A Study of the Letter of Jude
JUDE v. 8-25
Teaching Lesson 5
June 13, 2012
Now we have established that Jude is warning the church about false teachers who are preaching false gospel… tonight we will conclude our study by a short review of WHO these people are and then the dangers they pose to the church… finally ending in an exhortation of God by the author…
8In the same way, these people—who claim authority from their dreams—live immoral lives, defy authority, and scoff at supernatural beings.
Ok, here in v8 Jude continues in his description of the people he introduced in v4. In the NLT he says ‘some people’ in the ESV it is translated as ‘certain people’ but the point is that he is using a generic descriptor for a group of people that is attacking the fellowship of believers.
Last week we looked briefly at v8 where Jude informs us how these people think…
They use their dreams as authority for their teaching… like some many cult leaders today project what they dream in their conscious or unconscious mind onto their followers!
And the sad part is that many people fall prey to this every year… the authority of what they follow is not grounded in the word of God but in the dreams of a leader…
These people live immoral lives and scoff at supernatural beings… This is picture of our modern day new age movement. The new age movement is big on projecting god-like characteristics onto humanity… in other words we are ALL gods!
They would ridicule the one who believes in a singular, ALL powerful God, and scoff at the very idea! The New Age movement is also very instrumental in an anti-authoritarian viewpoint, rejecting any and all earthly authority over any person, specifically (but not limited to) anything to do with spirituality…
9But even Michael, one of the mightiest of the angels, did not dare accuse the devil of blasphemy, but simply said, “The Lord rebuke you!” (This took place when Michael was arguing with the devil about Moses’ body.)
Now this verse is a verse that is difficult to understand unless you have some knowledge of Jewish traditions and extra biblical resources…
Just to let you know there are many people who have openly discounted the validity of Jude’s letter… whether or not is should BE in the Bible or not…all BECAUSE he used this extra biblical source for his letter…
This story Jude refers to is what may have been familiar to his audience as it was published in the writings entitled “The Testament of Moses.”
However, the ‘ending’ of the ‘Testament of Moses’ has been lost to us today, and what we do know is that the entire work has been reconstructed by several other authors over the centuries…
In this particular story, the devil is portrayed similar to how he is portrayed in the book of Job. The setting seems to be a sort of legal courtroom setting and that Satan is the accuser or prosecutor in this setting…
He basically argues that since Moses had broken the Law by committing murder in Egypt he was not entitled to a proper burial and so Satan should get his body…
Now while Moses is a grand figure in the history of the Israelite story and worthy of recognition as such… Jude is not using this story to draw attention to Moses.
On the contrary, Jude is using this story to reveal the demeanor of Michael the Archangel and his method of confronting evil…the devil!
What we see from Michael is a controlled response that relies on God’s sovereignty and not any use of slanderous accusations against Satan.
Jude is commending Michael for his self control in addressing Satan. Here Michael is exemplified for referring this matter of accusation to God’s authority… as his only response to Satan was “The Lord rebuke you…”
The choice of Michael leaving the rebuke of Satan to the Lord underscores the gravity of the ‘real’ battle being played out…a grand battle between good and evil.
In Zech 3:2 “The Lord said to Satan, ‘The Lord rebuke you, Satan!’” In numerous encounters with Satan, Jesus rebukes him and his minions time and time again… establishing God’s supremacy over the demonic realm.
So the point here is that God was the lead in rebuking Satan and Michael did NOT overstep his bounds by doing it himself!
When Satan comes OUR way – and he will – We must realize that our rebuke of him will mean nothing to him and will affect nothing toward Him, but when we pray for God’s rebuke of Satan… it is a powerful tool to send Satan packing!
But what does this mean for this story? What does this story have to do with the false teachers that Jude is dealing with in his letter to these believers?
We find the link in the conjunction used to connect v9 to v10… the conjunction gar that is translated as ‘but’ or ‘yet’… here he compares their action to the NONaction of the angel Michael.
They are brazen enough to do what even the Archangel Michael would not do… and in doing so these people are uttering teachings that are totally ignorant of the theological realities of who God is and what God is doing in Christ!
