The gospel of Jesus christ Through Peter, James, and Jude

 

 

 

The gospel of Jesus christ

Through Peter, James, and Jude

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Head

 

Peter spoke in a strong tone about “God’s judgment on factors that hinder the gospel and false prophets.” He even connected the false prophet with “the story of the sinning angel being imprisoned in hell and the Noah flood incident.” And he advised believers to beware of legalism and to persevere with patience, saying that believers would be tested and persecuted by them.

Peter talks about the characteristics of those who have resurrection life. He speaks of those who have resurrection life as "holy, royal priests. Those who participate in God's divinity." When Peter speaks of "the inner and outer manifestations of the saints," he exhorts them to live always in remembrance. These are recommendations such as brotherly love, not to be swayed by self-interest, control the lust of the flesh, not to wander like foreigners, and to persevere while thinking about the suffering of Christ.

Peter expressed the relationship between Christ and the church through the parable of a husband and wife. He used the expression that Christ's suffering and death are the appearance of spiritual deadness. and. He said, “After Christ died, he went to prison and preached the gospel to the dead,” and told believers to tend their flocks. There are "those in the church who shake the Bible's message about the resurrection of the saints and the temple built in the heart," and he warned believers that they should not interpret the Bible for their own purposes.

James explained the belief in resurrection life. He said, “There will be much persecution for the saints in the present resurrection, but endure persecution and testing.” Those who live the resurrection life are not affected by the environment. Those who believe that they have resurrection life should take steps to break away from legalism.

He presents “the internal and external conduct of a resurrection believer, being careful with your mouth, controlling your passions, not falling into the vanity of the world, praying for forgiveness of sins, etc.” Those who are their own masters judge and discriminate according to the law. Jude warned about false prophets. False prophets (humanism, legalism, and gnosticism) undermine the gospel. He compared false prophets to evil angels and Sodom and Gomorrah, and he warned against those who have wrong ideas about the resurrection.

Regarding those who believe in the resurrection of the body, he metaphorically said, "Jesus' body was not resurrected, but God made it disappear." He likened the “misconception about the disappearance of Jesus’ body” to “the parables of Moses and the resurrection of Enoch,” and warned against those who claim the resurrection of the body.

 

2024. 4

 

 

 

Missionary Committee of Truth

 

 

Through Peter, James, and Jude

the gospel of jesus christ

 

Part 1. Peter/ 1

 

Ⅰ. faith and salvation

1. The sufferings of Christ/ 1

2. Salvation/ 2

3. Faith/ 3

 

Ⅱ. Meaning of saints

1. A spiritual house like living stones/ 8

2. A royal priest/ 10

3. Those who participate in God’s divinity/ 11

 

Ⅲ. christian life

1. Holy life/ 13

2. The life of a steward/ 13

3. Servant of God/ 15

4. Wife and Husband/ 16

5. Participation in Christ’s suffering/18

6. One who feeds flocks of sheep/ 19

 

Ⅳ. Beware of false prophets and false teachers

1. The story of an angel who sinned/ 21

2. Noah’s flood story/ 22

3. The story of Sodom and Gomorrah/ 24

4. The story of Balaam/ 26

5. The story of a dog and a pig/ 27

 

Ⅴ. Kingdom of God in the Heart

1. God’s Day/ 29

2. The appearance of resurrection and the construction of a new temple/ 30

 

Part 2. James/ 32

 

Ⅰ. life of saints

1. Faith and wisdom/ 32

2. A humble life/ 33

3. A life that endures trials/ 35

4. Life of action/ 36

5. A life without discrimination/ 42

6. A life without mistakes in words/ 45

7. A life that separates from the world/ 48

8. A life without slandering others/ 50

9. A life without false color vision/ 52

10. Warning about wealth/ 53

11. Do not swear/ 55

 

Ⅱ. patience and prayer

1. Patience/56

2. Prayer/ 57

 

Part 3. Judah/ 61

 

Ⅰ. Judgment on false teachers

1. Legalists/ 61

2. The story of an angel who sinned/ 62

3. The story of Sodom and Gomorrah/ 63

 

Ⅱ. Those who cause division within the church

1. Those who divide the church/ 64

2. Coming out of legalism through the word of truth/ 68

Part 1. Peter

 

Ⅰ. faith and salvation

1. The sufferings of Christ

1 Peter 2:22-24 『Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.』

Peter explains the meaning of Jesus' death on the cross. Jesus died in obedience to the words of God the Father. That obedience was to redeem all human sins. In order for beings who left God to return to God, the problem of sin had to be resolved. So, Jesus dies on the cross on behalf of humans. And God will deliver “those who have faith in union with Jesus who died on the cross” from sin. Here, faith is the faith that dies with Jesus and is resurrected with Him. It is believed that believers die on the cross for sin and are resurrected with Jesus for righteousness.

『you should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.』So, pastors sometimes emphasize healing ministry in churches. On the surface, this term includes healing of illness, but on the other hand, it means that all humans are spiritually sick toward God. So, it tells us that through the cross of Christ, the sick are spiritually restored.

 

2. Salvation

1 Peter 1 verses 8-9『Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.』

This is how those who inherit the inheritance of the kingdom of God rejoice. The spirit comes from God, the body comes from the parents, and the soul is like a garment made by combining the spirit and body. The Bible expresses the soul as the old man. The old man must die. The soul contains the sin of greed. That is why the greedy soul kills the spirit. The old soul, the soul, can be removed through Jesus Christ. That is union with the cross of Jesus Christ. So, in order for the spirit to come back to life, the soul must be removed and a new soul must be put on. This is salvation.

It is said that Jesus' body died on the cross and his soul died. In 1 Peter 3:18, “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit.” Fresh is soul. The believer takes off the physical body, and the spirit puts on the spiritual body (resurrected body). The meaning of death on the cross is that the physical body dies and the spirit takes on a spiritual body and comes back to life with new life through the power of the Holy Spirit.

 

3. Faith

Peter became convinced that this is the Messiah prophesied in the Bible after the miracles of Jesus countless times.” In Matthew 16:13-14, Jesus asked the disciples, “When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, and he asked his disciples, “Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?” And they said, “Thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias, and others, Jeremias; or one of the prophets.” Then, Jesus asked the disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” When the disciples hesitated, Simon Peter answered.

Matthew 16:16, “And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 16:17, Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona : for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.” Jesus praised and blessed Peter.

However, one day, when Jesus walked on the sea, Peter fooled Jesus and immediately walked on the water, but when he saw the wind, he fell into the water. At this time, Jesus said to Peter, “You have little faith.” This faith is a faith under the law. Faith under the law responds to the flesh. So, Peter becomes afraid.

Matthew 14:28-31『And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. And he said, Come. And when Peter came down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?』

When “Peter, who was under the law,” said that Jesus would die on the cross and be resurrected three days later, he was not interested in the resurrection and only heard about the death of the cross. So, Peter strongly protested to Jesus, saying, “Please don’t do that.” Jesus even criticized Peter, telling him to go away, Satan. How did Peter become a rock-like believer?

Before Jesus' crucifixion, Peter denied Jesus three times before the rooster crows. And as Sue was being led to the cross, he ran away. But he shed tears of regret. He was the one who ran to the tomb after hearing from Mary Magdalene that Jesus had been resurrected. Meanwhile, Peter must have thought a lot about what kind of faith he had in Jesus. He was happy to see Jesus regard him as his best disciple, with the thought that he would occupy a place when Jesus was crowned as a powerful Messiah. Suddenly, he saw Jesus dying helplessly on the cross. He must have thought about the meaning of Jesus' death. And, he finally hears the news of resurrection.

