Beware the Pretenders

How to Survive in the Last Days of Apostasy

Jude 17-25

INTRODUCTION

We live in the last days. The Bible makes it clear that the last days began when Jesus arrived. It's probably true that we are living in the latter portion of the last days before our Lord Jesus returns. If, in fact, we are living in the age symbolized by the apostate church of Laodicea (Rev. 3:14-19), how are we then to react to the increasing apostasy around us? What does a Christian do in the midst of the apostasy that precedes the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ?

The answers to those questions are found in Jude 17-25. Jude has discussed the history and definition of apostasy, and has given examples of it. He has also warned Christians to be ready for it and fight against it, and has warned apostates of the consequences of their departure from the faith. Now in the final climactic passage, Jude provides four key principles that Christians have been following ever since: remember, remain, reach out, and rest. They offer security to the believer in the midst of the apostasy of the last days. As you examine those principles, you will understand how to enjoy God's blessings even if everything seems to be falling apart.

I. REMEMBER (vv. 17-19)

A. The Command (v. 17a)

"But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ"

Jude has been reminding us throughout his epistle of Old Testament scriptures that deal with apostasy: He talked about Cain, Balaam, and Korah (v. 11), the children of Israel in the wilderness (v. 5), the angels that left their habitation (v. 6), and Sodom and Gomorrah (v. 7). Having mentioned those past incidents of apostasy in the Old Testament, Jude looks to the more recent past and encourages his readers to remember the words that were spoken by the Apostles. The New Testament truth that came through the Apostles and their close associates is in direct contrast to the pompous rhetoric and the vain words of the apostate false teachers that Jude alludes to in verse 16. In other words, if you're going to stand firm in the day of apostasy, you're going to have to avoid the lies of the apostates and remember the words of the Apostles. Forgetting the teaching of the Word of God is a major cause of spiritual deterioration. In the past, some of us have learned biblical principles of living that we have long since forgotten.

1. 2 PETER 1:15--Understanding that forgetfulness is a problem, Peter wrote: "...I will endeavor that ye may be able, after my decease, to have these things always in remembrance" (cf. v. 12). The call to remember was a ringing theme with Peter as well as with Jude.

2. 1 TIMOTHY 4:1-6--Paul felt the same way: "Now the Spirit speaketh expressly that, in the latter times [the end of the church age], some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their conscience seared with a hot iron" (vv. 1-2). In other words, apostates will speak lies and their conscience won't bother them, because it will be as insensitive as scar tissue. Those apostates will be "Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from foods, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving by them who believe and know the truth. For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused, if it is received with thanksgiving; for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer. If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ..." (vv. 3-6). A good minister warns his people about apostasy.

So Jude is in agreement with Peter and Paul when he calls us to remember the words of the Apostles, who wrote the Word of God. In effect, he recognizes the verbal inspiration and authority of Scripture and acknowledges that it is the Christian's only security. In fact, his call to remembrance is actually a command, because the Greek verb for "remember" is in the imperative mood. That is the first imperative that Jude uses in his epistle now that he has laid out the foundational information about apostasy. He's saying whatever apostates may do and say, don't be deceived--hold on to the revelation of God that has been authored by the Apostles. That is the only security that you have against false doctrine. You say, "If I fall into false doctrine, will I fall from my salvation?" No, but Peter says you'll fall from your steadfastness (2 Pet. 3:17). You won't lose your salvation, but you will lose your solidarity, "carried about with every wind of doctrine..." (Eph. 4:14). Such a state will be characterized by a loss of victory and joy in the Christian experience.

