Jude Pt 1: Marks of a False Teacher

 

MAY 1, 2020                           NOTES NOT EDITED
The Real Pandemic: Part 1
Jude 1-11

SIS:  In order to contend for the faith against false teaching we need to be able the identify the seven marks of false teachers.

Almost every adult alive knows about the most famous spy in history, James Bond, 007.  Of course, this famous spy is not real.  Fewer people know of another famous Israeli spy by the name of Eli Cohen.

In the mid-60’s, Israel was encircled by hostile forces, even more than she is today.  At that time, the Golan Heights were in Syrian hands and had large contingents of military force parked right on Israel’s border, threatening the very existence of Israel.

Fast forward to June 5, 1967.  War broke out between Israel and the combined forces of Egypt, Jordan, and Syria.  In six days, Israel was able to completely decimate the Goliath-size forces surrounding her.  Syria fell last and the strategic battle to take back the Golan Heights was a “walk in the park” for Israel . . . due almost entirely to the work of an unknown Israeli spy in Syria by the name of Eli Cohen.

To make a long story, short, Cohen once toured the Golan Heights and mentally mapped out the locations of the military fortifications.  He faked concern for the soldiers who baked under the hot desert sun and convinced the Syrian officials to plant trees around each fortification.  When Israeli fighter jets approached the Golan military encampments, they were easy to spot . . . they just looked for the trees.

Cohen was discovered and executed as a spy by Syria after a long period of torture.  He remains an Israeli hero, today.

Nothing is more dangerous in war than a spy that secretly infiltrates the enemy’s territory.

Ironically, fast-forward again to March 2020.  The world is thrust into the worst pandemic sense the 1918 Spanish flu.  This time, the culprit is a virus created in a Chinese laboratory.  A virus operates like a spy in the human body.  It secretly infiltrates a human cell and acts like a normal member of the cells “community.”  It hides in the cell like a spy giving false information to the cell and eventually destroying it. A virus is a microscopic “spy.”

Now, we come to our present study of the Book of Jude.  It is a “spy” novel of sorts.  This time the spies are not a military plant inside enemy lines or a virus infiltrating a cell.  The spy that Jude is talking about are “False Teachers” secretly infiltrating the church of Jesus Christ and destroying it from the inside like a virus.  This is the “Real Pandemic” that threatens our world.  Let’s read this Biblical Spy novel in it’s entirety this morning:   READ JUDE

BACKGROUND: 

Who is Jude?  Simply stated, Jude was the half-brother of Jesus.  He was one of five boys who shared Mary as their mother.  Joseph was the father of all but Jesus. It is interesting to note that Jude refers to himself as, a “slave of Jesus Christ,” (v1), but not his brother. This was an act of humility.  It is also important to note that Jude (and the other half-brothers of Jesus, James, Joses, and Simon, did not believe Jesus was God, the Messiah, until after the resurrection of Jesus (Acts 1:14).  This is important because it shows Jesus grew up as a typical Hebrew youth.  Any miracles attributed to Jesus in writings are false. Jesus also had half-sisters (Mk. 6:3).

Who Was His Audience?

Jude’s audience was probably written about 33 years after Jesus died. This is relatively early. He references several instances in Hebrew history without elaboration indicating the audience knew the stories.  He also uses portions of “extra-biblical writings” by the title of 1Enoch (v9) and the Assumption of Moses (v14). These writings were not inspired and were written only a couple centuries before Christ was born.  But, they were very well known as folklore by the early Hebrew Christians.  It would be like me using an illustration from Alice In Wonderland, or a textbook on science.  That does not mean that because a Biblical writer knew of and used these stories, that the books they came from were inspired. 

What Is the Theme (Key Verse)?

Jude tells us how this book came about in verses 3-4:

(CSB) ³ Dear friends, although I was eager to write you about the salvation we share, I found it necessary to write, appealing to you to contend for the faith that was delivered to the saints once for all. ⁴ For some people, who were designated for this judgment long ago, have come in by stealth; they are ungodly, turning the grace of our God into sensuality and denying Jesus Christ, our only Master and Lord.

 The word “contend” (other versions: defend), is a very, very strong word.  Our word, “agony,” comes from the root of this Greek word.  The Message Bible (paraphrase) gets to the heart of the idea:  fight with everything you have.  It is a compound word which is a New Testament way of intensifying a word.  It literally means, “struggle on top of struggle.”  Like a deadly virus, false teachers crept into the church and were destroying it through doctrinal error. 

Now, here’s where today’s sermon focuses.  How do we identify those “false teachers” who have sneaked into our churches.  Notice this “compelled” Jude to change what he first intended to write about.  This matter of “false teachers” is extremely important and the battle to keep a church pure in doctrine is extremely difficult.  The first step is to identify the “Seven Marks of a False Teacher” which Jude outlines.

