He who has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me shall be loved by my Father, and I will love him and will manifest myself to him.
These words spoke our Savior as he sat with his disciples on the night of his betrayal
through Judas Iscariot. He made it clear that what divides the faithful from the unfaithful are those who are keeping his commandments. And those commandments today have been roundly rejected by millions, being led by their unfaithful pastors who have replaced the words of God with their traditions and foolish reasonings.
As it is written in a certain place, And in this we know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.
The faithful servants will do as commanded because they walk in love. But when they refuse to keep those same commandments but claim to be in fellowship with the Lord, they are liars, and the truth is not in them. These words are from the apostle John, who walked with Jesus and was taught by him. And millions of foolish builders have rejected the rock in place of the sand, the teachings of men to be more esteemed than the words of the Lord and his disciples.
Over two thousand years since the church was established on Jesus Christ and his teachings. In that time frame, the evil one has been very busy destroying, wreaking havoc, sowing confusion, and using all forms of sinful desires to elevate the man instead of the Son of God so that the church today is in a very pitiful condition run by persons of vain arrogance and flawed understanding with the results being renegade pastors and half-wild flocks left to their ways, scattered if you will on the many hills and deep ravines of twisted teachings...
But the Lord is not unfaithful and will keep his flock though they are scattered far and wide upon the fields. He has his faithful servants who are not lazy in their calling or their labors and seek the lost wherever they may be found. These faithful shepherds do keep his commandments; they do observe his holy days, they will keep his sabbaths, and they will keep his Passover. They are his faithful shepherds. The ones who do not do as commanded are hirelings. You must learn the difference between the two and practice faithfulness to the Lord and his word.
Another vital aspect of the Christian faith is love, not as the world loves, which is always in decay, but the love of God manifested through His beloved Son, whom we are to imitate with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength. The love of God was seen on the cross as His Son took our place and our sins upon himself, indeed, not only ours but for the whole world. And after, He sat at His Father's right hand, interceding on our behalf as only a high priest can.
Love, faith, and obedience are the three pillars of the Christian walk. It is impossible to claim fellowship without them. By these, the world will know that we are disciples of the risen Lord. When we say that we have fellowship and do not walk as He walked, we make ourselves out to be liars, and the truth is not in us.
The worldly church calls Sunday the Lord’s Day, but that is a lie. The Lord set apart the seventh day of the week as His Day to worship Him and to rest from our labors. That day has always been on a Saturday until man decided to change it. Sunday is the first day of the week. When a believer cannot keep the Sabbath and is easily led astray by the words of men, then it stands to reason that they will also disobey the other nine at will. But you are not called to do so as the world does; you are called to follow the Lord Jesus Christ, his voice, and not a man's voice.
To be a follower of Jesus Christ is not the same as being a member of any church that claims to walk with Him. All churches make that boast, but few indeed live up to the calling. When a body denies his commandments, disregards his Sabbaths, despises his Passover, then I ask you, what does that body of believers have in common with the Lord they claim to profess? Have they not cut themselves off from that vine which nourishes the branch? Have they not noticed that the tree has withered? That the cloud delivers no water? The many divisions that have sprouted within the body result from removing the branch from the vine, the results being evident through acts of disobedience and disbelief.
Without faith, it is impossible to please God. Where is faith when obedience to his commands is not evident? When is love just a word that can be used as an ad-lib when needed? When the accolades of men are to be more sought after than the praises of God? Where traditions triumph over truth? When lawlessness is taught and practiced by unfaithful pastors and followed by ignorant sheep who desire the spoon rather than the plate. When the teachings of men have replaced the solid words of scripture and the false prophets, they have led many into organized religions and new creeds and dogmas of faith, but not the faith in Christ but more so in the words of men.
These things should not be found among the faithful in Christ Jesus, whom you are called to serve in truth, love, and obedience. Ours is a high calling in Christ, a call to serve in love, humility, humbleness of spirit, rich in forgiveness, not in arrogance, and neither with pretentious works. The eyes of the Lord are upon all men and know the hearts and intents. Therefore, we should serve with honorable intentions, not seeking our estate but far more for the betterment of others. Jesus Christ is our example and the example of those who sat under Him and those who learned from the apostles. If we remain on it, we have a solid foundation, but woe to those who pursue after liars and doctrines of men within whose ruins they shall be interred with if they do not repent.
The command to walk in love is pure and undefiled, but to practice it requires faith and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit of God. Remember that the Holy Spirit will lead the believer into all righteousness and truth. It will never lead you into disobedience against the law and commandments of God. Keep that thought firmly entrenched in your hearts as you walk in love. By so doing, you can avoid the clever snares and enticing speeches of the disobedient ones whose fate will be the eternal lake of fire if they do not repent their lawless words and practices. Love of God and his words keep the believer on the path of life, which indeed is narrow, and few there be which find it. If we walk in love and obedience to his commands and have faith in Christ Jesus, let us hold fast lest we be pulled away by careless hearts and slumbering in our faith. We need to watch and pray constantly. Pay attention to the signs of the times, for they are becoming increasingly deceptive and will sweep even the elect away if possible. Pray that we are not to be caught up unaware, nor to allow our love to grow cold because of the increasing lawlessness we are seeing, and neither to let our works of love fall by the wayside.
Many will fall away, and the Lord speaks of those calling themselves disciples. Many will find themselves on the broad road to destruction again, and here it means the believers. False teachers will arise and cause many to stumble in the faith and turn back from following Jesus. Hearts will become cold and callous, and the love of the things in this world will choke off the faith. Fear of what is coming will also turn hearts away as betrayal among the believers becomes a reality. Fathers will betray wives, sons, and daughters, and the children will betray their parents, but those not offended by the Lord Jesus are blessed.
We are not to take up the sword against those who are the enemies of Christ, but we are called to pray for those who persecute us, for did not the Lord do the same as he hung upon the cross? We are called to follow his example and love our enemies. To do the will of the Father is to trust in Him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength and to say, not my will but yours be done, as the faithful servant doing his master’s bidding. Once we have placed our confidence and hope in Him, let us not take it back as the plowman who pulls his hand away and turns back from plowing, for the Lord has no pleasure in those who respond and then turn back. And we are not of that kind, or have we misunderstood the high calling in Christ? Are we called to interpret his words according to our sinful desires? To choose this or discard that command at will as do so many to their shame? Be that far from us as faithful servants in Christ Jesus! Faithfulness is a robe of righteousness, and love is the shining cloak that shows the true disciple to a world that prefers the works of darkness. The light of Christ shines in the darkness, and the darkness can neither comprehend nor overcome it. We are the light that shines Christ in us if we remain in Him and his commands.
I strongly encourage you to remain faithful to Christ in everything, for we know that time is short.
I remain a brother and servant to the faithful in Christ Jesus.
Edward L Ordway
