“Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain,…” Jude 11
Thank you for joining us again as we continue our discussion on Jude’s false teachers.
5. “For they have gone the way of Cain,…” The false teachers’ beliefs on salvation were like Cain’s, the son of the first man, Adam. Like Cain, they were religious but did not believe in the blood atonement; therefore, these false teachers had to explain it away. Let us be reminded that He, Jesus,
“…through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. ” Hebrew 9:12
6.”…and for pay they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam,..” (verse 11) – Balaam, a prophet, was enticed by a heathen king to curse Israel for a price. You may remember him as the person the donkey talked to. Though God did not allow him to curse Israel, Balaam was later responsible for Israel being seduced by Moabite women, leading to idolatry, which caused the wrath of God to come upon the nation and kill a good number of men. And he did it for his financial gain.
Like Balaam, these false teachers use their prophetical gifts for the purpose of self-aggrandizement, and endeavor to make their services attractive by EXCLUDING FROM RELIGION ALL THAT IS STRENUOUS AND DIFFICULT, AND OPENING THE DOOR TO EVERY KIND OF INDULGENCE.” (Wuest – emphasis mine)
A wise man once told me, if you want to know if Jesus is present in a church meeting, just watch and see who gets the glory, man or Jesus. False teachers like the glory.
Thank you for your precious time. We hope you have been built up spiritually through this study. Our next post will be last on the descriptions of the false teachers.
Blessings on You,
Carl
Psalm 119: 38 