 I'll begin reading at verse 16 and I'll read verses 16 through 19. We'll get into our study. Jude verse 16 through 19. Jude writes, these are grumblers, complainers, walking according to their own lusts. They mouth great swelling words, flattering people to gain advantage. But you, beloved, remember the words which were spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. How they told you that there would be mockers in the last time who would walk according to their own ungodly lusts. These are sensual persons who cause divisions not having the spirit. Now again, Jude is a short letter. It's only 25 verses and it was written to warn the church concerning a problem that had already erupted, had been present, but was manifesting even more in the days that he wrote this particular letter. He's writing about false teachers. Now I mentioned early that in the early days of the church, false teachers began to rise up and began to infiltrate. Now they would speak of the things that we would speak of as believers. They spoke of the gospel. They would speak of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit. They would even speak of themselves as being apostles or prophets and they would claim to speak for God. Now you see so many different New Testament books that pertain to this, just referring to the book of Second Corinthians. Paul was writing to the Corinthians and he spoke of the false teachers, the false apostles who had entered the church. And the church had begun to look at them as not just ordinary people. The church began looking at them as what are called super or preeminent apostles. And they were busy comparing themselves with the apostle Paul. They were presenting themselves as being superior to him. So they referred to him as the supereminent one, the preeminent ones, but they were false teachers. And Paul had to deal with it. Why? Because they were bringing in a false message, a false gospel. He said in Second Corinthians, for example, chapter 11 verse 4, if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received or a different gospel you have not accepted, you may well put up with it. And so notice what he said, another Jesus, a different spirit, a different gospel. This was taking place during the days of the early church. And he's saying my concern for you is you'll put up with it. These are people bringing in false doctrine. These are people who are lying to you, but you're putting up with these kinds of things later on in Second Corinthians in chapter 11. He went on to say in verses 13 through 15, when he identified them, he said, such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising then if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve. They act as if they are messengers of light. They act as if they're speaking of the same Holy Spirit, the same Father, the same Messiah. And you see these people to this day. They'll stand on street corners, they'll knock on your door, they go to airports. They used to quite often, they're out to this day masquerading as messengers of the gospel of Jesus Christ. But Paul had to identify them. He had to tell them, be careful with them because remember Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. So it isn't surprising if his ministers, his servants, do the same thing. Now we've been looking at Jude and in verse 15 of the book of Jude, Jude had said that Jesus is going to execute judgment on these false teacher. You see the gospel is to be presented in its clearest form. It's not to be modified, changed in any way. When Paul was writing to the Galatians in chapter one, verses eight and nine, this is what he said. He said, even if we are an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we've preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you've received, let him be accursed. Today we have people say, well, don't be so harsh and judgmental. We're just repeating what the apostle taught us. And we'll see that a little bit more in just a moment. The church is asleep in the light, have to be honest with you. I received something somebody sent to me just this last Saturday. And a member of our church who's been with us for many, many years sent this and he said, this is what's out there right now. And so I opened it up and it was a young woman inviting people to their resurrection services or Easter services. And she said, well, when you invite somebody, don't talk about the cross and don't talk about the resurrection and don't talk about the blood of Christ. And just invite them to what, to an Easter egg hunt, I guess, I don't know. But a lot of churches have done that and might as well wait into this for a moment because sometimes people ask about it. I personally, I'm not big on those things myself, not the blood cross I am, but bunny rabbits, you know, I have a problem with that. I don't say it openly and might as well say it now, he came out, here it is. I just never wanted to mix up the symbols with the reality. I just didn't want to teach my children that these things had anything to do with Christ and what he did on the cross. And that's how I raised my kids, you know, now, whether they follow me or not, it's up to them, whether they think it's okay and harmless, it's up to them. I don't know that when they stand before the Lord, he's going to say, I'm sorry, you had too many eggs and baskets, go to hell. I really don't think he'll do that. It's just, it's one of those things in my own conscience. I never, I never was able to do that. I don't do that, never did that. Well, I didn't want to confuse my children. I