Latest / Meadows Baptist Church Podcast / The Truth About Apostasy - 1/21/26 - Pastor Charlie Branch

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The Truth About Apostasy - 1/21/26 - Pastor Charlie Branch · Meadows Baptist Church Podcast

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  Welcome to the podcast of Meadows
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  Baptist Church of Walnut Cove, North
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  Carolina. We're so glad you joined us
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  today. If you enjoy today's message, be
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  sure to subscribe, follow, and share
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  with your friends. Now, let's join
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  Pastor Charlie Branch with a word from
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  God.
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  Amen. if you would turn with me to the
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  book of Jude tonight. The book of Jude,
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  please. And we'll be back there and uh
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  just praying where the Lord have us to
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  be. I think we're going to look through
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  the entirety of this book. Be honest
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  with you, I think it's very timely uh
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  considering the state of our country um
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  where we're at, all the events that's
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  taking place. I want to deal with some
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  of that tonight. Talk about a few things
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  and ask the Lord to help us give us
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  wisdom.
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  The book of Jude. the book of Jude.
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  A lot of things went on in our country
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  uh in the last week. Uh some things even
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  in our state in the last week and uh our
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  our uh our state's been tore all to
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  pieces about them boys walking and I
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  want to say more about that in just a
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  minute. Uh, but I want to look at these
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  verses tonight and maybe the Lord give
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  us some wisdom here out of this text and
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  uh been praying about what the Lord
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  would have us to say about these verses.
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  I'll be honest with you, I love the of
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  the the love the epistles uh here in in
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  the New Testament and uh what they deal
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  with, what they're talking about. I I
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  love what they have to say. Love Jude. I
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  love John's epistles. I love Peter's
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  epistles. and they all deal with the
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  same thought really and it's relevant to
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  where we're living at in this day and
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  time. And I tell you what, we're living
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  in perilous times.
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  >> And Paul told Timothy that it would be
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  this way. And I think, you know, every
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  preacher in every generation for the
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  last um I mean two 2,000 years has
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  probably thought, you know, man, this is
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  this is just as bad as it can get. Uh
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  but I'll be honest with you, I don't
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  know if it's as bad as it can get or
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  not.
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  >> I really I I think that it can get a
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  whole lot worse. And I know, I'll say
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  this, I know it can get a whole lot
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  worse because there's coming a day when
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  the church is removed. Uh that things
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  are going to get a whole lot worse. And
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  uh and so I don't think we've seen just
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  a drop in the bucket. And I'm praying
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  that God I'm praying even so come
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  quickly, Lord Jesus. And I'd love for
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  him to come. And I ain't nothing hold me
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  in this world. Amen. And I was talking
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  with a dear sister today and made this
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  statement. I said, "There just ain't
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  nothing this life worth hanging on to."
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  and all the possessions and all the all
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  the life that you can buy a hold of. It
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  ain't going to give you any more life in
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  your life.
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  >> That's right.
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  >> It'll all be gone. That's right.
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  >> And uh I just want to make sure I've
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  lived what I'm supposed to live for
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  Jesus. Amen. Jude verse number one. And
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  we'll begin reading there. Look look at
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  just a couple more verses tonight. And I
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  don't endeavor to spend six months in
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  this little book. I don't want to be
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  like that. Um but I do want to make sure
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  that I give you the entirety of what's
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  here. and uh consider uh each of these
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  verses appropriately. Verse number one,
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  the Bible says, "Jude, the servant of
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  Jesus Christ and brother of James, to
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  them that are sanctified by God the
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  Father and preserved in Jesus Christ and
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  called mercy unto you and peace and love
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  be multiplied. Beloved, when I gave all
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  diligence to write unto you the common
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  of the common salvation, it was needful
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  for me to write unto you and exhort you
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  that you should earnestly contend for
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  the faith which was once delivered unto
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  the saints. For there are certain men
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  crept in unawares who were before of old
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  ordained to this condemnation, ungodly
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  men, turning the grace of our God into
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  lasciviousness, and denying the only
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  Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. I
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  will therefore put you in remembrance,
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  though you once knew this, how that the
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  Lord, having saved the people out of the
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  land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them
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  that believe not. Father, I ask you
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  humbly as we look at these verses
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  tonight, you'd give us wisdom and
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  discernment. God, I pray that you will
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  open our eyes uh that we might behold
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  wondrous things in thy law. Pray you'd
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  help us to receive with meekness the
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  engrafted word. And God, I pray that you
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  would uh take hold of us tonight and
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  help us to be obedient, Father, to your
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  word. Be submissive uh Lord, what you
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  have to say to us, God. Give us wisdom
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  and discernment, Lord. Put set a watch
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  about our lips, God. We'd say nothing,
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  be displeasing to you, but God, that we
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  would say everything that would bring
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  honor and glory to your name. And Lord,
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  for what you do, we'll give you thanks.
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  We ask it in Jesus' name. Amen. this
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  text, this portion of the book of Jude
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  that we've come to tonight, verses four
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  and five. We dealt uh pretty speedily
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  with speedily with verses 1 through3
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  there uh a week ago Sunday night. And uh
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  there's more I could say about that, but
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  I didn't have liberty to go back and
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  reind re uh endeavor to teach that. And
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  so I want to deal tonight verses four
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  and five. The Lord helping us. And I
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  want to look at the subject really of
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  the book of Jude and is the subject of
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  apostasy. If you want to title it that,
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  that's what we're going to be talking
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  about tonight. Apostasy. Now, apostasy
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  is not a is not a Bible word, but I'll
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  tell you this, it is a it is a Bible
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  doctrine.
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  >> And what I mean by doctrine, it's a
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  truth that's present in the last days.
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  Literally, every epistle writes about
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  this subject. And apostasy simply means
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  this. It means an an abandonment of what
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  one has professed. a total desertion or
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  departure from one's faith or religion.
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  And I'll say it again if you want to
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  write that down. It's it's it's
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  Webster's dict it's Webster's definition
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  of apostasy. It means an abandonment of
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  what one has professed, a total
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  desertion or departure a departure from
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  one's faith or religion. And a verse
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  that describes this very well is the
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  book of Hebrews.
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  Hebrews chapter number three.
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  Hebrews chapter number three and verse
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  number 12.
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  The writer of Hebrews exhorting the
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  brethren here in verse 12. He says,
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  "Take heed, brethren, lest there be in
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  any of you an evil heart of unbelief in
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  departing from the living God." And so
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  apostasy is literally it's a departure.
