This is an exhortation to all believers. Jude presents an address of challenges from the first century church viewpoint. Yet, he gives us today, in 2016, a prophetic alert on current corruption. In addition we have his practical application for correcting these errors. His exhortation to us is to earnestly contend for the faith.
If Dr. J. Royce Thomason were still with us in this walk of life today, he would be 100 years old. Over six decades ago, he chose Jude 3 as marching orders for The Voice in the Wilderness. Bro. Royce served in the army during WWII and then upon discharge, traveled around the world in medical missions. Early on in his ministry he separated from denominational compromise. Even at that time he saw the dangers of those who had crept in unawares and had begun to undermine the truth of God’s Word. During 2016, we are celebrating the 100-year mark of Bro. Royce’s life. It has been a joy to emphasize his one life, one voice, and one influence for eternity throughout this year long centennial celebration. In this edition of “The Voice in the Wilderness” we are looking at the Book of Jude with a challenge to pastors and churches.
Here is a brief outline of Jude’s 25 verses.
The Devotion – verses 1 & 2 (“The servant of Jesus Christ”).
The Defense – verses 3 & 4 (“Contend for the Faith”).
The Defiled – verses 5-16 (“Filthy Dreamers Defile the Flesh…woe unto them!).
The Difference – verses 17-23 (“Making a Difference”).
Jude closes his book with exceeding joy –victory in Jesus.
The Doxology – verses 24-25 (“The only wise God our Saviour”).
In 25 verses less than 500 words, Jude gives this powerful denunciation of ungodly men who have “crept in unawares…”. They slip in to drag down. Now listen carefully—the ungodly are saying that salvation and sin are compatible. That is a lie.
One dear lady told me—but, Bro. Ronnie, you don’t understand—it is happening to all families. She was referring to fornication, divorce and remarriage. The truth is—it is not happening to all families—and if it was, that doesn’t change God’s truth. Sin is still destructive and there are consequences for sin. A casual, cavalier, carnal attitude towards sin positions a church for creeping things.
Did you notice Jude describes these ungodly men as denying “the only Lord God, our Lord Jesus Christ”?
I was preaching one Sunday and in the message hit on the subject of public education. In talking about these godless government-run schools, there were some church members that got quite upset.
On one occasion we were out soul-winning in a community, had several people saved, and in the course of events got cross-wise with some Masons. Our efforts in that community were immediately shut down.
I was having a Bible Study with a young couple praying that they would be saved. The young man asked me “If I get saved, will I have to give up my rock n’ roll music”? I asked him, “What did he think”? He replied, “I think if I get saved, I need to give up my rock n’ roll music, so I’m not going to get saved.”
The Bible says, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” I understood those words when I got saved, did you? Apparently, the young man I was witnessing to understood that if he got saved, Jesus would be Lord and rock n’ roll music would be out. By the way, he did get saved. Praise the Lord. Why in the world Christians would support public education, I don’t know. Surely if they are knowledgeable of the Bible, the last thing they would do would be to defend public education. Even for someone seeing himself or herself as a missionary in the public school system there surely would be no hostility toward a preacher exposing the atheism and error of government schools. They would cheer him on and say sound the trumpet Brother. If you profess to be saved but maintain a membership in the Masonic lodge, and a murderer gets off scott-free because he is a Mason, does that not tell you something? Then in your community lost people are getting saved, but the Masons don’t like it, and shut that evangelistic effort down, does that not tell you something? Yes, today there are some ungodly men denying the Lord Jesus Christ, and they have crept in unawares.
You’ve heard the phrase before describing the Lord as “the man upstairs.” Today it’s “let’s party with Jesus.” HIS true church is not a party with Jesus nor are we to call our Holy God the “man upstairs.” Some have crept in unawares in an attempt to bring our Lord Jesus Christ “downstairs” to a lowered level of carnality. “Certain men” have thrown in with the world today and are preaching and teaching contrary to our Lord’s Word.
Churches have very little power over this world, when this world has so much power over us. When Jesus holds place as Lord, then He is Lord in all places. These modern, contemporary preachers want their church campuses with ball fields, soccer fields, gymnasiums, weight-watchers, zumba classes and worship time like a recreational event.
Now I don’t want to be a stick in the mud nor an old fuddy-duddy. I believe in:
Re-created
Re-generated
Re-newed
Re-freshed
Re-vived
Re-joicing in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
However, it’s not done in a causal and carnal fashion. All we do, is to be Christ honoring.
They have crept in unawares with their books, CD’s, DVD’s, TV programs, Radio, and mega church mania. Now don’t misunderstand me. A “big church” is not inherently wrong anymore than a “small church” that doesn’t have one soul saved and baptized in 12 months is a spiritual church. But mark it down for certain. “Before of old ordained” in time past and present there are men who have professed but did not possess Jesus as Lord. They “crept in” and abuse grace, abhor law, and advert doctrine. Theirs is a practical denial of the sovereign Lord Jesus. These are libertines. I use three words to describe them—casual, carnal, and corrupt. Wicked and vile are those who would dare lower the standard to the world’s level, and wrest the scripture to their life style.
It is not a waste of time to preach against this modernistic casual, carnal, corrupt churchianity. Jude warns us. Ungodly men have crept into the church. Over Twenty-five years ago I cried aloud and spared not against the ungodly public schools. I went on record saying, “soon people would not even know which Bathroom to use. Progressive education was dumbing-down to the extent that Look-say students couldn’t read and girls didn’t wear dresses so nobody could read the bathroom signs to know which toilet to use." Young women in Christian colleges as well as mothers in churches acted like they were addicted to their “britches.” They wanted to tar and feather me for preaching against their liberty with my legalism. The anger and hostility was intense. The distinction in Deuteronomy 22:5 was Old Testament and my holier than thou legalistic preaching on dress was not welcomed. It was ridiculous to say no one would know which bathroom to use. I was being hateful and mean spirited. So now tell me has the prophecy come true? Yes it has. From the North Carolina General Assembly HB2 and LGBTQ groups the argument is about which bathroom to use.