The resurrected Jesus went to his disciples. “Jesus suddenly appeared to the disciples through the wall.” The disciples who were looking at him were shocked and afraid, thinking that he was a ghost. Jesus explained the resurrection body. He spoke about resurrection, saying, “It is not a physical body received from parents, but a spiritual body born from heaven.” Peter learned why Jesus had to die on the cross and be resurrected. There is no other way than this for God to revive a dead spirit. This is God’s justice (death on the cross) and love (resurrection).

After Jesus ascended to heaven, the Holy Spirit came, and Peter began evangelizing to people, quoting the contents of the Book of Joel. Acts 2:18-19 『And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy: And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, fire, and vapor of smoke:』

Sarka is the soul. This soul (spiritual body) is not the soul received from parents, but is the resurrected soul (spiritual body) received from heaven. So, through the Holy Spirit, the spirit takes on a spiritual body. The soul received from parents creates fear, but the soul received from heaven by the Holy Spirit becomes fearless.

When Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane before dying on the cross, his soul was activated and he developed fear. But this soul must die. In 1 Peter 3:18, “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit.” Fresh refers to the soul ( physical body). That is why the Bible says that salvation is the salvation of the soul. The old soul dies, and the revived spirit takes on the new soul from heaven. This is salvation.

Pneumatos (πνεύματός) means the Holy Spirit. 『Apo to pneumatos mu ἀπὸ τοῦ πνεύματός』 means “It will be poured out from my Spirit.” It is not the pouring of the Holy Spirit, but the pouring out of many gifts from the Holy Spirit. Here, gifts mean prophecy and vision. This sign appears to those who have been baptized in the Holy Spirit.

Children (young children) mean spiritual children. Those who first received the Holy Spirit are the ones who prophesy. In “Young People See a Vision,” the fantasy is a vision. “People whose religious life is mature” have a vision for the kingdom of God (the direction and goal of proclaiming the kingdom of God). “The dreams of old people” are those who are mature in faith running toward the goal of establishing the kingdom of God. This is what happens when they are filled with the Holy Spirit. Furthermore, the Holy Spirit pours out gifts on male and female servants.

When Peter was under the Holy Spirit, he had the faith to boldly preach the death of the cross and the resurrection.

This tells us that it is impossible without the coming of the Holy Spirit. It is not the kind of faith that can be achieved by a decision made with one's heart. Powered by the power of his Holy Spirit, Peter boldly preached even in places of danger. And, even when he was captured by Jewish leaders and imprisoned, he appeared relaxed and sang hymns. Eventually, the angel removes his chains, and Peter leaves prison. A faith like this could never come about without the Holy Spirit.

 

Ⅱ. meaning of saints

1. A spiritual house like living stones

1 Peter 2:6-8 『Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone(ἀκρογωνιαῖον), elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded. Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.』

“Acrogoniaeon” (ἀκρογωνιαῖον) is the chief (supreme) cornerstone. Zion is where the City of David was located. Generally, the temple refers to the temple in Jerusalem, and Peter speaks of placing “saints who become temples” in Zion. He tried to connect the saints with David's faith. Inside the Most Holy Place was the Ark of the Covenant, and inside the Ark of the Covenant were the two stone tablets of the Ten Commandments, Aaron's staff that budded, and a jar containing matna. Also, on top of the Ark of the Covenant are two angel-shaped figures (cherubim). Among the two angels, it symbolizes the throne of God and is called the mercy seat.

The Israelites did not recognize the importance of the Ark of the Covenant. It was to the extent that they were regarded as protective beings. Even during the time of Eli as high priest, there was an incident where the people used the Ark of the Covenant as a shield in war, but it was taken away by the enemy. The enemy army who took the Ark of the Covenant also feared God and tried to send it back, but people died and were injured. Among Israel, the person who treasured the Ark of the Covenant the most was David.

David danced and welcomed the Ark of the Covenant when it returned. And David takes the Ark of the Covenant and talks with the Lord. The cornerstone represents Jesus Christ. “Putting a stone in Zion” does not mean placing it in the city of Zion, but means reaching out to “saints who, like David, long for the Word and want to go to the throne of grace in the Most Holy Place.”For those who believe, the cornerstone is the precious Word (Christ), but for those who do not believe, it is just a stone.

Even today, the Word is considered as written in the Bible. It is simply a matter of believers reading the words of the Bible. So, they cannot meet Jesus Christ, who works through the Holy Spirit in the hearts of believers.

 

2. A priest like a king

1 Peter 2:9 『But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light;』

The Bible speaks of Christian identity in four ways. “A chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, the people of God.” The priest served as a mediator between God and sinners. Because the priest enters the sanctuary with the blood of dead animals, the priest acts as a representative of sinners and as a mediator of God's grace to forgive sins. However, because Jesus was resurrected and went directly to God as the high priest, and because he also sits at the right hand of God the Father, those in Christ also become priests who go directly to God as mediators. “The reason Peter spoke about identity” is “to call believers out of darkness (Satan: the source of sin) and into the wonderful light (God’s righteousness).”

The Jews who tried to keep the law fell into legalism and thought that they could obtain the righteousness of God just by keeping the law. However, when people realize that they are sinners who have left God through sacrifice and confess that they cannot reach God's righteousness except through the coming Christ, God sends Christ to repentant sinners. This is God's mercy. So, those who repent die with Jesus and believe with Christ, so they receive a body of present resurrection. Becoming a person guided by the Holy Spirit.

 

3. Those who participate in God’s divinity

2 Peter 1:4 『Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.』

Chapter 1 Verses 5-7 『And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.』

Eight virtues appear here, as if they must be accomplished step by step, but in faith there is virtue, in virtue there is knowledge, in knowledge there is self-control, in self-control there is perseverance, in perseverance there is godliness, and in godliness there is brethren. There is brotherly love, and in brotherly friendship there is love.

It is translated in the English Bible (niv) as 『Make every effort to add』. Of course, the King James translation is 『giving』, and in the Greek original it is παρεισενέγκαντες (Pareisenenkantes: apply) ἐπιχορηγήσατε (Epichoregesate: give)』(eight virtues) are given and applied.

Peter is saying that this is not achieved through human efforts, but that when one becomes one with God, divinity appears in this way. Virtue (excellence) is created through faith, and gifts are received through knowledge (unity with God), so a person can become arrogant. He who realizes this becomes self-controlled. So, this leads to patience (hypomone). Hypomone is staying at the throne of the Lord. So, it becomes piety (Eusebeian: loving God). That is why brotherly love and agape love are achieved.

 

Ⅲ. christian life

1. Holy life

In 1 Peter 1:16, “Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.』If God is holy, how can humans become holy? You may question it, but holiness is a life devoted to God. It is to burn oneself with Jesus Christ. To become holy, a believer must die on the cross with Jesus.

Then, God will resurrect the believer and recognize him as holy. Therefore, a holy person is dead to the world and is distinct from the world. Man does not become holy on his own, but is made holy by God. Holiness is the same thing as resurrection.