didn't want them to begin to associate pagan things with the truth and see some things are very subtle. And so I'm very careful with that. And so the truth of the gospel is very important. When I first got saved, you know, within the first couple of years, I wanted to know as much as I could about the Lord. And I wanted to know as much as I could about his word. And so it's been a long, long time journey in an attempt to grow familiar with the things of God's word and all. When I had gotten out of the military back in 73, I was given the opportunity because it was offered to go and listen to a man at that time that some of you may be familiar with most probably aren't. His name was Walter Martin. And Walter Martin was an apologist par excellence. He was one of the best apologists that were around. He wrote a book called The Kingdom of the Cults. And I was beginning to encounter people from various pseudo-Christian cults, pseudo-Christian belief systems. And so I had a chance to sit under his teaching for close to a year. And, you know, I grew to appreciate what truth is. And he's the one who taught me this. He taught all of us, but I embraced it. He said that you need to get past the language barrier if you're going to understand the cults. He said because they use the same words that you do. They'll use the name Jesus as you do. They'll use the name the Spirit as you do. They'll speak of God the Father as you do. He said there are words that are vested with different meanings. So when you speak of Jesus, you're speaking of the second person of the Holy Trinity. The one who was incarnated, conceived by the Holy Spirit, was born of the Virgin Mary. You're speaking of that one. But if you're speaking to a Jehovah's Witness, Walter Martin pointed out, you're speaking of the first creation of God. If you're speaking to a Mormon, that person is speaking of a Jesus when there are many Jesus and many gods on many planets. And so there were things that I was interested in. Why? Because I wanted to know what the truth was and where are you going to find the truth if it's not in the Bible, right? And so for me, I almost moved. As a matter of fact, I had a private conversation with Walter Martin many years ago and I told him, I said, you know, Walter, I would like to actually sit under your tutelage. I'd like to learn to be an apologist because that was actually the direction that I was going in when I first got saved and first got out of the military because I saw so much error. I saw so many people using the name of Christ, people knocking on doors, people riding their 10 speeds, people who are telling you that Jesus is just a manifestation of God and the way that there are a variety of ones throughout the ages, etc. I was hearing all of those things because when there is good, present, evil is present also. When God is moving, the enemy moves too. And so in the midst of the Jesus movement, the enemy was doing everything he could. He was getting people into places of, what's the word, they were influencing people. So you had guys like Seals and Croft who were members of the Baha'i organization and they did their concerts and for people my age and some of you, this is ancient history, so let me give you a history lesson. The Baha'i movement became, a movement America began to encounter through Seals and Croft and so that was a musical group that was popular. And so when the enemy saw Jesus was being glorified, he put together inspiration, he inspired many, and so there was an immediate check on the work of the Holy Spirit. And so for me, these kinds of books have been very important. The book of Judah has been very important in my own spiritual growth because it tells me that I am to believe certain things and hold fast to them and not to have a wishy-washy kind of spineless Christianity, but to be ready to defend those things which I know are most are true, you see, and that's why Jude is such an important book because the gospel is that important. Now many of the early letters that we read give warnings, as I've already shown you this in our introduction about the false teachers, but remember 2 Peter 2, 1 and 2 where he had prophesied there were also false prophets among the people even as there will be false teachers among you who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them and bring on themselves swift destruction. Many will follow their destructive ways because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. Well, these false teachers infiltrated. Jude is warning the church. Now he gave a long list of their traits. And remember Christ pointed out by the fruit you will know them. So as we've gone through Jude, he said that they are ungodly, that they're licentious, their deniers, their dreamers who defile the flesh. He said their rebellious, blasphemers, their ignorant, their brute beasts, their corrupt, their spiritual murderers, their greedy, their morally blemish, their gluttons, their self-serving, their empty, fruitless, destructive, unstable. It sounds like my staff. I mean, they're just bad people. Let's move the tension out of the room for a moment. So what he's doing is he's identifying the traits of the false teachers. And that's where we left off in our last study. Remember in verse 16 he had said their grumblers, complainers. They walk according to their own lust. They mouth great swelling words, flattering people to gain advantage. So he's describing them. They are grumblers. They're discontent. They complain about God and against God. They're complainers. They're constantly expressing