Jude 1:17-21 (CSB)
But, dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. They said to you, “In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.” These are the people who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit. But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.
This passage of scripture is a call to persevere in our Christian faith and our walk with God. We are told that in the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires. The Bible also warns us about false prophets and apostate teachers in the last days. The devil is trying to pull as many people as he can away from their Christian faith. It is very important to read your Bible and to live a life that is pleasing to God. We need to be very discerning, so that we can recognise the scoffers, false prophets and apostate teachers, who are leading people away from the truth. Apostate teachers are those who have turned away from Bible truths and are now teaching false doctrines, often twisting scripture. We must not let these people mislead us.
The above scripture tells us to build ourselves up in our faith. By reading the Bible and staying close to God, praying in the Holy Spirit and by living a life that is pleasing to God we can build up our faith. We need to walk with God every day of every week to keep growing closer to Him. This is the Christian journey we are on. It is a journey of perseverance and of not being led astray, but to keep growing in our faith and keeping ourselves in God’s love as we wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring us to eternal life.
Dear God,
Please guide and strengthen us on our Christian journey, as we grow in our faith. Please give us the gift of discernment so that we recognise false doctrine when we hear it, and to only be led by the truth of your word. Please guide and help us to live a life that is pleasing to you. Please protect us dear Lord from the evil of this world as we walk our Christian life. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Onward Christian Soldiers 