 

 

2. Life like a steward

『Treat one another without grumbling, serving one another as good stewards of God’s manifold grace, as each has received a gift(χάρισμα).』

There are many types of gifts (charisma). 1 Corinthians 12:8-11 also lists nine gifts. The gifts include the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, faith, healing, working of miracles, prophecy, discernment of spirits, various tongues, and interpretation of tongues.

Those who receive this gift should do it with a serving heart. It means that the person who has received the gift should not do what he or she has been given with his or her own thoughts and will, but should do it according to the guidance of his Holy Spirit.

Gifts are received from God. Then, the believer who has received the gift is not the owner of the gift, but rather the steward. Therefore, gifts cannot be a matter of personal pride and are not a matter of superiority or inferiority. Above all, gifts are given to serve and serve one another.

 

 

3. The servant of God

『You are free; do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but act as servants of God.』 Evil does not mean doing evil things in the world, but blocking the good will of God. “God’s good will” is to repent and return to God. Therefore, believers should not act like bystanders who say, “I am free from the world, so I do nothing.” This means that saints must carry out God’s will. God's will is to have everyone repent and come back and believe in the gospel of the cross and resurrection.

Today, if a pastor does not teach correctly about the death of the cross and resurrection, he or she becomes an evil person toward God. The pastor thinks he has been set free by believing in Jesus, but because he preaches distorted words, he becomes an evil person. Jesus' death on the cross has the meaning of atonement, but sinners must also become dead. This is to die in union with Jesus who died on the cross. This is what it means to be free from sin. However, believers must receive forgiveness of their sins every day, and those who continue to need the blood of Jesus are those who have distorted the Bible.

And, as Christ was resurrected spiritually, the saints were also resurrected with Him and received a new name. If you do not believe in the present resurrection, but believe in a future resurrection after the death of the body, this is a distortion of the Bible.

 

4. Husband and wife

1 Peter 3:1 『Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives;』

The husband and wife mentioned here are all believers in God in the church. This means that the wife is in Christ, but the husband believes in God but has not entered into Jesus Christ. A wife is her husband's helper. “The meaning of helping” was originally one, but since it was divided into two, it has the meaning of returning the two into one. Returning is the wife going to her husband.

Those who leave God return to Christ. It is like a wife (who leaves God) obeying her husband (Christ). So her wife obeys her husband. A wife's behavior is a life of obedience to her husband (Christ). So, the wife explains this kind of relationship to her husband who is not in Christ. Formerly her husband was a departed from God, but after her husband listened to her wife, he entered into Christ. They become one through the Holy Spirit.

So, the Bible tells us to explain the relationship between husband and wife as the relationship between Christ and the church. Perhaps the wife had not obeyed her husband before. However, after the wife is born again, she realizes the relationship between Christ and the church and obeys her husband who is outside of Christ, so her husband also realizes this principle and enters into Christ.

The husband sees his wife fearing God. This is the appearance of a person who has been born again with resurrection life. This is the appearance of a person whose fresh dies and who is reborn from heaven as a spiritual body. This is the transformed appearance of the one who died with Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 3:7 『Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honor unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.』 The husband is to treat his wife as if he were living an intimate relationship with God. Husband and wife become a community of life, like the relationship between Christ and the church. When this happens, it becomes a prayer to God.

 

5. Participation in Christ’s suffering

1 Peter 4:13『But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings(παθήμασιν); that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.』Pade Masin (παθήμασιν) does not mean the suffering of the cross, but means passion in Christ. So, this means union with the cross. Saints do not bear the cross themselves, but die united with Jesus on the cross. So, by being united with the resurrected Christ, we believe that saints are also resurrected.

Believers misunderstand that “participating in the sufferings of Christ” means serving and devoting oneself with a sacrificial spirit, but participating in the sufferings of Christ is fruitful. To spread the true gospel is to participate in suffering. Saints must be those who preach “the death that is united with the death of Jesus on the cross, and the present resurrection that is united with the resurrection of Christ,” and at this time, many persecutions and difficulties come. This is participating in the suffering of Christ.

When a believer said, “Trying to be forgiven of your sins through the blood of Jesus every day is like killing Jesus twice,” people immediately looked at him with strange eyes. When believers call for present-day resurrection, they are viewed as heretics. Because they learned it as doctrine.

 

6. One who feeds flocks of sheep

1 Peter 5:2-4『Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; Neither as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.』

An unclean person means a false prophet. In other words, he is greedy. Therefore, believers should not be forced to eat the Word, but serve with a willing heart, and not with a greedy heart, but only with a heart that loves the saints, the flock of God, and wants to serve happily. This means that believers must properly teach the death and resurrection of the cross.

And “the elders who served faithfully” will share in the glory of Christ the Chief Shepherd when he returns and will receive a crown that will not fade. The Bible says that saints are royal priests. After the period of the judges, during the time of Eli and Samuel, God directly ruled Israel as king. The priest was a priest as the king's representative. If there is a king, there must be people. The people are none other than those who have not been reborn into resurrection life in the church.

They are the ones who only step on the grounds of the sanctuary. Saints who have been reborn through resurrection life are those who are in Christ and play the role of priests who enter the Holy of Holies. So, regarding the issue of sin, Jesus says in Matthew 18:18, 『Verily I say to you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in He said, “Heaven.”

If a believer correctly explains the problem of sin to “those who have not been reborn into resurrection life in the church” and the believer accepts it, the problem of sin promised by the heavenly Father will be solved. However, believers who have not been born again through resurrection life think of sin as breaking the commandments. So, they believe that every time they commit a worldly sin, they must confess it and be forgiven by the blood of Jesus. However, the original sin is wanting to be like God, and as a result, one ate the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.

That is why Romans 6:3-4 tells us to die to sin. It is a promise that when the old self is crucified with Jesus, God will free believers from all their sins. When a believer speaks as a royal priest and a believer accepts the words, God gives the believer the power to forgive sins through the words of the believer in Christ. “What he in Christ says about sin” is the same thing Christ says.

 

Ⅳ. Beware of false prophets and false teachers

1. The story of the angel who sinned

2 Peter 2:4 『For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;』

Regarding the angels who sinned, it is the same concept as the angel who did not keep his position in Jude 1:6. These are people who want to be like God and who oppose God. This is because in his heart there was a greed to become like God. This story is the same as the incident of eating the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil in the Garden of Eden.

As the story about the Gnostics suddenly unfolds, the reason why the story of the evil angel appears is that the judgment on those who advocated Gnosticism was as if God did not forgive the angels who had sinned, but threw them into prison and placed them in a dark pit to be kept until judgment. Connect. Gnostics are people who promote their own righteousness. Likewise, the angels who sinned were deceived by Satan and thought that they could become like God without God. This is one's own righteousness. Self-righteousness is “not only thinking that one can become a god, but also thinking that one can create an idol and become a god.” God said he would judge the Gnostics like evil angels.

 

2. Noah’s flood story

2 Peter 2:5 『And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;』

In Noah's time, people abandoned God's promise (the woman's descendants) and lived according to their own ideas. Their thoughts were more important than God's, and they wanted to be as high as God.

Like Nimrod, who built the Tower of Babel, they ignored God. God sent a flood on the ungodly (those who did not wait for God's covenant). Flood means water baptism. Water baptism means dying in water. However, because Noah and his family entered the ark, they were created with new life. “Coming out of the ark” means new creation (resurrection: rebirth). This is because the ark symbolizes Christ on the cross.