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  It's a departure from truth. It's a
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  departure from operating in the fullness
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  of the word of God. Now, what we believe
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  tonight as Baptists that our authority
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  comes from the word of God in that
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  alone. We have no other foundation to
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  operate upon.
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  >> Men can say that they operate in the
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  spirit of God and that gives them extra
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  biblical revelation or extra biblical
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  authority. But we don't believe that
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  tonight. We know that the spirit of God
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  and the word of God go hand in hand. The
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  two complement each other. And so you
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  cannot have the appropriate Christian
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  life without a fullness of the spirit of
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  God and a steady diet of the word of God
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  in your life. And so when Jude in this
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  text, of course, we remember that he he
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  he's exhorting them according to verse
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  three to earnestly contend for the
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  faith. And then he's going to give them
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  the precipice, the reasoning why in
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  verse number four that they should be
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  earnestly contending. Listen to what he
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  says. He says, "For there are certain
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  men crept in unawares, who were before
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  of old, ordained to this condemnation,
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  ungodly men, turning the grace of our
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  God into lasciviousness, and denying the
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  only Lord God and our Lord Jesus
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  Christ." And I want to lay out just five
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  things by way of introduction. Verse
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  four, we'll consider the entrance of
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  apostasy and verse number four. Verse
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  number five, we'll begin dealing with
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  the examples of apostasy tonight. And in
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  verse number four here, he is he's
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  speaking on the matter of those that
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  have crept in. Now, this is literal.
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  Okay, Jude is literally viewing this in
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  the churches in and I don't know if it's
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  a singular church. I do know I do
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  believe that it's more than one church.
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  Uh by the by the terminology that he
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  uses here in verse number four. And he
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  speaks of these men. And what does he
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  say about them? You note that he
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  mentions first of all the stealth of
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  these men. He says, "For there are
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  certain men crept in unawares." That
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  word unawares literally means that they
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  are under the radar. They are not seen.
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  They are hidden from view. They've crept
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  in unawares. They were stealth in their
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  interest. Now, we know tonight that
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  there's people and there's things that
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  happen in our life that slip through the
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  cracks. You've lived any amount of li
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  any time in this life. You know it's
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  true in business. You know it's true in
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  family. And it's definitely true in the
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  church. Amen. There's things that creep
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  in. There's people that creep into the
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  church and they have a form of godliness
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  but they deny the power thereof. The
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  Bible tells us from such turn away.
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  Amen. And it and time reveals those kind
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  of people. And that's what's happening
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  in this text. Jude says there's certain
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  men crept in unawares. He said we didn't
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  see them when they came in but now we
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  see. And the truth is tonight it doesn't
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  take long to find out what somebody
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  really believes.
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  >> Amen. And I like what brother Gra says.
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  I said all the time. He says, "Truth
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  reveals people and trials reveal
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  people." And he said, "If you give it
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  long enough, time by itself will reveal
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  people." And that's the truth. He's he's
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  finding out. Jude is saying there's men
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  that's crept in. They've come in under
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  the radar. And so, the enemy has slipped
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  his minions in to the church here. And
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  then there's not only the stealth here,
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  but there's the sentence that's
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  mentioned in verse number four, who were
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  before of old ordained to this
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  condemnation. Now, it's already been
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  spoken that these men would show up, but
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  it's already been spoken the sentence
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  upon these men. You see, the Old
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  Testament reveals even talks about these
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  type of men that would try to subvert
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  the gospel of Christ in the last day. We
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  know that it's it's come with much
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  affliction. It come with much
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  opposition. And so, you you say,
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  "Preacher, what's an example of that?"
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  that well you think about the gospel
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  before Jesus had ever even ascended back
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  into heaven again there was already an
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  effort being made on part of the
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  Pharisees to withhold the truth from the
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  world they were going to they paid off
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  men to do what to spread a lie that said
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  the disciples came and took his body out
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  of the tomb and so there was already a
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  work that that was being done to subvert
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  the gospel and that's ultimately what
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  this work is I'll say more about that in
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  just a minute but these men have and
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  sinners. Now, what does it mean that
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  they were of old ordained to
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  condemnation? That does not mean that it
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  was for ordained before the foundation
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  of the world that God was going to
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  condemn these men and send them to hell.
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  That's not what this means. It means
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  that the word of God has already spoken
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  about these men and pointed them out.
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  You see, what we see in many churches in
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  this day and time, it's just a it's just
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  a revelation of what Paul told Timothy,
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  >> right?
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  >> In the last days, perilous times would
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  come. men would be lovers of their own
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  selves. And all the listings that he
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  gives, it's already been spoken of who
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  they are,
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  >> right?
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  >> And so it's obvious who they are and
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  what they are. And they are headed for
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  condemnation. God doesn't take lightly
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  to people tampering with his church,
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  >> right?
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  >> And so they are headed for condemnation.
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  They are sentenced. Though they are
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  stealthy, they are already sinister.
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  Now, and I want to say this before I go
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  any further. We can rejoice in that
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  tonight,
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  >> right?
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  >> Because you think about this. Everybody
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  has tried to make a mess out of the
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  church.
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  >> Come on.
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  >> Their sentence has already been written.
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  >> You're right.
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  >> When they make when they when they do
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  their best, when the enemy has tried to
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  to rip the church apart and turn us
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  upside down and inside out, the Bible
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  already tells us that he has ordained
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  it. It's already spoken that he is
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  condemned and those who operate for him.
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  You know, not only the sin, but note the
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  sinfulness in verse four. The Bible says
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  two words there in the middle of that
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  verse. They are ungodly men. That
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  literally means that they are completely
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  and utterly wicked. That's what that
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  means. That ungodly. It's the they are
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  the furthest extent of wickedness. Now,
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  what makes these men wicked is is that
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  they adhere to the outwardness of
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  religion, but on the inside there is no
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  fruit there. There's no faith there. And
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  so, it makes them wicked because they
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  fit in, but there's no faith that put
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  them in.
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  >> Right? There's people that can fit into
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  the church. Amen. And I can tell you the
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  devil can talk a talk better than any of
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  us can. Amen. They can fit in, but faith
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  never put them in. Amen. And that's what
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  happens in a lot of places. And and so
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  he points out their sinfulness, they're
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  ungodly. And then not only their
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  sinfulness that they're ungodly men, but
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  he points out their substitution. What
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  is it that makes them ungodly? Notice
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  verse four. turning the grace of our God
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  into lasciviousness and denying the only
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  Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. So
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  their substitution is is that they are
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  taking grace and putting in its place
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  all uh um complete and utter wickedness.
