Gospel Bible Baptist Church

Jude 5 – 7

Introduction

This is our third topic regarding the Book of Jude, “the unintentional Epistle”. Apostasy is our main theme for today, and we are going to see three major examples of Apostasy as recorded in the Scriptures. Apostasy means desertion of the faith (1 Tim. 4:1, 2 Tim. 4:3-4). The English word “apostasy” is not in the Bible, but is derived from the Greek word “apostasia”, which means falling away, abandonment. This Greek word is translated “falling away” (2 Thess. 2:3), forsake (Acts 21:21), and “divorcement” (Mt. 19:7). (Way of life Encyclopaedia).
An apostate is one who turns away from the true Christian faith to follow false teachings. It is described as one who has received light, but not life, He may have received, in some degree, the written Word; but he has not received the living Word of God (S. Maxwell Coder)
Jude knew that his readers have a knowledge of the Old Testament so we will be reading some OT verses and stories. I pray that the Holy Spirit will guide us, lead us, and enlighten us today as we live in this faithless and crooked time.

I. Apostasy of Israel (example of saved men)
A. The Details:

1. A popular event in Israel’s history, God “saved” the nation by bringing them out of the land of Egypt. I will call them the “Exodus Generation”.
2. The Exodus Generation saw the ten plagues of Egypt, the Pillar of Cloud and the Pillar of fire which is an indication of the visual presence of God.
3. They all saw the parting of the Red Sea. They sung praise and glorify God after witnessing how the Lord delivered them.
4. The Lord fed them, quenched their thirst, even extended the usefulness of their clothing. The evidence of God’s faithfulness to them is very convincing.
5. From Kadesh Moses sent forth “twelve spies” to spy the land. After examining it, the spies brought back an evil report, Joshua and Caleb alone gave a good report of the land (Num. 13:18-31).
6. The Jews murmured, rebelled, and refused to go to the promise land (Num. 14:1-45)
7. As punishment for their unbelief, they have to wander in the wilderness for 40 years.
8. Only Joshua and Caleb entered the Promised Land now called Palestine. The influence of the ten spies over the people must have been very big that the people chose to listen to them rather than believe the promise of God.

B. Question:

1. Did the Exodus Generation became apostates and lost their salvation?

C. Answers and Lessons learned:

1. I honestly believe that the Exodus Generation were believers and that they were saved people.
2. God never sends his people to hell. (Ex. 3:7, 5:1, Deut. 33:29).
   Deut. 33:29 Happy art thou, O Israel: who is like unto thee, O people saved by the LORD, the shield of thy help, and who is the sword of thy excellency! and thine enemies shall be found liars unto thee; and thou shalt tread upon their high places.
3. Saved people still commits sin. For every sin a believer commits, there are consequences and punishments which he has to pay. The penalty of sin is death (Rom. 6:23).
4. Their murmurings, rebellion, and unbelief that the Lord will not bring them to a land flowing with milk and honey, were punished accordingly.
5. The punishment is physical death also called the “sin unto death”. (Rom. 6:16, 1 Jn. 5:16, 1 Cor. 5:1-5 11:30-32).
   Rom. 6:16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
   1 John 5:16 If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it.
6. The Greek word “apollumi” translated destroyed was used to describe physical death (Jude 5).
7. I also believe that as they die slowly walking in the wilderness for forty years, they all repented and was forgiven. The punishment however was to be executed. Dr. Leon Wood wrote:
   Figuring 1,200,000 (600,000 of both men and women) as having to die in 14,508 days (38 ½ years) gives 85 per day. Figuring 12 hours per day maximum for funerals, gives an average of seven funerals per hour for 38 ½ years, a continuous foreboding reminder of God’s punishment upon them (A Survey of Israel’s History p. 159).
8. The Exodus Generation did not lose their salvation. We will meet them in heaven one day.

II. The Angels who sinned
A. Details: Another OT controversial story

1. And the angels which kept not their first estate
2. left their own habitation

B. Peter simply wrote that the angels “sinned” – 2 Pet. 2:4

1. One interpretation is that Jude refers to what is described in Gen 6:1-6, where the term “sons of God” is understood to be angels (as used in Job 1:6; 2:1; 38:7) who cohabited with the “daughters of men.”
2. These angels despised their rank
3. They wilfully rebelled against God’s claims upon their powers
4. It fits in with the connection Jude later makes with the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah, “going after strange flesh” – Jude 7
5. This group of angels has been …cast down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness (2 Pet. 2:4).
6. That “hell” is “Tartaroo”. The angels that sinned was delivered in a place called “Tartarus” a place where they are chained in darkness.
7. Their final judgment place will, of course, be the Lake of Fire.

C. Lessons learned

1. When human beings sinned, God send His only begotten Son to be their Saviour.
2. When angels sinned. They have no Saviour.

III. Sodom and Gomorrah
A. Details: The twin city of sin

1. The judgment against these cities is clearly described in Gen. 19:24-28

B. Why this terrible judgment?

1. The LORD said it was “because their sin is very grievous” – Gen. 18:20
2. Jude says that “in like manner” (the angels who sinned).
3. They had “Given themselves over to fornication” – sexual promiscuity, this refers to both heterosexual (Gen. 19:8) and homosexual lusts (Gen. 19:4,5)
4. “Going after strange flesh”- blatant indulgence in the unnatural crime of homosexuality, including the homosexual rape of visiting strangers (Gen. 19:4-9).
5. The term “in like manner” indicates that the sin of the angels was in the same category as that of the Sodomites.

C. Lessons Learned about Sodomy

1. It is an abomination (Lev. 18:22).
2. It bore the death penalty in the O.T. dispensation (Lev. 20:13; Rom. 1:32).
3. It defiles the land (Lev. 18:25).
4. It is the product of a morally reprobate mind (Rom. 1:26-28).
5. It is worthy of the judgment of eternal fire (Jude 7).
6. It can be forgiven and cleansed in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of God (1 Cor. 6:9-11). It is also written in 1 Jn. 1:7 that the “blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all sins.

Illustration: Profile of an Apostate in this Epistle
Ungodly (v. 4), morally perverted (v. 4), deny Christ (v. 4), defile the flesh (v. 8), corrupted (v. 10), murmurers (v. 16), complainers (v. 16), mockers (v. 18), worldly minded (v. 19), sensual (v. 19), having not the Spirit (v. 19)

IV. Conclusion:
Jude has given us examples. Three historical groups who were punished by the Lord. Let’s not walk on their path. Let us learn from them. What we have learned let us teach others also that we will be able to glorify Christ in our lives.