“Peter’s purpose in bringing up this story” is to teach that baptism means death on the cross. However, Jews accept it as washing away their sins. So, they come into the church and spread the wrong message. Peter tells us that these sins are as big a sin as Noah's flood. Baptism includes water baptism and fire baptism, and water baptism symbolizes sinners who must die like Noah's flood.

And in 1 Peter 3:21, the exact meaning of water baptism is clearly stated. This means that water is not for washing away bodily filth, but for leaving with a good conscience. Baptism is when your old self dies with Jesus and goes out to resurrection life with Christ.

 

3. The story of Sodom and Gomorrah

2 Peter 2:6, 『And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly;』 Regarding the judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah, God is judging those who try to be higher than God. The standard of judgment is whether the creature wants to be like God. Before God judged, He sent angels and told them to repent and turn back, but they did not listen. They wanted to serve idols, destroy the created order, and establish their own righteousness.

Chapter 2 verses 7-8『And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;) 』

Lot kept God's promise, and the angels led Lot and his family out of Sodom, but his wife looked back and turned into a pillar of salt. “Looking back” is the image of someone who tries to demonstrate his righteousness like the Sodomites. Lot's wife refers to "those who have been called and come to church today, but who are still their own masters, not Christ."

“The reason why Peter introduced Sodom and Gomorrah” is related to baptism. Baptism by fire is death to the soul, just like being judged and killed in Sodom and Gomorrah. However, the Jews at that time did not know much about baptism. They were based on legalism, and although they believed in the gospel, they still had to follow the law. That is why Peter warns, “Those who spread false doctrines will be punished by God in this way.”

In chapter 2 verse 10, “But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government.” Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities.』"Following the flesh" refers to those who are strongly religious and believe in God according to their own thoughts. They are people who know the Bible well and serve diligently in church.

However, if you look at their actions, the Bible says that they walk in lust with a dirty conscience. That is why they despise Jesus’ rule. In other words, they believe that Jesus is not their master, but they are their master. Although they only say that they are the Lord, they can be said to be believers who live according to their own thoughts. They are bold, proud, have no fear of God, and blaspheme (blasphemy) against God's glory (δόξας). Those are those who do not believe in present resurrection.

 

4. The story of Balaam

2 Peter 3:15-16『And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you; as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.』

The Bible likens the false teacher to Balaam. Although Balaam was a Gentile, he met God, became a prophet trusted by God, and amazing works occurred.

He falls into the temptation of money and ends up committing an offense against God. False teachers spread lies like Balaam. They must believe in the gospel and also keep the law. They also preached wrong things about the resurrection. That is why they preach the resurrection of the body.

 

5. The story of a dog and a pig

2 Peter 2:22 『But it happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog was turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.』

Believers should look into dogs and pigs. Dogs mean strangers. When the Bible refers to a dog, it refers to the habits of a dog. In Proverbs 26:11, “As a dog returnseth to his vomit, so a fool returnseth to his folly.”

These words apply to those who, although God gave believers unfreedom through the law, live in bondage to the law. Apostle Paul said in Galatians 5:1, “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.” However, they are once again subject to the yoke of slavery. In Philippians 3:2, 『Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the precision.』

Injuring the body means circumcising the body according to the law. “Dogs, evildoers, and those who are circumcised in the flesh” refer to those who think they are saved by believing in Jesus Christ, but still cannot escape legalism.

In 『Do not give what is holy to dogs』, the holy thing is the word of God's gospel (death and resurrection on the cross). That is, those who repent and enter into Christ will be saved through resurrection life. In other words, the Bible says, “There is no need to give this gospel to those who say they believe in Jesus but say they must keep the law.”

『Do not throw your pearls before swine』, pearls mean the church (saints) where Jesus Christ sells everything and buys it for a price. Although believers have been forgiven of their sins and freed from the law through Jesus Christ, the Bible says that those who still try to follow the law and enter into sin are called dogs and pigs.

Although all sins of a believer have been forgiven in Christ, if a believer tries to become a holy person by judging whether or not he will sin again based on the law, he will become a dog or a pig before God.

“Lest they trample on it and turn and tear you to pieces.” Dogs and pigs hurt the saints. “Those who adhere to the law” are trampling and hurting the saints in Christ. In the early church, legalists tried to persuade believers within the church to return to Judaism. They harassed the believers through persecution and cajoling.

 

 

Ⅴ. Kingdom of God in the Heart

1. God’s Day

2 Peter 3:10 『But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.』

The Lord's Day does not mean the final judgment, but rather the coming into the hearts of believers. “The day the Lord enters the hearts of believers” comes to some people quickly and to others late. Because it depends on whether you obey the word of the Lord.

The Israelites who came out of Egypt could not enter the land of Canaan, and after wandering for 40 years, they all died except for Joshua Caleb, children under the age of 19, and those born in the wilderness. In the end, Joshua and Caleb also had to wait 40 years before entering Canaan due to the disobedient people.

Depending on whether one obeys or not, the glory of resurrection can suddenly come. In other words, believers who are not born again cannot enter Canaan, no matter how many years they attend church. In other words, he can be said to be a person who has not entered Christ.

The moment Christ enters a person who has been born again with resurrection life, a new creation occurs. That is why the new temple is planted in the hearts of believers. It is translated as “the heavens depart with a loud noise,” but this does not express the second coming of the Lord. “Matter being dissolved in hot fire” means that the physical body (old person) dies and thus becomes a new creation.

 

2. The appearance of resurrection and the new temple

In 2 Peter 3:8-9, “But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but he is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.』

“The image of the resurrection preached by Peter” refers to the millennium. The millennium is the kingdom of God (heaven) established in the hearts of believers. The term millennium refers not to a period of a thousand years, but to the complete coming of the kingdom of God in the heart. The thousand years are the advent of the complete kingdom of God. This means that the one who is united with the death and resurrection of the cross even at this moment is the millennial kingdom. This is the New Jerusalem, the new heaven and the new earth.

In order for saints to enter the millennium, they must die in water and fire. This is water baptism and fire baptism. This is union with the death of Jesus on the cross. The believer is united with the blood and with the dead flesh. The blood is sprinkled and the flesh is burned on the altar.

2 Peter 3:6-7 『Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.』This expresses water baptism and fire baptism.

 

 

 

 

 

Part 2. James

 

Ⅰ. life of saints

1. Faith and Wisdom

James 1:5-8 “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For He that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.”

Wisdom, in Chapter 1, Verse 4, is about a solution for how to deal with being deceived. If you lack wisdom, ask God.“Blowing with faith on the Almighty Powers” is because there is a definite answer. When you hear the word of the Lord, you go into it and do not judge. This means that if you judge, you will be shaken like the waves of the sea.

Faith is based on complete trust. There are many cases where Jesus healed people, and after healing them, Jesus said, “Your faith has saved you.” The Bible says that a person without faith is double-minded. These are people who believe in the Word of God, but mix their own thoughts. This means that ministers should not mix their own thoughts.

 

2. A life of humility

James 4:10 “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.” James spoke of seven humiliating postures.

First, he told us to obey God. Most of the recipients of the Epistle of James were Jewish Christians. They were still mired in legalism. “Obey God” may sound like “obey the Ten Commandments.” However, believers cannot completely keep the Ten Commandments. So, think about what it means to obey God. Since it is impossible to keep God's commands without the cross of Christ, we must come to the cross of Christ and live in the word of Christ. Ultimately, it means dying on the cross to greed. A life of humility and denial is the new commandment.