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  What are we seeing in this day and time?
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  Well, people are taking the doctrines of
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  salvation, they're throwing them out,
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  right?
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  >> Saying that God accepts you as you are,
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  come as you are, leave as you are. Amen.
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  And you'll be fine. Amen. That's the
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  that's the doctrine that the world
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  preaches this day and time. And you
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  know, it it baffles me in this day and
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  time, we have so many Methodist and and
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  even Baptist churches now that are
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  ordaining women preachers and further
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  more than that, they're ordaining
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  sodomite preachers
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  >> in their pull pits. We wonder how is
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  that possible? Well, it's possible
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  because they've tooken take the gra took
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  the grace of God that we operate upon
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  and they've substituted their wickedness
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  for it. That's what's happened. And what
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  this means in this text right here when
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  it says that they've turned the grace of
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  God into lasciviousness, no man has any
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  power to change the grace of God. Aren't
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  you thankful for that tonight? But that
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  word turning means an exchange.
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  Means to take one thing in the place of
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  another. And so they've taken grace and
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  pushed it out and said, "We want our
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  lifestyle. We want our wickedness. We
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  want our ideologies and our theories
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  about life." And so they're exchanging
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  the grace. They're they're they're
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  throwing away what God has blessed us
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  with in order that they might receive
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  the works of their flesh. And notice
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  it's defined in the end of the verse,
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  verse four, with their spurning. Look
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  what the Bible says. They turn the grace
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  of our God into lasciviousness. So
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  there's an exchange and then there's an
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  express denial in verse four. And
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  denying the only Lord God and our Lord
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  Jesus Christ. So they're denying first
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  of all they're denying the Trinity, the
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  only Lord God. That's God the Father,
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  God the Son, God the Holy Ghost. So they
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  deny the Trinity, but they also deny the
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  truth of the gospel. Look what he says.
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  Denying the only Lord God and our Lord
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  Jesus Christ. They're denying him. They
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  are not receiving. They will not adhere
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  to the gospel. Now, I'll say this
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  tonight. Any man or any ministry that
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  does not adhere to the authority of the
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  gospel has no authority from God.
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  >> You're right. Right. And uh I'm thankful
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  tonight for the setting that we have
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  here this evening for this reason
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  because there's a lot of things that's
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  being said right now. And I don't ever
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  remember it being said this way in my
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  younger days, but people now it's been
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  brought to light. Uh you know, we had
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  MLK Day here just a few days ago. And
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  and I've always been taught not by my
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  family, but just by people that were
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  around me that he was a good good
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  God-fearing man and he believed God and
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  the gospel and all of that. But what
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  I've come to find is he didn't. You're
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  right.
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  >> He did not believe the doctrine uh of
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  the trend. He did not believe the
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  doctrine of Jesus Christ, the son of
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  God. He denied a lot of things about the
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  faith. And so really uh I mean if
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  anything, he just had a good word for
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  the world. That's about all he had. Best
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  I can figure. You say, "Why are you
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  saying all that?" Well, I'm saying this
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  is what apostasy is,
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  >> right? When we look at those men and we
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  make them shrines,
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  >> we make them them statues of history and
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  say that they were devout in their faith
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  and in their following of Christ. But
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  what we find about them is really when
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  you really dig deep into their life, you
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  find out they really didn't have any
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  faith at all. You're
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  >> right.
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  >> And this crowd right now that's
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  supporting, the churches that are
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  supporting, this is what shocks me. All
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  right? And I ain't going to hang out
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  right here very long, but it just
• 16:15
  absolutely blows my mind how many
• 16:18
  Christian people are supporting these
• 16:20
  guys that's been walking across this
• 16:21
  country. You're
• 16:22
  >> right.
• 16:23
  >> Those fellas are as wicked as wicked
• 16:27
  gets. You say, "What do you mean they're
• 16:29
  Buddhist?" Just go research you some
• 16:32
  about Buddhism a little bit and just
• 16:34
  just study up on their meditations and
• 16:36
  what they believe about the world in
• 16:38
  which we live. A Christian has no right
• 16:40
  to condone, to celebrate, or
• 16:43
  congratulate anything that those men do,
• 16:45
  >> right?
• 16:46
  >> We we don't we don't adhere to that
• 16:48
  stuff. We don't acknowledge their
• 16:49
  accomplishments,
• 16:50
  >> right?
• 16:51
  >> Because it it's not going to bring
• 16:52
  peace. We know that.
• 16:54
  >> And this is what I'm saying tonight. I'm
• 16:56
  You say, "Preacher, well, they're not
• 16:57
  apostates." And you're right. They're
• 16:58
  not. They've never been a part of what
• 17:00
  we are.
• 17:01
  >> But the people that are congratulating
• 17:02
  them
• 17:04
  >> and cheering them on, that's apostasy.
• 17:06
  >> That's right. this this ecumenical
• 17:09
  ideology that we do not have to be
• 17:11
  separated from from denominations that
• 17:14
  adhere to this stuff. There's a reason
• 17:16
  why we can't fellowship with every
• 17:18
  church in the community.
• 17:20
  >> Right?
• 17:22
  >> You see many churches in this day and
• 17:24
  time, they've adopted the mentality and
• 17:26
  you see it a lot and and there's guys
• 17:27
  that's, you know, that's down through
• 17:30
  years past, you know, they'd say, "Well,
• 17:32
  that that ecclesiastical separation
• 17:34
  thing, we don't we don't really believe
• 17:36
  in that." Well, the problem is if you
• 17:38
  believe the Bible and the doctrines of
• 17:39
  the Bible, you cannot fellowship with
• 17:41
  somebody who does not believe the
• 17:43
  doctrines of the Bible.
• 17:45
  >> If somebody does not believe in the
• 17:47
  virgin birth of Jesus,
• 17:49
  >> we can't fellowship with them.
• 17:52
  >> If somebody does not believe in the
• 17:53
  deity of Jesus Christ, we cannot
• 17:56
  fellowship with them. If somebody does
• 17:58
  not believe that it is the blood of
• 17:59
  Jesus Christ that brings salvation and
• 18:02
  forgiveness of sins, we cannot
• 18:04
  fellowship with them.
