JUDE 1-24 PROCLAIMING AND CONTENDING FOR THE FAITH 8-20-11
Today Lord willing I am going to talk for a few minutes on the satanic forces that are trying to tear down the truth of the Word of God, and trying too cause us to wonder about our salvation.
All the way from Eden even until our present time the devil has been constantly busy trying to cast doubt on God’s forever settled Word. Satan knows that he only has a short time left before the rapture of the saints takes place; he knows that he can not damn our souls once we’re saved, so he’s out to make us as ineffective as he can, that some Christians will began to have doubt on how important God’s Word really is, their what we might call LIBERALS. There have always been spiritual trouble makers among believers and Jude will point some of these out.
Listen as I began to read today’s text found in Jude only one chapter but very powerful.
1-4 Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, I want us to notice that Jude don’t say that he is the brother, or half brother of Jesus, he don’t want to appear as some great person,--and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called: 2Mercy unto you, and peace, and love, be multiplied.
3Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, Christians have a common salvation. God doesn’t have one way for the rich and another way for the poor, or one way for the good and another way for the bad. We all come to God the same way. If it isn’t a common salvation, it isn’t God’s salvation.
it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.— as Christians we are part of an invisible, mighty army that spans back through the generations-- We contend earnestly for the faith because it is valuable.
When we see the WELLS FARGO armored trucks coming to a destination where their going to be unloading or loading a lot of money, you’ll see arm guards there to make sure the exchange goes well, why? Because it’s valuable, the same with “the one faith that was once delivered to the saints.
Once means that the faith was delivered one time and will not be delivered again.
You and I today continue to deliver this same truth again and again, but it was delivered by God to the world through the apostles and prophets once.
Valuables are protected; worthless things are not.
We contend for the faith in a positive sense when we give a dogmatic statement and witness for God’s Truths, when we speak out against the preaching of another gospel, or speak out against a manner of living that contradicts the message of the gospel we are contending.
Just like the Church in Jerusalem you and I today are to contend for the faith.-notice not just any faith but FOR THE FAITH.
There is a lot of earnest contention in the world, but not for the right things, a lot of the trouble that’s going on today in the world is over what these terrorist believe, “their faith”, but it’s not saving faith, I have faith in my truck when I go deer hunting that it’s going to get me there and any where else once I get there, but that kind of faith is not the kind of faith that’s going to get us to heaven.
The faith once for all delivered to the saints is something worth contending for. The faith does not mean our own personal belief, or faith in the sense of our trust in God.—all religions trust in their god.
4For there are certain men (special selected) crept in unawares,** (without being suspected) We need to contend for the faith because there are dangerous men through out the ranks of Christianity.
No one noticed that they were dangerous. They didn’t wear a "Danger: False Teacher" name tag.
These certain men probably claimed to be more "Scriptural" than anybody else in the assemble. Spurgeon said, "Satan knows right well that one devil in the church can do far more than a thousand devils outside her bounds."
4For there are certain men who were before of old ordained to this condemnation,**( they were written of beforehand, other writers had sounded the warning about apostates). --- ungodly men,**(no regard for or anything to do with the True and Living God, no fear of God) turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, ( into immorality.)—just do what ever you please; the GRACE of God is not an open license to sin). and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.
• Paul tells of these same people in
2 Cor. 11:13–15 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
• The last time Paul was in Ephesus, with the Ephesian elders, he gave this warning:
Acts 20:29–31 For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.
And let me say that a sure sign of a false religion will be their thinking on the deity of Jesus Christ.
• John said in his 2nd epistle—one chapter
7-10 For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist. 8Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward. 9Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.
10If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: 11For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.
And this is certainly true today; the Jehovah false witnesses believe that Jesus and the Arch angel Michael are the one and the same.
The Mormons teach that Jesus and Lucifer were brothers.
• Jesus ask His disciples in
Matthew 16:13-16 When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? 14And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. 15He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? 16And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
2 Pet. 2:1 But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction”
-----------------------------
I want to point out that Jude, who was the half brother of Jesus, started this letter off with the intention of exhorting the saints in the fact that this salvation was common to all believers, it was a one time, once and for all faith, and this faith was the faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
But Jude had found out that there were false so called brethren in among the Church there in Jerusalem and they were there for the specific purpose to bring doubt on the “once and for all saving faith”, and so he’s going to exhort the brethren to fight for this great truth of the one common salvation.