B. The Content (vv. 17b-19)

1. ITS SOURCE (v. 17b)

"...remember ye the words which were spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ"

The Apostles informed early Christendom about apostasy before it ever occurred. The apostasy that crept into the early church was a fulfillment of their prophecies. They predicted it would come in such verses as...

a. Acts 20:29-30--Paul said to the Ephesian elders, "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." Paul predicted that when he left Ephesus, doctrinal perversion would enter the church he had worked so hard to establish. The sad reality of apostasy eventually had a destructive effect on the church in that city.

b. 1 Timothy 4:1--"...in the latter times, some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of demons."

c. 1 Timothy 6:20-21--"O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of knowledge falsely so called, which some, professing, have erred concerning the faith...."

d. 2 Timothy 3:1, 5, 7-8--"This know, also, that in the last days perilous times shall come....[There will be those] Having a form of godliness, but denying the power of it; from such turn away....[They are] "Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Now as Jannes and Jambres [Egyptian magicians] withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth, men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith."

e. 2 Timothy 4:3--"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine but, after their own lusts, shall they heap to themselves teachers...."

f. 2 Corinthians 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."

g. Colossians 2:4-5--"And this I say, lest any man should beguile you with enticing words. For though I am absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, joying and beholding your order, and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ."

h. 1 John 2:18-19--"Little children, it is the last time; and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists, by which we know that it is the last time. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us; but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us."

i. 2 John 7--"For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ cometh in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist."

Jude says, "You have heard Paul, Peter, and John had to say. They all said that apostasy is coming. Remember that, and don't be beguiled by it when it comes." If the Word of God warns about something, then when it happens, you ought to be sensible enough to reject it. Jude gives us a sample of apostolic scripture on apostasy in verses 18-19.

2. ITS SPECIFICS (vv. 18-19)

a. Scoffers (v. 18)

"...there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts."

1) 2 Peter 3:3--Jude's statement is almost a direct quote of the Apostle Peter's condemnation of apostates: "[Know] this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts." The word translated "scoffers" in 2 Peter and the word translated "mockers" in Jude are the same Greek word. It is used only in those two places. Jude is quoting Peter, saying, "For example, just think of what Peter said, that there would come scoffers." Apostate false teachers are scoffers who deceive others regarding the truth of God's Word and its application to spiritual issues.

Peter goes on to say in verse 5 that scoffers are "willingly...ignorant." Apostates characteristically know the Word of God and willfully reject it. They have read and understood it, yet they deliberately reject it, holding it in mockery. They deceive others by posing as truly godly and authoritative teachers while they pervert the truth of God.

2) 2 Peter 2:19--"While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the slaves of corruption...." False teachers walk in their own lusts and are enslaved by their own evil desires. Having rejected the truth of God's law, there is no way for them to control their lusts. Apostates not only have wrong theology, they invariably live in a state of self- corruption.

b. Separatists (v. 19a)

"These are they who separate themselves..."

Apostates not only mock the truth, seeking to be rich, famous, and sexually fulfilled; they also "separate themselves." That term is found only once in Scripture. It refers to people who think that they are superior. Like the Pharisees, they wanted to elevate themselves as the spiritually elite. They probably formed a clique at the love feast whose only desire was to feed themselves (v. 12). They evidently despised the leaders of the church, according to verse 8, which says that apostates "despise dominion." They arrogantly associated with the rich and the educated, believing themselves to be the spiritual and intellectual upper crust of society. They were like the Pharisees (a name which may mean "separated"), so Jude deals with them like Jesus dealt with the Pharisees. Jesus told them they were separated in a different way than they had assumed--from God.

I've experienced the ridicule of theological liberals. Some have said to me such things as, "Are you one of those stupid people who believes the Bible? You don't really have the education to understand the whole picture of reality." People like that claim to be the spiritual elite. They scoff at God's law and condemn true Christians as those who are intellectually naive.

c. Sensualists (v. 19a)

"These are...sensual..."

The Greek word for sensual is psuchikoi, which means "soul." It refers to physical life. Apostate false teachers consider themselves to have risen above the physical realm into the spiritual (pneumatikoi) realm. Jude is saying, "They may think they're spiritual, but I've got news for them--they're purely physical."