grievances. These are false finders. They have a constant critical attitude. He said they're walking according to their own lust. When it says walking in scripture, very often it's speaking of their way of life. It's their walk, their way of life. In other words, they live according to their own flesh, their own passion, their evil inclinations. That's because they're not saved. They don't have the spirit. He said in verse 16, they mouth great swelling words. Great swelling words speaks concerning an arrogant, empty preaching and empty arrogant claims of greatness. They present themselves as being above other people. In 2 Peter 2.18 they mouth empty boastful words and by appealing to the lustful desires of sinful human nature, they entice people for just escaping from those who live in error. He speaks of them being flatterers. They flatter people to gain advantage. Today we may still use this phrase. They're ladder climbers. They're people who honor others for the sake of their own personal advantage. They embrace people, become close to those people, then use those people to get the advantage to do what they want to do later on. And so he says they flatter people to gain advantage. But what are we to do? Verse 17, but you beloved, remember the words which were spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, how they told you that there would be mockers in the last time who would walk according to their own ungodly lusts. Remember what are we to do? Remember the words which were spoken. Notice before by the apostles. Remember those words. Cling to what you've been taught. Holding fast to what you have been taught will safeguard you from the lies of the enemy. What is the purpose of Bible teaching? Why do we have Bible studies, Ephesians 4, 14, so that we will no longer be infants tossed back and forth by waves blown here and there by every wind of teaching, by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. That's why when our church was young guys, and I was a young man so long ago now. I had a, and still do, I just have learned to kind of keep it a little bit under control. I had such a fire because I was raised in a religious system that kept Christ from me. I saw a lot of hurt in my own life. And after getting saved, I saw a lot of hurt in other people that they didn't need to suffer. And many of the people that I saw who were hurt desperately were religious people, people in religious groups, people who went to church, but didn't know Christ. And I got this passion in my heart to tell the truth, to tell people this is what the word of God says. And I thought everybody wanted to hear that. I really did. I thought people wanted to be free. I thought people wanted joy and peace and love and hope. I thought they wanted those things. And I found out that not everybody does. And I found out that sometimes the most angry people I ever saw were members of, of even my church and others, that when told certain things they didn't agree with, they'd get so angry that sometimes they'd storm out. It happens to this day, you know, COVID was an interesting thing that we went through, because in a way it kind of had a purging effect in, in churches where those who were not really that, that interested in things of Lord, it wasn't hard for them to stop attending churches. And what I saw here, and it may be just something here, but what I saw here is that after we were able to reassemble and began to meet again, that people didn't get up and storm out as often as they did. I mean, it was interesting. I mean, every time I would teach someone would get up and walk out angrily. And I finally told Marie, that's just not good to do that. It, it embarrasses me and it doesn't look the church, make the church look good, baby. You got to stop doing that. Just tell me at home, you don't like what I said. But see people have this sensitivity. And today what we have is a many people who think you're never supposed to tell the truth because in their eyes, there is no such thing as truth. So the Bible teaches us that there is truth. Jesus said to us that the truth is God's word. And so that's why we preach and teach to the word of God. And that's how we're protected. That's how the Lord safeguards us. It's that we're holding fast in Acts 242. It speaks of the early church. And remember what it says. They devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. They devoted themselves, they were addicted to the teaching of God's word. So hold fast, he says, to the things that, that they have received, the things that which were before spoken or spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. Hold fast to their teaching. Well, what did they do? Well, he says in verse 18, how they told you that there would be mockers in the last time who would walk according to their own ungodly lust. They warned you, there will be mockers. There are going to be people who are putting down the gospel, and so the church is to be vigilant. And we've been prepared. We have already been told in advance, in other words, this is going to happen. And again, you can go through scriptures. I'll show you 1st Timothy 4, 1 and 2, how in speaking of the apostles, how Paul had said, the Spirit clearly says that in later times, some will abandon the faith and, and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. They are slaves to sin is what that speaks of. In 2nd Timothy 4, 3, the time will come when men will not tolerate sound doctrine. But with itching ears, they will gather around themselves teachers who will suit their own desires. They