• 18:06
  If somebody believes that it's all right
• 18:09
  for a person to be a homosexual,
• 18:12
  >> if a church, a a movement adopts that
• 18:16
  mentality, can we fellowship with that?
• 18:18
  >> No.
• 18:20
  And so there's a there's a time and a
• 18:22
  place in our life. I understand, you
• 18:25
  know, the the operations of peace. I I
• 18:27
  get every bit of that. And and you know,
• 18:29
  people talking about, well, we've
• 18:30
  congratulated Trump. We've paraded
• 18:32
  Trump. No, here's the truth about that.
• 18:34
  We know God as the church has been
• 18:36
  giving us a space of grace,
• 18:38
  >> right?
• 18:38
  >> When he got elected,
• 18:41
  >> all right? I'm not He's not a saint. We
• 18:43
  know that tonight. He's wicked as a
• 18:44
  devil. We know that very well.
• 18:46
  >> Amen.
• 18:47
  >> But here's the truth about it tonight.
• 18:49
  Just because the world flocks to these
• 18:52
  things, congratulates, celebrates, and
• 18:54
  and adheres to this stuff does not mean
• 18:57
  that we should.
• 18:58
  >> Right?
• 18:59
  >> That's apostasy.
• 19:01
  >> When we turn away, it's a willful
• 19:03
  turning away. It's a departure. See, if
• 19:05
  you leave the doctrine, and I I'm trying
• 19:07
  to I'm having a hard time getting off my
• 19:08
  soap box, Sister Betty. But if you leave
• 19:11
  the if you go somewhere else and you and
• 19:14
  you try to yoke up with something else,
• 19:16
  you know what you have to leave behind?
• 19:17
  >> Come on.
• 19:18
  >> You have to leave the truth behind,
• 19:20
  >> right?
• 19:21
  >> So, if you go and hook up with this
• 19:22
  crowd and say, "We're going to link arm
• 19:24
  in- arm.
• 19:26
  >> We got the same goal in mind." There's
• 19:28
  no way that's possible. First of all,
• 19:30
  >> number two, if you do that, you've left
• 19:32
  truth far behind.
• 19:34
  >> Right?
• 19:34
  >> Truth doesn't move. Don't we know that
• 19:36
  tonight? Jesus does not change. Truth
• 19:38
  does not move. Light has no fellowship
• 19:41
  with
• 19:43
  >> Right?
• 19:44
  >> That's the truth tonight. And so he
• 19:46
  tells us here, he says they're denying
• 19:48
  the only Lord God. If they deny the
• 19:50
  deity
• 19:52
  >> of God the Father, there are men that
• 19:54
  crept in. Jude is dealing with these men
• 19:57
  presently. See, it's we think about
• 19:59
  this. Well, they're outside. They're in
• 20:01
  the world. We know that's different. But
• 20:02
  the problem is it's in the church.
• 20:05
  >> There are men that do not believe that
• 20:07
  Jesus Christ IS THE SON OF GOD.
• 20:10
  >> In the church, in good churches. There
• 20:14
  are men that do not believe THAT MARY
• 20:15
  WAS A VIRGIN.
• 20:19
  It would surprise you the amount of
• 20:20
  people that believe that. You say,
• 20:22
  "Preacher, not in the Bible belt, not
• 20:24
  where we live."
• 20:26
  You'd be shocked.
• 20:28
  And the thing is, here's here's here's
• 20:30
  the thing about it. It's so silent.
• 20:34
  They'll they Satan is so He is so
• 20:36
  worried about being effective. If he can
• 20:38
  take one man to affect one person for a
• 20:41
  lifetime, he'll wait,
• 20:43
  >> right?
• 20:44
  >> He'll do that. He really will. If he
• 20:46
  can, if it takes him using one man for a
• 20:49
  lifetime to affect only one other person
• 20:51
  for his entire lifetime, he'll do it.
• 20:54
  You're
• 20:54
  >> right. He doesn't care. Whatever he can
• 20:57
  do to subvert the hearer from the truth,
• 20:59
  that's what he will do.
• 21:00
  >> Amen.
• 21:01
  >> And so we have to be watchful. I'll say
• 21:03
  this. We must be witness to these truth.
• 21:05
  See, the best way, you know this
• 21:06
  tonight, you've heard this your entire
• 21:08
  life, longer than I've been around. The
• 21:10
  best way to know the real thing, the
• 21:12
  best way to tell a counterfeit is to
• 21:13
  know the real thing. Ain't that right?
• 21:16
  >> And so, it very well shows us who the
• 21:20
  counterfeits are. Now, notice here, and
• 21:23
  I need to move. I spent way too much
• 21:25
  time on that. They deny the trinity, the
• 21:27
  only Lord God. They deny the truth, our
• 21:29
  Lord Jesus Christ, the truth of the
• 21:31
  gospel. And John says this is the spirit
• 21:33
  of Antichrist. Notice, notice this.
• 21:35
  First John 2. Listen to what he says. I
• 21:38
  mean, he goes goes to deep extremes to
• 21:40
  explain this. Verse 22, verse number 21.
• 21:43
  I've not written unto you because you
• 21:45
  know not the truth, but because you know
• 21:46
  that no lies of the truth. Who is a liar
• 21:49
  but he that denth that Jesus is the
• 21:51
  Christ? He is Antichrist that denyth the
• 21:54
  father and the son. Those that deny who
• 21:59
  God is in his person. And those that
• 22:01
  deny Jesus Christ, that's Antichrist.
• 22:04
  >> Right?
• 22:04
  >> That is the spirit of Antichrist. You
• 22:07
  say, "Preacher, well, the people in this
• 22:09
  world today, they do mention Jesus by
• 22:11
  name and they mention God by name." But
• 22:13
  here's what you're going to find. that
• 22:15
  homosexual crowd, that sodomite crowd
• 22:18
  that talks about Jesus and and and and I
• 22:21
  hate to do this, but Don Lemon talking
• 22:23
  about how Jesus wouldn't have been that
• 22:25
  way. He don't know the Jesus that we
• 22:28
  know.
• 22:29
  >> They don't know anything about Jesus.
• 22:31
  And them comparing themselves going into
• 22:33
  that church and protesting to Jesus
• 22:36
  going in the temple and turning the
• 22:38
  tables over. I would surprise I would
• 22:40
  not be surprised as every one of them
• 22:41
  burnt in hell for that statement.