The spiritual elite thought they had been elevated to the highest level of life. They assumed that everyone else merely possessed the physical life that was held in common with animals and plants life. So, they divided everybody into two classes: the psuchikoi and the pneumatikoi, thus creating a kind of pseudo- Christian Pharisaism. Commentator William Barclay has said that "the spiritual and intellectual aristocracy believed that they were exempt from all the ordinary laws which govern a man's conduct. Ordinary people, the common herd, might have to observe the moral laws and accepted standards, but they were above that. For them, sin did not exist..." (The Letters of John and Jude, [Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1960], p. 238).

There are still people like that. Religious liberals believe that sin is only a prenatal predilection. According to them, it might as well be an idiosyncrasy of individuality as the result of poor secretion of the endocrine glands. Rather than admit to the reality of sin, they will deny sin, and thereby enslave themselves to their own lusts.

So Jude indicts apostate false teachers with their claim to be spiritual giants, as religious frauds who are unsaved and dominated by the flesh.

d. Secularists (v. 19c)

"...having not the Spirit."

If you don't have the Spirit, then according to Romans 8:9 you are not a Christian: "...Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His." So, Jude says that false teachers are not even Christians, because they are not indwelt by the Holy Spirit. Rather than being on the highest spiritual plane, they are on the lowest level.

Jude says to his readers, "Remember, the Apostles told you that such people were coming. They said that they would mock the truth, denying the inspiration of Scripture. They would deny the deity Christ and His substitutional atoning death and subsequent resurrection. They pursue their own lusts, operating in the ministry for the purpose of self-aggrandizement. They separate themselves from the majority and create an elite group that condescendingly limits all others to the physical realm. The fact of the matter is, they are devoid of the Holy Spirit, and therefore without spiritual life.

Today, there are apostate false teachers who serve as the heads of denominations, church councils, religious conventions, and other "Christian" institutions. Many times they are pastors, teachers, writers, or theologians who twist religion into a justification of their own evil deeds. Those people are the advocates of religious liberalism. They are the continuation of what Jude and the Apostles warned us about two thousand years ago. So, remember that when you see apostasy among religious leaders today, recognize that the Bible said it would come. Let us therefore contend for the faith against it.

 

II. REMAIN (vv. 20-21)

A. Explained

Knowing that God is going to unleash His wrath in the last days, we must make sure that we remain in the place of blessing. Verses 20-21 say, "But ye, beloved, building up yourselves upon your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life." There is one major phrase in that sentence that is set off with the main verb "keep." The other three phrases are modifiers of the phrase "keep yourselves in the love of God.". That phrase can be rendered, "Remain in the sphere of God's love." Imagine an area that you can stand on with a big circle drawn around it. When you remain in that circle, the blessing of God comes from heaven.

Now you might ask, "What does it mean to keep yourselves in the love of God? Does it mean you've got to do something to make God love you?" No. Jude is not saying, "Keep yourselves in God's universal love," because the Bible cites God's unconditional love for the world (Jn. 3:16). Therefore, you don't have to do a set number of spiritual calisthenics to make God love you. He loves everybody universally, because God loves all men whether they're saved or whether they're lost. Furthermore, Jude is not saying, "Keep yourselves in the special saving love," because you couldn't get saved by yourself and you can't stay saved by yourself. In fact, he said, "Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God, the Father, and preserved [kept] in [by] Jesus Christ..." (v. 1). Who keeps you in the love of God? Christ does. He secures you. I believe that Jude is simply saying, "Stay in the location of God's love, where you can experience its blessings." The Greek construction puts that phrase in the concept of a sphere or location. Jude's words tell us to remain in the place where God's love can bless us.

B. Exemplified

1. BY SONSHIP

In the story of the prodigal son, the father represents God and the son represents a wayward child of God. Did the father love the son? Yes. Did he love the son less when the son was slopping hogs than he loved him when he came home? No. The only difference came not in the love of the father, but in the location of the son. When the son was in the father's house, he was in the sphere of blessing. When he left the father's house, he moved out of the sphere of blessing, and when he returned, he entered back into that sphere again. But the love of the father never changed. Similarly, as a Christian, you can abide in the place of blessing or you can bail out and get yourself in a mess. Remaining in the place of blessing is same thing as staying in the will of God.

