The book of Jude. And we've been looking for several weeks here at these mentioned by Jude. In the fourth verse, as he, in the third verse, admonishes the people of God to contend for the faith once delivered to the saints, he warns them that as they contend for the faith or the reason that they need to contend for the faith, that doesn't mean to be contentious for the faith, but it means to stand for the faith. It means to earnestly seek the faith, which is given by the Lord.

And he says that in doing so, and one of the reasons for doing so, is that there are certain men crept in unawares. They crept in stealthily. They were sneaky. They were deceivers. They came with another agenda other than to glorify Jesus Christ, to magnify Him, and to set forth Jesus Christ and Him crucified. And he says, they were crept in unawares. And these who were crept in unawares are before of old ordained to this condemnation. Predestined. Determined beforehand.

You know, people get, sometimes people get antsy when you mention that word. And surely there's people that go off the deep end and say things about what the scripture says about that, that not scriptural, not in the scripture. But we must never neglect to declare what the Lord declares. And if he giving this word, which we believe this is the word of God, to Jude to write that there were before of old men ordained to condemnation, then we must believe that it's true. Whether we like it, whether it fits in with what people in general think, or whatever, doesn't matter.

And someone said, I've said this before, but someone said that in looking at the word of God, they said that God said it, I believe it, and that settles it. Well, that's too much. Because they should have stopped when they said God said it, and that settles it. Doesn't matter whether you believe it or not. That has no effect whatsoever on what God says. and on what God says is true. A lot of people think that God's waiting for them. Hold on a minute. They believe that God is waiting for them to ratify what he says, to agree with him. God doesn't, on the one hand, it doesn't matter if you agree with God or not. He's right. All that he does is right. And so we are made aware of that when we read such statements as this, before of old ordained to this condemnation.

Turning ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness and denying the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. Now, when we speak of ungodly men, we usually mean immoral men. But you see, that's not what the scripture necessarily means when it's speaking about ungodly men. Now it is true that immoral men, those that have no regard to the directives and the teachings of God in the Word as to how men ought to order their lives, And they walk contrary to these things with openness and no desire to follow after the Lord. They are surely ungodly men. And we can recognize that as ungodliness.

But what the scripture has reference to when it's talking about ungodly men is men that do not exalt God alone. Men who do not worship God alone. Men who would seek to turn men away unto their own self. And as he says here, denying the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. Now that doesn't, to deny the Lord Jesus Christ does not necessarily mean that you don't believe he existed. See, a lot of people think that because they believe Jesus Christ came and that he died on the cross and was crucified and died, that they believe in Jesus Christ. Well, no, they just believe the facts about these things. They may deny the Lord Jesus Christ. They may deny that he is who he said he was. There's a lot of religions in the world, false religions, because there's only one true religion, and that is that which is wrapped up in Jesus Christ. There's no other. Anything else is an error.

And so there are Many religions in the world that say some things about Jesus Christ. They may even say a lot of right things about Jesus Christ. There's false religions that say Jesus Christ was a great prophet. In fact, Islam recognizes that Jesus Christ is a great prophet. He is a great prophet, but He's not a great prophet compared to anybody else. He is the great prophet. He's the only prophet. He's the prophet sent from God.

For God who at sundry times in divers manner spake in time past by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son. And so to come with any other message than that and all the ramifications that are wrapped up in it is to deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. Now he's not dividing them up here. He's not saying the Lord God and also the Lord Jesus Christ. He's saying the one who is God is the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the true and the living God. Beside him there is none else.

Now, all of these things that we have read after that is describing what these men go about to do. What those who fall into that camp, whether they are coming as preachers of deception or whether they're walking in deception and embracing it, and have no ear to the truth, have no desire to see themselves for what they are, they're included in these descriptive manners that we've looked at here. And so we had gotten down here to verse 13, I believe it was. Well, let's go back up here to verse 11. He says, woe unto them for they have gone in the way of Cain and ran greedily after the heir of Balaam for reward.

Cain despised God. How did he despise God? Didn't he bring an offering to God? Yeah, he did. But he brought an offering that God didn't tell him to bring. He brought an offering that wasn't that which the Lord would have. He brought an offering of his own doing, and the Lord rejected it. Now, the scripture says that he rejected Cain, because Cain was, according to what we understand, in the camp of these that was before ordained unto this condemnation. But he had respect unto Abel. Now Abel brought a sacrifice of blood.

But he had respect unto Abel because he loved Abel. And he moved Abel to bring the acceptable sacrifice. Abel didn't know any more than Cain did, apart from the fact that the Lord taught him. And the Lord showed him. And that's the only thing that makes a believer in Jesus Christ different from an unbeliever, is that God in his spirit opens the eyes of a man to see Christ for who he is. And seeing Christ for who he is, he sees himself for what he is.

