343. It Is Hard for You to Kick Against the Goads

“The Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. And you will also bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning.” John 15:26-27.

The Spirit of truth and we also are commissioned to testify about Jesus Christ. To be able to testify about Him, we have to know Him. How can we learn to know Him? By keeping His commandments, as it is written: “He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.” John 14:21.

From this verse we understand that Jesus only manifests Himself to those who keep His commandments.

Jesus’ commandments are considered to be another gospel, and the Jesus who speaks about commandments is considered to be another Jesus. Jesus’ Spirit is considered to be another spirit. The testimony of Jesus Christ, Spirit, water, and blood, does not exist.

People who think this way have drifted into a false spirit of liberty; consequently, the commandments of Jesus are considered slavery and His teachings heresy. So without knowing it, they receive another spirit and another Jesus.

There is no danger in the doctrine that leads to godliness. But the spirit and the doctrine that lead people to give themselves over to earthly things is from Satan. This includes such things as big houses, lots of money, crowds of people, and a lucrative occupation. In these things you can expect to meet Satan in the form of an angel of light, but he will stay far away from places where the commandments of Jesus Christ, fellowship with Jesus in His sufferings, and a crucified flesh are preached. Any normal person can easily understand that. What Satan likes is “Spare yourself.”

When we keep Jesus’ commandments and do God’s will, which is our sanctification, Jesus Himself, His Spirit, and His gospel will be revealed to us. When these things are revealed, we can testify about Him.

Jesus knew for certain that His disciples would experience times when the so-called Christians would be so deceived by the flesh and false liberty that they would persecute those who kept the commandments of Jesus Christ (His disciples). That is why He says, “These things I have spoken to you that you should not be made to stumble.

“They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service.

“And these things they will do to you because they have not known the Father nor Me.” Those who persecute us do not know the Son and they do not know the Father. That is because they live without commandments and without power. That is why they warn against Jesus’ commandments and His witnesses. What they have created together falls to pieces before their eyes. Nevertheless it is their livelihood.

“But these things I have told you,” says Jesus, “that when the time comes, you may remember that I told you of them.” John 16:1-4. Now we must remember these things, since the time has indeed come when “God’s Way” is mocked and contradicted, and lawlessness is exalted to the clouds.

You can never come to know the Father and the Son through a gospel without commandments. Doing God’s will is regarded as slavery. They say, “You don’t want to help God with your salvation, do you?” Imagine offering that kind of instruction to newly saved people who have barely come out of sin and the world! I heard such teaching in my spiritual childhood from people who carried on as preachers and teachers. But the people who regarded them as clever teachers just drifted off into false liberty.

It’s not without reason that we warn against Satan in the form of an angel of light. We have seen young people who have gone out into sin because of the hypocrisy of false teachers. But we have also seen how godly people become when Jesus’ commandments are preached.

The apostle Paul received grace and apostleship to promote obedience to the faith among all nations for His name. Rom. 1:5. But who has this ministry today? Go to the state churches, the local congregations, the Pentecostal gatherings, the free churches, or where you will, and you will not be able to find anyone with such a ministry. If such a person should happen to come among them, they will shout, “Preach Christ; what you speak about is bondage!” etc. In other words, they have a Jesus who lives in false liberty, just like they do.

Re-evaluate your teaching and lives thoroughly, because all of you who through letters, warnings, and false accusations work against God’s witnesses need to repent. You do not know the Father or the Son, and so you are enemies of your own and of others’ salvation.