Second, resist the devil. The only way for the devil to escape is through the cross of Jesus Christ. If greed dies with Jesus on the cross, ultimately not even the devil can redeem him. Rather than shouting, “Go away, devil,” believers should shout, “I die every day.”

Third is to get closer to God the Father. Saints cannot approach God the Father directly. Only in Christ can we approach God the Father through the power of the Holy Spirit. Saints receive the guidance of the Holy Spirit at every moment. At this time, the Holy Spirit is the Comforter. Saints can receive the filling of the Holy Spirit by asking through prayer. Prayer should not be for worldly blessings, but should always be for the filling of the Holy Spirit.

Fourth, the Bible tells sinners to clean their hands. This means not to fall into sin. The pastor is asked to watch as if he is entering a state of sin, washing his hands every day. This does not mean to wash away your sins, but to avoid going into situations that cause sin.

Fifth, the Bible tells double-minded people to be sanctified. A double heart is a heart that believes in God but also loves the world. However, such people are spiritual adulterers. So, the Bible tells us to be sanctified (holy). The way for believers to become holy is to burn themselves to God and offer them as a spiritual living sacrifice. “Dying in union with Jesus Christ who died on the cross” is the way to become sanctified. This means dying to the greed of two hearts.

Sixth, the Bible tells us to mourn, lament, and cry. In Matthew 5:4, “Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.” The word “mourning” means to realize that one has left the Word of God and to mourn. “Laughter due to material pleasure” turns into mourning, and “joy due to material abundance” turns into worry.

Seventh, the Bible tells us to humble ourselves before the Lord. Double-minded people are poor in spirit. It means realizing the sins you have committed against God and confessing that you have become poor in spirit. In Matthew 5:3, “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Realizing sin means becoming poor in spirit. What the law tells us is that “your spirit is poor.”

 

3. A life that endures trials

James 1:2-4 『My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith workseth patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.』

The devil tries to test even the elect, and he even tempted Jesus on this earth. When a believer enters the devil's temptation, he or she will go and stay before the throne of God, so he should consider it joyful. Hypomone today has the same meaning as 『Contemplative (gazing at the face of God) prayer』.

“Going to God’s throne and staying there (he de hypopomone)” means having a complete ministry. (Ergon ἔργον: Ministry, Teleion τέλειον: Perfect, Eketo ἐχέτω: To have) If those who are entrusted with God's ministry enter Satan's temptation, they will not be able to do perfect ministry. So, if you go to the throne of God and stay there, you can escape from temptation and do perfect ministry.

 

4. A life of action

『But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.』

“One’s own face in the mirror” is not the true face, but a shadow. So, the shadow is the law, and the true image is Christ. In Colossians 2:16-17, “Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holy day, or of the new moon, or of the Sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.』

We learn that there were many controversies about the law and the gospel at the time of the early church. The law is a shadow of the coming of Christ, but the gospel is that Christ has come into the world. However, it is illogical for believers to keep the law even though Christ has come.

To buy an apartment, people go to a model house in advance, look at it, sign a contract for an apartment they like, and wait to move in. And, when the apartment is completed and you have to move into the house that the landlord has signed a contract with, it is the same as going to the model house you went to before and staying there. The model house is a shadow, but the real thing is the apartment you will move into. Likewise, if a believer accepts the gospel and is saved by faith, the believer must break away from the law, but if he continues to remain in the law, that means that his faith is not complete faith.

In Acts 15:12-41, there were many who said that the Jews at the time were saved by faith, but that they had to be circumcised. In the Antioch church, people who taught circumcision as a condition for salvation appeared, causing controversy and controversy. Regarding the "theological controversy regarding the doctrine of salvation," the Antioch church could not decide on its own, so it sent Paul, Barnabas, and several other representatives to the Jerusalem church. The theological debate about salvation that arose in the Antioch church also intensified in the Jerusalem church.

There were two grounds for Peter to refute the “claims of Pharisee Christians who present circumcision and the law as conditions for salvation.” First, the family of the centurion Cornelius, composed of Gentiles, and the members of the Jerusalem church, composed of Jews, were saved in the same way (7-9). Second, the Jewish ancestors of the past and the Jewish Christians who currently make up the Jerusalem church were saved in the same way (10-11). Peter emphasized that God's way of saving Gentiles and Jews is the same regardless of the era.

James saw that “Peter’s testimony of the gospel to Cornelius, a Gentile, leading to salvation (14) was not simply Peter’s experience, but the fulfillment of the words of the Bible (Amos 9:11-12).” Peter's ministry was consistent with the words of the prophets. James argued based on the Book of Amos that “salvation, whether for Jews or Gentiles, is not through circumcision or the law,” but “through faith in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.” The argument of Paul, Barnabas, Peter, and James was the same.

After hearing the final testimony of Peter, Paul, and James, the Jerusalem church leaders made the final decision and decided to send a letter to the Antioch church members to inform them of the decision. The Jerusalem Church officially stated, “Those who taught circumcision as a condition for salvation are people who have nothing to do with the Jerusalem Church.” In order to inform the Antioch church of its official position, the Jerusalem church sent Judas and Silas, who were members of the Jerusalem church, along with Paul and Barnabas to Antioch (22,27).

The Jerusalem church added, "In addition to the truth about salvation that emerged in the Antioch church, it also states that we must abstain from things sacrificed to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from fornication." Because the majority of the believers in the Antioch church were Gentiles, the way of life they had in the past when they served idols still remained. Based on the Law of Moses, James “wished that Gentile Christians would completely cut off everything related to idols and lead a proper religious life.”

The decision of the Jerusalem Church was "the first meeting in which the apostles and elders of the Jerusalem Church and the apostles and representatives of the Antioch Church gathered to discuss the issue of salvation," and the "Letter sent from the Jerusalem Church to the Antioch Church" was the first meeting in church history. It was an official document. Through meetings and official documents, the Jerusalem church condemned those who taught circumcision and the law as conditions for salvation as heretics.

So, what James said, “Faith without works is dead,” also refers to believers who do not leave the law and follow it. Doing means breaking away from the law. These things continue to happen today. Their love is faith without works. Many believers believe that “to be saved, you must receive forgiveness of sins through the blood of Jesus, as if offering sacrifices every day.” They are people who think that the Sabbath (Sunday observance) and the sabbatical year must be strictly observed, that the feasts must be observed, that tithes must be strictly observed, and that the church building is a holy place because it is called a temple. They are those who think of ministers as a group of priests, and those who are trapped in laws such as commandments that must be strictly followed literally.

“They say they are saved through faith in Jesus, but they do nothing to deviate from the law.” In other words, they are people who have not died to the law. “For a believer to escape from the law” ultimately means that he must realize that he is a sinner who must die to the law and die with Jesus Christ. However, they did not die with Jesus. In the Old Testament, sinners brought sacrifices into the sanctuary, killed them, passed on their sins, and sprinkled the blood on the altar to receive forgiveness for their sins. At this time, not only the victim died, but the sinner also died for his sin. However, the sinner thinks that since the scapegoat is dead, he has nothing to do with it.

On the principle that Jesus who died on the cross died as a substitute for people, those who believe in it will be saved, and similarly, the believer must believe that he died with Jesus. Romans 6:3-5 『Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrectio his.” Therefore, the deeds that James speaks of are deeds that escape from the law, and mean death with Jesus.

