Most everyone knows that something is tragically wrong in our world. Many make strong declarations saying that they do not need God and certainly do not believe the Bible. Some of these same people speak of a return to values, but God’s people know that without God’s Word, there are no absolutes; there is no fixed point of reference from which to point to specific values.
The Bible says in Jude 8, “Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities.”
These “filthy dreamers” are guilty of three distinct things. They defile the flesh; they despise dominion; and they speak evil of dignities. The intent of the expression “filthy dreamers” is to emphasize the fact that they have no pure thought.
God declares in His Word that “these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities.” When God says “Likewise,” He is making reference to what we find in verses 5 through 7.
“I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not. And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day. Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.”
God says, “Having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not.” These angels rebelled against God and are reserved in chains of darkness for the day of judgment. Attention is also called to Sodom and Gomorrah.
Then He says, “Likewise.” This means “in the same sense.” There are “filthy dreamers” alive today in these perilous times. We are living in a filthy age, an age when what was once unmentionable has become common place and is condoned by the masses.
We are called on to be tolerant. We are admonished constantly to accept anything that goes. As a matter of fact, those who cry out for tolerance from those of us who believe the Bible is the Word of God have absolutely no tolerance for us.
God has clearly drawn the lines. It is impossible to have the right standard without the Word of God. A very clever satanic plan has become the order of the day. We have raised a biblically-illiterate generation with no anchor no standard, and no moral guide because they have no Bible. They are open, accessible, and willing to follow personalities, strange ideas, or almost anything.
We are watching the implosion of one of the greatest nations on the face of the earth. It is happening before our very eyes. It is the responsibility of the preacher to preach the truth and to declare that such things are happening. At the same time, we must remain hopeful in Christ. Can you imagine that when considering all children conceived in our country, one third are born out of wedlock, one third are aborted, and only one third are born into homes with both parents? This is one of the clearest signs of the decay of our nation.
The Bible says in 2 Timothy 3:13 that “evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse.” This means that the world in which we live is going to get worse and worse. As the world gets worse, what we teach and preach from God’s Word seems more and more radical—even appearing to be some “off the wall” totally out-of-date set of ideas. In many places the churches are changing with the world. They may say that they are the same distance from the world that they have always been, but mark how far the world has drifted. “Evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse.”
There was a time when every church with the name “Baptist” on the sign would say practically the same thing about the Bible: “We believe the Bible is the Word of God, without error.” Something has gone very wrong in this country, but thank God we have the Bible, the Lord Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. We still have the pattern—God’s Word.
If there is no truth, if there is no absolute, if people believe there is no God to answer to, it is no wonder they behave the way they do.
Something must be done! Help is not going to come from Queens’ Park or Ottawa. We have spent too many years believing that we could change the moral standards of our nation by changing the government.
If our nation is going to be helped, she is going to be helped through churches that believe the Bible and speak out the truth. She is going to be helped through homes where people believe the Bible, pray with their children, read the Word of God, and stand for the truth. If she is going to be helped, it will be through Christian people that keep the right philosophy before boys and girls and young men women, a philosophy that grows out of the right theology.
This is the day and hour of greatest responsibility for the church. This is not a time to adjust to the low living around us. We must seize the moment. If you ever intend to be faithful to God, this is the time to do it. If you ever intend to love your church, to be faithful to your church, and to pray for your church and pastor, this is the time to do it. The world does not need an imitation of itself. We must hear from God. Pray for revival.
“And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil” John 3:19
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