These are spots in
your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only
themselves. They are clouds without water, carried about by the winds; late
autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots;
Jude 12
Dear heavenly
Father, please hear my humble prayer.
You are so giving and so merciful even to the least of those You called
Yours. I don't know if I can praise you
enough. Thank you for a successful
surgery of my Mom. I pray for a
successful recovery. I pray for my
Mom-in-Law who will be going through a heart cath. Please be with her doctors and nurses even
now. Let them be your healing hands and
comfort her heart. Thank you Lord for
Your provision, help me be your witness.
In Jesus name I pray, A-men.
In the next few
verses, Jude will be describing the fate of "these," the false
teachers. To bring deeper understanding
to today's text, let's examine some key words and their companion or similar
verses.
"Spots" in
the Greek is spilas which means hidden
reefs, hidden stains, dangerous reefs, elements of danger to others, hidden
rock, false teacher, flaw, stigma, ledge of rock over which the sea dashes,
damage others, wreck, blemishes.
"Love Feasts" in the Greek is agape
which means fellowship, benevolence, good will, esteem, love which focuses on
moral preference, divine love. Agape in plural means love feasts, poor
mingled with wealthy at the expense of the wealthy, charity, feast expressing
and fostering mutual love held before celebrating Lord's supper, feast of
charity. 2 Peter 2:13 states "and will receive the wages of unrighteousness,
as those who count it pleasure to carouse in the daytime. They are spots and
blemishes, carousing in their own deceptions while they feast with
you." These false teachers are
hidden, kept in secret, elements of danger that will wreck others at the most
communal time of believers. They ruin
the spirit of fellowship.
"Feast" in
the Greek is suneuocheomai which means
sumptuously (splendid, expensive looking) carouse (noisy, lively drinking
party), entertain together.
"Fear" in the Greek is aphobos
which means "without phobia."
Specifically, it means shamelessly, securely, tranquilly, without fear,
without cause to be afraid, boldly without fear, qualm. These false teachers are so secure in their
destiny that they openly, shamelessly, raucously party with no fear of God's
judgement.
"Serving"
in the Greek is piomaino which means
feeding, caring, looking after, shepherd, tend, herd, govern, guard, to cherish
one's body, supply requisites for the soul's needs. Ezekiel 34:2,8,and 10 state "'Son of
man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus
says the Lord God to the shepherds: 'Woe to the shepherds of Israel who feed
themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flocks' . . . 'As I live,' says
the Lord God, 'surely because My flock became a prey, and My flock became food
for every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, nor did My
shepherds search for My flock, but the shepherds fed themselves and did not
feed My flock . . . Thus says the Lord God: 'Behold, I am against the shepherds,
and I will require My flock at their hand; I will cause them to cease feeding
the sheep, and the shepherds shall feed themselves no more; for I will deliver
My flock from their mouths, that they may no longer be food for them.'"
These false teachers care only for their own bodies which they cherish above
all. They are only looking out for their
own skins. They leave their flocks open
to the darkness, but God is against these false teachers and will feed and
deliver the flock.
"Carried"
in the Greek is paraphero which means
blown, swept, turn aside, remove, carry away, I am misled, very closely felt,
lead aside from the right path. It is
made up of para which means close beside
and phero which means bring along,
remove something. "Winds" in
the Greek is anemos which means applied
to empty doctrines, gust of air, storm-like force, someone bent in a particular
direction, very strong tempestuous wind, emptiness of teaching. Proverbs 25:14 states "Whoever falsely
boasts of giving Is like clouds and wind without rain." 2 Peter 2:17 states "These are wells
without water, clouds carried by a tempest, for whom is reserved the blackness
of darkness forever." These false
teachers are without the life giving living water and are being lead away from
the narrow path by empty doctrines and beliefs.
Hebrews 13:9 states "Do not be carried about with various and
strange doctrines. For it is good that the heart be established by grace, not
with foods which have not profited those who have been occupied with
them."
"Autumn"
in the Greek is phthinoporinos which
means wane, waste away, dry, leafless, without fruit, unfruitful, worthless
men. "Fruit" in the Greek is akarpos which means darken profitless, not
born of faith, a waste, destitute of good deeds, contributing nothing. "Dead" in the Greek is apothnesko which means about to die, dying,
separation that goes with dying off, ending, seeds that are perishing,
rotting. "Pulled up by the
roots" in the Greek is ekrizoo
which means plucked up by the roots, uprooted.
These false teachers will be like dry, wasting away, profitless trees
that are perishing that will be removed.
Matthew 15:13 states "But He answered and said, 'Every plant which
My heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted.'"
These false teachers
are dangerous and ruin the fellowship of believers by empty doctrines and
beliefs with no fear of God's judgement.
These false teachers care only for themselves with no feeling of
responsibility for their followers who are left vulnerable to the
darkness. These false teachers follow
the same wide path of destruction as the world.
They are not of God and will be uprooted and thrown into the fire.
If your life's focus is only for yourself, then you have fallen for the world's trap. When you find yourself needing to be noticed or needing to hear yourself speak, when your desire to show your head knowledge not the Spirit's knowledge, when it is important that people know how you serve, when you don't hear what people are saying and only thinking of how the attention can be brought on yourself, you are on the wide path. Life is not about what moth and rust will destroy or fame. It is about Christ. Be humble and serve.
These men are hidden
reefs [elements of great danger to others] in your love feasts when they
feast together with you without fear, looking after [only] themselves; [they
are like] clouds without water, swept along by the winds; autumn trees without
fruit, doubly dead, uprooted and lifeless;
Amplified Bible
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