God wants to continuously pour out His love, but He can't always do that. Just like children are disciplined when they disobey their fathers, so are Christians disciplined when they disobey their heavenly Father. In both cases, the fatherly love for his children has not changed; disobedience puts physical and spiritual children in a place where fatherly love cannot be enjoyed. By being unfaithful, we can remove ourselves out of the sphere of God's blessing. Stay in the place where the father can give you the ring, the fatted calf, the feast, the best robe, and can declare you his son with all the rights and privileges. Don't depart in disobedience--stay in God's will.

2. BY SUNLIGHT

You can be in the sunlight or you can sit behind a building and be in the shade. You can shiver in the shade, or you walk out into the sun. The sun hasn't changed; it's just your relationship to it that has changed. As a Christian, you can wallow around in the darkness of your sin and in the shade of your disobedience, or you can enter the sunlight of God's love. Only then you'll begin to experience the warmth and the light that comes when you're where He can bless you.

3. BY STORM

Remaining in God's love while apostasy is swirling around us is like being in the eye of a hurricane where perfect calm exists. If you were to jump out of the place of the Father's blessing, you would be smashed by the hurricane of apostasy. Just remain where you belong: in the center of God's love. It is vitally important that you stay there.

There are only two places that a Christian can be: either in the place of blessing, or in the place of chastening. Ezra 8:22 says, "...The hand of our God is favorably disposed to all those who seek Him, but His power and His anger are against all those who forsake Him" (NASB). If you seek Him, you will be blessed; if you forsake Him, you will disciplined. That is why Jude exhorts us to stay in the place of blessing in the last days of apostasy.

C. Expressed

Since verses 20-21 have a main verb with three modifying participles, we can conclude that it is necessary to do three things in order to keep experiencing the love of God:

1. BY BUILDING (v. 20a)

"But ye, beloved, [should be] building up yourselves upon your most holy faith..."

a. The Metaphors

The first way to keep yourself in the love of God is by building yourself up in the faith. The word "building" is used metaphorically to refer to building spiritual strength in the New Testament. The faith is the foundation on which you build. It is "the once-for- all-delivered-to-the-saints faith," according to a literal rendering of verse 3. The faith revealed in the pages of the Word of God is the foundation on which we build the superstructure.

Did you know you are to do two things with regard to the faith? You are to build yourself up in the faith and you are to contend for the faith. There is a great illustration of that in Nehemiah 4:17-18: "They who built on the wall, and they who bore burdens, burdened themselves; everyone with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand held a weapon. For the builders, everyone had his sword girded by his side and so builded...." In one hand was a trowel, and in the other hand a sword. That's a graphic illustration of how the Christian lives in a day of apostasy. With one hand he contends and with the other hand he builds himself up in the faith.

Christ laid the foundation: Ephesians 2:20 says that the Apostles and the prophets are the foundation. First Peter 2:6 says that Christ is the chief cornerstone. In verse 5, Peter says that Christians are "living stones" built up to be the temple of the living God. That metaphor is used throughout Scripture. It is also true that we can look at that metaphor in a personal sense. Not only are we stones in a building, but we have to build ourselves. As living stones, we need to grow. We need to build maturity on the foundation of the faith delivered to the saints. Building on the faith is like spiritual weightlifting--you are building your muscles so that you can stand firm.

b. The Means

You say, "How do you build yourself up?" Several scriptures tell us how:

1) Acts 20:32--Paul warned the Ephesian elders about coming apostasy, saying, "And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up...." The Word of God is that which build us up--there is no substitute for it. The stronger you are, the more capable you will be of remaining in the place of blessing.

