By: Burton Scott
TEXT – Jude 1-11, 17-25

INTRO. – The little one chapter Epistle of Jude has been very much neglected by Christians in these days. Yet
this book of only 25 verses has alot of truth to give us about the conditions of the last days. Jude is the only
book in the Bible that is entirely devoted to the great apostasy which is to come upon Christendom before the
return of Christ.

The Book of Acts gives the condition of the beginning of the church age while the Book of Jude gives the condition of the church at the close of the church age. It is tragic to realize that the end of Christendom will be a great apostasy from the faith. Paul called it an apostasy in 2 Thess. 2:3 (marginal reading).

Apostasy means “an abandonment of what one has voluntarily professed”. It is described as a “departure from the faith” in 1 Tim.4:1. It is also seen as an unwillingness to endure sound doctrine in 2 Tim.4:3. The Bible says that at the end of the age there will be a great turning from the profession of faith in Christ by those who had professed to accept it. Truly this is the condition around us today. 2 Thess.2:3 says that “the end will not come except there come a falling away first”.

Let us look at this message as seen in the Book of Jude and what God has to say to us in this age of apostasy.

I. THE INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOK OF JUDE – vs.1-3

First. the book begins and ends with a message of comfort and encouragement to the Christian. It begins in
vs.2 with the assurance the God would multiply mercy, peace, and love to them. It is comforting to notice that before the Lord tells of the bad days at the end of time, he tells of the good blessings that we can have day by day in the Lord.

Second, in vs.1 the name of the writer is given and is important. Jude or Judas was the earthly brother of the Lord Jesus. Compare Gal.1:19 and Mark 6:3. Here we find the great book in the New Testament on the end-age apostasy and it is written by a man named Judas. We are reminded that another Judas, Judas Iscariot was the great apostate of the New Testament.

Jude tells us in vs.3 that he was going to write of the “common salvation” we all have in Christ when he was
constrained to write on another subject. This shows me that we may cry when we get saved. We may laugh or shout
when we get saved. We may show no emotion at all. But if we are truly saved, we will all have the same cleansing,
forgiveness, and position in Christ (new birth). This passage also shows me the leading of the Holy Spirit as He moved on the writers of scripture so that what went into the Bible was what God wanted put there  and not what the writer wanted.

Jude was forced to write that Christians should be vigorously defending the faith. Why should they defend
the faith? Because apostasy had come into the church!

II. THREE MARKS OF THE APOSTATE – Vs.4

Remember an apostate is one who receives the Word, believes or accepts it for awhile then falls away.
They have three characteristics.

First, they are ungodly. This does not mean that the person is wicked or openly sinful. It means that the person lives without the fear of God. This person could be good in outward appearance but have a heart attitude
that has no place and no fear of God. We live in a day of not fearing God.

Second, they turn the grace of God into lasciviousness. They turn the grace of God into something lewd, lustful, without control. One example of twisting the grace of God is the belief that we can choose to sin because God will forgive us or we can willfully sin because God’s grace will forgive us. The truth is God will forgive the repentant but to decide “to sin and repent after sinning” before the sin is committed shows that the repentance a person plans is
not true repentance or godly sorrow for sin but an attempt to deceive God. The apostate changes the truth of God to fulfill his lusts.

Third, the apostate denies the Lord God and the Lord Jesus. The emphasis here is on Lordship. They refuse to
bow to the rule of God on their lives. If Jesus is not Lord of all, he is not Lord at all. Have you surrendered to the will of God for your life?

III. THREE GROUPS OF APOSTATES – vs. 5 – 7

First, the delivered Israelites who were destroyed. I Cor. 10: 1-12 tells the story. The Israelites were delivered from Egypt, passed through the sea, were led by the cloud, were baptized unto Moses, ate of the same spiritual meat and drank of the same spiritual Rock. The Rock symbolized Christ. But with many God was not well pleased. They died in the wilderness because of their disobedience and rebellion. They had professed truth. They did five things which brought the wrath of God upon them. They lusted after evil things, were idolaters, committed fornication, tempted Christ, and murmured against God.