 

5. A life without discrimination

James 2:1 『My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ(τὴν πίστιν τοῦ κυρίου), the Lord of glory, with respect(προσωπολημψίαις)  of persons.』

“Ten pistin to curiu” (τὴν πίστιν τοῦ κυρίου) is the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ. The faith of Jesus Christ is the faith of death on the cross and resurrection. Prosoflampsias (προσωπολημψίαις) means "in front of the eyes".

In other words, we should not have faith in our Lord Jesus Christ in the things we see before our eyes. In the end, the Bible tells us that it is not our own faith, but the faith of Jesus Christ. “The faith one believes in oneself” is the faith of the physical mind (soul). The “self-denying faith of Jesus” becomes the faith of the spirit. Their faith eventually flows into humanistic faith and falls into a belief in blessings and fortunes.

“Church leaders who have fallen into the faith of fortune-telling” also discriminate against church members based on money. This is because they are not interested in reviving dead spirits, but rather want to grow the church by raising large donations and show off their own glory.

“The poor of the world” are those who desire not worldly blessings, but the spirit. So, God chooses them to own the kingdom of God. On the other hand, the rich in the world are poor in the kingdom of God. In the conversation between the rich young man and Jesus, Jesus tells the rich young man to become poor in relation to the world. And, Jesus tells the rich young man to follow Jesus. Because “following Jesus” is the way to possess the kingdom of God.

On the surface, this is happening because of money. However, behind the scenes, the leaders (ministers) of the prosperous church are ridiculing “those who long for the spirit and the kingdom of God.” And “world-loving churchgoers” also ridicule them. “Taking believers to court” means judging them based on doctrinal knowledge. They say, “If you just believe in Jesus, you will be saved, so you don’t have to worry about that.” They say, "Evidently keeping the commandments of the law is God's love and it is a concern for our neighbors, so we diligently keep the commandments set forth in the law." This is “those who are steeped in humanism in the church slandering born-again Christians,” just as the legalistic Jews did. A beautiful name is the name Christian.

The Bible teaches that believers must do worthwhile things. Loving one's neighbor is reviving a dead spirit. It is a valuable work if believers do it with the heart of the spirit.

However, believers are not interested in the spirit and deal with people through their physical eyes. They believe in Jesus with their carnal heart (soul heart). They are not interested in the spirit and the kingdom of God, but are only interested in what is going well in the world. They say, “God so loved the world,” and they say that if you believe in God well, all will be well in the world.

The supreme law means the law of the Holy Spirit. However, those who "discriminate among people" are those who believe with the eyes of the flesh and are legalists. They say that if they keep the law well, they love God and their neighbors.

The purpose of God giving the law was to make people realize their sins. So, while the people were trying to keep the law, they realized that they could not keep it and cried out to God. Then, God sends Jesus Christ. Through God's animal sacrifice, He reminded them of the woman's descendants that He had promised, but most Jews did not discover Christ in the law. Those who are born again are those who died to the law along with Jesus Christ. So, they proceed to the law of the Spirit over the law. The law of freedom means Jesus Christ.

The reason believers accept Jesus as their Lord is to receive His judgment. Mercy is what a believer receives from God, and if a believer does not show this mercy to others, he will receive a merciless judgment from Christ (become joyless). Due to the mercy the believer received from God, the dead spirit was revived, but if the believer is indifferent to saving the spirit of his brother, it would be a judgment without mercy from Christ. When believers receive the judgment of Christ and act upon it, they become merciful (joy) and proud.

 

6. A life without mistakes in words

James 3:1-3 『My brethren, be not many masters, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation. For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body. Behold, we put bits in the horses' mouths, that they may obey us; and we turn about their whole body. 』

The Bible says that saints should “listen well and speak slowly.” In other words, believers should speak after hearing the exact meaning of the Bible. The moment a saint speaks about the Bible, he becomes a teacher. The teacher here refers to a minister, and if a minister preaches a different message, he or she will receive greater judgment. So, a believer should think carefully about becoming a teacher. The teacher has been given the authority to speak by God, but if he teaches the wrong things, he will be judged greatly.

“He who does not stumble in his words” is the one who puts a bridle on his own body. The “Ho Logos” in the hearts of the saints (ministers) governs the saints (ministers) with words. If a minister is not controlled by the word of the Lord, he cannot be said to be a perfect person before God. The words of the “Ho Logos” within the saint control the person. So James gives several parables. First, a horse appears as a metaphor. “Putting a bit in a horse’s mouth” is to make the horse obey its owner.

The second metaphor is that the rudder of the ship controls the ship. Up to this point, we are talking about the role of Horogos in controlling the body. Then, the tongue appears. The tongue is a very small member of the body, but it has great power. Here, a small fire appears. It was likened to starting with a small fire and causing a huge fire. “The appearance of tongue and fire” means that negative results will result. In other words, the Bible tells us how dangerous it is for believers to speak with their own thoughts rather than with Hologos.

The tongue acts like fire, but it leads to negative results (a world of injustice). The world of fire can be seen by looking at the results of fire. Likewise, the “world of injustice” ruins the whole body and mind. So, the world of injustice is expressed as burning the wheel of life. Wrong words make life sink into suffering. Ultimately, it means entering Geennes spiritually. Geennes is translated as hellfire, but it is not hell but Hades. Those who are outside of Christ will be condemned to the second death in Hades.

Although expressed objectively, tongue means a tongue without “ho-logos.” It means that the pastor speaks according to his own thoughts. Therefore, he is evil to God and poison to those who hear him.

“Ministers without Christ resurrected with spiritual life” also perform all church rituals. They pray and sing hymns. However, they curse those who believe in spiritual resurrection. From the perspective of those who believe in present-day resurrection, the pastor is going down the wrong path, so when they point it out accurately, they criticize and curse them.

 

7. A life of separation from the world

James 4:1-3『From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. 』

When church leaders have a desire, their desire to achieve it is hedonistic. In the end, the Bible points out that church leaders fight because of their greed. The enlightenment leader tries to achieve it out of greed by using all kinds of methods, but ultimately fails to achieve it. “What ministers seek to gain by becoming teachers” cannot be achieved through such greed, but can only be achieved through petition to God.

They don't try to get it. In other words, ministers try to obtain things through worldly things, but God tells them to seek and obtain heavenly things. However, even if they ask God, God does not give them heavenly things because they do it for the pleasure of greed.

An adulterous woman means “a person who says she spiritually believes in God, but is a friend of the world.” Why does the Bible describe adulterers as women? The woman symbolizes “Eve, who ate the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil because she wanted to be like God,” and symbolizes those who have turned away from the word of God. A friend of the world symbolizes “a rich person who loves the world.” Those who have a lot of money in this world are also rich, but the rich here refers to those who have greed (old self, idol).

“God does not love the world” means not to be greedy. This is because greed originates from the physical body. “It is harder for a rich man to go to heaven than for a camel to go through the eye of a needle,” the Bible says. But there is one way, and that way is for the sinner to die to greed on the cross with Jesus.

God loves the saints “to the extent that the Holy Spirit living in their hearts envies God.” However, how great will God’s anger be because the ministers commit spiritual adultery in verse 4 of chapter 4? The Bible tells ministers to break away from greed and come into the love of God.

