Jude leaves a man thinking...

Jude leaves a man thinking...

"These are hidden reefs at your love feasts, as they feast with you without fear, shepherds feeding themselves; waterless clouds, swept along by winds; fruitless trees in late autumn, twice dead, uprooted; wild waves of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever." (Jude 1:12-13 ESV)

False teachers "...are hidden reefs...", meaning they are dangerous to those sailing the sea of good faith in Christ...they are ship-wreckers!

False teachers often come in among believers, even enjoying our "...love feasts..." (read: meals of fellowship and even the Lord's Supper), meaning, they act like Christ followers, but they aren't!

But, these false teachers are not feeding others, they are false "...shepherds feeding themselves..." They are not looking to give people Jesus; they are not looking to truly evangelize the lost by leading them to trust in Christ alone, nor are they looking to shepherd and edify the redeemed, helping them to walk in ever-growing faith in Christ. They look out for number one.

False teachers "...feast with [us] without fear...", meaning, they feel comfortable among us, have no concern about what may come of them, neither regarding God or fearing man.

False teachers are "...waterless clouds, swept along by winds...", which means to say they constantly promise things God has no intention of delivering, nor they the ability to deliver. There is nothing worse than needing rain, having clouds and no rain falls. Well, except, it is worse for people to need God, folks claim they can help people get closer to Him and they don't fulfill their promises.

False teachers are "...fruitless trees...", which is wood for fire.

False teachers are "...wild waves of the sea...", beating nothing, carrying nothing, foaming, just to be noticed in their worthlessness, and even that is for nothing...and they amount to nothing.

False teachers will be "...twice dead..." -- born dead in trespasses and sins, and remain dead for eternity, separated from God, who is life!

False teachers are "...wandering stars..." who lead people no where, which is, in the minimum, astray, and maybe into the "...gloom of utter darkness..." forever.

Have you ever wondered why good Bible teaching pastors so passionately want believers to not be taken in by false teachers? Read Jude. It's dangerous!

Think on it, beloved friends.