Chapter Nine - Verses 17-19
17 But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. 18 They said to you, “In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions.”
From verse four through verse 16, Jude has been calling our attention to the fact that false teachers and their erroneous teachings are a real threat to the church and ultimately to humanity (see Isaiah 28:7; Jeremiah 23:14-15; Micah 3:11; Zephaniah 3:4; Matthew 7:15; 24:11; 2 Corinthians 11:12-15). He has pointed out that our enemy is alive and very active giving us essentially two choices, either to ignore what he wrote allowing our lives to be influenced by these false teachers or to take note and listen to what he is saying and do something about it. Verse 17 begins with a phrase similar to what Peter wrote in his second epistle, however instead of stirring us up by way of reminder (see 2 Peter 3:1), Jude tells us that we MUST remember! As Christians we not only need to remember, we need to listen and heed the warning Jude is giving us. Some scholars believe that Jude is simply quoting Peter, however there are some clear differences (read 2 Peter 3:1-7). Peter did say there would be scoffers (mockers) in the last days, people who follow only their own worldly desires and lusts (same word used in verse 16 translated as “sinful desires”), but notice that Jude uses a plural referring to multiple apostles and the word, ‘they’, again referring to more than one. Jude, in a sense, is referring to all of the epistle-writing apostles as each had similar warnings (see 1 Timothy 4:1-3; 2 Timothy 3:1-9; 1 John 2:18-27). We are not to take these warnings casually, the threat is very real, Christians need to respond. Paul takes this one step further by noting that some things will happen prior to Jesus’ return. He wrote in 2 Thessalonians regarding the second coming of Jesus, “…the day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first,” (read 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12). The Greek word translated in verse three as ‘rebellion’ is ‘apostasia’, the word we get ‘apostasy’ from, meaning a falling away or rejection. Paul is saying that some Christians and some churches will fall away from God!
19 It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit.
In the next verse Jude appends his description of those ungodly people that he began talking about from verse four with the fact that these people are those that also cause divisions and that they are worldly people (not God’s people, as they do not possess the Holy Spirit). One could ask whether or not creating division is a bad thing. Creating division is generally considered a tactic, which at minimum would slow down progress of something, and at worst, total destruction. In most cases in the New Testament the issue of divisions is applied to the local church (see 1 Corinthians 3:1-9; 11:18; 12:24-26; 2 Timothy 4:1-5). The word Jude used here in verse 19 is a unique word, only used this one time in the Bible, meaning to separate from one another (different than the usual Greek word used to describe division in the Bible, ’schisma’ which means to ‘split’ or ‘tear’). When we think about how to defeat an enemy we can see how creating division could slow it down, so it doesn’t take much imagination to figure out how our enemy has effectively used division within the church to render it useless at times. It is interesting to note how Paul identified one of the sources of division at the church in Corinth, “But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way? For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not being merely human?” (1 Corinthians 3:1-4, ESV) The problem is that some of the members of the church were Spiritually immature and did not know the Word of God. Since they did not know the truth and apparently were not interested in growing in the Word of God, having either a limited understanding (such as what we may have learned in Sunday School in our youth) or no knowledge at all, they wanted to follow the world, while others who knew Jesus, wanted to follow Him. Thus a division was formed.
In the Book of Galatians, just before the listing that describes the fruit of the Spirit, Paul dissects the nature and lists the behaviors of someone who does not have the Holy Spirit. “Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Galatians 5:19-21, ESV) In verse 20 Paul states that one of the works of the flesh (behavior of someone without the Holy Spirit) is creating divisions, note how ‘divisions’ is sandwiched between dissensions and envy (verse 21), interestingly, one is a tool that is often used to create division (dissension) and the other is a potential motivation for one to create division (envy). In his short letter to Titus, the Apostle Paul informs us on what to do with someone who creates division, “As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him, knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.” (Titus 3:10-11, ESV)
Sometimes division is necessary if the wrong direction is chosen. In that case the only legitimate cause for division would be to return to Jesus and the Word of God. If some refuse to follow God, while others in the same group or church desire to return to Jesus, then division is inevitable and right. Instead of thinking of it as a division, we should think of it as a course correction. Our navigational aide, namely the Bible, should always be the guiding light in our lives. Jesus said there would be temptations (see Matthew 18:7; Luke 17:1) as they help us grow in faith and help us mature Spiritually. Paul in 1 Corinthians 11:18-19 explains that factions that come from divisions often help those who genuinely follow God to grow closer to Him, as well as become closer to other believers.
When Jude says these people are devoid the Holy Spirit, this again is not something we should casually read, as Paul explains: “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.” (Romans 8:5-11, ESV, read also Titus 1:16; 1 John 3:24; 4:13) In summary, without the Holy Spirit there is no salvation.
Earlier Jude pointed out that these same people were already condemned (verses 7, 10-13 and 15) and now he states they are without the Holy Spirit (verse 19). Due to the hardening of their heart the best action would be to move away from these people. In this case the division that is caused is the direct result of them refusing to follow Jesus and the Word of God. As Christians and disciples of Jesus we should not in any way approve of their behavior or be perceived as endorsing their teaching. We need to contend for the faith (verse 3) and live for Jesus, Jude will provide guidance on how to do that in the next four verses.