Multitudes are dying and going to hell, and you will waste time and energy preaching about bathrooms and britches on women. Oh, by the way, don’t forget, body piercing. And while we are on the subject, how about music and movie going or Disney and dance, even wine and working on Sunday.
When I got saved in 1971, I was a longhaired, bell-bottom, surf-shirt wearing lost sinner. My music was Three Dog Night, Blood Sweat and Tears, Cream, and Chicago. The same big bass, boom, and beat that once came out of my eight-track player can now be heard from the amplifiers and drums at a local church near you. It’s interesting, even though I did not own a tie or suit, of course it must have been the Holy Spirit (you think?), that for me it seemed only proper and appropriate to wear a tie and coat to church. I’m not even sure that my Dad owned a suit. We were not churchgoers. But he did have some fancy Hawaiian ties. You know, those bright colorful ties with the palm trees, surfboard, and hula girls. So here goes this newly saved, hippie doodle beach bum off to church with his Dad’s Hawaiian tie on. Of course today, there’s no Hawaiian ties, just Hawaiian shirts in the pulpit with the rock n’ roll band playing something about Jesus on stage.
Yes, I know, all of the above is in the “No Fly Zone.” You know what I’m talking about. Preachers have a list of subjects that they won't even touch with a 12 inch thick family King James Bible. Now here are some simple principles that I learned within a few months. Think about them for a minute:
Little foxes that spoil the vines. Song of Sol. 2:15
I’m bought with a price. I Cor. 6:19&20
Avoid the appearance of evil.
I Thess. 5:22
Jude had a tendency to enter that “No Fly Zone.” He deals with some hot topics indeed. This is “No Jude For Dummies.” Sadly, some Christians after many years are still asking, “Where did Cain get his wife?” Do you remember your public school teacher saying the only dumb question is the question you don’t ask? Wrong. Some Christians prove they are not studying the Scripture by asking the same old questions.
Will smoking my cigarettes send me to hell?
Are you saying I’m not saved if I wear pants?
Ain’t gluttony just as bad as adultery?
So after all, where did Cain get his wife?
So you’re saying God doesn’t want me to be happy with my third husband?
“Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core.” One preacher said Cain represents Rationalism. Balaam represents Mammonism. Core (Korah) represents Anarchism. Everybody understands this: Rationalism is a rash of lies. Mammon is the old show me the money. Anarchism is your legalistic, hypocritical holier than thous. Sounds like Jude was preaching in some of our churches today. Let’s just be plain about it. There is a crowd in the church in love with the flesh, the world, and the devil. It has crept in—this ungodly crowd turning the grace of God into lasciviousness.
Does a Christian parent really want their son to say, “I am a woman in a man’s body”? Does a Christian parent really want their daughter to say, “I am a man trapped in a female body”? We don’t want our child to spend their life in prison as a felon, drunk, and drug offender. The Lord saves His people out of the land of Egypt. The land of Egypt is the place of sin, slavery, and Satan. Jude tells us the Lord saved us out of the land of Egypt. We are to live in our Lord’s land of promise. Each generation must get out of the land of Egypt and get in the land of promise. By the way, Joseph did not even want his bones left in the land of Egypt. Hey, we want to live in the land of Egypt but enjoy the blessing of the land of promise.
Some years ago we were living and ministering in the state of Montana. The news reported a tragic hunting accident. It seemed that a man was elk hunting nearby in the mountains, spotted an elk, and fired his high-powered rifle. Now I do not remember whether he killed the elk or not, but the bullet traveled a mile away killing a young girl horseback riding on a distant mountain ridge. We’ve heard it said, “Know your target and what is beyond it.” We may live our life day to day thinking there’s nothing wrong with this or that. I deserve to be happy--all the while not looking beyond our immediacy and seeing the implications and consequence of our choices. So is there a positive in all of this? Certainly, God’s Word equips us to be victorious in this walk of life. Briefly in closing, permit me to give you three thoughts as we earnestly contend for the faith.
The Purity of Scripture and Sermon—for all us preachers the Words of the Lord are pure (Ps. 12:6-7). Be assured we have the pure, powerful, preserved Word of God to preach to the needy souls of men.
The Prayers of Sincerity and Separation—pray and faint not (Luke 18). We must not be weary in well doing. The wicked do not get weary in their evil doing. Let us pray and trust the Lord for the victory. Don’t just pray for the work. Prayer is the WORK!
The Power of Spirit and Service—but ye shall receive power (Acts 1:8). Our Lord has promised His power for the warfare. Thus Jude closes with the Doxology. Read Jude 24 and 25. Glory and majesty, dominion and power!
Carlisle Hanna said his daughter Sheila Marie was 3 months old when he and his wife arrived in Allahabad. It was cold one day and hot (120 degrees) the next in February and March. Their sweet precious baby girl got sick—vomiting and soon very dehydrated. The doctor probably made the wrong choices, death came. There was no phone. Family and the other missionaries were far away. There was a small wooden casket made and a burial at Muir Road Christian Cemetery. I thought about those who have gone before us and faithfully, even sacrificially served the Lord. They earnestly contended for the faith that was entrusted to them and paid the supreme price in devotion. Am I even worthy to read their testimony. Yet I dare complain about some of the trivial inconveniences of life while they did front line combat with the powers of darkness. Will we also earnestly contend? Our LORD Jesus is worthy.