Our Daily Scripture – 10/24/25 (Friday)

SCRIPTURE:  JUDE

INTRODUCTION:

Jude was a half-brother of Jesus.  He wrote to warn Christian about false teachers who used grace as an excuse for sin.  They were leading the people to live sinful lives and saying that Christians could do as they pleased without fear of God’s punishment.  This letter contains a warning against living a nominal Christian life.  

MEMORY VERSE;

“But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit.  Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.” (Jude vs. 20-21)

THE SIN AND DOOM OF GODLESS MEN (vs. 3-16)

Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints.  For certain men whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you.  They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and lord.

Though you already know all this, I want to remind you that the Lord delivered his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe.  And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their own home – these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day.  In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion.  They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire.

In the very same way, these dreamers pollute their own bodies, reject authority and slander celestial beings.  But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not dare to bring slanderous accusations against him, but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”.   Yet these men speak abusively against whatever they do not understand; and what things they do understand by instinct like unreasoning animals – these are the very things that destroy them.

Woe to them!  They have taken the way of Cain; they have rushed for profit into Balaam’s error; they have been destroyed by Korah’s rebellion.

These men are blemishes at your love feats, eating with you without the slightest qualm – shepherds who feed only themselves.  ‘They are clouds without rain, blown along by the wind; autumn trees, without fruit and uprooted – twice dead.  They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their shame, wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever.

Enoch, the seventh from Adam prophesied about these men; “See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones to judge everyone, and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done in the ungodly way, and of all the harsh words ungodly sinners have spoken  against him”.  These men are grumblers and faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires; they boast about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage.

A CALL TO PERSEVERE (vs. 17-25)

But, dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold, They said to you, “In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.”  These are the men, who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit.

But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in you most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit.  Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.

Be merciful to those who doubt.  Snatch others from the fire and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear – hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.

DOXOLOGY (vs. 24-25)

To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy.  To the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.

THOUGHTS:

Jude’s letter focused on apostasy – turning away from God’s truth and embracing false teachings.  He wrote this letter to warn that there were false teachers who did not believe the incarnation of Christ and their abuse of Christian ethics.  He wanted to combat the false teachings and encourage true doctrine and right conduct.

Jude said that if the chosen people, angels and sinful cities were punished, these false teachers will surely be severely judged.  These are  three examples of rebellion that were being punished:

  1. The nation of Israel – Although they were delivered out of Egypt, but refused to trust God to enter the Promised Land..
  2. The angels – Although they were living in heaven, some gave in to pride and joined Satan to rebel against God.
  3. Sodom and Gomorrah  – The people were full of sin so that God wiped them out by fire.

The nature of God is beyond our understanding, but He has revealed himself to us in his Word.  Therefore, we must seek to know all we can about what he has revealed even though we cannot fully comprehend with our finite human mind.  Do not believe in false teachers claims that they possessed secret knowledge of God that gave them authority.

Examples of men whose attitudes were typical of false teachers:

  1. Cain – He murdered his brother Abel out of vengeful jealousy.
  2. Balaam – He prophesied out of greed and disobedience to God’s command.
  3. Korah – He rebelled against God’s divinely appointed leaders wanting the power for himself.

DESCRIPTION OF FALSE TEACHERS:

  1. They are blemishes at love feast – shepherds who feed themselves only. (v.12a)
  2. They are clouds without rain, blown along by the wind. (v.12b)
  3. They are autumn trees, without fruit and uprooted – twice dead. (v. 12c)
  4. They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their shame. (v. 13a)
  5. They are wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever. (v. 13b)
  6.  They are grumblers and faultfinders following their own evil desires. (v. 16a)
  7.  They boast about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage. (v. 16b)
  8. They are scoffers who follow their own ungodly desires. (v. 18)
  9. They divide believers and follow their natural instincts without the presence of the Spirit. (v. 19)

JOHN’S INSTRUCTION TO THE BELIEVERS:

  1.  Build yourselves up by living close to God.
  2.  Pray in the Holy Spirit.
  3.  Keep yourselves in God’s love.
  4.  Witness to others through our compassion and kindness.
  5.  Show mercy by snatching unbelievers away from the eternal fire.
  6.  Do not fall into the quicksand of compromise.
  7.  Keep yourself righteous and do not allow non-Christians to influence you.
  8.  Trust the Lord and don’t fall prey to false teachers.