Verse 17
“But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ;”
Paul had warned that these things would happen; and even more so as the last days approach: “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.” (2 Timothy 4:3-4)
Jude tells us here how to protect ourselves against apostasy - “remember ye the words”. This implies that we have read the Word of God and know it well enough to remember passages from it when required, what warnings there are and what promises we can claim. We have to depend on it and lean on it.
Verse 18
“How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk
after their own ungodly lusts.”
There would be mockers in the last time: Perhaps Jude had in mind those who mock the idea of Jesus’ return. Or he may mean the kind of men who mock those who don’t go along the same path of destruction they travel on.
Mockers… who would walk according to their own ungodly lusts: Those who live according to their own ungodly lusts love to mock those who want to please God. Jude wants Christians to expect this kind of mocking, so they won’t be surprised by it.
Paul warns the elders in Ephesus that after he leaves, they are going to be victims of attempts to draw them away from God -Acts 20:28-30
Peter also warns of apostates in the last days 2 Peter 3:1-4
Verse 19
“These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit.”
A more accurate interpretation of this would be “These are they who make separations” Luther translated this as “those who make factions”, those who bring about division.
There is an example of an apostate to be found in 3 John 1; 9-10, where Diotrephes, who is active in the church, causes a division within the church. He loved his own preeminence. Pride is always a problem in a church, Christ is to be preeminent in a church and not man.
Sensual in this context has nothing to do with sexual attractiveness. It describes the person who lives only by and for, what he can get through his physical senses, and he lives this way selfishly. His motto is, “If it feels good, do it” or, “How can it be wrong if it feels so right?
Note that it says in this verse that the apostates have “not the Spirit”. In other words, they are not saved, they may act the part, but clearly from this we can see that the Spirit of God is not in them. This same description could be written over many churches, or church projects, or evangelism campaigns. The church and the world truly need genuine spiritual men and women today.
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