And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him. Jude 1:14-15

The book of Enoch and yet again another controversial topic in Christianity. While some believe it should be considered “inspired scripture” , others reject its writings all together. What we do know is the Apostle Jude quotes it here as a reference, this confirms to us the text was well known in the 1rst century, and most of the early Church was probably aware of its writings. While I don’t believe it should be part of the Bible, I do believe its beneficial writings that gives us the beliefs and mind set before Christ.

As Matthew Henry comments “ We have no mention of the prophecy of Enoch in any other part or place of Scripture; yet one plain text of Scripture, proves any point we are to believe. We find from this, that Christ’s coming to judge was prophesied of, as early as the times before the flood.”

This is an interesting thought, the return of Christ was known and expected since the days of Noah, think about that! The patriarchs and prophets of Israel were long awaiting the coming of the Messiah, they knew the Son of Man from the prophecy of Daniel 7, would sit at the right hand of Yahweh, the Ancient of Days, coming with the clouds. This was understood and expected, yet when The Word became Flesh and dwelt among them, (John 1:14) and yet the world didn’t know him (John 1:10) They crucified the Lord of glory (1 Corinthians 2:8)

Just as when Jesus stood before the Religious leaders on trial , before they executed him on the cross, he quoted Daniel “Jesus said, “I am. And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” (Mark 14:62)  The coming of the Messiah was well known and Jesus made it very clear, He is the Christ

And just as it was foretold in the book of Enoch and well known, Christ said He is coming back with his angels to execute judgment on the world ““When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory” (Matthew 25:31) As the Apostle Paul said “Christ will judge the living and the dead” (2 Timothy 4:1)

Every knee will bow, that means every knee believers and non-believers, and every tongue will confess Jesus Christ is Lord! (Philippians 2:9-11) Amen!

These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots; Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever Jude 1:12-13

The Apostle Jude under the influence of the Holy Spirit then talks about the false apostate religious leaders planted in the Churches today, stealing the money, power, and resources to feed themselves, and in the process destroying the local community of believers. We see this today all throughout Christianity, denominations are falling at a rapid pace, why? Because of corrupt and wicked religious leaders misleading the Churches down a path of blasphemy.

The Apostle Peter mentions the same thing “They are spots (blemish, disgrace) and blemishes, carousing and reveling in their own deceptions while they feast (communion, fellowship) with you (Church) (2 Peter 2:13) These false deceptive leaders are planted into the Churches, walking side by side with the body of Christ, misleading them on the broad road to Hell. Again we see this across the board in mainline Christianity today, wolves leading the sheep to the slaughter of sin and carnality.

Feeding themselves without fear, they live a life of luxury off the backs of Gods people. While the Church faithfully tithes their money, the wolves use if for their carnal pleasure and gain. They have no fear of God, they have no disregard for the body of Christ, they have sold their souls to gain the whole world. However they are “clouds without water” people look to them for spiritual wisdom and guidance, and they can’t provide it, because they don’t have the Holy Spirit. As the Apostle Jude says “trees who fruit withered, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots” As Jesus said “You will know them by their fruits” ( Matthew 7: 16)

However there is a great price they are going to pay for their Apostasy, as the Apostle Jude says here “to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever” As the Lord Jesus said “they will be cast into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth “ (Matthew 8:12) God will not be mocked, what you reap and what you sow (Galatians 6:7) These false leaders will pay a heavy price for their deception, as the Apostle James warned “Not everyone should be teachers, because you know we who teach will be judged more strictly” (James 3:1)

But God is allowing this to happen, why? The Lord Jesus explains “Let them both grow together until the harvest” (Matthew 13:30) God is allowing the true remnant Church to coexist with the false Church until judgment day, don’t be alarmed when there is a wolf within your flock. But on that day of judgment, everyone will stand before The Lord , every knee will bow to our Lord Jesus Christ, don’t be deceived! Amen!

But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves. 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. Jude 1:10-11

The question I would like to ask you, are you led by the flesh or are you led by the Holy Spirit? When we examine the two paths of life, they are very different. Those who are being led by the flesh, which is the majority of the world, are like “brute beasts , in those things they corrupt themselves” as the Apostle Jude reveals here. All the sins of the world are derived from the uncontrolled lust of the flesh.