• 22:44
  Not even close to the same thing.
• 22:47
  >> They didn't go in there with the right
• 22:48
  spirit. Amen. They went in there with a
• 22:51
  spirit of antichrist on them. That's
• 22:53
  exactly what that was. Let me let me
• 22:55
  just say this tonight. When we consider
• 22:56
  this thought, okay, this is what lays
• 22:59
  everybody else apart.
• 23:02
  If you want to know who the fakes are,
• 23:05
  you're right.
• 23:08
  >> He says in verse number five, I will
• 23:11
  therefore put you in remembrance. And
• 23:12
  this is what I love about this. Jude
• 23:14
  gives us a lesson on preaching right
• 23:16
  here. He doesn't say, "All right, verse
• 23:19
  number four, he he tells us he tells us
• 23:21
  about these certain men and and the
• 23:23
  example that he he gives us the entrance
• 23:26
  of apostasy in the church, but now he's
• 23:28
  going to give us an example." And notice
• 23:30
  he doesn't use an example of somebody
• 23:32
  that's presently in the church.
• 23:34
  >> What's his first example? Notice verse
• 23:36
  five. I will therefore put you in
• 23:38
  remembrance, though you once knew this,
• 23:40
  how that the Lord having saved the
• 23:41
  people out of the land of Egypt,
• 23:43
  afterward destroyed them that believe
• 23:45
  not. So who's he using? He's using
• 23:47
  Israel. He's using the ones that they
• 23:50
  should be most familiar with as Jews.
• 23:52
  And Jude, of course, being a halfbrother
• 23:55
  of Jesus, they knew the law. They were
• 23:57
  very familiar with the law. Joseph being
• 23:59
  their daddy, they knew that. They knew
• 24:01
  that that the law. They knew the
• 24:02
  penitutes. They knew all of that. And so
• 24:04
  they're familiar with the Jews and these
• 24:06
  men, those Jews there in Jerusalem that
• 24:09
  had been saved, they would be familiar
• 24:11
  with this story. What does he say about
• 24:12
  it? Well, notice first of all in Israel
• 24:15
  out of Egypt, he's talking about their
• 24:16
  unbelief. You know, unbelief is the
• 24:19
  first form of apostasy.
• 24:21
  >> You know where apostasy forms? In the
• 24:24
  heart. Amen. That's word forms. Where
• 24:26
  does unbelief form? In the heart. Before
• 24:30
  an action ever takes place in somebody's
• 24:32
  life, before they ever apostasize to the
• 24:34
  naked eye, they've already apostasized
• 24:37
  in their heart and it's unbelief. Notice
• 24:40
  what he says in verse 5. He says, "I
• 24:42
  want to put you in remembrance. I want
• 24:43
  to remind you what the Bible says."
• 24:44
  Amen. That's a good lesson on preaching.
• 24:46
  He's going to go back to the word of
• 24:47
  God. Though you once knew this, said
• 24:49
  you're very well aware of this. How that
• 24:51
  the Lord having saved the people out of
• 24:53
  the land of Egypt. So there's
• 24:54
  deliverance. Now, let me ask you this.
• 24:57
  How many people did God save out of the
• 24:59
  land of Egypt?
• 25:01
  All of them, didn't he? The Jews, every
• 25:04
  one of them walked out of there. Now, I
• 25:07
  want you to think about this with me.
• 25:09
  This deliverance is total. Exodus 13:1
• 25:12
  17-22. If that's not in your margin, I
• 25:14
  encourage you to put it in there. It's
• 25:15
  the text that talks about their
• 25:17
  deliverance. They walked out of there.
• 25:19
  They walked out of there and then they
• 25:21
  walked across the Red Sea. Complete and
• 25:23
  total deliverance. What does that
• 25:25
  represent to us? Salvation. God
• 25:28
  delivered them from bondage. But then
• 25:31
  there's not only deliverance in verse 5,
• 25:33
  but there's destruction in verse five.
• 25:35
  Notice that after he saved the people
• 25:38
  out of the land of Egypt. I'm glad he
• 25:39
  uses that word. All right? Afterward
• 25:42
  destroyed them that believe not. Now, I
• 25:46
  want to put this to rest right here.
• 25:47
  Okay? Does not mean that when they come
• 25:49
  out of Egypt that they lost their
• 25:52
  salvation, went to hell. Not what that
• 25:53
  means. Okay. It is possible. Here what
• 25:55
  I'm fixing to say. It is possible for
• 25:57
  somebody who's truly saved to
• 25:58
  apostasize.
• 26:02
  It's possible. You say, "How is that?"
• 26:05
  Well, they fall away from the truth.
• 26:08
  >> You say, "Preacher, what are you trying
• 26:10
  to say?" Well, let me ask you, who all
• 26:12
  come out of Egypt?
• 26:14
  Moses, Aaron, Joshua, Caleb, and the 12
• 26:20
  tribes and their children. They all came
• 26:22
  out of Egypt. Now, there's three classes
• 26:23
  of people that you have right there in
• 26:25
  that text. You've got those that came
• 26:27
  out of Egypt. You know what happened to
• 26:29
  them? They got to go into Canaan land,
• 26:31
  >> right?
• 26:32
  >> How many went in?
• 26:35
  Caleb and Joshua.
• 26:38
  So, out of two. All right. Two out of
• 26:40
  all those millions of Israelites, two
• 26:43
  get to go in. Moses and Aaron. Let me
• 26:45
  ask you, do you think Moses and Aaron
• 26:47
  were saved?
• 26:49
  >> Doubtless. Right. But what happened to
• 26:51
  them? They didn't get to go in, did
• 26:54
  they?
• 26:54
  >> I'm going to say more about that in a
• 26:55
  minute. But then amidst all of that, all
• 26:58
  right, there's a mixed multitude that's
• 27:00
  present. I'll say more about this in a
• 27:01
  minute. Much of that crowd's lost. What
• 27:05
  is it Paul said? He said, he said all of
• 27:07
  them are, he said, all of them are
• 27:08
  Israel. They're not all Israel. What he
• 27:10
  meant by that is was he said just
• 27:11
  because they're they're Abraham's seed
• 27:14
  don't mean they're his seed in the
• 27:15
  faith. Amen. He's the father of the
• 27:17
  faith. He's the father of Isaac's
• 27:19
  children, Ishmael's children. But that
• 27:21
  does not mean that they all went to
• 27:22
  heaven. Amen.