will go to places that will tell them what they want to hear, not what they need to hear. And what are they? Well, verse 19 says they're sensual persons. They cause divisions because they don't agree with what's being said. They, they tell other people not to agree also. And that's why, why do they do that? They don't have the spirit. They live according to the inclinations of their unregenerate carnal nature. In Romans 8, 6 through 8, it says, the mind of sinful man is death. The mind controlled by the spirit is life and peace. The sinful mind is hostile to God. It doesn't submit to God's law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. And the fruit of their lives and message is that they cause divisions, Jude says. They make it seem that if you're not with them, then you're not really spiritual. You have to be aware. You have to be aware of any group that makes you feel that their group is the one that has the exclusive way to God. You have to be careful with that mentality. Now, on the one hand, the word does divide a believer from the unbeliever. Those who don't, who don't love the Lord will reject his word. In John 8, 47, Jesus said, whoever belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you don't hear is that you don't belong to God. And why don't they want to put up with it? Because the words that are being spoken are not in agreement with their carnal nature. They don't like what they're hearing. What do you mean died to self? What do you mean I shouldn't be sleeping around? What do you mean I shouldn't be dreaming? What do you mean I shouldn't be partying? What do you mean I shouldn't be partying? I can do that and so go to heaven. Everybody goes to heaven, right? Dogs go to heaven. Cats go to heaven. Everything goes to heaven, right? I mean, sometimes they see believers. They're talking about their dog in heaven. I say, please, please don't. And the Bible doesn't teach that at all. Anyway, see, that's one of my pet peeves. I have to be careful with that. I have to shut up. But what happens when a dog is born again? Does he become a new creature? Therefore, he's a cat. I don't know. Just think about that for a minute. Let that twist your brain. Okay, what is the fruit of accurate teaching? Unity. Unity in Jesus. We have a unity in the Lord by the Spirit. And it's by the power of the Holy Spirit that we maintain our unity. But we intend to do that and endeavor to do that. That's why Ephesians 4 3 says, make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. We hold fast to the essentials and that helps us as a body to remain on the same page and doing the things that God is pleased with. Now, the reason they're divisive is because they don't have God's Holy Spirit. These are people who the scriptures refer to as unsaved. And because they're unsaved, they don't have the leading direction or inspiration of the Holy Spirit. In Romans 8 verse 9, Paul said it like this. He said, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit. If so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. If any man does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. So you enter into a relationship with God. You're born again. Your body becomes a temple of the Spirit of God. You are now a new creation in Christ Jesus. The old things are passed away. Behold, all things are becoming new. And so now as a temple of the Spirit, the Holy Spirit who works within you is also directing you. So there's an internal drive that the Holy Spirit gives you to do those things that are pleasing to him. And along with that drive, he gives you an awakened hunger for the things of God that are revealed to us in scripture. And that's why you read the Bible. You read the Bible because the Bible is actually changing the way that you think. Somebody, when I first got saved, will never forget this. This is real common. I don't know if it still happens now. It was real common when I first got saved. People would say to us, you're brainwashed. Has anybody ever called you brainwashed? I don't know. Is that something that people... You're brainwashed, man. You're brainwashed. And I was listening to a guy one day and again I was just born again. He said, you know, people are saying that we're brainwashed. And I'll never forget what he said when he said, you know what? I tell him I am. He says, my brains were dirty and they've been washed by the blood of Jesus Christ. And so I am brainwashed. I like that. It was a simple way of thinking, but it's true. You know, before you have the direction of the Holy Spirit, before you have the word of God that teaches what is right, what is wrong with God, is pleased with the things he's not pleased with before you have that, you live according to your own passion. You know, so I get saved and I have friends who are arguing with me. Listen, I liked, we used to call it herb. I don't know what it's called now. John, what is it called? You're still out there on hold making a living as a pharmacist. Tell me, we called it herb. And so when I, marijuana, so when I first got saved, when I first got saved, I had a guy arguing with me. He said, wait a minute, the Bible says that God made the herb and the herb is good. You know, and, and I'm a brand new Christian, but I remember saying, yeah, he also made poison ivy, but you don't use it as toilet paper. So let's not go in that direction. Okay. Because you can get real ridiculous with those kinds of arguments. Let's not go in that direction. So the bottom line is, is you will do the things you like to do, because those are the things you're pleased