Brother Mike Ministries

The many days of Judgment Day began on May 21, 2011!  
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ETERNAL LIFE: No Longer Possible!! ***

Whoso keeps the commandment shall feel no evil: and a wise man's heart discerns [will know] both time and judgment - Ec. 8:5

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Jude - Part 2 (verses 7-9)
By Brother Mike (8-21-15; 50 minutes) 
  


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 .
8
Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities .
9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee .


Verse 7: 

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

In this verse, we have the third example in which beings suffered the condemnation that was first mentioned in verse 4 as to coming upon those ungodly men who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, and who had secretly crept in among the elect. In our last message, we mentioned the Israelites who were brought out from Egypt, but who all, except Caleb and Joshua, later perished in the wilderness due to unbelief. And, we also mentioned the fallen angels who had not kept their former estate with the result that they were condemned to chains of darkness with no salvation possible for all eternity with complete destruction on the Last Day. Now, in this verse, we read of Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about them that had given themselves over to fornication, and were going after strange flesh with the result that they suffered the vengeance of eternal fire as fire and brimstone was rained down upon them. We read about the account of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19:1-30, which reads,  

1 And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground ;
2
And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant's house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night .
3
And he pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in unto him, and entered into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat .
4
But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter :
5 And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them .
6 And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him ,
7 And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly .
8 Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof
9 And they said, Stand back. And they said again, This one fellow came in to sojourn, and he will needs be a judge: now will we deal worse with thee, than with them. And they pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, in addition to came near to break the door .
10 But the men put forth their hand, and pulled Lot into the house to them, and shut to the door
11 And they smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great: so that they wearied themselves to find the door .
12
And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place :
13 For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it .
14 And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law .
15 And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city
16 And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the LORD being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city .
17 And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed
18 And Lot said unto them, Oh, not so, my Lord :
19 Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewed unto me in saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die :
20 Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live .
21 And he said unto him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for the which thou hast spoken .
22 Haste thee, escape thither; for I cannot do any thing till thou be come thither. Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar .
23 The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar
24 Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven ;
25 And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground .
26 But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt .
27 And Abraham gat up early in the morning to the place where he stood before the LORD
28 And he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and beheld, and, lo, the smoke of the country went up as the smoke of a furnace .
29 And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in the which Lot dwelt .
30 And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Zoar: and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters

Now, having read this whole account, it is clear what it means that they had given themselves over to fornication. As we read in the account, the people of the city had surrounded Lot's house,

5 And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them

That we may know them means that they desired to have sexual relations with these two angels. This is why we are told in Jude that the people of Sodom had given themselves over to fornication. They not only approved of homosexual relationships in general, but, now, they even wanted to have sex with the angels of God. Yes, they were likely sold out to fornication of every kind, which means they were probably also involved in other sexual deviations such as sex with animals, incest, pornography, masturbations and other kinds of fornications.  
 
But, what does this mean spiritually that they were given over to fornication? Well, since we know that spiritual fornication is the worship of false Gods, what this literal fornication of Sodom is pointing to is a spiritual fornication, which is the worship of false Gods. So Sodom is a picture of a group of people worshipping false Gods. But just who does Sodom and Gomorrah represent in our day? We get a good clue in Isaiah 1:10: 

Isa 1:10 Hear the word of the LORD, ye rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, ye people of Gomorrah

In this verse, Isaiah is prophesying against Judah and Jerusalem (Isaiah 1:1). Therefore, Sodom and Gomorrah must here refer to Judah and Jerusalem. And, since we know that Judah and Jerusalem here are a type of all the churches while leading on up to Judgment Day on May 21, 2011, we can be assured that Sodom and Gomorrah represents the state of all the churches while leading on up to May 21, 2011. We can see this also in Jeremiah 23 where we read, 

Jer 23:14 I have seen also in the prophets of Jerusalem an horrible thing: they commit adultery, and walk in lies: they strengthen also the hands of evildoers, that none doth return from his wickedness: they are all of them unto me as Sodom, and the inhabitants thereof as Gomorrah .  