2) Ephesians 4:12-13--As a pastor, developing spiritual maturity is partly my task. I'm like a coach who motivates and instructs the players. I am responsible "For the perfecting of the saints" that they might grow up to "the stature of the fullness of Christ." I explain the strategies and teach the basics, but those who hear my teaching must go out and exercise. If an athlete did nothing but go to the strategy sessions every Saturday before the game, he'd never be a productive player. Once he has learned what he's supposed to do, he then must go out all week and prepare himself to face the opposing team on Saturday. There has to be an individual commitment to study and apply the Word of God if a Christian is ever going to be strong enough to remain in the sphere of God's blessing when Satan attacks. That is a tremendous responsibility.

3) 2 Timothy 3:16-17--Paul said to Timothy, "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works." The word "perfect" means "mature." The Word of God is able to make you strong and mature.

4) 1 Peter 2:2-3--"As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that ye may grow by it, if so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious." If it tasted good at first, then devour it and gain strength.

To remain in the sphere of blessing, you have grow stronger in the word of grace.

The second participle in verse 20 expresses Jude's command to remain in God's love...

2. BY PRAYING (v. 20)

"...praying in the Holy Spirit"

a. In Perspective

I'm so glad Jude added that because you can think you're so doctrinally strong that you don't need God. Don't ever lose your perspective. You might know many things and be theologically strong, but as soon as you depend on your own strength, you fall out of the circle of God's love. You must always depend on God.

1) Ephesians 6--Paul says, "Put on the whole armor of God" (v. 11) and then describes each piece in verses 14-17. And unless one felt that he would be invincible, Paul says that those preparations should be taken while "Praying always..." (v. 18). We need to be constantly praying because even in the moment of our greatest strength, we still need to depend on God.

2) 2 Corinthians 10--Paul said that "the weapons of our warfare are not carnal [earthly]..." (v. 4). Because we are fighting a spiritual war, praying is very important. Prayer is merely depending on God. It is pouring out a heart of love and saying, "God, I love You. Thank You for loving me and giving me Your strength when I call upon You."

b. In the Spirit

1) Defined

What does "praying in the Holy Spirit" mean? Some people incorrectly identify that as speaking in tongues, but that phrase isn't even remotely related to that particular spiritual gift. It is not saying that if you want to abide in the love of God, you should pray in tongues. Rather, that phrase means essentially the same thing as "praying in the name of the Lord Jesus." When a person does that, he is praying according to Christ's will. Similarly, when one prays in the Holy Spirit, he prays according to the Spirit's will. It simply means to line up your prayers with those of the Spirit.

2) Described

a) Ignorance

Romans 8 says, "Likewise, the Spirit also helpeth our infirmity [weakness]; for we know not what we should pray for as we ought..." (v. 26). We often don't know what to pray for because we're not omniscient--we can't see the end from the beginning. We are limited by not knowing what tomorrow may bring. Furthermore, we ask God for many things that He knows would ruin us if He gave them to us. James says that we often pray for things to satisfy our lusts. Since we have trouble knowing how to pray, the Spirit has the responsibility of...

b) Intercession

Romans 8:26 continues to say that "the Spirit Himself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered." Some people say, "This is the Holy Spirit speaking in tongues." No, this verse is not speaking of groanings that can be uttered; it is referring to groanings that cannot be uttered. Furthermore, the groanings are not ours; they are the Holy Spirit's as He prays in a divine language that has no sound. That intercession involves the members of the Trinity in communion.

Every moment of your existence as a believer, the Holy Spirit prays for you. You not only have an Advocate in heaven at the right hand of the Father, but also One within you--the Holy Spirit. He is the Comforter that Jesus said He would send in His place. Comforter is translated form the same Greek as "advocate" (1 Jn. 2:2), which is a designation of Christ. So, Jesus prays for you in heaven, and the Spirit prays for you from within. What confidence that provides! Since the Spirit's prayers will always be according to the will of God, there exists between the Father and the Spirit, a complete...

c) Identification

"And He [God the Father] that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because He maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God" (Rom. 8:27). The Spirit always prays according to the will of God. Therefore, if I'm praying in the Spirit, I am automatically praying according to t