doing. So what is it that's going to change my life if it's not the word? And when I read the word, what is going to give me the ability to do it, if it's not the spirit? And so when you have a false teacher who's telling you that you can get to the destination you want to go, whether it's nirvana, whether it's in heaven or whatever it may be, but all you need to do is these certain things. And Jesus is not the center of it. And the word of God is not the center of it. And the blood of Christ is not the center of all these things, which you're getting as a false gospel, a false message. And so you have to be born again. And you'll see, I'll point that out again in just a moment. And so these people are sensual. So what do you do to do? Well, verse 20, beloved, building yourselves up in 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. What am I to do? Build yourself up. He's telling me how to promote my own spiritual growth. Build yourselves up, he said in verse 20, in your most holy faith. The word build is an interesting Greek word. It means to finish the structure of which the foundation has already been laid. Increase, in other words, in your understanding, in your Christian knowledge, increase in a life that is conforming to Jesus Christ. How does that happen? Well, one, Jesus is the center and foundation of our life. He's not something I added to my life. He is my life. There's a difference. I can love people, but she is my love. As a Christian, Jesus isn't just part of my life. He is my life. And that's what Paul says. He said, Christ, who is our life. And so Jesus is the center for my life. He is my life. He is my life. He is my life. He is my life. He is my life. He is my life. He is my life. He is my life. He is my life. And so Jesus is the center because he is everything. And so he's the center and foundation in Colossians 2, 6, and 7, just as you receive Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, overflowing, he says, with thankfulness. Well, because he is our life, we need to keep a close watch on what we do and what we add to what we call our faith or what we believe. So we watch over our life. We keep a close watch. And 1 Timothy 4, 16, he says, watch your life in doctrine closely, persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers. So you keep yourself in the love of God. You keep yourself, you build yourself up in your most holy faith, and you pray in the Holy Spirit. So as you're determining what God is teaching, you obey what he has taught. Remember, these and we were once slaves to sin, but now we're full-time servants of God. We're not part-time Christians. You know, again, I think that's been one of the problems that the churches had. We've lost credibility because people associate Christians. It's people who only go to church on a Sunday, and only live out their faith, we'll say, on Easter and maybe Christmas. You know, a whole nation is aware, even as it's been, they try to hide the resurrection in various ways now, but the nation is aware that Christians celebrate the resurrection of Christ, but they don't see people living concerning that resurrection every day. They see it as kind of a seasonal thing and doesn't really have an impact. So we're to watch ourselves and determine to do that which God has called us to do. He has set us free. So we continue. We continue verse 20, praying in the Spirit. Well, what does that mean? Well, we pray in the wisdom and strength that is provided by the Holy Spirit. In Ephesians 6, 18, it says, Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints praying by the Spirit's leading and direction as you're reading the Word of God. In Romans 8, 26, and 27, in the same way the Spirit helps us in our weakness, we don't know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express, and He who searches our heart knows the mind of the Spirit because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will. Become familiar with the work of the Holy Spirit in your life. There's an interesting scripture in 2nd Corinthians 13, verse 14. You might want to take it down and read it and pray, what does this mean? 2nd Corinthians 13, 14, May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Isn't that an interesting, to me that's very interesting. Grace, love, grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we're familiar with, aren't we? It's by grace that we've been saved, it's by God's grace that we're gifted. Everything we do is through the grace of God. We understand that. The love of God, God so loved the world. He who loves not knows not God, for God is love. By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love, one for another. The fruit of the Spirit is love, and we can go on and on and on and speak concerning the Spirit of God as He works within us, but you can talk a lot about the love of God because isn't that what everything is built on? Grace and love. And so when I was reading many years ago now, this verse, he said the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, what I'll do sometimes, fellas and ladies, I don't know if you do this or not, but I'll stop and I'll take each phrase by itself and pray about it and think, what does this mean and how does this apply? So I remember doing this years ago now, may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and I remember just leaning back and meditating on God's grace and thinking of the things that He's done and how I'm saved by His grace, I'm gifted by His grace, I live in His grace. And I think, yeah, God's grace. And then the love of God, the love