• 27:24
  >> Just because they were a Jew. Now, I
• 27:26
  want to point out a few truths here. So,
• 27:28
  the implications here in this text is
• 27:30
  that among those multitudes were Moses,
• 27:32
  Aaron, Joshua, Caleb, and all the rest
• 27:34
  of Israel. Joshua and Caleb go in. Moses
• 27:37
  and Aaron were saved doubtless, but
• 27:39
  there were also those who weren't.
• 27:40
  Numbers 11 and verse number four
• 27:42
  mentions the mixed multitude. So, Caleb
• 27:45
  and Joshua go in. Why do they go in?
• 27:48
  because of belief.
• 27:50
  What is it? God commanded them and they
• 27:52
  believed God. And you know what? Because
• 27:54
  of that, God was faithful to them and
• 27:56
  granted them to go in in spite of
• 27:57
  everybody else. All right? So, they were
• 28:01
  able to go in because of belief. But you
• 28:03
  I want you to think about this. Moses
• 28:05
  and Aaron die in the wilderness. Why did
• 28:07
  they die in the wilderness? Because of
• 28:10
  unbelief.
• 28:12
  Say more about that in a minute. And
• 28:14
  then the multitude 20 years old and up
• 28:19
  died in the wilderness. Why did they
• 28:23
  die? Because of unbelief.
• 28:26
  Now, I'm going to give you scripture for
• 28:27
  all this in just a minute. But what's
• 28:30
  the difference? As great a man as Moses
• 28:32
  was, wouldn't we agree that Moses is the
• 28:35
  pinnacle of godliness in the Old
• 28:37
  Testament?
• 28:39
  >> He didn't get to go in. Why did he not
• 28:42
  go in? Unbelief.
• 28:45
  See, here's what separates the men's
• 28:47
  from men from the boys in these in this
• 28:49
  in this thing we call the Christian
• 28:50
  life. How far are you willing to go to
• 28:53
  believe God?
• 28:53
  >> You're right.
• 28:55
  >> And what are you willing to stop at
• 28:58
  >> and say, "I'm not going to believe that,
• 29:00
  and this as far as I'm going."
• 29:04
  >> Now, notice this. You consider here the
• 29:07
  implications of verse number five. And
• 29:09
  I'm butchering this. I've got so much I
• 29:11
  want to say and I ain't got enough time
• 29:12
  to say it. But notice the imagery here.
• 29:15
  I want to say this again. They were all
• 29:16
  delivered from Egypt appearingly. They
• 29:18
  that means that they were saved. All
• 29:20
  right. Apparently, they were also all
• 29:22
  brought through the Red Sea. That Red
• 29:25
  Sea is an image of the baptism means
• 29:27
  they were separated.
• 29:29
  Just stay with me. I'm going somewhere.
• 29:32
  They were saved. They separated. And
• 29:34
  notice this. In the wilderness, what did
• 29:36
  they eat,
• 29:38
  man?
• 29:39
  They were all sustained,
• 29:41
  >> right?
• 29:42
  >> God kept them. What does that man
• 29:44
  represent? Represent the word of God. He
• 29:46
  sustained them. But isn't it interesting
• 29:49
  but that all except two of them died in
• 29:51
  the wilderness. And Jude compares in
• 29:54
  verse number five, he compares that
• 29:56
  instance to apostasy.
• 29:59
  Now, here's what I believe tonight based
• 30:01
  on verse number five. Now, I may be
• 30:03
  totally off on this, but this is what I
• 30:05
  believe the Lord showed me on this.
• 30:07
  Okay? Apostasy is when you've got a
• 30:11
  unregenerate group of people and then
• 30:14
  you've got an unrevived group of people
• 30:16
  and they're all together in unbelief.
• 30:19
  And because of that unbelief, God said,
• 30:21
  "Every one of you is going to die."
• 30:25
  Notice this. All right? You see, all
• 30:28
  except two of these men died in the
• 30:31
  wilderness. And and Jude labels this as
• 30:33
  an apostate. And I remind you, it's an
• 30:35
  inspiration of the Holy Ghost. He says
• 30:37
  this, this is a turning away, a a
• 30:41
  turning over. And what did it start
• 30:44
  from? Well, it started from a group of
• 30:46
  10 guys. It started earlier than that,
• 30:48
  but we I'm going to use these 10 guys
• 30:50
  for the illustration. Okay. All except
• 30:53
  two men died in the wilderness, and one
• 30:55
  event led the nation to apostasize, and
• 30:58
  it was because of one thing, and it's
• 31:00
  discouragement.
• 31:02
  Notice, notice book of Numbers 13. Turn
• 31:04
  here with me. All right, we're going to
• 31:05
  use our Bibles for just a minute.
• 31:07
  Numbers chapter 13.
• 31:24
  Numbers 13 verse 31.
• 31:29
  Numbers 13 verse 31. The Bible says,
• 31:31
  "But the men that went up with him,"
• 31:33
  that's speaking of Caleb and Joshua,
• 31:35
  "the men that went up with him said, "We
• 31:37
  be not able to go up against the people,
• 31:40
  for they are stronger than we." And they
• 31:43
  brought up an evil report of the land
• 31:45
  that they had searched unto the children
• 31:46
  of Israel, saying, "The land through
• 31:48
  which we have gone to search it is a
• 31:50
  land that eateth up the inhabitants
• 31:52
  thereof, and all the people that we saw
• 31:54
  in it are men of a great stature. And
• 31:57
  there we saw the giants, the sons of
• 31:59
  Anoch, which come of the giants, and we
• 32:01
  were in our own sight as grasshoppers,
• 32:04
  and so we were in their sight. And so 10
• 32:08
  of these spies, you know, there were 12
• 32:10
  that were sent over. 10 of them had an
• 32:12
  evil report. And what did they do? They
• 32:14
  come back and tell the entire nation,
• 32:16
  "All right, we're not going to be able
• 32:18
  to do it.
• 32:20
  There's no way that we can take the
• 32:21
  land. It's physically impossible. the
• 32:23
  land is going to bring destruction to us
• 32:25
  and our families. We cannot go in. But
• 32:28
  Moses and Joshua or Joshua and Caleb had
• 32:30
  a different report, didn't they? They
• 32:32
  said, "It's a it's a fruitful land. It's
• 32:35
  a land that flowth with milk and honey
• 32:38
  that God cares for. We be more than able
• 32:40
  to take it." That's what they said. And
• 32:43
  what happens because of that one event?