As the Apostle Peter said “they are like a dog going back to their own vomit” (2 Peter 2:22) The carnally minded person is driven by their own flesh like an animal, looking to satisfy the flesh which will never be satisfied. Just like an animal, they will degrade and corrupt themselves in their pleasures with no regard to their own soul or The Lord. As the Apostle Paul said “To be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Romans 8:6)

This is why The Lord Jesus said “If anyone wants to be his disciple, they must deny themselves, carry their cross, and follow him” (Matthew 16:24) Notice The Lord said you must, He didn’t say you might want to, you must crucify your flesh, you must die to yourself, before you can live for Christ. Oh what a painful death it is, but Christ has provided The Way to salvation. You must stop being the wild carnal animal for the world, and become a child of God

As the Apostle Jude says here “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 Korah’s rebellion” The Apostle provides real life examples of those who followed their flesh instead of the living God, and ended in eternal destruction.

Cain couldn’t crucify his jealousy for his brother Abel, and led to the destruction of his soul. Balaam couldn’t resist the power and profit of being a false prophet and destroyed his soul, Korah couldn’t submit to the authority of God, so his ego destroyed his soul. These are examples of people who lived carnally instead of spiritually, they worshiped the desires of their flesh rather than submit to God.

So I ask you again, are you led by the Holy Spirit or being led by your own flesh? The Lord Jesus can set your free (John 8), from any bondage, any addiction, any temptation, resist the devil and he will flee from You, Amen!

Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee. Jude 1:9

The Apostle Jude is once again revealing the spiritual warfare that is going on behind the scenes that most people don’t even realize. As the Apostle talked previously about the Nephilim (Fallen Angels), he talked about Sodom and Gomorrah, and he now brings up an event most people probably never realized happened. 

We see Michael, the archangel, who is the leader of the angels (Revelation 12:7) is battling with Satan and his demons. There is a real spiritual warfare going on around us everyday and most people are oblivious to it. Most people are too distracted by their technology, by their work, by their entertainment, that they don’t even realize their is a battle going on for their soul. 

As the Apostle Paul said “For we don’t wrestle or struggle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness or evil in heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12) You are not just fighting against people, you are fighting against Satan and his demons, you are fighting against demonic forces that are coming against you, to try and destroy you. 

Look at the literal spiritual warfare that went on for the body of Moses. Satan wanted to try and steal the body of Moses, we can only image or guess he would probably try to make it an idol. As we know the nation of Israel repeatedly fell for idols, they worshiped the golden calf, and Satan knew they would worship the body of Moses. Think about all the events Moses led the Israelites through with the power of God, the parting of the Red Sea, the plagues, there is no doubt many would attribute this success to Moses himself.

But God was not going to allow this, and Michael the ArchAngel hid the body of Moses, to where nobody still knows where his body was buried to this day. As it tells us in scripture “And He buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, opposite Beth Peor, but noone knows his grave till this day” (Deuteronomy 34:6) It’s pretty interesting the author says “He buried him” and Jude gives us the commentary on this scripture that it was Michael who buried the body of Moses where no one would know where it is.

Now this story might seem strange to us at first glance, but think about it, this is just one event that was documented in the Bible, think about all the events or battles that are taking place on a daily basis between Christ and Satan. The war is real, however the good news is we already have victory in Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:570, The Lamb has overcome! (Revelation 5)  Amen!

And the angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day Jude 1:6

The Epistle of Jude is small compared to other books in the Bible, however it is packed with wisdom and very interesting theological concepts. One of the very debated topics of Christianity is the “fallen angels” of Genesis 6. The Apostle Jude under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit gives support to the fallen angels of Genesis, so what can we learn from them?

The first thing we see is “the angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their abode or dwelling” God created the race of angels totally separate from humans he made in his image. It’s interesting to think about , there are non-human races created by God for his design and purpose. The angels have specific roles and duties assigned by God, the word angel comes from the Greek word “angelous” meaning messenger. Being messengers of God is one of their roles, besides being warriors and protectors of Gods Kingdom. 

However a large number of angels left their God ordained positions to commit sexual immorality with the woman of the Earth. (Genesis 6:2) This created the hybrid race of the Nephilim, part angel and part human, where they became giants and an evil race (Genesis 6:4) This is part of the reason God needed to flood the Earth, to cleanse it from these abominations and evil that covered the Earth. 

Now there are Christians who don’t believe this hybrid race of the Nephilim ever existed, however I believe the Apostle Jude and the Apostle Peter support the narrative of Genesis 6. 