 

8. A life without slandering others

James 4:11-12『Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of his brother, and judgeth his brother his, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge. There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judges another? 』

In Matthew 7:1-2, “Judge not, that ye be not judged.” For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.』

During the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told his disciples, “Do not judge.” He especially said, “Do not criticize your brother.” Brothers mean brothers in faith. It is impossible for those in Christ to criticize one another. This is because criticism means looking with the eyes of the flesh and criticizing according to one's own standards. So, when believers (especially ministers) criticize their brothers, they end up judging them by the standards of the law. When a saint says, "He is dead to the law," he criticizes his brother, so he becomes alive to the law. This will result in him ascending to the position of God, the judge.

It is only God who governs the law. “The appearance of a human being who judges his neighbor” is the appearance of the person who ate the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. In the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, good is God, and evil is someone who ate from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil refers to the law.

Through the law, humans realize that they are sinful humans, and through the law, God's saving love (the gospel of Christ) is also present. “Eating the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” means “having greed in one’s heart.” He wants to become like God by eating the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. He wants to be a judge himself. He is a person who thinks that by keeping the law, he can obtain God's righteousness, and he is the one who ate the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

 

 

 

9. A life without empty thoughts

James 4:13-17 『Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that. But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil. Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him that it is sin.』

“Those who are speaking now” are to return to God. The people speaking are the rich people in the church. These rich people (especially ministers) are rich people in the church who are stained with greed. Rich people only think about doing business to make profits. Even if a rich person has a lot of money, it is of no use if the Lord takes him that night. Without knowing the will of the Lord, we are only doing vain things. A characteristic of rich people is making empty boasts. We can see cases where some ministers spew out empty words about how they achieved success by using the church.

A worthy work is “to save a dead spirit.” So, it is the work of saints to keep their spirit alive and come to the Lord. Ministers who are not interested in this are committing sin. Sin is not going to God.

 

10. Warning about wealth

James 5:1-3 『Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you. Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are mothheaten. Your gold and silver are cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.』 Rich people mean greedy ministers.

Eating flesh means blocking one’s approach to God. What caused it was greed.“People who become rich through greed” do not pay fair wages to their workers, but instead exploit them to obtain wealth. Likewise, spiritually, they do not nurture believers with the Word of God, but they make believers donate money for various reasons and enrich themselves.

This means that just as “legalistic Pharisees who claim to be the people of God” killed Jesus Christ on the cross, “church leaders steeped in humanism, legalism, and gnosticism” within the church killed Jesus Christ. However, Jesus Christ does not oppose them, but rather endures for a long time and waits for their return.

Due to the enormous conflicts that have emerged within the church (legalism, gnosticism, etc.), believers suffer. “Disputes arise between each other over whether this doctrine is right or that doctrine is right.” So the Bible tells believers to be patient and endure. The believers are to be patient so that they can realize their mistakes (legalism, gnosticism) and go on the right path of faith.

Just as parents judge when children fight in a family, when there is a fight between believers in a church, Christ in the heart judges. “He who spoke to the prophets” was Christ. In other words, “the one who persecuted the prophets” persecutes the prophets among God’s people. This is what is happening in Israel.

(God's Word), "Then say yes, and if not, say no." What God commands us to do is to be accepted as 『Yes, I will do it』, and what God tells us not to do is to be accepted as 『No (our word: Yes), we will not do it』.This can lead to confusion due to differences in linguistic conventions.

 

 

11. Do not swear

James 5:12 『But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, nor by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.』

Those who live by the words of Christ have no need for oaths. “Those who seek to demonstrate their righteousness” take an oath. Matthew 5:33-37 also says the same thing about oaths. Regarding oaths, the teaching of the Old Testament is, “The one who has sworn must keep what he has sworn.” Jehovah God did not forbid the people to voluntarily swear an oath, but if they made an oath, God commanded them to keep it.

However, Jesus told us not to be blind and even said, “It comes from evil.” Jesus did not unconditionally forbid the oath itself, but rather resolutely rejected the “hypocritical formal oaths of the Jews.” In particular, Jesus meant to immediately stop the "wrong habit of abusing the law's stipulation that "an oath to God must be kept" for their own convenience.

Jesus keenly pointed out that the Jewish religious leaders were teaching oaths incorrectly. They are obligated to keep “the oaths sworn with gold and gifts (offerings to the temple),” but they are not obligated to keep “the oaths sworn in words to the temple and the altar.” In response, Jesus said, “The temple is greater than gold, the altar is greater than the gifts, and God is greater than the temple and the altar.” All oaths, whether they are made with money or only in words, are ultimately made to God. So, any oath you make must be kept to your best, and there is no rule that says you have to keep some of the oaths and not others.

 

Ⅱ. patience and prayer

1. Patience

James 5:11 『Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.』

Hypomonen means going to the throne of God and staying there. “The long-suffering (macrodimesatae) of 5:10 and the patience (hypomone) of 5:11” are completely different stories in meaning. The Bible says that the core of James' faith is "hypomone."

Regarding coming to God's throne and staying there, James cited the parable of Job. However, it is not a story about the saint enduring the trials well and persevering like Job, but rather a story of God praising the saint for doing “hypomone” in the midst of it all. So, the Lord shows His mercy. Of course, Job was not good at hypopomone from the beginning. Job also heard criticism from his wife and blamed God during his suffering, but the Bible shows the process of repenting through conversation with his friends and turning to God.

James is saying to the Jewish believers, "Aren't you well aware of Job's hypomones?" So, God gives mercy and mercy to those who hypopomone, so instead of fighting over doctrinal issues within the church, first They are saying that if you do Hypomone, God will judge and organize all of this.

 

2. Prayer

James 5:13 『Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms.Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:』

In Greek, prayer is expressed in two ways. Proschke and Eukeda. Proschke (προσευχέσθω) is a compound word of pros (English: towards) and uke. Pros means praying to the God of God. So, proseuke is to go to the throne of God and pray about the kingdom of God. Yuke is when someone makes a wish to a god they believe in.

“When saints go to God, who is spirit, and pray,” it means listening to God’s will about the content of the prayer. For example, when suffering while evangelizing, a believer goes to God and listens to what God says. It is not for believers to ask God to do something; it is for believers to listen to God’s voice. So, if a believer hears God's voice and acts accordingly, he will escape suffering.

Proschke prayer means going to God's throne, seeking God's will, and praying earnestly. People should hear the word from God about why they get sick and what they should realize through their illness. The elders must be a person who becomes a hypomone (going to the throne of God), and he must also pray the prayer of proschke (praying to God in front of the throne).

When praying for the sick, “new believers who cannot pray with proschke” should remember that they are sinners and pray that they are “physically weak and always exposed to sin.” So, just as your “body polluted by sin” is sick, but you have sought righteousness through God’s grace through Jesus Christ, pray that your physical illness will also be healed. The moment they pray, they look at the cross of Jesus Christ, return to the moment they first believed, and enter into the forgiveness of all their sins from God. When they pray to God for the sick, they should pray for God to heal their illness just as he forgives their sins. This is the prayer of faith. Yuke's prayer is on a different level from Proschke's prayer, but when we gather together and pray, God listens.