Second, the angels that sinned. These angels did not like the position given them by God and wanted a higher
place. They left their first estate. They had known and professed truth. They forsook in pride.

Finally, The wicked cities of the plain. These cities were very wicked but they were not ignorant of the truth. According to Usher, there was 450 years from the flood to the destruction of Sodom. The sons of Noah were still alive on earth at the time. The cites of the plain knew of the flood and the cause for it. They knew of the mercy and grace to believing Noah and his family. They knew and had rejected the truth.

IV. THREE ANCIENT INDIVIDUAL APOSTATES – vs. 8 – 11

They are named in vs. 11 — Cain, Balaam. and Core

Cain is seen in Gen.4. What was the way of Cain? Cain brought a sacrifice to God for his sins which were a work of his own hands and works. Cain put aside the way of the blood which had been revealed to Adam and Eve as the only acceptable way of coming to God. He was religious but lost. He rejected the revealed way and truth.

Balaam is seen in Num. 22-24. What was the error of Balaam. He sacrificed the riches of heaven for temporal
gain. He was hired to figure out a way to destroy God’s people and this he did. He knew the truth that God was
on the side of Israel but he rejected it as he figured out a way to get God to turn on his people. He found out
that when God’s people stay obedient to Him they are under His protection but if they turn away from God and
turn to sin then God Himself will judge them. Balaam said that he wanted to ” die the death of the righteous
and let my end be like his” yet he died a violent death and missed heaven.

Core or Korah was a relative of Moses. What was the rebellion of Korah? He denied the truth that God was
speaking through Moses. He had previously accepted this but then he rejected the truth out of pride, envy, and
jealousy.

V. WARNING SIGNALS TO RECOGNIZE AN APOSTATE – vs. 16

They murmur. They complain. This is the only time the words murmurers or complainers is found in the New
Testament. The apostate is a person who is never satisfied with what God has given him. The person who goes away from God will never be really happy or satisfied. Nothing pleases him. There are many in our churches like this.

VI. THE BOOK CLOSES WITH WORDS OF COMFORT AND INSTRUCTION FOR GOD’S PEOPLE – vs. 20 – 25

Jude tells us that as we approach the last days we are to:

1. “Build up yourselves on your most holy faith” -vs. 20 GROW SPIRITUALLY INTO MATURE BELIEVERS

2. “Pray in the Holy Ghost” – vs. 20 STAY IN CONTACT WITH THE THRONE OF GOD.

3. “Looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ” – vs. 21 LIVE IN THE LIGHT OF THE SECOND COMING OF
CHRIST

4. “Of some have compassion, making a difference: and others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire” – vs. 22 – 23 STAY BUSY SEEKING THE SALVATION OF THE LOST. This means some need the love of God to bring them to Christ while others need the fear of judgment. Either was urgency is required.

5. “Hating even the garment spotted by the flesh” – vs. 23 DEVELOP A HOLY HATRED FOR ALL SIN AND
IMPURITY. Shun sin as if it were the worst plague.

IN CLOSING —

Vs. 24 assures us GOD IS ABLE. Able to save. Able to keep. Able to satisfy.

LET’S PRAY THE LORD’S PRAYER

TEXT – Matt. 6: 5 – 14

INTRO. – The passage before us is best known as the Lord’s Prayer but in reality the High Priestly Prayer of
John 17 is the Lord’s Prayer. This prayer would be better titled The Disciple’s Prayer. I call this message
“Let’s Pray the Lord’s Prayer” because more prayers (and especially this one) are said than prayed. Saying a
prayer is not praying a prayer. Matt.6:6 says, “When thou prayest…PRAY”. Having your eyes closed and
hearing a prayer is praying. What is prayer? ASKING GOD IS PRAYER! – vs.8

God expects all Christians to pray. He assumes that they pray. In vs. 6 and 7 we find “when thou prayest” and “when ye pray” not “if ye pray”. A person cannot be saved who has never prayed – see Rom.10:13

Prayer is communion with God. It is the life breath of the believer. It is one of the channels of power to God. Heaven moves when we pray. Fervent, secret, believing prayer is at the root of all personal godliness. Prayer is a battle and never easy. Hell trembles when it sees the weakest saint upon his knees. John Wesley said that God does nothing for his people apart from pray for if he did, then that in itself would show that prayer was unimportant. The title “Man of God” is found 75 times in the Bible but never is the title “Man of prayer”. There is a old poem which goes like this:

PRAY ON

The victories won by prayer
By prayer must still be held
The foe retreats but only when
By prayer he is compelled

Look for a few minutes at the great pattern of prayer given to us by our Lord and see the lessons for us today.