Because you see, as a man, as the spirit of God shows a man that Jesus Christ died for sinners and shows him that he's a sinner through that, his heart is melted before the Lord. I mean, he can't do anything but fall down and worship the Lord that he would die for sinners. Now, a lot of people can talk about Christ dying for sinners and just like it's some offhanded thing. They say it's so, They might even say they believe that it's so, but it's not a thing that affects them. See, when they hear about that Christ died on Calvary's cross, they can just go on about their business without any consideration. But when the Spirit of God teaches a man that Jesus Christ died on Calvary's cross for sinners, And he convinces them through that that they are a sinner and that they need that which Christ has provided in that death on Calvary's cross.

You know, the Lord didn't make salvation possible. You'll hear a lot of preachers say that. Now, the Lord made salvation possible. for all men, and you can take advantage of what he did. All you gotta do is this, that, or the other. And of course, there's all kind of different formulas and things that men can do to take advantage, supposedly, of what Christ did. But the thing is that Christ didn't make salvation possible. He made salvation certain. because he paid the price for the sins of his people. And he calls his people out of the darkness and into the light. And he gives them a hunger after the things of God. And he gives them a desire to worship Christ, to magnify him.

And so these that are in some other fashion, it doesn't matter, you pick anything you want. You remember when Joshua, confronted the 12 tribes of Israel as they were about to go into the land of promise. And he said to them, choose you this day whom you'll serve. Now a lot of people think that what he said was that he gave them all these different choices. But he did give them some choices. But the choices that he gave them, he said, you can choose the gods of the Amorites, you can choose the gods of the Perizzites, or whoever, all the ites that are there. I can't recall all of them right off the top of my head. But he said, choose them. Choose any one of them. Because it doesn't matter which one of them you choose. They're all the same. But he said, as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. Because the Lord is not in a lineup. He's not setting up there and you can choose this one, or you can choose that one, or you can choose this, or you can choose the Lord. You can't choose the Lord. You can't choose the Lord. Only as God in his mercy is pleased to choose you, is your heart ever moved to say, oh Lord, help me. Lord, I need you. Lord, save me. Bring me out of darkness.

And so the way of Cain is anything that's contrary to that. in the area of Balaam for a reward. You know, a lot of people, when I was little, when I was growing up, a lot of preaching was done telling folks about getting rewards in heaven. You know, you need to be faithful and serve and do this and one day you're gonna have a lot of rewards in heaven. You're gonna have a crown and it's gonna, how much you do is gonna determine how big your crown is and how big your mansion is and all that stuff. Well, that's exactly what Balaam did. See, he was doing what he was doing because of what he was gonna get out of it. That's the gainsaying of Korah. That's the error of Balaam. They sought something for themselves.

The reward of God's people is Christ. I mean, What would be a greater reward? What could you ever gain or have or have bestowed on you that would exceed the blessing of Jesus Christ? Now, a lot of people don't think that much to that. Why, I want something more than that. I mean, what am I gonna get? Brethren, we've got all things if we have Christ. Oh, that he might teach us that. He might, you know, burn these things into our mind. He says, these are spots, these whom he's described, who go in the way of Balaam and Cain and Korah. These are spots in your feasts of charity when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear. Clouds they are without water, carried about of winds, whose fruit withereth without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots. Raging waves of the sea foaming out their own shame. Wandering stars to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever.

That's pretty strong words. These are spots on your Feast of Charity. They feast with you, feeding themselves without fear.

When Paul was speaking to the Corinthians about the taking of the supper, which the Feast of Charity, I believe, related to exactly this Feast of Love. That's what this is. It's a Feast of Love. the love of Jesus Christ for us. And so when we come here, we're not doing something to gain something. We're not doing something to fit in. We're doing something because we believe that what he gave us is that which sustains our life. the flesh and the blood of Jesus Christ.

These are spots on your feasts of charity. When they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear.

Now Paul said to the Corinthians these words. He says, let a man examine himself. And so let him eat of that bread and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily is guilty of the body and the blood of Jesus Christ. And what did he mean by that? See, that's to be without fear. To come and partake of this for some offhanded reason. To come without a proper regard.

Now when he said to take of this, let a man examine himself, lest he take it unworthily. How can a man take this worthily? He certainly can't take it worthily because he's either done something or not done something. I've heard men say, well, you know, you need to examine yourself and if you've got this going on in your life or this, that, the other, don't take it because you're gonna be taking it in an unworthy fashion. That's not what he's saying.

The man that takes this unworthily is to take it without a proper regard to what this is. the body and the blood of Christ, to come there without fear. See, when we come and partake of this, we come trembling, realizing that the only thing between us and total destruction is what's represented right here. There's not a thing in the world that keeps us from being destroyed this moment and forever obliterated and forgotten in the annals of time and history. See, men don't think that can happen.

But this, what this represents indeed is that which stands as a marker of that which is our hope. We don't have anything else. I mean, we've come here, it's not like we've got some other choice or some other way. This is it. And this is what we want. And so that's to take this with fear. We take it with fear. Fearing, you know, lest we should be found to be unfaithful.

You know, when the Lord said that someone was gonna betray Him, all of the disciples but one said, Lord, is it I? You know the one that never said, is it I? Was Judas. He never asked. He just figured it didn't matter. He had no fear of God. But you see a man who, who fears as he comes to, he doesn't wanna, he knows what his heart is. He knows he could deny the Lord. He knows he would deny the Lord unless the Lord keeps him. And the only thing that he has to fall back on is this right here. He can't fall back on his faith because he knows his faith will fail tomorrow. Faith won't hold you up.

