Some Wisdom From Jude

Jude 1:3-4 Dear friends I have been eagerly planning to write to you about the salvation we all share. But now I find that I must write about something else, urging you to defend the faith that God has entrusted once for all time to his holy people. 4 I say this because some ungodly people have wormed their way into your churches, saying that God’s marvelous grace allows us to live immoral lives. The condemnation of such people was recorded long ago, for they have denied our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.

This is some pretty powerful stuff! Many times we think Jude is only talking about blatant sins like adultery, stealing, lying etc. but there is so much more to this. Our own gullible thinking causes us not to recognize when deception enters our churches. It can be disguised as a person who is constantly questioning authority, someone who finds a way to get their way even if it means being just a “little sneaky”, someone who jumps from church to church, or even someone who knows scripture well enough to pick and choose verses to justify their actions.

All of these scream DANGER! DANGER! Many times you can identify these people by watching them. If you see them always “meeting” with others because they have “concerns” then watch out. If you hear them list a long account of the many churches they’ve attended, then watch out. If repeated “prayer request” are being circulated through e-mail or phone calls, watch out. And, if facebook or other Internet social sites become a forum for their latest soap box, WATCH OUT! These people have mastered the art of craftiness, unfortunately there are many wolves that have entered into the flock. Know God’s Word so you can identify them.