• 32:45
  The entire nation, chapter 14, Numbers,
• 32:47
  you can turn there and read it. They all
• 32:49
  began to weep because 10 of them had an
• 32:52
  evil report and only two of them had a
• 32:54
  good report.
• 32:56
  Let me ask you something. What's the
• 32:58
  church world look like today?
• 32:59
  >> Right.
• 33:02
  >> I don't know that the majority is 10 and
• 33:04
  two.
• 33:06
  I tell you this what I'm finding. The
• 33:08
  majority of people say it's it's done.
• 33:11
  It's done. So here's what happens. Okay,
• 33:13
  here's what happens. Because of the
• 33:15
  discouragement, they decide not to go
• 33:17
  in. God tells them Numbers 14, you can
• 33:20
  read it. Numbers chapter 14 and verse
• 33:22
  number 23, verse number 29 and verse
• 33:25
  number 30. You'll find out that the
• 33:28
  congregation was prohibited from seeing
• 33:30
  the land. They were not able to go into
• 33:33
  that land of Canaan of course
• 33:34
  representing the land of victorious
• 33:36
  living. And so they were not able to go
• 33:38
  in. They were prohibited from seeing the
• 33:40
  land. Then also the agents, the 10 men
• 33:43
  with an evil report, they died by a
• 33:46
  plague immediately. Numbers 14 verse
• 33:49
  number 37.
• 33:50
  They died immediately by plague. Why is
• 33:54
  that? Why did the children of Israel not
• 33:56
  get to see the land?
• 33:58
  Unbelief. Why did those men die by
• 34:02
  plague? Unbelief.
• 34:05
  What happens later on? They're in the
• 34:07
  wilderness. All of them is not going to
• 34:09
  get to see the land. Remind you this.
• 34:11
  Moses at this point in time is still
• 34:13
  able to go in. Numbers 14. Moses and
• 34:17
  Aaron are still going to be able to go
• 34:18
  in. What happens because of it? Numbers
• 34:21
  20. They're murmuring again.
• 34:25
  I don't know what y'all got. There's
• 34:26
  about 25 people in here coughing. I
• 34:28
  think it's the devil. Amen.
• 34:30
  >> I'm not trying to pull anybody out.
• 34:32
  Don't Don't fall out with me. I'm I'm
• 34:33
  sorry. Forgive me for that.
• 34:37
  Numbers 20. All right. Numbers 20. Moses
• 34:42
  gets angry. What happens? God told him,
• 34:44
  "Speak to the rock." What does he do? He
• 34:46
  smites the rock. What happens? Water
• 34:48
  comes out. God says, "Moses, you and
• 34:50
  Aaron, you're not going to get to go
• 34:51
  in."
• 34:53
  >> Why did they Why did they not get to go
• 34:55
  in? Unbelief. Now, I want to ask you
• 34:58
  something. All right. All of those men
• 35:01
  died in the wilderness, never making it
• 35:04
  to the place where God wanted them to
• 35:06
  be. And really, according to what Jude
• 35:08
  says, they had apostasized.
• 35:11
  Why is that the case? because there was
• 35:13
  a group of men that had crept in.
• 35:15
  Numbers chapter 11 verse number four.
• 35:18
  You read it and the Bible calls them a
• 35:20
  mixed multitude. And what this mixed
• 35:24
  multitude does is spend their entire
• 35:26
  life in Israel subverting the children
• 35:28
  of Israel from faith.
• 35:29
  >> Right?
• 35:30
  >> Here's what happens. You've got a number
• 35:32
  of people who are lost. You've got a
• 35:34
  number of people who are saved. You even
• 35:36
  got leadership who are being led by the
• 35:38
  Lord. And every single one of them
• 35:40
  doesn't get to go in because of the
• 35:43
  discouragement of a mixed multitude.
• 35:46
  >> Good.
• 35:47
  >> So, what do you have in this day and
• 35:49
  time? Well, allow me to draw the
• 35:50
  parallel for just a minute. We've got a
• 35:53
  world that's controlled by Satan and
• 35:55
  he's sending his minions into the church
• 35:57
  by the droves.
• 35:58
  >> Amen.
• 35:58
  >> Good churches are being turned upside
• 36:00
  down all over the place because of
• 36:02
  people that are coming in and causing a
• 36:04
  mess.
• 36:05
  >> And here's the thing about it. Good
• 36:06
  churches are getting few and more few
• 36:08
  and more few and more few and so he just
• 36:10
  has less targets. Right?
• 36:11
  >> Okay.
• 36:12
  >> And so what's happening? The influx of
• 36:14
  the world into the church is causing the
• 36:17
  church to be defiled. That leadership it
• 36:19
  that's trying to lead the church in the
• 36:21
  right direction, but there's people out
• 36:23
  there subverting the hearer. And so
• 36:25
  you've got a congregation that's
• 36:27
  disgruntled with the man of God.
• 36:29
  >> The man of God gets angry.
• 36:31
  >> What happens? the man of God, the
• 36:33
  church, and those people all die in
• 36:36
  apostasy. You're
• 36:37
  >> right.
• 36:42
  >> Verse five of Jude afterward destroyed
• 36:46
  them that believe not.
• 36:49
  Now, you know tonight that some of their
• 36:51
  deaths were very bad. Those 10 men, God
• 36:55
  smoteed them with a plague. Done. the
• 36:58
  rest of them just had to live the rest
• 37:00
  of their life in misery knowing they
• 37:01
  were never going to make it. And the
• 37:02
  fact that their death was the only thing
• 37:05
  keeping the rest of their kids from
• 37:06
  going into the land. Wouldn't that have
• 37:08
  been miserable?
• 37:09
  All of their children wandering around.
• 37:11
  Man, I wish we could go in. Won't you
• 37:13
  hurry up and die? I know that ain't the
• 37:15
  way it was, but you know what I'm
• 37:16
  saying. How miserable that must have
• 37:18
  been for them to just wait around to die
• 37:21
  so their children could go on and and
• 37:23
  possess what they refuse to believe in.
• 37:26
  And see, you know what happens in that
• 37:28
  text? Because they omitted to do God's
• 37:30
  will. Later on in Numbers 14, they
• 37:33
  decide, "All right, we've sinned against
• 37:34
  the Lord. Now we're going to go in." And
• 37:36
  what does Moses say? What are you doing?
