In Genesis 19, you can read the account of Sodom and Gomorrah. The cities had become so wicked and sexually immoral that God was going to destroy them. Even as Angels were sent to rescue Abraham’s nephew, Lot, the city showed its true colors. The men of the city beat on the doors of Lot’s house, demanding to sexually assault the visitors. The Angels escaped with Lot and his family.

The behavior Jude is highlighting here is sexual immorality and selfishness. The people who had wormed their way into the church Jude was concerned about were teaching that it was okay to indulge in sin because Jesus had paid for it; they were corrupting the teaching of grace. Like the fallen angels who left their heavenly posts, they were abandoning the high calling of a life faithful to Jesus, filled by His Spirit, for a selfish and wicked existence.

From Jude’s letter, it seems the problem was caused not by the obvious teachers in the church, but rather double agents who had snuck in and taken on influence among the people. This is why his first reference was to a group of grumblers and complainers who incited the Israelites against Moses in Numbers 14. God had led them out of Egypt to the promised land, but when they saw the people in the promised land, they were afraid because they were giants. Certain individuals who had spied out the land stirred up doubt among the people. They did not believe God would give them the land.

Have you ever watched one of those home improvement shows, where they think they only need to repaint, but then discover that there is a huge problem behind the wall threatening to destroy the whole house? Jude started out thinking he was going to write a long letter exploring their shared faith, only to discover a much more urgent and dangerous problem. The church was under the sway of false teaching by people who had snuck into positions of influence.

The part that stands out in Mark that does not appear in the other accounts of Jesus' life are the angel's words found in Mark 16:7, “but go, tell his disciples and Peter.” How tender and beautiful of God to realize that Peter was going to need to be assured that he was still Jesus’ disciple.