1.  False Teachers Mix Error With Truth. 

Notice again the words in verse 4, “they come in by stealth,” or, “have wormed their way into your churches” (NLT). 

False teachers cannot get a foothold in churches if they bust down the door and start shouting “God Does Not Exist,” or, “It’s OK to sin all you want; God doesn’t care.”  A spy cannot infiltrate an enemy’s territory by announcing, “Hey! I’m a spy.” False teachers start by mixing a little bit of Bible truth with a little bit of ungodly error.  Then they continue add more and more error.  This usually happens in our modern day with “Conference Teachers” like Beth Moore, or Joyce Meyer, Creflo Dollar, or literally dozens upon dozens of popular conference leaders. 

Now a word of “CAUTION” about calling differences of opinions false teaching or heresy.  Biblical doctrine involves both essential and non-essential teachings.  Heresy is teaching contrary to an essential doctrine.  Examples of essential doctrines are:  the Trinity; Deity and Humanity of Christ; and the Second Coming.  A heretic denies or perverts an “essential doctrine.”  There are non-essential doctrines over which true believers can have a difference of opinion.  Examples of non-essential doctrines might be:  God is a Baptist; Speaking in Tongues; or Singing Hymns versus Singing Praise Choruses.  Here’s a helpful adage in regard to Essential and Non-Essential teaching.

“In essentials—Unity; In non-essentials—Liberty; In all things—Charity.”  There is much more that could be said about mixing truth and error, but we will move on. 

Here’s my main point:  doctrinal purity matters because errors in essential doctrine have eternal consequences.

2.  They Live Ungodly Lifestyles (4b)

“they are ungodly.”  This mark of a false teacher and the next are related, but slightly different.  In this identifying mark, the person is caught in some grievous sin, but they are not open to correction.  They ignore any call to repent and abandon the sinful behavior.  They are like a parent who says, “Do as I say, not as I do.”  They talk the talk but don’t walk the walk.

Years ago, a pastor who was very beloved by the congregation had an affair with one of the deacon’s wives.  This was mother and father’s church and they were very close to the pastor.  The church confronted him and would have forgiven him if he had repented.  Instead, he almost boastfully ignored the church, and in fact the deacon’s wife got a divorce and married this pastor. 

Pastors and Teachers are not expected to be perfect, but we are expected to be repentant when caught in some failure and abandon ungodly behavior.  It is said in regard to the laws of the land, “No man is above the law.” Well, that applies even moreso to preachers and teachers:  “No man is above the Law of God.” A pastor or teacher should live an exemplary life as much as is humanly possible.  Godliness should show in every aspect of pastor’s or teacher’s life.

3.  False Teachers Pervert Grace (4c)

“turning the grace of God into promiscuity.”  The difference between these ungodly people and the previous group is that these ungodly people don’t simply “ignore” the teachings of God’s Word, but they actually twist God’s Word to justify their own actions.

These people teach that because we are saved by God’s grace, and not our behavior, then our behavior doesn’t matter.  Listen to how the NIV translates this verse:  “For certain men . . . change the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord” (v4c).

Grace is not a “license to live anyway you want” but the “power to live in a way that is obedient and pleasing to God.”

James 2:18 helps us understand the real impact of faith upon one’s life:

(CSB) But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without works, and I will show you faith by my works.

Grace doesn’t free us to sin but it empowers us to serve.  The evidence a true grace-touched life is a God-like walk.

4.  Deny Jesus is the Only Way (4d)

and denying Jesus Christ, our only Master and Lord.

This is perhaps the most prevalent and dangerous doctrine of false teachers in our world today.  The Bible says that Jesus is, “the Only Way, the Only Truth, and the Only life, and no one comes to the Father but through Him” (Jn. 14:6)

Luke, the writer of Acts (4:12) also makes this abundantly clear about Jesus:  “There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to people, and we must be saved by it [that is, Jesus].”

Catholics deny Jesus is the Only Way by elevating Mary as a “co-redeemer” and Church ritual as a means and method to attain grace (sacramentalism).  Mormons deny Jesus is the Only Way and even call Jesus the brother of Lucifer.  Mormons elevated their church practices to the point of saving grace.  Jehovah Witnesses pervert the teaching of the gospel by making Jesus “a god” and not Almighty God and elevating a system of working to gain salvation.

False Teachers uniformly deny the Jesus is the Only Way to Salvation.  Jesus and nothing else.

5.  Private Revelation (v8)

(CSB)  ⁸ In the same way these people—relying on their dreams—defile their flesh, reject authority, and slander glorious ones.