of God for me is the most important aspect of my own spiritual life. I want the love of God to be manifest in me and through me. That to me is one of the most important things of my entire life, is to learn to love and to be a loving person is a very important thing to me. I want to be that. But then I read in the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, well that's interesting. I know God's grace and I know God's love. How well do I know the work of the Spirit? Because sometimes, I'll put it like this guys, sometimes life screams at you and God whispers. And sometimes we can hear the scream when life is screaming how bad things are and how hurtful things are and how hopeless things are. We can hear the screams of the world. But we don't hear the whisper of the Lord where He says, but I'm in the midst of all of this and I'm going to be there with you and we're going to walk through this valley and you're going to see victory. You're going to see me move. It may seem right now that you're not going to, but let me guarantee you, you're going to make it. Not only are you going to make it, you're going to be victorious. Not only you're going to be victorious, you are going to be more than a concrete. You just need to hold on and you come through that. Why? Because you have a fellowship with the Spirit because you have a sense of Him internally within you, His movement, His grace and love and all of that. Yes, but I don't know how to teach people to have this and I don't want to seem like I've arrived because I haven't. I'm simply saying this part of my journey is that I've tried to become more sensitive to the sense and leading of the Spirit of God. I don't want to move until I know He says move. I don't want to do anything until I know He says you need to do that. And some people who know me on a different level in a different way will tell you that that's very true about the way I live my life for Christ. I just had a conversation with a brother who's a foreign missionary, a man in a different land, contacted me today and we had a long conversation in and those are the things we were talking about. How the Holy Spirit and the familiarity with Him in His works, that is something that you should be seeking. Father, teach me your ways. Teach me how when you speak with a still small voice, how that it'll always line up with Scripture. It never goes against it and never undermines it and it never contradicts. It always reveals, teach me how to walk in your Spirit. I wake up every morning, thank God I do, I wake up every morning with various prayers and one of them is, Father, may I be sensitive to your Spirit today? How do you want to lead? There's so many things we have to do, so many things we do and so we continue praying in the Spirit. His guidance is leading the Word of God and we're familiar with His ways. In Romans 8, 14, those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. We've been going through the book of Acts and we've seen how the Spirit led the church. The believers would pray, they'd wait on the Lord, the Spirit would lead them. God's Spirit leads us as we seek Him and as we wait on Him, remember in Acts 8, 29, when the Spirit said to Philip, go over to that chariot, stay by it. Or Acts 10, 19, Peter continued to reflect on the vision and the Spirit said to him, Behold three men are looking for you. Or in Acts 13, 2, while they were worshiping the Lord and fasting the Holy Spirit said, set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them. So this kind of intimacy is the result of a mature walk with the Lord. It's revealed in obedience to the Word and it's revealed through a sincere seeking of God in prayer. And then he says in verse 21, he says, keep yourselves in the love of God. This would obviously be most understood as an exhortation to keep close to Christ. In John 15, verse 9, As the Father loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. Remain there. The enemy of our souls, this is the truth all of us know, does everything he can to undermine your belief that God actually does love you. I don't know how many of you, maybe I'm the only paranoid crazy in the room. I don't know. But I have had bouts of doubt that God cared about me, even as a believer. I have thought he loves other people, but he just doesn't love me. I don't know if any of you have ever felt that, but I have. He loves other people. There was a time and it was years ago now, thank you Jesus, but there was a time when I was still praying for people, but I didn't believe he'd answer mine. And I reasoned within myself it's because he loves them and he just doesn't love me. I don't know if you've ever been in that place, but I have. There are some times when you're going in the things of the Lord that you will go through dark seasons within your own heart, where he has to purge the doubts and the hurts and the unbelief and things that you can go through. It's not an unusual thing. It's part of growing up in the things of the Lord. So you keep yourselves in the love of God. And if there's one thing that you know and you need to know beyond a shadow of a doubt as you gave your heart to Christ and he loves you and he loves you, even when it seems that he doesn't, even when it seems like, how come this happens to them? And it doesn't. Why Lord? Because you can do that and I have. And the thing is, is I've had to learn to just abide in his love. You see the mark of a Christian is the love of God. False teachers, false teachers don't have the love of God. False teachers will never point you to the love of