Here, once again, Jeremiah is prophesying against Jerusalem and he says, they are all of them unto me as Sodom, and the inhabitants thereof as Gomorrah. So, once again, Jerusalem is compared to being as Sodom and Gomorrah. And, since we know that Jerusalem here is a type of the New Testament churches while leading on up to Judgment Day on May 21, 2011, we can be confident that Sodom and Gomorrah represents all the churches during this time period. 

But, we find in scripture that Sodom and Gomorrah can also typify Babylon, which is the world including the churches while leading on up to May 21, 2011 and after. We read in Isaiah 13,

Isa 13:19 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees' excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah

This is a prophecy foretelling the destruction of Babylon, which is the kingdom of Satan, which is a picture of the whole world including the churches. This destruction, we know, took place beginning on May 21, 2011 when Yahweh brought spiritual Judgment Day upon the whole world including the churches, which was typified in the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Now, knowing that Sodom and Gomorrah is a picture of the whole world including the New Testament churches, when we read in Jude that Sodom and Gomorrah are giving themselves over to fornication, it symbolizes the New Testament churches and the whole world giving themselves over to spiritual fornication, which is the worship of false Gods. So, now, our verse takes on a whole new meaning. It's not that the literal Sodom and Gomorrah is a picture of giving themselves over to literal fornication such as homosexuality, but it is the churches and the world being used as a picture of giving themselves over to spiritual fornication, which is the worship of false Gods.  

Next, we are told that Sodom and Gomorrah are not only giving themselves over to fornication, but they are going after strange flesh. Literally, this can mean that literal Sodom and Gomorrah and the world went after homosexual relationships as we read in the literal account. But, spiritually, this means that the churches and the world, which Sodom and Gomorrah typify, are spiritually going after strange flesh, which, as we shall see, is a false Jesus. Let me explain. First, to go away after good and proper flesh is to believe on Jesus who atoned for sins while He was on earth in 33 AD. We know this because of what we read in John 6: 

John 6:47 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life .
48 I am that bread of life
49 Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead .
50 This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die .
51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world .
52 The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat ?
53 Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you .
54 Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day

Notice that in verse 47 we read, He that believes on me has everlasting life. Then, in verse 54 we read, Whosoever eats my flesh, and drinks my blood, has eternal life. Now, by letting verse 47 interpret verse 54, it is obvious that to eat His flesh, and drink His blood is symbolism for believing on Him. In other words, the eating of Jesus; that is, the eating of His flesh is symbolism for believing on Jesus. It does not mean that we have to literally eat of His flesh in order to have eternal life, but it means that we must believe on Him in order to have eternal life. And, if to believe on Him is the eating of Him as we have learned, then it is the believing on Him who, we are told, will (future tense) be given for the life of the world as we read in verse 51. That is, to eat of Him is to believe on Him who while He was on earth would atone for sins for the life of the world. Therefore, as I stated earlier, to go after good and proper flesh to eat is to believe on Christ whose flesh atoned for sins on earth in 33 AD

Next, if to go after good and proper flesh is to believe on the true Christ who atoned for sins on earth in 33 AD, then to go after strange (different) flesh is to believe on a false Christ and atonement. This is what all the churches came to be doing before May 21, 2011: they all came to believe in the false Christ, Satan, who had taken rule over them, which resulted in a proliferation of false doctrine and teaching through their spiritual fornication with the beast. But, something else happened as well. Although the elect came out from all the churches in obedience to the Lord's command between May 21, 1988 and May 21, 2011 (see Why Leave All Churches? ), a false doctrine was carried over in their midst as a Judgment Day test which taught that Christ atoned for sins at or before the foundation of the world instead of on earth in 33 AD, and Christ's death on earth in 33 AD was merely a demonstration of what had already taken place. Supposedly this teaching was part of the End-time illumination that Yahweh gave to His people in addition to the timeline of history . But, since May 21, 2011, Yahweh's true elect have come to realize that this teaching is incorrect, and Christ atoned for sins on earth in 33 AD as has been believed for almost 2,000 years, (see The Lamb slain from the foundation of the world ). In fact, we have learned that those who believe that Christ atoned for sins at or before the foundation of the world are actually going away after another Jesus, and so are going away after strange flesh. It is strange flesh because it is the belief in a strange and imaginary atonement at or before the foundation of the world that the Bible, when rightly divided, does not address. It can not possibly be the same flesh that atoned for sins on earth in 33 AD, but it must be another Jesus who we know is actually the Antichrist, who masquerades as Christ, but is in all reality the devil himself (see The Final Test and email messages by Charles Brown).