I. AFTER THIS MANNER THEREFORE PRAY YE – vs. 9

Notice that no body positions are given as to how to pray. Nowhere in the Bible do you find praying with closed eyes to be found. It may be good at times to ward off distraction but for many it leads to drowsiness. The Bible also  shows us that most Bible prayers were prayed in a standing position. Jesus knelt in the garden and Daniel knelt toward Jerusalem but those are the exception. Kneeling may indicate or symbolize homage but for many up in age it is near impossible and for others it limits them as to when and where they can pray. The main thing is to pray! Prayer is hard enough without worrying about the position. Jesus never mentions the
position to take.

II. OUR FATHER – vs. 9

Prayer is limited to those who can call God their “Father”. God hears the prayer of His people. See John 14:6 and I Jn.2:23. God will hear the sinner call upon him for salvation and once saved, he will hear all his prayers. But God is not obligated to hear the prayers of the lost though he may do so if he so chooses. Prayer to any member of the Godhead is alright but the general pattern of the New Testament is:

Prayer is prayed to the Father – as seen here Through the Holy Spirit – See Jude vs.20 In Jesus’ Name – See John 14:13 and John 16:23

III. HALLOWED BE THY NAME – vs. 9

Here we see reverence in prayer. A name indicates reputation. A name often indicates rank, who a person
is, what he has done, and what he is worth. My name on a $1000 check would not pass the bank but if you had a
check with a certain Kennedy or Rockerfeller name on it, it would be worth millions. God’s Name is very important
especially when you pray to him and through him. Hallowed means Holy.

IV. THY KINGDOM COME, THY WILL BE DONE – vs. 10

This is to pray for the will of God to be done. All prayer should have this attitude behind it. according to this verse, nobody can pray and have their prayers answered who does not want the will of God to be done in all things. James 4:2 speaks about praying amiss. We cannot live in any known sin and expect to have our prayers answered. His will must be my will. To say “thy will” is to say no to “my will”. Notice the verse says we are to pray for obedience like the angels of heaven obey. What an example, what a holy calling.

The first 3 partitions contain “thy”. Now we find 4
petitions which contain “us”.

V. GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD – vs. 11

This partition is not listed first where many of us put it. We should put God’s honor first and the will of God second then prayer of our personal necessities third. The Bible says in Matt. 6:33 to “seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you.
Notice another great truth here. You have to pray every day. See Matt. 6:34 Proof given here that we sin if we do not pray daily. Daily prayer would solve many problems of many people.

Notice something else also here. When you pray for your needs, you are also to pray for mine. When I pray for my needs, I am also to pray for your needs. It says “give us this day our daily bread”.

VI. AND FORGIVE US OUR DEBTS AS WE FORGIVE OUR DEBTORS – vs. 12

The word “debts” here is translated “sins” in Luke 11. This may be a big revelation to many people. God will
forgive us only as we are willing to forgive others. Is there anyone whom you cannot forgive? Murder is anger in
seed form – Matt. 5: 21-22. You cannot go to heaven with hatred and an unforgiving spirit in your heart. See Eph.
4:32 If I am not willingly on speaking terms with anyone then I am not on speaking terms with God.

VII. AND LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION BUT DELIVER US FROM EVIL – vs. 13

We see here that prayer is definitely a weapon in our battle with temptation. If you are not able to overcome  temptation, 99 out of a 100 times you have not overcome in prayer!

We find here the truth that God has not promised nor will he hear the prayer to remove the temptation. He did
not say to take away the temptation but “lead us not into temptation. God allows temptation – to angels, to Lucifer, to Adam and Eve, and to our Lord.