God. They love you to it. They point you to his anger or things of that nature, but not to his love. You know, I, my own pastor Chuck Smith was very dear to me and I still remember the first time I ever had a real conversation with him. It was many, many years ago now and at a pastor's conference and, and without going into all the details, there was a, there was a Calvary Chapel here before, before we were, there was a Calvary Chapel in Chino before we were. And they were, they were here three or four years before we planted our work. And the pastor at that time had, had walked away in a different direction and I was talking to my own pastor and I approached Chuck and I said, you know that so and so has gone off with a, with a particular man, I'll leave his, his name unmentioned, but I said, he's gone off to follow after a certain teacher, Chuck, and I was talking to him. And I still remember this like it was yesterday because when I said the name of this guy, Chuck, my pastor grabbed his stomach like I had hit him in the stomach. He, he, and he groaned. He went like that and he held the stomach and I'm standing and he went like that. Oh, and I looked at him and he said, why did you react like that? He's a false teacher. I said, listen, Chuck, let me teach you something. No, I said, listen, I said, I've heard many of this man's messages, Chuck. I haven't discerned error in him yet. Can you help me to understand why you said that? I'll never forget. I just shared this with some pastors recently. He said he has no love in him. He has no love in him. And I looked at Chuck with new eyes. What is the mark of a genuine believer in Christ? Why this all men know is love. It's love. When God grabs hold of his sinner's heart and transforms it, what happens in the heart of that sinner? She learned a love because up to that point you were angry, hateful. Now God has given you a new heart, right? False teachers will not bring you into the love of God. That's why Jude is saying, keep yourselves in the love of God because a false teacher will make you angry. And before you know it, you're going to be beating people in the name of Jesus Christ and yelling at them and angry at them because they're not teaching the grace of God and the love of God to people. That's a very important thing to know. He says, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ into eternal life, keep your eyes focused on the mercy of the Lord that's revealed in Jesus Christ. When he says looking for, looking for speaks of patient endurance and hope as we await him, he's going to return in Titus 2.13. While we wait for the blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ. So you keep looking up and you keep waiting and longing for his appearing. Now he closes and will close by reading verses 22 through 25. He said, on some have compassion, making a distinction, but others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire, hating even the garment defiled by the flesh. Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy. To God our Savior who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen. On some have compassion, verse 22, making a distinction. The word compassion means to help somebody who is afflicted and looking for help. So he says, on some have compassion, who are these some? Well, the some would be those you're trying to reach with the message of the gospel. On some have compassion, they're lost. So have a, they may have sensitive hearts and you approach them with a gentle word. It isn't a witnessing technique he's speaking about. It's just a fact that you're aware of their sensitivity. There's a gentleness and a mildness in the way that you share. It's like when Jesus ministered to the woman who was caught in the very act of adultery. And he could have held fast to Moses's law, which they were demanding her execution. The law says women like this are such should be stoned. What do you say? How did he approach this woman? He did it with gentleness and compassion. And some people you have that tenderness and we ought to always have tenderness towards people, the lost. But there are those who have been influenced by false teachers and we need to be sensitive to the hurts they've endured. But he goes on in verse 23 and he said, others saved with fear, pulling them out of the fire. Well, pulling them out of the fire is speaking of a strong and a more direct approach. How about John the Baptist? He was a sweetie, wasn't he? John the Baptist was strong and direct. In Matthew 3.7 he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptized and he said to them, you brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Welcome for Easter services. I mean, well, Jesus did too in Matthew 12 34, you brood of vipers. How can you who are evil say anything good for the mouth speaks what the heart is filled with? Jesus said that Matthew 23 33 you snakes, you brood of vipers. How will you escape being condemned to hell? Those are strong words. Sometimes you speak in a direct language. When Jesus was speaking to Nicodemus, who came to him by night and he's having a conversation master, we know you were a teacher come from God. No man can do the works that you do unless God is with them. And Jesus began to speak to him and he spoke concerning the need to be born again. He spoke of the spirit, ghosts, where it desires, etc. And as he was speaking to him, Nicodemus couldn't understand what he was saying. He said, what are you being born again? How is this possible? Can a man enter his mother's womb a second time and be born again? What are you