We see other examples in the Bible which typify the so-called people of God going after the false teaching that Christ atoned for sins at or before the foundation of the world instead of on earth in 33 AD. We already mentioned Jude 1:7 that speaks about going after strange flesh, which we saw is a picture of believing in a different atonement for sins other than the one and only true atonement by Christ on earth in 33 AD. Furthermore, we read of an account in Leviticus 10 where those who offer up strange fire is another picture of those who believe in the false teaching that Christ atoned for sins at or before the foundation of the world because the offering up of strange fire is the offering up of an atonement that the Lord did not command even as the belief that Christ atoned for sins at or before the foundation of the world is the offering up of an atonement that the Lord did not command. We read in Leviticus 10:1-2, 

1 And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which he commanded them not .
2 And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD .

First, we need to understand that the offering up of strange fire before the Lord is to believe in an atonement other than the atonement wrought by Christ on earth in 33 AD. This is because the offering up of what I will call good fire is to believe in an atonement which saves, while the offering up of strange fire is to believe in an atonement which cannot save, but brings judgment. We see an example of the offering up of good fire in Numbers 16 where we read, 

46 And Moses said unto Aaron, Take a censer, and put fire therein from off the altar, and put on incense, and go quickly unto the congregation, and make an atonement for them: for there is wrath gone out from the LORD; the plague is begun .
47
And Aaron took as Moses commanded, and ran into the midst of the congregation; and, behold, the plague was begun among the people: and he put on incense, and made an atonement for the people
48 And he stood between the dead and the living; and the plague was stayed

This offering up of good fire stopped the plague on the people of God because it represents the atonement of Christ which took place in 33 AD that atoned for sins. But, the atonement exampled in Leviticus 10:1-2 is the offering up of strange fire, and it did not result in the salvation of the people, but instead judgment upon those who offered up the strange fire. This is a picture of what is happening to those who believe that Christ atoned for sins at or before the foundation of the world. They are now being consumed by the spiritual fire of Judgment Day ever since May 21, 2011 as the Judge, Jesus Christ, is bringing to light that which is darkness in order that it be burned up in the spiritual fire of Judgment Day.  

But, there is another account in the Bible that typifies those who believe that Christ atoned for sins at or before the foundation of the world as well, and this account is centered upon Moses. We read in Numbers 20:2-13, 

Numbers 20: 2 And there was no water for the congregation: and they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron .
3 And the people chode with Moses, and spake, saying, Would God that we had died when our brethren died before the LORD
4 And why have ye brought up the congregation of the LORD into this wilderness, that we and our cattle should die there ?
5 And wherefore have ye made us to come up out of Egypt, to bring us in unto this evil place? it is no place of seed, or of figs, or of vines, or of pomegranates; neither is there any water to drink .
6 And Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and they fell upon their faces: and the glory of the LORD appeared unto them
7 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying ,
8 Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock [the parallel account commands Moses to strike the rock (Ex. 17:6), so putting the two accounts together, we know that Moses was to speak to and strike the rock once] before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink
9 And Moses took the rod from before the LORD, as he commanded him .
10 And Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock, and he said unto them, Hear now, ye rebels; must we fetch you water out of this rock ?   
11 And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice: and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also .
12 And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them
13 This is the water of Meribah; because the children of Israel strove with the LORD, and he was sanctified in them