Look what he says in v10…
10But these people scoff at things they do not understand. Like unthinking animals, they do whatever their instincts tell them, and so they bring about their own destruction.
Like UNTHINKING animals… action based on nothing more than animal instinct is how he is portraying these men.
Instinct is all about self preservation and promotion… Christianity is VOID of self instinct and seeks to be more and more submissive to the calling of Christ!
Instinct is all about meeting out the desires of one’s flesh… Christianity is all about meeting out the desires of the God that saved us…
Jude is relating these people to nothing more than mindless animals seeking only their own pleasures… which was in DIRECT conflict with service to God where self is surrendered and submission to Christ is paramount!
11What sorrow awaits them! For they follow in the footsteps of Cain, who killed his brother. Like Balaam, they deceive people for money. And like Korah, they perish in their rebellion.
Jude continues in v11 to relate how bad it is going to be for these people as he gives 3 examples of their fate:
Like Cain… the 1st murderer, the one God banished and set aside and marked. The man who is forever known for his sin…
Like Balaam, the prophet who sold out to money rather than serving the Lord…
Like the people of Korah… these were people who rebelled against Moses in the wilderness and the ground opened up and swallowed them…
Jude paints these people into the same category as these 3 examples. Marked by God as perpetual sinners and sinners of a heinous nature…
Seekers of only self-gratification and promotion… where their ultimate destination is UTTER destruction… THIS is the picture Jude is drawing of these people
A picture he draws to warn those who think about submitting to and living by their teachings… Jude warns about even fellowshipping with these people in v12…
12When these people eat with you in your fellowship meals commemorating the Lord’s love, they are like dangerous reefs that can shipwreck you. They are like shameless shepherds who care only for themselves. They are like clouds blowing over the land without giving any rain. They are like trees in autumn that are doubly dead, for they bear no fruit and have been pulled up by the roots. 13They are like wild waves of the sea, churning up the foam of their shameful deeds. They are like wandering stars, doomed forever to blackest darkness.
Jude compares what fellowshipping with these people can do to their fellowship of believers… He gives six examples of the danger it poses to them:
These people are like dangerous reefs that can sink a ship. The water looks inviting and the sailing looks smooth, but there is danger just under the surface that can be deadly!
These people are like shepherds that don’t care about their sheep and only care about themselves… leading you into places of danger and NOT looking out for your spiritual safety!
They are deceptive and misleading like dark clouds that SEEM like they are going to bring rain, but do NOT provide the needed rain! Full of promises and talk, but all empty inside!
They are like a tree in season that is not bearing any fruit… giving a picture of what Jesus had done with the fig tree that did not produce… gives the appearance of FRUITFUL and HEALTHY but inside they are dead…
They are dangerous like the waves of the sea that can crash a ship into the dangerous rocks or overturn it and drowned those within…
Finally they are as aimless and lost as a shooting star… flying and going thru space but having no real purpose other than flying thru empty darkness… they may look active and busy, but it is empty and doomed activity!
Jude stresses that they must NOT allow these people into their fellowship… and that if any were in, the implication here is to disassociate with those who refuse the true Gospel…
14Enoch, who lived in the seventh generation after Adam, prophesied about these people. He said, “Listen! The Lord is coming with countless thousands of his holy ones 15to execute judgment on the people of the world. He will convict every person of all the ungodly things they have done and for all the insults that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”
These people are NOT new… they have been around since the beginning of time and they will always be around…
These people who seek only to please themselves and live according to their own standard… they would ALWAYS reject God and here Jude tells his readers that these people will be judged by God!
Just then points his focus back on these people describing them even further…
16These people are grumblers and complainers, living only to satisfy their desires. They brag loudly about themselves, and they flatter others to get what they want.
Grumblers and complainers… nothing is EVER good enough, nothing is ever done right, they have a better answer for ALL things… and unless it is satisfactory to THEM, it is rejected and mocked.
They believe they have all the answers and they are not shy about telling you they have the answers… they are arrogant and condescending in their approach to anyone who may doubt them…
But again, these people are deceptive in devious ways as they can use flattery and compliments to gain the ground they need for their purpose… they say what they NEED to say to get what they WANT to get. Jude is warning of these people and NOT to be sucked in by their immense charm and words!