This is a difficult verse to interpret because of the grammatical construction in the original.  The KJV calls these false teachers, “filthy dreamers.” This makes the word translated, “dreamers,” a noun instead of what a verbal causative participle.  This is important because the grammar is better supported by showing clearly that these false teaches rely on “extra-biblical revelation, or dreams” as a basis for their authority.  The NLT also makes this clear:

(NLT) 8 In the same way, these people—who claim authority from their dreams.

This is a common error, and a devious one rampant in our world today.  What could be more “authoritative” than someone who says, “I spoke with God this morning and He told me such and such.”  Direct communication from God!  What could have more authority?  Well, how about the Word of God, “once for all delivered to the saints.”  Private messages from dreams and visions must always be subject to examination according to the written Word of God.  Peter warns us: 

2 Peter 1:20 (KJV 1900)  Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.

And, this is not a new phenomenon.  Jeremiah in the O.T. warns us:

23:25–27 (NLT) ²⁵ “I have heard these prophets say, ‘Listen to the dream I had from God last night.’ And then they proceed to tell lies in my name. ²⁶ How long will this go on? If they are prophets, they are prophets of deceit, inventing everything they say. ²⁷ By telling these false dreams, they are trying to get my people to forget me, just as their ancestors did by worshiping the idols of Baal.

The FINAL authority in regard to God speaking is His written word. 

This is the great error of one of the largest false religions in the world, the Mormon Church.  The Mormon Church is founded upon the fanciful dreams and visions of Joseph Smith, and not the sure foundation of the Bible.

6.  Reject Authority (8b)

⁸ In the same way these people . . .  reject authority, and slander glorious ones.

Just as a teacher’s message must be “under the authority of the Written Word, so a preacher’s life and ministry must be under the authority of the Church.

This is a unique passage in the Jude because it speaks of something purported to have happened, recorded in an extra-biblical source called, The Assumption of Moses.  As I said earlier, we do not have to assume that this story is true—it may be or it may not be, Jude does not elaborate—but it does prove the point Jude wants to make:

“false teachers have no respect for authority and presume to be as powerful on their own as Satan.”  The point must be emphasized that Jude is talking about “total disregard for any authority.”  They become a law unto themselves.

The Bible teaches that everyone is under authority in God’s Kingdom.  That includes preachers.  In a Biblically governed church, the earthly authority resides in the gathered church body. Matthew says this:

8:15–17 (CSB) ¹⁵ “If your brother sins against you, go tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have won your brother. ¹⁶ But if he won’t listen, take one or two others with you, so that by the testimony of two or three witnesses every fact may be established. ¹⁷ If he doesn’t pay attention to them, tell the church. If he doesn’t pay attention even to the church, let him be like a Gentile and a tax collector to you.

Notice here in this passage about church discipline that the final arbiter of what is right or wrong is “the local church.”  Every preacher and teacher must be under the authority of the local church.

7.  False Teachers Proclaim a Prosperity Gospel (v11)

(CSB) 11 Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, have plunged into Balaam’s error for profit, and have perished in Korah’s rebellion.

Cain and Balaam are associated with greed.  Balaam’s greed is even more despicable because Balaam used position as a “prophet” (preacher or teacher) for financial gain. Balaam was motivated by greed, not grace.  His motive was money, not ministry.

Balaam was a prophet in Israel.  At one point the neighboring pagan king of Moab by the name of Balak was intimidated by Israel whose land was just across the Jordan River.  King Balak decided to bribe Balaam to prophecy a curse against the Israelites.  At first, Balaam rejected the offer but his greed started to gnaw away at what little ethical fiber he had.  So, Balaam devised an indirect way to curse the Israelites indirectly . . . for a fee of course.  Interestingly, this “Prosperity Preacher” Balaam is mentioned about 10 separate places in the Bible.  That’s how serious the “Name It/Claim it, Prosperity Gospel, Seed and Greed error is.

As we wind down this introductory message from Jude, we should have nailed down two important lessons.  One, the situation of false teaching is so pervasive and so dangerous that it requires a “contentious, continuous, agonizing struggle.”  Two, we must train ourselves to be able to spot the Marks of a False Teacher.

False teaching is like a virus that invades the body and makes itself look like it is part of the body, when it is actually a dangerous, wicked secret agent bent on destroying the body from within.

False teaching, like the Covid virus, can spread like wildfire and leave death—eternal death—and destruction in its wake. 

Let’s commit together as a church to always stand for doctrinal purity and do whatever it takes to combat theological error wherever it is found.  As horrible and deadly as the Covid pandemic was with literally millions of people dying, the pandemic of false gospel teaching is eternally more deadly.