Now, Moses, in this account, represents those who believe that Christ atoned for sins at or before the foundation of the world. When he struck the rock twice instead of once as commanded, he is a type of those who usurp themselves over the Word of God and believe that Christ suffered twice. Once in the atonement for sins before the foundation of the world, and once when he suffered the demonstration of the atonement on earth in 33 AD. Instead of believing what Yahweh teaches in His Word that the atonement for sins took place just once on earth in 33 AD - which would be typified in the striking of the rock once as commanded - they have added to the Word of Yahweh, and say that the suffering of the atonement for sins first took place at or before the foundation of the world, and, then, this was all demonstrated when Christ suffered a second time on earth in 33 AD - which is typified in the striking of the rock twice. So, similar to Moses, those who believe that Christ atoned for sins at or before the foundation of the world, and, then, Christ suffered a second time through demonstration have usurped themselves above the Word of Yahweh by striking the rock, which typifies Christ, twice. The result being what we read in verse 12: 

12 And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them

To put it plainly, because of his rebellion, Moses was not allowed into the Promised Land in the same way that those who believe that Christ atoned for sins at or before the foundation of the world, and who believe that Christ suffered a second time on Calvary; that is, they have struck the rock twice instead of once, will not be allowed in heaven. Did you get that? Those who believe that Christ atoned for sins at or before the foundation of the world will not go to heaven. This is not just some unimportant teaching that makes very little difference as to what you believe. But, it is a crucial teaching, which is right now separating the elect from the non-elect as that which is in darkness is being burned in the spiritual fires of Judgment Day, and that which is Gold is being refined and purified unto eternal life. 


Well, let's go back to our verse. It reads, 

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

From this verse, we learned that Sodom and Gomorrah is symbolic of the world including all the churches, and while leading up to Judgment Day on May 21, 2011, the churches were giving themselves over to spiritual fornication, and going after strange flesh, which was the worship of false Christ's, which led to the proliferation of false teachings throughout the Christian churches and world, but, now, we are told that Sodom and Gomorrah are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire. This is a picture of what happened to all the churches and the world on May 21, 2011. They suffered the vengeance of eternal fire, but it was not a literal fire; it was a spiritual fire. Instead of a literal fire coming down from heaven and annihilating Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about them, a spiritual fire came down from heaven, which removed any possibility for anyone else ever being saved, and, so, guaranteed the annihilation of everyone either when they die in the normal course of their lives, or on the Last Day when everyone goes up in flame and are annihilated forevermore. Yes, ever since May 21, 2011, they are all suffering the vengeance of eternal fire, for the course of their lives have been guaranteed to end in annihilation without any hope for eternal salvation ever again. 

Now, we are told that what happened with Sodom and Gomorrah is an example of suffering eternal fire. This does not mean that the fire burned forevermore while all the people remained conscious in hell, but rather that it burned everything up, and the results of that burning were eternal because none of the burned up people would ever live again. Indeed, they were annihilated. So, eternal fire, or hell, does not mean that the fire burns forever while all the people undergo conscious eternal suffering, but rather that the fire burns everything up with the result that everything is annihilated forevermore. This is hell! It is not an eternal conscious suffering, but an eternal annihilation. The fire burns the sinner up, and then the fire burns out with the result that the sinner is annihilated forevermore. This is suffering the vengeance of eternal fire; this is what is meant by eternal hell.  


Verse 8: 

8 Likewise also these [filthy] dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities

Here the focus goes back to the ungodly men who had crept in secretly, and who had changed the grace of God into lasciviousness. We read, Likewise also these [filthy] dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities. First, notice that we are told that Likewise also these [filthy] dreamers defile the flesh. A more complete and accurate translation of this verse would read, 