As the Apostle Peter states “For if God did not spare the angels who have sinned, but cast them down to Hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment’ (2 Peter 2:4) What is this great sin that the angels have committed? They fornicated with the woman of the Earth and created a hybrid race which is an abomination to God (Genesis 6)

What can we learn from the angels? We were all born with a position of authority with God. Many men have abandoned their roles as fathers, husbands , pastors, elders, ect just as the angels did to pursue sin. Many women have abandoned their roles as mothers, wives, daughters, to pursue sin also. God created and designed you with a purpose, you will never find fulfillment outside the will of God in Jesus Christ

As the Apostle Jude states “He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day” The judgment day of Christ is coming, are you ready? Don’t be like the foolish angels, don’t be like Esau who sold his birthright for temporary carnal pleasure. As the Lord Jesus said “Deny yourself, Carry your cross, and follow Christ” (Matthew 16:24) Amen!

I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not. Jude 1:5

Today we are going to take a look at maybe one of the most interesting verses in the entire New Testament. The Apostle Jude under the influence of the Holy Spirit makes reference to the Exodus of the Israelites, however Jude gives us a deeper revelation, as He reveals it was Jesus Christ who actually led the Israelites out of Egypt and through the wilderness.

This little detail brings so much confirmation to our essential doctrines of Christianity, such as the Trinity and the Deity of Christ. Yes Jesus Christ is God incarnate, if there is any doubt of that, you would have to reject text such as this from the Apostle Jude. If you actually look at  the original Greek, its actually the name of  Jesus (Lesous) instead of Lord (Kyrios) There is no doubt , it was our Lord Jesus Christ that was with the Israelites throughout the entire Exodus and beyond

So lets get into the heart of the text, what is the point the Holy Spirit is trying to make here? Some would suggest this text supports the idea you can “lose your salvation”, as if somehow you earned your salvation and then somehow you lost it. As you can probably tell, I reject this idea of losing your salvation, because first of all you never earned your salvation to begin with. The grace of God is something we can’t earn , its a gift of God , so none of us should boast (Ephesians 3:8-9) This idea that we did something to gain favor with God, and then lost it, in my opinion is a complete lack of understanding of the grace of God

So what is the Apostle Jude talking about? And how did these Israelites become destroyed? The late Dr. Michael Heiser made an interesting point, and I’m paraphrasing from the top of my head. But he suggested election and salvation are not the same thing, just because someone is an elect doesn’t mean they are automatically saved. And we can apply this to even todays world, there are alot of people who are born of Jewish descent, does that mean they are automatically saved? No, the only way to salvation is to be Born Again in Christ, so the fact that these are Israelites and they were still destroyed shouldn’t be a big hurdle for us to wrap our minds around.

What is the difference between the Israelites that were saved or anyone who is saved? As the Apostle Jude state here “afterward destroyed them that believed not” Again if we look at the Greek, we can see the root word “Pistis” which is primarily translated as faith, that is translated as believed. These people didn’t truly have faith in Christ for salvation, this is what separates all of us from salvation. We can’t save ourselves or earn our salvation, its genuine faith in Jesus Christ that can only save us, Amen!

Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. Jude 1:4-5

If we are being honest right now, Christianity is a mess. Liberalism has crept into the majority of our denominations, and has misled most people with a false gospel denying the Deity of our Lord Jesus Christ. As you can see, this is nothing new in the Church, as the Apostle Jude was dealing with this already in the first century. 

As the Apostle Jude wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, “Concerning our common salvation” We are united by Christ, and we are united by basic doctrines that are not negotiable. The Trinity, the Bible is the inspired Word of God, the Deity of Christ, these are doctrines most false groups deny and are unfaliable. These are doctrines that unite true believers in Christ. The true gospel message that we are all sinners, Christ became a man and died on the cross for our sins, and Christ rose from the dead on the 3rd day defeating sin and death forever. 

If you want to be able to discern false teachers and false religions, look for the red flags. Do they deny the Bible is the inspired Word of God? Do they deny the deity of Christ? Do they deny we must become Born Again? 

As the Apostle Jude continues to say “for certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men” We see this even today, look at what just happened to the UMC, wicked reprobates infiltrate the Churches and implement heresies to mislead the masses. They are ungodly and they are planted by Satan to try and destroy the Church

But as a Born Again Christian, you need to be led by the Holy Spirit, you need to be grounded in scripture, you need to be in prayer with God continually, and you won’t fall for these traps of Satan. As the Apostle John said “Don’t believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone into the world” (1 John 4:1)

“They turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny our only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ” A common denominator with cult groups is they employ a “works based salvation” they deny the grace of God through our Lord Jesus Christ, they say you must do this and that or you can’t be saved, let them be accursed! (Galatians 1:8) The only way to salvation is through our Lord Jesus Christ, its by grace you are saved, beware for false religions and false groups who promote heresies! Amen!