Now the faith of Christ will hold you up because it's the faith of Christ that's given to the people of God. But a man's faith's not worth two cents. All the faith of men, it won't amount to anything. The faith of Christ is everything. Raging waves of the sea, wandering stars. And then he says, and Enoch, also the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these. Prophesied of those that are facing this judgment. saying, behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints to execute judgment upon all and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds, which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches, which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.

Here's that word again, ungodly. What is it? It's to be against Christ. Anything that's against Christ is ungodly. Anything that adds something to Christ is ungodly. It may be something that's good. Christ doesn't need anything that men have. See, a lot of, we live in an age when people are told they need to do something for God. Well, I'm here to tell you, you can't do anything for God. Anything in the world you can do for God. Now in His mercy, He may do something for you, but you're not gonna do anything for Him. And I'm not trying to encourage you to do something for Him. I'm praying, oh God, show mercy to them. Open their eyes, give them heart and mind to run to Christ.

And Enoch, the seventh from Adam, you've read about Enoch. He evidently didn't die a natural death. He was taken up somehow. I don't know how old that is. Elijah, same way. I don't know how that happens. I can't explain it. But it's a true thing. Now, there is a book of Enoch. Let me make this statement here. And you may have come across it. You might come across it for some time. There's presently a book of Enoch that you can read. It is not the book of Enoch that this is talking about right here. It has no relation to this. Although some people have tried to make it so, and they point to the veracity of the so-called Book of Enoch by pointing to this passage of Scripture. But we don't have any record of what Enoch wrote except as the Lord taught Jude these things that Enoch had prophesied.

Saying, behold, the Lord cometh. with 10,000 of his saints. Now, over in, I wanna read this, over in Revelation, chapter 19, beginning in verse 11. And John says, and I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse. And he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns. And he had a name written that no man knew but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven, listen to this now. And the armies which were in heaven. That's not talking about the angels. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses. He's on a white horse. And the army that's following him is on white horses. Clothed in fine linen, white and clean.

Now where did that white linen fine and clean, where'd that come from? It came from him whose vestures dipped in blood. That one who sits upon that white horse, that one who's called the Word of God. And out of his mouth goeth forth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations, and he shall rule them with a rod of iron, and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God, And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.

See, that's what Enoch prophesied about. That the Lord cometh with 10,000 of his saints. Now, the number there is not specific. The number is a myriad. is the word thousands in the Greek, is the word we get our English word myriad from. It's an indefinite number, but it means a large number. John said it's a number which no man could number. You could look at this crowd and there ain't no way under the sun you could number it.

Now the Lord knows how many it is, and He could have told us exactly, but He's never in all the Word of God told us how many children He has. Never told us. He says a bunch. Can't be numbered. He knows them. He knows each one by name.

And so He says here that The Lord comes with 10,000 of his saints. Now, when we read that word comes, a lot of people think of that as coming from somewhere to somewhere. And that word can mean that, but that's not what he's saying here. When he says he's coming with his saints, it means he's with his saints. See, we're seated in heavenly places in Christ. And when we come with him, that means we're with him.

Now again, these are things that we can't comprehend. It's those mysteries that are hidden in Christ. How that we are in Christ. See, we've been in Christ from before the foundation of the world. He didn't create the world and then say, what am I gonna do now? And then he lined up everybody and said, Eeny, meeny, miny, moe, you're the chosen. No, he loved his people before he ever created them. I don't know how that is. Some people can tell you how it is. I can't. But I can tell you that the scripture says before the foundation of the world that he chose a people whom he loved in Christ and he chose them in Christ.

We're not chosen out of humanity, we're chosen in Christ. And he created the world with his people. Known unto the Lord are all of his. From the foundation of the world. These are things that take your breath away. They do mine. I mean, when I get thinking about that, I just, I can't comprehend it. But I'll tell you what I do. What it makes me do is fall down and worship Him. Because the only thing that makes me different than those that perish is His grace. Oh, what a glorious thing.

Now those that, some people get mad about it. I've had people get sure enough fighting mad with me before. Talking about that. Because people don't want to hear that. Because men want to believe that they have the power. See, men are not against a sovereign God. Men believe in a sovereign God. The only thing is, they believe they're the sovereign God. And they believe that they're the ones that can choose God. He can't choose them. Well, that'd be wrong for God to choose them. Or not choose them. But they can choose God anytime they get ready. How foolish is that?

The Lord comes with his people to execute judgment on the earth. They belong to him. They're clothed in linen, white and clean. Not of their own making. No. No, they look and they see their hands that are in the scripture called holy hands. And they look at them and they say, how can that be? The only way it can be is because of the righteousness of Christ. And they're made pure in Christ.

How can God's people be known? They're the people that believe him. They're the people that fall down and worship him. They're not as Cain and Korah, Balaam, who, you know, they had all kinds of reasons for doing what they were doing. but they were ungodly. They were without God. Oh, that the Lord might move upon His people today.