Tuesday, 3 February 2015

Forgive them! (Jude v14-16)

Source:https://hoshanarabbah.org

Jude has just been telling us what the truth is in a world of lies. He reminded us that the truth, the only truth, is Jesus Christ came to die for whoever believes in him so that they may have eternal life in Heaven.

Now, he turns to emphasizing that the problem with false teachers infiltrating Christian communities is not a new thing when he reminds us about Enoch.

Verse 14:
"It was also about these that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones ..."

Enoch was the 7th generation following Adam, son of Jared and father of Methuselah (Gen 5:18-21), his prophesy is recorded in the external book, The Book Of Enoch. This is one of the earliest prophesies about Jesus' second coming, coming with all his angels.

Verse 15:
"... to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.

Jesus will come with his angels "to execute judgement on all and convict the ungodly". Jude wants us to understand that the fate of the false teachers, those that have infiltrated our ranks (so to speak) from verse 4 is set in 'stone'. Every wicked person will be judged in the timing of God's choosing. This is an important point that Jude wants us to know. He calls these wicked people the ungodly 4 times: "the ungodly"; "deeds of ungodliness"; "ungodly way" and "ungodly sinners". Remember these people are evil infiltrators who have subtly made their way into our communities by rising up to the top on the backs of others, without considering others, by sweet-talking those in authority. Jude is categorically stating here (four times!) that this is NOT the godly way and that their nature is, in fact, against God.

Verse 16:
"These are grumblers, malcontents, following their own sinful desires; they are loud-mouthed boasters, showing favoritism to gain advantage."

As if being called 'ungodly' was not enough, Jude identifies the type of people he wants his readers not to relate to:

"grumblers and mal-content" - these are similar to the people of Israel in the wilderness, always complaining and grumbling about being in the wilderness, comparing it to their 'luxurious' life in Egypt working as slaves. Grumbling shows a clear sign of ungratefulness, an attitude of 'I deserve so much better that you are giving me', but when times are good, they are the first to cheer, perhaps saying, "I deserve this, I am so good at what I do." Those who are not content with all that they have are always finding fault, never satisfied and always want perfection. Like the grumblers they will complain at the least little thing, but unlike the grumblers, those who are 'mal-content' will complain even in good times. Grumbling and always finding fault is not God's way (remember the ungodly in v15?), they are "following their own sinful desires" they only have one motive in life - their way or no way!

"Loud-mouthed boasters" and "favoritism" refer to people who go out of their way to be heard. They like everybody to know what they do, when they do it and why they do it. They will make themselves known to the people in authority and offer themselves for every opportunity, not allowing others to have a go, they may even put others down to put themselves in the lime light, they definitely like the sound of their own voice!

Why does Jude go on and on about these people? Why does he go out of his way to make sure we know who these people are? Why is it important to be able to recognize them? Can't we just allow them to do their thing and we get on with our own lives and try not to be in their way?

Well, Jude says, "No!" Up to this point, he has been quite clear that these evil infiltrators are ungodly and are only out for themselves (v13). They will stop at nothing to persuade you to follow them.

If you are like me, you will have experienced many like this, perhaps in your workplace or even your church. They have successfully infiltrated everywhere and continuously work to recruit new friends and helpers to their cause, with them as 'absolutely ruler'. They do this in ways that are subtle. Perhaps some friends who were yours first have drifted away when a new person arrives and befriends them, leaving you alone and saddened.

What is the answer? How do we deal with these people?

During the days when Jesus walked the Earth, there were a group who fitted these type of people. They went out of their way to ensure their way of life was superior to all others. They had twisted the rules of their religion and beliefs to make it impossible for anyone else to follow them, so that only they would inherit the great prize. They persecuted those who were not part of their religion. They bore false witness and ganged up on those who stood against them and they looked down upon those they believed were beneath them and not worthy of their god.

Jesus came to radicalize religion, turn it on it's head. It had been twisted for so long, humanity had diluted the law of God for their own gain, none of it was as it was intended originally. It was the perfect time for God to enact his plan from the beginning, his Word becoming flesh. Jesus is the Word and he came to change the way of humanity. He came to put these subtle infiltrators in their place. He came so that people like you and me, can recognize them for what they truly are and believe in the truth. How?

By saying three simple words on the cross ...

"Father, forgive them ..." (Lk 23:34)

We, as Christians, are taught to "forgive those who sin against us!" and here Jesus shows us what to do. We must forgive them for their wickedness against us. We must forgive them for stepping on our backs to reach the top. We must forgive them for taking all the credit for things we have done. We must simply forgive.

Will this make a difference to these people? Will you still get trodden on if you forgive them?

Well, most probably, yes, because they follow their evil natural desires. This is not God's way, this is their way and no other way is important to them, including yours, their wickedness will be punished at judgement. They will be like the Israelite generation who did not enter the promised land and the angels and the Sodomites who disobeyed God and were judged accordingly. They, too, will receive God's wrath directly.

You, however, if you turn to Christ and trust in him completely, then God's wrath has already been appeased for you and your sin, when Jesus said, "Father, forgive them ..." and stretched out his arms and died.