8 Likewise howbeit also these ones dreaming are indeed defiling the flesh . . .  

Here, the phrase, these ones dreaming is actually a present tense, middle voice participle. The middle voice and present tense means that the present ongoing action of dreaming is in the interest of the ones dreaming. So, these ones dreaming (present tense) are doing so in their own interest and not in the interest of Yahweh. And, we read further that they are indeed defiling the flesh. The verb defiling is in the present tense and active voice, which means that the act of presently defiling the flesh is an ongoing act that continues on and on. These dreamers are not just defiling the flesh once or twice, but they are doing it as a regular lifestyle, which is something that an elect person could not possibly do since they have received a perfect soul upon having received salvation. Can an elect person sin? Of course! But, can an elect person ongoingly sin as part of their regular lifestyle? Of course not! As we read in Romans 6,   

Ro 6:2 . . . How shall we that are dead to sin, live any longer therein

But, getting back to our verse, what these dreamers are doing is defiling the flesh over and over again. If you will remember our discussion of verse 4 in the previous study , these dreamers and ungodly men are changing the grace of God into lasciviousness. They were probably teaching that since we are saved by grace alone, it really doesn't matter what we do with our bodies because salvation has nothing to do with what we do in our bodies, but only the grace of God. Therefore, they thought that they could do anything with their bodies including fornications of every kind, and this would not affect their salvation in any way. In other words, they accepted that salvation is by grace alone, but they ignored the reality that true grace results in obedience, not disobedience, to Christ. No, they believed that grace was a license to sin. In fact, they probably taught this: let us continue in sin so that grace may abound (Ro 6:1). From this, we get a clear sense as to how these dreamers were taking the grace of God, and turning it into evil practices, which defile or pollute the body. We read in 1Corinthians 6,   

1Co 6:18 Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body .  

From this verse, we see that fornication, which includes sexual sins of all kinds such as adultery, sex before marriage, sex with animals, incest, homosexuality and so on are the only sins against one's own body or flesh. All other sins are without the body. Therefore, in that these dreamers are continuously defiling the body means that they are ongoingly having unlawful sexual relations. They are defiling their flesh, and the flesh of others through fornications. And, because they believe that they are saved by grace and not obedience to the law, they think obedience to the law is of no importance. No wonder these ungodly men are called dreamers: to believe that they can have sex with anyone and everyone they want as much as they would like so that grace may abound, what dreamers they truly were. 

Now, these dreamer playboys, we are told, despise dominion. It could be translated, do away with Lordship. That is, they do not acknowledge any authority above themselves, but they have become an authority to themselves. They sort of remind me of the Hippie Movement of the 60s: free sex and rebellion against authority. They even, we are told, speak evil about dignities. The word, dignities is translated from the word, glories, and it means the ones who are honorable, praise worthy, esteemed, excellent, glorious, exalted, majestic, preeminent, magnificent, or the like. So, since they speak evil of these kinds of beings, there is no wonder as to why they would speak evil of our Lord Jesus Christ Himself who is the most glorious of them all. They would also speak evil of angels, the president, statesmen, and the government in general, and any being who appears to hold a higher state of glory than themselves. You see, to them, they themselves are the highest level of glory, and anyone who might threaten that glory are looked down upon, and spoken evil of. 


Verse 9:  


9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee

Now, in the previous verse, whereas the ungodly men who had secretly crept in regularly despised authority and spoke evil of dignities, in this verse, we read,   

9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee .  

The idea is that not even Michael the archangel who is the highest ranking dignity since he is actually Christ Himself as we shall see would speak evil and make railing accusations against Satan who was a much lower ranked and rebellious dignity. How much more, then, should NOT these extremely low ranked ungodly men who had crept in speak evil of, or make railing accusations against, higher ranked dignities. It goes completely against the order of things, and it shows how lost these ungodly men really were who had no conscience toward speaking evil of dignities. It shows there complete disdain for authority, and their lack of common decency for the natural order of things. 

But, now, how do we know that Michael the archangel is referring to Christ? Well, first of all, archangel means chief angel, and the word angel can just as well be translated as messenger. So Michael the archangel means Michael the chief messenger. Furthermore, the name Michael means who is in the image of God. Now, who is the chief messenger of God who is also made in the image of God? Why it could only be Christ. We read of Christ, 

Col 1:15 Who [Christ] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature . . . 

