Jannes and Jambres

2 Timothy 3:5-9

Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.

Paul calls the ways of the false teachers folly. Someone I once knew had a great big dog named Folly. You know, it was nearly impossible to hide that dog. The sheer size and the noise of its bark gave the dog away every time. Paul is writing to Timothy to warn him to watch out for these men because their foolishness would be apparent. Just like my associates dog that was impossible to hide, so these mens works would be known to everyone. Folly also means foolishness, absurdity, or insanity. At best, folly demonstrates a lack of good sense. At more severe stages, folly could be considered a close cousin to insanity. Folly is a disturbance in rational behavior, thought, and actions prompted by a persons departure from God the Father and his appointed leaders.

For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as their's also was.

See their pattern of behavior: they creep into womens houses. Before you know it, the whole family has followed them just like Adam followed Eve in the garden of Eden all because of an apple and a talking snake. My friends, as a gentleman, Jesus always knocks. Note the only fault of the women mentioned here is gullibility. The punctuation suggests that the teachers themselves are led of their own sinful lust and desires. Gullibility is easily believing a lie that quickly leads to being carried away with sin and evil desires for both. Without faith it is impossible to please God, cautions Hebrews 11:6. These men have been rejected by God, do not possess the faith, nor does he know them. The list of sins that characterize such men are not much different from the ones that sent Christ to the cross. These men deny the power of God and have only the outer covering of Godliness. They were self-appointed, self-anointed, and self-serving. They possess only the outer covering of Godliness, like a wolf in sheeps clothes. Within they were like the whitewashed tombs of the Pharisees from Matthews Gospel 23:27 but full of dead mens bones inside. As such, anything not of God is not his. Do you not know that a man clothed in and possessing Christs righteousness will be transformed by the power of God according to 1 Corinthians 6:20. Furthermore, 2 Peter 1:10 says to make your calling and election sure; thus, make sure the one who called you is God not man nor even yourself. A good example of these men, if such are needed, are the men Jannes and Jambres who withstood Moses. Their rejection of Gods appointed leader led to a rejection of God himself. Imagine all of that standing against Moses, only to get a footnote of recognition in the Scripture thousands of years later. How many of you know that when God is for you, no one can be against you?