Contend for the Faith Against: Those Who Hide Among You

Introduction

Back in 2006, there was a story that came out of South Bend, IN about a couple who thought they were getting a great deal on a 65” TV for $250. When the TV arrived, they were excited to tear open the professionally wrapped and tightly-sealed box. As they ripped open the box, the power cord and remote fell out first. Then they proceeded to take out the styrofoam and lift the TV from its plastic wrapping. As they slid the TV out, to their horror, the realized it was not a TV but an oven door. Come to find out, the police had been trying to solve recent cases of oven door thefts in the area. And now they knew why. The thieves were stealing TVs from their boxes and replacing them with oven doors.

1. Woe to Those Who Hide

“Woe” - exclamation of pain and anger.

Jesus known for woe oracles in Matthew 23: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites!”

For the Way They Walk: Cain

Jude 11 (NASB 95)

Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.

Cain chose evil rather than good.

Genesis 4:6–8 “Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.” Cain told Abel his brother. And it came about when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him.”

For Their Greed: Balaam

Jude 11 (NASB 95)

Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.

Balaam went to prophesy against Israel for money (Numbers 22-24). He was greedy; it was not until God stopped him through a miraculous intervention of a talking donkey that Balaam did not curse Israel.

Jude is saying that these false teachers are greedy just like Balaam. Were they receiving money to distort God’s word to promote sexual immorality?

For They Shall Perish: Korah

Jude 11 (NASB 95)

Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.

Korah was a priest and despised the authority of Moses and Aaron. . . . 250 men challenged the authority of Moses and Aaron. . . . The earth opened up and all the men fell in and God also punished them by fire.

The false teachers in Jude’s time are thus being said to reject the authority God has put into place. Moreover, and more significantly, the comparison is about judgment: Korah and his followers were swallowed up by an earthquake and destroyed by fire as judgment for rebelling against God; the false teachers in Jude will also be judged for their rebellion.

What This Means for Us:

Be on the look out for those who claim to be Christians but pervert the Gospel.

Jesus warned us:

Matthew 7:15 ““Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”

The Apostle Paul warned us:

Acts 20:29 “I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock;”

The Apostle Peter warned us:

2 Peter 2:1 “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves.”

The Apostle John:

1 John 4:1 “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

Paul again, but to Timothy:

2 Timothy 4:3–4 “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.”

We cannot afford to be naive, accommodating, or foolish.

For those who hide have chosen evil over good; they’ve chosen greed—gain of money; and they will perish for this.

It’s difficulty to believe that some people are like this, that there are people who will hide among us and would be teachers we may even respect. There may be churches with popular pastors who have accepted a perverted Gospel: greedy for a bigger church, to avoid conflict, avoid being canceled or ostracized.

But such pastors and teachers do exist, and still exist even today—perverting the Gospel with sexual immorality.

We cannot be naive to think that such is not the case.

2. Characteristics of Those Who Hide

Jude 12–13a (NASB 95)

These are the men who are hidden reefs in your love feasts when they feast with you without fear, caring for themselves; clouds without water, carried along by winds; autumn trees without fruit, doubly dead, uprooted; wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam; wandering stars . . .

Hidden Reefs, No Fear, Self-indulgent

“hidden reefs in your love feasts” = an unseen and destructive force

“they feast with you without fear” = they are not fearful to be in plain slight

“caring for themselves” = literally “shepherding themselves,” i.e., selfish, self-indulgent, did not watch over the sheep. Instead, they were effectively attacking and devouring them.

False Appearance, Go with What’s Popular

“clouds without water” = false appearance

“carried along by winds” = go with what’s popular

Dead in Faith, Destructive, Directionless

“autumn trees without fruit, doubly dead, uprooted” = dead in the faith

“wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam” = destructive

“wandering stars” = directionless, even off the path

What This Means for Us:

Those who pervert the Gospel with sexual immorality can be hidden among us.

Taking communion. Look and sound just like Christians.

“Unconditional Conference” - at a large church here in Atlanta last year. Supported by the pastor of the church. From the UC website: The “event is for parents of LGBTQ+ children and for ministry leaders looking to discover ways to support parents and LGBTQ+ children in their churches. You will be equipped, refreshed, and inspired as you hear from leading communicators on topics that speak to your heart, soul, and mind. We deeply desire this time will bring about healing and restoration. No matter what theological stance you hold, we invite you to listen, reflect, and learn as we approach this topic from the quieter middle space.”

The conference featured speakers who referred to their children being in gay marriages; another well-known speaker was also featured who now affirms gay marriage; two other male conference speakers are married to men.

One person who attended, tweeted, “It was safe, supportive and affirming. They explicitly communicated they were not trying to change anyone’s theology, and they didn’t, but every speaker, video, book and breakout I saw fully affirmed LGBTQ+ folks! I saw pastors advocating for inclusion, parents welcoming their children’s same-sex partners into the family, trans folks sharing their transition stories, and queer people leading at literally every level.”

The Pastor at this large church got some blowback. So he responded in his Sunday sermon at the time: “this is an issue where we don’t want to draw lines that exclude, but circles that fully include everyone—married gay folks, trans folks, and everyone else.”

Not just LGBTQ either. I know some churches baptizing those who presently are committing adultery, fornication, and numerous other sexual immoralities.

They are not shepherding you. The are eating you like a ravenous wolf. They aren’t having you over for dinner; they are having you for dinner.

Those who pervert the Gospel with sexual immorality do not have saving faith in Christ.

“autumn trees without fruit, doubly dead, uprooted” . . . “wandering stars”

Matthew 7:16–19 NASB 95

You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

1 Corinthians 6:9–11 NASB 95

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.

3. The Outcome for Those Who Hide: Eternal Darkness

Jude 13b (NASB 95)

. . . for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever.

Literally: “ . . . for whom the deep gloom of the darkness has been reserved for eternity.”

2 Peter 2:17 “These are springs without water and mists driven by a storm, for whom the black darkness has been reserved.”

“darkness” => parallel to the idea of the angels who were judged and reserved for darkness in Jude 6.

“darkness” in the Gospels—Jesus in parables teaches: “throw out into outer darkness, in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Darkness always in reference to this world, sin, death, judgment.

In contrast Light is a reference to God:

John 8:12 “Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.””

Jude is therefore saying that those who have infiltrated the church and perverted the Gospel will spend eternity in judgment—darkness—away from God, the Light. This is the traditional doctrine of hell.

And note that it is eternal, forever.

Jesus speaks about the eternality of hell:

Mark 9:47–48 “If your eye causes you to stumble, throw it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than, having two eyes, to be cast into hell, where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.”

Matthew 18:8 ““If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; it is better for you to enter life crippled or lame, than to have two hands or two feet and be cast into the eternal fire.”

The outcome for those who are hiding in the church and corrupt the Gospel with sexual immorality: the judgment of hell.

Irony: We don’t like the idea of hell. On the one hand, we complain about God not stepping in and stopping evil in this world, but then, on the other hand, we complain about the concept of hell. We cannot have it both ways: either we desire justice for the wicked or we do not. If we want justice for evil, then we cannot be against the idea of hell; if we don’t want hell, then we ought not complain that there is evil in the world.