“Elijah’s prayer” was the prayer of proschke (prayer to God by going to the throne). A person who prays to God like this is the prayer of a righteous person. So, the Bible says that prayer has great working power. When his disciples were unable to heal a demon-possessed child, his mother came to Jesus and told her that Jesus should heal him himself since his disciples were unable to heal him. So, Jesus said, “You rebellious people,” and healed the child. Afterwards, the disciples asked Jesus why we cannot be healed, and Jesus answered that the only answer was prayer (proschke). The disciples only prayed Yuke.

During the reign of King Ahab of northern Israel, the mountaineer was Elijah. Ahab married Jezebel, the daughter of the king of Sidon, served Baal and sinned against God. So, God declared through Elijah that there would be no rain for 3 years and 6 months. Elijah visited King Ahab and asked him to bring 400 prophets of Baal and 450 prophets of Asherah to Mount Carmel to find out who was the true god. They cried out to the gods Baal and Ysera from morning to evening, but there was no response. But as Elijah was praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the idol's altar. He had all the fake prophets killed. And after Elijah prayed to God for rain again for the people, it rained again. Elijah's prayer (proschke) was a prayer to drive out idols from the land and restore God's temple.

 

 

Part 3. Judah

 

Ⅰ. Judgment on false teachers

1. Legalists

Jude 1:17-19 『But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ; How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts. These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit.』

The idea is to remember what the apostles said in the Bible. Regarding the end times (escatu to cronu ἐσχάτου χρόνου), in the Bible, there are the times of Kairos (God's time) and the times of Cronus (physical time). Therefore, the end times do not mean the “eschatological times,” but the “end times of personal faith.” Even though the believer has lived a religious life for a long time, it has become much worse than when it first started. Believers become people who believe according to their own thoughts, do not fear God, and judge others carelessly due to their religious beliefs.

It is said that a believer is a person of the flesh, but in the Greek Bible, it is referred to as a soul. The soul is the old person. This is because there was a false teaching that salvation can only be achieved when the gospel and the law go together. Legalists had a significant negative influence on the early church.

 

2. The story of the angel who sinned

Jude 1:6 『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.』

The fact that he did not keep his position means that he escaped from God’s rule. The “judgment on those who tell lies (Gnostics)” is like “the angels who left their home were confined in eternal chains in darkness until the judgment of the great day.” Gnostics are people who promote their own righteousness. Likewise, the angels who did not keep their positions “thought that they could become like God without God.” This is one's own righteousness. Not only do they think that their righteousness can become gods, but they also set up idols and think that they are gods. God said he would judge the Gnostics like evil angels.

In 『left their own habitation』, one's own habitation is God's house. The house where the spirit enters is described as a tent. “The dwelling place of God’s kingdom where the spirit enters” is referred to as a tent on this earth. In 2 Corinthians 5:1-2, “For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:』

 

3. The story of Sodom and Gomorrah

Jude 1:7『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.』

“Going after strange flesh” means “following something other than God (oneself an idol)” in the flesh. Gnosticism represents a religion that discovers that there is divinity within humans and seeks to find it.

The judgment on the Gnostics is the third judgment on Sodom and Gomorrah. Sodom and Gomorrah were places of severe idolatry and homosexuality. This means spiritual adultery. Of course, homosexuality destroys God’s created order physically as well. In God’s eyes, homosexuality is different from all other sins. In 1 Corinthians 6:9, “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,』

 

Ⅱ. Those who cause division within the church

1. Those who divide the church

There was a lot of controversy about the resurrection during the early church. “It is a controversy between those who believe in resurrection and those who do not. It is a controversy over whether resurrection is physical life or spiritual life.” So in the end, it comes down to a debate about whether to come back to life physically or spiritually.

There are many who believe that in Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection, Jesus' corpse was transformed into a spiritual body. However, Jesus' body was taken by God on the Sabbath. God destroyed the body. John 3:13, “And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.” is an incorrect translation.

If we repeat the incorrect translation through the Greek Bible, it says, “Unless the Son of God, who is in heaven, comes out of heaven, no one will enter heaven.”“No one ascended to heaven without seeing death except the Son of Man.” The Son of Man is the first man, Adam, and the first to come out of heaven. In Ephesians 1:15, “Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints,”

In the second resurrection, Enoch ascended to heaven. No one saw Enoch die. Enoch is the eighth descendant after the first man, Adam, and symbolizes the resurrection of the new creation. In Hebrews 11:5, “By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and he was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.” Enoch was resurrected (transformed), and no one could find him, because he had not seen death. The reason is that God translated him before his transformation.

No one saw Moses die. He died at the age of 120. He died as a representative of the law. Moses is the shadow of Jesus Christ. In the end, he said they both died, but no one saw the bodies. And they were resurrected and ascended to heaven. Jesus Christ is the last man, Adam. Jesus died on the cross, Christ was resurrected, and the body disappeared before resurrection.

On Friday, Joseph of Arimathea buried Jesus' body and placed it in a tomb. God removed the body on Saturday (the Sabbath), and Christ was resurrected as a spirit on Sunday.

The Jews would not place a body on a cross on the Sabbath. In Numbers 19:11-22, corpses are considered unclean. Rest is called nephash in Hebrew, and it has the same root as nephesh. Nefesh means living being, and Nefash means breathing, vitality, and life. Therefore, corpse and rest have different meanings. Rest means getting rid of the body and replacing it with life.

Jesus healed on the Sabbath. In Matthew 12:9-13, Jesus heals a man with a withered hand on the Sabbath, and in Luke 13-14, Jesus heals a woman with a bent body on the Sabbath, heals a man with dropsy, and heals a man with dropsy on the Sabbath. He healed the sick. Jesus healed the sick and demon-possessed on the Sabbath. This is the removal of death on the Sabbath. This is the removal of sin. The disciples were picking grain in the wheat field on the Sabbath. You have to peel the ear to reveal the inside. It symbolizes them eating the fruit of resurrection.

However, in the Old Testament times, anyone who broke the Sabbath was stoned to death. This comes from the Sabbath regulations in Exodus (Exodus 31:14-15; 35:2). God told us to kill those who broke the Sabbath. God repeats the word kill twice.

Exodus 31:15 『Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to the LORD: whosoever doeth any work in the sabbath day, he shall surely(mut) be put to death(mut).』

The Hebrew word Mut means to die or die. This symbolizes water baptism and fire baptism. Breaking the Sabbath is disobedience and death on the cross. “The presence of a corpse on the Sabbath” is a violation of God’s holiness and must be destroyed. (Dying and dying again) “Becoming a corpse” means dying to sin (water baptism), and “getting rid of a corpse” means removing one’s clothes (fire baptism).

No one could find Sue's body. However, they found the resurrected body of Christ. Why do people believe that corpses are transformed into spiritual bodies? Their mortal bodies are too precious. The flesh is the body of sin, and the reason “the flesh is precious” is because the body of sin has not died. It shows that resurrection has nothing to do with the corpse. However, even today, most church people teach and believe in the resurrection of the body. When we talk about how great a sin false prophets are, as Jude points out, it is a sin like Noah's flood and the judgment of fire in Sodom and Gomorrah.

 

2. Leading believers away from legalism through the word of truth

Jude 1:23 『And others save with fear, pulling(harpazontes) them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.』

Harpazontes means to hold on. The saints are to hold on to them so that they are not dragged into the second death. Believers are to throw off the clothes of their old self, which has been tainted by spiritual original sin. And believers are to put on the clothes of resurrection, a new person. This is the gospel. However, legalists deceive them. Escaping from legalism is the path to salvation.