jude - part 7

Jude – Contending for the Faith

JudeContending for the Faith

Instruction To the Church


Review of 14-16 Judgment of the Apostates


"It was also about these men that Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the

Lord came with many thousands of His holy ones, to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.” These are grumblers, finding fault,

following after their own lusts; they speak arrogantly, flattering people for the sake of gaining an advantage."

(Jude 14-16)


Exposition of 17-19Instruction to the Church


"But you, beloved, ought to remember the words that were spoken beforehand by the

apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, that they were saying to you, “In the last time there will be mockers, following after their own ungodly

lusts.” These are the ones who cause divisions, worldly-minded, devoid of the

Spirit."(Jude 17-19)


“But you beloved, ought to remember…”

Jude uses the term “remember” in the indicative mood, which indicates a command – he is

commanding his audience to remember the teaching of the apostles. Most of Jude’s

message is a walk down memory lane of what has happened in the past and how it should serve as

a warning to all Christians then and now.

Just as nothing takes God by surprise, God does not allow His people to be taken by

surprise; it is a sign of His sovereignty. Through His prophets He has supplied us with the

instruction that we need to remember so that (1) we will be ready for what is to come; (2) we can

rest knowing that God’s omniscience and omnipotence mean all things are known by Him and He will work all things out according to His

promises and plans.


“Words spoken . . . by the apostles…”

While our Lord had many disciples, He selected only a few to be apostles. The word means “one who is sent

with a commission.” In order to qualify, a believer had to be a witness of the resurrection of Christ (Acts 1:21–22; 1 Cor. 9:1). The Apostles lived with Christ during His ministry, learned from Him, and were sent by Him

into all the world to carry the Good News of salvation.Wherever there is the authentic, the counterfeit will

appear; this happened in the early church and happens today as well. False apostles and teachers began to appear, and it was necessary to develop a system to

protect the church against false prophecies and forged letters. Since Christ had committed “the faith” (Jude 3) to His Apostles, one of the main tests in the early church was, “Is this what the Apostles taught?” When the church assembled the New Testament books, it was required that each book be written either by an

apostle or by someone closely associated with an apostle. Apostolic teaching was, and still is, the test of

truth.


“Words spoken . . . by the apostles…”

"So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are

of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ

Jesus Himself being the corner stone"(Ephesians 2:19-20)


“In the Last time…”

Whenever the phrase “last time” or “last days” is used in Scripture, it refers to the period between Christ’s first and second

advents (arrivals or comings).

" But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come."

(2 Timothy 3:1)

"God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these

last days has spoken to us in His Son"(Hebrews 1:1-2)

"For He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but has appeared in these last times for

the sake of you"(1 Peter 1:20)


“There will be Mockers…”

" Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own

lusts, and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all

continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.” For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of

water and by water, through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water. But

by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the

Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is

patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance."

(2 Peter 3:3-9)



" But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to

parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of

pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these. For among them are those who enter into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of

the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind, rejected in regard to the faith. But they will not make further progress; for their folly will be obvious to all, just as Jannes’sand Jambres’s folly was also. Now you followed my teaching, conduct, purpose,

faith, patience, love, perseverance, persecutions, and sufferings, such as happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium and at Lystra; what persecutions I

endured, and out of them all the Lord rescued me! Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. But evil men and impostors will

proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived."(2 Timothy 3:1-13)



“If ever there was a case of a lame excuse we have it here. Ignorance is

ignorance; no right to believe anything can be derived from it. In other matters

no sensible person will behave so irresponsibly or rest content with such feeble grounds for his opinions and for the line he takes. . . . Where questions of religion are concerned, people are

guilty of every possible sort of dishonesty and intellectual

misdemeanor.”- Sigmund Freud



"“Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem; and the Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn Him to death, and will

hand Him over to the Gentiles to mock and scourge and crucify Him, and on the third day He will be raised up.”"

(Matthew 20:18-19)

"In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes, were mocking Him among themselves and saying, “He saved others; He cannot save Himself."

(Mark 15:31)

"And Herod with his soldiers, after treating Him with contempt and mocking Him, dressed Him in a gorgeous robe and sent Him back to Pilate."

(Luke 23:11)

"Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap."

