The Epistle of Jude 4

 

4 For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.

This is why Jude changed his letter from a word about “the common salvation” (I would like to also have this original letter!) to an exhortation to “earnestly contend for the faith once delivered to the saints”: False teachers, despicable heretics, had appeared.

Certain men crept in unawares – false teachers, heretics, are never upfront, they sneak in with an agenda. “False teachers don’t announce themselves. They use your vocabulary, but not your dictionary.”¹

Before of old ordained to this condemnation – He is about to offer witnesses to the truth that God judges such ungodly men, false teachers, and heretics.

Turning the grace of God into lasciviousness – Lasciviousness is a big word! Here’s how the Greek word is defined and explained: "as living without any moral restraint licentiousness, sensuality, lustful indulgence; especially as indecent and outrageous sexual behavior debauchery, indecency, flagrant immorality.”² This tendency to pervert the grace of God and change it into a license for flagrant immorality is a terrible yet common heresy. We see it all around us today, as many are gleefully announcing that they can believe in Jesus and live any way they want.

Paul speaks of this in Romans 5:20 and 6:1: Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound . . . What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? The answer? God forbid, or simply, No way! It is true, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, but the grace that saves us through faith also teaches us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world (Titus 2:11-14)

Denying the only Lord God and our Saviour Jesus Christ – This is very similar to 2 Peter 2:1 …there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.

Turning and denying are the actions which mark them as ungodly. They deny him either by their works or their words. By their work when they turn the grace of God into lasciviousness, by their words when they disown him as the Christ, only begotten Son of God, the Savior, the One who died and rose again. Probably both.

The word for Lord in the phrase the only Lord God, is an interesting one, a very strong word, despotes, "as a title for God, the one who has supreme power, Master, Sovereign, Lord; as a title for Christ Lord, Master.”² 

“The passage I believe belongs solely to Jesus Christ, and may be read thus:” 

and the only God and Sovereign, our Lord Jesus Christ denying.³

How abominable is this denial and how powerful is this phrase! Yes, Jude is referring to our Lord Jesus Christ as the only God and Sovereign. You see, the faith which was once delivered to the saints is not kidding when it says and we confess;

We believe … in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father.⁴

Is this my confession of faith? Anything less is denying “the only God and Sovereign, our Lord Jesus Christ.”

 

NEXT: Jude 5-16

 

1 Attributed to John MacArthur; I cannot find the source.

2 Timothy Friberg, Analytical Lexicon of the Greek New Testament (BibleWorks 5.0)

3 Adam Clarke, commentary on Jude https://sacred-texts.com/bib/cmt/clarke/jde001.htm

4 The Nicene Creed