Sermon Tone Analysis

*Persevering in the Faith*

*Jude 20-23*

*June 15, 2008*

* *

*Two Frogs In Cream*

Two frogs fell into a can of cream,

Or so I’ve heard it told;

The sides of the can were shiny and steep,

The cream was deep and cold.

“O, what’s the use?” croaked No. 1.

“Tis fate; no help’s around.

Goodbye, my friends!

Goodbye, sad world!”

And weeping still, he drowned.

But Number 2, of sterner stuff,

Dog-paddled in surprise,

The while he wiped his creamy face

And dried his creamy eyes.

“I’ll swim awhile, at least,” he said—

Or so I’ve heard he said;

“It really wouldn’t help the world

If one more frog were dead.”

An hour or two he kicked and swam,

Not once he stopped to mutter,

But kicked and kicked and swam and kicked,

Then hopped out, via butter!

—T.

C. Hamlet[1]

 

I’m sure many of you have heard this poem by TC Hamlet, but it perfectly illustrates how perseverance in the face of seemingly impossible odds can be lifesaving.

Many times we as believers have been tossed into the midst of life and given a choice: sink or swim.

Scripture promises that we will face many trials, testing, and refining of our faith.

We have not been promised earthly wealth or success, but a joy that surpasses all understanding.

If we are living according to the will of God, which is His Word, then we will face trials.

We will be accused of being narrow-minded.

We are not safe from persecution.  1 Peter 3:16 states (ESV) ”having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.”  2 Timothy 1:8 also states (ESV) ” Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God.”

Thus, we will face adversity.

We will be bombarded by slander.

This is unavoidable.

We will also combat false teaching.

We are in the midst of a unique time in history.

At no other point in the history of the world are the written thoughts, ramblings, slander, and heresy of so many available to so many.

We are constantly inundated with information.

We are bombarded with thought.

Much of the so called “Christian” literature makes promises contrary to scripture; they are teaching apart from the standard of God.

Step into most any Christian bookstore, log on to Amazon.com,

peruse the 1-800-buythischristianbook catalog, and you face a difficult choice.

Who do I trust, what do I claim as right, how can I discern the differences in this teacher and the next?

These questions are not unique to this decade, this century, or even this millennium.

The earliest Christian followers had to prepare themselves, and combat false teachers in the infancy of Christianity.

They were facing the choice of following the Apostles (and even which one), or those claiming divine inspiration within and outside the church.

Without history and tradition to bolster their choice they could only cling to one foundation; the Word of God.

The Books of Moses and the Law, and the very words and teachings of Christ would be their foundation and bedrock; supporting and reassuring them in times of rumbling.

But, how can we plan or prepare for the inevitable?

What steps can we take to persevere?

How do we develop spiritual discernment?

In his letter to the beloved of Christ, Jude warned the early church that(verse 4)“certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.”

His letter was well timed as the warnings that Peter gave to the church had been fulfilled.

2 Peter 2:1-2 states “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.

And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed.”

These false teachers were teaching a gospel apart from the gospel of Christ.

Their teaching was ripping the church apart and destroying the reputation of the Christian witness.

The church was also under great strain and persecution from Rome; the empire seeing the church as a threat to its practice of polytheism and order.

Therefore, the church could be seen as young, fragile, and on the precipice of falling apart.

Thus, Jude’s warning and teaching was vital to the Christian church at such an early stage in its existence.

His purpose in writing, however, was not only in warning early believers of the apostates that had infiltrated the church, but to prepare them for battle.

*Jude, in his letter to the beloved of Christ, gives Christians 2 strategies for persevering in the midst of false teaching.*

It is with these strategies that we can prepare ourselves for the battle that is being waged for truth in the church today.

Our text for today will be Jude 17-25.

By the way, if you do not have a copy of God’s Word with you today I invite you to use the one provided for you in the pew.

The book of Jude can be found on page 882.

Also, if you don’t personally own a Bible we ask that you take that one with you as a gift today.

In the front of this copy it has a help in getting started reading God’s Word, and will help you in understanding the importance of scripture….Jude 17-25 "But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ.

They said to you, ‘In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions.’

It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit.

But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life.

And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.

Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever.

Amen."  *The first strategy for a believer to persevere in the midst of false teaching is continuing to grow in their walk with God.* 

Jude brings this out wonderfully in verses 20 and 21, "But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life."

Jude is here describing the roll of sanctification in our life as believers.

In order to discern, combat, and defend against false teaching you must be striving after sanctification.

Sanctification is just the fancy term given for growing in your faith.

After salvation, your growth in Christ is continual.

Wayne Grudem in his /Systematic Theology/ defines it as “a progressive work of God and man that makes us more and more free from sin and like Christ in our actual lives.”

He sees three stages of sanctification: 1. Sanctification has a definite beginning at regeneration or salvation 2. Sanctification increases throughout life 3. Sanctification is completed at death (for our souls) and when the Lord returns (for our bodies).

Sanctification is a continual process.

And here, Jude is concerned about the second stage of sanctification; the increasing freedom from sin and striving towards Christ-likeness.

So, how are we to put this into action?

How do we grow in sanctification?

In what ways do we grow in our knowledge of God’s Word?  Jude has given us four ways we can actively pursue sanctification, thereby preparing us to live as Christ in the midst of false teaching.

We are first called to build “ourselves up in your most holy faith…”  Simply put this is the studying of the Word of God and learning how to use it.

It would be difficult to spot false teaching if your knowledge of the truth was lacking.

How could we, as believers, spot doctrinal error without being immersed in the Word?

By what standard should false teaching be held if that standard is unknown?

In a recent article on counterfeit money the U.S. Secret Service gave the following advice to spot bogus money.

/~* Inspect the paper/.

/Genuine paper is 100 percent cotton rag with a distinctive texture.

Embedded in the paper are very tiny red and blue fibers/.

~* /Clarity and detail are the trademarks of U.S. currency.

For instance, the small sawtooth points designed as the outermost edge of the circular Federal Reserve and Treasury seals are clear, sharp, even, and unbroken./

~* /All the numbers and letters on currency have a unique style, with even spacing and a sharp, clear image./