And, again, we read of Christ, 

Heb 1:3 Who [Christ] being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high . . .  

And, we read, 

2Co 4:4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them

Now, I could reveal more as to why Michael, the chief messenger refers to Christ, but I think what I have given should be enough for most of us, so let's move on in the discussion of our verse.

We now find that Michael, the archangel; that is, Christ disputed with the devil about the body of Moses. What was this all about? We know that Moses was not allowed to enter the Promised Land because he struck the rock twice instead of speaking to and striking the rock once as commanded (Nu 20:2-13; Ex 17:1-7).   

So, because Moses did not speak to and strike the rock once as commanded, but struck the rock twice, he was barred from being the one who would lead Israel into the Promised Land. In fact, we read of Moses dieing in the wilderness before the Israelites entered the Land. He was allowed to see the Land, but not to enter. We read of this account in Deuteronomy 34, 

1 And Moses went up from the plains of Moab unto the mountain of Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, that is over against Jericho. And the LORD shewed him all the land of Gilead, unto Dan ,
2
And all Naphtali, and the land of Ephraim, and Manasseh, and all the land of Judah, unto the utmost sea ,
3 And the south, and the plain of the valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees, unto Zoar .
4 And the LORD said unto him, This is the land which I sware unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, saying, I will give it unto thy seed: I have caused thee to see it with thine eyes, but thou shalt not go over thither .
5 So Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the LORD .
6 And he buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, over against Bethpeor: but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day .
7 And Moses was an hundred and twenty years old when he died: his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated .
8 And the children of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days: so the days of weeping and mourning for Moses were ended

But, now, we return to the question: what was Christ contending with the devil about with respect to the body of Moses? Of course, all we can do is speculate since we have no more biblical accounts which relate. So what if Satan was claiming rights to the body of Moses? After all, at that time of history, Christ had not yet redeemed His people on the cross. So, could it be that the devil was arguing his case on the fact that the atonement had not yet taken place so that Satan was saying to Christ that the body of Moses belongs to me by right of conquest in the garden? If so, this must have been because Satan did not understand that the effects of the atonement to be accomplished in the future on earth in 33 AD would be carried back in time as Yahweh is not bound in time as we and Satan are, and so He is able to take the future atonement and apply it to the time of Moses. This being the case, the body of Moses would actually have always belonged to Yahweh, but Satan could just not understand how something that was yet to take place in the future could impact the past in a similar way that many of those who believe that Christ atoned for sin at or before the foundation of the world cannot see how the atonement in 33 AD could have went backwards in time to atone for all the Old Testament elect (see Without shedding of blood is no remission of sin ). All we know is that Yahweh can do this, and whether we can fully understand it or not is irrelevant because Yahweh has done it, and, by doing so, He has insured that the body of Moses belongs to Himself and not to Satan. But, perhaps, as I previously stated, Satan did not understand this, so Christ says, the Lord rebuke thee. He doesn't speak all kinds of evil about Satan, but He simply says, the Lord rebuke thee

But, now, returning to our verse, we read,

9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee .

Now, the latter part of this verse can be better translated in the light of the whole context like this:

9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, [dare not bring up an evil-speaking judgment], but said, The Lord rebuke thee

The idea is that even though Michael the Archangel (Christ) had every reason to bring up an evil-speaking judgment against the devil, He did not, but simply said, The Lord rebuke thee. This is in stark contrast to the ungodly men who had crept in, and who had no good reason to speak evil against dignities such as angels and those in more glorious positions than they, but did so any way. So, we can be assured that when we hear others gossiping evil about others, even if they seem to have good reason, are not following the example of Christ, but are rather following the example of ungodly men who are destined for condemnation. The best thing we can say instead of speaking evil about others is to say to them, The Lord rebuke you, and leave it at that. To go further than this, and speak evil against them and others, is, as we have learned, an ungodly thing to do.    


Okay, let's end our study there. Now, to the true elect of Yahweh, may the LORD bless thee, and keep thee: The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace .

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