When the Ungodly Prosper

Introduction: The Difficulty of the Message

Well, church, how are we doing today? It is good to be with you. For those of you joining us live at Clovis, I’m grateful you are here. For those joining us live online, welcome to you as well. And by the way, to those online, I just met a lady—for the first time ever—who found us online and is now here live in the service. That is such a delight. My name is Mike, and I’m the pastor who apparently has a hard time with words today, but I am grateful to get to be with you.

We are going to be in the book of Jude today, specifically verses 14 through 19. As we think through this journey we’ve been on, in a lot of ways, it has been a bit of a punch in the face. For the vast majority of this book, Jude has been dealing with false teachers, and he is not done yet. We have one more week of him talking through the situation his church body was in and what they were dealing with.

You really get a feel for what is important to Jude. Here is a guy who grew up in the home of Jesus—the half-brother of Jesus—who didn’t initially believe. He saw the things of Christ and knew His plans, but it wasn’t until after the death and resurrection that Jude and his other brothers fully embraced the gospel. Now, years later, as he sees false teachers infiltrating the church, Jude is passionately defending the message that his brother lived and died for.

Two-thirds of this book is aimed directly at false teachers. That’s how important it is to him. One commentator said that Jude is not an epistle one reads for comfort or to ponder esoteric questions about theology; it is a letter of challenge and outrage. We are unaccustomed to this much passion.

It reminds me of a good spy movie—like Mission Impossible or the Jason Bourne series. That genre draws us in because it plays on our fears: the idea of someone living a double life, hidden in plain sight. These themes of deception and espionage are all over Jude. These people claim allegiance to one group, yet inwardly, they are loyal to someone completely different. Their goal is to remain undetected, to gain trust, and then to destroy the organization from the inside out. They can do more damage than a thousand nuclear bombs because they are working from within.

Jude feels this way about the false teachers in the midst of the church. He calls them wolves in sheep’s clothing. If they are not identified and uprooted, they will distort the gospel and destroy the church.

A Recap of the Warning

Before we dive into today’s text, it is worth remembering what Jude has already said about these people. He originally intended to write a different letter—one about their common salvation—but he saw an issue so pressing he had to change direction. These men “crept in unnoticed.” They aren’t outside; they are in the gatherings, hiding among believers.

Jude says they are ungodly, turning the grace of God into licentiousness. They take the gospel and twist it to allow for the indulgence of the flesh. In doing so, they deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ. They reject authority—the authority of Christ, the apostles, and the Spirit-inspired Scriptures.

Last week, we saw that these men are like “hidden reefs”—destructive things under the surface that can sink your ship. They are “clouds without water,” promising rain but providing nothing. They are “autumn trees without fruit,” leaving you hungry. They are like “wandering stars” or a broken compass leading the church off course.

This damage is real. In verse 22, Jude tells the believers to “have mercy on some who are doubting.” These false teachers have caused genuine believers to waffle, wondering if the gospel they first heard was actually right. Jude is frustrated, and in verses 14 through 19, he deals the final hammer blow to these teachers.

The Prophecy of Enoch

Jude goes to an interesting place to describe these men. He reaches back to the seventh generation from Adam.

Jude 1:14-15 (NASB)

[It was] also about these men [that] Enoch, [in] the seventh [generation] from Adam, prophesied, saying, ‘Behold, the Lord came with many thousands of His holy ones, to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.’

Enoch’s story is found way back in Genesis. After the fall, two lines arise: a godly line from Seth and an ungodly line from Cain. Enoch is from the godly line, seven generations from Adam. That number seven would have held a special place in a Jewish heart as the number of completion or perfection.

Now, Jude quotes a prophecy from Enoch that you won’t find in your Bible. He is quoting from the Book of First Enoch, an extra-biblical source that the readers of that day would have known and respected. They wouldn’t have put it on the same level as Scripture, but they knew it. It’s a bit like a modern Bible commentary or a helpful Christian book. Paul did something similar in Acts 17 when he quoted pagan philosophers because all truth is ultimately God’s truth.

Jude uses this quote to highlight the coming judgment of the ungodly. In verse 15, he uses the word “ungodly” four different times. He is saying that the ungodly men of Enoch’s day are just like the ungodly men in Jude’s congregation.

There was a conundrum in Enoch’s day that is similar to ours: the ungodly line seemed to be prospering. In Genesis 4, we read about a man named Lamech from the line of Cain. Lamech was a man who bragged about his anger and his murders.

Genesis 4:23-24 (NASB)

Lamech said to his wives, ‘Adah and Zillah, Listen to my voice, You wives of Lamech, Give heed to my speech, For I have killed a man for wounding me; And a boy for striking me; If Cain is avenged sevenfold, Then Lamech seventy-sevenfold.’

Despite this moral nosedive, Lamech’s line was incredibly successful in raising livestock, arts, music, and metal forging. If you were in the godly line, you might ask, “Lord, why do these evil men prosper while we struggle?”

Jude brings this up to remind us that ungodly people have been around forever. In every generation, they seem to prosper, but God has already declared judgment on them—it just hasn’t happened yet. Jesus used the language of the wheat and the tares. These weeds look like life-giving wheat, and they grow up together. That is normative.

Matthew 13:30 (NASB)

’Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, ‘First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn.’‘’

Jesus says, “I’m in control. I know where the tares are. There will be a day of judgment, but not yet.” This was a comfort to Jude’s body. God has already stated how He feels about these people.