• 37:38
  You can't go in now. And so their sin of
• 37:41
  omission led them to sin a sin of
• 37:43
  commission. And when they tried to go
• 37:45
  in, God smoteed them.
• 37:46
  >> You're right.
• 37:48
  >> They died. What I'm saying is apostasy.
• 37:52
  It has its root in lost people. But
• 37:54
  here's what happened. saved people fall
• 37:56
  victim to it. You're
• 37:57
  >> right.
• 37:58
  >> What you're going to find out in this
• 38:00
  chapter, you can read in the book of
• 38:01
  Peter, Lot was a victim of apostasy.
• 38:05
  He allowed the world, Peter said, to vex
• 38:07
  his righteous soul
• 38:09
  >> with her unrighteous deeds.
• 38:12
  And so, what's the truth about this? All
• 38:14
  right. Moses and Aaron because of their
• 38:16
  disobedience did not get to enter into
• 38:19
  the land. Numbers 20:12 and 13.
• 38:22
  Deuteronomy:es
• 38:23
  132-37. Go back and read that in your
• 38:26
  own time. Here's the truth about
• 38:28
  apostasy tonight. Apostasy
• 38:32
  brings death.
• 38:34
  >> All but two men went into the land of
• 38:38
  Canaan
• 38:39
  because the rest of the nation fell
• 38:41
  victim to apostasy.
• 38:44
  And the reason why preachers say we're
• 38:46
  living in the days of apostasy
• 38:48
  is because our churches, our good
• 38:50
  churches are not apostasizing
• 38:51
  themselves, but we're falling victim.
• 38:53
  That's right.
• 38:54
  >> To the ones that are.
• 38:57
  And this is what I would say from the
• 38:58
  heart of a pastor.
• 39:00
  Watch, watch your family. Watch your
• 39:03
  children. Cuz verse four, he says, "For
• 39:06
  there are certain men crypt in
• 39:07
  unawares." Be careful what you let your
• 39:10
  ear listen to.
• 39:12
  >> If somebody's feeding you a bunch of
• 39:13
  garbage, a man, you turn it off. Don't
• 39:15
  use your ear for a trash can.
• 39:17
  >> That's right.
• 39:18
  >> If it don't line up with that book right
• 39:19
  there, you just mark it off. You ain't
• 39:22
  got time to listen to that. There's
• 39:24
  enough bad influences in this world that
• 39:26
  we have to listen to because of our jobs
• 39:29
  and everything else. You don't have to
• 39:31
  bend your ear to somebody who is not
• 39:33
  going to speak the truth at the house of
• 39:34
  God. Amen. I'm just being honest with
• 39:37
  you, okay? And here's what's going to
• 39:39
  have to happen. Verse five, he said he
• 39:41
  destroyed them that believe not. He
• 39:43
  destroyed them because they believed
• 39:47
  not.
• 39:49
  Unbelief brings apostasy and apostasy
• 39:52
  brings death. So be careful when the
• 39:54
  preacher preaches something and you say,
• 39:56
  "Well, I just don't believe that."
• 40:02
  >> Amen.
• 40:04
  >> Unbelief brings apostasy.
• 40:07
  Apostasy will
• 40:10
  every time bring death. You say, "Well,
• 40:14
  preacher, it ain't going to bring
• 40:15
  physical death in my life immediately."
• 40:17
  You're right. It might not. But I'll
• 40:18
  tell you this, it'll bring death to your
• 40:20
  life in Christ.
• 40:21
  >> You're right.
• 40:22
  >> Because the moment you say, "I I just I
• 40:24
  don't believe that. I don't see it that
• 40:26
  way. I don't believe that." You know
• 40:28
  what you've done? You've cut yourself
• 40:30
  off spiritually.
• 40:31
  >> You're right.
• 40:33
  >> God will be merciful to you. I'm going
• 40:36
  to tell you, apostasy is a short road to
• 40:40
  a very deep ditch.
• 40:44
  It is. You've heard it said, "There's
• 40:46
  ditches on both sides of the road." And
• 40:47
  there is and apostasy is the route to
• 40:49
  get you there.
• 40:51
  >> Both sides.
• 40:53
  Legalism and liberalism. Amen. We better
• 40:56
  tread lightly. Amen. I hope that helps
• 40:59
  you tonight. We'll look again on next
• 41:01
  week concerning that subject. Deal with
• 41:04
  the angels. I'm not looking forward to
• 41:06
  that, but we'll get there. Amen. Father,
• 41:08
  thank you for this time. Thank you for
• 41:10
  allowing us to study your word. God,
• 41:12
  help us to see what we Lord, help us to
• 41:16
  mark in this world. God, I know our our
• 41:19
  friends and our families, Lord, many of
• 41:21
  us, they're just flocking to this stuff.
• 41:23
  Whatever looks good, whatever feels
• 41:25
  good. Lord, help us to be different,
• 41:28
  be set apart,
• 41:31
  not just not just bank on everything
• 41:33
  comes down the pipe. Lord, help us to
• 41:35
  just take your word and live it and be
• 41:38
  Christians and love you and serve you.
• 41:42
  Be what you want us to be. God, help us
• 41:44
  to identify the wolves. Help me as a
• 41:46
  pastor, Lord, to identify the wolves,
• 41:48
  Father, Lord, before they get the sheep.
• 41:50
  Lord, I pray you'd help us in these
• 41:52
  days. Keep us from falling away and keep
• 41:55
  us in your will. And we'll thank you for
• 41:56
  what you do because we ask it in Jesus
• 41:58
  name. Amen.
• 42:00
  >> I love each
• 42:01
  >> Thank you for joining our service today.
• 42:03
  We'd love it if you join us in person
• 42:05
  the next time you are able at Meadows
• 42:07
  Baptist Church. Our physical address is
• 42:10
  2988
• 42:12
  Stewart Road in Walnut Cove, North
• 42:14
  Carolina. Our service times are Sunday
• 42:17
  school at 10:00 a.m., Sunday morning
• 42:19
  worship at 11:00 a.m., Sunday evening
• 42:22
  worship at 6:00 p.m., and Wednesday
• 42:24
  evening Bible study at 7:00 p.m. For
• 42:27
  more information, visit us at
• 42:29
  meadowsbaptisturch.com.
• 42:32
  Thanks again for tuning in.