referring to? In John 3.10 Jesus answered and said to him, are you the teacher of Israel and do not know these things? That's direct. And in doing so, he was he was doing what Jude was saying. There are times with loving intensity that you may say something very directly. And sometimes you may speak more directly to those who've been infected by false teachers. They've not only been deceived, but they're infecting others with their infection. That's why in verse 23 he says, Haiti, even the garment defiled by the flesh. Now that's interesting because he's saying that their clothing itself is stained by their corrupted flesh. Now in scripture, garments would be contaminated in various ways. In the Old Testament, if someone came into contact with someone with leprosy, the garment was stained. If garment was stained with semen or menstrual blood, it was called unclean. If someone touched a dead body, that person who touched the dead body would be unclean. So the idea is that false teachers spiritually infect people, undermining the walks of a person. The teachings stumble believers and can keep others from coming to Jesus Christ. And so the idea is that when you share the word with them, you can care about them, but hate their errors, avoid their doctrine. And if they're believers who've been infected, be aware of that too as you try to restore them. And then finally, in verse 24, and we'll close, to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to God our Savior, who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen. To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you. He closes with encouragement. It reminds me of Hebrews 6, verse nine, which says, even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are convinced of better things in your case, the things that have to do with salvation. Now remember he had begun his letter by saying that they were preserved in Christ Jesus. That's how he began in verse one. So he returns to this and expresses confidence in the faith that he knows is true. You see in the end, and I'll close with a couple thoughts, in the end we have a God who was able to keep us. The word keeps speaks of guard, guard us from falling or stumbling. God is able, he's saying, to keep us sure footed and to protect us as we follow him. And God provides a way for us to keep from stumbling into sin. You just need to look for it. In 1 Corinthians 10, 13, no temptation is overtaken you except such as is common to man. But God is faithful who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you're able. But with the temptation will also make the way of escape that you may be able to bear it. There are those who say, no, I gave in because I just couldn't help myself. And I've said this before, I'll just update it a bit. But when people say, you know, I couldn't help it, I slept with her, but I just couldn't help it. You know, all things in me were, you know, full on, let's, you know, let's do this. And I stumbled. And I've never really, you know, I've never really accepted that as true. And I'll tell you why. Because if a single guy is going after a single girl, we'll say, and I'll use it like that. And they're moving into the direction of consummation in an improper way. They're going to fornicate. And just prior to him involving himself in the actual act of fornication, if she says to him, I have AIDS, and I'm infectious, what do you think he's going to do? He's going to stop, right? He's going to stop. Why? I thought you didn't have any control. I thought all systems were go. What happened? People are more afraid of AIDS than they are of God. That's why that happens. They're more afraid of AIDS than they are of God. No, you have self control. You're not exercising it. Why? Because all systems are go because you're carnal and you're allowing your passions to rule. But if you give yourself an opportunity to yield those things to the Lord and like Joseph run away from the sin rather than embracing it, you're going to see victory. And a lot of times people don't have victory because they don't want it. He has made a way to escape that we may be able to bear it is what scripture says. And it's true. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me, but sometimes I just don't want to. That's the problem. So I have to look to the Lord who is able to keep me from stumbling. And that requires that I keep myself in the love of God that I remain within the word that I see things or what they are and understand the penalties that come if I violate. That's how it works guys. Because ultimately, and we'll close with this, ultimately we will be presented faultless on the day of judgment. And that's why he says, and he closes to God our Savior, who alone is wise, glory, majesty, dominion, power, both now and forever. In his wisdom, he makes it possible for us to be saved. And that's why to him belongs all glory, all glory for his love and the salvation. To him belongs all majesty because of his greatness. To him belongs all dominion, which is strength and power. And because of his mighty deeds. And to him belongs all authority, all power, both now and forever. He says, amen. And he closes with a wonderful statement about the God that we serve and the God that we worship that he is worthy of all of our praise, glory. He keeps us from stumbling. Let's follow him, stay away from false teaching, stay in the word of God, walk in the spirit, walk in the grace of God, understand the love of God and serve Jesus with everything because you are a full-time servant and watch how God rewards you in the end.