The Five Marks of the Ungodly

In verse 16, Jude continues with five characteristics of these false teachers.

Jude 1:16 (NASB)

These are grumblers, finding fault, following after their [own] lusts; they speak arrogantly, flattering people for the sake of [gaining an] advantage.

The first mark is that they are “grumblers.” In the Greek, this is an onomatopoeia: gongunzo. It sounds like what it means. Outside of the Bible, it refers to the quiet cooing of doves. These people aren’t usually shouting their discontent; they are whispering in people’s ears behind the scenes.

This word is used 22 times in the Old Testament, almost always to describe the Exodus generation—the people God rescued from Egypt who spent forty years complaining. They complained about the water, the food, and the leadership. They even wanted to go back to Egypt. One commentator described this disposition as a cancer. It starts on the outskirts of the camp and slowly moves in until it takes over the whole body.

Second, they are “fault-finders.” One translation calls them “belly-achers.” They are always dissatisfied and always blaming others for their situation.

Third, they “follow after their own lusts.” They abuse the grace of God to justify doing whatever their flesh desires. Jude says these men are devoid of the Spirit; they have no internal guide, so they constantly go against the grain of God’s will.

Fourth, they “speak arrogantly.” They are loudmouth boasters. Jude previously called them “clouds without rain.” They are bombastic and abrasive, the total opposite of Jesus, who is gentle and lowly.

Fifth, they are “flattering people for the sake of gaining advantage.” They change their message depending on who they are talking to. If they can say something to a person of influence to get ahead, they will twist the truth to do it. It reminds me of Absalom, King David’s son, who stood at the city gates and murmured against his father to steal the hearts of the people.

I find this list very convicting. If I’m honest, I can find myself in those first two marks pretty easily. Grumbling and fault-finding can feel like my spiritual gifts some days. I can see the negative in everything. But Jude reminds us that these are ungodly qualities. They are characteristics of those who cause division.

The Result of Ungodliness

Jude 1:19 (NASB)

These are the ones who cause divisions, worldly-minded, devoid of the Spirit.

These men promote strife instead of unity. The mark of the true church is unity—we are diverse, but we are unified under the headship of Christ. These men blow up church bodies. They are worldly-minded because they lack the Spirit. They may have been around the gospel, they may have heard the apostles, but they remain hardened.

But You, Beloved: A Call to Remember

Jude then turns his attention to the believers to encourage them.

Jude 1:17-18 (NASB)

But you, beloved, ought to remember the words that were spoken beforehand by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, that they were saying to you, ‘In the last time there will be mockers, following after their own ungodly lusts.’

I love what Jude does here. He simply reminds them that this was all foretold. Unlike the false teachers who reject authority, we submit to the authority of the Scriptures. We shouldn’t be shocked that these men are here; it’s been predicted all over the Word.

Paul warned the elders in Ephesus that savage wolves would come in.

Acts 20:29-30 (NASB)

’I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them.

Peter warned that in the last days, mockers would come, following their own lusts and questioning the return of Christ.

2 Peter 3:3-4 (NASB)

Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with [their] mocking, following after their own lusts, and saying, ‘Where is the promise of His coming? For [ever] since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.’

And Jesus Himself issued the same warning.

Matthew 7:15-16 (NASB)

’Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. ’You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn [bushes] nor figs from thistles, are they?

The fact that these false teachers were in their midst was actually an affirmation that the Scriptures are true. Jude tells them to look back and remember the words of the apostles.

2 Peter 3:2 (NASB)

that you should remember the words spoken beforehand by the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior [spoken] by your apostles.

For two thousand years, the mark of the true church has been a commitment to the Word.

Psalms 119:11 (NASB)

Your word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against You.

We need to be students of the text so we can know truth from error and wisdom from folly.

Psalms 119:15-16 (NASB)

I will meditate on Your precepts And regard Your ways. I shall delight in Your statutes; I shall not forget Your word. Gimel.

The Word of God both affirms and exposes. It shows us what is right, and it casts light into dark places.

Psalms 119:105 (NASB)

Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.

Conclusion and Challenge

We have the privilege of looking back and knowing that the gospel prevailed. Two thousand years later, we are here because that message survived. But in our day, just like in Jude’s, false teachers still rise up. God is still in control, and He has already judged them.

I am reminded of the words Paul spoke to Timothy in a similar situation. He told Timothy how to handle those in opposition.

2 Timothy 2:25-26 (NASB)

with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses [and escape] from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.

Paul rightly identifies the enemy. The people are not the enemy; they are held captive by the devil. The devil is the enemy. Many of us were once held captive by the same enemy until the gospel freed us. The solution for the false teacher is the same solution that was for us: to embrace the truth of Jesus Christ.

Would we be a church that stands for the truth and holds fast to the authority of Scripture, but would we also love well those who are in opposition? Would we be loving, grace-filled, and kind, remembering that we once walked that same path?

Let’s be a church that balances truth and grace as we walk through these difficult days.

Father, thank you for a church that historically has fought for the right things. Help us to know truth from error. Would we be reminded that you are not surprised by difficult times or false teachers. Help us to trust in your sovereignty and hold fast to your Word. Help us to love well and to speak of the gospel’s life-giving power. We love you, and we thank you for the freedom we have in Christ. In His name we pray, Amen.