False Teachers: Past, Present and Future
Jude -Week 2
Scripture for Discussion
Welcome back to the study of Jude! Thank you to everyone who participated in last week’s study. Just as a reminder, this is an interactive Bible study. Your comments are welcome, but certainly not required. I truly believe we can all benefit from one another! Let’s dive in.
Last week, we learned that Jude was the loud voice declaring a major problem within the young church. “Ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.” (v4) His charge was to “contend earnestly for the faith.”(v3)
This week, Jude breaks the glass ceiling and writes a letter like none other in the Bible. This epistle had the sole purpose of exposing wickedness within the walls of the church. And like a Papa Bear, he sternly reminded this group of Christ followers what happened when God’s people ignored sin in their midst. He holds nothing back!
In verses 5-7, Jude recounts the horrendous past of Godless men.
Unapologetically, he narrates the history of the Israelites saved out of captivity from Egypt only to turn their back on God and were destroyed. Then, Jude reminds them of the angels, created as ministering spirits, who chose to abandon their call and were cast into eternal judgement. And he finishes with… you guessed it, Sodom and Gomorrah, the city that “indulged in gross immorality” (v7). That is quite a summary, wouldn’t you say?
You can almost hear him shout, “Don’t make me tell you again!”
While Jude highlights verses 5-7 to recount past iniquities, he uses verses 8-13 to laser in on the present evil.
But first, it is important to focus on just verse 8 for a moment.
“….these men, also by dreaming, defile the flesh…” The word, dreams, used only in Jude 8, means more of a daydream, fantasizing of wickedness. This is the fleshly desire which is completely opposite of Godliness. Yet, they still hold to the grace of God in their lives, they lay claim to the blessings of God to carry out the very things that will ultimately destroy them. Friends, I can’t help but think of those that profess to be Christians, yet live in pornography. Their “dreaming” purposely exploits the weak for their own sexual gain.
For me, Jude just got real…. real fast!
The present false teachers had a name. Three times Jude refers to them as “these men.” We do not know how many men there were, but we do know about their behavior. “These men” rejected authority(v8), hated the knowledge of God(v10), practiced carnality(10), and cared only for themselves(12). He vividly gives an account of the wickedness in their midst with “these men” leaving nothing to the imagination.
And then, Jude throws in this statement! “Woe to them.”(v11) Now, I’m not a theologian but even I know that’s not good! Here, Jude echoes the words of Jesus in His gospels. He could see, like Jesus, that the very knowledge that “these men” boasted in would invariably bring them to their eternal end. They were corrupt to the core.
Before we end, let’s highlight one last verse. Jude 1:16 reads like this:
“These are the grumblers, finding fault, following after their own lusts; they speak arrogantly, flattering people for the sake of gaining an advantage.”
Here, Jude has just characterized a picture of future false teachers. I couldn’t help but think that his future is our present. Certain “Christian teachers” come to my mind as I read this passage. How about you?
Jude recounts all of this for one reason. He loves God’s people(v1) and doesn’t want them to become another casualty of corruption and defilement within their spiritual family, their church. His focus remains: earnestly contend for the faith!
Friends, sin is not a fun topic, but I believe that we can’t dive into the purposes of God without exposing the wickedness of man. After all, that is why Jesus died on the cross. He took my sin and your sin and gave us a new nature in Him as we put our faith in Him. I personally am banking my eternity of that Good News!
Question for discussion in the comment section:
· In what ways can we contend for our faith within the walls of our daily lives? For instance, at work, home, family or even our daily activities?
Please be a specific as possible. Your answer may be what someone else needs!
#nowuntohimwhoisable
Next week, Jude takes a different tone, one of strong encouragement. See you then and a special thanks to each of you for your desire to connect with other women through God’s Word. Jeanna