the presence of the glory of our

[30:55] God you know the glory of God won't reveal one fault in the heart of a redeemed soul such is the cleansing efficacy of the precious blood of Jesus Christ faultless God as if you'd never sinned as if your life had been as pure as the law required it to be as if your every disposition under every circumstance had been holy reaction as if your heart had never entertained the least defilement or corrupt thought or evil intent everything which savors of sin in you has been atoned for by the precious blood of

[32:16] Jesus and you presented before the glory of God that glory revealing nothing in you by way of sin or of transgression faultless and my friends this is our Jesus Christ our precious Lord this is the transformation that his blood affects concerning sinners he's able to present you faultless before the presence of his glory no shame no shame no ground for shame no reason for shame everything that's brought guilt into your conscience shame that you hung your head before

[33:30] God saying guilty guilty guilty all that is gone washed away in sin atoning blood what is the consequence exceeding joy exceeding joy now I can't enlarge much upon this blessed estate and eternal enjoyment of the saints who are cleansed from their sins and presented in the righteousness the imputed righteousness of their precious Lord and Saviour my friends the exceeding joy you know we have two illustrations of joy in scripture my mind just doesn't register scripture to quote it exactly but it speaks of the joy and harvest the joy and harvest now the church in the presentation of it before the glory of

[35:06] God is like a husbandman in the harvest time but who's done the sowing who's done the labouring who's done the watching and the caring my friends Jesus Christ is the glorious husband he's done the sowing he's done the caring he's the one that has laboured and laboured to such an extent and such a degree that our minds fail to comprehend what it cost him to procure such a harvest for us a harvest is never attained without much labour and

[36:28] Jesus Christ condescended to be our labourer in sowing and caring that eventually we should partake or receive such a harvest now also another illustration the joy in harvest or the joy of them that divide the spoil now the battle's over the victory's won the booty that's gained from the enemy is the lawful portion of the victors they have the distribution of the spoil to divide among themselves and it's a joyous consequence of a mortal conflict that has preceded such division and my friends and such distribution and here we have the joy of the dividing of the spoils but look at the conflict look at the battle look at the captain of our salvation look at the terrible garments rolled in blood look at

[38:08] Gethsemane look at Calvary look what it cost him to gain the victory and here we are in the presence of God's glory reaping the benefit of his overcoming our enemies for us for he has conquered sin he's conquered death he's conquered hell he's conquered the grave and my friend there we are presented with exceeding joy without a blemish without a fault just to receive the fullness of his grace and partake of his inheritance forever now unto him that is able to keep you from falling and to present you faultless you faultless but you say ah but you don't know me but I know the power of the precious blood you faultless ah but you say look you don't know about the sins of my youth you don't know what

[39:26] I did in those treacherous days you before referred to and which stunned my heart when you mentioned them you don't know yes I do in this that I know those sins are forgivable and there's power in the precious blood of Christ to wash those sins away to present you faultless you say but you you don't understand me my mind is such a nature that on spiritual things I cannot dwell I'm ashamed of my profession I'm ashamed of my holy things let alone my day to day living my friend I cannot limit the power of the precious blood to cleanse you to make an exception in the presentation of the doctrine of the word this evening let me personally apply it and to present you full mess before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy exceeding joy saints presented before the glory of God exceed the joy of the angels that have been with God from the time of their creation and served him perfectly and unremittingly since the day he brought them into field and they commenced their obedience to his every command in paradise

[41:54] Michael Gabriel others of the archangels and angels that serve him day night in paradise don't know the joy of the redeemed when in perfection clothed in the righteousness of their precious Lord washed from every stain of sin in his precious blood they're presented faultless before the presence of his glory and he says come thou blessed of my father enter the inheritance prepared for you from before the foundation of the world exceeding joy now the saints know joys on earth oh there are times of great joy when the

[43:07] Lord by his spirit and grace brings his love sweetly to bear upon our soul and sometimes we feel the encumbrance of a body of sinner as we would prefer to depart and to be with Christ which would be far better exceeding joy I sat down under his shadow with great delight and his fruit was sweet to my taste he brought me into the banqueting house and his banner over me was love would you change places with anybody would you want a different position or experience or possession than what you now have my friends if there's anything that will produce absolute contentment in a sinner's heart it's to sit under the shadow of

[44:10] Christ but that's not the limit exceeding joy joy the joy of the saints on earth is but a taste of the stream compared with the river or fountain of joy which awaits them in the presence of his glory and to all eternity exceeding joy exceeding joy oh how that very expression makes the so called joys and pleasures of this world empty sounds empty sounds exceeding joy well to the only wise God our saviour be glory majesty dominion and power both now can you say it tonight now oh we would ascribe glory majesty dominion and power to him now and ever so let it be amen 1138 now may who from the dead brought the shepherd of the sheep

[46:21] Jesus Christ our king and head all their souls in safety keepероnim and then the spiritual river and may all the river each and low and and and the storm Dream room Volvo CHOIR SINGS

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