Jude believed that the foundation of the Christian faith was under attack, he had to write to encourage them to earnestly contend for the faith.
• Then he reminds the believers of God’s righteous condemnation in times past -
5-7 I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not.
I want to say here that this does not imply that a person can be lost after they have been saved; if we’ll look at the verse closely we’ll see that “God saved the people out of the “LAND OF EYGPT” and then afterward destroyed them that believed not.
The Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt: Jude reminds us of what happened in Numbers 14. God delivered the people of Israel out of slavery in Egypt. They came out of Egypt and to a place called Kadesh Barnea, they were on the very threshold of entering the Promised Land without any delays.
But at Kadesh Barnea, the people refused to trust God and go into the Promised Land of Canaan, they murmured and complained that God had brought them out here to perish, and that was the tenth time they murmured against God, this tells us that God does have a point in which He’ll say enough is enough.
Numbers 14:11 And the LORD said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them?-----
22-23 Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice; 23Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it:
God was about to destroy the entire crowd and raise up a nation from Moses, and then Moses intercedes for the people and says to God that the Egyptians will hear of it and that they’ll say that God was not able to get the people to obey Him, and God stayed His hand.
Can you imagine the fury that God suddenly had over Israel’s complaining about Him? I’m glad we that are saved are not going to be here when He turns His wrath loose on the earth dwellers during the tribulation.
Only two of the adult generation who left Egypt entered into the Promised Land, only Joshua and Caleb, and those 20 years old and under was allowed to enter.
-----------------------------
6And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.
Sometime in the past these angels left “their first estate, their position in heaven” God created angels with a free will. Angels can not reproduce as human beings do; the fall of Adam’s sin didn’t have any connection to these angels so they don’t inherit a sinful nature as humans do.
Angels are spiritual creatures, some of them were caught up in a rebellion, and now they are reserved in chains, probably when Lucifer told the 1/3 of the angels that we read about in Rev.12, that he was going to over through God and take God’s throne ( Isa.14:12-15) most of this 1/3 believed and followed him in some way.
Evidently the fallen angels are divided into two groups. The group whose rebellion was so great is locked up and in chains, and has no freedom of movement any longer; it is these that Jude tells about.
The other group of fallen angels apparently has freedom of movement and is under the leadership of Satan. These are the demons as we speak of them today, these demon’s are under Satans rule and do his bidding, they are here on earth now along with Satan, Satan is not in hell, he has never been in hell, peter tells in 1 Peter 5: 8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
I read again
6And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.
I must say right here that there are many well versed Bible scholars that believe that these angels had children with human women there in Gen.6: and they make a very strong application, it is too say the least a controversial subject.
Jude continues to point out how that God deals with such as these.
7Even 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.
Jude is reminding the believers there in the church of Jerusalem that God has not changed, that these false brethren that have crept in without even being notice are not going unnoticed at all by God and that God will deal with these trouble makers as He always has in His own time.
• He then gives a description of the depravity of the ungodly dreamers, that is, the false prophets who claimed to receive visions through dreams.#######--we some time see these on TV today telling that they have had a new revelation from God, but dear heart God has said all that He is going to say to man, now it’s up to man to believe what He has said. The next thing we’ll hear from heaven will be the call. ”come up hither”
Verse’s 8-16 Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities.
9Yet 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.
10But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves.
11Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, (another way) and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, (take filthy lucre to falsely prophecy) and perished in the gainsaying of Core. (Complaining against God’s appointed leader, the ground open up and the rebels fell in alive and the ground closed back up.)
Numbers 16:31-33 And it came to pass, as he had made an end of speaking (Moses) all these words, that the ground clave asunder that was under them: 32And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their houses, and all the men that appertained unto Korah, and all their goods. 33They, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them: and they perished from among the congregation.
We don’t realize really how blest we are that we’re under Grace instead on the Law, I’m afraid that most of us wouldn’t be here today.
12These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots; 13Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever.
14And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,
15To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him. --16These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men’s persons in admiration because of advantage. Some people look up to people like that, their so deceived that they can’t see the fact that these crooks are liars and thieves.