17But you, my dear friends, must remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ said. 18They told you that in the last times there would be scoffers whose purpose in life is to satisfy their ungodly desires.
These people are the type of people that that apostles warned about… and that warning was not JUST to let them know that these people would exist BUT to NOT allow these types of people to infiltrate and pollute their fellowship with their toxic teaching…
19These people are the ones who are creating divisions among you. They follow their natural instincts because they do not have God’s Spirit in them.
Once again Jude puts the blame of any conflict or division upon these people who are seeking their own way… and NOT submitting to the way and purpose of Christ.
They are like this because God’s spirit is NOT in them… they are lost and outside of God’s plan and to follow them is dangerous and foolish!
Jude then switches gears here from WARNING to exhortation of those he believes to be serious about their walk with Christ… He says:
20But you, dear friends, must build each other up in your most holy faith, pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, 21and await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will bring you eternal life. In this way, you will keep yourselves safe in God’s love. 22And you must show mercy to those whose faith is wavering. 23Rescue others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. Show mercy to still others, but do so with great caution, hating the sins that contaminate their lives.
Jude encourages the believers to begin living OUT their faith in a very particular way… He calls on them to:
build each other up in holy faith… This reminds us of Jesus’ teaching in John where He calls us to love each other!
pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, the power of our faith in grounded in the power of the HS… Jesus implies this in Acts 1… it is made evident in Acts 2…
wait on the mercy of God… waiting is NEVER an easy task, and waiting on God requires a FIRM faith in God. God will deliver… have faith in His mercy!
show mercy to the weak in faith by helping them… there will always be weak believers who need our help. Paul teaches about the strong in the faith being there to help those who are weak… its not about judgment or pointing fingers… its about loving and reconciling them back into their walk with Christ…
rescue those who are teetering on the edge of eternal damnation, but be careful in showing mercy to these people because you don’t want to fall prey to the sinful nature they pursue… witnessing is what we are called to do, but living holy life is paramount for our witness to remain pure! If we fall into sin, we cannot help those who need us… be careful to remain holy and pure in our walk!
24Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into his glorious presence without a single fault. 25All glory to him who alone is God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord. All glory, majesty, power, and authority are his before all time, and in the present, and beyond all time! Amen.
The final 2 verses of Jude are a doxology of sorts as Jude now turns his attention away from the evil teachers and from those to whom he is trying to encourage… and he focuses on the object of his faith… JESUS CHRIST!
But I want us to look at these verse and see the imagery Jude paints about the Triune nature of our God…
In v20 Jude exhorts the power of the Holy Spirit… this same Spirit that Jesus promised as a Comforter and Advocate for the believer… as a convictor of sin and revealer of truth… this same Holy Spirit that was promised to be the empowerment of the believer in Pentecost and forward in the building of the Kingdom…
In v24 Jude exhorts God the Father at the source of Salvation, the One who can keep us and deliver us into eternal life…
Finally in v25 we find Jude exhorting Jesus Christ as the instrument by which God provides salvation and deliverance into His kingdom. The Triune God here is elevated and worshipped by Jude and he exhorts those he is writing to… to lift up their praise to Him as well!
Father, Son and Spirit… Three in One… a concept we may never fully understand, but one that is evident all throughout Scripture…
This letter from Jude warns of evil and sinful people who were trying to destroy this fellowship! Jude warns these believers to see these people for who they were… and to avoid them because they would bring nothing but harm to their fellowship!
Jude paints a grim picture of these people AND a very grim picture of what fellowship and following these people will do to the church… he gives several illustrated examples of what it will cause and urges these believers to refrain from forming any lasting relationship with these false teachers!
He encourages them to build one another up and help those who are weak in the faith and even to reach out to those who are lost… presumably to those teaching this false gospel, but warns them to be careful to NOT fall prey to their sinful behavior…
Finally Jude ends this letter exalting the God and Savior he serves… The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are lifted up and he encourages the fellowship to lift them up in praise and worship!
False teachers will come, but we must be vigilant in remaining pure in our walk, but merciful and loving enough to reach out to those who are weak and lost… Jude’s letter is a great letter even for the church today!
