Do
Not be Deceived by Form (without
substance) ~ “But know this,
that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of
themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to
parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without
self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers
of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying
its power. And from such people turn
away! For of this sort are those who
creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with
sins, led away by various lusts, always learning and never able to come to the
knowledge of the truth. Now as Jannes
and Jambres resisted Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt
minds, disapproved concerning the faith; but they will progress no further, for
their folly will be manifest to all, as theirs also was.
“But you have carefully
followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love,
perseverance, persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me at Antioch, at
Iconium, at Lystra—what persecutions I endured.
And out of them all the Lord delivered me. Yes, and all who desire to live godly in
Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.
But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and
being deceived. But you must continue in
the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you
have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures,
which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ
Jesus.
“All Scripture is given by
inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for
correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be
complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2
Timothy 3:1-17).
Jesus
warns that that many have a form of religion but deny the power they claim to
have.
Do
Not be Deceived by Mere Knowledge (without
application) ~ “But be doers of
the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not
a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he
observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he
was. But he who looks into the perfect
law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of
the work, this one will be blessed in what he does” (James
1:22-25).
Do
not be deceived by mere knowledge of God.
Do
Not Be Deceived by Religion (without
reality) ~ “If anyone among
you thinks he is religious, and does
not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one's religion is
useless. Pure and undefiled religion
before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their
trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world” (James
1:26-27).
“But know this, that in the last
days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of
money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful,
unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal,
despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather
than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! For of this sort are those who creep into
households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away
by various lusts, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of
the truth” (2 Timothy 3:1-7).
Do not be deceived
by a mere form of religion.
Do
Not Be Deceived by Mere Actions (test
for reality) ~ “Pure and undefiled
religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in
their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world” (James
1:27).
Jesus said, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one
another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My
disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:34-35).
“Then Jesus answered and said: ‘A certain man went down from
Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing,
wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a certain priest came down that
road. And when he saw him, he passed by
on the other side. Likewise a Levite,
when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other
side. But a certain Samaritan, as he
journeyed, came where he was. And when
he saw him, he had compassion. So he
went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on
his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to
the innkeeper, and said to him, “Take care of him; and whatever more you spend,
when I come again, I will repay you.” So
which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the
thieves?’ And he said, ‘He who showed
mercy on him.’ Then Jesus said to him,
‘Go and do likewise’” (Luke 10:30-37).
Jesus said, “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me
before it hated you. If you were of the
world, the world would love its own. Yet
because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore
the world hates you. Remember the word
that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also
persecute you. If they kept My word,
they will keep yours also. But all these
things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know Him who
sent Me. If I had not come and spoken to
them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. He who hates Me hates My Father also. If I had not done among them the works which
no one else did, they would have no sin; but now they have seen and also hated
both Me and My Father. But this happened
that the word might be fulfilled which is written in their law, ‘They hated Me
without a cause’” (John 15:18-25).
Do not be deceived, rather
test for reality versus mere religion.
The Core Issue ~ “Do not
love the world or the things in the world.
If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the
flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is
of the world. And the world is passing
away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever” (1
John 2:15-17).
“If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the
right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with
Christ in God” (Colossians 3:1-3).
“Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we
should be called children of God! Therefore the world does
not know us, because it did not know Him.
Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed
what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him,
for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies
himself, just as He is pure” (1 John 3:1-3).
~
Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT
LIFE NOW
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