(Galatians 6:7)



"...people say to me continually,

'Where is your God?'" (Psalm 42:3)


“Following after their ungodly lusts…”

“Lusts” is epithumia (ἐπιθυμια), “a passionate craving,” good or bad. According to the context, it is evil.

The apostles predicted and/or warned that apostate teachers would

come and they would be driven by their own sinful lusts.

"Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its

passions and desires."(Galatians 5:24)


“Following after their ungodly lusts…”

"“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me;"

(John 10:27)

“Following after their ungodly

lusts” (Jude 18)

One way to recognize an apostate: What do they follow?


“These are the ones who cause divisions, worldly-minded, devoid of the Spirit.”- Jude 19

1. They cause divisions2. They are worldly-minded3. They are devoid of the Spirit


“who cause divisions…”

The word “division” is only used in Jude and literally means “to draw a

boundary through”. One of the characteristics of the apostate

teachers is they wrongly divide the Church and cause schisms and

friction.

This stands in stark contrast to Jesus’ prayer of unity for His followers: “Holy Father, keep them in Your

name, the name which You have given Me, that they may be one even as We

are."(John 17:11)


"Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any

affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind,

maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose."

(Philippians 2:1-2)


“These are the ones who cause divisions, worldly-minded,

devoid of the Spirit."(Jude 19)

psychikos

Word Study – Worldly Minded

① To the life of the natural world② Unspiritual③ One who functions bodily

Arndt, W., Danker, F. W., & Bauer, W. (2000). A Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament and other early Christian literature.

Greek Meaning

Interpretation & ApplicationJude says that a characteristic of the apostates is they are worldly in their thinking, which means they

think about and focus on things in contrast to God: "You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world

makes himself an enemy of God."(James 4:4) . And what makes up the world? "For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world."(1 John 2:16). A key trait of fakes is what they focus their mind on – they focus

on these things and themselves instead of God’s will.


"But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth. This wisdom is not that

which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic. For where jealousy and

selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable,

full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy."

(James 3:15-17)


“Whatever a man thinks about, when he is free to think about what he will, that is what he is or will soon become.”

- A. W. Tozer


"Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world,

the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the

Father, but is from the world.”(1 John 2:15-16)


"Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth."

(Colossians 3:2)


“Devoid of the Spirit…”

This is perhaps the most succinct statement made by Jude that

describes the apostate’s true spiritual condition: they are devoid of the Spirit, which means they are not

believers, but simply pretenders and fakes.

A person without the Holy Spirit is unable to submit themselves to God’s

Word and Law (1 Cor. 2:14), so it stands to reason the apostates act in

the manner that they do.


"However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit

of Christ, he does not belong to Him."(Romans 8:9)


"Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the

kingdom of God."(John 3:5)

"The one who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. We know by this that He abides in us, by the

Spirit whom He has given us."(1 John 3:24)

"By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit."

(1 John 4:13)


The Apostate’s Profile

1. Ungodly (vs. 4)2. Morally perverted (vs. 4)3. Deny Christ (vs. 4)4. Defile the flesh (vs. 8)5. Rebellious (vs. 8)6. Revile angels (vs. 8)7. Ignorant about God (vs. 8)8. Proclaim false visions (vs. 10)9. Self-destructive (vs. 10)

10. Grumblers (vs. 16)11. Fault finders (vs. 16)12. Self-satisfying (vs. 16)13. Use arrogant words (vs. 16)14. Use false flattery (vs. 16)15. Mock God (vs. 18)16. Cause divisions (vs. 19)17. Worldly minded (vs. 19)18. Devoid of Spirit/unsaved (vs. 19)


Concluding Thoughts

• Christians need to keep themselves bathed in God’s Words so we can remember His promises and so we won’t be surprised at the persecution and opposition that comes against us/the Church

• Mockers of the Christian faith have been around since Christ walked the earth. We should expect them to treat us no better than they treated Him.

• What a person follows oftentimes provides good evidence for their true spiritual condition

• God asks us to strive for unity, but not at the expense of truth• A person’s persistent thoughts are a good temperature of how

much in the world they are• The Bible is clear: a person lacking God’s Holy Spirit is not a

true believer. And the Spirit influences all of the above.


JudeContending for the Faith

Instruction To the Church

jude - part 7

Spiritual