Deception In The Church (Part 2)

Jude 3 "Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints."

Jude, knowing we are under attack, uses the language of urgency. We are to earnestly contend or fight with everything in you against the deceptions of the devil. Contend means to "agonize, defend, engage in an athletic contest, be a combatant, warrior, fighter for the faith."

We have become too passive. We are not militant enough. Intellectually we know we are at war and yet we continue to live as if we are on vacation. We have little to no prep or  diligence. We acknowledge the attack of deception and simply roll over and go back to sleep. It seems to no impact on way we live.

Jude goes on after calling us to wakeup and fight and pulls the curtain back on specific strategies by which the enemy would like to deceive us. He says these are the deceptions we must guard against in the church.

Jude 4 reminds us that some people have infiltrated our ranks (Scripture warned us this would happen), who beneath their pious skin are shameless scoundrels. Their design is to replace the sheer grace of our God with sheer license—which means doing away with Jesus Christ, our one and only Master.

Jude refers to this deception as The Way of Cain. You remember Cain. He knew what was right and yet instead he chooses an alternate self-devised option. Cain was self- centered, self sufficient, and full of self-works. He lived like he wanted and believed he could save himself by sacrifices he chose; not a blood sacrifice, but rather works of own hand. Abel's blood sacrifice is accepted but Cain's offering was rejected and Cain throws a murderous fit. God responds to Cain and lets him know that if he would do right he too would be accepted. But if he chooses license instead, the Bible describes the results as a lion ready to pounce and devour you. Rather than adjusting his theology/doctrine/beliefs to meet God's Cain pushes forward with his own way.

We now see the same in church and our lives. The original sin of self is pushing back to the front. We are replacing God with us. Be your own god! You decide between good and evil, not what God says, but what you think. Set your own standards, because your definition of sin trumps Gods. Reject what the Word of God says if you don't like it or if it doesn't allow what you wanted to do. The church is facing the days of Sodom and Gomorrah again. They were described by Jude as making religion out of their whims and lusts! Sound familiar? Many churches are being force fed a "social theology instead of Biblical theology". Nothing is wrong anymore and everything is acceptable. Don't be deceived! It still takes a clean heart to get to heaven and a gospel that has no standard will not work. A church without the truth is just an institution. God wants a dedicated people and not another building or denomination.